Uptown Visions Dream On

Hi! I am 10 minutes away from it being not April here anymore, but I will adjust the time on this blog post so that it appears to be April still. I know that's cheating but I was watching a movie and didn't think it would end that late.

I bought this polish really long ago. I was in a pharmacy and I was looking around and I saw a new display. I'd never heard of this brand before, and there's an explanation for that in the polish I bought. It was a buy one get one free thing, I think, so I just picked up the two colors that looked best to me: this one, and a red shimmer.

The first thing I noticed after I was done painting was that it didn't last long. Within a day I had tip wear, and usually that doesn't happen for me. So I ditched it and when I rearranged all my polishes, this one went into the little corner that rarely ever gets opened.

I did 2 coats with top coat. The photos are very deceiving because I added top coat before I took them. When dry, it's flat and has no depth. But I have to make it look good for the last day of April, right?

 

(artificial lighting)

Looks pretty in the bottle, huh? I would tell everyone to NOT buy this. I'm sorry, Uptown Visions, but I can't get the horrible first experience I had out of my head. If the dried result was pretty it wouldn't be so bad, but it's boring when completely dry.

It's 20 minutes past 12am but not according to the timestamp ;)

Blue Ombre Mani

It has been a long and tiring week for me. I have been studying almost non-stop for the entire week. I took a break from studying today after my test and and will take another day off before I start studying again for another test next Tuesday. Then I have 2 weeks to study and then my final exams for this semester. I love life.

I had a huge scare earlier because I knew there was a rat in one of the rooms in my house, which is the tv room, which has two huge sliding doors. I had to use a broomstick to close the doors. I couldn't even bring myself to set up the rat trap my brother asked me to. I think the rat is still in there. But my post is delayed thanks to that little guy.

No royal themed mani today, because I didn't have time and I know some of you are sick to death of that.

I did this mani in honour of Autism Awareness month. I love my blues. I like every blue I've ever tried on me, which is why it's on my list of favourite polish colors after red. Red. I think red month doesn't come until October, which is AIDS Awareness month.

This was done before I went on holiday about 2 weeks ago. I didn't really have time to take pictures before, so if you see lots of tipwear, forgive me, because I probably took those after I returned. And I did edit the photos because some parts were too monstrous.

 

Pinky: Models Own In The Navy, 2 coats
Ring: Barry M Cobalt Blue, 2 coats
Middle: Barry M Pure Turquoise, 2 coats
Index: Elianto Alice Blue, 3 coats
Thumb: Wet 'N' Wild French White Creme, 3 coats

The Elianto polish was the hardest to work with. I think I had to redo it like 3 or 4 times.

I need to mention how much Twitter has entertained me recently. Even people who are in crisis manage to make others (me) feel better after my rat scare. Me and my two skins. Haha. It's hard enough to make me laugh out loud at stuff I read/watch, which is one of the reasons why I never type 'lol'. I do think with the word 'lol' but I rarely, if ever, type it or say it.

Which reminds me, I HATE when people say 'lol' or 'lmao' or 'rofl' in a real life conversation. If it really is funny, you'd be laughing out loud, not saying 'lol'. It's one of my hugest conversation pet peeves. My friends do it and I feel like slapping each of them each time.

My mom just got the iPad 2 so I'll be going into my room to play with that now! Haha. Have a good weekend, I'll have a new post tomorrow (or later today for me). (:

OPI Pirates of the Caribbean Part 2

How excited are you to see this post? About damn time, right? I am so excited to publish this!

As you know (or not), I have been swamped with loads of work. But I still manage to prioritize. My nails are all done, and now I can do work!

I have a lot to study for tomorrow's test, so this shall be short and sweet (and promoted on my Twitter as many times as I feel is appropriate).

This time I have saved the best for last, so as you go down the photos will get better and it'll be in increasing favorite-ness (is this a word?). I feel a bit high today. I drove like an absolute nutcase this morning and probably pissed a lot of people off. I wasn't even late or anything.

 

Sparrow Me The Drama

Don't you just love this name? I did 3 coats with top coat (no base coat). I'm not really a fan of pinks, because a lot of them don't look good on me, but I'll wear this just because it's to do with Pirates :D

Sparrow Me The Drama

Planks A Lot

I love purples and I love this. I don't have one like this (but my stash is a lot smaller than most of yours). I did 3 coats with top coat and no base coat. Which is why my nails were stained blue when I took this off. I wore this for a couple of days. Wear a base coat, guys!

Planks A Lot

Mermaids Tears

I am in LOVE with this. 2 coats with top coat and base coat because I am wearing this as a full mani now. I did the second coat a bit thicker because I didn't want to do a third. Also, the sun came out for this one! That's how awesome it is!

Mermaids Tears

I might be a bit biased, being a huge Pirates fan, but I think this collection is AWESOME. Not exactly the kind of colors you'd think about for Spring but I don't have Spring so it doesn't really matter. I am glad I have the entire collection. I will cherish this until the day I die.

I hope you enjoyed that! If you missed Part 1 of the collection you can see it here!

In case you haven't noticed, my nails are much longer now, which I kind of like, but this is only because I haven't had time to file them down (really) and I have to pray that they survive being long until I get to file them to a safer length.

Okay that wasn't as short as I thought it would be. Have a good week! (:

OPI Pirates of the Caribbean Part 1

Hi! I miss blogging so much. I have such a huge backlog now, if I used it to build a dam it could probably block the Niagara Falls.

I did a couple of blue manis, which I'll have to post within the next week or so because April is almost over! Anyway, for once I'd like to be the early one (didn't exactly happen with Teenage Dream) and post some pretty crappy swatches of OPI's Pirates of the Caribbean collection.

Pirates is one of my favourite movie series. How could you not love it? The moment I knew OPI was releasing a Pirates collection, I nearly shat myself (not really). I didn't really care what the colors were going to be like (unless they were really bad) but holy crap, it was PIRATES.

I wanted to swatch the entire collection at once but the weather, unsurprisingly, changed from super hot and sunny to gloomy followed by a huge thunderstorm. And I was racing against time, because I knew the weather was going to turn bad (the clouds were forming and all) and I had 700 words of a very boring essay to churn out.

So excuse the very shitty pictures (you'll know them when you see them). All swatches were without a base coat and with top coat. I initially wanted to only do them on my right hand, which is more photogenic, but again, that would've taken much longer. The photos will get worse as you scroll down :/

Skull & Glossbones.

I LOVE this. Not only was the application easy peasy, I loved the color too. I did 3 coats. The name is pretty cute too. Haha.

Skull & Glossbones, in the shade.

Stranger Tides.

This was a little harder because I was painting with my really shaky left hand. The formula was okay though. 3 coats. I smudged my pinky nail so I'm showing you only 3 nails. I liked this too.

Stranger Tides, in the shade.

Steady As She Rose.

Oh god. Told you the pictures would get worse. Just look at it. I actually tried this on my right hand first but it was so bad that I had to re-do it on my left hand. I suck so bad at painting. This was one coat and top coat over 3 coats with top coat. I wasn't happy with it for some reason and decided to add another layer. I make bad decisions huh :/  The formula on this was somehow the worst so far.

 

Steady As She Rose, in the shade.

This was before I added the extra coat. (this is 3 coats)  Now I can't remember what was wrong with this :/

I'm really bad at describing colors, so I hope the pictures give you a general idea of what the colors look like. They are all cremes and all very murky/dusty/grungy-looking.

I hope that is enough to hold you over for a couple of days. I would've swatched the other 3 today but the weather was MAD. And I had a long night. I was finishing up my essay after a lot of procrastination and only got 2 hours of sleep last night.

I was so uninspired, I couldn't think of what I wanted to include in my essay. Then I had a mini panic attack thinking I wouldn't be able to finish on time and I'd get zero marks. I drank coffee at 1.30am, ate Pods and an ice cube, went to bed when I really couldn't continue and woke up 2 hours later to finish the essay. Then I had to run all over campus to find a stapler, my lecturer wasn't in his office and I was going to be late for my movie.

On the bright side, I watched Source Code with my friend today because my mom got a pair of free tickets to the cinema and she gave them to me. I liked the movie, although I think it's a little too paradoxical. It was pretty good though.

Anyway, I hope you guys are having a good week. Oh, and happy (?) Good Friday! (I am still extremely bummed that I don't get to go for my Good Friday ritual with my family because I need to study for some upcoming tests)

If this post has sounded/looked weird in any way, it's because I'm high.. on sleep debt.

EDIT:
If you're looking for Part 2, it's here. (:

OH and the trailers for Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides!

Nina Ultra Pro In A Tiff

Because it's April/Autism Awareness month, I've decided to keep wearing blue. It's not that hard, since I do have a few blues which need to be worn. I will probably pull out something completely not blue at all once April is over though.

At first I thought this would be a blue creme, but when I got it I was pleasantly surprised. In the bottle the shimmer is very obvious, there's bits of pink, blue and silver. It's also pretty obvious when it's still wet, but as it dries, the shimmer gets a little bit shy and decides to hide in the thick creamy base.

Also, it's not exactly blue. It kind of looks like it wants to be Tiffany blue, but isn't exactly. Tiffany blue has a bit more.. yellow (?) in it. I thought about the name for awhile, and 'In A Tiff'? Wordplay on the word Tiff? As in Tiffany?

Anyway, it's pretty thick and opaque, so I did 2 coats with top coat. I had no issues with it except for the thickness, which can be fixed with thinner anyway. The wear was good too. I wore this Sunday to Thursday with minimal tip wear. Imagine the pictures with a bit more green/yellow. They came out too blue. If you click to enlarge the pictures, you'll see the hidden shimmer.

Under fluorescent lighting: it's really not as blue as it appears here.

I'll probably update this post later with a bottle picture and maybe a wet/dry comparison.

Also, a lot of people have left some very lovely comments on my guest post on colorfulbottle's blog, which I am very grateful for. Thank you guys so much (if you're reading this)! If it's a tutorial you want, then it's a tutorial you'll get (I think I adapted this from a movie, was it Troy?). I hope you don't mind being a little bit patient because I barely have time to paint my nails let alone do a tutorial. After my exams things should slow down a little and I'll be able to do it then. (:

By the time you read this, I'll probably be on my weekend holiday. I'm on a family holiday despite my busy university schedule. I'm almost at the end of the first semester. And I have a law and ethics test on Monday, which is the day after I get back from my short vacation. :/

I hope you're all having a great weekend! (:

Skin Food Skin Tight Jeans

Before anyone asks, I completely made up that name. It's not really called Skin Tight Jeans, I'm listening to Katy Perry's Teenage Dream on an iTunes radio station and this polish appears to not have a name, and it doesn't even have a code!

In light of Autism Awareness month, I've decided to do a whole bunch of blues, as many as I can. I'm wearing blue right now, so are my toenails and my iPhone. I've already got a few blue manis planned out :D

Anyway, I don't know what happened with this one, but there are sheet marks and I couldn't get any good photos. I was only wearing this as a 'transition' polish, for a day or so before I got my swap package.

In the bottle, this looks like a very promising polish but it lacks depth and doesn't dry shiny. Even with top coat I feel it's not as shiny as it should be. I really think it could've been so much better.

I did 2 or 3 coats. The quality isn't as good as I was hoping for it to be. In my previous experience, I had dragging with it and bald spots. That happens with another green Skin Food polish I have too. I used China Glaze Fast Forward top coat, but it still lacked shine.

Forgive me for the horrible photos. This was the only other blue I already had photos of. You do NOT want to see the blue creme I have. Those are BAD.

I forgot to describe it. It's a navy blue with lots of blue and little bit of pink shimmer. Pretty in concept, but again, no depth.

And then I got my swap package from Kellie and decided to try a couple of them out:

Icing Frost Yourself on Skin Tight Jeans

Sinful Hottie on Skin Tight Jeans

How was that for blue month? I know I haven't been all blue so far but it's not too late to start, right? I'm currently reading (or trying to read) a book by Jodi Picoult called 'House Rules'. It's about a teenager with Asperger's Syndrome (a type of high-functioning autism) who is accused of murder. It's been extremely good so far.

I hope you're all enjoying your month so far. I have a terrible week to go through: 2 lab reports, one 1500 word essay, another report due and a chemistry test (which got cancelled - yay!). Then I have to study for a law and ethics test which will happen on Monday in the week after next week, and I'm going on a family holiday over the weekend. Which means I have to try to get all my studying done before the holiday :/

By the way, I failed my test on Wednesday. But so did a whole bunch of my classmates so it's not that bad.. Right? ):

I really like the last picture. Can't stop staring at it (:

Guest post on colorfulbottle's blog

For those of you who follow Dolores's blog, you'd know that she now has a guest post segment every week. She asked me to do one and I was extremely happy that she would have me on her blog.

So, if you'd like to find out what I did to cause this mess:

Click *here* to find out! (:

 

OPI Diva of Geneva

I'm going to leave you with one last post before I go on another crazy week of studying. I have a test every week now. Any remnants of a life that I may have had previously are slowly slipping away. What has my life come to? I don't know, I'll let you know when I have one =.='

Anyway, before I go into my room to hide in the coolness of air conditioning (it was 36 degrees Celsius today!), I want to show you OPI Diva of Geneva from the Swiss collection. I didn't buy this for myself, I bought this for Kellie.

I have to admit, she has a very good eye (um.. two good eyes) because the polishes I got off her wishlist are awesome. One of them was this one. I didn't do full swatches because I felt bad just swatching something that I was giving away, plus I was lazy. But this'll be enough, right? Quality over quantity? ;)

I can't descibe this because I suck at describing, but the pictures turned out pretty good so you can see for yourself. I did 2 coats, with top coat I think.

I was wondering why this was on her wishlist at first but I completely understood once I saw it in person. I was almost tempted to keep this for myself. Haha. 

I only have one polish from the Swiss collection, which is Lucerne-tainly Look Marvelous, and that one certainly looks marvelous (what?). I hear the Swiss collection was a hit though, or did I hear wrongly? They're pretty for me but not pretty enough for me to go out and buy them.

Wish me luck for my probably-happening test on Wednesday! (:

China Glaze Below Deck

I couldn't blog all week because I was busy studying for a test that ended up being postponed. I should be happy, except that I spent all week studying. Now I have to study again. ):

As you may (or not) have known, I won the second prize in Michelle's birthday giveaway. I won two nail polish rings! Nail polish. IOn a ring! I mean, I knew they existed but I didn't think I'd own any in the near future. I do love rings but can never find any that I like when my wallet permits it. Thank you so much for this, Michelle! <3

I don't know if you are sick of seeing the China Glaze Anchors Away collection yet but I'm not!

Below Deck is so pretty. I think it's kind of chic. It's probably the most 'chic' color I have. I couldn't stop staring at it. I probably look like a nut staring at my nails all the time but I just can't help it. This color makes me feel happy. (:

I did 2 coats with top coat. It looks a bit scratched up because I didn't take photos immediately after I finished. And I think I broke a corner off the nail on my right index finger.

Under my desk lamp.

And just for fun, a picture with a strawberry I bit. I like fresh strawberries (:

The smell of strawberry milk and ice cream makes me wanna barf. I only like them fresh and occassionally as flavors of certain foods.

I really wanna keep my nails a bit longer but they keep peeling and breaking. I like the length it is at now (longer than in these pictures) but I'm guessing that I'm not going to be very pleased with what I see when I remove what I have on now. Why can't I have naturally healthy nails? ):