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Nail Polish

Maybelline 549

Monday, 8 August, 2011

 

 

I know what you’re thinking. Maybelline. Really? I don’t recall seeing Maybelline polish back in the US. Then again, I never really looked, either. I purchased this last weekend at a smaller Åhléns near my home. I’m still overwhelmed every time I step in there. I don’t know why.

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BB Couture

BB Couture – Glampyre and Overall Beauty – Baby Me

Monday, 25 April, 2011

I happened to catch a tweet from Kim at Overall Beauty about some samples. Like any girl out there, I’m a freak over samples. When I was in Paris and I’d go to Sephora, I’d totally live for the samples of shampoos, conditioners, face creams, etc they’d put in the bag when you’d purchase things. I’m so bummed the Sephora here in the US doesn’t do that, but the fact that we have Sephora at all is a good thing…

Anyway, Kim from Overall Beauty sent me this package and said I should get it in a few days…try the next day! All hail USPS that can haul butt like that. 😉

I literally squeed with glee when I opened the package: a full sized bottle of  a color that was created for a band called Saints of Ruin (www.saintsofruin.com) commemorating the release of their new album due out soon called Glampyre. Incidentally, that is also the color name of the polish, too! Their lead singer, Ruby Ruin, helped create this color that I love wearing. I’m a dark nail polish kind of gal. I googled them and they were described as a Bay Area goth band…and the long dead goth girl in me did a happy dance. I’m a huge supporter of all things Bay Area and especially if they’re good. If you haven’t had a chance to listen to their music, please give them a shot – you won’t be disappointed.

Check out the pretty things I got from Kim at Overall Beauty – www.overallbeauty.com

Nail polish!

Eye shadow!

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Uncategorized

I’m baaack!

Sunday, 24 April, 2011

Ok, my self imposed two weeks off have been good. Plus, it’s been raining here and there. When I wanted to swatch, the weather wasn’t coordinating. I got tired of trying to plan accordingly.

The sun came out last week and cooperated enough to get me re-motivated.

In the meantime, what have I been doing? Watching trashy tv (Real Housewives) and working on my friend Joanna’s blanket for her impending birth to a baby girl. I’ve been sneezing over my cat and hanging with friends. Oh and of course, job hunting. It does get so discouraging after a while, but I won’t bring that in here.

I was watching Real Housewives of Orange County tonight and just had to roll my eyes at Alexis and her, “I’m going to be a designer but I don’t know what couture means!” She gave a bogus explanation that had the girl in me who LOVES haute couture cringing…and the French speaker in me weeping for her ignorance and stupidity. Anyway, enough about trashy tv – but feel free to email me or friend me on Facebook to talk about those shows! I’ve been catching up with the Real Housewives of New York, too. Maybe it’s me, but I don’t find Alex McCord attractive at all. 🙁 She looks like a skull with a wig on. Maybe it’s me. She is not my idea of head turning. I just don’t understand why people say she’s beautiful/pretty.

I’ve got an awesome blog post and blog giveaway on a polish I am featuring in tomorrow’s post, so stay tuned!

Thanks for being so patient with me.

xoxo

Carinae L’etoile

Blueberry scones

Sunday, 20 March, 2011
Blueberry Scones

It’s a rainy and kind of sunny Sunday. It’s one of those strange dichotomies we rarely have in California, but it didn’t deter from my normal Sunday routine.

What is that? Why, I bake, of course!

However, that normal Sunday thing was slightly waylaid thanks to Rescue Beauty Lounge’s Iconic/Ironic collection landing in mailbox on Friday. The rain, in theory, should have put me off on swatching, but it didn’t.

Anyway, while these bad babies were baking, I painted my nails…

Don’t hate. Instead, stare at the pictures and download the recipe at the end of the post after the jump!

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Essie – Chinchilly

Thursday, 10 June, 2010

I love this color…how can you not? It’s a creme. It’s a mushroomy/taupe-y color. It dried quickly. It didn’t bubble. In a word? Fabulous! (Saying that in my best Tim Gunn voice, btw.)

Please excuse my bad manicure application on my right hand.

Zoya nail polish swatches

OPI Flutter Collection (Part I)- Wing It! and Catch Me In Your Net / Zoya – Charla – Summer 2010

Sunday, 6 June, 2010

Ok, so…I’ve got some colors here that are a part of OPI’s  Summer 2010 Collection called Flutter.

So the first color I’m showing is called Wing It!

I’m not a fan of this shade. It’s a bit too sheer for my taste…to make matters worse, I feel this pink is a bit too youthful for me. Like Fairy Princess kind of pink for a little girl. What may camera failed to capture was the pretty iridescence of the glitter. It’s actually prettier than the actual base color! So while I was disappointed in this color, it was a bit too pink/too close to coral for my taste.

Look carefully at this color…isn’t it gorgeous? It is, isn’t it? Scroll down for the reality.

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So here we are…literally dupes. You can’t see how gorgeous this (these) color(s) is(are) – it’s like mermaid scales. There is a slight green shimmer and gold glitter that runs through it. Absolutely gorgeous. What a pity that it’s a total dupe of Zoya’s Charla.  So…surprise! If you weren’t able to get a hold of Charla, grab OPI’s Catch Me In Your Net.

Heck, here are the ding dang bottle shots!

The formula on this was runny and hard to work with. Both of the colors above were 2 coaters.

Nubar – Twilight and Sunset – Night Sky Collection – Spring/Summer 2010

Friday, 4 June, 2010

Finally! As promised the rest of the collection…you know, a whole 2 polishes.

Attention: Nail tape newbie strikes again! yes, another epic fail on my part. But I do get credit for trying, right? 🙂 Also, I used the Diamond Top Coat that came with the polishes. It said it would be shiny…and it wasn’t. You’ll see in the pics. Also, I don’t have another Twilight shot because…I deleted it in my attempt to multi-task – you know, book plane tickets, pay bills and run some pics through Photoshop. I learned my lesson, I promise!

Anyway, the formulas dried fast, but I still wasn’t thrilled with them. I guess I’m hard to please? I feel like I’ve seen these colors before and I have – they are Orly’s Metal Goth collection. Sorry, Nubar…I wasn’t impressed with this collection.

Nail tape n00b alert! See? But you can’t really see the shine, can you?

This was sort of matte, sort of shiny…and the top coat wasn’t super shiny and you can see it on my ring and middle finger. I tried to leave the pointer and pinkie finger as a matte.

Chanel РGold Lam̩

Thursday, 3 June, 2010

Ok, I know I haven’t posted the pics for my nail tape n00b thing, but I do have a valid reason – I didn’t have my camera today. So you’ll have to settle for Chanel’s Gold Lamé instead. Tomorrow is when you can see how I was an epic fail for the Nubar Night Sparkles collection.

By nature, I abhor gold anything – jewelry, nail polish…you get the idea. Then I saw this…and had to have it. Go figure. Don’t know why I had to have it. Like I was going to stab someone if I didn’t have it kind of thing.

Now that I have it I go, “Oh. Can I have my money back?”

It was a lot more sheer than I expected it to be. It bubbled up on me because I did 4 coats. I gave up when I saw it bubbling. It took forever to dry in between coats. I took it off right after I swatched it. How sad. 🙁 Anyway, sadness below.