Update: Auld Lang Syne Sheet Music

You're gonna look at these pictures and think how terrible this polish was. Don't think that. I was not shy about saying how hard it was to work with the base on this but for all that it did last fairly well. I only had a small chip on my second to last day. Then on the very last day one whole polish shell fell off. What is it with me and bad New Years Eve manicures? And looking back at that post, the same darn thing happened to the exact same two nails! Chip on the left pointer, entire right middle finger's polish fell off whole.

What are the chances?

Update: Santa and Reindeer

Yet another short update.

The only real problem area I had was my left pointer.

Other than that, just the typical wear and tear.

Hope you all had a nice holiday!

Jess

Update: Christmas Hippos

The only down side to this manicure was that I had the song stuck in my head for the entire week.

I had to patch a few cracked teeth here and there but otherwise, marvelous.

Jess

Update: Santa Hats

Boy did I bubble the heck out of these. It annoyed me all week. I was tempted to take 'em off several times and redo them. Other than that, they were pretty much perfect.

A few edges are lifting, the right middle finger was just about to give. But that's really all. :)

Jess

Update: ILNP Cygnus Loop (H)

As much as I loved this look it was a real pain to keep. The CL(H) started chipping the very first day and refused to give up. It was a constant battle to keep it looking nice. On the very last day, I lost two of them. Whole.

Lots of compliments on it. And it still mostly looks good. It was effort. I didn't have a base coat on so that may be part of it.

Jess

Update: JulieG Holiday Frosted Gumdrops

These are great polishes. For the durability at this price point they're a steal. No chips, no peeling, no weirdness with the growth at the cuticles, hardly even any tip wear.

See that? Considering the last texture I wore, which chipped pretty badly by comparison to these and cost me twice the price, I very much recommend these.

With one word of caution.

Update: Zoya Cola and Color Club Revvvolution

I was going to title this ZC and CCR...and then I giggled because CCR. Favorite CCR song. Again, you're welcome.

It's once more with the very short post. Nothing much to mention here, everything worked out well.

Just tip wear. Things are starting to get a bit hinky at the corners and one of the jewels was starting to catch at my hair but it all was coming off anyhow, so who cared. The only note of complaint is that darn Revvvolution. It was a bust in the holo department, never even noticed it.

Jess

Update: Halloween Pumpkins

As cute as it was, I fought it the whole week. The Hot & Spicy just kept trying to chip and mess it all up. I managed to keep it intact but it was definitely an uphill battle.

Because of all that effort it ended pretty strong. If you could get in close you'd see all the fixed edges though. The good thing about the orange is it didn't stain my nails a whit, so that mostly makes up for it.

On a personal note, to anyone who liked the post on the facebook page or gushed about them in person and happens to be reading this, thank you! That meant a lot to me. I was really proud of these so it was neat to have everyone else think they were as nice as I did lol.

Jess

Update: A-England Bridal Veil and Princess Sabra

Excellent polishes, almost no issues. One chip at the last minute.

Another positive and short post. I'm okay with that, yep.  lol

Jess

Update: Zoya Ibiza

Once again, the only bad thing about a good polish is they make for boring posts.

Absolutely nothing until the last day, which was an extra day, and then that right thumb and the inside of the left thumb chipped small amounts. Tip wear. The end.

Jess

Update: Hard Candy Emerald's Eve

Zero unexpected issues. I didn't even have one of them pop off whole!

Some tip wear and you can't see 'em but there's some rough and jagged edges that got grabby (mostly my hair) through the week. Other than that, nothing at all.

Jess

Update: Cirque Dark Horse

Very little to say about this. No issues whatsoever during the wear.

Just some tip wear exacerbated by the SV use. Other than that, smooth sailing. The only note of concern, and it's a minor one, is because it's glitter removing it will be awful without using foils. Otherwise, perfect.

Jess

Update: Glitter Gal Belgian Chocolate

As Dana mentioned in a previous post, I am not happy with the Lippmann Gel Lab set. Sucks. Hate it. I had so many problems on that first mani and while it didn't happen a few days later with that one as she said (because I used a different top and base when I repaired, see), it happened with this one. I probably shouldn't have used them again on this but I was really hoping it was something I did. That does not appear to be the case. It's like it intentionally causes massive chipping for me. So unfair.

The Belgian chocolate itself was lovely. I said in the application post how it was sort of thick and that adding some thinner might help it out a bit? Well I got my chance to find out.

Update: Deborah Lippmann Bad Romance

It almost was. A bad romance that is. As I said, this was a lemming of mine and it almost broke my heart on the very first day. It chipped terribly. A twenty-freakin'-dollar polish should not do the things this did. And to top it off, I used Ms. Lippmann's Gel Lab Set. How on earth does it not work on her own polish?

Update: FNUG Holo Color Blocking

Using a base color (in this case it was the black) helped so much with the holo's eagerness to fall right off my nails. I got some pretty significant gouges here, but it was LOADS better than the first paint with no base color, so don't let them fool you.

The color itself still looks gorgeous. I've seen how some holos, and even some regular cremes and shimmers, tend to fade over the course of a week. Not the case with these ones, they were eye-catching the whole week.

Jess

Update: OPI I Think in Pink (and stickers)

Okay, the stickers were a pain to remove. Right up there with getting glitter all over the place. The Kiss package doesn't come with removal instructions so I just used acetone and a cotton ball like always. Despite the fact that several of them started lifting before the week was up even with all the top coat I slathered on 'em, it was like the acetone glued 'em back down and then they smeared all over the place before they started breaking up. I had little chunks of sticker all over. Ick.

The polish itself was...well, it's OPI, there isn't too much that needs to be said there. It was still pretty pristine. I had some edges that were just about to chip but nothing at all obvious.

Update: Ninja Polish Dragons

I'm going to make a series of pictures called My Hands in Windows. I made it to my living room ones this time. Once I hit all those in my house, I'll go on tour like Harto!

As for the polish, it was stellar. Although I bet a big chunk of that can be attributed to the Essie base. That's why I like it, see. Still, absolutely no issues at all.

Probably could have let it ride for another week, too. Bored though. Great polishes, you should definitely go get yourself some.

Jess


PS If you have never watched My Drunk Kitchen, go do so and start with the older ones. Hannah Hart is freaking hilarious.

Update: Avon Saturn

Not a smooth start on this one. Another of those weirdos that had the tiny chipping on the first day but once it was fixed, almost no problems the rest of the week. Why does that happen?

When I repaired it, I decided I should use Avon's liquid freeze just because hey, it's all Avon and it should work better, right? Naw. The third coat I put on took extra long to dry even with the speedy topper added. On the zoom you can see pressure marks on my left middle and ring fingers.

Regardless, it's yet another of those that began poorly but somehow turned it around and went the distance. Great polish.

Jess

Update: Cirque Epoch

When I was painting this on I thought it was going to be one of those ones in which I was very disappointed. It's supposed to have all of that duochrome loveliness to it but that whole first day all I really saw was green.

Thankfully, I was wrong. The colors showed pretty often and I was very pleased. It did start to chip, very tiny at the tips, in less than 24 hours after I painted and then continued that pattern the rest of the week. None of them were too awful until this last day.

Updates and Other Stuff

Hello! Yes, it's been a while since I was here. Jess has been doing such a superlative job that I've just stood back and let her do it! And, I've been super-busy with summer time family stuff, work, and DLC. Ok, so that's no excuse, but it's what I've got :o)