Revlon Colorstay Longwear Nail Enamel

I was extremely excited when this product came out. It's marketed as a nail polish that has the longevity of gel nail polish. So... I stalked my local drugstores until I found a display at CVS (makes me sound like a creeper!). I picked up the pretty copper color, 140 "Fall Mood" and the top coat.  I was really puzzled because I did not find their base coat on the display but I later learned that the base coat didn't come with the original display. That's just weird and makes no sense to me. I really wasn't willing to order the base coat online, so I set it aside and waited for the base coat to come into stores.
I finally had a chance to do a mani and here is the verdict. I loved the color- a beautiful metallic copper that looks a lot like rose gold. Here's what the polish looks like (plus base and top coat):

Application was a breeze and the formula easy to work with. However, I noticed that it took FOREVER to dry. I used thin coats but even after an hour, I managed to mess up my nails pretty badly, which you can see a little bit of in my pinky in the picture above. also, the polish had a really strong, strange smell. I couldn't quite place my finger on it (no pun intended!), but I guess the closest way to describe it was a strong, plastic-y odor. Usually this wouldn't bother me but it actually continued to smell for a few days- until I removed it.
This is Fall Mood after 2 coats For some reason, the nails make the polish look much more orange. The way it looks in the bottle is dead-on though.

Revlon says that this nail polish will last up to 10 days however, I removed it after four. I was impressed at the fact that there was no chipping, but there was some noticeable tip wear. I tried to get a picture, but my camera wasn't picking up on it clearly. Overall, I did notice that this polish stayed on longer than most, but the strange smell really threw me off. I think I'm going to pick up another color to make up my mind about this line.

Have you tried the Revlon Colorstay Longwear Nail Enamel? What color(s) did you try and what was your experience with it?

Guest Mani!

Hey all!

Today's post will feature my friend Jessica's mani. She used Essie Lilacism and Essie Cute as a Button for the accent nail.

Image credit: Jessica

I love the way she used two of the hottest color trends for spring- a pastel and a bright coral (you guys know I'm all over coral right now!)
If you aren't into brights, pastels, especially lilac, is very flattering on every skin tone. A great alternative to Lilacism is Essie's St. Lucia Lilac in case you can't get your hands on Lilacism.

What do you think of Jessica's manicure? What fun colors have you been trying for spring?

NOTD Essie Punchy Pink

Hey all!
Today's manicure is a fun BRIGHT pink- Essie's Punchy Pink. With the warm weather we're having in NYC this week, I felt like this was an appropriate color because it reminds me of spring. Every time I look at my nails, this bright color makes me happy.

The application was a dream for this one. The formula was on the more watery side, typical of Essie polishes, but it was easy to apply, streak-free and dried pretty quickly. Looking back on it, this would have also made a gorgeous Valentine's Day mani.

What colors are you loving for spring?

Red Carpet Gel Nails

Hello all!
The subject of today's post is a topic that is near and dear to my heart- gel nails. Before gel nails came on the scene, I would either use silk wrap or acrylic on my nails, both of which are incredibly damaging, so that I wouldn't have to worry about a broken nail or chipping nail polish. Gel polish however, completely revolutionized manicures as we know it. It offered a beautiful, long-lasting manicure without sacrificing the health of the nail plate and actually helped protect the nails so that they could grow longer. What was even better than salon gel manicures, was the gel manicure anyone could do at home. Red Carpet Manicure has recently come to beauty supply stores such as Ulta (where I bought mine) and Sally's. I've even seen them at some of the larger Duane Reade drugstores. I think that what the company offers is a wonderful and versatile line of products that are affordable, and very well worth the price. So let's have a look.

First up is the LED gel polish curing machines. They offer a portable one, priced at $19.99 which takes three minutes to cure the polish. They also offer a larger one, which I've dubbed "the amphitheater" which, compared to other gel polish curing machines, is extremely small, light weight and portable by any standards. It will run you about $49.99 and cures polish in 45 seconds. This is the one I have and it looks like this:

The next product is the gel polish base, Structure. It is a clear polish that is quite thick, making it more difficult to apply. It also has a very strong, odd smell, kind of like vinegar or salad dressing :P ! You can see from the picture below just how thick in consistency the base is.

What is wonderful about Red Carpet Manicure is that they have a HUGE selection of gel polish colors to choose from. While the colors are mostly classics (pinks, nudes, darks, reds), they do have a small selection of more fashion-forward colors such as glitter top coats as well as a variety of finishes (jellies, frosts, glitters, metallics, cremes). I picked up two shades- a light, sheer pink and the black. Both are extremely sheer- after 3 coats, the black is still a see-through jelly. Both are of a standard consistency and are extremely easy to work with. However, there are colors in the line that are completely opaque, just not the colors I happen to pick up. Though the bottles are small, they cost about $9.99 a piece but again, are well worth it.

The next product is their topcoat/sealant, Brilliance. I expected this one to be thick and harder to work with like Structure, but it was not. Brilliance is actually on the runnier side so I had to be very careful about cuticle flooding. However, after curing, it left a hard, extremely shiny finish that I was happy with. Neither the actually gel colors or brilliance have the strange smell that Structure has.

So, now that I've reviewed the products that the company has to offer, I'll go over how I use it. First, I do a standard manicure (shaping the nails, a light buff, pushing back and moisturizing the cuticles, clipping back hangnails). Then I'll prep the nail with nail polish remover to get rid of any cuticle oil or cream residue. The company offers a bottle of "Prep", but I find that it is not a crucial step that affects the longevity of my manicure. I then apply a think coat of Structure and cure in the amphitheater for 45 seconds.

Creepy hand in UV light picture!

I then apply 2 coats of gel color curing each coat for 45 seconds. I sometimes will not apply any color and will just apply Brilliance (more on this below), which I cure for 45 seconds. After applying topcoat, the last step is to apply 'Purify" which is used to cleanse the nail and remove all of the tacky residue. While I do have this product, I often use pure acetone as it works just as well and is a more cost-effective option. I also hear some ladies use 90% Rubbing Alcohol and swear by that too. Either way, by this last step, my nails are smooth and shiny.

As I mentioned above, sometimes I'll just use the base coat and the top coat with no color in between. This way, I can use any polish I want over the top and not have to worry about chipping and I am not limited to using just gel colors. I know others who sandwich a gel base, a normal polish, then gel top coat in between. With nail polish, I'm a commitment-phobe so I prefer to not get locked into a single color! :D



This is what my nails look like after I cure the base+top coat

I did a clear gel manicure last night and painted on two coats of Deborah Lippmann Lady Sings the Blues over it. Review to come!

Deborah Lippmann Lady Sings the Blues

What do you think of gel manicures? Have you ever done it at a salon or have you done it yourself at home?