Monthly Archives: March 2012

New Product: ‘La Fresh’ Acetone-Free Nail Polish Remover Pads (trial & review)

March 30, 2012

Painting my nails is not only fun, but calming and somewhat therapeutic as well – removing the fruits of my labours … not so much. Nail polish removers are an absolute necessity for anyone who owns nail varnish (ie: everyone), and now, thanks to La Fresh’s new ‘Acetone-Free Nail Polish Remover Pads’, that chore has been elevated to “beneficial spa status”, in my humble opinion! The best part? One pad is not only enough to thoroughly remove nail polish from all ten fingers (or toes), but also deposits penetrating nourishing oils behind when you’re done – with no chance of any accidental spills!

According to the company:

“One pad cleans and conditions all 10 nails with an unbelievable fresh Tuscan blood orange scent. Formulated with a nourishing blend of vitamin E, aloe, glycerine, rosemary and horsetail extracts. Free of acetone, acetate, parabens, glycols, dyes, PEG’s, artificial fragrances and animal by-products. 100 Percent biodegradable pad material”
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These wipes are permeated with the intoxicatingly fresh & vibrant scent of the Tuscan Blood Orange, which will have you sniffing your fingers in pure pleasure! (source)

I decided to test out this product’s claims with a shade that’s well-known for the mess it can leave behind: a vivid red-leaning coral (shade shown is Dior’s ‘Riviera’, review forthcoming). After having worn this lacquer for a full 5 days, I was skeptical indeed that one tiny pad would be able to effectively remove all traces, but for the sake of experimentation, I dove in. OH MY LORD, WAS I EVER WRONG! First of all, upon tearing the packet open, I almost started salivating at the heavenly scent! And this yummy-smelling product was about to remove my nail polish?

This small pad, blew me away: not only was each side enough to thoroughly remove all traces of polish from each hand, but there was no residual staining left behind – all the removed material was completely embedded onto the pad AND ONLY THE PAD! Next, I noticed how quenched in nourishing oils my fingers/nails were, an effect which seemed to last for quite some time, long after I was done.
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each pad is conveniently individually packaged

directions and full ingredients list clearly indicated on each packet

A view of the solution-soaked pad – looks tiny, right?! But you’d be surprised …

actual size of the pad juxtaposed beside my thumb

one side of pad, used for one hand

… and the other side for the other hand

astonishingly: no staining or residue left behind – all polish removed, firmly contained within the pad

a view of my freshly cleaned nails: note the healthy shine and hint of nourishing oils (PS: disregard my poor index finger – a casualty of a vegetable chopping incident!)

Final thoughts: I have found my HOLY GRAIL of nail polish removers, and for someone who swatches as many lacquers as I can in one day, you have no idea what this fabulous product means to me! Apart from its incredible effectiveness, these La Fresh nail polish remover pads also have portability to recommend them, and as there’s no messy liquid involved, you can safely and comfortably carry them in your makeup bag or purse. Available in several quantities (all in US): $4.99 for 8 packets, $9.99 for 18 packets, $19.99 for 42.00 packets, as well as $100.00 for 200 packets, this product can be purchased directly from the company’s website here, or through Amazon. I can pretty much guarantee that once you try these, you can never go back to anything else you’ve used before! These will be definitely going into the “ommorphia hall of fame” …
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PROS:

portable
non-acetone
no harsh scent
helps to condition nails
biodegradable
non-toxic
natural ingredients
cruelty free

CONS:

needs to become available EVERYWHERE!

*About La Fresh Group: Based in Chino, California, La Fresh Group was founded in 1997 to offer unique skin care, cosmetics and travel amenity wipes to those who seek quality, simplicity and the freshest experience from their personal care products. The La Fresh promise is to provide better products with better design at a better value for a better world … works for me!

*Disclaimer: Product sample provided by the company/PR for my unbiased consideration

Guest Post on Fashion Polish!

March 27, 2012

When Sam from Fashion polish recently contacted me to write a guest post for her blog, I was absolutely thrilled & happy to do so; for those of you who’ve been living off-planet this past year, you should know that this incredibly talented blogger with photos that are simply “to die for’, has truly inspired many of us to raise the bar with our own work. In honour of her having reached more than 2,000,000 (yes, that’s TWO MILLION) pageviews in just under a year, she has been generously hosting many bloggers’ handiwork – congrats, Sam clinks glasses
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Thank you, Sam, for letting me be a part of your milestone celebrations, and here’s to many, many more posts in the future (you know you can’t possibly stop now – we would all go into instant nail lacquer withdrawal!) Please hop over to her site to check out the full story!
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Hugs! xox

Eugenia

Essie – Bridal Collection for Spring 2012 (swatches & review)

March 26, 2012

I find it so refreshing that today’s bride isn’t limited to wearing the exceedingly overdone french mani anymore; while there will always be those faithful to the understated “natural” look (if the red carpet trends are anything to go by, nude nails aren’t going away anytime soon), there will always be those that want to stand out – enter Essie’s 2012 ‘Bridal Collection’, four urban hues that have been amped down in volume, but no less sophisticated as a result. All swatches are with Essie’s All In One Base Coat and No Chips Ahead Top Coat.

“pretty maids, all in a row”

‘Instant Hot’ was my biggest surprise of this collection; a medium thick formula in a softly diffused rose-tinted white hue, it bears ultra-fine silver shimmer hidden deep within its core that comes out to play when sunlight hits it or when seen with flash – other than that, it stays mostly dormant but adds a nice depth to round out this shade. As it can be slightly streak-prone, I ended up applying 4 very thin coats to achieve the creamy look of the following swatches, although three would have definitely worked as well. Beautifully glossy and levelling off smoothly, I totally LOVE this colour – so worth the extra effort for this thoroughly modern take on white.

in sunlight

closeup

indoors

with flash

‘Love & Acceptance’, a greyed-out dusty lavender crème hue, bears a much thinner formula than ‘Instant Hot’, allowing it to apply a touch easier, with a similar glossy end and smoothly levelled surface. With 3 coats, you can achieve a completely opaque look, although I applied 4 layers for the following swatches, in order that the end result appears ultra-smooth. Excellent flow and a nicely muted take on purple, this is a colour that works well with both cool and warm skin tones.

in sunlight

backlit

indoors

with flash

‘Who Is The Boss’ is a touch chameleon-like; a dusty Wedgewood blue one moment then taking on a muted sage green tinge the next, this was in a similar formula to ‘Love & Acceptance’ and bearing the same flow, smooth appearance, and glossy finish as well. Once more, I found myself applying 4 thin coats for optimum opacity as well as swatching purposes, although 3 layers would ordinarily be more than enough. I absolutely love shades like this, that seem to be viewed as though through a filter – so romantic!

in sunlight

backlit

indoors

with flash

‘Like To Be Bad’ (I’m sorry, Essie…I don’t get the name connection here!) was another surprise; a nicely flowing formula, this is a fleshy pale pink hue with some secretive pink duochrome shimmer going on deep inside – an almost imperceptible flash, unless seen in direct sunlight, but which serves to add a nice depth just the same. As with the others of this collection, the finish was perfectly self-levelling and glossy, although I applied 4 thin coats for the following swatches to keep it all consistent.

in sunlight

closeup

backlit

indoors

indoors/secondary view

with flash

Final thoughts: I personally associate pastel hues like these four, more for Easter than a wedding, but I can still appreciate how effective they can be for one’s nuptials – adding an unexpected touch of soft colour for the “big day”. The formula on all was pretty good overall, and while ‘Instant Hot’ had a few initial application issues, I still felt it was worth it as the shade is so far removed from your run-of-the-mill chalky whites. ‘Who Is The Boss’ also stole my heart, as it’s a great way to wear this type of green hue, one that won’t come off as overwhelming or distracting. Essie has managed to once more pull another rabbit out of their creative hat, giving us four lacquers in today’s urban tones, but delivered in a traditional formula … the best of both worlds!

Kindly provided by Essie for my unbiased consideration

*Wedding Crowns/wreaths my own

From the heart: a loving “thank you” to a-england!

March 23, 2012

Now that the initial frenzy over Adina Bodana’s latest creation, ‘The Legend’ (full review here) from her immensely fabulous nail varnish line, a-england, has finally hit a more normal level, I wanted to take a few minutes and write a proper thank-you.

In January 2011, when Adina tentatively and with great hopes attached, launched a-england, I was hooked – and this was even before I actually got the chance to even look at her products, let alone try them out in person. Something about the entire concept – a nail lacquer line with personality & history, not to mention my passion for medieval England and all things Arthurian, and I was a goner … imagine my delight when this amazing woman sent me a few bottles to review, winding up eventually sending me the entire first collection, ‘The Mythicals’ – nail polish nirvana, I tell you!

Speaking of Adina, let me tell you what I’ve learned since I met her, slightly over a year ago: this is someone who is genuine, with a loving & sensitive soul, and the heart of a poet. And her creativity? It literally knows no bounds – just look at her collections, if you need proof.

When Adina contacted me last spring, and asked if I would be interested in lending a hand with her upcoming collection, I think I may have almost fainted. Seriously. What an honour! Naturally, it was just a vague idea she had in her head at the time, and over the course of the summer and with much back & forth between us, this idea began to fill out and this past January, ‘The Legend’ was released to an eagerly awaiting public. The colours, the formula, the story … I told her that it would be wildly successful. I so love it when I’m right! insert modest humility here
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The hardest part was in keeping everything under wraps, especially amongst my “blogging family” – I was almost bursting with the need to tell everyone about the awesomeness that was about to hit them … but so worth the wait, wouldn’t you agree?

Adina, this is my thank-you for asking me to participate in your dream and it was my greatest joy to be able to provide the text and descriptions for these beauties – easy to wax poetic when you’re staring at 7 glorious nail lacquers!

In case you’ve been off-planet this past year or have not yet had the pleasure of trying out these varnishes, I encourage you to stroll through my posts for more details:
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WARNING: LOOKING AT THESE IMAGES WILL INSPIRE MAJOR NAIL LACQUER LUST!

Please feel free to visit a-england for all your ordering needs and remember: free world-wide shipping! I know, right?!
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