NOTD: China Glaze Change Your Altitude

Have I mentioned lately that grey is my favourite colour? I can’t seem to get enough of this versatile shade, so I added another grey polish to my collection. This one is Change your Altitude from China Glaze’s Fall 2015 collection, The Great Outdoors.

NOTD: Essie Romper Room

I first posted about Romper Room in my June Nail Polish Haul (check it out HERE). This pastel pink polish is part of Essie’s Spring 2014 Hide & Go Chic Collection.

Nail Polish Canada Haul: Essie Romper Room, China Glaze Wanderlust, and Zoya Leslie

It’s been a while since I purchased new polishes and wanted to add a few new pinks and purples to my collection for spring. Where I live, it’s not easy to find salon-quality polishes that are decently priced, so I always tend to order from Nail Polish Canada where prices are lower and shipping is free on orders over $25.

The first polish in my order is Romper Room from Essie. Although my polish collection includes many light pink cream finishes, the ones that I have from Essie are my favourite—especially Fiji and Ballet Slippers—so I’m excited to try out Romper Room. This polish came out with Essie’s Spring 2014 Hide & Go Chic Collection. Essie describes the shade as a pale tea rose pink.

Next is Wanderlust from China Glaze’s Spring 2015 Road Trip Collection. I haven’t decided yet if this shade is more pink or more purple. Either way, it has a beautiful shimmery sheen that sets it apart from the other pinks and purples in my collection.

And, of course, a nail polish haul of mine would not be complete without something from Zoya. For the most part, I usually buy cream finishes from Zoya and take little interest in their shimmery shades—until I saw Leslie. This soft lavender metallic with turquoise flecks is part of the Spring 2015 Zoya Delight Collection. While this shade looks a bit more purple than Wanderlust, it has those gorgeous pink undertones that make it very fresh and wearable. I can’t wait to see how those flashes of turquoise look in the sunlight.

Over the next little while, I will be swatching and trying out these polishes, so check the NOTD (Nail of the Day) section of my blog for my upcoming reviews.

See my other nail product hauls and reviews HERE.

Which polishes have you purchased lately? Which ones are on your wish list?

Review: Jewelmint Isle Bloom Earrings

It’s been a while since I posted a Jewelmint review. None of the items had sparked my interest for a while until I saw the Isle Bloom Earrings. I have a weakness for earrings, especially sparkly ones in unique colours. Luckily, I found these on sale since Jewelmint’s shipping rates to Canada seem a bit high at $10. With the sale, the earrings were the same price as the shipping.
The earrings look very similar to the photo on the Jewelmint site. The little stones in the floral earrings look a bit more vibrant on the site and the round earrings appear to be a lighter shade of blue. The earrings are very pretty in person. They are noticeable but not gaudy. The floral earrings are a bit smaller than the Audrey earrings which are very popular on the Jewelmint site. I think the blue shades would look pretty with any skin tone or hair colour, so these earrings are quite versatile.
One disappointment was the backs that came with the floral earrings. While these earrings are in no way heavy and are lighter than the Audrey earrings, the tiny backs that came with them give the earrings no support or balance and cause them to tilt downward. I will need to find some more supportive backs before I can wear the floral earrings in this set.

The backs are fine for the round blue studs which are very light and comfortable to wear. With their royal blue finish, they are a unique take on the standard pearl earring. I like that they are flat on the back so that the earrings sit flat to the ear and don’t look too large.

Overall, I am happy with this Jewelmint purchase and will wear these earrings often. Have you tried these earrings? What are your thoughts on them?
Check out my other Jewelmint reviews:
Lovely Audrey Earrings / Opera Pearl Necklace / Guilded Silver Bangle

NOTD: Julep Erin

I received Julep Erin in the September 2014 Julep Maven Boho Glam box. It’s described by Julep as an oyster grey crème. I chose this specific box because, on the Julep site, this shade appeared to be a light grey with lilac undertones. In person, Erin is actually very greenish.

Tangle Teezer Review

Do you remember that episode of Grey’s Anatomy where Merideth Grey describes herself as “dark and twisty”? I distinctly remember it because as soon as I heard that phrase, I was reminded of my hair. It’s dark, very fine, thin, straight, and so twisty. By twisty I mean that it tangles very easily, especially when it’s windy out (which is very often where I live). In addition to the wind, my hair doesn’t get along well with my clothes. I wear a lot of hoodies—even in my air conditioned home in the summer. The friction between the back of my hair and the hoodie creates a ball of tangles that I spend at least 10 minutes every morning trying to untangle with a comb. And don’t even get me started on the mess of tangles that the collar of my winter coat creates in my hair. On occasion, I have had to cut little clumps out with scissors.

Considering my tangle woes, I was very excited when Nail Polish Canada gave me the opportunity to try out a Tangle Teezer. I chose the Original Tangle Teezer in the shade Purple & Pink. Used by professionals in hair salons, Tangle Teezer offers revolutionized detangling hairbrushes that help comb through wet, vulnerable, colour treated hair without pulling or snagging. They’ve received numerous beauty awards since their launch. 

After trying this product for a week straight, I discovered that Tangle Teezer is a huge help for tangles on both wet and dry hair. I credit its success to its evenly spaced bristles of varying lengths.

One thing I really like is that it prevents the hair from making that ripping sound that often happens when a hair brush takes on a clump of tangles. I used to have to separate my hair into sections and work out the tangles in each one with a comb. With the Tangle Teezer, I just have to brush through my hair a few times before it’s completely tangle free. It works even faster when my hair is wet, and I find that I lose less hair with this brush than with a standard hair brush. For my hair, the detangling process with this product is painless and very quick. I also like how the spacing of the bristles makes it very easy to remove stray hairs from the brush after use.

My only small complaint is that sometimes the bristles are too short to reach all the hair at the back of my head, so I need to spread the hair a bit so the brush can reach. It takes very little effort though.

Overall, I really love this product and will continue to use it every day. Tangle Teezer products can be purchased from Nail Polish Canada where all Tangle Teezers ship free within Canada. Check out the full selection here: http://www.nailpolishcanada.com/categories/tangle-teezer.html

Have you tried the Tangle Teezer? What are your thoughts on it?

Dashing Digits Floral Nail Accessories (Review + Pictures)

When I’m in the mood for an effortless and pretty summer nail look, I love to combine a light polish colour with a floral design. Sometimes I create my floral nail looks using a dotting tool, but that can be time consuming. An easier and simpler option is to use Floral Nail Accessories like these ones from Dashing Digits.
With their pink and purple petals and subtle splashes of glitter, these dainty flower decals are perfect for adding a pretty accent to your already polished nails. I painted my nails with Essie’s Topless & Barefoot for a professional event I was attending one morning; when I got home in the afternoon, I added these flowers to make the nail look more appropriate for a summer party I was attending that evening. The decals stick very well and I did not bother using a topcoat because I knew that they would be fine on their own—I was right!

If you have never heard of Dashing Digits, it’s an online store that offers a line of full coverage nail wraps and nail accessories. One thing that I love about their products is that they are more accommodating for small nails. As someone with tiny hands and nails, I often have trouble finding decals to fit on my small nail surface. As you can see from the photos above, I had no trouble with these.
The product comes with a generous amount of flowers in shades of pink and purple. Aside from this design, the company has many other floral and other decal designs, as well as nail wraps. You can check them out on the company’s website (http://www.dashingdigits.com/).
The company is always adding to its inventory and updates customers on new arrivals and promotions on its Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/DashingDigits)
To receive 15% off your next order, you can use the discount code WELCOME at check out.

In addition to trying out these floral nail accessories, I also had the opportunity to try out the dazzling pink cheetah nail wraps in the photo above (see my post on them HERE).
What are your thoughts on this floral nail look?
*Although the products mentioned in this post were sent for review purposes, all opinions expressed are honest and are my own*

Dashing Digits Pink Cheetah Glitter Nail Wraps (Review + Swatches)

How beautifully sparkly are these Pink Cheetah glitter nail wraps from Dashing Digits? While I have tried many nail wraps over the past few years, I have never used any with a pretty glitter overlay like these.
As you can see in the close-up swatch below, these nail strips are packed with glitter. However, they are not sparkly in an overwhelming way. The sparkle comes out more in a well-lit room and looks amazing in the sunlight. I recommend wearing them to an outdoor party or a day at the beach to really appreciate their dimension.

If you have never heard of Dashing Digits, it’s an online store that offers a line of full coverage nail wraps and nail accessories. One thing that I love about their products is that they are more accommodating for small nails. As someone with tiny hands and nails, I usually have to spend a bit of time trimming nail wraps to fit the small surface of my nail. However, with these wraps I only had to cut the ones for my pinky nails a bit—the rest fit perfectly! Also, no heat source is necessary for application so they can be applied on the go.

This set of nail wraps includes 14 different sized stickers. I found that they were easy to smooth out than the stickers from some brands because they are a bit thicker so they are less likely to leave creases and air bubbles. Another great aspect of this product is the smell. Some of the drugstore brands have a strong nail polish smell and these strips do not. Like most nail wraps, they are easy to apply since the application process involves peeling plastic off both sides of the strip, smoothing the strip over the nail, and buffing away any excess with a nail file. As you can see from the photos in this post, I was a little rough with my buffing and trimmed slightly too much off some nails. I recommend consulting the instructions that come with the product and the application tips on the company’s website before applying (http://www.dashingdigits.com/).
If you’re not into glitter, Dashing Digits offers other options like regular nail wraps, 3D wraps, and nail accessories. The company is always adding to its inventory and updates customers on new arrivals and promotions on its Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/DashingDigits)
To receive 15% off your next order, you can use the discount code WELCOME at check out.

In addition to trying out these glitter strips, I also had the opportunity to try out the pretty nail flowers in the photo above (see my post on them HERE).
What are your thoughts on these dazzling pink nail strips?
*Although the products mentioned in this post were sent for review purposes, all opinions expressed are honest and are my own*

NOTD: Essie Topless & Barefoot

During the summer, I usually wear lots of bold pink, pastel purple, or creamy bright peach polishes. Sometimes I get tired of all the colour though and want my nails to look polished but similar to their natural state. 

Sally Hansen Real Nail Polish Strips in Pink-A-Dot (Review + Photos)

A couple years ago, I made a haul post featuring these nail strips from Sally Hansen. In the post I showed another set of nail strips called Are You Single? which I wore on Valentine’s Day and really enjoyed.

A couple weeks ago, I remembered that I had this set in Pink-A-Dot and decided to use it for an effortless and cute summer nail look.

Like Are you Single?, the Pink-A-Dot strips were very easy to apply. I only encountered a bit of difficulty with trying to find the perfect size strip to fit my nail. I have very small nails and a lot of the strips were just a tiny bit too big so I had to trim them with scissors. They were easy to cut though and I did not ruin any strips during trimming process. The best part is that there was no drying time so I was able to get on with my day immediately after application. They have a faint nail polish smell, but it did not linger like the strong scent of traditional liquid nail polish does. 

The pattern is very cute with its creamy background and pink polka dots. The finish is glossy but the polka dots have a faded look to them that gives the strips a fabric-like dimension which I really like.

The only downside is the staying power. While the last set of strips stuck to my nails really well and lasted for two weeks, these strips did not. After about 5 days, they began lifting near the cuticles and I had to remove them because they kept getting caught in my hair while I was blow drying it. They were at least two years old though so the glue may have been getting weak. The strips removed easily with regular nail polish remover.

Overall, I really enjoyed the easy application and cute pattern of this product. I would definitely purchase more if I find them on sale because these strips can be a bit pricey where I live.

Have you tried these nail strips from Sally Hansen? If so, what are your thoughts on them?

NOTD: Julep Jeanne + BPS Bow Nail Decals

My May Julep Maven Bogo Glam Box came with a pretty purple polish called Paulette (see swatches HERE) and Jeanne (pictured above).

To be honest, when I first saw Jeanne, I wasn’t sure if it was a polish that I could wear. I’m very partial to nail shades that are light, pastel, and cream finish. After trying Jeanne, I realized that it is very bold but also quite fun for spring and summer.

NOTD: Julep Paulette

Sometimes my love for cream finish polishes causes me to forget about the other beautiful polishes out there. I’m glad that Paulette from Julep is here to remind me that jewel tones and shimmer finishes are pretty and fresh for spring.

NOTD: Essie Love Every Minute

How beautiful is this rosy coral shade from Essie’s 2014 wedding collection? I always love Essie’s creations for wedding season because they are very wearable yet more unique than the traditional bridal favourite—a French manicure. Whereas last year’s collection followed a purple theme (see which ones I picked up from last year HERE), this year’s wedding polishes from Essie include more peach/coral tones, a white, and a pretty blue.

NOTD: Essie Go Ginza + Shine of the Times

For me, spring nails are all about pretty pastels. For the last couple months, I have been wearing creamy pastel peaches, pinks, and purples. While I love the look of pastel nails, they can get a bit redundant. To achieve a bit of uniqueness, I decided to add a bit of sparkle to one of my latest manicures.

The base of this look is Go Ginza by Essie. I wrote a full review on this polish last June that you can view HERE. I topped off this pretty purple pastel with Shine of the Times which I featured in my Top 10 Essie Polishes post. For this look, I used two coats of Go Ginza and one coat of Shine of the Times. The little iridescent flakies in Shine of The times applied smoothly over Go Ginza and lasted for over a week without any wear.

I really like this combination for spring. What are your thoughts on it?

April 2014 Julep Maven Box (Classic with a Twist)

Back in July, I signed up for Julep and took the Maven quiz. I was sorted into the Boho Glam group and got my first box for free by using the code FREEMAVEN at checkout. If you are interested, you can sign up for Julep HERE and get started on your quiz to see which category you fall into. If you don’t like what is offered in that category, you can opt for another. Even if you are not interested in the monthly subscription, Julep also sells individual polishes. You can check out the pretty new spring shades on Julep’s Nail Polish Color Page by clicking HERE.

To see my intro box, click HERE.

What I really like about this service is that you can skip boxes and send boxes to a friend. Since I already have a decent collection of nail polish, I have skipped quite a few months since receiving my intro box. I decided to only opt in for boxes that were truly unique and contained products that were not similar to any in my collection.

The April box caught my attention with its pretty spring blushes and polishes from Julep’s Vivid collection.

Here are the products that I received in my April box, along with two little candies that Julep threw in as a much appreciated little extra:

Julep Glow Pore Minimizing Blush in Peach Bellini




Since the “no-makeup” makeup look is what I go for on a daily basis, I’m always looking for blushes that give the skin a natural glow and that apply smoothly over bare, foundation-free skin. For this reason, I was drawn to this blush from Julep after reading that it diffuses the appearance of pores and imperfections, gives cheeks a luminous shimmer, and uses the power of  vitamin B6 for a healthy glow. While I originally wanted the colour Petal Pink, I chose Peach Bellini instead since I have many pink blushes already and peach tones are always beautiful for spring. I will be doing a full review on this blush in the future once I have more time to try out the product.

Julep Caitlin and Mariska


While I wasn’t completely in love with any of the polish colours this month, I needed to choose a set so that I could order the box with the blush. Even though I already have similar polishes to Caitlin (shocking hibiscus with gold shimmer) and Mariska (juicy tangerine shimmer), I chose this month’s Classic with a Twist set because I thought these shades would be good to keep for a summer giveaway if I decide not to use them.

Overall, I am happy that I ordered the April Julep Maven box. What are your thoughts on this month’s box?

Sephora Haul (Pictures + Swatches)

After lots of contemplation, I decided to return my Urban Decay Naked 3  palette. The shadows were not very pigmented on me despite my very pale complexion, and the pink-toned shades left my eyes looking tired and dull. I also found that the shadows disappeared after a few hours even though I was wearing a primer. I have never experienced any of these problems with my Naked 2 palette.
I thought that instead of keeping a palette that I was never going to use, it would be a good idea to exchange it for new products in spring inspired shades.
The first item that I picked up was the First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream. My skin has been terribly dry this winter and I have been experiencing eczema-like patches on my face and neck, so I thought this cream would be worth a try. Since it’s free of parabens, harsh chemicals, and colorants, I’m hoping that it will calm my very sensitive, irritated skin without causing any more harm and smooth out all the red patches before spring.

Next up is one of the new HD Blushes from Make Up For Ever. The Sales Associate recommended this blush to me because I told her that I wanted a cheek product that would apply smoothly on bare skin since I do not use any foundation or powder. She said that this blush looks flawless and melts into the skin without looking blotchy. I was a bit hesitant since I’m not great at applying cream blush, but she said that I could use a brush and apply it just like I would a powder product. This blush is very pigmented so very little goes a long way. The colour that she selected for me is #215 Flamingo pink. It’s a non-shimmery peachy-pink shade that’s great for spring. If I like the formula, I will consider trying more shades.

This last product is one of the new Cheek Pop blushes from Clinique. While the peachy shades were very pretty, I wanted to start with a pink since I’m used to wearing light pink blushes. I chose Plum Pop over Berry Pop since the plum shade was a bit more of a cool toned pink. I love the cute packaging and beautiful floral pattern on the blush itself. The Sales Associate tried this shade on me in the store and it really complemented my pale skin. I like how it gives the skin a radiant, glowy sheen without any visible glitter. I will probably try the other shades in the line too since they are all very spring appropriate, and I tend to have a weakness for new blushes.

What are your favourite blushes for spring?

Pretty Orchid Shades for lips, cheeks, and nails!

Since the 2014 Pantone colour of the year is Radiant Orchid, I wanted to show you some of my favourite orchid toned products.

Zoya Odette: Odette is a sultry orchid maroon cream polish from the Zoya Naturel Collection (see a review and swatches of the entire collection HERE). This shade is perfect to wear year round because it’s a classic orchid shade that’s rich in colour but not too bright.

Benefit Lollitint: Lollitint is an orchid lip and cheek stain from Benefit (see more pictures HERE). It looks more muted in the picture above than it does on the lips. This shade is perfect for brightening up a pale winter complexion or providing a fun pop of colour during the warmer months.

Tarte Fantastic Amazonian Clay Blush: Fantastic was released with Tarte’s 2012 Fantastic Foursome holiday collection (see the rest of the collection and a description of each shade HERE). This blush applies effortlessly and stays vibrant on the skin for hours. Its cool orchid tones give the cheeks a glow from within effect. I like to complement this shade by wearing a dab of Lollitint on my lips and a swipe of mascara on my lashes.

Zoya Rory: Rory is a bright, shimmery orchid polish that was released with Zoya’s summer 2012 Surf Collection (see a full review and more swatches of Rory HERE). This polish is a great shade to wear in the summer as its sparkly orchid tones look beautiful in the sunlight. It’s also a nice shade to add a pop of colour during the cooler, more cloudy seasons.
Which one of these orchid shades is your favourite? Which orchid toned products have you worn this year?

Zoya Naturel Collection Review + Swatches

The Zoya Naturel collection features six full coverage rose toned nude polishes. Each shade has a cream formula that dries to a glossy finish even without topcoat. According to Zoya, each polish in this collection is cool toned and has an opacity level of 5/5.

As soon as I saw the press release for this collection, I knew that I needed to put it on my wish list since I love cream polishes and shades of pink and purple. In fact, this is the first time that I ordered an entire collection from Zoya; usually I only want a few colours from each seasonal collection. I purchased my set from Nail Polish Canada for $50 CAD (individual colours are $9.75). I thought that this was a great price since the Zoya website is selling the set for $54 USD. 

The polishes came in a clear plastic box with the word naturel written on the front in light grey. The colours are organized in the box by shade from lightest to darkest.

The first three colours, Chantal, Taylor, and Rue, are the lightest. In the bottle, Chantal and Taylor look almost identical; yet, as you can see from the swatches below, they are easy to tell apart when on the nails. I can’t decide which one I prefer with my skin tone. If anything disappoints me about this collection it’s the fact that two nude shades were included. Don’t get me wrong, I do enjoy a good my nails but better colour, but I would have preferred to see maybe just one light nude and another unique pink or purple shade. I prefer Rue to the nudes because it is more pink toned.

The three darker colours are Brigitte, Odette, and Normani. These three have less in common than the first three. Brigitte appears to be a darker version of Rue, Odette is a brighter shade of pinkish purple, and Normani is more of a greyed purple. These three, along with Rue, are my favourites in the collection. 

Now for the swatches.

Zoya Chantal: Chantal is a French vanilla cream in the nude/beige family. In the swatch above, this shade looks fairly even. However, the first two coats were rather thick and streaky. The third coat smoothed everything out. I would say that Chantal is more peach than Taylor.

Zoya Taylor: Taylor is a light toffee cream in the nude/beige family. Like Chantal, Taylor required three coats to look even. This polish is much thinner than Chantal though and only needed three coats because the watery formula was too sheer after just two. Compared to Chantal, Taylor has more brown tones. 

Zoya Rue: Rue is a boudoir blush cream in the nude/pink family. Unlike the first two polishes in the collection, Rue has a very smooth formula. The photo above features three coats but Rue was opaque with just two. I love this shade because it’s a cozy, more sophisticated version of the baby pink polishes that were popular in the summer.

Zoya Brigitte: Brigitte is a bombshell mauve cream in the nude/mauve colour family.  This polish has a smooth formula that is easy to apply. The photo above shows three coats of Brigitte but only two are necessary. This classy pink toned nude is very versatile and is the perfect shade to add a hint of colour to the nails without clashing with clothing or accessories. 

Zoya Odette: Odette is a sultry orchid maroon cream in the nude/mauve family. This pigmented shade looks flawless with two coats even though there are three in the photo above. The formula is smooth and creamy. Compared to the previous shades, Odette is rather unique with its brighter base and rich orchid tones. It’s the perfect colour to grab when you’re looking for a true pop of colour.

Zoya Normani: Normani is a sable mauve cream in the nude/mauve/purple colour family. I have tried so many of these grey/beige or “griege” shades but most of them are either too brown or too greenish-grey. Normani’s purple tones add a level of chicness that I have never encountered with this type of shade. The colour is soft and understated but also elegant and modern. Like most of the polishes in this collection, Normani’s formula is seamless and achieves opacity with just two coats. There are three coats in the photo above.

Overall, I am very impressed with the Zoya Naturel collection. All of the shades are very wearable and appropriate for all seasons. While I feel that Chantal and Taylor are not as unique in colour and smooth in formula as the other shades in this collection, they are pretty colours that I will use, especially for work.

Have you tried the Zoya Naturel collection? What are your thoughts on it? Which shades are your favourite?