A Silent Saturday: Nailpolish Collection: Blues & Purples

Kitty Pics for Sweltering Summer Sadness

Take it from a landlocked girl in the desert: summer sucks. Though I have never liked the heat, I don't think I'll ever get used to the extremely unliveable conditions of summertime. It wouldn't be so bad if there was some sort of fluctuation- and at least a little bit of rain- but, sadly, the only variety to speak of is hot heat and windy, hot heat. What kind of fuckery is that?! I feel so unmotivated to even attempt makeup, as the nasty allergens make my eyes water the second the relentless wind persists. Why can't it be September already? I'd have (at least somewhat) financial stability, more tolerable weather, fall collections to anticipate... so much more to look forward to. But this nasty summer drought has put me in a rut that isn't easy to overcome. I've been feeling so anti-summer that I've been slathering on black nailpolish, even black-er eyeshadow, and forbidding any neons from making their presence known. My gothic guts approve!



All LOLage aside, I do get mind numbing depression that has sucked even more as of late, so . . . here are kitty pictures in case of overwhelming sadness (or in situations of normalcy- overwhelming summer boredom):

Above: I was amused to walk into the kitchen today to find my kitty in the cupbord. He's never been in that particular cupbord, and IDK how he managed to jump that high. YAY for my empty bottle of Mansinthe!

Above: Even V bought into the Fifty Shades of Grey hype!

Above: "Braving" the summer heat by resting in the shade. I love my handsome V!

Above: Always stealing my pillow!

Above: My cat is a pimp.

Above: Catching MOAR ZzZz's!

I have a bajillion more kittah pictures, but I'm going to restrain myself from posting (at least for now). I might do a beauty-related post later tonight. Until we meet again!

One Hand Washes The Other: Smelling nice for Summer!

Above: From Left to Right: Black Magic Soap Breakaway Bar, Stolen Bouquet Solid Scent, Exhume Solid Scent, I Smell Like a Witch Perfume Oil

Hello and Happy Monday!

I'm here because I received my One Hand Washes The Other package this week and have been wanting to share its contents.  OHWTO (http://www.ohwto.com/)is a vegan bath & body indie company that I wholeheartedly adore and recommend to everyone. Becca (the owner) released their summer scents last month, so I picked up one of the solid summer scents along with a few other goodies.

Above from L to R: Black Magic Soap Breakaway Bar, Stolen Bouquet Solid Scent, Exhume Solid Scent, I Smell Like a Witch Perfume Oil

Product Descriptions

Please note: Italicized text is from http://www.ohwto.com/, regular text is just me!

+ Black Magic Breakaway Bar: Approximately 3oz of Black Magic soap in a reclosable clamshell container with 6 "cubes" molded into the form. Perfect for travel or for sharing your new favorite soap with your friends!! Price: $4.25

My thoughts: Black Magic Soap has been my holy grail skincare product for 6 months now. If I'd known about it sooner, I would have saved myself a lot of time, money, and disappointment on products that never worked for my shitty skin. In fact, I'm planning on doing a whole post dedicated to my skincare trials and tribulations and how Black Magic has turned my skincare nightmare into a skincare fairytale. There's plenty of people that swear by this stuff, and for a good reason: It's affordable, it works great (and by great, I mean it's literally magic), it's not another false hope, and your hard-earned money goes to a small business!

I like to buy the breakaway version of Black Magic when it's in stock. When it's not in stock, I purchase the regular or big Black Magic bars and cut them up myself so I don't waste product! :)

Please do yourself a favor if you're suffering from acne (and suffering is an understatement, I know how it depletes the very soul of the sufferer) and order this soap in the sample size. It is $1.25, but its benefits are absolutely priceless. I know everyone's skin is different and that what works for one person sometimes won't work for another, but I know that it is at least worth the sample size. I personally saw results immediately from the soothing and moisturizing effects of the soap. But I'll save my story for another day. Here's the link if you're curious (which also contains the product description and information about all the wonderful ingredients the soap has in it): http://www.ohwto.com/category_20/Bars.htm



+ Stolen Bouquet Solid Scent: Purple blooms sneakily gathered from the gardens of others while nobody was looking- lilacs and violets, accented with orchids, with a dash of powdery vanilla added to ground the scent. Price: $4.00

My Thoughts: If you're new to OHWTO, the solid scents are my second recommendation of the list of vital things to try. There's a lot of different scents to choose from, and they come in a twist-tube that's the absolute perfect size for throwing in your purse. The ingredients feel so soft and wonderful when I dab the scent on my wrist and neck. I just all around enjoy the quality and ease of the solid scents, and I haven't purchased any that I haven't liked!

Stolen Bouquet really is a nice scent for summer. It's really feminine and floral without being artificial-smelling or overpowering. I've worn it a few times so far, and I'm really happy with it. My only complaint is that the staying power isn't as long as I'd hope for it to be, but that is likely a result of the unbearable summer heat and not based on the product itself! 

+ Exhume Solid Scent: The last olfactory impression one might experience before committing fully to the sweet release provided by Death; sealed inside a casket, buried in the Earth's embrace. Church incense, White spices, nutmeg, cardamom... Peru Balsam, Vanilla, Tonka Bean, Sugar... and a lone white rose laid across your hands to carry you into eternity. Price: $4.00


My Thoughts: I purchased Exhume to tide me over during this long and barrren wait for Halloween collections to be released. And I am so happy I did! This scent is complex and sexy, but not a "safe, everyday department store" kind of sexy. The notes are absolutely stunning together. I find this to be a fun scent to wear, and I can only imagine how amazing it's going to be when the most wonderful time of year (Halloween season! Or, in layman's terms: Fall) finally gets here. I sound so hopelessly desperate. I should be on My Strange Addiction: Wanting Halloween no matter what month it is.



+ I Smell Like a Witch Perfume Oil: A special request for Luna of http://toxid-lotus.net/, I smell like a Witch came about when a little boy told her that the combination of scents she was wearing made her smell "like a witch". Heh. Red & White Roses, Cotton Candy, Bubble Gum, Smoke, Sandalwood, Patchouli & Vanilla Bean. Price: $9.00

I've admired Luna's blog for quite some time now, so of course I was intrigued when this initially came out back in December with the Winter scent list. I bought the solid scent at the time, and I've gone through quite a bit of it because I wear it so much. I was re-reminded of my adoration for this scent when Luna posted about it in April. Since I've gone through so much of the solid scent, and I know I'll miss it when I run out, I decided I definitely wanted the perfume oil version.

This perfume has another significance to me. When I was two, I learned a Halloween song about a particularly vile witch. Apparantly I wanted to mention the song on a whim, because I turned to my lovely mother and said, "Mommy, you're a mean old witch." Of course, my mother is very far from being a mean old witch. In fact, she is the exact opposite. It's become an inside joke between the two of us since she told me that story. My mom even ordered herself the solid version of I Smell Like a Witch because she liked the scent on me and because of the little joke between us. :)

I was initially intrigued by not only the inspiration behind this perfume, but the notes it consisted of. As individuals, the notes are recognized and adored by many. But this is where the beauty about it resides... As a team, these notes don't necessarily seem like they'd win the scent superbowl, but they absolutely work together! I'm really glad I gave it a whirl because it is immensely intoxicating. The main notes I pick up are the roses, smoke, and bubblegum. The rose is the strongest note of the notes I can decipher, which I'm happy about. It's nice to have a rose perfume with unexpected extras! I Smell Like a Witch is so endearing, unique, and really beautiful, and I'm glad it didn't disappear right after winter.

Above from L to R: X's For Eyes, Dirty, Toxid Lotus, and Snayke Oil.

I also very generously received four samples with my purchases. I received three solid scent samples and one sample of unscented Snayke Oil. The following italicized product descriptions are from  http://ohwto.com/ :

+ X's For Eyes: A decidedly masculine scent, this one's reminiscent of summer nights spent crossing out the eyes of every person in every photograph in every catalog or magazine in the house. Aggressive! Cologne samples, Sunscreen, Citrus drink, Night air, Juniper bushes and the ever-present aroma of mom's herb garden.

+ Dirty: Musky, feral, earthy DIRT. Notes of dirt, topsoil, a trio of sandalwoods, sensual musk, all set off with subtle spices and a breath of carnation.

+ Toxid Lotus: Everyone has a darker side. Another scent created for Manda of http://toxid-lotus.net/, this one is like I Smell Like A Witch's older sister, you know, the one always in trouble for doing something devious. Blackened dark Musk, Red Wine, Damask Rose Absolute, Frankincense, Baby Roses, Myrrh, and a hint of White Amber.

+ Snayke Oyl: Formulated as an after-shower (or bath) oil spray, this oil helps to seal in moisture when applied to still-damp skin, and using it in this manner it will help your bottle go a lot further than using it straight. However, it's also wonderful when applied to dry skin, where it acts sort of like a light lotion. Another excellent use for this product is as a detangling, frizz smoothing spray, but go lightly, lest you make your just-cleaned hair look all greasy again! Snake Oil is a multi-purpose workhorse that you're sure to find plenty of uses for, so don't be afraid to experiment!






My Thoughts: Holy shit, these solid scents samples are inebriating! X's For Eyes is what summer would smell like if you could bottle it up! It's really quite the perfect scent for summer with the ideal amount of edge. I've worn it more than once this week, and I'm digging it! I thought I liked it was my favorite scent from this order, but then I smelled my other samples again and realized how amazing they all really are. I'm wearing Dirty this very moment, and I really think I need the full size in my life. It's sexy as hell, and perfect for this whole Fifty Shades of Grey craze. I know it's peculiar to associate a scent with a book, but that is how my brain works I suppose. Gah, I just can't stop smelling my Dirty-slathered wrist! XD  Toxid Lotus is also quite a treat, and it's a treat that I'm very thankful to have because I was seriously considering adding it to my cart when I placed this order. It's close enough to I Smell Like a Witch to know it was inspired by the latter, though not so close that the two aren't distinguishable. I like it a lot, and I'm planning on trying it layered with I Smell Like a Witch to see how these sisters get along! I've yet to try the Snayke Oyl, but I am very grateful for the sample and plan on using it in the very near future. It sounds like a wonderful product!

Above: The contents of my entire OHWTO order. :)

I'm going to wrap things up immediately, as this post has taken me days longer than I've hoped. I do hope that it was enjoyable and helpful!

If you'd also like to smell nice this summer, One Hand Washes The Other can be found here: http://www.ohwto.com/

Thanks for reading!

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      

Beating the Heat with VApothecary's Cemetary Snow!

Above: My bottle of Cemetary Snow perfume oil by VApothecary

I have been eagerly anticipating having the time to author this post, so I am very happy the moment of publication has come! Tonight, I will be discussing the intoxicating perfume oil, Cemetary Snow, by VApothecary. VApothecary is one of those companies you're incredibly thrilled to discover, yet terribly disappointed for not knowing about them sooner.

Upon reading one of the lovely blogs I follow, http://hottiemcnaughty.wordpress.com/, I came across one of her overviews of a company I hadn't heard of. It was for an independent company called Nocturne Alchemy/VApothecary, and they specialize in Ancient Egyptian and Romantic Gothic perfume oils! After immediately lurking consumer reviews and the company's website (http://www.nocturnealchemy.com/), I was so intrigued that I rushed to make an online purchase.

Just to clarify any discrepancies, I want to point out that Nocturne Alchemy and VApothecary are indeed two seperate companies. However, they are both sold at the same website and are also located in the same residence. I liked the concept behind both companies, but I ended up ordering a VApothecary perfume oil because I was intrigued by the dark themes (AND their Halloween scents are already up for 2012, which makes my heart melt into a gothy puddle of goo).

While I know it is more than practical to order sample sizes before taking the plunge on full size purchases, I have a tendency to skip the sample step altogether. Maybe that stems back to the very fact that I despise reading instructions; therefore, I tend to tinker with new objects (whilst mumbling obscentities) until I figure it out myself. Either way, I very rarely order samples and opt for full-sized versions that contain components I would likely enjoy. The case with Cemetary Snow is no different. I ordered the full sized version after reading the product description and a lot of positive online reviews.

VApothecary's Cemetary Snow Product Description

Source: http://www.nocturnealchemy.com/ncesn.html

Quiet still of day and night in the cemetary where snow falls and builds and slowly finds its way into the cracks of the headstones and burial vaults of mausoleums. So old these grounds that the old spelling of lost names and cemetery contradict one another. What use is a letter when in death it is a place of rest no matter how it is spelled or how they are remembered?

The snow falls, as it always has, on the graves of those forgotten. The muskiness of wet rain and grave dirt stir nothing but the air and the cold and everything not at rest in between.

Cemetary Dirt, White Patchouli lite, Sandalwood Musk and White Cedar Vanilla.

Product Photos:

Above: VApothecary's Cemetary Snow. I'm really happy how this photo turned out.

Above: VApothecary's Cemetary Snow. This is the same picture I used at the beginning of the blogpost, but I adore it too much to only use it once!

Above: Reverse focus just for fun.

Note: The rest of the product photos (continued below) are from when I initially opened my package. :)

Above: Just after unboxing VApothecary's Cemetary Snow. It was sent with two (!!) Nocturne Alchemy samples, which was very generous. All products were sealed in the plastic seen above and safely sent wrapped in bubble wrap inside a small, white box.

Above: Nocturne Alchemy samples provided with my puchase. Left to Right: Sekhmet Amber, Eternal Egypt. I am enthralled with the golden sticker labels for these!

Above: VApothecary's Cemetary Snow.

Above: VApothecary's Cemetary Snow.

My thoughts: I was highly anticipating this perfume oil, so I was so happy when it not only met my expectations, it exceeded them. It translates similar from cold sniff to initial application, and just keeps getting more lovely with the dry down. I greatly enjoy how the earthy notes are paired with the more delicate notes, it is absolutely haunting and beautiful. While the components seem most appropriate for autumn, it's actually really beautiful and refreshing as a summer fragrance! I've worn it every day since I received my package (including today), and I'm glad it's so condensed because I don't plan on stopping tomorrow! Cemetary Snow is an incredible scent that I'd feel comfortable wearing any season, so I'm really content about ordering the full size without trying the sample first.

It's very apparant when a business owner goes above and beyond with their craftsmanship, and this certainly rings true with VApothecary. Their perfumes are entirely vegan AND organic, which is awesome. If you'd like to learn more about the company, you can visit their about section right here: http://www.nocturnealchemy.com/info.html

Additional Information:
+ TAT is 1-2 weeks, excluding holidays. My order was sent well within this time frame.
+ Cemetary Snow is part of VApothecary's VApothecary collection, and be purchased for $4.00 in a sample vial or $16.00 in a 5mL full size bottle. Both sizes can be purchased here: http://www.nocturnealchemy.com/ncesn.html
+ VApothecary has a current total of 11 perfume collections. You can find a complete list of collections here: http://www.nocturnealchemy.com/vapothcary.html
+ Nocturne Alchemy has a current total of 17 perfume collections, including one (The Observatory) on its way. All Nocturne Alchemy collections are located here: http://www.nocturnealchemy.com/noal.html
+ You can visit the main page for both Nocturne Alchemy and VApothecary here: http://www.nocturnealchemy.com/

Thanks for reading! Have a wonderful weekend!

DISCLAIMER: All products mentioned were purchased by me for my own personal usage. I am not affiliated with/compensated by the companies mentioned in any way. My opinions are entirely honest and my own.



Riveting!

Above: Riveting by China Glaze

Hello, darling readers! Today I have for you some swatches of a polish that has possibly been swatched a billion times, so let's make this a billion and one! I'm referring to China Glaze's Riveting, which was released from the long awaited (and controversial) Capitol Colors a few months back. Riveting is a stunning red-based orange with golden shimmer. And I love it. It's like the very essence of fire encapsulated in a lovely shade of nail polish. And since summertime here is basically like being on fire (That's right, Katniss isn't the only girl on fire nao!), I find Riveting a brilliant shade for beautiful (yet easy) summer nails.

Above: Riveting by China Glaze. Besides fire, this color also kinda reminds me of the scales of a goldfish. :)

Above: Out of focus picture of Riveting by China Glaze, cause life's not fair! ;)

The formula on this is a dream. It goes on smooth and dries fairly quickly. Also, even though the formula is a bit thin, it's opaque in two coats EASILY. I always appreciate a polish that's easy to work with!

Let me know what nail colors you guys like to wear during the summer! And as always, thanks for stopping by! It truly makes my day. :)



DISCLAIMER: All products mentioned were purchased by me for my own personal usage. I am not affiliated with or compensated by the companies mentioned in any way. All opinions, as always, are 100 percent my own and honest.



Finnegan's Folly Scent of the Day!

Above: Finnegan's Folly perfume oil

Photo Credit: One Hand Washes The Other, via their Etsy store (http://www.etsy.com/listing/51090646/finnegans-folly-5ml-perfume-oil)

I wanted to showcase a perfume oil I've been wearing quite frequently during these dreadful days of hell, more commonly referred to as "summer". It's such a beautiful, fresh scent that isn't too suttle or overpowering- the perfect balance for these heat-plagued days. The perfume I'm referring to is called Finnegan's Folly by OHWTO (One Hand Washes The Other). I ordered it from Becca's etsy shop, http://www.etsy.com/shop/OHWTO .

Before gazing at my product photos, please note that this little guy has made a few trips to work with me via my purse; therefore, his label has seen better days. I just wanted to clarify that fact because OHWTO's perfume labels are really lovely, I just didn't show mine the love and care it deserved!

Above: My abused bottle of Finnegan's Folly perfume oil.

Above: My abused bottle of Finnegan's Folly perfume oil again.

Scent Description:
 Source of the following scent description: http://www.etsy.com/listing/51090646/finnegans-folly-5ml-perfume-oil

 Back for a limited time, and only in a limited amount, here's your chance to get Finnegan's Folly from the 2011 St Patrick's day release!

                                 Here's to the land of the shamrock so green,


                                Here's to each lad and his darlin colleen,


                                Here's to the ones we love dearest and most.


                                May God bless old Ireland, that's this Irishman's toast!


                                Slainte!


Finnegan's Folly smells of dapper Irish lads and rolling hills of endless green; A clean, masculine scent, with notes of hyacinth, carnation, olive blossoms, violets, rosebuds, musk, and herbs.

My Thoughts: Quick side note, about a year before I graduated, I took a wine tasting class to fulfill one of my elective requirements. It was a lot of fun, though much harder than I initially thought. The class was intended for those majoring in Culinary Arts, which I knew nothing about. Anyway, my professor had these unlabeled sample vials of different scents that we were supposed to figure out with our sense of smell. I was absolutely awful at figuring out what each scent was. A lot of the time, something would smell familiar, but I couldn't grasp what it was exactly. I got like, literally 10 scents out of 90 correct. I suck at distinguishing different aromas. So, that being said, I cannot pick apart a perfume oil by saying which of its components it does/does not smell like. But for Finnegan's Folly, I can certainly attest to the fact that it works. Everything blends together beautifully, and it reminds me of what a stunning green field would smell like- with a dash of absolutely subtle muskiness to liven things up a bit. I love this perfume with a passion, and my boyfriend even enjoys it (which is the ultimate test when I'm trying out a new product for the first time!), so I can't complain one bit. Another win for OHWTO!

I definitely recommend picking up a bottle if you'd also like to smell like a lovely Irish field this summer. It's only $9.00 for 5mL, and can be found here: http://www.etsy.com/listing/51090646/finnegans-folly-5ml-perfume-oil

Becca has also released her Spring/Summer lineup at her permanent address, http://www.ohwto.com/. If you don't own Black Magic soap yet, PLEASE get yourself a sample. You'll be very happy you did.

Thanks for stopping by, dear readers! Let me know what scents you tend to use during the summer in the comments section below.

DISCLAIMER: All products mentioned were purchased by me for my own personal usage. I am not affiliated with or compensated by any of the companies mentioned. All opinions are 100% honest and my own.

Hard to Find Products, featuring Absolutely Alice by OPI

Hard to find products. We've all been in this general situation: stalking our preferred beauty store, eager to purchase that special gem our heart is absolutely set on. It's a limited edition item, so we do our best to get there as soon as we can (and if we're lucky enough to know the release date, try to get there in that time frame). We get to the specific section of the store with ants in our pants and hope in our eyes. The rest of the collection is there, but not the product we couldn't live without. We search behind similar products just to be sure it wasn't misplaced. We ask an employee if there's any in the back. When we realize we're SOL, we call other locations and even other companies. The stores that actually got the product in have been sold out days ago, they say.

You might be asking, "Why didn't you just shop online in the first place?"

Herp the hell derp, that is a wonderful question. The problem with online shopping is that online businesses often are out of stock on the same products that are sold out in stores (which makes sense, as the companies that are sold out are likely the stores' distributors). There are also a couple other issues with that. One is that we want our shit NOW, not a week or two from now. Also, e-tailers tend to raise the price tag on hard to find items, especially if it's not a current release. So under the worst case scenario, you'd be stuck waiting a couple weeks for a riddiculously marked up price PLUS the cost of shipping.

Enter the Alice in Wonderland nailpolish collection by OPI. After doing some online browsing, I really, really, REALLY wanted Mad as a Hatter. It looked like a glitter bomb in the best possible form, with all sorts of lovely colors. Well, my Ulta was sold out of all the mini sets, and they unconvienently had an over-abundance of full size Off with her Red!s, which looked liked an ugly shade of ketchup. I was pretty bummed, so I called every other Ulta and salon that would possibly carry it. No luck at all. So I threw in the towel and accepted that my nails wouldn't ever get their very own Mad as a Hatter swagger.

This story doesn't have a happy ending, but it doesn't have a sad one either. When my boyfrriend and I were radomly shopping at a Walmart in our area, I peeked in the salon section to see what products were available. To my delight, there was an Alice in Wonderland OPI display that wasn't empty or full of ketchup-colors! I wasn't surprised that Mad as a Hatter was nowhere to be found, but my eyes zeroed in on the next best thing: Absolutely Alice. It was another color that initially stood out to me from the collection- a beautiful blue and gold glitter-packed delight. It was the last one on the display, and I immediately adopted it for my very own.

Above: OPI Absolutely Alice. Love it! Though, a quick word of warning: this polish benefits from a crap top of nail polish thinner and a butt load of top coat. It's the epitome of a glitter polish!

Above: OPI Absolutely Alice

 Above: OPI Absolutely Alice, out of focus shot. :(

So, that wraps up the journey behind the beautiful sparkles on my phalanges. My question for you, dear readers, is what nail polish have you gone on a burdensome journey to get ahold of? Was it worth it? Please let me know in the comment section below- I'd love to hear your stories!

Thanks for stopping by! It means the world to me :)

DISCLAIMER: All products mentioned were purchased by me for my own personal usage. I am not affiliated with or compensated by any of the companies mentioned. All opinions are 100% honest and from my brain only.