NOTD: Revlon Top Speed Nail Enamel in #130 Candy!

Two (2) coats of Revlon Top Speed Nail Enamel in the shade Candy. One (1) coat of Sally Hansen Insta-Dri top coat.

Lighting: Indoors, sunlight (no flash) for both photos. The pink is slightly deeper with indoor lighting.

As you may have noticed, I've been posting a lot of NOTD's lately. Or at least, more than usual.. Whenever I have new polishes, I get too excited to try them out. The first little chip I see, off my nail polish goes and onto my next!

I purchased this nail polish from CVS, along with my other Revlon polish I posted about (Revlon Scented Nail Enamel in #325 Gum Drop) last week. I've actually been eyeballing this shade since Revlon came out with the "Top Speed" line. I thought it would be a perfect Summer and Spring pink.

Candy #130, is a medium toned (creme) pink. I would call it a "Flamingo" pink, as it's somewhat warm. You could also say it's a Pepto-Bismol pink. (yum!) I was actually slightly disappointed with the color because in the bottle, it looks like a pastel, vibrant bubblegum pink. On the nails, it applies a little darker, but still vibrant. Nevertheless, it is still a lovely color and looks great on my skin tone.

♥ (Photo Credit: http://www.gloriadeistpaul.org)

The formula is okay. The consistency is fine - easy to work with, but I find that it can look slightly streaky. With two coats, my nails were pretty much opaque, but my nail line is still slightly visible under the polish as a dark shadow. If you don't mind that, than two coats are great. Otherwise, you may want to apply three to avoid that as well as any streaks. The polish dries fairly quick, with a glossy finish. A top coat is necessary to avoid any dents, etc. 

This is one of those nail polishes that looks like shiny plastic/rubber on your nails, that you can peel off in one piece if you picked at it. I'm really hoping it's not one of those... I already have a chip on one nail and I only painted my nails early this morning. I did wash a ton of dishes though, which was most likely the cause. I'll update this post in a few days & let you know how well it wears.

Review: Foxy Locks Extensions!

 If you guys haven't heard of Foxy Locks Extensions by now, it's a company founded by the lovely Imogen, that specializes in hair extensions (as well as a few other products ie: false eyelashes, hair pieces).

(Photo Credit: http://imogenfoxylocks.blogspot.com)

Imogen is a 22 year old blonde bombshell from the UK, who is an ultimate fashionista with great knowledge of styling hair & hair extensions. She creates lots of celebrity hair looks on her youtube channel as well as reviews beauty products on her blog. She's very down to earth, and a total sweetheart! You can view her youtube channel (Foxy Locks Extensions) by clicking here and her blog (Imogen Foxy Locks) here. 

About Foxy Locks Extensions:

• Foxy Locks Extensions offers 120 grams to 160 grams of hair per package, whereas many other sellers only offer 70-80 grams of hair. Which means you get a lot more volume and value for your money.

• Foxy Locks Extensions prices are on average, 30 to 60 dollars cheaper for the quality of hair you are receiving.

• Foxy Locks Extensions provides 100% human remy hair that have been specially processed so that they can be professionally colored and cut to match your needs.
• Foxy Locks Extensions are washable and can be styled with heat appliances (as it is real hair)

Foxy Locks Extensions has two choices of hair to pick from. There is a 120 gram pack (better suited if you just want added volume or if you have fine/thin hair & aren't going to need as much hair) or a 160 gram (deluxe) pack (better suited if you have thick hair). Both sets contain 10 pieces and come in a variety of 12 shades.

I have the 160 gram deluxe pack, which contains:

One x 8" wide with 4 clips

One x 7" wide with 4 clips

Two x 6" wide with 3 clips

Two x 4" wide with 2 clips

Four x 1" wide with 1 clip

The shade I picked is #2 Darkest Brown and it matches my hair perfectly. Even though you can color human hair extensions, I always prefer to find Extensions that carry a close color match to my hair so I won't have to go through the trouble of dying them. What I like is that the extensions aren't just plain, dull brown. If you look at them in the light, you can see there are lots of natural highlights - which makes the hair look healthier, shinier and more REAL! My natural hair has the same natural hues. 

My experience with extensions (in general): In the past, I've tried several different brands of extensions. I have tried Sassy, Satin Strands, Euronext & Jessica Simpson (Ken Paves) Hairdo Extensions (human hair as well as synthetic). I was never really happy with any of them - except for Euronext. BUT, I wasn't completely satisfied with Euronext because all of the hair provided in one pack, wasn't enough for me and in order for it to blend in well with my hair, I had to trim the extensions significantly. Which in result, defeated the main purpose of me wearing extensions because I wanted added length. I wasn't going to spend $200 on two packs of hair. Sometimes I would mix some of my other (inferior) extensions in my hair to even everything out. The reason I stopped wearing extensions is because around the time where I started blogging, I decided to ditch my extensions and try taking better care of my hair. Eventually, my hair grew to the point where even if I wanted to wear extensions, the ones I previously wore were shorter than my own hair. Recently, I started thinking about extensions again - as I'm super bored with my hair right now. I was really ecstatic to give Foxy Locks a try.

Don't you love opening up a new pack of extensions? It's like that "Aaaaaahhhh" moment. The same moment you buy a new bottle of foundation or pressed powder. Haha, love that. I've only worn Foxy Locks Extensions around 3 or times so far. All of which times, I've worn them curled or waved a bit. As I've mentioned in my previous post - I've been lacking lately, and haven't worn much makeup or styled my hair in the past couple of weeks. 

Even though I haven't been wearing them every day, I'd like to share my thoughts about them so far. 

• Like I mentioned, the color match is perfect for me, down to the natural highlights.
• The hair is soft & shiny, but it's not overly shiny where it doesn't match my hair's natural shine.
• They hold a curl well. I put that in bold because I can't stress that enough. I've had extensions (Yes, Satin Strands.. I'm talking about you) that I tried curling and hair spraying to a crisp and they would always fall flat within a couple of hours and look like long strands of horse hair falling from the layers of my hair. Terrible!!! Not a pretty sight. This was really the test that was going to determine if I was going to like these extensions. I curled them right away with my flat iron and (sigh of relief).. they passed the test of not falling flat all night. Even after combing through them a few times through the night. They actually hold the curl exceptionally well with the flat iron. I haven't tried using a curling iron or rollers yet.
• They look natural. The times I've worn them, my friends didn't notice right away that I was wearing them until my one friend pointed out that my hair looks like it got longer and then I told her I was wearing extensions. I love that the ends of the extensions actually look like real ends. I've had extensions that have stringy ends and extensions with very thick ends. The ends of these are thinned to blend in better and fall naturally like your real hair.
• There is lots of hair. I have thick hair, and I don't even need to use the whole pack.
• The clips are good quality. I've had extensions with bad quality clips that would feel loose, and I'd have to adjust them every once in a while. I've also had clips that are very strong, that would put strain on my roots and pull tightly.. those give me headaches. These clips are great.

The only photos I have wearing my extensions were from my March 2nd post (here)... In these photos I'm wearing almost the whole pack, minus the four 1 inch pieces and one of the 4" inch pieces. I could of gone with a bit less, but I wanted my hair to look very full, which it did. I had also curled them using my flat iron.

So overall, I'm extremely satisfied with my extensions. You'll be seeing me wear them much more often. I'll also keep you all updated with my thoughts about them after continued use.

Have any of you tried these out? Tell me what you think about them in my comments below!

http://foxylocksextensions.com

UPDATE: I find that these extensions tangle really easily and tend to look knotted when wearing them. I still prefer Euronext as my top extensions choice.

NOTD: Zoya Morgan!

Two (2) Coats of Zoya Morgan Nail Polish with Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Top Coat.

Lighting: Indoors, sunlight.

So maybe I'm late on the bandwagon, but I never really heard of Zoya until the last few years. Yeah, I see a NOTD with Zoya Nail Polishes here and there, but I never knew what the fuss was about. It wasn't until recently the brand started to spark my interest with their awesome promotions lately (I happened to be late to all of them though). I started looking at Zoya's website and I never knew that Zoya Nail Polishes are a "natural" nail polish brand. (I told you, I'm late on the bandwagon)

Anyway, I snagged this Zoya Nail Polish in a (nail polish) swap and I'm really liking it! I added some other colors to my nail polish wish list, and I'm excited to venture further into the brand. 

This color in particular is Morgan, and it's described as a mid tone violet-red creme with dark pink undertones. In low light or indoor lighting, it appears a mid tone raspberry. In the sunlight, the red tones are much less visible and the color appears very violet-pink. 

Morgan is the perfect creme formula. Not too thick, not too thin - opaque with two coats. The drying time wasn't bad. It didn't dry as fast as OPI, and it didn't dry as slow as Revlon. I like the brush applicator, as it's pretty short. It makes it a little easier to apply polish when I use my left hand.

To read more information on Zoya, click here to view their "About Us" page.

Or click here to be re-directed to their website.

Did anyone get the Spring 2011 collection while it was $25 for all 6? Or the "Green Trio" promotion (3 green polishes for $5) OR the 3 Free polishes & you just pay shipping? Which Zoya's are your favorite?

Disclaimer: I am in no way affiliated with Zoya.

Revlon Colorburst Lipstick in the shade Pink Sugar + Photos & Swatches!

 Revlon Pink Sugar Lipstick

Revlon ColorBurst Lipstick in the shade Pink Sugar is a sheer, light pink with silver/golden flecks of glitter. The lipstick has a yellow undertone, which is what drew me to purchase it. In the tube, it reminds me a bit of MAC Hue - but a little bit lighter. Swatched next to each other, they are quite different. While Hue is a true "bubble gum" pink, Pink Sugar is more of a "cotton candy" pink - like Nars Turkish Delight.

The biggest disappointment with this lipstick is the pigmentation. It is incredibly sheer, and no matter how many times you swipe it across your lips, it will never look like the color you see when you look at the tube. Also, this lipstick has a lot of glitter, so it feels a little gritty on your lips - which is not something I'm very crazy about. When it's on my lips, I don't find the glitter to be very noticeable. You definitely have to moisturize your lips prior to application because the very light pigment can settle into dry cracks and accentuate your dryness. It has a "glaze" finish, which I really like.

I think this lipstick is best suited for lighter skin tones. It would be a great sheer, nude for those with little pigment in their lips. This may not be the best lipstick for very pigmented lips, as it may wash you out & make your lips appear slightly gray or purple. If you like MAC Underage lipglass, you may like this. I find them to be similar in depth. Underage is a color that really didn't suit my NC40 skin tone, as it made my lips appear gray in color. So after testing it once, I gave it away. This lipstick looks the best on me when I have little to no self tanner on.

Here it is applied heavily to my lips.

I purchased this lipstick from CVS for $6.49, and received $4 in extrabucks. So, it was basically like I paid $2.49.

Have you tried this shade? What did you think of it?