Ciao, everyone! As y'all may have noticed, I've stopped updating this blog... alas, while I still have an undying love for nail polish, I don't seem to have the same zest for blogging about nail polish that I used to. :( 
Oh hello, darlings. Today I've got another installment of the Top Coat trials for you, of Essie's Good To Go! quick dry top coat. 
Omygosh you guys, I have the most exciting polish for you today. This is Milani's ever so creatively named Gold, part of their Jewel FX collection. It's made up of medium sized hexagonal glitter in a clear base, and is possibly the most thrilling polish ever. I mean, just look at it.
The only thing I don't like about Gold is its name. I mean, really Milani, Gold is all you could come up with? It looks like a treasure chest full of gold coins, or better yet, dragon scales. Yes, your nails will look like dragon talons when you wear this. And only in the best way.
Here are the birthday boys... this pretty much sums up their roommate relationship.
And here are Alli and I being adorable matchy roommates. That was unplanned, by the way. We are just cute like that. 
Hallo dolls, sorry it took me so long to get accustomed to school again. :) I am now safely ensconced in my dorm room and getting adjusted to my new classes/schedule (can I just say that I'm in a Chaucer seminar and it is possibly the most awesome thing ever? I love my major).
Galaxy is definitely better for layering than for wearing alone, but it is most assuredly possible to wear it alone like I did here - you'll just need at least 4 coats, haha. I was mesmerized by my nails the entire time I wore this... holo will do that to me. 
Here is our Christmas tree newly chopped down, and the family to go along with it. :) Note how my siblings and I are all the same height now - it's quite odd for my little siblings to be the same height as me... and they are threatening to overtake me. I'm going to be the shortest sibling at 5'6"!
This is Jessica and I all dolled up for our annual Christmas Tea. We decorate a gingerbread nativity scene, carol, and drink tea. It's quite fun.
Every year Grandma comes over and helps us make lebcuchen, a traditional German cookie. The recipe makes 12 dozen, and this is us frosting all 144 cookies. I'd post the recipe, but it's a really long arduous process to make the cookies, and most non-German people don't like lebcuchen because of the anise in the frosting. Also I think our particular recipe is secret? Not sure.
Finally, I really like this picture of Jessica and I on Christmas Day. Mama got us semi-matching pajamas. She's really into us wearing "pretty" nightclothes, and whenever I come home from college wearing my ratty t-shirts and sweatpants to bed, she's appalled and rushes out to the store.
Behold, my lovelies, some of the most wonderful nail polish known to mankind. Whenever I wear this I cannot stop staring at my nails. It's just too pretty. What is this fabulousness, you say? It is Lippmann's Across the Universe (from the Fall 2010 collection), of course! As soon as I saw this on ALU, I knew it had to be mine. Unfortunately, as a poor college student I couldn't really afford the $18 price tag, so I put it in my mental pile of polishes I someday long to own, and had to content myself with lusting after it from afar. But then, lo and behold, my beautiful suitemate bought it for me for my birthday! I know, world's best suitemate, yeah?
Just stare into the depths of this beautiful blue-based glitter, and you'll start to think you are a mermaid... The glitter in Across the Universe is quite heavy, and is hexagonal and about equal parts green and blue, with mini blue flecks interspersed in there as well. The base blue is a darker, neither-navy-nor-cerulean blue and is my favorite texture of all, jelly. I use about 3 coats for maximum glittery awesomeness (and in order to get rid of any stray streaks). Wear is not the best, but allowances must be made for it being a glitter. We all know that glitters chip like crazy. However, I think because of the jelly base, Across the Universe is not so brittle-feeling as some other glitters, and lasts about 3 days before chips, which is actually quite good for a glitter (Dorothy Who? chips on me after one day ever single time).
Ciao, belle.
LLM doesn't have super great wear, but it doesn't do terribly either. I believe I got around 2 or 3 days before any chipping, so it doesn't wear like a glitter or anything. All in all, I've been liking this quite a lot for winter, and want to pair it with black tights and sweaters. I'm also contemplating it for my New Year's manicure, although I think I might want something a bit more over-the-top.
Y'all. I bought new nail polish. Whoa. 
Ski Teal We Drop is a dazzling teal (thus the name, obviously) creme that applies like butter. I only had to use 2 coats to get a perfect non-streaky finish, and I could not take my eyes off my nails. Even better, the lasting power is top-notch. I went to the beach the day after putting this on (smart move, eh?), and got absolutely no chipping or tip wear the entire day. In fact, STWD didn't wear at all until about 3 days after I applied it, and I was not using my nails gently.
arlings. I want new nail polish so very badly. I have had to be unbelievably good for the past few months and refrain completely from nail polish, seeing as I have to spend my money on boring practical things. It's awful! :( Thankfully, I will be able to spend about $50 on nail polish soon, and it will be glorious. I literally have not bought new nail polish since spring break. Horrible thought! In order to somewhat abate my withdrawal symptoms, I thought I would show some of the new collections/some of my lemmings.
'm sure y'all have seen swatches of the new RBL collection by now; isn't it lovely? I wish they had done all of Henry VIII's wives, but I know that RBL doesn't do collections larger than 4 polishes. Here are Scrangie's beautiful swatches, if you haven't seen them yet. 
atherine H is calling to me. Such a beautiful soft blue! Catherine is gorgeous as well, and seems so very Spanish and regal! I have always felt terribly sorry for poor Catherine - her first husband died after less than 6 months of marriage, while we all know how abominably the second treated her. 
PI is coming out with a Swiss Collection for Fall, which I was at first disappointed with, as it seemed very samey and boring. However, upon seeing All Lacquered Up's swatches, I have recanted. The non-red part of the collection is wonderful! I don't like The Color To Watch, but then I've never liked pearly colors like that. The rest are gorgeous and I need them in my life. 
ssie has also released a couple of fabulous shades for summer that I will most definitely be buying. I want want want the green, and the bright peach/coral is very nice as well. Yum yum, summer colors. 
p In The Air by China Glaze is completely to-die-for as well. I want pretty much the entire collection, but I think I will settle for Grape Pop, Re-Fresh Mint, Peachy Keen, and possibly Four Leaf Clover and High Hopes.
Now for some more of the illustrious Top Coat Trials, in which I try to find a match for the Holy Grail of Top Coats, Seche Vite. Poshe is commonly known as the equal of Seche (some people even call it better), so I was excited to try it and see for myself. Would something finally measure up to Seche?
Now this is a dreadful dreadful picture, but you can get the general idea. The purple is OPI Louvre Me, Louvre Me Not. This bright shimmery purple is a good way to go summery but not leave vampy colors totally behind. The other OPI is Cajun Shrimp (I know it looks pink in the picture, sorry), which just screams summer to me. I am aware that coral carries bad associations of old ladies with matching hand bags, but believe me, this color is completely not old lady. ;) Next is China Glaze Orange Marmalade, a glass-flecked orange that doesn't hurt the eyes. Finally we have one of my favorite pinks of all time, Essie Status Symbol, a carnation pink jelly. My normally pink-disdaining self adores this juicy color. :)
And now cool colors. As y'all know, I cannot get enough of sky blues. I want them ALL! Sally Hansen Blue Me Away is a perfect balance of bright yet not neon. Teals are very in for summer, and Essie Greenport is a great example, with it's slight dustiness keeping it from being boring (p.s. in my review of this color I complain a lot about the formula - I have worn Greenport several times since that review and have not had nearly the trouble. I think most of the blame should go to my dying topcoat). Finally, for those times when I want something easy to maintain and calming to look at, OPI Time-less Is More is a classic sheer white.
Isn't that name ridiculous? Companies really should give their products shorter names. Here I am with another topcoat review in my long search for a wonderful topcoat. For some reason I'm feeling too lazy today to give a real review to Megalast, so here are the pros and cons of this topcoat.
I love a classic red on toes and think it looks put-together and polished. The light aqua of For Audrey (which I can't BELIEVE I've never posted on... what is wrong with me? I thought for sure that I had!) is funky enough to be different, yet still looks lady-like on the toes. And I absolutely adore Buy Me a Cameo on my toes. I hate it on my nails and get ineffably bored every time I wear it on my nails, but somehow this polish turns into a wondrous thing on toes. It is a nude metallic, so it is like wearing a nude polish on toes, except that it is metallic. If you don't see how awesome that is yet, it makes my whole foot look clean and well-cared-for, as well as keeping my toes presentable without drawing huge amount of attention to them. Just realized that I made that sound like I have really ugly feet. I don't, but I do love Buy Me a Cameo. 
Mm, look at what I found in my mother's bathroom? OPI Stars in My Eyes, from the 2007 Holiday in Hollywood collection. I grabbed it and ran to put it on and then put it in *my* nail polish collection. Oh, the joys of stealing from one's mother! ;)
Lovely blog readers of mine, 
If you're going to wear a red glitter, Ruby Pumps is the best way to go. It is a gorgeous red jelly absolutely packed with red glitter. Since it is a jelly it takes about 3 coats to get rid of VNL, and since it is a glitter it chips within 3 days. However. Ruby Pumps is unspeakably beautiful. I want to swim in it. Here's another look.
Look at the depth in that stuff! And it is pretty much the perfect shade of red too. 
