This very well may have just made its way into my top 3 favourite nailpolishes of all time.
The name? OPI's Lucerne-tainly Look Marvelous. It's from their Swiss Collection. And to be honest, the name is why I bought it in the first place. Not this past summer but the summer before I went on a backpacking trip through several European countries. When I went to Switzerland, I stayed in the city of Lucerne and was completely charmed by it. It's incredibly scenic, quaint, and it has the best chocolaterie known to humankind.
I always do my research on products before I buy them. I check out swatches, read reviews, check out more swatches... read more reviews...
After completing said research on this polish, I wasn't completely sold on the colour. But I bit the bullet and bought it anyway because I knew that everytime I wore it I would have good reason to reminisce about my short time in that beautiful city.
Well, let me tell you. Even the people in my life who stick entirely to neutral nailpolish colours complimented me when I wore this. But what's more is that I fell in love with it from the first swipe. It's this gorgeous, shimmery, foily, grey with an ever-so-slight tinge of green. And it stayed on my nails for days without chipping. That NEVER happens!
So, I am inclined to give this a 5/5. Perfect colour. Perfect application. Perfect staying power. Perfect name (after a perfect city).
Have you tried it? If not, what are you waiting for???
I never thought this day would come, but here it finally is. I've been converted - in the most undeniable, blog-worthy kind of way.
I took baths on a regular basis, of course, as a child. However, as my age increased so too did my list of responsibilities, and slowly the idea of taking a (relatively) quick shower began to seem more logical than soaking my skin in a bathtub for hours on end - until my fingers and toes shriveled up like prunes.
Well, today I am here to express my renewed passion for the bathtub, and to share exactly what it is that has made me see the light.
Lush.
Wait, hold on, don't 'x' out of this window just yet all you time-conscious, 'baths-are-for-the-birds,' shower advocates. I was you, just a couple of months ago.
I too lacked any interest in "Lush Hauls" on YouTube. Wished people would stop making them, even. Then, one day, I thought: "you know, if EVERYBODY loves these bath products so much, maybe I really am missing out on a good thing." My curiosity got the best of me. I placed an order. I received the order. I made this haul video.
In short, since then, I've rediscovered the art of pure, unbridled relaxation. And it feels good.
Now that I've had a chance to try all of these products, let's talk about them a bit.
First I tried one of Lush's most famous bath bombs, the Butterball. It's this vanilla scented ball of moisturizing stuff, and if I'm honest, I wasn't overly impressed with it - so it probably wasn't the best first choice for me. The scent wasn't strong enough for my liking, it didn't turn my water into a spectacular colour, my skin didn't feel much more moisturized than usual, and it dissolved in the matter of a minute or so. It just left a lot to be desired. It was nice, I suppose, but nothing earth-shattering. I wanted earth-shattering.
The next thing I tried was:
The Christmas Eve bubble bar. Right off the bat, it's cute, and that matters. But in addition to the obvious cuteness it turned my bath water blue and I got to enjoy a plethora of bubbles as I indulged in a good book. It didn't take me long to realize that I am a bubble bar kind of girl. Whereas 'Butterball' was sort of anticlimactic what with its one-minute life span, the Christmas Eve bubble bar released a lot of fragrance and gave me something to hang onto and enjoy throughout the entirety of my bathing experience.
Next up:
Cinders bath bomb. This one smelled wonderful. It also turned my water a bit yellow, but not of the disgusting pee-like persuasion. It was an enjoyable yellow. I also felt like this one lasted a bit longer than 'Butterball', but that very easily could be something that only happened in my head. My Cinders didn't crackle (as a result of the pop-rocks) as some people have stated theirs have, which was slightly disappointing. It also didn't make me feel like I was sitting by the fireplace. However, it did release a very warm, comforting aroma and gave me something to enjoy long past the short-term 'fizzing'. So while I still think I'm more of a bubble bar type of gal, this is a bath bomb that I would probably repurchase in the future!
Last but not least:
'The Comforter' bubble bar. I had a massive chunk of this baby and just cut it up into six separate pieces. This morning was actually my first time taking a bath with 'The Comforter' and it is what incited me to write this blog post.
Love. It.
It smells heavenly, turned my bath water a gorgeous shade of pink, and produced thousands (millions?) of the frothiest bubbles known to humankind.
After using the previous Lush products, I acquired a pretty strong understanding of all the Lush-hype. After using this product, the deal has been sealed. Highly recommend, 'A' plus plus plus.
Even without all of the Lush products though, I am so happy I've rekindled my love for the wonderful world of bathing. As a student, it's been awhile since I've had time to read 'for pleasure.' I'm reading for pleasure again. What's more is that after a good bath, I feel refreshed, recharged, and ready, once again, to face the world.
Sometimes we just need to close the shower curtains, light a candle, slink deep down into a sea of bubbles, and lose ourselves in a world that's different from our own.
This look may be a little too "matchy matchy" for some, but I love it. Most of the items I'll likely never be able to afford, but hey - a girl can dream!
To create this look, I began with the skirt. Pantone has recently revealed the 2011 colour of the year as being honeysuckle, and so I thought it would be appropriate for me to at least try and incorporate it into my first style creation of 2011.
I love these clothing pieces, though I can only imagine the terrible time I'd have walking in those shoes. I think the makeup and accessories complement the outfit nicely. It has a nice: "Oh hey, I'm from New York and about to go meet somebody real important" look to it.
Due to my inability to keep a nailpolish on for more than one day (two, max)... here is another NOTD post for you!
Before I get into the dirty details, it has to be said that my unequivocal, undying love for nailpolish clearly surpasses my skills as a manicurist by a long shot. It's true. I am a terrible nail-painter. But at least I'm honest about it.
Now, the colour is the famed OPI by Sephora Personal Shopper. (((Like how I changed the font to the nailpolish colour there? Nice, yes?)))
This is the perfect 'true red' in my opinion. It applies smoothly and has a fair drying time. However, being the failure of a manicurist that I am, I always have to go back in with nailpolish remover and a Q-tip to "clean up the edges" after application of this one (can't take points off for that, though, since it's a shortcoming of my own rather than the polish itself!)
But, I don't find it particularly long-lasting either. While I'm definitely hard on my manicures, this one chips faster than Lays. ha, ha, ha. Ahem. Seriously though, it's a bit of a weakling of a polish in terms of resistance.
However, because it's a beautiful red and the application is nice, I give it a 3.75/5.
Unfortunately, it's only available at Sephora!
I actually featured this baby in my favourite nailpolishes of 2010 video on YouTube, which you can view HERE.
So, what are your favourite classy red polishes? Enlighten me!
Since it's only been, you know, two-thirds of a year since I last posted - I thought the most appropriate way for me to make my comeback would be to do a NOTD post.
Now, I know some of you will look at my polish of choice and shudder. Some of you may even roll your eyes in disgust at the fact that I'm so blatantly bending one of the unwritten rules of the beauty community.
Yes, I do it. I wear traditionally "summertime" polishes in the winter.
Case in point:
Polish: Essie's Van D'Go
Rating: 3.5/5
Van D'Go was one of the go-to polishes of this past summer for a whole lot of people. It's not hard to see why. It's this gorgeous peachy-pink sunrise kind of colour that has a brightening effect when applied to either the fingers or the toes. The three-and-a-half rating for this polish stems entirely from my love for the colour. Other than that it was an absolute horror to apply: streaky beyond belief and drying much too quickly for my slow-and-steady application pace.
So now, the question remains..... am I alone in my rebellion? Do you tend to stick to the typical vampy reds and deep, mysterious maroons at this time of the year, or do you branch out and wear whatever colour that happens to tickle your fancy at a particular moment in time?
