Chips in Italy...

September 27:

Hello dearest friends! In my home town it is quite cold, but alas, I am far far away enjoying the warm breeze of northern Italy where I have come to keep my date with Borghese. This polish has eluded me for the longest time, mostly because I had not the income nor reason to condone the purchase of a drugstore for $8. While this lowly college student has no issue with paying the same amount for Essie or OPI, it seemed...well quite ludicrous to spend so much on something she wasn't even sure would whet her palette. However, whilst on a trip to the nearby Ulta, a store so glorious that it brings delight to all who enter, I happened upon this Borghese nail polish once more. This time, it happened to sport a smart red sticker which pronounced to the world that not only was it on clearance, but it was also B2GO!

Of course I took the bait and bought three bottles of Borghese products, feeling like this was a sure sign of good times to be had...to my dismay there were a few...chips along the way.

But before I get to that, I must speak of the official business! Like I said, I purchased three bottles of Borghese product, however, only two bottles were nail polish and one was a wonderful top coat (another story for another time). The first color that caught my attention is the one that you see here, painted (messily yet again) upon my nails and it goes by the name "Stellare Notte".

This picture is before I put on top coat, but after I had applied three coats of polish. Yes, to my dismay, this dark charcoal gray needed three coats. The formula was not as pigmented as I would have hoped, and the amazing blast of color that is given off by the bottle was lost somewhat as well. This was the most heartbreaking seeing as I had fallen in love with the duo-chrome! There were three visible colors, blue, purple and green, but upon the nail only the blue and purple showed up which meant most of the time my nail just looked charcoal.

The brush was in all honesty HUGE! It required one-two strokes at the most but left my cuticles painted as well. This size of brush works well for the top coat to get quick even coverage, but I did not like it as much when used for applying polish.

The dry time was fair, taking about four minutes in between each coat to start to feel dry to the touch. Then I waited a few minutes and applied top coat and drip dry drops.

After this manicure was completed, I let the polish cure before going to sleep. The next day I awoke with a large chip on my left middle finger. This was very disappointing seeing as I had not done anything that would induce chipping. Since this was a very special manicure, one that was painted for Mr. Nailventuress and my anniversary, I did a quick fix with a dab of polish and a spritz of hair spray before running off for morning classes.

The nail polish had worn when I returned later that evening, so off it came only to be replaced with a fresh manicure! Overall I was disappointed with this polish, but since I purchased it on clearance and I'm stuck with it...well I suppose I'll have to deal.

Oh! I'll just say that the top coat from Borghese works wonders for a manicure, so perhaps it was just this polish. Well seeing as I have one more to try out before I close the case on this brand, I wont complain about it anymore for now.

Next I have planned a trip to the plains of Revlon where I hope to enjoy the delights of an orange polish that is simply perfect for Autumn!

Until next time,
Happy Painting!

The Nailventuress

Essie and the bubble mishap

September 23:

With a quick hop, skip and a jump back over the seas, I found myself once more in the land of Essie. And yes, you read the date correctly. Here I am writing to you yet again, however, I fear I must warn you of the dangers that lie ahead...

Every so often, in my travels, I get over excited and...jump ship so to say. When applying Essie's "Matte About You," this is something I would warn against! Take your time when letting that lovely manicure dry, don't rush into the matte top coat or you will be faced with bubbles. Lots and lots of bubbles!

The manicure started off just like any other, I applied the base coat (a ridge filler in this case to help balance out the sheerness of the polish) and then followed with the polish itself.

As I've said before, I love Essie's formula. It dries quickly, has a great finish, and it cleans up rather nicely, but I hate putting on more than three coats of nail polish and this one, which is called "Turquoise and Caicos", required four. Yes four!

Since the coats dried fast enough I managed, but alas, when I thought my nails were dry enough I applied the top coat and then BUBBLES! Apparently waiting three or so minutes wasn't enough, so when I tried out the top coat the next day I made sure to wait till the polish was completely dry.

The matte top coat itself was wonderful. It is easy to apply and the brush is very nice, just like the other Essie brushes, though I swear this one may be slightly larger. The formula is thicked than the Essie nail polishes, but not by much, and it dries very fast so be quick when applying!

I think that it is the rapid dry time that produces the bubbles...or the fact that the polish wasnt dry enough. Oh well, shall I ever know? At least it was not an issue with the top coat itself, that would have been truly disappointing!

And so I leave you with the horrible bubbles documented in the picture below. I vow to never have this issue again...though it may very well happen when I encounter new nail polishes.

Speaking of, methinks it time for a journey to the Italian countryside. Here I hope to find the department store turned drug store polishes that go by the name "Borghese".

Until then,
Happy Painting!

The Nailventuress

(Bubbles!)

Climbing the summit to reach O.P.I.'s Swiss Collection

September 23:

My sail across the seas to the mountains of O.P.I. went much quicker than I thought. The weather was fair for the most part, and I had a marvelous view of the mountains for most of the trip. The Trek up the steep slopes to reach the "Swiss collection" was another story.

However, when all was said and done, the trip was worth it. Out of the 12 colors that were to be found atop the slopes, three in particular caught my eye. Today I have for you pictures of the beautiful "Ski Teal We Drop." This dark more blue than green color stole my heart when I first saw it. It was something very different from any past nail polishes I have owned and to my surprise, it was a blue that I actually enjoyed. It took me longer than I would have guessed to get around to painting this on my fingers, seeing as the inflow of new polishes never seemed to end. However, this gave me a chance to try out another thing I picked up while in the land of Essie.

As you can see in the first picture, I, very sloppily, painted my nails with two coats of the polish. Yes, that is right, I said two coats. Any day that I find a polish that goes opaque in two coats is a day to celebrate.

The formula is a good consistency, it is not really too think, nor too thin, and it has a fairly good drying time as well. Though I think that Essie's drying time was much faster. The final finish is shiny, but once again, not as shiny as Essie.

One thing that is important to note is that the brush that O.P.I. uses is a lot larger than the brush Essie uses. Where it may take two or three strokes of the O.P.I. brush to coat the nail, it could take up to five for Essie.

As I waited for my nails to dry (I'm getting to the really fun part next) I read other accounts of nail polish adventures and pondered my own. With thirty minutes gone by, I decided it was time to apply the top coat I am simply matte about!

Essie's "Matte About You," went on my fingers, matting and drying almost as soon as I had moved onto the next nail. And this (second picture) was the final result. Smooth surface, matte finish. This one is definitely a keeper!

Just as another little side note, the reason why I waited thirty minutes before applying the matte top coat is because the last time I used it, I made the silly mistake of not waiting for my polish to dry and was faced with the horror that is air bubbles! Yes air bubbles! There must of been nearly 100 of them all over my precious manicure. Hence the waiting. Though I am sure that thirty minutes is entirely too long to wait and ten would have been just fine.

This manicure makes me feel like fall could be just around the corner, though this unbearable heat brings me back down to reality!

I think I feel like backtracking to the land of Essie to report of my lovely turquoise nails that went oh so wrong. Tis a sad tale, though one that is worth telling.

Until next time,
Happy Painting!

The Nailventuress

First stop, Essie.

September 23:
After setting off on an uncomfortably hot day in September, I have arrived at last! Essie was my first destination. I had never experienced Essie before now, though I had heard many murmurings about it. To my surprise, I was not let down.

Let me begin by saying that at first glimpse, Essie polishes seem rather pastel, making their colors look suitable for brides and Easter celebrations. Upon further examination, there were many treasures to behold. Beiges, and corals, and mints and berries! Oh the selection of colors was overwhelming (and on sale for B2GO) so I ended up with more in my collection then I had ever fancied.

This meant that when it came time to choose a color to paint my nails, I had quite a hard time deciding which. Was I to choose a coral? What about turquoise? Perhaps that lovely color that goes by the name "Angora Cardi". In the end it was "Jazz" that won my heart.

"Jazz" is a sophisticated light greige color, that has also been reffered to as light taupe. In the bottle, one would think that it would apply rather sheer, but to this explorer's delight, it applied opaquely in two coats. Just to give it that extra kick, I opted for a third, but I would have been fine without it.

As you can see here in the picture, it is very similar to my skin tone, but just different enough to stand out, and oh did I ever fall in love with this color.

Now to the formula. To my surprise, the nail polish was slightly watery, which made me wonder if I shouldn't have waited before purchasing so many bottles, but I was not to be let down. The formula was so pigmented that, as I said before, two coats were all that was needed. A plus to the thin formula is that you use less nail polish when applying and it doesn't make your nails look thick! Imagine that! On top of all of this, it dries incredibly fast and shiny! I would even venture to say there is no need for a top coat, though I cant speak for the durability just yet.

Oh, the brush! How could I forget about the brush. It is small, smaller than most I've used, but I found that this made it easier for me to control my painting which meant a cleaner manicure!

Overall, I'd say my first encounter with Essie was a success! Not only did I love the color, but the formula, dry time and finish were so great, I might start to consider Essie my favorite brand of nail polish.

Up next I feel the winds blowing me up into the mountains of O.P.I. where I hope to learn more about the Swiss collection...

Until next time,
Happy Painting!

The Nailventuress

The adventure begins...

Hello dear friends,

It is I, the Nailventuress as I call myself, here documenting my wondrous traipse through the world of Nail Polish. Yes, I have been here many times before, though I have never thought to record my adventures, so now, as a new Autumn is upon us, I have decided to set out once more. Who knows what I may encounter, though I think it will be marvelous nonetheless.

I have brought with me my trusty camera, to help me remember all that I see, and many many cotton balls and nail polish remover, for who knows when one will run out of such essentials. Now it is off to find the first nail polishes that peak my curiosity!

Happy Painting!

The Nailventuress