Time to Break Out your Winter Topcoats: Nails Inc. The Donmar Topcoat

Rusty

Nail polish is probably one of my more frivolous hobbies. I’m not especially good at it, I don’t wear it that often, and I’m terrible at not chipping it within two or three days. But I love nail polish, I’m too poor for manicures, and having a row of little candy-colored bottles lined up on my dresser makes me happy. So I look for deals, and recently I found a great one.

Sephora was selling off some nail kits and I found one for The Donmar Collection featuring the Donmar topcoat and Chelsea polish for $10. The topcoat features clear, iridescent bits that color shift in the light. The polish was a deep plum that looks almost black with two coats. Application was pretty standard, two coats of Chelsea, wait for it to dry, and then another two layers of the Donmar top coat. Right away it began to look good, with the iridescent bits shifting in the light. The effect was completed with a clear top coat and about ten minutes of walking around being very careful about touching things. 

Molly 'n Me Glow in the Dark Nail Polish: Don't You Know that You're Toxic?

Tamatha

A little over a month ago, I was on Martha's Vineyard for a wedding (that sounds a lot posh-er than my life actually is). After my friends and I had a fabulous lunch at The Net Result, we were wandering around the little shopping center there and decided to check out The Toy Box, a cool looking toy store.  My eye was caught by a container of nail polishes, some of which were glow in the dark.  That, my friends, was something I could not resist.  Not only did the glow-in-the-dark nail polish speak to the part of me attracted to tacky-ish things, but it was only $4.00, so it felt like a totally reasonable purchase--especially in a place like the Vineyard where things are quite pricey.

Of course, it was only later, that the rational side of my brain pointed out that this nail polish was probably exactly the sort of product I avoid: completely unnatural, no doubt tested on animals (the poor bunnies!), and, I was willing to bet, made in China.  So serious demerits for me.  Listen, I need one of you readers who normally doesn't care about such things to buy some natural product made here in the US of A (or your home country, I'm not picky) and not tested on animals to cancel this purchase of mine out, okay?

Anyway, the nail polish in question is, Molly 'n Me Glow in the Dark Nail Polish.  I picked out this awesome shade of bluish-purple.  In fact, that was part of why I decided to get the nail polish, because it came in a great shade of blue that I wanted anyway.  I was really excited to try it.  I finally got around to giving it a whirl shortly before Halloween.

Essie Nail Polish In Lady Like: Who? Me??!? HAAA!

Pinky McLadybits

As I told you before, I chose to receive the goop 'curated' box from Birchbox this month. I won't rehash my disappointment with the absence of fantastic and haughty items, but I will tell you that my selection was better than what others received. Part of the jealousy of my fellow Bitchbox group members stemmed from this product: Essie Nail Polish in Lady Like.

I have to admit, I was extremely happy to see the polish in my Birchbox since I have been forbidden from purchasing any nail polish on my own. Something about my spending too much money, bills need to be paid, fourteen bottles of nail polish is more than enough (no it isn't), blah blah blah. The Essie hidden in my goop goodies was a nice way to get around the polish ban. I may have held the bottle aloft, singing as if I were presenting some sort of Phoenix egg to a crowd of muggles or something.

Ciaté Velvet Manicure: When Doves Cry

Dixie

The next time I see an unusual beauty product and think to myself, "That's so cool! I definitely need to try that," I'm goring to step back and count to ten. Sometimes, novelty beauty items lean more towards the novelty and less towards the beauty. Just as the LashBlast Luxe suckered me, so has the Ciaté Velvet Manicure.

At first glance, velvet nails sound pretty cool, right? A bit of soft furriness on your nails to keep in theme with your fall sweaters and scarves...until you remember that with use velvet becomes threadbare, like the antique sitting couch in your great-aunts parlor. That's what I should have considered before sinking $19 into this total bust of a product. I picked up a kit of the Berry Poncho, a nice purplish color that would get a silent nod of approval from Prince.

Essie Nail Lacquer

Dixie

My husband, daughter, and I were shopping in Target when we walked past the new display of Essie Nail Lacquers. I stopped the cart and said, "Hold on. Pinky said she wanted us to review some items from the Shape Beauty Awards 2012 list. I have to buy this nail polish." Sounds like a convenient excuse to buy something pretty, BUT IT'S TOTALLY TRUE. (Editor's note: BWAHAHAHAHAH!) That's how I ended up trying Essie Nail Lacquer in Boxer Shorts, a lovely opaque lilac color (though it's classified under Blues on the Essie website, go figure). I know. Cool story, bro.

Pretty (in Cheap) Pastels: Avon's Nailwear Pro+

Figgy

Hallelujah! I've found a non-shitty nail polish that I actually like!

As you might know, I'm a bit of a fiend for coloring my nails. It's an easy, fast way to put some color into my life, and I like changing my polish almost weekly.

You might also know that most polishes are pretty terrible. They crack, peel and chip away almost hours after you apply them. I've tried everything from Rimmel (remember that? Worst POS I've ever tried), OPI (I love the colors but those polishes don't last for shit on me), and Sally Hansen (mostly really good and cheap). So I wanted to try something new.

Octopus Spurs You to Glory with Hot Links

MelBivDevoe

The US Olympians have certainly been bringing home the glory with their amazing achievements - Gabby Douglas, Missy Franklin, the Williams sisters and many others have been smashing records and making history with their wins.  But sometimes merely qualifying for the Olympics is a win in itself - just ask Oscar Pistorius of South Africa.  (HuffPo)

Also glorious?  These images from MTV's "House of Style."  You can almost hear Jon Stewart thinking "What the hell am I doing here?" in the third photo.  (Buzzfeed)

Pinky's Polish Obsession: Orly Space Cadet

Pinky McLadybits

Some brands of polish really need no review. You know that OPI, Orly, Zoya, etc. are going to go on well. Sure, sometimes they need three or four coats instead of the suggested two, but that isn't such a big deal. The thing we really want to know about with polishes?

How does it look on nails. That's what I want to know. You can shake and stare at a bottle of polish in different lights for hours, but it won't tell you how the polish will look once you actually apply it.

There are tons of nail blogs out there that show you how polishes look, but don't Google them. Just stick with us and let us be the only review site you'll ever need. 

Our inaugural polish is Orly's Space Cadet.

I Got A Shellac Manicure: TRUE STORY

Pinky McLadybits

You may remember that Cindy absolutely HATED her experience with a Shellac Manicure. As you know, we here at Hot Ink understand that different things are liked by different people, sometimes the person providing a service makes all of the difference, and I like getting mah nails did.

I received a gift certificate to a salon that I had never been to before. It was for $20 toward a manicure. I fully expected to just get a normal manicure since this was a smaller place that lives in yard of a house. (It's legit. For real! It was legit! And so pretty!)

Brighten Your Day: Milani Nail Lacquer

Vee

This winter has been dreary and rainy so I was looking to put a little spring back into my pedicure. Normally I stick to reds, plums and french manicures, but mama needed a little cheering up! When I spied Milani's Nail Lacquer formulas in Neon and Jewel FX I thought, why not?

I chose Fresh Teal in the Neon range of colors. When Milani says Neon, they aren't playing. These colors are highlighter bright.

I was super impressed with how opaque this nail polish is and what great coverage a single coat gives your nail.

Friday: TIME TO GET KRUNK! Is That Still A Thing?

Kolby

You guys!  It's Friday!  And it's nearly Spring!  There are robins crapping all over my backyard!  Links!!!

Looking for love in all the wrong places?  You've got company.  (The Awl)

I'm linking to this story about the rediscovery of some gigantic insects because it's fascinating.  But seriously, if you value my advice at all, don't watch the accompanying video.  For the love of your lunch.  (NPR)

It's nice to know we're not all huge assholes.  I mean, we're totally assholes, as evidenced by this article, but we're not huge assholes.  Big diff.  (Mother Board)

Love camping but hate the idea of sleeping on the ground?  The Tenstile may be just what you're looking for.  Yes, this is a real thing.  (Boing Boing)

A House of Lies: Rimmel's Lasting Finish Pro Polish

Figgy

So after many years of trying out all brands and prices, I've come to the conclusion that, by and large, the nail polish industry is full of shit. They all tell you their polishes will last forever, that they won't chip, that they NOW contain 50% pure adamantium duo-cortex DNA complex and so will NEVER fade!

You think I exaggerate? Rimmel's Lasting Finish Pro Polish claims to be "Super durable chip resistant nail lacquer with Shine Release Complex" that will last "Up to 10 Days". Sounds impressive, is actually complete bullshit in reality. It lasted maybe 12 hours before the tops started chipping, and by the next day huge flakes were coming off the sides. Not only that, I also had to apply three coats of polish before the color looked decent and my nails were fully covered. So all the above claims were pretty much all lies.

Zoya Polish In Indigo: Scientific As Hell

Pinky McLadybits

Test subject: Zoya Nail Polish in Indigo.

I received Indigo from Zoya as part of their free promotion. I chose it because of the dark blue color and the hints of sparkle that reminded me of a starry sky. It looked pretty online but was darker and less sparkly when I received the bottle in the mail.

I will attempt to test the polish and share my findings as to the color, ease of use, and lasting ability of the polish. I applied a base coat, two coats of polish, and one top coat. I dried the nails under a nail dryer for over an hour.

Zoya Polish In Indigo: Scientific As Hell

Pinky McLadybits

Test subject: Zoya Nail Polish in Indigo.

I received Indigo from Zoya as part of their free promotion. I chose it because of the dark blue color and the hints of sparkle that reminded me of a starry sky. It looked pretty online but was darker and less sparkly when I received the bottle in the mail.

I will attempt to test the polish and share my findings as to the color, ease of use, and lasting ability of the polish. I applied a base coat, two coats of polish, and one top coat. I dried the nails under a nail dryer for over an hour.

Blast Off! Yes, I Know That Was Lame: Blasted Nail Polish by OPI for Sephora

Rusty

I’m a sucker for gimmick nail polish. I like nail polish in general, but give me a choice between a solid color and shimmery and I’ll go with shimmery. Shimmery versus glitter and I’ll pick glitter. Glitter versus special effects and, well, you get the idea.


I especially like special effect nails that don’t require a huge amount of effort or time, because I have a very busy life writing things on the internet, do you know. Miraculously, Sephora by OPI’s Blasted series seems to be both simple and visually impressive in one step.

Blasted’s instructions are extremely simple and straightforward: