Mmmm Wolverine...

So, continuing on with the Finger Paints post, this is Hue Rang?.  It looks like this one was a summer color from 2010, and I picked it up on clearance for $1.99 a couple of weeks ago!  SCORE!

Pics:

So shiny...

It's purple!  It's blue!  It's cornflower!

This is 2 coats with base but no top coat.  It has a great formula, and the pigmentation is awesome.  You could be ok with only a single coat.  One of my biggest pet peeves is when I pick up a bottle of polish, especially if it is an expensive one, and its sheer.  Yes I understand the point of sheer polish, I just don't think it's worth the money.  So I was thrilled that HR is so dense, if you will.  The strong intensity is why Zoya is one of my favorites, and FP will be going into that category.  Especially for the price.

I picked up Essie's Smooth Sailing ( I know!) and need to do a comparison, possible dupe-age!








And here's some word association:
Hue Rang?-> Hugh Jackman->Wolverine->Hmmmmmmmmmmm
And here's a pic:

Not mine, but you're welcome

Thanks and have a good one!

Luci <(")

Deja vu!

Well, hello all again!

Lots has been going on so let me explain.  No, no that will take to long, let me sum up:
I went to a work conference, then directly on vacation, then came back to work for a week, started working on remodels. started training someone, trained my self, will continue training for about the next month (others not me) and hopefully will go back to training (myself).  In short, I'm overwhelmed and exhausted and the blog has suffered.

That being said, I will try to make a valiant effort to show you all of my pretties (I'll get you...hehehehehehe) from Poland.  And don't let Mac tell you she didn't get some shinies!  She totally did.  I've also managed to cross some stuff from my Lemming list.  And yes, I totally jumped on the Crackle fad.  Since those have been swatched to death (thankfully!  How else was I supposed to know I needed all of them?)  I'll just post when I do something wacky and/or kooky.  Maybe a little off the wall?  Hmm....

So in order to post my new Polish polish (he!  That never gets old!)  I must finish my previous International House of Polish post, which I can do in one go.  BTW, I want to thank those that actually read through this intro before jumping to the pics.  I like to think I am both witty and charming.  Hawk. Iris. Bamboozled. Hogwarts. Pomplemousse.  Lesczynska Queen of the Forest.  Right, that's what I thought....

Atelier is a Spanish produced polish that I can't find any info on.  I know I got this in 2000, because that's when I was in Spain.  Yeah!  Logic!

Atelier 451

Atelier 451

Atelier 451

  So, wow.  Gorgeous, gorgeous sparkly purple!  2 coats, with base coat.  The formula was pretty thick and clumpy, but the color is beautiful!

Atelier 454

Atelier 454

This is a lovely taup-y foil that was quite streaky.  2 coats with base.  Again, clumpy formula...I really need to invest in some thinner.  The color is a lovely, but not forgiving.  You can see every flaw in my nails, which is par the course for a foil, and why I tend to shy away from them.  However, I like it enough.

Nabila label states "Italian Cosmetics"  and "Made in Spain", so there you go!  No info to be found, this would have been 1999 or 2000. 

Nabila 14

Nabila 14

I <3 chromes!  And by my best guess, I picked this up right before Sally Hansen came out with the Chrome Nail Makeup (really, we didn't have enough names for what we paint our nails with?)  The formula was, say it with me, thick, and to be honest, I always remember this as being so.  But I love silvers, greys and chromes, and 10+ years ago, they were no where to be found!  Man we get so spoiled, so easily!

Colour Cosmetics seems to be owned by L'Oreal, but not sure about when I purchased it.  I know I purchased it in Germany, Berlin to be exact, and it says "Made in England" and I just give up.  You win.

Colour Cosmetics 607

Colour Cosmetics 607

Well, this was my first foray into duochromes, and we never forget our firsts!  I love love love love love it!  That being said, I have a ton of duos that are way better, but nostalgia and all and look it so shiny!  Periwinkle to lilac. 'nuff said!  Formula was not horrible, but still kinda thick.  But did I mention pretty!?!

So that is the end of my original International colours, the 'u'  makes 'em fancy.  I will do swatches soon of the newbies!  Yeah, plus I really want to swatch all of my Zoyas, because I love them more than I love sugar, and sugar is my heroin.  So, I think it will be big batches followed by silence.  That sounds about right.

Thanks and have a good one!
<(")  Luci



Edit:  I almost forgot!  I would like to shout out a huge thanks to a bunch of bloggers who put us on their roll, which immensely helped pick up our traffic!!!

Spin at prettyedgynails.blogspot.com
Destany at confessionsofasarcasticmom.blogspot.com
GiMiKd at gimikdgirl.blogspot.com
Amber C at rainbowsandsparklesblog.blogspot.com
Lisa at neverendingobsession.blogspot.com












Bonus Track:

American Apparel Mac Arthur Park with China Glaze Crackle Black Mesh and Cracked Concrete
My hand made camo nails!

Something new: UNT - Little Mermaid

Hi guys

Today I have a polish from a little known brand called UNT Color made by UNT skincare.  UNT is a Taiwanese company that specializes in affordable skincare products.

From UNT's website:

Our Mission

UNT was founded based on philosophies that skin care should not be a luxury, that all people deserve healthy and comfortable skin equally, and that every product should have a purpose for skin. Since its inception in 2004, UNT has persisted on developing only medical-grade skin care products that deliver visible results, at prices affordable to the mass market.

You can read more about UNT Skincare here.




Little Mermaid is part of the Pink Fiction Reverie collection - Utopia. The Unt Skincare website describes the collection as Sun bathing on a yacht in your teeny tiny bikini, sipping bubbly champagne… what a life to live!  Well sign me up!!!  The collections consists of some gold & nude shimmers, a brillant blue, a few purple shades, and pink... Lots and lots of pink.

 

Little Mermaid has a mixture of purple, silver, and holographic glitters.  Am I the only one who is wondering why they didn't name the blue polish "Little Mermaid"? Anyway, the formula was excellent.  It went on thick and was almost opaque in one coat.  Most people could probably get away with one coat if they don't mind visible nail lines.

1 coat OPI Basecoat for Natural Nails, 2 coats polish, 1 coat Ulta Topcoat

The UNT brush is wide and easy to work with.  It's actually a little wider than the OPI brush.  I love this brush but it might cause a problem for people with narrow nailbeds.

It's really hard to capture this shade on camera.  The purple glitter isn't showing up well in the pics.  In person the glitter looks more purple than silver.

Here it is layered over China Glaze Liquid Leather:

1 coat OPI BC, 3 coats Liquid Leather, 1 coat Little Mermaid, 1 coat Orly Top 2 Bottom

Bottom Line:
I took a risk when I ordered this because I couldn't find any swatches online.  Not many people have heard of this brand.  But purple is my favorite color so I decided to go for it.  I'm glad I did.  I had no problems with the order system ( I ordered through Amazon) and my package arrived in under two weeks.  This is a great glitter!  The color reminds me of a purple version of OPI's Teenage Dream from the Katy Perry collection. I was really impressed with the formula and the brush. I don't have anything like this in my collection. So Win for me!!!!  BTW I eventually found swatches on this Taiwanese blog and on Ommorphia Beauty Bar.

Are these polishes Big 3 Free?  I'm not sure.  I looked at the ingredients and it doesn't have Dibutyl Phthalate (DBP), Formaldehyde, or Toulene listed.  However I'm no scientist and I don't know all of the different names these ingredients might be listed under.
Click the pic to see the list of ingredients full-size.

UNT Nail Lacquer is available through www.shopunt.com and through Amazon for $8.00 with free shipping.

(Amazon lists the price as $15.00 with a $7.00 discount to make the price $8.00 but the Unt skincare website lists the price as just $8.00)

Bye for now
Mac


Update:
Eugenia from Ommorphia Beauty Bar (whose blog is awesome and you should check it out) was kind enough to let me know that she contacted UNT and not only are they Big 3 Free but they are also animal cruelty free.  I definitely recommend trying this brand.

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