Born Pretty Cat Nail Wraps: Review & Swatches

I've got a super cute set of cat-themed nail wraps from Born Pretty Store to share today! I couldn't resist the idea of having some little kitties on my nails and the designs are just too freakin' adorable. I mean, it has kitties playing with balloons. That right there had me sold!

Here are all the designs you get with this set. It comes with two of these strips, so you get 14 wraps in all. There's a good variety of sizes to pick from and I like that each wrap has its own design rather than a repeated pattern or image.

And then here's how they look on the nails!

These wraps are very thin and flexible, so application is super easy. I didn't have any issues with creasing, which is sometimes an issue for me when I use thicker, more sticker-like wraps. You do have to be careful not to pull these too thin when applying though, like I did, because then you can wind up with a bit of early tipwear. But I'm blaming this on user error rather than the wraps themselves. I get a little hasty with application sometimes!

Aside from some tipwear, these held up pretty well and didn't peel around the edges. I actually think you could put topcoat over these if you really wanted to increase the wear and durability. I put a little topcoat over some Sally Hansen wraps once--which are similar in quality and feel to these Born Pretty ones--and that made them virtually bulletproof!

So overall, I really liked these! The design is adorable, they're easy to apply and they're nice quality for the price--just $2.38 for the whole set!

If you would like to purchase anything from Born Pretty, they offer 10% off for Nailed readers:

Disclosure: This product was sent to me for my honest review. For more information, please see my disclosure policy.

OPI Blush Hour

OPI Blush Hour is a sheer pink base with pink and purple glitters. I must admit, this polish was kind of a bust for me. First, I tried wearing it alone...

It took four coats to build to opacity and the end result looked kind of muddled. I also experienced some pretty bad bubbling. So I decided to see if I preferred Blush Hour layered. Here it is over Essie Ballet Slippers...

...but I wasn't completely in love with the layered look either. Plus I feel like the tinted base kind of stifles the layering possibilities. I feel like OPI should have either made the base more opaque so it would look better worn alone or just left the base clear so you could layer this polish over a wider variety of base shades.

So overall, this shade didn't live up to my expectations. I tried, but I just wasn't feeling it. :-/ What was the last polish you were disappointed by?

Twinsie Tuesday: Matte & Gloss Combo

I haven't been feeling so hot for the past day or so, so I apologize for the late and pretty brief TT post today. Hopefully I'll be back in proper swatching action again soon! But I whipped up something quick for today's theme, a matte and gloss combo.

I started with Essie First Timer, a spring green creme, as my base, to bring in the gloss half of the combination. Then I layered Lumina Lacquer Desfile de Mickey--a rainbow explosion of matte glitters, plus a dash of holographic goodness and the piece de resistance: silver holographic Mickey Mouse-shaped glitters(!)--over top. When I first wore this polish, I got plenty of Mickey glitters, but although I fished and fished this time, I could not seem to pull up any of them!

I hope you'll forgive the pretty slipshod nature of today's post. Be sure to check out my Twinsies' blogs today as well!

Alaina at The Little Canvas

Amanda at Amandalandish

Amber at Nails Like Lace

Anna at Going to the Showing

Anne at Grape Fizz Nails

Casey at CaseyLane Loves Polish

Chelsea at Nailed Blog

ChiChi at I'm Just Me...ChiChi

Elizabeth at Did My Nails

Erin at Paint Those Piggies

Kelly at Tuxarina

Lakeisha at Refined and Polished

Maribeth at Obsessive Cosmetic Hoarders Unite

Marisa at Polish Obsession

Rachel at Top Coat It

Róisín at Cuti-CLUE-les

Stephanie at A Little Polish

Tiffany at Polished To Precision

Traci at DrinkCitra

Barielle Slate Of Affairs

I was going through my swatch folder the other day and found a couple of polishes I'd worn that I never posted the pictures of, so I'll be doing a bit of housekeeping on the blog today. One of the ones that got away was Barielle Slate Of Affairs, a blue-tinged steel grey with a flash of pearly blue shimmer. If you're a fan of greys, then you'll love the twist Slate Of Affairs puts on a classic neutral shade.

 Damn I miss those nails! *sobs quietly in corner* Ahem. Anyways, the shimmer is on the subtle side, so it's more the type where you see it gleam here and there when the light hits it just right. But it's not so elusive that it's practically invisible (what I like to call "Essie disappearing shimmer syndrome"). The formula is solid and I used three coats here.

You can purchase Barielle from their website.


Disclosure: This polish was sent to me for my honest review. For more information, please see my disclosure policy.

Sally Hansen Bubblegum Pink

As you can guess from the name, Sally Hansen Bubblegum Pink is a vibrant (so much so it even freaked my camera out a bit) shade of bubblegum pink. But what you might not expect--and what really makes this polish for me--is that it also has a very delicate silver shimmer to it. I love the contrast between the bright base color and the softness of the shimmer.

The formula is nice and smooth, reaching opacity in three coats. This is such a perfect pink for springtime and it could easily transition into summer as well as a fun beach pedi. Plus it's not too blue or too red-based, so it should flatter any skin tone. A big thank you to Amanda for sending this pretty pink my way. :)

The Sally Hansen Xtremewear line is one of my favorites. You can't beat the price (around two bucks, depending on where you shop), the quality is solid and there's a nice variety of colors and finishes to choose from. As far as polish goes, it's pretty much the ultimate cheap thrill! These little guys have a nasty habit of making their way into my cart when I'm impulse shopping at the grocery store...

SuperChic Lacquer Morphamas

SuperChic Lacquer Morphamas is a bright teal jelly filled with blue and chartreuse glitter pieces (primarily hexes). It's blue, green and glittery. For me, this is pretty much the recipe of a successful polish, so you know I love this one! I got Morphamas from the always generous Amanda, who always introduces me to awesome new brands!

The formula is excellent, albeit a touch sheer--this is a jelly, after all. But I managed to bring it to near-opacity at three coats. Morphamas was actually a holiday polish, but what it really makes me think of, with its mix of blue and green, is the ocean. So it makes a fantastic summer polish as well!

You can purchase SuperChic Lacquer on Etsy.

Butter London Sweet Somethings Preview

Essie isn't the only polish company with a new wedding collection coming out this spring! Now, everyone's favorite anglophiles, Butter London, are trying their immaculately manicured hand at the wedding polish game. Their inaugural wedding collection, Sweet Somethings, features four polishes, with each representing one of the traditional "somethings" a bride needs for her big day: old, new, borrowed and blue.

L to R: Doily, Alabaster Gaze, Petticoat

 

Pink Ribbon is a re-promote (you can see my swatches of it HERE) but the other three are brand new polishes. Currently they can only be purchased as a minis set. It would make a great gift if you or someone you know is getting married, but I must admit I wish there was the option to purchase the colors on their own too. But maybe we will see some of the individual colors join Butter's core line-up in the future! 

The Sweet Somethings set is already available on BL's website. Will you be trying Butter's first-ever wedding collection?