Nail polish haul

A quick post on the nail polishes that I picked up! On a Facebook group for selling things at my university, there were a couple of girls selling nail polish. I received these three, which was really the main reason that I bought them (both girls threw in a couple of extra polishes, like some "Dior" (I put it in quotes because from the quality, I am not sure how authentic it was) and a random off-brand polish. 

All in all, I got these three polishes and three other polishes, as well as a bonus costume necklace, for $10. Considering that these three alone would retail for around $24, I definitely think it was a steal! Plus, none of these polishes have been used that much, they were basically full. 

I know people who don't like to buy used polishes, but I don't think it's a big deal. If it's thickened, as old nail polish that hasn't been used in awhile often does, Seche makes a great restoring product. If you're really concerned, you could always clean the brushes in Acetone before using it (I have never done that, so don't take my word for it). 

From left to right: Essie Luxeffects in Stroke of Brilliance, OPI All That Razz-Berry, and OPI Tutti Frutti Tonga. 

I'm not sure how I feel about the All That Razz-Berry because I'm not a huge fan of deep purple-reds like that, but the Tutti Frutti Tonga and Stroke of Brilliance are just my type. Expect to see a design with them soon! 

Sunflower nail art!

I have some new nail art! It's been ages, but I had a ton of down time today and I was in the mood to do some nail art! I browsed Pinterest (Pinterest.com/rakuzen) and found a cute sunflower ish nail art.

The cast of characters: 

From left: China Glaze Agent Lavendar, Zoya Arizona, Zoya Wednesday, Zoya Shelby, Revlon Dreamer, OPI DS Illuminate, and a Sinful Colors yellow striper. 

First step, two coats of each color. These colors show up on my blog a lot because they're basically the only spring/summery ones that I have. Most are dark and more suitable for fall. 

Then using the brown color, paint a small circle in the corner. Using a yellow striper (it was yellow, although it did turn green on the middle finger), draw petals around the brown circle. Finish with top coat and voila!

Super simple design, but I love it! Has just enough sparkle for me. It was nice to get back into nail art too, I haven't had much time or energy lately with working and taking classes all summer. 

Breast Cancer Awareness Nails

GUISE,

I FINALLY HAVE SOME NEW NAIL ART FOR YOU.



This is just a super quick post because I've been crazy busy lately, but I figured I should update my blog :) I did some nails in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness month. For those of you who don't know/haven't figured it out, I am a student at MSU. If you happen to go there too, want to support the Avon Breast Cancer Crusade, and want a manicure, I'll be auctioning off a manicure at the MSU aKDPHI "Pretty in Pink" Date Auction. It starts at 7 at Erickson Kiva, and all proceeds will go to the Avon Breast Cancer Crusade!

The cast of characters:



(From left: Essie Mod Square, Pure Ice Superstar, OPI Princesses Rule, L'Oreal Penthouse Pink, and Art Deco Intense Pink)

The technique: On my thumb, middle, and pinky finger, I used Essie Mod Square, and then I used L'Oreal Penthouse Pink on my pointer and ring finger. Because Art Deco Intense Pink is nearly the same color as Mod Square, I needed it to pop, so I used my white Art Deco brush (not pictured) to draw the ribbon, and then I colored over it with Intense Pink so that it would show up. For my pointer finger, I went simple and used two pink heart rhinestones. On my middle finger, I went simple again and just used a coat of OPI Princesses Rule. On my ring finger, using the Art Deco white and Art Deco Intense Pink, I drew two perpendicular lines of each color. And finally, on my pinky finger, using Art Deco white, I wrote "HOPE."

It's a little messy because I had to do it quickly, but I do love it :)

Stay tuned! I have a ton of catching up to do (now that I'm caught up in school...). Lots of sponsored posts, and I'll probably do a picture dump of Sarahita's nails and Halloween makeup!

`Rakuzen

Depression + Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Two updates in one week?

I forewent one of my last nail designs so that I could post these (just finished them yesterday).



This one is using a regular shiny topcoat.



And this one uses Essie Matte About You (just because I love the look of it... no real purpose.

I chose green and pink for this week because green is the color for Depression Awareness Month, which is October, and pink is for Breast Cancer Awareness Month, which is also in October. To raise awareness, I'll be wearing these nails for a week and posting a picture of them in Soompi and on my Facebook and Twitter. For every comment (either on Facebook or my blog), "like," (Facebook) "thumbs up" (Soompi) "retweet" (Twitter) and new follower I get from this post, I will donate $0.50 to the Avon Breast Cancer Crusade Foundation, and $0.50 to Hope for Depression Research Foundation. I'm also hoping to get together a giveaway of Pink items to be given away by the end of the month.

I used OPI Jade Is the New Black as the base, three coats for each. Then I used my pink striper polish to draw the design. The thumb nail is kind of random, the pointer finger is supposed to be the Breast Cancer ribbon, the middle finger is just a cross, the ring finger is a french manicure with lines, and the pinky finger says HOPE.

I really love these, and I'm glad that I can actually do my nails for a reason this time, instead of just for fun. (:

(Also, the picture turned out fine!! Now if only I could actually get a good picture, with clean up, without tip wear (need to thin out my Seche Vite... it's getting goopy and dragging my nail polish back)

Nail of the Week + Stranger Tides swatch!

Wow, I am fail. It takes me two weeks, and all I come back with is a long-overdue swatch and a sort of fail nail art? (I also did not buy any nail polishes. A lot of my money has been going to coffee.)

Anyways! I didn't have enough time last week to do a nail art, I just used some nail treatments on my nails. For a science project that is required for graduation, I'll be testing the effects of Toluene (one of the Big 3 chemicals in nail polish) on insects. What's the purpose of that?

... I do not know. But what could be better than being around nail polish, and poking roly-polys with a stick? Exactly.



My nails for the past week. A bit of tip wear because it was a day or two after I first did the design before I could take the picture.

I followed the tutorial off of this tutorial with a few major differences.

I used a sponge brush to apply Sinful Colors This Is It, then drew the flower design (although my friend remarked that it resembled a cracked egg) with my pink striper brush, and went over that with my black striper.

I didn't add the cheetah print marks because I don't really care for animal patterns. I also didn't put gold glitter in the center of the flowers, partially because I was lazy and also because I forgot. Overall though, I liked the effect :)

Here is my swatch for the week (since I have not bought anything over the weekend, you'll have to live with just a swatch. OPI Stranger Tides from the Pirates of the Caribbean collection.



I should have warned you that it was a swatch that I hadn't cleaned up my nails yet in. I'm sorry. (I'm also sorry that my watermarks and stuff kind of suck. I edit my pictures with the free picnik on Flickr, and I just pick a random color for the border and fade the Rakuzen.)

I'm working on a new design right now, so I'll post that soon hopefully.

Happy Labor Day + nail haul

Happy Labor Day!

I had the day off, so I went with my family to take my sister back to college and go to the mall.

I was very sad to find out that BeautyFirst had closed. They always had some kind of good sale going on, so yeah.



On the bright side, I went to Trade Secret and bought this. Seche Restore. My Seche Vite topcoat is getting a bit too thick and gooey, and I have a couple of older nail polishes that need to be restored to a thinner consistency so that I can use them. I'm really happy (except I paid $10 for it and then, as I was walking out, noticed one that was marked for cheaper. :\)

This is kind of a beauty post, too. I also bought this Hello Kitty clutch from Sephora. Originally marked $25, it was on sale for $10.



I'd almost had my mom buy it for me online over the summer, but eventually gave up because I couldn't justify spending $25 on a clutch that probably wouldn't get too much use. So I was overjoyed that it went on sale.



And also, I received my fimo nail art in the mail! There's 50 assorted flakes, with flowers, Hello Kitty (can you tell that I'm a freak for HK?), and a lot of random stuff. And 100 slices of bunny. And a new roll of a white butterfly. I'm so geeked; trying to think of a nail design.



I had some nails from last week, but it wasn't anything too fancy and it chipped after a day, so I didn't get any pictures. Just Super Junior written in Korean with white polish over pink nail polish (in retrospect, I ought to have used sapphire blue.)

I didn't pick up any OPI products because I'm still getting a list together for my salon supplier so that it will be cheaper. I love you, OPI, but I don't have the kind of cash to shell out $8.50 for every bottle.

Nail of the Week + One old manicure

Since my flickr account is filled with pictures of my manicures, most of which have never seen the light of my blog... I'll be doing one manicure of the week (my current nails) and one of my old manicures every week, until they're all posted :)

Also, I love nail polish sales. And so I tend to buy a lot of nail polishes that sit, unused, in my box. In an effort to keep up with posting my collection, I'll be posting my nail polish haul from the week (or day...).

First up, my current manicure:



(Look at that. My picture actually turned out really well, not blurry, and true to color. In two tries. :)

I used China Glaze Recycle on my thumb, drew the design (four lines) with my black striper polish, and added a rhinestone. For my pointer finger, I used Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear White On nail polish, and Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear The Real Teal for the dots. For my middle finger, I painted it in SH The Real Teal, then drew the lines with my white striper polish, added a white french to the tip, and drew the bow with my black striper, before placing a rhinestone in the middle of the bow. My ring finger has China Glaze Recycle on it, with simple white and black diagonal stripes and a rhinestone where I messed up (:P). I used White On on my pinky finger, drew an X shape with my black striper, and filled in two of the triangles with The Real Teal.

I really, really like the designs in this batch. Very simple, but they're pretty and I've gotten a lot of compliments on them. Plus, I love using rhinestones.

Now for a picture of an old manicure.



This is a couple of months old, from November. I was trying to do the "fun dots" nail art, but I didn't look at a tutorial, just some pictures of finished products.

Not such a great idea. As you can see, it was basically a fail. But I have since learned how to do it, so I'll try again soon.

Also, some exciting news (for me). I've found someone (a salon owner with a beauty license) who is willing (and happy) to supply me with nail polish-- China Glaze, CND, OPI, Essie, and more-- at cost. Which is a lot cheaper than at most locations (retail value for OPI is $8.50. But the nearest store is two hours away, so it costs more in gas.)

I lost my SD card (well, not lost persay, more like misplaced) that had pictures of my last nail polish haul and some swatches, but as soon as I find it I'll update with those.

Rakuzen's Nail Polish Collection: Part 1

As promised, here is part of my nail polish collection. I'm too busy (lazy) to do it all at once, because...



No, this is not all of it. But this is a good part of it, and when I want to find all of one brand, I have to dig through it. So! The collection will be coming slowly.

Today though is my OPI collection (which isn't a lot, sadly), my Zoya collection (likewise) and the top coats/bottom coats that I use, for whatever reason. First up: OPI.



From left to right is: Jade Is the New Black from the OPI Hong Kong Collection; OPI Absolutely Alice from the Alice in Wonderland collection; OPI Simmer & Shimmer from the Burlesque collection; OPI Do You Lilac It?; OPI Black Shatter; Nicole by OPI No Limits matte; OPI RapiDry top coat;



OPI Kreme de la Kremlin from the Russian Collection; OPI Ink; OPI Stranger Tides from the Pirates of the Caribbean collection; OPI Suzi Says Feng Shui from the Hong Kong Collection; OPI Alpine Snow; OPI Illuminate from the Designer Series; OPI Here Today, Aragorn Tomorrow; OPI Pearl of Wisdom from the Hong Kong Collection; and OPI Lucky Lucky Lavender, also from the Hong Kong Collection.

There were a couple that didn't turn up for the picture, like OPI Breathe Life and OPI Dim Sum Plum. (Also, can you tell that I love OPI? No? Kay, well, I'm kind of pathetic and didn't have to look at any of the bottles or online for the names/collection.)

My Zoya collection:



From left to right: Zoya Dove; Zoya Lolly (Matte); and Zoya Caitlin plus the Zoya remove +.

(And no, my pictures do not do any justice to the polishes. Please forgive my poor camera skills.)

I just have to say that (and this is my own opinion. I am not sponsored by Zoya.) that the Zoya remove+ is the most amazing nail polish remover I've ever used. It takes off glittery nail polish (even Absolutely Alice, which is killer to remove) in seconds, with half as many cotton balls as it usually takes. And on regular nail polish? Let's just say that I no longer dread having to take off my nail polish. :) But seriously. It's only $10 or so for an 8 fl. oz. bottle. The spout is awesome, because it locks when not in use, otherwise you unlock it and push down (with a cotton ball) and it soaks your cotton ball with just three spritzes. It also preps your nails and doesn't dry them out, and it smells nice too.

My top/base coat collection:



From left to right: OPI RapiDry top coat; Essie Matte About You top coat; Sally Hansen Double Duty Base + Top Coat; Sinful Colors Base Coat; Seche Vite Quick Dry Top Coat; Essie Matte About You top coat; and Seche Vite base coat.

Why am I so bad at taking pictures? I have no clue. But I promise that it will improve as I start doing more nail art and swatches. Or I'll get a stand. Or someone with not-shaky hands to hold my camera.

July 4th

Happy Independence Day to my American readers! :)

I went out to Beauty First in Ann Arbor today, and got a lovely surprise. Three OPI nail polishes and one Essie polish for the price of $20.



From left to right: Essie Matte About You Top Coat, OPI Stranger Tides from the OPI Pirates of the Caribbean collection, OPI Here Today, Aragorn Tomorrow, and OPI RapidDry Top Coat.

I don't know if the OPI Here Today, Aragorn Tomorrow is the matte version, which is what I was actually looking for (but the salesperson didn't really know what I was talking about. She also probably thought I was a freak for knowing the exact name and release date.), but even if it's not, the non-matte is pretty too. The Essie was on sale for $2 (!!!), regular price $10. Both OPI polishes were regularly priced at $8.50, but with the purchase of two OPI's I got the top coat for free.

Doesn't the beauty of it all make you want to cry? It makes me want to cry xD Coming soon will be swatches of Stranger Tides and Here Today, Aragorn Tomorrow. For work, I'm not allowed to have bright colors, so we'll see what I can do.

Have a good holiday!

OPI + Sinful Colors

I'm super sorry it's been awhile! But exams (and school) are finally over. Also, on Tuesday I pulled a muscle (maybe?) in my knee, and I've been stuck at home. It was scary; I turned from helping a customer at work, and just fell. There was a loud crunch in my knee, and it hurt so bad. Afterwards I felt extremely dizzy and my vision was so blurred;; I was still at work though, and apparently I looked so out of it that a customer thought I would pass out. So I spent two hours at the hospital, only to discover I had no broken bones.

Moving on to the point of this blog!

So my sister came home this past weekend, and brought me a present-- two colors from the OPI Hong Kong collection that I had been eying! "Lucky Lucky Lavender" and "Jade Is the New Black." I've only looked at Lucky in the bottle, but I couldn't resist and swatched Jade Is the New Black on a fake nail just to see the design possibilities. It's a gorgeous green, and I can't wait to wear it.

Plus, I made a post on Soomp! about how I wanted some out-of-stock OPI, and this super sweet Soompier messaged me, offering to see if they had the colors near her house. She snatched up Absolutely Alice, Jade Is the New Black, and Dim Sum Plum. I mailed her the cost (a ton cheaper than what I pay in Michigan) and a service fee because she was ultra sweet to do this. So I'll have two Jades, and the two colors I desperately wanted! :D So happy.

Finally, to the pictures.



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This is OPI Suzi Says Feng Shui. I'm really disappointed that I couldn't capture the correct color. It looks really bright, but it's actually not. It's a gorgeous dusty blue. A must-have for my current color obsession. The design is supposed to be a butterfly, but it can definitely be seen as a flower. I used my rhinestones for the first time! Only one of them was able to last five days until I removed it today.

And I bought Sinful Colors Soulmate a few weeks ago, when I bought their Mint Apple. I am so disappointed with Sinful Colors right now, and this is coming from someone who has promoted them so much. The formula was thick and goopy, and it dried slowly. Ten minutes after I had put the first thin coat on, it still made marks and was wet to touch. The color was kind of pretty, but it was disgusting on my nails, so I took it off. I was literally able to scrape it off with my nails-- it wasn't even like peeling nail polish (which is bad for your nails...), but more like scraping toothpaste or something off your skin. Gross.



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That is seriously the closest picture I could get to the true picture. I don't even know if you can see the finger marks on it. (Please ignore my sheep pajamas). I am so disappointed right now. D: I took it off and applied base coat to my nails, but I already made the bathroom smell awful like nail polish and remover, so I'll have to apply polish tomorrow. I'm thinking Jade Is the New Black.

Essie & OPI

YAY! Happy Memorial Day!

I went out of town today, and picked up a wheel of rhinestones from Michaels to use in nail art. It's not very big, which is good since I'm just using it as a test, and I got it for around $2 ?



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Also...
I bought my first OPI nail polish! My sister referred me to the only place in the mall that sold OPI, so I went to check it out. I was hoping to get Absolutely Alice from OPI's Alice in Wonderland collection, because pictures make it look gorgeous, but they only had Off With Her Red. Right now I'm more into dark colors, so I didn't get it.

Then I saw they had part of the Hong Kong collection! I had just looked at swatches of that online (Thank goodness). They didn't have two of the colors I wanted the most-- Dim Sum Plum and Jade Is the New Black. Just "A Good Man-Darin Is Hard to Find," "Pearl of Wisdom," "Chopsticking to my story," and "Hot and Spicy."

Which was disappointing, because those were all the colors that I didn't want D: Ah, well. They had "Suzi Says Feng Shui," so I bought it. $8.50! But I hear the price is worth it, in OPI's case.



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Sorry it's so blurry-- I'm super amateur at picture taking, and it's late. Plus, this was the photo that stayed closest to the bottle's color.

Moving on, I also bought my first Essie from the same store! My only prior experience with Essie was from my older sister. She bought me a "MegaMini Jewels" gift set with four colors-- red, two pinks, and a white. I touched it once or twice, but the color was too light for my tastes, so she ended up taking it back for herself. But I also heard Essie was a good brand, so I splurged and spent $8 on it (the highest I've ever paid for nail polish is $4 for Sally Hansen).

I didn't really look at many swatches for Essie, so I didn't want to buy a color and end up hating it and wasting my money. So I bought "Mint Candy Apple." The bottle was surprisingly big, so I'm excited to use it.



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Once again, sorry for the bad quality. And the posters in the background xD Last year I went through a HUGE Jonas Brothers fangirl phase. I grew out of it though, but I'm too lazy to take down all the posters, so I have their old pictures everywhere in my room.

And finally, my nails for the week.



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I followed this tutorial: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wX_STg1ZsjQ

It didn't come out flawless because I didn't have the right tools, but it's pretty close to the model picture.

I used Sinful Colors Mint Apple, which is a beautiful color. I really like it though! And a petites' black polish that I don't remember the name of.

This week is exam week, so I'll be (trying) studying all week. Then I'm off for summer! What kinds of colors do you recommend for summer?