Haul: February and March!!

Hello!

I'm not super happy with my set up here, and I feel that my picture quality is a little less than what I want... maybe it's the lighting? I think it's the lighting inside, and I know it's the lack of direct sunlight shots. I think those really show the polish well, and our apartment doesn't have a good place for those kind of shots. Anyway, I'll be back more frequently once I can get my photos back up to speed. Probably not until fall or winter however -- we're currently building a house and will be moving before summer is over (hopefully)! All that will keep us pretty busy, but the new house has space for a craft/polish room! I'll post what I wear in mean time.

So first, an update and rant about the Nerdlacquer situation from the January haul. I never did get my order or hear from the seller. Since she did not respond to the PayPal dispute process either, the dispute was decided in my favor, and PayPal was able to refund the money to me. Thanks, PayPal, you rock! So... NerdLacquer... I am disappoint! I've read her previous explanations as to what happened the last time she disappeared, and what she went through was terrible. I am sorry all that happened, but at this point, it doesn't excuse you from your obligations. At the very least, you should know when you can't function enough to continue running your business. Leaving the store active with inventory you can't fulfill and just letting people send you money for orders that you won't send out is deplorable. At the least, the store should have been made inactive and the outstanding orders finished. I will find it very hard to support the brand again (but, damn, those polishes are awesome!).
****Update**** I eventually did get my order! It was sometime in late summer of 2015. It came with a note of apology, extra polish, and some cute extras as well. It was a nice surprise, and I will likely give this brand another shot. I appreciate the attempt to own up and make things right.

Here's a look at what I hauled in February and March!

A quick stop into Ulta saw me bringing home some clearance nail stickers!

Ulta loot.

And, three shimmery pretties from the China Glaze spring collection Dashboard Dreamer, Pack Lightly, and the lilac one, Wanderlust (not pictured).

China Glaze Road Trip picks.

Here is the February mystery bag from Rainbow Honey:

Rainbow Honey February 2015 Mystery Bag - mini.

Even though March was birthday month, my only polish purchase was March's mystery bag:

Rainbow Honey March 2015 Mystery Bag - mini.

More eventually! ^_^

Haul: January!

Hello!

Let's take a look at January's haul!

I should be showing you my first purchase of the year right here, but I have not received my order yet. On the first, I checked in on the Nerdlacquer site and saw a couple of polishes from my wishlist were available, so I placed an order. I purchased a bottle of The Lando System and a bottle of Alecto. When they failed to arrive a month later, I sent an email to the listed support address kindly asking for an update on my order. I understand if my order got overlooked or in line behind a bunch of others, but I have yet to hear anything.  :(  I am hoping the creator hasn't disappeared again, but I did start the dispute process on Paypal just in case... it stated I had 45 days from the date of the transaction to do so. Now, the seller has a month to respond. Has anyone else been having problems with Nerdlacquer lately?

****Update****

I just wanted to update this post because Nerdlacquer fulfilled my order. I think it was a year and several months later, but I did get the polishes I ordered (yes, even after I was granted a refund by PayPal), plus a bonus polish and a few cute extras. The order included a note of apology as well. So, I think that's awesome. Shit happens and the seller attempted to make it right. Good on her.

Moving on to the items I do have in my possession, here are the random Sally Hansen polishes I bought on clearance. Some of these came from Target, some from Wal-greens. I snagged I Lilac You, Peach Fuzz, All Yarned Up, and Berried Under.

Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

Next, China Glaze! The glitters, Pine-ing for Glitter and Chillin' With My Snow-mies, were on clearance at Ulta, and I picked up the red, Seduce Me, at Sally Beauty during a promo (I think it was buy a bottle of Seche Vite or Base and get a China Glaze free).

Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

Next, Zoya! These were also on clearance at Ulta for less than half price! Haven, Margo, Yuna, and Geneviev. I was surprised to see these on clearance so soon since they are from very recent collections. Happy day!

Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

Lastly, Rainbow Honey's January Mystery bag. Three pretty polishes, a sugar lip scrub, lip balm, and soap!

Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

 More soon! ^_^

NOTW: September to December Overview

Hello!

I'm going to take this opportunity to catch up on some nails of the week I wore during the last three months of shoddy blogging.

First, here is the mani I wore for our one year anniversary celebration in September. I started with three coats of OPI Don't Touch My Tutu over my base coat combination of Duri Rejuvacote plus Sinful Colors Nail Hardener. I added one coat of INM Northern Lights. I used a decal and then painted a tiny red heart, and finally, sealed that with one coat of NYC In a New York Minute.

Second, I tried out this beautiful peachy shimmer gel polish. My sister went the gel polish way, but I like changing mine up more often. Gel was fun to try, but it's definitely not for me. I think this was a Sally Hansen color, and the decal came from the clearance section at ShopKo.

Next, I wore this pretty autumn look on our long weekend trip to Duluth in October. We had great weather and beautiful fall color! My base here is OPI Sleigh Ride for Two.

Zoya re-released Harlow, from their Matte Velvet collection this past fall, and I had been lemming it forever. I put it on immediately once it arrived and added a coat of Rainbow Honey XOXO over my ring and middle fingers. I did use topcoat to make it shine and last a bit longer.

Last, I did this rather simple stamped looked. Sally Hansen Wet Cement is the grey, and I stamped with Pure Ice Gossip and BM-321. The darker grey on my ring finger was an experiment - I tried one coat of Dance Legend Albion over a creme-base, but preferred the look without.

More soon! ^_^

Haul: December!

Hello!

Another year has nearly come to a close. I spent some time today reading through the last two years' worth of haul posts, and I'm glad to have them. As I read them, I remembered the days around those posts and they're perfect little snippets of the way every day life was at that point in time.

This year has seen a lot of change for us here outside of the blog, and, sadly, my posting has been neglected as a result. We made the big move from Maryland to Minnesota, I changed jobs, my husband went through a crazy five-month long 'ordeal' over whether or not he would get the job he's waited three years for (We basically put everything on hold until we new the answer, so we are very happy to report that he has accepted the position and finally started!), celebrated our one year anniversary, said goodbye to one of the best dogs anyone could ask for, and have just started the process of building our new home. It's been a roller coaster of a year. I am excited for 2015, and I hope that in the next year I will be able to pick back up to more frequent postings.

For now, here is December's haul!

First, Rainbow Honey's Mystery Bag for December included larger mini polishes, lotion, solid perfume, and a jumbo cuticle balm (not pictured because I gifted for Christmas).

RH's mini Mystery Bag for December.

Second, I received the holiday collaboration gift pack from Serum No. 5, Polished by KPT, and Lacquer Lust as a Christmas gift. This included three polishes, one from each brand represented that showcased the type of polish they are typically known for (For example, Polished by KPT is known for thermal polishes, which is the type of polish in this set.) and another product from each brand. Polished by KPT made a lavender salt soak, cuticle balm from Lacquer Lust, and a lip serum from Serum No. 5.

2014 Holiday Collaboration Set.

I was so excited about these polishes! They are so pretty! Here is a better shot of the three polishes, Serum No. 5 New You, Lacquer Lust A Toast to the Good Life, and Polished by KPT Live the Night:

Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

Finally, I came across Sally Hansen High n' Dry in a clearance bin at Shopko. This is from the Insta-Dri line, which I've read is good for stamping, so we'll see if this one is as well.

Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

That's all for now!

More soon! ^_^

Haul: Catch Up - September, October, and November!

Hello!

So, life has been a bit crazy for me lately oscillating between some really happy and some really sad things for the last couple of months, and it's kept my attention focused elsewhere. I'm not sure when regular posts will be back, but I'm starting to pay more attention to the nail world again. ^_^ But, for today, let's play some catch up and take a peek at the little bit of hauling I've done since the last time.

I've been really keeping to a low-buy, partially due to life circumstances at the moment, but also because there hasn't been really anything new out lately that's really called to me.

September - Just Rainbow Honey's September bag:

Rainbow Honey September Mystery Bag - mini.

Here is October's:

Rainbow Honey October Mystery Bag - mini.

And, finally, November's:

Rainbow Honey November Mystery Bag - mini.

Along the way, I also picked up Orly Ablaze and Zoya Harlow:

Hopefully, more soon! ^_^

Haul: July!!

Hello!!

Good stuff in July!! It started with Rainbow Honey's July Mystery Bag, which came with a Midori rollerball, large Midori cuticle balm, Midori cooling gel, and three polishes. I thought the cooling gel was an awesome addition this month. It is sort of like aloe, but with a pleasant scent and a tiny bit of sparkle. This trial size bottle will be perfect to take along on a tropical vacation, and I can't wait to use it after a long day at the beach.

Rainbow Honey July Mystery Bag

The polishes are Chemical Plant, Deep Heart Sea, and Viridia.

Rainbow Honey July Mystery Bag Polishes.

Next, I was incredibly surprised when a package from Rainbow Honey showed up at my door. It had been sent to my old Maryland address and forwarded to me in Minnesota. I had been sent these three polishes as a press sample--my first ever!! This is One Minute More, Work It Out, and Elevate.

Rainbow Honey Mixtape Collection - press sample!

At Sally's, I had an offer for buy one, get one free, so I stopped in to browse. I grabbed Sun Worshipper, and saw that they had The Giver Collection out! I picked up Boundary of Memory, History of the World, and Friends Forever, Right?.

Sally Loot

Of course, I couldn't resist a Llarowe sale! I picked up a few Dance Legend Mist Way polishes, Albion and Be Mine; some random two dollar clearance polishes from both Dear Rus, #15 and #18; and Chick Polish Hipster Chick.

Llarowe Loot

My sister clued me in about our local Shopko's clearance bins. They are hidden away in a corner, so, from her directions, I found the spot and was pleasantly surprised to see some of the Maybelline Bleached Neons collection left! I picked up the limited edition Color Tattoo in Shimmering Sea, Color Whisper in Peach Punch and the polish, Bleached in Peach.

Shopko Clearance Finds!

We're not even done yet! Our local Kmart is going out of business and has marked down everything in the store. I browsed their surprisingly large cosmetics department and found some dusty gems. I found two older OPI's - Magazine Cover Mouse from one of the Minnie Mouse collections and The One That Got Away from the Katy Perry Collection. I also found Sally Hansen Big Smoky Topcoat, Milani Cupid's Touch (the best Wild Orchid purple!!), and the diamond glitter from Nicole by OPI, Be Awesome. I also picked up some nail art stickers and clean-up brushes (I use the concealer brush from E.L.F.).

Kmart Clearance Finds

Finally, Harlow & Co. restocked Powder Perfect just a few days ago. I had been eyeing some pretties from the Abandoned Mansion collection for a few months now. They are so beautiful! I was at work for the restock, so I prepped my husband to do battle and grab these as soon as the restock went live in case they sold out fast. He did an excellent job, and I got all my lemmings: Fading Tapestry, Widow's Walk, Around the Salvatore Fireplace, and Secret Passageway. Perfect for fall, and I cannot wait for cooler temps, changing leaves, and snow!

Powder Perfect gems.

I didn't intend for this month to be so huge, but I am really going to enjoy these beauties!

More soon! ^_^

NOTW: Secret Garden

Hello!

I am fail blogger again! But I regret nothing, Azeroth needed me! I'm a hero, don't you know? ^_^

So, since I've been playing too much World of Warcraft and don't have any pictures edited for this week, let's go all the way back to January in Maryland when I wore this beautiful mani.

Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

This started with my normal base coat combination. Then, I used two coats of Zoya Odette, which was then topcoated with Qtica Extending Topcoat. After a lot of dry time, I stamped the swirls with AEngland St. George. The glitter accents are the fabulous, Rainbow Honey Metalmark. Lastly, I used one coat of NYC In a New York Minute to seal everything in. I totally loved this look so much. I might have to revisit it!

Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

More soon! ^_^

Bonus NOTW: Red and Sparkly

Hello!

Here is yet another mani from a few months ago. It was one of those times when I was craving bright red nails. But I wanted to use one of my new polishes too, and the resulting combination isn't really the best...

Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

This is my usual base coat combination (Duri + Sinful Colors Nail Hardener), and two coats of Zoya Sooki for the red polish. On my accent nails, I started with a coat of OPI Every Month is Oktoberfest and layered one coat each of Rainbow Honey The Bubbly and Rainbow Honey Dearly Beloved over my middle and ring finger nails, respectively. One coat of topcoat, and this was finished.

I'm not crazy about the bright red mixed with the darker polishes. I was expecting the burgundy of Every Month is Oktoberfest to play against the red a little better, but even so, I rocked this one for a few days.

More soon ! ^_^

Preview: Rainbow Honey Summer Mixtape! Collection

***Products in this post were sent for review!***

Hiya!!

Omigosh you guys!! It's been a big week for Never Without Polish! The blog turned two on Tuesday, July 15th, and just today, I received my very first product for review! I was not expecting this at all, and I'm honored to have a review for one of my favorite brands, Rainbow Honey!

Rainbow Honey sent me three polishes from their brand new Summer Mixtape! Collection, which comes out today at 10 p.m. eastern time. So, like right now!! They also sent along a promo code, which I was encouraged to share. So, if you're shopping at Rainbow Honey between now and August, 31st, 2014, use this code for 20% off: MIXTAPE20   Awesome, right?

I was sent Elevate, One Minute More, and Work It Out. Onward to the swatches!

Elevate is a fun glitter topper in a clear base full of iridescent shimmer. I chose to show this over black, Cult Nails Nevermore, so you could see that pretty shimmer in full glory. This one is so fun!

Rainbow Honey Elevate. Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

One Minute More is a yellow polish packed with pink shimmer. Totally unique!

Rainbow Honey One Minute More. Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

Lastly, Work It Out is a perfect coral creme with a vintage feel. I love this one!

Rainbow Honey Work It Out. Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

Look for my normal, full swatches and review on these in the next few weeks. I wanted to get these on the blog as soon as possible, so you could all see them just in time for the launch.

Remember, the promo code! MIXTAPE20

Happy shopping! More soon! ^_^

***Products in this post were sent for review!***

Preview: China Glaze The Giver Collection, My Picks

Hiya!!

So, I just got back from Sally's and look what I have to show you!!

My picks from the new China Glaze collection, The Giver!

I did really quick swatches of these as soon as I got home, so I could show them to you. I haven't seen these swatched up by the big-name bloggers yet, so I was surprised to see them out on the shelf.

Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

My picks are Friends Forever, Right?, the palest of pink cremes; History of the World, a dusty blue-purple; and Boundary of Memory, a black, silver, and copper microglitter. I used three coats of Friends Forever, Right? and Boundary of Memory. History of the World only needed two. Formula on these is impressive, especially the pale, Friends Forever, Right?. It doesn't have any of the normal problems we usually see with such pale colors. It self-levels really well. It's not streaky, and it is applies very smoothly. I could've gotten away with two coats, but I nicked it at the last second and did a quick fix with a third coat.

I didn't think to snap a picture of the display or swatch wheel, however... but I do remember seeing one other microglitter, a white one, in this collection. The rest looked to be cremes. There are some interesting shades here, but very subdued and fall-like.

More soon! ^_^

Bonus NOTW: Lilac Skittles

Hello again!

I've got so many manis from my hiatus earlier this year that we're doing extra posts until the blog is caught up! This pretty lilac number was on my fingers for our roadtrip to South Carolina a few months ago. In fact, I snapped the last picture outside in downtown Charleston, near the South Carolina Aquarium. It was a beautiful day!

Lilac Skittles. Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

I started with my base coat combination of Duri Rejuvacote and Sinful Colors Nail Hardener. My middle finger got two coats of Color Club Fashion Addict, while the rest got two coats of OPI Don't Bossa Nova Me Around. I used some striping tape and Color Club Fashion Addict with Color Club Wild At Heart for my ring finger. The stamps were done with Wild at Heart. The geometric images are from BM-202 and BM-213, and the hippo you can barely see on my thumb, is from the FUN stamping plate #3. One coat of NYC In a New York Minute and off we went!

Lilac Skittles. Outdoors, sunlight, no flash.

More soon! ^_^

NOTW: Blustery Night

Hello!

I wore my combination of Nyx Algae and Aqua Glitter for a few days, then stamped this bushy image from Bundle Monster Plate BM-310 over it with Konad Special Polish Black. This mani reminds me of one of the rare, warm balmy nights when the moon is full and the breeze is tussling the branches about. The night feels alive, and it seems as if anything can happen...

Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

More soon! ^_^

Shining Stars

Hello!

A different kind of post for today - a sampling, if you will! A friend of mine recently got her hands on the mini set of OPI's Coca-Cola collection, and while visiting, I played with two of the shades. I used OPI Get Cherried Away for all my fingers but the ring finger, which got painted with OPI A Grape Affair. I think I used two coats of each over Sinful Colors Base Coat with Seche Vite on top.

OPI Get Cherried Away with OPI A Grape Affair. Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

After a few days, I livened things up with some nail art. I stamped the cascading star image from Bundle Monster plate BM-H25 with Zoya Trixie and added one coat of Black Cat Lacquer Discotraxx on my accent nails. This then got topped with one coat of NYC In a New York Minute.

Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

More soon! ^_^

Haul: June!

Hello!!

We're starting this haul post off with June's Mystery Bag from Rainbow Honey. This month I received a small rollerball perfume in Nucifera, a jumbo cuticle balm in Tea Biscuit, a sugar scrub bar also in Tea Biscuit, three mini polishes, and some half-sized orange sticks.

Rainbow Honey June Mystery Bag. 

I was delighted to see all three polishes this month were pink. Rose Macaron is a light pink crelly with pink, gold, and yellow glitters. Ichigo is a pink jelly packed with flakies. Pikake is a cute mix of pink, white, and yellow glitters with shimmer. I haven't used them yet, but they look cute!

Rainbow Honey June Mystery Bag Polishes. Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

Next up! Sally Beauty supply! I picked up two China Glaze polishes, Flip Flop Fantasy and Prism, and got the Nail Tek treatment free.

Sally's Loot. Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

After that, I went looking for the new Salon Perfect Red, White, and Blue collection at Wal-mart, but I struck out. My local store apparently did not get any, but I did find Pure Ice Freedom from last year that I had missed out on! I picked up Sparks Fly as well. Sally Hansen Lava was on clearance for about two dollars, so that came home with me too.

Cheapies! Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

Finally, a good friend of mine has recently become a nail polish junkie (welcome to the club, Molly!!!), and she has been bidding on polish lots from Ebay. I am the happy recipient of her duplicates! Nicole by OPI textures - Cinna-man of My Dreams and Blue-berry Sweet on You, and China Glaze Luxe and Lush.

Gifts! Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

I've got a ton of posts in the works for July, so more soon! ^_^

NOTW: Flashback to March - Square Experiment

Hello!

We're going to be playing catch-up around here for the next few weeks. These manis are from early March... when I wanted to do some awesome black french tips, but was disappointed with the following look.

Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

So... I squared them up and tried again!

Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

Much better, but I wasn't in love with the shape. They felt weird.

Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

But, I committed to one more look for, this time, for St. Patrick's Day before rounding them off again.

Indoors, artificial light, no flash.

This was a combination of China Glaze Glittering Garland, Zoya Gilty, OPI Love.Angel.Music.Baby, China Glaze Agro, and Pure Ice I'll Behave.

Squares never again! Haha!

More soon!