Treatment Tuesdays! Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat

My absolute favourite quick dry top coat is dear old Seche Vite!

Your manicure will be dry within minutes. I love using it on people who don't usually use top coats or use one that takes a long time to dry, they are always blown away. Seche does get gluggy over time however, a simple fix is to add some polish thinner to it and it'll be good as new!

Treatment Tuesdays! Color Club Vitabase

Color Club's nail strengthener is called Vitabase. What it does is help your nails regain their strength. Maybe you hit a rough patch and now your poor peely thin nails are paying for it, Vitabase will help your beautiful nails get back on track!

Contact Color Club NZ to find your nearest stockist!

Treatment Tuesdays! L.A. Girls Hydrating Base Coat

L.A. Girl's Hydrating Base Coat has been my go to basecoat for almost a year now. My beautiful partner picked it up for me when he was out shopping, and what a great choice he made! 

I think L.A. Girl treatments range from around $6-$10. A bargain! 

The wear on this base coat was great. I say was because I've only a few drops left. It really helped keep my polish where it was supposed to be. It aided in stopping it chipping off at the corners too. 

Treatment Tuesdays! Color Club Vivid Top Coat

Color Club has this amazing top coat called Vivid! What does it do? Well, as you can see, Vivid has a blue tint to it. What does that do? The blue tint when layered over your manicure, will make it appear more vibrant! So for those neons that aren't quite neon enough, or maybe even just for those colours you want to make pop a little bit.

Contact Color Club NZ to find your nearest stockist!

Treatment Tuesdays! Color Club Cuticle Soothe

Color Club's Cuticle Soothe is great for keeping your little cuticles in tip top condition! Even when you get those pesky hang nails that really hurt - pop a bit of this on and it'll help them rehydrate and rebuild quicker.

Contact Color Club NZ to find your nearest stockist!

Orly Bonder AKA: Best Thing Since Sliced Bread

Or maybe in our case, it should be Best Thing Since Fast Dry Topcoat?.../lamejoke

Now that I think about... what is so great about sliced bread? ...

Today I have one of Orly's many treatments to show you, Bonder. A special rubberised base coat that helps your nail polish grip on. It retails for $12.50 in New Zealand at Farmers. Which really isn't bad. It is 9ml.

I have had a lot of recommendations to try out Orly Bonder as my manicure chips within the first or 2nd day. I can tell you already, I love this stuff! I never want to be without it ever again! I have worn it with every manicure since I bought it and none have chipped. None. I usually change my nails every 3 days so I haven't tried it past that many days.

I also have a lot of peelies on my nails too as I pick and peel my nail polish off... naughty I know... but Bonder really helps even out the nail polish over them, leaving a smooth surface.

If you have had either of the same problems as me, definitely give Bonder a go! I highly recommend it.

Color Club Alter Ego : Reveal Your Mystery Review

Today I have Color Club's Reveal Your Mystery set to show you! This is the lighter half of the Alter Ego collection.

At the very end of this post I have an awesome Color Club deal for you New Zealander ladies. 

Going Incognito

Incognito is a very pretty nude creme. It also looks great on different skin-tones. My mum is more pink in her toning and it looks like a mannequin shade on her. Incognito is a little too blue toned to do that for me but it still looks just as delicate.

The formula is nice, very easy to control and smooth. However, it does take 3 coats to get full coverage. Perhaps layering it over a ridge-filler that gives a tinge of colour would help with this.

Sheer Disguise

Oh, Sheer Disguise. It just wasn't meant to be. You bring the red out in me and I just can have that. However! As mentioned above, Mum is warmer than me in her toning and Sheer Disguise looks amazing on her! (I should get her to take a photo sometime) Sheer Disguise is one of her favourite greys now.

The formula is quite consistent through-out the collection, smooth, a little bit chalky but easy to control.

Revealed

Revealed is the only shimmer in this collection. The pink shimmer is very apparent in the bottle but doesn't quite apply to the nail in the same intensity. I think this one may be my favourite from Alter Ego: Reveal Your Mystery. I adore peachy shades like this one! 

The coverage and formula are really nice, typical frosty/shimmery Color Club formula. I'd call it a little bit frothy? Kind of like a milkshake. You know, it's soft but a bit thick?

Secret Rendezvous

Secret Rendezvous was one of the main reasons of purchasing this collection. I cannot stop myself buying these light lavenders and lilacs. Because very rarely do I actually like them on myself. This is a very real problem. I think, in my head that I'm just hoping that I'm going to find 'the one' and be done with searching. Secret Rendezvous is hitting pretty close, but I think it needs to be a tiny bit less... white. I'm not too sure but I do like it and will be wearing it through-out Summer!

The formula is just like Sheer Disguise's and Get A Clue's. It has that chalky-ness to it and those kind of polishes I find always need 2-3 coats for full coverage.

Give Me A Hint

I've never been too fussed with these kind of shades. They don't really do anything for me. I tend to either like something very bold or very subtle. I think Give Me A Hint falls in between like many of it's taupe/mushroom/purple predecessors (Channelesque, Parle-vous OPI, Particulere). Some people though (like my Mum) love these kinds of colours. They have seemed to have jumped into that stereotypical safe color along with sheer pink and red.

I found the formula for this one to be like Going Incognitos. Easy to control and smooth. Give Me A Hint does give more coverage though, only needing two coats.

Get A Clue

I love Get A Clue when inside or in the shade. It looks so squishy! The sunlight tends to pull out the chalky-ness. Get A Clue was another reason why I decided to buy this collection. I wasn't too sure on it as first but I think it's a perfect colour for summer! Although at the moment I'm on a dusty pink kick and I think Get A Clue will make the perfect base for it!

Three coats needed with Get A Clue as well, but I suspect that a ridge-filler that is slightly white or nude in colour will do the trick for this collection.

Milky White Base Coat

Just to be confusing, in the top photo all of the nails have Milky White on them, only in the second photo has the ring finger changed to a different base coat. I was a little bit confused as to why this treatment was included with the Alter Egos, it seems like it'd be more beneficial with a sheer collection. Incognito is the sheerest but it still gives quite a bit of coverage. 

I do however think that Milky White is one of the best things since sliced bread! The blue/purple tint in it counteracts the yellow and orange tones in your nail that may be there from staining, among other things. 

As with all treatment like products, I was quick to dismiss it all together. But once I had discovered that it actually does something, my mum, sister and I were up all night painting it on some our nails and comparing our favourite sheers over the top to see the difference. Great stuff!

Overall:

I believe Reveal Your Mystery is only one half of the Alter Ego series. The other half seems to be quite intense! Duochromes and shimmer galore! But I think this set is perfect for all year round. You've got Summer (pink, peach and lavender), Autumn (taupe and nude), Winter (grey and lavender) and Spring (peach, lavender and pink) covered!

The formula is ok. Nothing mind-blowing but I do insist on using a nude or off-white ridge-filler for these girls. Some of them are a bit chalky and need that extra help to hang on. Where as others like Revealed (peach) and Give Me A Hint (taupe) are quite capable on their own. Going Incognito is a nude so you may not want that extra help if you want to have it a bit jelly-ish and see a bit of nail.

Where to buy in New Zealand:

Usually you can order them from USA Nails Online for $11.90, but these will only be distributed to Amazon stores. They retail in store from around $15-$17 usually.

SOLD OUT!

On USA Nails Online, they are selling Wild Orchid, Positively Posh, Soft As Cashmere, Ready To Royal, Red Velvet and Covered in Diamonds all together for 6 bucks! Usually this would cost you $71.40. Postage is $3.90, so $9.90 for the whole lot including postage. 
Doesn't take much brain power to realise that this is well and truly a bargain. Dad would be proud!

Well that self restrain didn't last long! 

http://www.usanailsonline.co.nz/categories/color-club-wild-at-heart-/6-pack-of-untamed-luxury-1-each

Well, I think I've procrastinated enough from doing my homework now. Enjoy ladies!

Orly French Polynesian Spa Travel Set

I came across this little travel set in a chemist the other day for $6.99. Normal price was $24.99. I had looked at this set a few times but couldn't bring myself to pay $25 for the travel sized kit. 

Let's take a look at what you get.

PARADISE POLISH - RENEWING HAND BUFF:

De-crapped, it's a scrub. Goodness knows how many different scrubs there are out there, but they are basically all the same, aren't they? The only difference being the smell, colour or texture. But they all do the same job.

This scrub was nice, I thought the granules disappeared too quickly for my liking and it does leave an oily layer on your hands. However it did scrub my hands and leaves a pleasant scent behind.

HOT LAVA - SELF-WARMING HAND REPAIR MASK:

Rational speak, it's an oil and clay.

From all the different types of masks I have used in the past, this was quite different. It looks like clay mixed with oil and it leaves an oily sheath on your hands. Mine was sort of separating but I think most masks are like that as the oils don't mix well with other ingredients. 

As for the self-warming bit of it. Did it raise my hand temperature by half a degree? I don't know because I didn't feel anything! My boyfriend was trying this mask with me too and he also felt nothing but didn't want to say anything in case his hands unable to feel it. But with two of us feeling no difference....

TROPICAL DEW - MAXIMUM MOISTURE HAND BUTTER:

Take away all the fancy words and it's a moisturiser. 

A very thick moisturiser. It took quite a while to absorb and was a little bit hard to rub in. It also left my hands quite greasy for some time. I suppose it is like a spa experience though, so I think you shouldn't be doing this when you have things to do as oil is very hard to remove from your hands.

OVERALL:

I do like the overall scent in this set and it has managed to stick around for the next day. Even after showers and hand washes so I do quite like that aspect. The scent in this set is Tahitian Coconut & Tiare Flower.

My hands do feel nice and soft today, a little bit dry but some hand cream will fix that. The scrub was great at getting the little bits of dead skin off around my cuticles. I don't know if the mask really did anything, maybe I am expecting too much?

I think it is a nice little travel set and would be really nice to take away on holiday with you. The non-self-warming mask was a bit disappointing though. 

There is one major big let down in this set. Instructions. There's info on how these things will change your life on everything but no instructions! I know it seems like a simple thing to do but I would have liked to have known how long to keep these things on or what would be the best way to use them. Not read all this empty-worded-glorified-bullcrap.

"This relaxing self-heating treatment helps nourish, detoxify and rebalance skin with mineral-rich volcanic clay, while Tahitian coconut oil and Tiare flower wrap skin in a velvet blanket of hydration therapy. Hands are supple and feathery soft."

I know you want to wrap your skin in a velvet blanket of hydration therapy.

I found this deal at Dress-Smart, Onehunga. They also have Orly polishes for $9.99 and two minis for $8 at the moment.

QTICA Nail Growth Stimulator Trial

Thanks to being born around this time of year has allowed me to be able to get my hands on another bottle of Qtica's Nail Growth Stimulator as it is on the pricey side. (Old photo shown, my goal is to get my nails back to that length.)


Why I am trying it again:
Qtica guarantees that it will give you a quarter of an inch (0.635 centimetres) growth in 14 days. I know I've tried it before and didn't get the amount of growth promised, but my lifestyle is quite different from back then so I want to give it another try.

The price and where to buy:
It is a lot easier to find (and cheaper!) in the states, the Art Of Beauty site sells it for $20US, I think I have seen it around for $8-$15 on other places. 


In New Zealand the only place I know of to buy it is from Sudo-Mistair. It is expensive though at $61.00 a pop. If you have a salon account though, it goes down to $38.12. Still quite pricey, maybe get it as a treat if you have been super good :)


What I will be doing over the next 14 days:
I will be documenting my progress with a photo each day and I will make a .gif so I can have an animation to show you of the growth within the next 14 days. I will also be continuing the treatment and documentation for one month.


Once my nails are at a likable length, I don't think I will continue on with this product as it is too pricey to keep as a main treatment. I will then carry on using Zoya Anchor as my main base/treatment as that is much cheaper at $14.38 (salon price).


Well I guess I will be seeing you in 14 days, if not before then :)

Orly Top 2 Bottom

I've been using this as my base coat and my top coat for my manicure since I got it last week and I can't believe how great it is!

My manicures have been lasting 3 days. I've never had that before! They would probably last longer I just get tired of looking at the same thing on my nails for 3 days :) I will have to give it a trial!

AS A BASECOAT

No staining or yellowing nails so far. No chips or peeling.

AS A TOP COAT

Works really well with Orly polishes, dries them as if I used Seche Vite. But with other brands like Essie, it doesn't quite dry it as quick. But I did an Essie manicure tonight and used Top 2 Bottom as my base and Seche for the top coat and it's dried quickly.

OVERALL

I think I will have to buy a full size bottle of this stuff. I'm just blown away. I usually don't care for the mini treatments in packs but I am so glad I got to try this! 

Definitely reccomend :)