Previous NOTD: OPI Red Like Roses w/ ChG Poetic

This was my KOTD about 3-4 days ago, so I apologize for not showing it to you sooner. :)

Anyway, as last week was HTF week on the MUA NB, I figured I'd use one of my (few) HTFs. Red Like Roses is from OPI's 2007 Valentine's Day collection. You can find it on eBay sometimes in the $10-12 range, though there are 3-4 sellers charging $22-25 for it. However, I got mine at TD for $4.99. As I am writing this, they still have them. RLR is a pretty metallic red with a gold tinge. The closest thing I have in my collection is OPI An Affair in Red Square, but AAIRS isn't nearly as glowy as RLR, and the gold in AAIRS is much more pronounced.

I went w/ ChG Poetic for the konad design and I used plate m64. I've used this plate 2-3 times since I got it, which was just like a week and a half ago. I love it that much. I think the golden metallic Poetic plays very nice with the golden highlight in RLR. Here's a pic:

I wore this for 2 days and then I got Orly Matte Top in my my VNS order, so I figured I'd use it to freshen up my mani.

I'd been interested in trying Essie Matte About You, but I didn't want to go to eBay or pay retail at VNS, so I opted to try Orly's Matte Top instead. Have you heard anything about Matte Top? Me neither. I'd heard about Nubar's matte top coat and Essie MAY is all the rage on the NB, but it seems Matte Top had fallen through the cracks. Now, I don't have any other matte TC to compare, but I'm in love with Matte Top. While it's called Matte Top, the finish it creates is more similar to a satin finish, but I think in that regard, it's much more user friendly. I have a couple OPI mattes and I don't really like the finish on them. It's so chalky. I think when I try my mattes in the future, I'm going to add a coat of MT. I think I will much prefer the satin finish to the "totally devoid of light" finish of a true matte polish.

If you are interested in trying a matte top coat, definitely give Orly Matte Top a try. It's cheaper than Essie MAY as VNS had it for $4.50 and the satin finish it creates would be fantastic over just about any type of polish, konad, or nail art.

New BeautySak Code

I follow BeautySak on Facebook and they posted this code yesterday. It's for $20 off a $100 purchase, which is essentially 20%. The code is TWENTY and it's good through the 13th. BeautySak offers RBLs for $18, with a few occasionally on sale for $15-$16 and Lippmanns for $15, with the occasional $11-$12 sale price.

I was all set to jump on this bad boy. Started loading my cart down with my RBL lemmings when an OOS Teal stopped me in my tracks. Grumble. It was there 2 weeks ago. Oh well. If it doesn't get back in stock before the 13th, I'm just going to have to sit this code out and wait for the next one. Bummer.

EDIT: I received a notice in my inbox that Teal is now available. I frankened a pretty awesome teal today, so I don't know if I'll get these RBLs or not. I kind of OD'd on nail polish with my last VNS order, so I may still pass. *feels forehead*

NOTD: OPI Who Needs a Prince? w/ "nail jewelry"

About 2 weeks ago, I ordered some "nail jewelry" decals from a Hong Kong based eBay seller. The term "Nail Jewelry" is what's on the package. I'd been watching them for awhile, but finally decided to take the plunge. It was a set of 24 packs of full-nail decals with rhinestones for a tad more than $10 shipped. When it finally arrived (I say finally, but considering it came from HK, shipping was fine), they weren't what I expected. I'm not sure what I expected, 3-D full-nail stick-on decals, I think, but these weren't it. But, the designs were really cute, so I figured I'd give them a shot. I'm going to describe my application process first and post pics later.

I chose a pink tribal/flame design and paired it up with a base of OPI Who Needs a Prince?. I chose this particular design because it wasn't one of my favorites. I wanted to save my favorites for when I knew what to do. LOL. WNAP? is from OPI's Spring 2006 Princess Charming Soft Shades Collection. You can still find it readily available on eBay and at e-tailer sites. For all intents and purposes, it's a soft pink, but in actuality, it's an off-white base with fine red shimmer (thank you, Scrangie, for that description). But since it looks like a soft pink, it's what I went with. I thought I was using Makes Men Blush, but I must've grabbed the wrong one and didn't feel like changing 1/2-way through base color application. But now that I'm looking at both bottles, WNAP? works much better.

I applied 2 coats of WNAP? and a coat of OTD TC. Waited about 20 minutes and then started to apply the decals sheets. Rather than being stickers, these were full, thin plastic sheets that covered the nail. They were a little tacky on the back, but not sticky. Since I have wide nail beds, I centered these on my nail, as I couldn't totally cover my nail w/ them.

The process went as follows:

1. Remove nail sheet from plastic with tweezers. Go kind of slow, so the sheet doesn't tear. Rhinestone will be left on the plastic, so don't freak out (you'll get to them later).
2. Center sheet on nail. You can use tweezers or your fingers for this. It's okay to touch these on the back, until sticker decals.
3. Once it's centered, tap it down on the nail w/ your finger just to make sure it's stable, and apply a coat of top coat. Don't worry if the decal hangs over the free edge of your nail. It will shrink and draw down after the TC is applied.
4. Lather, rinse, repeat on all nails.
5. Remove rhinestones from plastic and apply to nail. I placed them in the same place as the manufacturer had placed, them but you can do whatever you like. You don't even need to use them. The look w/o the rhinestones was just as cool. I just used them to test the entire process. REMOVAL/APPLICATION TIP: Remove them from the plastic with your tweezers. Be careful not to rip off all the sticky. Apply them by using the pointed tip of an orange stick (I used of the small ones I got in a pack of fake nails).
6. Apply another coat of TC.
7. Take your tweezers or an orange stick and remove the decal from behind the free edge of your nail. It should peel right off.

I have no pictures of this process, just of the finished process, but I plan on taking some my next go-around. It's involved, but not hard. And it will definitely go faster w/ practice. This time took me around 2 hours, but I took my time.

Okay, enough gabbing. Here are pics:

I apologize about the sad state of my cuticles. I was tired and not as careful with the glue as I usually am.

And here's one of a couple more packages, these are just 2 I grabbed, I have cuter ones:

All in all, I really like these. It was fun to try a new product and I was happy it went much better than I expected. There's not a huge learning curve on these, either, which I like. If you are interested, you can get them from eBay seller, HoneyPlace (gah, that sounds dirty). Click for the item. Fair warning... I did not get the 2 designs pictured in the add. I do like what I got, however, and I can take pics of the 21 I haven't shown you if anyone is interested, but keep in mind, you will get an assortment from their inventory. Hope you guys like these. :)