Collective Haul: Sally Beauty and Dollar Tree

I decided I wanted to try Argan Oil products, so I picked up a bottle of the oil and then small bottles of the shampoo and conditioner to see if I like them. (Side note: I love when this kind of thing is available. I hate buying a large bottle of a product and then discovering I dislike it!)

I also picked up some hair color to use probably in the next few days. It's a burgundy/red/brown color. I got a little whisk to mix the dye as well, since I currently just have the brush used for applying it and it doesn't work that well for mixing. The lady working at the check out counter suggested getting the ion repair solutions packet for after coloring as well. This is my first experience with Ion products.

Also at Sally's, I picked up China Glaze 'Light My Tiki' because it was on clearance for $1.99 and Finger Paints 'Where Art Renoir?' because I've been wanting a polish like it for awhile. 

At the Dollar Tree, I saw these trios from L.A. Colors. I was intrigued by the colors but didn't have that high of expectations, considering they were $1 each. They seem really awesome, though! So far I've just swatched them but they are very soft and pigmented! I'll do a post on just them soon. 

I also picked up an NYC lip slider because I'd heard good things about them (and a little because I'd forgotten to bring any lip balms with me and my lips were dry)

I'm really excited to play around with this stuff more! Have any of you tried any of these products before? What were your experiences?

Crackle Glaze Color Combinations

I’ve already been sampling some combinations I can do with the new China Glaze crackle polishes. These are so much fun! I’m sure there will be more to come.

L: Broken Hearted over China Glaze Spontaneous

R: Cracked Concrete over China Glaze Flying Dragon

Crushed Candy over an old Bonne Bell purple sparkly polish…I don’t know the name

Cracked Concrete over China Glaze Shocking Pink (A thin coat over white)

Nail Polish Haul and Swatches

Here are the nail polishes I've gotten recently. Mostly holiday colors. I got China Glaze Sacred Heart for $1.99 and Orly Halley's Comet for #3.99 in the clearance bin at my Sally's. 

L-R: Milani Ruby Jewels, China Glaze Sacred Heart, China Glaze Mrs. Claus

 Sacred Heart is a lovely opaque creme classic red polish. It's called a neon on the bottle, but it isn't matte. I wish Mrs. Claus was more red than pink, but it's still a nice polish and I think it has some potential for interesting layering combinations. It's very sheer.

L-R: China Glaze Party Hearty, Milani Silver Dazzle

These Milani "one coat glitters" all look AMAZING. I decided to just get this one. This is two coats, but it's totally opaque. It's hard to tell in the picture, but it is totally matte and you can feel the glitters, so you may want to use a topcoat with it.

L-R: Milani Hi-Tech, China Glaze Mistletoe Kisses, Finger Paints Mistletoe Mischief

 Mistletoe kisses is definitely one of the coolest polishes I've seen lately and the one I'm most excited to use for the holidays. Mistletoe Mischief is sheerer than I hoped - this is 3 coats - but it's still a lovely green.

Orly Halley's Comet

I could NOT get this one to photograph well at all. It's an amazing color. It goes on fairly sheer but after 2-3  coats it's just fantastic. It looks mostly blue in this picture, but it has a lot more of a teal effect in person, and it's much more glittery looking in person as well.
Scrangie has a much better looking photo of this on her blog : http://www.scrangie.com/2010/09/orly-cosmic-fx-collection-fall-2010.html

Overall I'm very excited about all of these! It'll make for some interesting Christmas manicures!