OPI: Gwen Stefani Holiday 2014 Collection ["Rollin' in Cashmere" trio, etc]

Hello darlings, and Happy Monday to you!  What with school started up in full force once more (for the last semester of my life!!!) the posts will be fewer and farther between, most unfortunately, and despite a desperate backlog of swatches, holiday and otherwise :(  However, I just had to get this one up for multiple reasons: one, because all of these polishes were popping up for excellent deals immediately after Christmas at TJMaxx, Marshall's, etc, well in advance of when I would normally expect these to appear at discount stores (uh, usually next year!).  But indeed, the Rollin' in Cashmere trio featured here (incorporating "Rollin' in Cashmere", "Comet in the Sky", and "Snow Globetrotter") was snapped up at TJMaxx for *$9.99* by my savvy Auntie Deborah, who very kindly loaned it to me for swatching and news-sharing, before she tried them even.  Thank you oh so much, Auntie!!  You may consider this your bargain-hunting hit list, kittens.

Icing : Cashmere "NYE" *starring Auntie Deborah*

Happy New Year's Eve, all you Twinkling goddesses out there!  Since I started this blog, I've been collecting pictures of manicures I have done for friends, as swatches and NOTD fun, but more importantly, as proof and validation that beauty reigns in all hands (and humans in general) regardless of nail shape, age, industry, etc.  My Auntie Deborah, once a makeup artist, now my fairy godmother, kindly posed for these swatches way back in September, but with a name like "NYE" I thought it only fitting that this polish, and my first guest feature, should debut on the last day of the year!!  Here's to a sparkling night of champagne kisses, and a most wonderful 2014!  Let this post and this night be a celebration of the profound beauty in heart, body, and soul that shines in all of us.

It Cosmetics *Naturally Pretty Celebration* limited edition eyeshadow palette - Holiday 2014

Hello Twinklings, and Happy Saturday!!  I've been playing around with the It Cosmetics *Naturally Pretty Celebration* palette lately, and just wanted to share some quick thoughts and a few ideas as to what you might do with it!

The dazzling aurora of holographic shimmers arcing across the palette's face are obviously what first captivated me (SHINY, NEED), and might seemingly suggest a more standard holiday palette: flamboyant, jewel-studded, brilliant, and bright.  However, It Cosmetics entertains a more subtle take on the season's delights with a cozy and comforting matte collection, plus a shimmer eyeshadow veil for creating lustrous "transformations", such as they are.  It's the cashmere sweater of holiday palettes, and despite the adorable, festive names, is equally cuddly and comfy as the seasons change.

Rocky Horror Picture Show: M.A.C. "Formidable!" & Picture Polish "Rocky"

Dammit, Janet!  It's Rocky Horror Picture Show time!!  I see you shiver with anticipation (name that song!).  This year will be a very special RHPS at the historic Wilma Theatre of Missoula, because starring as Rocky is none other than my very own heart throb: my incredibly talented boyfriend, Kellen!! <3  In honor of the opening show tonight, I have some Rocky-inspired nails that might just make you want to "give yourself over to absolute pleasure".

M.A.C. Cosmetics: A Novel Romance Collection swatches "Before Dawn" & "Midnight Storm" (feat. "Girl Trouble")

Hello loves!!  M.A.C. released their early fall collection A Novel Romance back in August, but I'm much more in the mood for them now than I was in the sultry days of late summer.  Once I was acclimated to deep, cozy colors again, I knew that I needed these because I just love the concept of this collection.  It's page-turning perfection, right on down sickeningly sappy promotional images.  Yup, nailed it.

M.A.C. A Novel Romance "Before Dawn" & "Midnight Storm" (feat. "Girl Trouble")

Essence Cosmetics : Dark Romance Collection

Calling all vampires!!  Essence's Dark Romance Collection is all about thrilling trysts in Gothic castles, and forbidden love in haunted ruins... Jane Austen's wide-eyed heroine Catherine Morland of Northanger Abbey would be all about this, what with her naive fascination with Gothic novels bordering on hallucinatory obsession.  The Brontë sisters would undoubtedly approve as well.  But do be sure to accessorize properly with a shadowy gloss and unearthly lacquer when you curl up with Wuthering Heights, or maybe Jane Eyre, for a good October thrill... ;)  A spiced tea will be in order as well.  Purrrrr...

As Essence is a German company, the Dark Romance Collection was actually released as early as January 2014 in various parts of Europe (definitely Poland and Romania), but only just debuted in the United States.  According to the Essence website it was supposed to be a September limited edition release, but it only hit my local Fred Meyers on October 2 so it would seem that schedule has been pushed back a month.  I immediately pounced on every item Fred Meyer is carrying (except for the tattoos, they were a bit too biker chick for my taste) though the full collection also has one more each of the eyeshadow quad, lipstick ("Painted Love"), and nail polish (a gray), as I recall.  Ah well, I'll take whatever I can get!  I LOVE Essence's Limited Edition collections (though I rarely get to avail myself of them, seeing as they are available so sparingly in the U.S.); they do them monthly, and yet they are always consummately imaginative and original.  The themes are quite wide-ranging and the packaging is always adorable.  Not only that, the products generally quite excellent (at minimum, they are above average for a drugstore line), and are amazingly inexpensive!!  So much love for this brand, I has.

Oh, you demand to see this stupendously seductive collection, do you?  Well, okay.

 ...

Wet n' Wild : Enchanted Halloween : Happy Hour Hop, Roadwork, Pot of Gold, & Under Your Spell

Hello, Twinklings!!  It's my last week in Montana before I have to go back to school, and it's been bumming me out but I can't be too sad because it's my birthday week!!!  Whee!!  Yes, I am unabashedly a birthday week person.  I can't help it, I just love birthdays.  Secretly, I've been kind of having a birthday month, mostly because it has been my last-ditch validation for all of my makeup shopping :)  As a result of Birthday Month activities, I have lots of fun new stuff to show you before I become bogged down with thesis research next week.  My fall collections packages have begun arriving *today* so while I'm swatching those like crazy, I wanted to share with you part of a collection that has come as a pleasant surprise to me: Enchanted Halloween!!

Wet n' Wild : Enchanted Halloween

Stila: Eyes Are The Window "Spirit" [eyeshadow palette]

Happy weekend!!  Today is one of those idyllic early autumn days, with a most perfectly pure periwinkle sky saturating the blushing landscape with sunshine and contentment.  It's a treasure of a day.  And speaking of treasures...

Stila: Eyes Are The Window "Spirit"

...witness Stila "Spirit", a mystical eyeshadow palette sheathed in an luxe metallic compact of romantic rose gold and opulent white gold.  Something about this particular palette has the feel of prophecies and mysterious magic to me, like fate parting the mist before you.  Wistful and ethereal, this Eyes Are The Window installment so elegantly illustrates the element of spirit in shimmering mists, roses, and precious metals.

Stila: Eyes Are The Window "Spirit"