Essie Officially at Rite Aid

I know there's been a lot of talk about Essie coming to Rite Aid (it's already available at CVS) and it's definitely opening up a greater market. I mean, some Sally Hanson polishes are practically the same price as an OPI and Essie products, why not expand into more drug stores? Again, I don't understand why Sally Hanson has so many different lines with different bottles and names, just please keep everything uniform! They either have 100 different formulas or just use the same formulas and put them in different bottles in order to drive up some prices. Either way, I don't care. Get your act together, Sally Hanson. I know some people that spring onto the chance of a new Sally Hanson display but honestly, it's just exhausting and overwhelming trying to keep up. @squarrell on Twitter has told me that the UK only has one line of Sally Hanson polish in which case you all are so lucky! I know it's a silly thing to have to rant about but bear with me.


BUT I DIGRESS, sorry. Anyway I received this email just seconds ago and I lovingly used old-fashioned Microsoft Paint to contain my excitement.


It had been expected to come around in March and it looks like it's been official (unless I already missed it? In that case, I fail). Now, I personally like CVS's Extra Care card more than Rite Aid's UP rewards. After an annoying experience with using the UP rewards, I decided that it's just not worth it. I am a loyal Walgreens and CVS girl. But...I will definitely swing by a Rite Aid sometime to look at the display.

Updates to follow. I have so many pics but I've been so lazy in transferring them to my computer.

You can always formspring.me and follow me on Twitter!

Walmart Is Doing Something....Right?

OK, so as a nail polish lover (or really, a makeup lover), you can't snub Wal-Mart. They have amazing brands of polishes such as LA Flare, CQ, Pure Ice, and Petites that you really can't find anywhere else, and they usually have a pretty good selection of all brands. Not just that, Wal-Mart is REALLY, REALLY affordable.

Cuz here's the thing...most of the time, things that are more expensive are just more expensive. Sure, everyone loves a bit of Chanel nail polish, especially if they're in fabulous blue shades. But I would be broke and starving if my (very extensive) collection was all-Chanel. Not to mention kind of boring.

So yes, I'm going to give Wal-Mart a bit of a shout-out here. I used to feel guilty about shopping there all the time given all the controversy, but here's something that can soothe everyone's conscience: Walmart is not just jumping on the green bandwagon, it's invading, taking over, and controlling it. And not in a bad way, either.

Basically, Wal-Mart has taken steps towards creating a universal rating system that scores products based on how environmentally and socially sustainable they are over the course of their lives. And what Wal-Mart wants is what Wal-Mart usually gets. It's revolutionary and a bit scary how great their power is over the retailing world. Luckily, it's not just going to be a Wal-Mart exclusive, as they've invited Target (another fave), Costco (one of the loves of my life), Tesco, and others to join in this partnership. So really, the people who end up benefiting the most are the people. I really think that this wil force companies to look at their practices and maybe change them, even a little bit, to help save the Earth.

Read the full article from the NYT here.

The downside? I'm sure nail polish isn't exactly the best for the environment. In fact, many environmentalists are strongly against it. But, I think as long as you practice living green, you're allowed a few indulgences =)



Read the article from the NYT here

Dejavuuu

Ugh Twitter makes me so stabby sometimes....I was gonna post this on Twitter but it exceeded the character limit. So annoying.

Anyway, you know those corny Disney commercials on TV that are like "Oh, get ____ before it goes back into the Disney vault...forever!" or "For the first time, released from the Disney vault..." Ok I mean I like Disney (my friends can vouch that I will valiantly break out into song if Mulan's "I'll Make a Man Out of You" comes on), but WTF is this "elusive" Disney vault? Actually since Disney controls the world they probably do have a literal giant vault guarded by lasers and everything.

Well, it looks like Chanel is taking a cue from Disney because they recently (aka today) sent out an e-mail about their "Dejavu Collection" that is launching on their website. Pretty much, it's a lot of their discontinued items that they're "rereleasing" (probably residual overstocks). Here's the link:

Dejavu Collection

The cool thing is that it's constantly being updated. Currently for polish they only have Rouge Noir priced at $23, but they say to check back often, as more Chanel favorites become available.

Minx Nails

As you guys know, one of my weaknesses is the shallow world of entertainment- I frequent celebrity gossip sites every day (then try to justify it by spending lots of time on BBC.com, ecogeek.org, and newsweek.com). Anyway, I was reading an blurb on JustJared.com about Minx Nails, which recently did Beyonce's nails for the music video for her new single, "Single Ladies. " You can read the post here. I was interested about Minx Nails based on what Jared posted, so I decided to contact them directly.

Their PR person, Janice Miller, couldn't have been nicer, and I got to find out a lot about Minx Nails. Basically, it's going to change the face of fake nails forever (in a good way). Unlike a traditional nail polish, Minx is applied in polymer strips that are heated and them applied with pressure onto the nail, where it then cools as a type of shrink wrap. The benefits of there not being an actual "polish" is that because it's a polymer, there is no chipping or smudging, and no drying time is needed. Plus, there are no fumes.

Something else that really stands out about Minx is that it doesn't require nail polish remover to remove, nor does it require prying the strips from your nails. Or soaking in any type of crazy solution. The simple way to remove Minx? Heat. Here's what their official website (MinxNails.com) advises:

Removing Your Minx Although Minx can last a awhile, you will eventually have to remove it as your nails will start to grow out. Do NOT use nail polish remover! We are proud that Minx is a green product and does not require chemicals to apply or to remove. We want to do our part in keeping mother earth healthy and happy. When you want to remove your Minx (so that you can put on a new set, of course), place your nails under a heat source (a hair dryer will do) and work loose an edge of Minx near a lateral nail fold. Slowly peel Minx off the nail plate going from side to side (not top to bottom). Apply a nail moisturizer when you are done, and have a back rub and a cocktail while you are at it.

The application process is similar to those stick-on nail strips that Avon and Incoco sell, but Minx is offered in lots of different colors, even metallics (which is a huge selling point for celebs). Or, they can be custom-made, as Janice told me that currently Beyonce and her sister Solange are sporting "OBAMA" Minx nails of black with silver letters. (To be politically equal because I try to be fair, I suppose you could customize them for McCain as well, with the Mc part on the thumb. If one really wanted to.)

Of course with such a high-tech and cool product, I admit I was a bit afraid to ask for the price. But, I am curious so I'll probably save up to try it sometime when I get back to the States. I love my polish, but it's interesting to try different products. Not to mention if Minx really does live up to it's claim of being chip-free, it would be the perfect solution for chipped nails on short vacations or especially business trips. I can sense this being a powerful asset for corporate women who are always on the go but want to keep a polished image.

Here's a picture of what "Golden Lightning' looks like (the same color Beyonce wore in her music video):

Photo credit: Michael Marker
Source: Janice Miller, Minx Nails

What do you guys think? It's a neat concept for sure though. I know it can't replace nail polish entirely (nor would I want it to, otherwise I'd have to find something else to blog about!), but I think as a once-in-a-while splurge, this could be a good short-term investment. It's definitely the most gentle alternative to acrylics or other fake nails, as there's no drilling and no industrial-strength glue. Alternatively, if anyone's tried it, I'd love to hear your experience.

Ok and as a sidenote, anyone who has a Nintendo DS and a R4 card, download Taiko No Tatsujin. It's such a fun game, and I've been obsessed with it. I love rhythm games, because my hand-eye coordination has only improved from playing video games lol.

Misa Fall/Winter '08 Preview

So yesterday I finally got around to watching Batman Begins as preparation for The Dark Knight that came out today. This morning I decided to randomly Wikipedia-surf through the Batman universe and was reading up quite heavily on Harvey Dent, Harley Quinn, and Poison Ivy. The last page I visited was Poison Ivy's page, so it's really fitting that I got an e-mail right after on Misa's fall/winter collection called Poisoned Passion. Sound enticing? Just wait until you see these promo pictures!

Look! Gunmetal grey! Hopefully it's a gunmetal grey that looks good on me.

Oh this looks like a perfect preview/complement to the China Glaze Bahama collection! I'm excited because you can never have too much blue

I hope my eyes aren't deceiving me and this is really going to be a green...or at the very least, a pretty tealish color. But this is definitely the polish I'm looking forward to the most!

Gorgeous colors right? They were actually created especially for the designers the Misa team worked with for the Milan fashion show.

Also, select Sally Hansen polishes (10 Day No-Chip, Salon, Diamond Strength, and Maximum Growth) are on sale at Rite Aid now for $3.49, which is a fantastic deal.

Make sure you head over to Polish Addict and ALU to see the pictures of the new Color Club collections and a preview of a green ChG coming out later this year!

A Bit of Essie

Though the New York Times has had a few blunders, they did a small, very cute blurb on Essie Weingarten (founder and head chalupa of Essie) which you can read here. I wish it had been a little longer but the article gets bonus points for using my favorite word, "cornucopia."

Since I know many people who have issues with Essie polishes and in particular, an incident with Essie's customer service last year when they reintroduced Starry Starry Night back for a limited time, I also couldn't help but chuckle when the article quoted her as saying “Every week I get complaints."

YSL Fall Collection '08 polishes

I think anyone can rock any color they want all year round, but generally more people wear vampy, or darker, colors during the fall and winter and brighter colors during spring and summer. It has a lot to do with the sunshine, I think.

The pictures from YSL's fall collection, courtesy of A Touch of Blusher, has caught my eye with their two dark colors...it's hard to tell exactly what colors they are but I'm loving the darkness of it all

Hopefully these colors will be interesting and not flat and boring and like any other vampy color. Otherwise, they wouldn't be worth the money at all.

Source: A Touch of Blusher