butter LONDON - test

A few weeks back I visited Eileen Fisher and noticed that they were running a promotion.  If you tried on a pair of shoes you would receive a free bottle of butter LONDON nail lacquer.  All you had to do was try on a pair of shoes!  I couldn't believe it!

Now, I've been wanting to try this polish for a long time, but I couldn't justify spending the full price ($15!) on a bottle of nail polish.  So, of course I jumped at the chance to try it for free.

The polish I got was a pretty silver metallic called Diamond Geezer.  That weekend I painted my nails with it and was quite surprised with how long the polish lasted.  I am a teacher and work with my hands, so nail polish usually only lasts 1 or 2 days without chipping.  This polish lasted a solid three days without chipping.  I was thrilled.

butter LONDON was on sale this Friday (3/15) at Ulta, so I took the plunge and purchased two more bottles: No More Waity, Katie (a pretty grey with purple sparkles) and Artful Dodger (a pretty teal green).  While I was there I spoke with a butter LONDON representative who talked me into the Top and Tails kit that contains a base coat and quick drying topcoat.  

This weekend I painted my nails using the base and top coat along with No More Waity, Katie.  I was incredibly disappointed to see how fast this coat chipped.  The first full day I had it on it chipped on many nails.  I wondered, was it the formula of the sparkle polish?  Was it the base coat or top coat?

So, I decided to try an experiment. I painted my nails tonight with Artful Dodger and Diamond Geezer.  On my left had I didn't use the base coat and on my right hand I did.  I will post my results here in a few days.  Will one hand last longer than the other?  It will be interesting to see!

left hand - no base coat

right hand - base coat
(sorry for the poor photo quality... iPhone pics!)

I'd love to know what you think about top coats and base coats.  I have used many different ones, but I'm not sure if they help it stay put or make it more prone to chips.

<3,
J.

First post

Hi friends!  After much consideration I have decided to begin this blog.  I am so excited to share my thoughts, reviews and recommendations on all things beauty, all the books I read, and the amazing (cheap) baubles I find!

Let me begin by telling you a little about myself.  I live outside of Philadelphia and work as a teacher.  I love my job and spend a lot of time with my friends and family.  I have an adorable dog, Zoey, who brings so much joy to my day.  I'm sure throughout these posts I will be sharing much more about myself!

Thank you for visiting and I hope to see you back here soon!

<3
J.