lacquer lab

PLDT HOME Bro just launched Ultera, a TD-LTE-powered high-speed wireless Internet connection with speeds of up to 10 Mbps.

I wanted to see (or should I say, imagine?) how much I could do with the PLDT Home Bro Ultera while doing my nails, so I put myself into a self-imposed imaginary fast test challenge. :)

Here's my reference:

Now, let's begin.

FAST TEST CHALLENGE #1: Remove my nail polish and imagine how many YouTube videos I can download with Ultera Basic at 3 Mbps

I was done removing my nail polish in 3 minutes and 20 seconds. I assure you, that is faster than usual.

With Ultera, I would be able to watch 10 3-minute YouTube videos already. Or I would be done watching the Emma Stone's hilarious Lip Sync Battle with Jimmy Fallon.

FAST TEST CHALLENGE #2: Paint my nails and imagine if I would be able to download a 2-hour SD movie

Of course, I used orange! :P 

Done in 4 minutes, 48 seconds! But that’s for my left hand only.

With Ultera, I would be almost half-way through in downloading a 2-hour SD movie. Meaning, if I get to finish painting all my nails, I will be able to watch a movie already right after. Sweet!

PLDT HOME Bro Ultera has the Teng siblings (Jeric, Jeron and Almira) as their new ambassadors and they can also show you an Internet speed that you can't beat. Watch their video here.

PLDT HOME Bro is currently available in three plans: Ultera Basic (up to 3Mbps), Ultera Max (up to 5 Mbps) and Ultera Pro (up to 10 Mbps).

Come with me to the Emerald City

Right this way to the Emerald City

Oh, I've always wanted to see the Emerald City

One short day In the Emerald City One short day Full of so much to do

One Short Day is an emerald glitter polish inspired by The Emerald City, the ever-enchanting place found in the center of the Land of Oz.

I applied three coats, sans top coat.

I love it as much as I love Defying Gravity.

Just look how lovely it is. Makes me feel like The Emerald City is on my nails.

All the glitter from One Short Day definitely makes me see wonders like I've never seen.

One Short Day is part of the Deborah Lippmann Wicked Set. Available at Rustan’s The Beauty Source for Php 1,250.00.

Something has changed within me Something is not the same I'm through with playing by the rules Of someone else's game

Too late for second-guessing Too late to go back to sleep It's time to trust my instincts Close my eyes and leap!

It's time to try defying gravity I think I'll try defying gravity Kiss me goodbye I'm defying gravity And you wont bring me down!

Defying Gravity is a green creme polish inspired by Elphaba, the girl who would become The Wicked Witch of The West. 

Here's a photo of Idina Menzel as Elphaba. (photo from gleekywickedrenthead.tumblr.com)

And here's Jackie Burns playing the same character. (photo from celebsview.info)

Doesn't Defying Gravity perfectly resemble the green skin of Elphaba?

I love the formula of this polish. I applied two coats to achieve full opacity.

'Defying Gravity' is my favorite Wicked song. And Defying Gravity is my favorite bottle from the Deborah Lippmann Wicked set.

So if you care to find me Look to the western sky! As someone told me lately: "Everyone deserves the chance to fly!"

And with this green, I'm pretty sure every girl gets that chance to fly. ;)

Popular!

You're gonna be popu-u-lar I'll teach you the proper ploys when you talk to boys Little ways to flirt and flounce

I'll show you what shoes to wear How to fix that hair Everything that really counts

To be popular I'll help you be popular You'll hang with the right cohorts You'll be good at sports Know the slang you've got to know

So let's start 'Cause you've got an awfully long way to go

Popular is a pink shimmer polish inspired by the iconic pink dress worn by Glinda.

Photo from www.examiner.com

Photo from www.examiner.com

Deborah Lippman did a great job in getting the right shade of pink.

The polish is very sheer. I applied three coats to achieve full opacity.

I think Glinda should make Elphaba wear this polish for her to be popu-u-lar. :)

With Wicked The Broadway Musical: The Untold Story of the Witches of Oz opening this Wednesday, January 22, at the Cultural Center of the Philippines, allow me to dedicate this week to everything Wicked.

In my wishlist of nail lacquers post last year, I have included the Deborah Lippmann ‘Wicked Set’ as my top must-have polish. I was so willing to clear my credit card or even apply for a Globe GCash American Express Virtual Pay account just so I could have this set.

I guess the polish fairies heard my cry, because a few days before 2013 ended, my officemate told me that she saw boxes of the set in Rustan’s! (Oh I love you, Rustan’s The Beauty Source!)

Seriously, when I entered Rustan’s and saw the box, everything stopped, and I felt like there was a ray of light shining on it and angels were singing “Aaaaaaaah!” (Yes, you may laugh and think I’m crazy. :P)

I’ve actually been wanting to show you the swatches of Popular, Defying Gravity and One Short Day since I got a hold of the special edition set containing all three, but I wanted to wait for the Broadway musical’s opening week.

Finally that week is here! But, I’ll ask you to hold on to your butts for a little while longer, as I will be starting my Wicked week with these teaser photos of the very magical and pretty Deborah Lippmann Wicked Set.

Deborah Lippmann Wicked Set is available in Rustan’s The Beauty Source for Php 1,250.00.

Last December, I got a bag of Face Shop items as a gift from my officemate. It contained a pink nail polish (which I will swatch soon) and three different nail care products: Milk Calcium, Paraffin Nutrition and Lemon Brightening Nail Packs.

Milk Calcium is for strengthening and preventing brittle nails, Paraffin Nutrition is for moisturizing dry nails and Lemon Brightening is for, well, brightening up stained nails.

The packs are exactly what I need as my nails have been suffering from dryness and a little discoloration. I may not fall short on providing my nails with pretty colors and glitters, but nourishing and moisturizing them are almost, always forgotten (sorry, nails!).

I tried the Paraffin Nutrition Nail Pack to see if it can resolve the dryness of my nails.

The pack contains 10 white sheets, which look like mini 'fingersleeves'. Face Shop has properly labeled which set is for the right hand and which is for the left.

Here's a photo of my nails sans the polish.

See how miserable they look? I should probably have a no-nail-polish-for-a-day-or-two-a-week rule.

Anyway. Using the Paraffin Nutrition Nail Pack is actually pretty easy to use, but can get a pretty messy. After washing my hands, I took out the sheets from the pouch and simply inserted the sleeves on my fingers. The biggest one goes to the thumb. Easy right?

I left these on for 15 minutes, and this is how my nails looked like after.

My nails kinda look better, right? The Paraffin Nutrition Nail Pack may not be the best nail care product out there though, but if you're just looking for a quick fix to you nail dilemma, then this product will suffice.

One of the best things that happened to me in 2013 was falling in love with the city of Hong Kong.

The hustle and bustle of the city. The food. Getting drunk in LKF. Going gaga over shopping. Feeling like a kid again in Disneyland. Cherishing the serenity in Ngong Ping.

But what really sealed the deal for me here was finding a nail polish mecca in a relatively quiet street of Central. And this is where I finally met Daul.

According to Zoya, Daul is "a medium red-toned purple base with heavy purple and gold iridescent metallic sparkle." I wore this for New Year's Eve believing it would pass as radiant orchid, only shinier and more glittery.

I wish this year will be as beautiful, radiant and sparkly as this. 

We're 16 days away from Christmas and I'm starting the glitz and glamour of this season with Shu Uemura's Gold from the Golden Gem Fun-tasy Mini Nail Duo Set.

Shu Uemura describes this as "gorgeous glitter gold."

I was afraid that gold will not give me the opacity needed to show you decent swatches for this post as the polish's formula is a little thin and watery, unlike its creme other half.

But after four coats, gold showed its alluring luster.

I have yet to try applying the duo together, but both are definitely pretty on their own. Just look at this gold. (See my swatches on purple here.)

I love how elegant and sexy it looks.

I have some other glitter polishes in my box, and this undeniably belongs to my favorites.

Can't wait to partner this polish with my outfits for our upcoming parties this month.

6HP Golden Gem Fun-tasy Mini Nail Duo Set is available in Shu Uemura stores for Php 1,500.00

My brother recently went to Japan and I asked him to buy me an eyelash curler from Shu Uemura. So imagine my delight when he got home and handed me the shiny bag from Shu containing my new S curler PLUS a nail polish set! And it's not just any set. It's the mini nail duo from the 6 Heart Princess (6HP) by Takashi Murakami for Shu Uemura Collection Holiday 2013.

I don't know, but there's something about collaborations that makes me all giddy, like when I went gaga over NARS x Andy Warhol and Shu Uemura x Karl Lagerfeld.

6HP is an animation work done by Japanese contemporary artist Takashi Murakami. According to Shu Uemura, the collection is "themed on the dual beauty of the pink and black princess [as] every woman has pink side and black side in her, nice and naughty, innocent and sexy."

The Golden Gem Fun-tasy Mini Nail Duo Set brings out that black side as it spells innocent and sexy!

Golden Gem is an "eye-catching duo of chic purple and gorgeous glitter gold, perfect for when you want to play the cool, coquettish black princess."

I think the duo is meant to be painted on the nails together (more nail art!), but I decided to swatch them individually first, starting with purple.

Purple is creme and very easy to apply.

Applying two coats is enough to achieve full opacity, but I applied three here.

This is my first purple nail polish and first Shu nail polish.

And this will definitely NOT be the last. 

Next up: Swatches for Gold

6HP Golden Gem Fun-tasy Mini Nail Duo Set is available in Shu Uemura stores for Php 1,500.00

I’m still on a Catching Fire high.

Last night, I was able to catch the movie again (third time!!), and I still got the same feelings and reactions I had the first time I saw it — from the shock when the old man from District 11 was shot, to the heartbreak when Gale uttered, “There’s no more District 12.”

Don’t get me wrong. The movie is not all dark. There were some light moments in the flick and moments of extravaganza thrown in here and there, including Effy’s crazy outfits and Katniss’ heart-fluttering wedding gown which turned into a mockingjay outfit (I love you, Cinna!). 

But I’m not here to give you a movie review. I just love the movie as much as I love the book and my fangirl self just found it right to pay homage to this amazing flick.

So to Suzanne Colllins who introduced us to the world of Katniss, Peeta, Gale and the whole gang, and to everyone who brought my Catching Fire imaginings to life, here’s a two thumbs up and 10 finger nails painted with the colors of the girl on fire.

I used Deborah Lippmann Lara’s Theme, China Glaze I’m Not Lion and Elianto Yellow for this nail art.

Start by applying a base coat. Let it dry completely, then apply Deborah Lippman Lara’s Theme (or any fancy orange polish you have there). I used two coats for this.

P.S. Forgive me for not having step-by-step photos as I didn’t intend this to be a tutorial post.

Now, the fun part. Using a sponge, dab on a yellow polish to the mid to the tip of the nails. Add glitz to the fire by dabbing gold glitter polish on the nails. Seal off everything with a top coat.

While I wait for the next instalment in the Hunger Games trilogy, I’ll wear this nail art for a couple more days, and probably give an ode to Cinna’s mockingjay creation next.

Hello! I am back! :)

It's been almost a year since my last post (shame on me, I know), and tell you what, a lot has happened since then.

I turned a year older last September.

I've left my 2-year-old job and moved to a new company.

I'm back in the dating arena.

And I have added more nail polish in my stash. (I'm telling you, it will never be enough!)

So, as a comeback post, I'm sharing with you the top 10 polishes that I have been dying to have.

1. Deborah Lippmann 'Wicked Set'

In celebration of Wicked's 10th anniversary, Deborah Lippmann came up with a 3-set nail polish collection for one of Broadway's most celebrated musicals. 

The set includes Defying Gravity, a green creme polish inspired by Elphaba, Popular, a pink shimmer polish inspired by the iconic pink dress worn by Glinda, and One Short Day, an emerald glitter polish inspired by The Emerald City.

Among the three, I love Defying Gravity the most as it is my ultimate favorite Wicked song and come on! Just look at how pretty that green is!

2. Marc Jacobs 'Evelyn'

I've been searching high and low for the perfect grey polish and Evelyn might just be it. It is described as "opaque smoky gray" and I heard it is 110% creme.

3. Marc Jacobs 'Delphine'

Ever since Marc Jacobs launched its beauty line a few months back, I have been obsessed with its nail products. I have separately asked my boyfriend and cousin to buy one (well, I really asked for more) for me when they went to Singapore, but to no avail. They can't find one in Sephora, or didn't find Sephora at all! (Looking at you now, boyfriend!)

Obviously, I still have zero Marc Jacobs polish in my hand and I am still dreaming of having one, especially Delphine. It is described as "opaque smoky purple gray" and would be perfect for a French tip or when I'm feeling dainty and classy.

4. Marc Jacobs 'Jezebel'

If heaven will miraculously send me one Marc Jacobs polish, I hope it will be Jezebel. I have been in love with red polish since forever, and I am still fantasizing of having a perfect vampy one. This "opaque black cherry red" is on top of my Marc Jacobs must-have list and will definitely end my quest for that perfect vampy polish.

5. Zoya 'Monica'

Monica is part of the Zoya Designer Collection for Fall 2012. It is described as "dark, soft blue-toned purple with a glossy cream finish".

I realized that I still don't have a purple polish in my box and Monica will be a perfect addition to the family. I love it for its right mix of brightness and darkness.

6. Zoya 'Noot'

Noot was part of my must-buy polishes, together with Daul and Natty, when I went to Hong Kong early this year. Unfortunately, I didn't find Noot and Natty.

Noot looks like your normal grey polish, but it hides some magic in that bottle. Described as "very dark grey cream with strong blue-green undertones", this polish looks more dark green than grey when applied.

7. OPI 'First Date At The Golden Gate'

Simply described as "classic red", First Date At The Golden Gate is part of the OPI San Francisco Collection. Most say that it really captured the warm brick red of the Golden Gate Bridge and just for that, I want to have this. And well, I'm just really a sucker for red polish.

8. Deborah Lippmann 'Across The Universe'

Who does not love Deborah Lippman, The Beatles, and glitter? Described as "blazing blue and metallic green glam in sheerest navy", Across The Universe simply spells 'galactic'. I saw there are a few more bottles of this available in Rustan's and I am definitely going to snatch one on my next visit.

9. Deborah Lippmann 'Stronger'

Stronger was worn by Kelly Clarkson in this year's Grammy Awards and this was created by Deborah Lippmann specially with and for the singer. My cousin tried to look for this too when she went to Singapore, but it was not yet available there. Described as "tenacious vivacious violet", this beauty does not need any more reason to be loved. I mean, just look how lovely it is!

10. NARS 'Amchoor'

Lastly, there's Amchoor. This "bright yellow" polish is part of the NARS x Thakoon collection. If I will put a super vibrant polish on my nails, it will definitely be yellow and it will definitely be Amchoor.

Back Room summarizes the life of Andy Warhol in this amazing collection.

It got its name from the legendary old back room in Max’s Kansas City, a night club in NYC where Andy Warhol and his superstars frequently hang out.

It is, for me, the perfect pitch black polish I have ever seen and used!

Like the others in this collection, Back Room is also creme. I applied two coats to achieve opaque, smooth and shiny black nails.

Love love love it!

Next up: A nail art project perhaps?

I had to attend a black-and-silver-themed party a few days ago and it couldn't be more perfect! I love wearing black - it's classy and it makes me look thin. And I have the Silver Factory polish to wear on my nails.

Andy Warhol has a silver-foiled studio which he named 'The Factory', and this is where Silver Factory got its name.

I'm in love with the formula. It's not thick, it's not watery, just perfectly in the middle.

You might think that the texture is a bit rough with all the shiny particles in this polish, but it is 100% smooth. 

I love how it instantly added some glitz and glamour to my nails.

Let me just say this in the most Agnes (Despicable Me) voice I can manage: It's so shiny I'm gonna die!!

Next up: Swatches for Back Room

I love seeing bright colors on my nails because it complements my normal black/white/grey ensemble. So even I was surprised when I loved the nude beige shade of Chelsea Girls.

Chelsea Girls is named after Andy Warhol's 1966 film featuring the residents of Chelsea Hotel in New York.

I like its formula. It only took one coat for full opacity.

I think it will be a perfect base for a french tip manicure. What do you think?

Chelsea Girls spells classy! I like it. 

Next up: Swatches for Silver Factory

One of the most famous works of pop art hero Andy Warhol is the painting of 32 Campbell's Soup Cans. And Francois Nars definitely made the right decision in including the soup can (and naming the nail polish simply as that) in the latest NARS x Andy Warhol Collection. A soup can painting translated into a fierce red nail polish? Ah, you definitely can't go wrong with that!

Soup Can is part of the Photo Booth Mini Nail Polish Gift Set. It is screaming bloody fierce!

I really love red nail polish and this one undoubtedly captured my heart. 

Soup Can in all its creme-two-coats glory. 

I still have this on, and I'm telling you, I can't stop staring at my nails! The color's soooo lovely!

Soup Can is an instant favorite!

How I wish NARS came up with a full-sized bottle for this shade. 

Next up: Swatches for Chelsea Girls

I'm certainly in love with NARS x Andy Warhol Photo Booth Mini Nail Polish Gift Set! Inside the pretty shiny box are the lovely colors of Back Room, Silver Factory, Soup Can (which I bet will be my favorite) and Chelsea Girls. It also comes with a bonus booklet that features snippets of Andy Warhol's work and life.