A Year of New Beginnings

If there's one day/time of year that I have yet to miss on this blog, it's the coming of a new year. To celebrate the start of 2014, I of course went for the gold....glitter!

I didn't have time to clean up my cuticles, so excuse the mess!

This is Luster from Urban Outfitters. Luster is a black jelly filled with large and small gold hex glitters. Ever since last Christmas, I've had my eye on Cleopatra in New York by Deborah Lippmann. There's something about glitter in a dark jelly base that just speaks to me.

This was 3 coats of Luster with 2 coats of Revlon Quick Dry Top Coat. I could have probably gone with 2 coats and it would have been fine, but it was still a bit too sheer for my taste. I don't own the Lippmann, so I can't really say whether or not this is a dupe, but it looks like they may be similar enough. From the pictures I've seen online, Cleopatra in New York looks like it may have a warmer gold tone to its glitter. It's hard to tell...you may need to own both. ;)

All nail talk aside, welcoming 2014 had an odd feeling to it. Part of me is in disbelief that 2013 is actually over. How could it be? I remember thinking of 2013 as this impossibly distant entity, and now here we are, looking back at it!

2013 was a big year for me. I accomplished things that I'd dreamed of my whole life and I accomplished things that I would have never dreamed were possible as the clock struck midnight a whole year ago. I graduated. I got my first real job. I moved out for the first time. I became a Pharmacist.

If you go back and look at my other New Year's Eve posts (and if you're really keen, the posts from my old blogs), I'm sure you'll find me talking about how that particular year was the best year of my life. You might even expect me to say that about 2013. To be honest, 2013 happened so quickly I didn't even have time to really reflect on whether or not this was true. 2013 had some pretty insanely high highs, but I also remember it having some pretty low lows. Everyone raves about how their lives are exponentially better since leaving school, but there was something very comforting and safe about being in school, wasn't there?

I would probably be lying if I said 2013 was the absolute best year of my life. I would also probably be lying if I said I wasn't the least bit afraid of what 2014 has in store for me. I don't know where I'm going to be this time next year, and that scares the crap out of me. For all I know, this time next year I could be getting married or something ridiculous like that (jk, lol, forever alone)!

2013 was an adventure. It turned out so much differently than I had expected, but I don't know if I would have preferred it any other way. Be nice to me 2014, BE NICE TO ME.

Dupe Alert!: Urban Outfitters Sea Dust (for Deborah Lippmann Mermaid's Dream)

Let me take you back to the beginning of August.  (Cue cheesy flashback sequence)

If you remember from previous blog posts, I went on a vacation to Florida in August. In between chillin' at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter (life goal complete, by the way) and layin' out on the beach, I found some time to squeeze in some polish shopping here and there. One such "squeezed in" occurrence was the time that my mom and I tried on Deborah Lippmann polishes at both Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom.

Needless to say, I'm sure the staff was probably not pleased with the two Asian ladies dressed in bermuda shorts and flip flops taking advantage of the testers at the Lippmann counter.

I went absolutely gaga for Mermaid's Dream (naturally), and like an IDIOT I failed to buy it while on vacation despite its lower price in the US and a buy 2 get one free sale at Nordstrom on my last day there. Devastation set in at the airport while I was waiting for my flight.

LUCKILY, as it was summertime and I had copious amounts of free time on my hands, I was able to power through endless google searches for "Mermaid+Dream+Dupe". This is what I came up with, after about page 8 or 9 of the search results:

Aside from a few little differences in texture, Sea Dust from Urban Outfitters squashed my (pricey) lemming for Mermaid's Dream.

Sea Dust is a mixture of very fine seafoam glitter in a clear base with larger round blue glitter mixed in. I don't have any comparison shots to the actual Lippmann polish, but from what I've seen on the blogosphere, they are similar enough to not need to own both. I've read somewhere that the texture of Mermaid's Dream is much rougher and unique, but to be honest the only reason I wanted it in the first place was the colour, and Sea Dust has that spot on.

The biggest bonus of Sea Dust is its price. I bought Sea Dust with another Lippmann dupe for $8 ($4 each, plus tax). The Lippmann would have cost me at least $22 had I bought it at home, $18USD if I bought it while on vacation.

Don't you love a good deal when you see one? :D