I wore polish all the time until I started working at the bank, 8+ years ago. I started off wearing it, but contrary to popular belief, working at a bank involves physical work! I was tearing up my manis within hours of doing them, breaking nails constantly, and just plain making a mess out of my hands. I finally got fed up with it and quit wearing polish. (And unfortunately, threw away my stash!)
I met my husband a couple of years later, still in the non-polish phase, so he was completely shocked and floored when I began wearing polish again last year. He thought it was something new, but really it was an old love that never died. I became the manager of my department a couple of years ago and wasn't doing the same amount of physical work that I had previously been doing. I had picked up a couple of new polishes for our vacation so I could have gorgeous pedis and it suddenly occured to me that I could start painting my fingernails again! I have to admit... I did kinda go crazy. There were so many beauties I had lost, I had to completely rebuild my stash!
One of the first polishes I bought when I started collecting again was Hard Candy's Mr. Wrong. It's a gorgeous dusty purple with gold foil flakes in it, and a Nail Board favorite. I loved the color, but the danged thing would not dry on me! I tried it for 2 manis with no success, even with Sally Hansen Insta-Dry Topcoat. (Side note: I was totally obsessed with Hard Candy polishes in high school, but couldn't afford them - now they are at Wal-Mart? Dirty, ghetto Wal-Mart, for $4 each? *shakes head* That makes me just a bit sad...)
When the nail board was all aflutter this summer/fall talking about the new Sally Hansen XTreme wears, I honed in on Purple Gala. It's not an exact dupe to Mr. Wrong, it's a little bit brighter altogether, but I personally like it better. I picked it up the first time I found it and have not regretted it!
I chose this picture first so you can see its bling! It's shiney, sparkley, and catches every bit of light.
You can really see the gold foil flecks coming out here. They really stand out against the purple in bright light, but in low light, the whole thing kinda takes a gunmetal/silvery look to it. I wore it to one of the Illini games and couldn't stop staring at how different it looked!
I tried to replicate the lighting, but it didn't really work out... I do think it looks a lot less purple here than it does in bright lights. The gold really came out in this pic too, which goes against what I said earlier about it looking silvery! Anyhoo, you can really see the irregular flecks of the gold foil.
Overall, I loved this polish. It held up really well and applied easily. It's a bit sheer, I think this was 3 coats. I generally like the XTreme Wear line (just hate the name! SO EXTREME! *snortle*), I just hate the long stick the brush is on, like so many other Sally Hansen lines. When are they going to figure out how much easier application would be if the stick was shorter?!
I'm pretty sure Purple Gala was a limited edition shade, but it's still out there (and probably on clearance!), so pick it up if you see it! If you prefer dustier hues, you might like the Hard Candy a bit better - it's a little more subdued. Purple Gala is cheaper (even full-priced at $2.99) and you get more (.5 oz compared to .35 oz), so if you don't have a preference, I suggest it.
Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear in Purple Gala retails for $2.99 and can be found at a variety of retailers, including Walgreens, Target, and Meijer.
Number of coats: 3
Basecoat: Gelous
Topcoat: Out the Door
