Good and Bad

I've been trying out a lot of new stuff lately thanks to Bzz and my quest to find the perfect nail polish. I thought I would give a few of my opinions here today.

I already told you all what I thought about Logitech's Harmony One Universal Remote control. Just click here if you want to reread that post.

Next, I tried out Ziploc's Big Bags.

I have them in all three sizes: Large, XL, and XXL. At first, I had no idea what I was going to do with them. Normally when I need storage, I use Rubbermaid totes because they're heavy duty plastic, they have locking lids, and they're stackable. Then, the need to clean the youngest child's room came about. We're still having flea issues. I used the bags to bag up all of her clothes, clean and dirty, to be washed, and her stuffed animals so that they could be sealed and put outside since they can't be put into the clothes washer. The bags worked out okay but here's what I didn't like about them:

1. The blue writing on the bags came off onto me. I had big, blue, smeared ink all over my arms which, while it seemed to come off the bags easy enough, it didn't want to wash off of me.


2. After I had stuffed the bags full of clothes and stuffed animals, I picked them up to carry out of the room and the zipped seals popped open which totally negated why I was using them in the first place: to seal out as much air as possible.

Would I buy them again? Probably not. Totes stack and look much nicer than having bags sitting around and they're not as easy to puncture even though the Big Bags are thicker than your normal plastic storage bags.

Then I tried Ziploc's Twist 'n Loc storage containers.

I really liked those. The lids are nicer than the snap-on type and they have measuring lines on the side so that you can see how much stuff you're putting into them. While this isn't environmentally friendly, I love the idea of throw away plastic containers because let's face it, how much of our plastic stuff i.e., Rubbermaid or Tupperware, gets lost all the time anyway?? Also, they are made with 5 plastics which is considered to be safe.

Which brings us to K-9 Advantix flea treatments for dogs.

We've only been using it a month, but my dogs still have fleas. I'm holding off on my final opinion of this product until I use it again, so please, keep your fingers crossed for us that this works. The fleas are driving me insane and my youngest child looks diseased. I'm really surprised that the school hasn't said anything to us about it, that's how bad it is.

Next, I went on an odyssey trying to find fingernail polish that wouldn't chip after only a day or two of wear. I tried all kinds of brands, Opi, Cover Girl, etc., and it all chipped. After some research, I discovered how to first, do a manicure, and second, the miracle of all nail polishes. Here's what I found.

1. File your nails using a 240-grit nail file.


2. Then use a three-way buffer: black to refine, white to shine, and gray to seal.


3. Next, clean off any dust with warm soap and water and push back your cuticles at this time if you like.


4. Dry your nails using pure acetone.


5. THEN...Apply Revlon's Colorstay Nail Enamel following the directions on the package exactly.

This stuff totally works. I had it on for seven days with no chipping or peeling before I decided that I wanted a new color and took it off. I have NEVER had that happen. And, it lasted through washing two cars, cleaning the youngest child's room, two trips to the beach, and a multitude of other everyday activities. I don't know about everyone else, but my fingernail polish usually begins to peel off after one washing of the dishes. I am beyond satisfied with this product. Also, I'm not sure how much a professional manicure costs because I've never paid for one before (I grow my own nails naturally and I know how to use a bottle of nail polish), but all the supplies cost less than $6 at Sally Beauty Supply and the nail polish is $4.99 at Target so you can give yourself an at home manicure for less than $12, the supplies will last a while for multiple uses, and the manicure lasts.