GlitterDaze Halloween 2015 The Witching Hour Collection Swatches & Review

Happy Halloween all you spooks and kooks! I have a wonderful Halloween trio to show you today from indie brand GlitterDaze.These glittery shades are inspired and named after famous witches. I myself am a rather witchy woman so I am fully on board with this theme!

Press Sample

Bellatrix has a black jelly base that is full of holographic shimmer, magenta microglitter, and iridescent shimmer that twinkles out rainbows. This was almost fully opaque on two coats, but there were a few uneven spots so I layered on a third. This polish is named for super evil witch Bellatrix Lestrange from the Harry Potter books/movies, and I hate her! But I love this polish. :)

The Sanderson Sisters is a warm toned medium purple jelly with holographic shimmer, magenta micro glitter, and bronze multichrome metallic flakies. Lovely formula, great coverage and easy to control. Two coats. However, I wore this for a full manicure with just a peel-off base coat and I had some pink staining on my nail beds after I took it off, so double up on your base coat! Named for the trio of witch sisters from the quintessential childhood Halloween movie, Hocus Pocus!

The Wicked Witch of the West is a deep teal jelly with multi-dimensional holographic shimmer and bronze/green multichrome metallic flakies. This had the same type of formula as The Sanderson Sisters, maybe a touch less opaque, but I still only needed two coats. This is of course named for the green witch from the Wizard of Oz. That movie gives me the creeps haha!

All of these dry dull with a slightly bumpy texture, so use a thick top coat for a smooth, glossy finish. These are on sale now for $12 each on the GlitterDaze website. Are you doing anything especially exciting for this Halloween night? What is on your nails today?? Be safe and have fun tonight everyone!

❤ Kellie

The products mentioned were provided for an honest review.

Pretty Serious Cosmetics Post Apocalyptic Princess Collection Swatches & Review

Hi cookies! Pretty Serious Cosmetics has another new collection out that I have to tell you about called Post Apocalyptic Princess! This is a collection three years in the making, and the brains behind the brand have finally brought it to fruition. Inspired by a bunch of wasteland set video games and B-movies, these colors will blow your socks off!

Press Sample

Image via Pretty Serious Cosmetics

Nuke The Fridge is a shimmery olive green with bronze tones and subtle flecks, plus an under layer of navy blue, which isn't super apparent on the nail, but it's there. Very cool and super gorgeous! I love murky shades like this! This is a little thick, but is basically opaque in one coat because of that. I used two layers here.

Cherry 2000 is a metallic red with a deep cherry pink tinge. Nice formula, slightly runny but very opaque. This is two coats.

Badlands Bandit is the electric blue version of Cherry 2000, so vibrant and metallic! This had an excellent formula, not runny at all and was opaque in one coat. I used two out of habit here but you can definitely get away with just one.

Frogtown is a cool green leaning teal creamy polish with gorgeous shimmer bits. Very nice formula, opaque in one coat. I used two here. This has to be one of my top favorite Pretty Serious polishes of all time, it's so good!

Toxic Tiara is a dusty pink with a mauve/violet tone to it, filled with sparkly cool gold shimmer flecks. Reminds me a of OPI Rally Pretty Pink. Good formula, two coats for full opacity. The shimmer in here will migrate upon removal so take care so it doesn't end up all over your skin. Unless that's your thing ;)

Gluteus Equine is a glitter topper. It has a clear base with holographic microglitter, rainbow opalescent flakes, iridescent blue glass flecks, and holographic silver diamond glitters. So. Damn. Cool! The base is pretty thin, which makes for a nice, non-thick finish on the nail, but in turn ends up requiring you to fish for the large glitter pieces a bit because they can sink. I tipped the bottle upside down for a few minutes before application and that helped. I used one coat over each color in the collection. I think it looks good on all of them, but dat blue tho!

You can purchase these now on the Pretty Serious Cosmetics website. They sell for $9.95 AUD for the solid colors and $10.95 AUD for the glitter. If you use a different currency the website can show you the conversion, which I really like. I am loving this collection! Such a dope theme and gorgeous colors with amazing formulas! Any of these catching your eye?

P.S. I hear more shades will be added to this collection before the year is over!

❤ Kellie

The products mentioned were provided for an honest review.

Femme Fatale Nail Polish Swatches & Review

Thanks for coming by today! I have two polishes from Australian indie brand Femme Fatale to show you. They are my first purchases from this brand; I have gotten one or two as gifts, but these two babes are the first that I specifically sought out to buy for myself. It's always tricky to start with a new brand, depending on if I love them or not, it could make for spendy-spendy times...because I might have to start buying them all!

Moonlight Statues is from their White Witch collection that came out around May of this year. This has a raspberry purpley base with blue shifty shimmer and holographic hex glitters. It was a little runny, it kept wanting to slide down to the sides of my nails, but thin coats made it easier to apply. I needed two coat for full opacity. This was a tad frostier than I expected it to be, but I still enjoy it. 

All Sanity Is Lost is a teal blue jelly polish with silver shards, pink sparks, blue/green iridescent hex glitters, and some holographic shimmer/glitter thrown in. I had to get this one because it is part of their Cthulhu inspired collection from January of this year, and I love me some H.P. Lovecraft! I really love this. It was pretty sheer on the first coat so it took three to build it up. It wasn't hard to apply but it dried a little slower so I needed to wait longer than I normally do between coats. This would be an excellent layering shade, over a dark blue, purple, black, etc.

I purchased these from US stockist Color 4 Nails for $10 each. Moonlight Statues is out of stock now on their site, but I just heard they're doing a restock in a few days on a lot of Femme Fatale shades, so be sure to check them out! You can also purchase polishes from this brand directly from the Femme Fatale website. Tell me what you think of my first FF picks! Have you tried this brand??

❤ Kellie

Pretty Jelly 3rd Anniversary Trio Swatches & Review

Hey everyone! Today I have the Pretty Jelly 3rd Anniversary trio to share for your enjoyment! Even though I just got around to trying Pretty Jelly, they have been making their mark on the indie polish world for three years already! To celebrate they've created three new glitter polishes made with vibrant holographic glitters and metallic multichrome flakies.

Press Sample

Transcendent Triennium is a mix of gold holographic glitter and a rainbow of multichrome metallic flakies with an emphasis on pink and purple. This was a tiny bit thick only because of the incredible amount of glitter it contains. No problems though, I found it easy to apply and it was opaque in two coats.

Celestial is a mix of silver holographic glitter with rainbow multichrome metallic flakies. I noticed the base seemed a little thinner on this one so the first coat was a little less dense than the gold one, but it still only took two coats to cover my nail completely. This is so sparkly in person, it was hard to capture its brilliance on camera.

Amore is a mix of pinky bronze glitter with pink, red, gold, and blue metallic flakies. The base on this one is tinted a warm orange, giving it a slightly different look than the others, more of a glitter-in-jelly than straight glitter look. Also two coats on this one. Perfect for Fall!

I thought I was off the multichrome flakie train, but this is a bit of different spin on them so it feels new and fresh again! The pre-sale for the trio is available now, going through to November 2nd, selling for $32.40 (a 10% discount) on their Etsy site. They will be released individually for $12 each on November 10th, Pretty Jelly's anniversary date. These three are beautiful polishes and I am really happy to be a part of celebrating three years of Pretty Jelly! Let me know which one is your favorite!

❤ Kellie

The products mentioned were provided for an honest review.

Fortune Cookie Soap Winter 2015 Soap Box Review - Welcome, Santa!

Holy suds! It's Fortune Cookie Soap time again! My box came yesterday and I couldn't wait to share it with you all! The theme for this quarter's box is Welcome, Santa! inspired by the Will Ferrell movie Elf!

Press Sample | Referral Link

This is a quarterly subscription box filled with sample sizes of eight bath and body products in the season's major collection's scents. It's a great way to get to try out the new fragrances before they become available for purchase in all the different products.

Right click on picture and choose "open link in new tab" to see larger version.

Are you a fan of the movie Elf? I admit I haven't seen it in a few years but it's a goofy classic that I know is loved by many! I remember that Zooey Deschanel is in it and she's blonde, haha so weird. Shall we get to smelling some goodies now??

I always start with their signature product, the soap shaped like a fortune cookie! This one is in the scent Buddy, "notes of holiday fruits, candy, crushed vanilla, and a hint of mint". It's decorated to look like Buddy's elf uniform from the movie, green with a little pom pom! This scent reminds me a lot of the Famous scent from the previous soap box, but it's more candy-like. My fortune says, "Not now, Arctic Puffin!".
**EDIT: I have heard from a few people that this is a dupe of Lush's Snow Fairy scent!

Next is a new product I haven't seen from FCS before, shave oil in the scent Shower Duet, "spruce and vanilla, fir and fruits, hyacinth and mint". The shower scene is my favorite part of the movie Elf, btw. Don't worry, no nudies...it's clean ! ;) This scent is fresh and green, the hyacinth is most prevalent to my nose. I am excited to try this product, I already enjoy shaving with oil!

The perfume oil is scented with FCS Cheer, "rich buttery vanilla pound cake, over dark frankincense, patchouli, and cedar". This might be my favorite in the box, so cozy and very sweet but with a touch of earthiness.

The hand sanitizer scent is Swirly Twirly Gum Drops, "cotton candy, lemon drops, and fresh pear nectar, dancing with tart cranberries and black currants". This is a candy shop in a bottle! I can't pick up the individual scents except maybe the cranberry, but I like it and I'm sure it will be a fan favorite.

My favorite FCS product is their whipped cream lotion, it's so awesome! They chose the scent World's Best Cup of Coffee for it in this box, "vermont maple syrup with just the right amount of fresh brewed coffee". I thought the coffee was the heaviest note on first sniff, but when I put it on, the maple really came to life.

A product that fans have been asking to make a comeback is their dry shampoo, this version is in the scent Cotton Headed Ninny Muggins, "lilies, freesia, jasmine, and bayberry, muddled with fresh blackberries and plums, garnished with a sprig of peppermint". I don't usually like berry scents, but this one is pretty unique and so, so good. I think the plum note is really robust and I like it.

Another new type of product from FCS is the face plant in Christmas Gram, "warm steamy air, fresh with lavender and sea salt spray, mingle with the woody earthiness of sage and dark vanilla". This is designed for steaming your face, by putting in a bowl of very hot water and draping a towel around your head and the bowl to refresh and tone your skin. I REALLY love this scent, it's so spa-like!

And the last thing in the box, besides the added candy cane treat, is the bath bomb in Yellow Snow, "ripe plums, whipped caramel, vanilla jasmine, and exotic woods, with just a squeeze of zesty mandarin oranges". That description totally encompasses the scent, I can't do any better. Yummy and bright! I love how this looks like a baby scoop of ice cream!

This box is still available to purchase on their website as of this post's publication, but they sell out quickly so go sign up if you want it! For US customers it costs $19.99, billed every 3-months; Canadian and international subscriptions are a little more due to shipping fees. A nice addition is with the purchase of each quarterly box, you will get a $10 off coupon code emailed to you for use on their site at a later time, which is really awesome. These boxes will start shipping on Nov. 2nd.

This will not work with the purchase of the soap box, but if you are ordering from their site for the first time, you can get $5 off a minimum order of $30 using my referral link: http://r.sloyalty.com/r/u3Swp30VtTsE. If you decide to use the code the link will give you, it helps me out a little by giving me points.

The launch party for the full collection release of Welcome, Santa! will be on Friday, November 13th at 6pm CST, starting on their Facebook page. They do a live webcast showing the products that will be available in all the different scents before they put the collection up for purchase on their website. They also do giveaways! It's crazy fun. Tell me what you think about this theme! What scent seems like it will be your favorite?

See ya next time!

❤ Kellie

The products mentioned were provided for an honest review. Some of the links above are referrals.

Pretty Serious Cosmetics Pet Names Collection Swatches & Review

The Well Meaning But Ultimately Quite Awkward Pet Names Collection might be one of the best, and longest, nail polish collection names of any that I've ever heard. Australian indie brand Pretty Serious Cosmetics always shows off their fabulous sense of humor in their artwork, color names, and shade stories, but they doubled down on the funny for this one. This collection is made up of five crèmes and one shimmer, all with adorable but gaggy sweet pet names. Let's have a look yeah?

Press Sample

Image via http://www.pretty-serious.com/

Sugar Cakes is a neon bubble-gummy pink crème that dries to a satin/matte finish. I used top coat to make it glossy. This is almost a one coater, a tiny bit thick but manageable. I did use two coats to completely even it out.

Honey Puff is a sunny honey bee yellow crème. I love yellows but usually find them difficult to use, however this one was surprisingly uncomplicated! A tiny bit watery but still very opaque which was a real treat for this type of shade. Two coats.

Snugglebutt is a bright but mid-toned purple, with a touch of blue to it. This had a thinner formula, might take three coats depending on your application but I only needed two. I seem to have acquired a few polishes in this tone of purple lately, must be on trend?

Stud Muffin is a sexy warm, bright red crème with a great formula. I had no issues and it was opaque in two coats. Reds are not usually my favorite to wear as a full manicure, but I always like the look when I swatch them haha. Plus, that name is reason enough to get this one haha.

Cuddle Bunny is the lone shade with a bit of shimmer in this bunch. It's an airy lavender with a touch of delicate silver shimmer. This one was thin, but not runny. And again, opaque in two coats! This ended up being lighter and more subdued than I was expecting from the promo shots, but I still like it.

Pookie is a yummy turquoise/aqua blue crème bordering on a sky blue. It's one of those lovely in between shades I'm not quite sure how to describe, you just have to see it in person. Great buttery formula, two coats.

These aren't necessarily "fall colors", and they aren't labeled as limited editions so I think they'll be around for a while. (Especially since a few "goth" shades were just added to this category on their website!) Excellent colors for any occasion, good for nail art, etc. I'm partial to Pookie but I really do like them all. Unique or not, they have really good formulas and would be an asset to anyone's arsenal of paint. Available now on the Pretty Serious website for $9.95 AUD (around $7.18 USD) per 11ml bottle.

❤ Kellie

The products mentioned were provided for an honest review.

Guest Post by Nail Polish Pursuit: Halloween Nail Art + Video Tutorial

Please enjoy this guest post by my friend, blogger, youtuber and fellow Halloween enthusiast, Paola!

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Hi pretty polishers and Kellie Gonzo fans! I'm Paola (Pa-OH-La) aka Nail Polish Pursuit. I am SO honored to be guest writing for my lovely friend Kellie today! She's been a wonderful mentor and inspiration to me throughout my nail polish blogging journey. Kellie and I both love all things Halloween so I felt it oh-so appropriate to create these fun and simple Halloween Nails.

You will need the following:

• white polish {I used French Tip by Color Club}
• yellow polish {I used Pippa by ZOYA}
• orange polish {I used Lady and the Vamp by China Glaze}
• purple polish {I used Looking Bootiful by China Glaze}
• green polish {I used Drink Up Witches by China Glaze}
• black polish {I used Black Pumpkin by Sally's Girl - How adorable is that little witch hat bottle top!?}
• fast drying top coat {I used HK Girl by Glisten & Glow}
• thin nail art brush {mine are from a local beauty supply store}
• medium and small dotting tool {mine are from Amazon}
• striped nail vinyls (mine are from Nailvinyls.com}

These are pretty simple for nail art beginners, but remember practice will make perfect! Here is how to create each one:

CREEPY GOOGLY EYES

1. Start with 1-2 coats of your black polish. The polish I used is opaque in one coat so it was perfect.
2. Apply a coat of fast drying top coat and let it completely dry for about 10 minutes.
3. Using your medium dotting tool dipped in white nail polish, apply three set of eyes on your nail in different directions. You can do more or less set of eyes depending on how big or small your nail is.
4. When those dots are completely dry after about 5 mins, take your small dotting tool dipped in black nail polish to make the center dot of the eye.
5. Once that is dry, apply a fast drying top coat.

CANDY CORN - this one is my favorite and SO easy!

1. Start with 1-2 coats of white nail polish. The polish I used is opaque in one coat so it was perfect.
2. Apply a coat of fast drying top coat and let it completely dry for about 10 minutes.
3. Once your nail is completely dry, use your stripe nail vinyls to create the middle color of the candy corn.
4. Apply one coat of orange polish to the middle of the nail.
5. While your polish is still wet, remove the nail vinyl stripes.
6. Apply one coat of yellow polish to the bottom of the nail. I did this one freehand and just swooped the brush across the bottom of my nail sort of like a french mani.
7. Once the polish is dry, apply a fast drying glossy top coat.

PUMPKIN

1. Start with 1-2 coats of orange polish.
2. Once that is completely dry, take your thin nail art brush dipped in black polish and create 2 triangles at the top of your nail to create the pumpkin's eyes.
3. Then create an upside down triangle underneath the two triangles in the middle to create the nose.
4. Then create a sideways half moon to create the pumpkin's smile.
5. Once that is dry, apply a fast drying glossy top coat.

WITCH STOCKINGS

1. Start with 1-2 coats of green polish.
2. Apply a coat of fast drying top coat and let it completely dry for about 10 minutes.
3. Once that is completely dry, apply your nail vinyl stripes in different positions to create the stripes of the witch's stockings.
4. Apply purple and black polish interchanging the colors with each line.
5. While the polish is still wet, remove the nail vinyls.
6. Once the polish is dry, apply a fast drying glossy top coat. TIP: Apply the top coat sideways so you don't smear any polish downward that may still be wet.

And that's it! You have created adorable Halloween Nails :) I painted the rest of my nails black but you can do more designs or paint them any other fun color you would like.

I also have a step by step video that shows this process on my YouTube channel here:


Hope you all enjoyed this tutorial and I hope you re-create your own Halloween Nails! A huge thank you to Kellie for letting me be a part of this amazing blog!

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Thanks so much Paola! I love that these fabulous Halloween nails are so easy and fun to create! Please show some love in the comments for her because you know I can't bring you nail art like this! See ya again soon!

❤ Kellie

Glam Polish Halloween 2015 Trio Collection Swatches & Review

Good day to you fine friends! I have an excellent new Halloween collection to show you today from Glam Polish! They put out a limited edition trio of holographic glitters for the Halloween season and I could not resist buying them!

Fall'n For You! has a silver holographic glitter base with holographic silver microglitter and glitters in orange, gold, copper and rose-gold. Insane! Epic! So perfect for autumn! It was really easy to apply, like all Glam Polishes, and was opaque in two coats. I am speechless, this is a stare-at-your-nails-all-day kinda polish!

Which Witch? is the same type of polish as Fall'n but with holographic glitters in shades of purple, some blues and a touch of pink in a silver holo base. Another mind-blowing shade with a really great formula! Two coats here too.

Frankenslime 2015 is the new version of the Glam Polish Frankenslime shade that they have re-created and slightly tweaked a few times over the years. You may remember me swatching the 2014 version for you here. This has a cool, bright, blue-toned green crelly base with holographic microshimmer, violet, teal green, neon green and holographic glitter. This went on effortlessly and covered completely in two coats.

Here is a comparison between Frankenslime 2014 and the new one. 2015 is on my pointer and ring fingers, and 2014 is on my middle and pinky nails. 2014 doesn't seem to have as much glitter as 2015, is missing the teal green holographic glitter hexes, and is maybe a shade deeper. I wasn't sold on getting the 2015 version of this at first, but I am so glad that I did because they're obviously completely different ;)

These all dry with a slight texture due to the densely packed glitter so use a top coat for a smooth finish. I purchased the trio from the Glam Polish website for $33. You can also buy them individually at $11. I'm seriously blown away by these, they might be some of my favorite Glams ever, and you know I have an obsession with this brand! Which would you pick? Or are you like me and need all three??

❤ Kellie

Cirque Colors The Metropolis Collection October 2015 Swatches & Review

Hello again! How do you feel about dark, rich crème shades? If you like them, then you'll love this month's installment of the Cirque Colors Metropolis collection! Their October colors are perfect for this time of year, when most people start wearing deeper shades to go with the changing seasons.

Press Sample

McKittrick is a dark forest green crème. It has the same fabulous formula I've come to expect from Cirque, thin without being runny and easy to apply. Maybe a tiny bit on the jelly-side of a crème. This is two coats. I'm crazy about greens so this is a total winner for me!

Velvet Underground is a luxe eggplant purple crème. Dark but not so much that it looks black, which I really like. This had the same formula, but was more of a straight crème. Hassle-free and opaque in two coats.

These are available now at the Cirque Colors website for $13 per bottle. Be sure to check out their stockists page to see other places to purchase too! What do you think about these two lush polishes? Let me know and be sure to check out the rest of the Metropolis collection colors I've blogged about!

❤ Kellie

The products mentioned were provided for an honest review.

Pretty Serious Absence, Presence and Ninja-lish-ious Swatches & Review

Howdy, howdy, howdy! Are you glad it's the weekend? I know I am. I've been organizing a huge fundraiser at my job for the last few months that culminated this morning and I'm so exhausted but everything went really well! I don't think I've ever been that stressed before haha! To take my mind off things, I was able to play with some new polishes from Australian indie company Pretty Serious!

Press Sample

Absence is a one coat black crème. Perfect for using by itself or for nail art. This is one of the best black polishes I've ever use, it's so smooth and effortless. Some one-coat blacks can be very thick and hard to get a nice even application, but not this guy! It is also crazy shiny! I used this as a base for my glitter guest post on the BeautyGeeks blog the other day, go check it out if you haven't yet!

Presence is the white crème counterpart to Absence. It's almost-really-super-close to a one coater, but I needed two to completely cover my nails, there was just a tiny bit of streaking where I could still see darker parts with one. Another amazing formula though. A lot of very opaque whites can be more difficult to use, more so than the black ones, because they can be very chalky. This one was not like that, it was very smooth and flowed easily. Also dried shiny! Another one I used as a base for glitters in my BeautyGeeks post :D

Ninja-lish-ious is a limited edition polish created for the Pretty Serious shipping manager in the US, Alicia. They are based in Australia, but have a shipping center in the US for North American customers, so I always get my polishes from her and she's very fast and accurate! Thanks Alicia! This has a navy jelly base with blue, green and shimmering teal glass flecks. Easy to apply, opaque in two shimmery coats.

These are available now on the Pretty Serious website for $9.95 for an 11 mL bottle. I believe the black and white are permanent colors but Ninja is limited edition. Are you looking for your next favorite black or white? You might find it with these ones! And the blue is just a no-brainer, you need it! Talk to you again soon :)

❤ Kellie

The products mentioned were provided for an honest review.

Pretty Jelly Halloween 2015 Collection Swatches & Review

Hello again, hello :) I cannot get my fill of Halloween collections this year, and so I've got another one to share with you all today! They are from indie brand Pretty Jelly, created by blogger Liz from Liquid Jelly. I have followed her blog for years and always had serious nail envy for her gorgeous digits, so I am way happy for the success of her nail polish brand! Let's check out the goods shall we?

Press Sample

I See Dead People is a black linear holographic with strong red shimmer that was inspired by the movie poster for thriller "The Sixth Sense". That movie still gives me chills when I think about certain scenes, I love it! This polish was nice and opaque, I used two coats here. It has a great formula, but the brush on these is a little big and slightly flared out at the ends so I had to take care in my application. They dry a bit dull so I used top coat for a glossy finish on all of these.

Here's Johnny! is a bloody red linear holographic inspired by the color of Jack's red jacket from horror movie "The Shining". I think I have seen that movie at least 50 times and have read the book about 10. Yes, you may gasp if you'd like. ;) This one had a more jelly type base, but was still opaque in two coats.

Pumpkin Carousel has a black jelly base with orange, green, purple, and teal holographic glitters as well as shimmery gold glitters that shift green. This was a pleasant glitter to apply, very easy. It has a thin base, but it builds up quickly, becoming opaque in two coats. To me this looked kind of simple in the bottle at first glance, but on the nail it turns quite complex with all the different colors of glitter. Dries with a slight amount of bumpiness from the glitter.

They're Here is a pale blue linear holo with added blue shimmer. This one was inspired by the eerie glow of the TV screen from the scary movie "Poltergeist". That movie scares me so much still, and I'm a horror/thriller movie junkie! Maybe because I first saw it as a child and it stuck with me. This seemed to be more sheer on the first coat but was completely opaque in two as well. The holo "fire" seemed really strong on this one.

Werewolf Tricks is made up of vampy red-orange metallic flakes in a deep jelly base with bronze and gold holographic glitters. There is also a purple flash in there somewhere. I wasn't sure how this would look on the nail by seeing it in the bottle, so I was kind of blown away by it when I put it on! Two easy coats.

You can buy these now at the Pretty Jelly Etsy store. The glitters are $10 each and the holos are $12. I am loving indie collections this year and these are some really fun shades for the Fall season and Halloween in particular. What do you think?

❤ Kellie

The products mentioned were provided for an honest review.