#ManiMonday: Rescue Beauty Lounge Fashion Polish

Fall is coming, even to LA! Nights are a bit chillier, mornings are a bit darker, I'm even able to wear booties and leggings again without feeling like I might begin to overheat. And while I typically gravitate toward purples and blues for my nails, I was really feeling a dark, moody hue this week. Enter Rescue Beauty Lounge Fashion Polish.

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#ManiMonday: Rescue Beauty Lounge Ah, Oui

I'm basically never going to get over the fact that Rescue Beauty Lounge shuttered. Not to be overly dramatic, but the day I received the email telling me the company was shutting down was one of the saddest in recent history. (Okay, maybe that's a LITTLE over the top, but still. I was and still am really upset about it.) So, in homage to the nail polish brand that forever has my heart, I pulled out an oldie but goodie this week -- Rescue Beauty Lounge Ah, Oui.

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My Latest Mani: Rescue Beauty Lounge Manicurator from the Blogger 3.0 Collection

Oh, Rescue Beauty Lounge. I will forever mourn your closing. But thankfully I stocked up on basically every color the brand had to offer before it shuttered, so I have many nail polishes to keep me company in the years to come. Rescue Beauty Lounge Manicurator, one of the colors from the Blogger 3.0 Collection, is one such color.

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HPB Presents My First Ever Indie Nail Polish Purchase: Rescue Beauty Lounge Recycle

I recently discovered my new favorite Facebook group: Hobby Polish Bloggers. It's been wonderful to connect with other people who love nail polish just as much as I do (read: we're all obsessed). And right now we're all participating in a challenge where we show off our very first indie nail polish purchases! My first one? Rescue Beauty Lounge Recycle.

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#ManiMonday: Rescue Beauty Lounge Morning Light from the Blogger 3.0 Collection

Another day, another Rescue Beauty Lounge manicure. Seriously, I basically bought every color before the brand went out of business recently. Rescue Beauty Lounge Morning Light was a necessity.

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My Latest Mani: Rescue Beauty Lounge Electro Glacier

I really don't think I'll ever get over the heartbreak of Rescue Beauty Lounge shuttering its doors. I don't know how I'll be able to survive knowing there will never be new colors to fawn over with my best friend (who, coincidentally, is celebrating a birthday today!). But I'm doing my best to move on, and today there was no better way to do that than with Rescue Beauty Lounge Electro Glacier.

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My Latest Mani: Rescue Beauty Lounge Refined and Polished from the Bloggers 3.0 Collection

I'm still in denial that Rescue Beauty Lounge is no more. If I'm being honest, I'm just pretending it's not true and that there will be a new collection announcement any day now. But, in case my prayers go unanswered, I'm definitely glad I snagged a bunch of polishes before Ji Baek closed the brand for good. And one of them was Rescue Beauty Lounge Refined and Polished.

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Farewell, Rescue Beauty Lounge (Plus My Latest Mani: RBL GalaxSea)

I have some truly depressing news to share with you today. One of my absolute favorite nail polish brands, Rescue Beauty Lounge, is no more. The line's founder, Ji Baek, decided to move onto her next chapter after 17 years of bringing us beautiful shade after beautiful shade.

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My New Nail Polish Love: Rescue Beauty Lounge Will They Won't They from the Anatomy of a #KDrama Collection

Do you ever have a nail polish that you covet for months and months (and months) until finally you succumb to its beauty and purchase it? Well, that was me when it came to Rescue Beauty Lounge Will They Won't They. This stunner from Summer 2014's Anatomy of a #KDrama Collection instantly captured my heart and soul -- but it wasn't until recently that I finally took the plunge.

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Oldie but Goodie: Rescue Beauty Lounge Scrangie Nail Polish

One of my all-time favorite nail polish colors is Rescue Beauty Lounge Scrangie. I snapped this color up when it was first available in 2009 and haven't looked back since.

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#ManiMonday: My Nail Polish Stash and Storage

Anyone who knows me knows that I have what one might call an obsession with nail polish. It's the one beauty product I never need to buy ... and the one I can never seem to say no to once I'm inside a Sephora or Ulta. I've amassed quite the collection over the years, and for a long time I had a vision of displaying all of my gorgeous polishes in racks like you see in nail salons. I've wanted to do this since I lived in New York, but never made it happen ... UNTIL NOW. I finally made the leap and displayed all of my nail polish just the way I always wanted!

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#ManiMonday: Rescue Beauty Lounge Wild Raspberries Grow from A Poem Collection

You know those nail polishes that just call to you immediately? The second you see them, you know they must be yours? Well, that's how I felt when I first laid eyes on Rescue Beauty Lounge Wild Raspberries Grow. It captured my heart and made it impossible not to fall in love.

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My Happy Hanukkah Nail Art: A Blue Ombre Manicure

Happy Hanukkah, everyone! Hanukkah is my all-time favorite holiday -- and it's not because of the presents. I've always loved lighting the menorah and singing the prayers, which instantly connects to my religion in a way that goes back thousands and thousands of years. (And, come on -- a holiday that centers around oil, meaning I get to eat latkes and doughnuts? Cosign.) I wanted to do something special with my manicure to celebrate, so I decided to do a blue ombre manicure.

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#ManiMonday: R29 + Rescue Beauty Lounge Pretty Gritty

You know those nail polish colors that you see and immediately think, "THAT MUST BE MINE."? Well, that's how I felt the moment I saw Pretty Gritty, one of the colors from the new R29 + Rescue Beauty Lounge Collection.

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Rescue Beauty Lounge Swatches: Fashion Polish, Forgiveness & Be Humble

You know those brands that just call to you over and over, always enticing you to buy just one more product? The ones that are so amazing, you remember each and every purchase you've made from them, going all the way back to your first? That's how I feel about Rescue Beauty Lounge.

From the purchase of my very first bottle (Recycle) to every other one in my collection, they both stand the test of time and make me fall in love over and over again. So is it really any wonder that I'm completely smitten with three of the latest colors in my arsenal, Fashion Polish, Forgiveness and Be Humble? Read on to find out why.

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Rescue Beauty Lounge Nail Polish Swatches: Insouciant and Aqua Lily

I truly love Rescue Beauty Lounge. Every nail polish in the line is gorgeous, applies beautifully and is like no other color out there. And both Insouciant and Aqua Lily are, of course, no different.

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12 Days of Favorite Nail Colors from Jamie and Katie: China Glaze Emerald Sparkle & Rescue Beauty Lounge Recycle

Some people's beauty obsessions are obvious early in life. For my best friend, Katie Reed, and me, it was definitely nail polish. We've been in love with cool, bold colors since the early 90's -- we used to trade them back and forth while sitting in our high school hallways before class. For the next 12 days, we'll be bringing you some of our favorites in what we're calling 12 Days of Favorite Nail Colors.

Today we're all about green! Call it Christmas spirit if you will!

Jamie: My color today is China Glaze Emerald Sparkle. This is another color from 2009's Wizard of Ooh Ahz Collection, just like Ruby Pumps. And, just like Ruby Pumps, it holds a special place in my heart. I absolutely love the rich shade of emerald and the immense amount of shimmer packed into the formula. It applies fantastically -- one coat is enough to cover the nail, although I always go with two for a little bit more oomph. And it's just PERFECT for the holiday season!
Note: Unless you're lucky enough to find this color on eBay or in a beauty supply store, it's no longer available.

Katie: Years ago, Jamie and I were at Louis Boston, eying the beauty products, when I was stopped in my tracks by Rescue Beauty Lounge Recycle. Creams aren't my favorite polishes, but this strongly pigmented shade sent my green-loving fingers reaching for my credit card. This polish can be a one-coater if you set your mind to it, but I used two just to make sure I had full coverage. I love that this color is actually forest green, instead of black which might look forest green in direct sunlight. Those types of lacquers are nice, but when you live in the northeast, there isn't a lot of direct sunlight to be had!
Rescue Beauty Lounge Recycle is available at rescuebeauty.com.

Mani of the Week: Rescue Beauty Lounge Catherine H

Oh, Rescue Beauty Lounge. You do it to me EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. My best friend, Katie, bought me Catherine H for my birthday -- and, as much as I love the color, it took me until now to finally use it! I kept looking at it, and looking at it, and looking at it, and ... well, you get the picture. It just seemed so beautiful and perfect that I didn't want to sully the bottle with actual use. Of course, that finally seemed crazy, so I opened it up and painted my nails with the polish last night.

Perfection in a bottle. Really and truly, the beauty knows no bounds. The polish applies like a dream, evenly in two coats (one is actually dark enough to cover the nail, but I like to do two for good measure). The hue is a gorgeous blend of purple and deep blue that reminds me of the sky as the sun is about to set. Gold and iridescent shimmer give it a unique quality. Interestingly, it actually looks more purple than blue to me, both in person and in photos -- but it's definitely Catherine H, not Catherine, which was the more purple of this collection. In any case, it's a keeper!

What's on your nails this week? Let me know in the comments!

Mani of the Week: Green Ombre Nails with Essie, American Apparel, OPI and Rescue Beauty Lounge

I don't get super braggy about my nails all that often -- but I am really excited about my manicure this week! I had been wanting to try ombre nails for awhile, but it just took putting together the right color combination. I mulled it over for awhile -- what color family should I choose? Red, pink, blue, purple? I finally settled on green, because I have so many amazing green nail polishes that just don't get enough play in my manicure rotation.

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First Look Fridays: Founder Ji Baek of Rescue Beauty Lounge

If you're as obsessed with nail polish as I am, chances are you've incorporated Rescue Beauty Lounge into your arsenal. Founder Ji Baek consistently turns out amazing, not-seen-anywhere-else colors that garner tons of compliments and have incredible staying power. Her fans can approach a rabid near frenzy, causing limited-edition polishes to sell out in minutes and clamoring for new releases for months in advance. Read on to discover how Ji got her start in the nail business, what we can expect from her next collection and so much more.

Can you tell me a bit about yourself?
My family immigrated to New York from South Korea when I was 12 years old -- I have been a Manhattan brat ever since. My arduous journey before the birth of Rescue Beauty Lounge included playing piano, violin and viola, along with studying restaurant management, going to culinary school, and finally, attending a nail school.

How did you first become interested in beauty and nail polish?
My mom is obsessed with skincare. She had a stern skin regime for my sisters and me ever since I can remember. I know it’s peculiar, but besides keeping up with a good daily cleanser, moisturizer, eye cream and lip balm, I was never really interested in beauty. Nail polish was something that I stumbled upon when we opened RBL because many of our clients complained that they could never keep nail polish on for more than a couple of days without it chipping. I had the best market research right under my fingertips.

How did the idea for Rescue Beauty Lounge first come about, and how did it become a reality?
When it comes to beauty treatments, the nudity, the locker rooms and a stranger's touch are not my friends. RBL was born out of my selfishness and pure frustration. When I was a restaurant manager, I would retreat to pedicure treatments to soothe my aching feet, feet that were in heels daily -- at least 12 hours a day. I could not find, for the life of me, a clean, hygienic, cool place to get my nails done. I knew I was not alone and just out of curiosity, I enrolled in a nail school. Boy, was I shocked by the shady operations that were violating numerous state regulations -- RBL was born to provide cool, safe and health regulated nail services.

Where do you get your inspiration for new colors and collections?
Everything and anything that interests me in life and that moves me.

Do you have any favorite colors or products from the line? What makes them so special to you?
I love all of my colors equally, it’s a long journey to make a color and if it’s born and not buried in my reject drawer, then it has captivated my heart.

What can we expect from Rescue Beauty Lounge going forward?
Rather then producing a seasonal collection, I will choose a story that inspires me. My new collection coming up is the largest that I have ever made and produced at one time -- seven colors!

Being a nail polish creator must be fun -- but what do you do in your spare time?
It's not always fun, but I love the artistic process of starting with my inspirational board, researching and then translating these ideas into mixing pigments. But like all artists, I have turbulent moments of frustration, anger, joy and bliss along with absolutely passionate and dizzying emotions.

Cooking calms and lulls me into a meditative state. I'm also an avid reader, escaping from reality is a necessity. I find grace in my ballet lessons -- I have studied ballet for the past five years. Traveling to new and unknown places keeps me humble and opens my eyes and senses to new beauty in life.

To add to your Rescue Beauty Lounge collection, visit rescuebeauty.com. You can also follow Rescue Beauty Lounge on Twitter and Facebook.