Addicted to Polish

China Glaze Lemon Fizz

2011-11-18T08:21:00.000-08:00

Lemon Fizz is from China Glaze's Up and Away collection for Spring 2010. It's a pretty pale yellow. Although pale, it's stark (which I love). It applied pretty nicely, especially for a yellow. In recent weeks I've seen Lemon Fizz in the clearance section at Sally Beauty since it's been taken out of the main display to make room for other colors.

This is 3 coats.

Lynnderella Gotta Love Brains over Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Dangerous

2011-11-17T05:47:00.000-08:00

Warning: Lots of pictures ahead.

Dangerous is nice a medium gray creme. The name with the color makes me think of a shark. The formula on this was nice. I only needed 1 coat, but I imagine if my nails were longer I'd need 2.

1 coat.

Next I layered 2 coats of Gotta Love Brains over Dangerous. Gotta Love Brains has lots of large, medium and small hex shape and square glitters that are pink, blue or silver, as well as holo and silver bar glitter. All of this is in a milky gray base that also has a very slight pink shimmer in it. That sounds intense lol, Anyways, pictures!

OPI DS Shimmer over China Glaze Snow

2011-11-14T14:09:00.000-08:00

I've been lemming Glitter Gal's Light as a Feather for a while now, so I decided to see if I could tame it by layering Shimmer over Snow. I've worn Snow before, and I have to say, it's probably my favorite white. It goes on in 2 coats and levels itself out.

I absolutely love this combination and I wish my pictures could do it more justice. The white base makes it difficult to capture the holo, but it's definitely there. The Shimmer is thin and see through enough that it doesn't over power the white and make it look silver.

Has anyone else tried this combination?

2 coats Snow, 1 coat Shimmer

Maybelline Chic Chocolate

2011-11-13T09:00:00.000-08:00

Chic Chocolate is from Maybelline's 2010 Fashion Week collection. It's a gorgeous blackened red shimmer. It tends to look black in minimal lighting. Application would have been nice, but the brush was a bit lopsided and a little stiff. I've got to stop leaving things untried for more than a year lol.

This is 2 coats.

Tony Moly GT04 Neptune

2011-11-11T10:16:00.000-08:00

I saw swatches of Tony Moly's Galaxy collection on MUA a while back and fell in love. They are all glitter perfection! The only down side is they eat top coat for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and a midnight snack.

2coats, 3 coats of topcoat.

OPI Swimsuit...Nailed It!

2011-11-08T23:29:00.000-08:00

Well, since going back and forth about trimming my nails, fate decided to step in and this happened (Excuse the cell phone picture. Also, I was wearing Deborah Lippmann Forget You over black):

I was so mad, filed my nails all the way down and planned to go on hiatus. Now that I've had my nubs for a bit, I kind of like the idea of starting over again. I love them on other people, so why not me?

Anyways, today I'm wearing Swimsuit...Nailed It! from the 2011 Miss Universe Collection. It's a gorgeous blue foil with a nice application.

This is 2 coats.

Sephora by OPI 212 - Sephora

2011-11-04T13:01:00.000-07:00

212 - Sephora was originally released with the opening of Sephora's NYC store. It was only available there and online. I've now started to see it in the regular displays and it seems to be a part of the core collection.

212 is an interesting mix of things. The base seems to be black, but the olive-gold shimmer gives it a murky dirty brown feel. Through out all of that are flakies that flash orange and green as well as small holo glitter pieces. Some how it all manages to come through

This is 3 coats (you can get away with 2).

Essie Borrowed and Blue

2011-11-03T10:00:00.000-07:00

Borrowed and Blue is from Essie's 2011 Wedding Collection. It's a pale, pastel blue cream that went on pretty well and was opaque in 2 coats. The only problem I had with it is that it didn't quite smooth/level itself out. That could well me my fault though.

This is 2 coats.

Side note: My nails are starting to get on the long side and I've been debating about whether I should file down or not. What do you all think?

Sally Hansen Salon Effects Spun for You

2011-10-30T13:05:00.000-07:00

I put these on for a Halloween party I went to last night. They're a bit thinner than the others I've tried. So far the wear is alright, but I have a bit of tip wear.

Nicole by OPI Pitch Black Glimmer over OPI Flit a Bit

2011-10-28T13:36:00.000-07:00

I decided to keep going with the Halloween theme and layered Pitch Black Glimmer over Flit a Bit. Pitch Black Glimmer has tiny black glitter and a few tiny holo glitters scattered through out a clear base. The layering combo sounded like a great idea, but I'm not sure if I like it now that it's on my nails.

2 coats Flit a Bit, 1 coat Pitch Black Glimmer.

I also need to include that I hate Nicole by OPI's bottle shape. Why won't they change that horrible shape? I have very few of this brand because I hate the bottle shape so much.

Lynnderella Cauldron Drippings over Illamsqua Boosh

2011-10-26T10:42:00.000-07:00

Lynnderella knows the way to my heart with all her unique, glittery offerings. Cauldron Drippings (love this name!) is full of orange glitter in different shapes and sizes with sprinklings of random green, purple, blue, gold, and possibly some others. I decided to layer it over Illamasqua Boosh for a nice Halloween look.

1 coat

I then layered one coat of Cauldron Drippings.

So pretty! The only thing I'm not looking forward to is removal (even with foil)

Sally Hansen Salon Effects Ghoulie Girl

2011-10-23T09:45:00.000-07:00

I've reviewed the salon effects before, and these were no different. Ghoulie Girl is another set from Sally Hansen's Halloween offerings and they are absolutely adorable. They look like little orange and white ghosts complete with eyes. The kids that I tutor LOVED it.

Orly Rock Solid

2011-10-20T15:28:00.000-07:00

Rock Solid is from Orly's 2011 Mineral FX collection. It's a gorgeous shimmery gunmetal gray color with holo glitter for good measure. I can't say I have anything just like it in my collection.

There's nothing to complain about in terms of application. The first coat went on shear but the second coat made everything opaque. Some people may need three coats. Removal, however, was a pain like a regular glitter.

This is 2 coats.

OPI Suzi Says Feng Shui

2011-10-19T13:30:00.000-07:00

Suzi Says Feng Shui is from OPI's 2010 Hong Kong collection. It's a medium dusty blue and reminds me a bit of Illamasqua Muse.

This is 2 coats.

BB Couture Blind Love

2011-10-17T10:57:00.000-07:00

This has been sitting in my untrieds pile for quite some time, so I finally decided to show it a little love.

Blind Love is a silvery gold foil that leans a little to the green side. I've read on MUA that it's a close dupe to Chanel Kaleidoscope (which I don't own).

While the color is pretty, it doesn't really "wow" me. This is most likely because I had hyped it up for myself due to all the Chanel dupe talk.

This is 3 coats.

Sally Hansen Salon Effects Hot Wired

2011-10-14T00:24:00.000-07:00

About a month or so ago I found the Halloween themed Salon Effects and picked up a few and now that we're almost half way into October, I figured I'd better pull one out. Unfortunately, I was rushing when applying these. This is definitely something you don't want to rush with because the polish strips can rip, apply wrinkly, and put the wrong size on a nail. Of course I managed to do all three, but it doesn't look too bad, especially after topping it with some Poshe. I obviously failed at the sizing of my ring finger as evidenced in the last picture.

(The bottles I am holding are OPI Fresh Frog of Bel-Air and Poshe topcoat)

OPI Gone Gonzo

2011-10-11T14:38:00.000-07:00

Gone Gonzo is from OPI's Muppet Collection for Winter 2011. It's a light blue glitter with larger silver hexagonal glitter. When I saw initial swatches, I was afraid that the glitter wasn't buildable, but it definitely is with a little effort and 3 coats. This polish is extremely blingy and the silver glitters are very reflective. I almost blinded myself looking at it in the sun lol.

This is 3 coats.

Nubar Pink Lily

2011-10-07T08:06:00.000-07:00

Pink Lily is from Nubar's Spring Garden Collection 2011. It's a light, pastel pink that comes off as almost a peach color on my darker skin tone. Pink Lily also has a subtle silver shimmer to it that doesn't really translate on the nail. Due to it being a pastel, application took a bit more effort.

This is 3 coats.

Misa Toxic Seduction

2011-10-05T22:47:00.000-07:00

Toxic Seduction comes from Misa's Fall 2008 Poisoned Passion. Its a gorgeous green shimmer in murky green base (along the lines of OPI Here Today, Aragon Tomorrow).

Of course I forgot to take pictures before starting to clean up, so forgive the tip wear.

This is 3 coats.

Essie Sexy Divide

2011-10-02T12:41:00.000-07:00

Sexy Divide is from Essie's Winter 2008 collection. This is a gorgeous, deep purple with a red based purple shimmer. Definitely sexy.

This is 3 coats.

Sandströmin Tomppa

2011-09-22T02:11:00.001-07:00

Sandströmin Tomppa

OPI DS Fantasy

2011-09-18T10:44:00.000-07:00

A beautiful deep blue with a very subtle holo shimmer. This is another one of my favorite OPI's.

This is 2 coats.

OPI Stranger Tides

2011-09-17T18:40:00.000-07:00

Stranger Tides is from OPI's Pirates of the Caribbean collection and is definitely one of my favorites. It's a light gray cream that leans towards the green spectrum of gray, almost a khaki color. Application was nice.

This is 3 coats (could have been 2 if I applied more carefully)

OPI Vampire State Building

2011-09-15T08:34:00.000-07:00

I know I've been MIA, but things have been crazy and I'm getting back on track.

As all my truebies out there know, this past Sunday was the season finale of True Blood and the start of a year long wait. (I seriously need another show to preoccupy me until then.) I decided to wear OPI Vampire State Building.

Vampire State Building is from OPI's Fall of 2000 New York collection and has been long discontinued. It is the perfect vampy color. I've read some people compare it's dark red color to dried blood.

This is 3 coats.

BB Couture Frosty Meadow

2011-08-18T11:47:00.000-07:00

I love BB Couture, they really do have some unique polishes. Frosty Meadow is no different. It's a gorgeous dusty green jelly with green glitter. The glitter isn't extremely gritty so you only need one coat of topcoat to get it nice and smooth.

This is 3 coats.

China Glaze Wagon Trail

2011-08-17T15:13:00.000-07:00

Today, I decided to revisit one of my old favorites, Wagon Trail. It was apart of China Glaze's fall 2008 collection Rodeo Diva. Rodeo Diva is hands down one of my favorite collections from China Glaze.

Wagon trail is a gorgeous blackened olive green shimmer. It was definitely one of my favorites (along with half the nail world) of the collection.

This is 3 coats.

Orly Space Cadet

2011-08-14T12:32:00.000-07:00

I don't know what it is with me and taking so long to try out polish I've bought a year(s) ago. I'll just say I'm reminding everyone of that awesome polish they bought a while ago.

Anyways, Space Cadet is a gorgeous polish. As a duochrome it flashes gold, green, and purple. It comes on pretty sheer at first, but because it's a duochrome and so pretty, I don't mind. If you can't find Space Cadet or don't want to pay $10, Hard Candy has a dupe called Beetle.

This is 4 coats.

E.L.F. Cosmetics Brown and La Rosa Seafoam

2011-08-12T10:55:00.000-07:00

You know crackle polish is popular when you run into an ex (who knows of you polish addiction) and he asks you if you've heard of it. I proceeded to look at him like he had 3 boobs. What kind of question is that? Of course I'd heard of it.

Today I wanted to go for a look with one of my favorite color combinations, brown and blue.

I used 1 coat of Brown. I could have used 2 to cover up some slight bald spots. I was pleasantly surprised with the formula and pigmentation since it only cost me 99 cents.

I also love the La Rosa crackle and prefer the formula to OPI and China Glaze crackle polishes. It cracks nicely and I have no complaints about the formula.

Deborah Lippmann Glitter in the Air over Rescue Beauty Lounge Bikini Bottom

2011-08-11T11:37:00.000-07:00

Now normally sheer polishes don't do it for me, but when I saw these two layered by grayeyez on MUA, I needed both of these asap.

This is 3 coats of Bikini Bottom.

Aside from how sheer Bikini Bottom is, the formula was pretty easy to work with.

This is Bikini Bottom with 2 coats of Glitter in the air.

Nfu-Oh! 65

2011-08-10T10:21:00.000-07:00

65 is another one of Nfu Oh's gorgeous holos. There's not much else to say.

2 coats over Aqua Base

Sally Hansen Red Carpet

2011-08-01T23:28:00.000-07:00

This one is from the Xtreme Wear line. (Side Note: Can someone please explain to me why Sally Hansen has 50 million different lines??) It's a jelly red with red glitter and is a very close dupe to China Glaze's Ruby Pumps. For a glitter, it dries extremely smooth, which is a plus in my book.

This is 3 coats.

OPI Strawberry Margarita

2011-07-29T10:10:00.000-07:00

I rarely wear a pink cream like this, mostly because I like colors that stand out a bit more. Strawberry Margarita is your standard pink cream. There isn't anything extraordinary about it, other than it being a pretty pink.

This is 3 coats.

Zoya Luna

2011-07-21T15:25:00.000-07:00

Zoya Luna is a silver glitter in a silvery gray base. This is definitely one of those glitters that eat topcoat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. You'll need a few coats of topcoat to smooth it out.

I like the concept, but I wasn't head over hills. I think I may have liked the silver glitter in a more metallic base.

This is 3 coats.

Illamasqua Boosh and Sally Hansen In the Spotlight

2011-07-20T10:56:00.000-07:00

I slapped this mani on yesterday because I was in a rush and my students ended up loving it! They're too cute sometimes.

Boosh is the best black with Wet n Wild's black cream as a close second. And to think I bought it by accident. I thought I was buying Rampage and imagine my surprise when I opened it up when I got home. Surprise isn't really even the word. I was pissed. And of course when I went back to exchange it, they didn't have any Rampage left, so I kept Boosh and I love it.

In the Spotlight is a holo string glitter in a clear base, and it looks awesome over black. Science fiction-y good.

This is 1 coat of Boosh and 2 coats of In the Spotlight.

Maybelline Pie in the Sky

2011-07-17T14:57:00.000-07:00

This polish was release in as a part of the Spring 2010 collection and I'm just now getting around to wearing it (a sign that many would say I have way too much polish). This is a pretty periwinkle blue, and is almost a dead on dupe for Orly Snow Cone. The formula on this was extremely watery and took 3 coats to even everything out. Snow Cone definitely has the better formula and I prefer it to Pie in the Sky without a doubt.

This is 3 coats.

Orly Fancy Fuchsia

2011-07-16T20:29:00.000-07:00

This one is from Orly's 2011 Spring Collection. I almost passed it by a few times, but randomly got it in a bout of retail therapy and I wasn't disappointed. For some reason I had a hard time applying it, but it wasn't the polish's fault. I'd swatched it on my fingers before and it went on great. It was probably because I was in a rush. If I'd been more careful I could have gotten away with 1 coat. Instead I did 2 to even it up and cover some bald spots. Either way, that's not bad.

Again, this is 2 coats.

China Glaze Grape Pop and OPI Servin' Up Sparkle

2011-07-13T15:24:00.000-07:00

Grape Pop is hands down one of my favorite purple creams. It applies like a dream and is extremely pigmented. I've read on several other blogs that it's a dupe for Rescue Beauty Lounge Mismas and OPI Funky Dunky. I don't have any of these to compare though.

This is 2 coats.

So after polishing with Grape Pop (which I've worn before) I decided I needed to add a little sparkle because I love glitter and I really wanted to try out OPI's Servin' Up Sparkle. Let me tell you, it does NOT disappoint. My picture does this glitter no justice. It's filled with tiny holo square glitter and large holo hex glitter. It's pretty dense, so I plan on trying it on it's own at one point.

This is Grape Pop with one coat of Servin' Up Sparkle.

OPI Green-wich Village

2011-07-12T13:14:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry for the short commentary, but I've been so busy lately. I'm posting this right before work.

This was one of my first cream greens. It's a dusty almost jelly green. Application was great.

This is 3 coats.

OPI Russian Navy

2011-07-11T15:35:00.000-07:00

Another OPI classic. This is one of those blue/purple colors that I love so much. Click on the pictures to see them in more detail

This is 2 coats

Essie Sand Tropez

2011-07-01T12:09:00.000-07:00

This is one of the more subtle polishes I have, but I love it because it still stands out a bit with my skin tone and application was nice.

This is 2 coats.

China Glaze Snow Layered with Sephora by OPI Only Gold for Me

2011-06-30T10:16:00.000-07:00

So this past weekend, my bestie Winta invited me to a Black and White party. She was wearing black, so I decided to go with white. The first thing I thought about is what mani I was going to wear. I didn't want to go with just white polish because I do that all the time, so since my outfit had a little gold in it, I decided to top white polish off with some gold glittah!

This is 2 coats of Snow and 2 coats of Only Gold For Me

Nicole by OPI Me + Blue

2011-06-29T15:57:00.000-07:00

This week and weekend have been crazy between work and other more fun events, I haven't had much time to post my manis.

Me + Blue is obviously from the Justin Bieber collection. It's a gorgeous frosty blue with holo glitter. It was a bit on the thick side and the brush was absolute crap. Now, I normally love bigger brushes ala Sally Hansen Insta-Dry, so I'm going to hope I just got a weird brush.

Anyways, this is 2 coats.

Illamasqua Rare

2011-06-22T10:44:00.000-07:00

To celebrate the beginning of summer, I decided to go bright. Neon, eye searing, blinding bright. Of course I had to bring out the neon yellow.

As we all know, neon yellows tend to be extremely sheer and either require a ridiculous number of coats, or a couple of layers of white underneath. Rare was different. I used 4 coats, but probably could have gotten away with three. It started off a bit streaky, but I was fine with it knowing what I could have been getting into with a yellow, and a neon yellow at that. Needless to say, this started off my summer perfectly.

China Glaze C-C-Courage

2011-06-16T12:27:00.000-07:00

C-C-Courage is from the Wizard of Oz collection re-released in 2009. That means it's taken me 2 years to wear this polish -_- I have to get it together with my untrieds. I still haven't worn Merry Midnight (don't stone me lol)

This polish is both frosty and glass flecked. I'm normally not a frost fan, but certain ones get a pass and this one definitely does.

This is 2 coats.

Zoya Pippa

2011-06-14T14:48:00.000-07:00

My bestie had a yellow pedi yesterday, and I just had to put on a yellow because it looked so nice on her. Pippa is a gorgeous summer yellow. This color definitely pops on us brown skinned ladies. I wish I had more yellow in my stash. I had no problems with this Zoya. In fact it's one of my favorite yellows. The first couple of coats are streaky, but I've never met a yellow that wasn't streaky.

This is 3 coats.

Illamasqua Muse

2011-06-13T13:23:00.000-07:00

Hello to all the new followers! I know I've been away for a while, but life and computer troubles have gotten in the way, but I'm back, getting back in the groove of things.

Today, I have Illamasqua Muse. This is a gorgeous dusty turquoise cream. Application was perfection. I only needed one coat.

Revlon Perplex

2011-05-23T10:23:00.000-07:00

Okay, I know we've all seen this a million times (so I won't say much about it), but I'm just now getting around to wearing it. I love the purple-y pink shimmer in it.

This is 2 coats.

Sephora by OPI Dark Room

2011-05-20T08:55:00.000-07:00

I still have on Milani Blue Flash because I'm too lazy to take it off so this is from the back log. I dread glitter removal even with the foil method. It's a shame because I love me some glitter.

Dark Room is one of those almost black colors. It's a nice blackened teal. I remember when this first came out, everyone was hoping it would be a dupe for NARS Zulu but was disappointed to find it was more teal than green. It's still a pretty unique color.

This is 2 coats.

Milani Blue Flash

2011-05-19T11:45:00.000-07:00

Blue Flash is one of Milani's one coat glitters. Although they're call one coat glitters, they generally take 2 coats for opacity, but that's still pretty good. Blue Flash isn't really the most unique glitter in my collection, but it's still lovely with it's blue glitter with some silver in there for depth.

Like I said above, this was 2 coats, but it needed 3 coats of top coat to be completely smooth as it dries to a gritty finish with no gloss.

Rescue Beauty Lounge Killa Red

2011-05-18T10:05:00.000-07:00

Now this is a sexy polish from the name right down to the color. It's the kind of color that invokes images of a femme fatal character in a Quentin Tarantino movie. Sexy and dangerous.

As always with Rescue Beauty Lounge, application was a breeze. This is 2 coats.

Outside in the crappy weather we've been having:

OPI DS Desire

2011-05-17T12:46:00.000-07:00

I've had the flu for the past week and I'm still sick. I'm convinced I have strep throat, it hurts so bad. Anyways, this is OPI DS Desire, a gorgeous brown holo.

Sally Hansen Wet Cement

2011-05-17T12:29:00.000-07:00

First I'd like to say wow! Welcome to all the new followers and thanks for following! =D

Today I have on Sally Hansen's Wet Cement. The weather has been pretty craptastic lately, so I decided to do a mani that matches it. Wet Cement is a lovely gray cream that doesn't have to much blue, purple or green. It's the perfect light gray color, but I'm not sure how I feel about it on me.

This is 2 coats.

Essie Greenport

2011-05-15T13:37:00.000-07:00

Essie's Greenport came out in 2009 as a part of the Resort Collection. It's a gorgeous teal that reminds me of the ocean in Hawaii or the Caribbean. This polish is cream in finish, but floats a little towards the jelly side of life making it look a little "squishy." This was a definite favorite for me from this collection.

This is 3 coats.

Sally Hansen Rock Star Pink

2011-05-14T22:37:00.000-07:00

Glitter!! I love me some glittah! This is a magenta glitter in a clear base with some gold, blue and red glitter sprinkled in. It was opaque in 3 coats and wasn't too gloopy. It dries gritty so a thick coat of top coat is a definite must.

Click the pictures to enlarge =)

OPI Ink

2011-05-13T14:29:00.000-07:00

Love this polish! It's a definite classic in my book. This polish can be a little deceptive and looks both purple and blue. It's the pink glass flecked shimmer in a blue base that gives it it's purple tone.

This polish will always have a place in my collection. This is 2 coats.

MAC Blue India

2011-05-04T15:27:00.000-07:00

MAC Blue India was released around this time last year. It's a gorgeous muted blue that has a sister in Sally Hansen's Gray by Gray. This is 2 coats.

Santee Opal Speckle

2011-04-29T19:21:00.000-07:00

Today I have on Santee Opal Speckle layered over Wet n Wild Black. Wet n Wild Black is probably one of the best black polished out there. It's opaque in ONE coat. I love it when a polish goes on in one even buttery coat, it just rocks my world.

Santee Opal Speckle is a sheer and barely noticeable when worn alone, but layered over something, it's gorgeous. It only cost me 1 dollar at the dollar store. However it was a pain in the ass trying to get a decent picture of it. It's a glitter that flashes blue, and sea green and none of these picture have done it justice. I took a ton, to over compensate lol. Please click on pictures to see the glitter in more detail.

Misa Dirty, Sexy, Money

2011-04-24T15:29:00.000-07:00

This is one of Misa's great ones. I know we've all seen this a million times, but we're going to see it again lol. Gorgeous dusty turquoise color. Opaque in 2 coats. What's not to love?

Milani Sparkling Blue

2011-04-23T11:58:00.000-07:00

This polish came from Milani's Back to Color collection in 2009 and is testament that I have an "untried" polish problem lol. This is a creme blue with holo tiny square shaped glitter and holo bar glitter. Now in theory, it sounds amazing, but because it's in a creme base, it makes it difficult for some of the glitter to shine through. Despite that, it's grown on me and I like it.

This is 3 coats.

Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Wasabi

2011-04-22T10:25:00.000-07:00

Happy Earth Day Everyone!!

Today, I have Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics (OCC) Wasabi. This really is close to the color of actual wasabi. It's bright, but manages to be a little muted at the same time.

Formula was good on this one; I have no complaints. This is 2 coats.

OPI Pink Me I'm Good

2011-04-21T15:07:00.000-07:00

I'd been lemming this Ulta exclusive for several months. 10 months. I'd seen it on blogs and knew it existed, but it always seemed to elude me. Even on ebay. Until one day I was home from school for a bit and was shopping in CVS and saw an entire case of OPI. I'd heard about some CVS stores carrying OPI, but had never seen it and as I perused the racks to see what they had, there it was. Pink Me I'm Good.

I should have listened to ChaosButterfly over at The Phalanges Files. When I put it on for a mani I was disappointed. I don't know what happened. It had all the right components. Pink jelly and gold and opalescent glitter, but for some reason it leaves a lot to be desired and I can't quite pin point what it is that it lacks. From other reviews it seems like me and ChaosButterfly are alone in our views of this polish.

This is 4 coats. Click pictures to enlarge and see more detail.

China Glaze Who's Wearing What?

2011-04-20T17:38:00.000-07:00

This is a pretty dusty, grayed lavender that straddles the taupe border. It's kind of like the grayer version of OPI Done Out In Deco.

This pretty came from China Glaze's Creme Couture collection along with the infamous Channelesque.

This is 2 coats.

BB Couture Prince Charming Blue

2011-04-19T08:51:00.000-07:00

BB Couture is one of my most favorite brands and I wish I had more. They do so many things right. They've got unique colors, they've got the glitter in jelly polish down, and they know how to do crazy amazing blues, purples and greens. What more could I want?

This is one of the first BB Coutures that I lemmed and bought a few years ago and I still love it. I think it's kind of cool how it matches the bright blue top of the bottle.

This is 2 coats.

China Glaze Millenium

2011-04-18T11:07:00.000-07:00

I love this. It's one of the more reflective silver metallics in my collection. For some reason I had a hard time applying this one. It was a little gloopy and kept pulling, creating bald spots much like holos can do when you don't use the right base coat. I felt like it was my first time putting on polish lol. Maybe I was just having an off day.

Application issues aside, I still love this. It reminds me of my middle school and high school days. Silver was one of my signature colors.

3 coats.

China Glaze Limonyte

2011-04-17T14:16:00.000-07:00

Sometimes polish companies just kill me with the way they discontinue things all willy nilly. Examples: the OMG collection, Kaliedoscope Collection, pretty much all discontinued holos, La Boheme, Starry Starry Night, etc. I must admit that when you find them (or even succumb to the evils of ebay), it gives you a rush of adrenaline.

Limonyte was one of these. Another nail fanatic mentioned it and of course went off to google to research. And then I saw it on Scrangie. And it was beautiful. And I needed it. About a week ago I saw it on ebay. I'd been debating on what I should use my groupon coupon on, and this was a sign.

Limonyte is a bit sheer, but all you need is 4 coats for opacity and you're good to go. It also had nice application despite the amount of coats needed for opacity. (Click to enlarge)

China Glaze Voodoo That You Do

2011-04-16T23:49:00.000-07:00

I know it's spring, but I like to stick to the philosophy "wear what you want, when you want." I'd decided to go vampy Voodoo That You Do. This had a nice application and only needed two coats.

Outdoors:

Indoors (artificial light):

OPI No Room For The Blues

2011-04-15T11:03:00.000-07:00

This is a bright almost sky blue and it's perfect for spring. It's pretty pigmented and only needs 2 coats for opacity.

Diamond Cosmetics Chainmail Charm

2011-04-14T11:19:00.000-07:00

Black holo! What's not to love about it? I did have a hard time getting a good picture of the holo. This is 2 coats.

Color Club Almost Famous

2011-04-11T18:01:00.000-07:00

Almost Famous is a lovely yellow that almost leans orange and is of course a pain in the ass to apply. Like most yellows it was streaky, but I love yellow, so I don't mind putting in the extra work. This is 4 coats.

Orly Glitz & Glamour and China Glaze Lightening Bolt

2011-04-06T14:59:00.000-07:00

Orly Glitz & Glamour is from the 2010 winter collection. It's a beautiful shimmer/metallic gold. I have no complaints about application, and it only took 2 coats to be opaque. This reminds me a bit of OPI DS Glow.

I think gold and white is such a pretty combo, so I decided to test out China Glaze Lightening Bolt on top. I obviously layered it a bit too thick on my index finger lol.

Essie Mesmerize

2011-04-04T13:25:00.000-07:00

Hands down one of my top 5 favorite blues. When Essie came out with this color, I nearly fell over in shock and when I first applied it I nearly fell over again. This is a beautiful, saturated "crayon" blue. I just need 2 coats for opacity (just one if you apply it right).

Knock Out Cosmetics Flatte Black

2011-04-02T10:50:00.000-07:00

Hands down the best matte black. It looks like it's just sucking up all the light. And the bottle is HUGE. All you need is two coats and three minutes to dry.

Essie Van D'Go

2011-04-01T13:46:00.000-07:00

Pink polish has never been my favorite polish color and if someone were to look at my stash, they may say differently. For some reason, I still manage to have quite a few pinks in my collection. I swear, this must be some type of phenomenon.

However, I am an absolute sucker for light, bright, pastel pinks (a la OPI Mod About You). Van D'Go is no exception to this rule and I am in love. It's a beautiful pastel pink/peach. I don't care that it's a streaky mess and takes for coats to cover all that up.

Sunlight:

Nubar Purple Beach

2011-03-31T08:28:00.000-07:00

Oh Nubar, how I love your duochromes. I wish they'd come out with an entire collection.

Purple Beach is a duochrome that is purple most times. It changes to olive and gold in different lights and viewpoints.

China Glaze Frostbite

2011-03-30T10:15:00.000-07:00

I've been in love with this color since it came out in the Ski Collection and as you can see my bottle has gone through a lot. This is a gorgeous bright blue with blue shimmer that makes it seem to glow.

2 coats.

OPI Moon Over Mumbai

2011-03-29T01:03:00.000-07:00

I bought this polish two or three years ago. When I saw it, I just knew it would be the perfect pale, dove grey creme (there is some hidden shimmer) I had been looking for. If only I had checked some blogs first lol. I was so mad at this color. I tried wearing it once and just couldn't bear the VNL (visible nail line) and took it off a few hours later and tossed it to the side.

So here I am again. Today I needed something more tame and "work appropriate" so I dusted Moon Over Mumbai off and tried again. I can't say that I love it, but it's perfect for those times you should be wearing a more subtle polish.

This is two coats over a ridge filler.

Happy Belated St. Patrick's Day!

2011-03-18T09:14:00.000-07:00

I know I'm a day late, but I thought I'd share my mani for yesterday anyways. I went with Nina Pro's Salsa and on the ring finger is Color Club Object of Envy with OPI Orange You Glad It's Summer.

Essie Pretty Edgy

2011-03-15T10:37:00.000-07:00

Well, St. Patrick's day is drawing near and of course I have to celebrate with the obligatory green mani. Today I chose Pretty Edgy. I love a green cream and this definitely delivers. This is two coats.

Jesse's Girl JulieG

2011-03-07T15:03:00.000-08:00

Today I decided to branch out of my color comfort zone. I tend to avoid "safe" colors. My collection consists of an array of blues, greens, purples, glitters and holos. For some reason, I tend to avoid browns (that aren't of the taupe variety), orange, and coral.

JulieG happens to be a bright coral cream and I like it. I think I avoid corals because it drives me up the wall that I can never decide if it's orange or pink. Anyways, this formula was a little crappy. This took me 4 coats to even it all out. Application was a bit of a streaky mess.

Zoya Jo

2011-02-25T15:59:00.000-08:00

I have a love hate relationship with Zoya. Their colors are always gorgeous and unique BUT the formula hates me. I always get shrinkage which drives me up the wall. I've tried it with almost ever top coat and base coat combination under the sun (including those made by Zoya) to no avail. However, I think I may have found my combination. Sally Hansen quick dry top coat (in the red bottle) and OPI's ridgefiller. So far so good!

Zoya Jo is such a pretty periwinkle blue with blue,silver shimmer. This was a part of Zoya's Spring 2009 Twist collection.

Sally Hansen Mint Sorbet

2011-02-24T13:08:00.000-08:00

Now that the mint craze has died down, I think it's okay for me to like it again. After MAC's release of Peppermint Patty, the polish world went crazy over mint polish, and polish companies bombarded us with them. Kind of like what's happening now with "the crack."

Anyways, I decided to pull Sally Hansen's Mint Sorbet out of my untrieds. It's a gorgeous pastel green. It was completely opaque in 2 coats, but had that "thick but runny" thing going on with the formula. For some reason, my camera seems to have made it look a little more blue in it than it really is.

Savina Purple Confetti

2011-02-23T13:54:00.000-08:00

This is one amazing glitter! Of course the pictures do it no justice. This is polish is filled to capacity with holo glitter inside of a dark magenta (bordering on red) jelly base. What's not to love?

I found this gorgeous polish at Nordstrom's rack along with a ton of other Savina brand polishes. They were reasonably priced and had quite a few interesting colors.

Purple Confetti is very similar to Massini's Slamming Red. The main difference is that Massini is just a shade more red and the holo glitter in it is smaller and more flat. Purple Confetti only needed 2 thick coats of top coat to get rid of the bumpy feel while Slamming Red seems to need an infinite amount. When it comes down to it, if you're not able to find the Massini, Purple Confetti can definitely quench your thirst.

Here's a blurry picture so you can get an idea of how blingtastic this polish is:

This is a comparison of Savina Purple Confetti and Massini Slamming Red. (Pinky and middle fingers are the Savina, index and ring fingers are the Massini.

Misa Dying Love

2011-02-22T01:23:00.000-08:00

A few posts ago I informed everyone of how depressed I was after breaking a nail and didn't plan on showing current pictures for a while. Well, I lied lol. I always go through an "insecure" period after breaking a nail. It takes me a week to get used to my nubs. Weird, I know.

Anyways, I decided to try a polish that's been untried forever. I remember buying this polish back when Misa had this amazing deal if you mentioned Scrangie or The Polish Addict. That was like 2 1/2 years ago -_-

Misa Dying love is a gorgeous black with charcoal shimmer/frost. This is 2 coats.

OPI DS Glamour

2011-02-17T14:52:00.000-08:00

Oh Glamour how I love thee. Medium blue holo? More please. This is the first polish I payed big bucks for and in retrospect, I was ripped off. Two, maybe three years ago, I'd seen this polish on MUA and various blogs and knew instantly that I needed it. So I searched and searched and found a site that sold it, and they had an actual store in Los Angeles. So I drove past the Grove and into Hollywood and found this small beauty supply store. I asked for Glamour all excited. They brought it out from the back and rang it up for $25. I wanted it so I payed for it and my bank account cried for this poor college student. When I got it home, it was all I thought it would be and more.

I then went to ULTA and found it on sale for $6 -_-.

Misa Hot Couture

2011-02-13T13:46:00.000-08:00

Well, I broke a nail. I don't think I've had one break this low for a while. I chopped them all off as low as they can go so, I won't be posting any new pictures for a while. I do have a few picture that I haven't shown ya'll yet.

This is Misa Hot Couture from the Runway Collection. For some reason I both love and hate this color.

LA Girls Deejay

2011-02-04T15:56:00.000-08:00

I love blue polish and this one is a stunner. I only wish I had a black light to see what it would look like. This is 3 coats.

OPI Have You Seen My Limo?

2011-02-02T15:00:00.000-08:00

This is a gorgeous "vampy" polish. It has green duochrome and looks great in the bottle, but the duochrome doesn't exactly translate on the nail. It's still a great color. You can see the green shimmer up close.

Sally Hansen Salon Effects in Check It Out

2011-02-02T14:57:00.000-08:00

I know we've seen these quite a bit in the past weeks, but I decided to try them and put in my quick 2 cents. These fit my left hand really well, but ran a little smaller on my right hand, which was weird. I didn't mind too much because you couldn't really tell unless you were blatantly looking at the sides of my nails. Other than that, these were great. They are easy to apply, and lasted FOREVER with minimal lifting at the cuticles. I was trying to wear these for as long as possible, but after day 7 I started pulling them up on purpose so I could change my mani.

OPI Designer Series Divine - The Japanese Version

2011-01-07T10:29:00.000-08:00

I came home for Thanksgiving break and my mom surprised me with all of these pretty OPI DS polishes. I was so excited, but the names weren't matching up with what I thought the colors where supposed to be. I looked on the bottom of the bottles and they all had the little JP. I almost flipped my shit.

To show you the difference of the bottom of the labels, here are the labels for OPI DS Shimmer. The one on the left is the Japanese and the one on the right is US. (The Japanese OPI DS Shimmer is gold holo while the US version is a silver holo):

Anyways, observe the awesomeness that is OPI DS Divine - JP:

Do you see the holo?? This picture doesn't even do it justice. This polish came on sheer at first, but 3 thin coats and it was perfection.

Giveaway Winner

2011-01-06T08:28:00.000-08:00

Using random.org, I came up with the number 33. That means Nicole is the winner! Congrats! I will email the winner. If they don't respond in 48 hours I'll choose a new winner. Thanks everyone for entering!

NARS Purple Rain

2011-01-04T09:12:00.000-08:00

Gorgeous, deep, shimmery purple. Opaque in 2 coats.

Sunlight:

Shade:

Nail Bliss Metallic Nails

2011-01-02T10:13:00.000-08:00

For New Years Eve I decided to do something I don't normally do. Enamel Girl told me about the sale Sally's was having on all their clearance items, so of course I ran to go check it out. I got some of the holiday China Glazes and I saw these metallic falsies that looked just like minx. They were only 2 dollars after the discount. I used the sticker that came in the package to attach the nails, but I'm pretty sure they'd last much longer with nail glue. I just wanted them on for New Years.

Here they are in all their reflective glory:

Milani One Coat Glitter - Silver Dazzle and Giveaway Reminder

2010-12-26T03:57:00.000-08:00

I know you've seen these a million times, but I'm going to add in my 2 cents too. I wore this mani for Christmas Eve and loved it. The bottle claims that these are one coat glitters. I wouldn't quite say these are one coaters, they're more like 1 and a half coaters if that were even possible lol. This glitter is extremely dense and you get a nice full coverage in 2 coats which makes these amazing. Removal wasn't too bad either ( not like the horror that is Milani Jewel FX in Gold, but that's for another day).

Indoors (Artificial light):

Outdoors (natural light):

Also, don't forget to enter my giveaway for a set of China Glaze Martini Pedicure here!

Giveaway!

2010-12-23T09:49:00.000-08:00

It's Christmas time and I figure it's about that time to spread a little polish love to my followers. I really do appreciate all of you. About a year and a half ago, before I even started this blog, I found a dusty. It wasn't anything too special. And then I saw China Glaze Martini Pedicure. The whole thing. I got one for myself and one to give away when I finally started my blog.

(Sorry the picture isn't so great)

So today, I'm giving away a brand new, never used or opened, set of China Glaze Martini Pedicure. In this collection are Straight Up, Martini Lunch, Tarnished & Varnished, Shaken Not Stirred, Martini Pedicure, and Sass in a Glass.

The rules:
-This is for US followers only (sorry)
-You must follow via Google Friend Connect
-Leave a comment on this post with your GFC name and email address. Each person gets one chance. Please don't leave more than one comment.

The giveaway will end January 3, 2011 at 11:59pm Pacific Standard time. I will announce the winner within 48 hours after January 3rd.

MAC Jade Dragon

2010-12-20T12:37:00.000-08:00

Well, I had to file my nails down even more. I just can't get any respect. Anyways, this is Jade Dragon. I bought this a while back sometime in September. It's a beautiful dark green with a blue shimmer. The shimmer is much like that used by a lot of polish brands this year (OPI, Zoya, Orly).

This is a color that is definitely better looking in person. I was hoping I could take a picture of it in some sun light, but of course as soon as I get back to LA for winter break, it decides it wants to pour down raining for the entire weekend D:

Claire's Magic

2010-12-17T05:00:00.000-08:00

Now, I never regarded Claire's as a place to find great polish, but this is gorgeous. It's a purple with shimmer and I'm not sure I can quite call what color the shimmer is, but it's lovely.

This is three coats.

Guest Nails: NARS Zulu

2010-12-04T14:56:00.000-08:00

So my friend Dana came over to say hi and bring me some greens and mac & cheese from Ooohs and Aaahs mmm. Of course I have nail polish bottles all over the place so she just had to have her nails done. She picked out my beloved NARS Zulu that I haven't even worn yet and being the nice friend that I am, I obliged lol.

This is base coat, 3 coats of Zulu and Poshe topcoat. Zulu needed 3 coats to even things out a bit, but if you apply it right, you can get away with 2 and a more obvious green color.

Don't they look lovely?

China Glaze Up All Night

2010-12-03T15:11:00.000-08:00

This one is a beautiful "almost black" blue. For the most part this polish looks like a dark navy blue creme, but it's secretly hiding a gorgeous shimmer that only shows in bright lights and bright sunlight. This one was pretty opaque in 1 coat, but it took 2 coats for perfection. It almost glided on my finger nails and it dries with a nice shine without topcoat. These picture have topcoat because I'm just impatient as hell. I can't imagine a life without one of my beloved quick dry top coats.

This is how it looks under bright lights:

This is what it looks like in most other lights:

Icing True Beauty

2010-11-30T15:24:00.000-08:00

Army greens don't look great against my skin tone, but for some reason, they always end up in my stash. Case and point, Icing True Beauty. I saw it, and had to have it. I wish I had my Rescue Beauty Lounge No More War to compare it to.

This color is a definite must have for all army green fans. The formula is a little thick, but it applies nicely and is opaque in one coat if you apply it right. Of course I didn't, so this is two coats.

OPI Royal Rajah Ruby

2010-11-15T07:57:00.000-08:00

This one comes from OPI's 2008 spring collection. It's a red shimmer in a dark brown base. It has a lit from within look, but because the base is dark brown and not black, it almost has a dustier look to it.

This shade was opaque in two coats, but I used three to even it up. Three seems to be the magic number for me. I've been wearing this for a couple of days, so excuse the tip wear.