Cheeky Monkey Social Climber

This is another user requested swatch - Cheeky Monkey Social Climber.  It's listed on their website as a dark brown but it does have quite a bit of red in it as well - almost more of a plum creme.


I used a base coat of Cheeky Monkey Get Wet, only one coat of Social Climber and a top of Seche Vite.  The application was very nice and the one coat opacity was a delight.

You can really see the plummy redness in the sun.  You can also see how well it applied.

In the shade the color appears a bit more brown but it's still with some red undertones.


Cheeky Monkey can be purchased on their website [official website] for $15 a bottle.

Cheeky Monkey Thigh Highs vs China Glaze Robotika

While I was swatching Cheeky Monkey Thigh Highs, I thought it reminded me of China Glaze Robotika from the Fall/Winter 2009 Khrome collection.  It's also listed as a type of brow purple metallic chrome type of color.  In the bottle, you can tell that they definitely look similar - it's a bit hard to tell with all the writing on the Cheeky Monkey bottle so let's move to pictures!


For Thigh Highs, I used a base of Cheeky Monkey Get Wet, 2 coats of Thigh Highs and a top of Seche Vite.  For Robotika I used a base of Seche Natural, 1 coat of Robotika and a top of Seche Vite. Unlike Thigh Highs, Robotika did require clean up and I didn't even get it all cleaned up apparently.


Sun picture! 

Cheeky Monkey Thigh Highs looks more plum than China Glaze Robotika in the light.  It also has a bit more depth but that may be because it's 2 coats instead of 1.


Shade!

Now here it's a tiny bit harder to tell what is what.  Oh you shade, you're so sneaky you.


So what to do?  Do you need both?  Hah, my answer is always yes but I'm slightly biased.  ^_^

Cheeky Monkey Thigh Highs

Another reader request from Ericka!  She was looking to find the color that Rihanna wore on June 19, 2008 at the Empire State Building lighting in honor of Cartier's "Love Day" (specific, huh?) and thought maybe Cheeky Monkey Thigh Highs was just the right shade.

Image provided by reader.

Cheeky's website lists Thigh Highs as a dark pewter but it definitely gives off a bit of a metallic purple gold as well.


I used a base of Cheeky Monkey Wet Dream, 2 coats of Thigh Highs and a top of Seche Vite.

In the sun, this color looks a little more purple than pewter but there's always the shade!

In the shade, there's a bit more of a brown tone in there but I'm not sure how close it really is to Rihanna's nails.  It seems a little too purple to me.  Sorry Ericka!


Cheeky Monkey can be purchased on their website [official website] for $15 a bottle.

Cheeky Monkey No Bra

Reader request here!  Ericka wanted to see what Cheeky Monkey No Bra was like.  Cheeky's website lists No Bra as a light neutral beige creme and that's pretty accurate.  I found the color to be a little lighter and more yellow brown than the online bottle but still pretty spot on.  Great neutral color for the office but I did find it a little too close to my skin tone.


I used a base of Cheeky Monkey Wet Dream, 3 coats of No Bra and a top coat of Seche Vite.  The formula on this color was nice - not too streaky or thick.

Here in the sun, you can see that it's a nice shiny color when the Seche Vite it added and just an overall nice beige.

Two different shade pictures next.  The first was under my porch, the second was more of an indirect sun.  I'm not sure I could rock this color on nubbins as well as it looked on long nails.  Nice color overall.  Hope this helps Ericka and all my readers!


Cheeky Monkey can be purchased on their website [official website] for $15 a bottle.

Cheeky Monkey Damn I'm Hot vs China Glaze 2030

While applying Cheeky Monkey Damn I'm Hot, I kept thinking it looked like China Glaze 2030 from the Khrome Collection.  Now, side by side on the bottle, you can't really tell that they are as similar as I think they are.  2030 looks much more gold than Damn I'm Hot.


For Damn I'm Hot, I used a base coat of Cheeky Monkey Get Wet, and for 2030 I used a base coat of Seche Natural.  I have 2 coats of Damn I'm Hot, but only one coat of 2030.  I topped both with Seche Vite.

The difference is very subtle.  I almost have to walk back from my monitor to really see that Damn I'm Hot is more silver and 2030 is more gold.  They both have the metallic sheen going on but there are 2 big differences... (1) Cheeky Monkey is $15, and China Glaze is $4 and (2) 2030 is MUCH more opaque than Damn I'm Hot.  Can you live with one and not the other?  Probably - depends on what you're looking to wear that day.  ^_^

Cheeky Monkey Damn I'm Hot

Another reader request (actually, it was the same reader) today - this time it was for Cheeky Monkey Damn I'm Hot.  This is listed as a streaky pewter on Cheeky's website and it does paint like a metallic except more sheer.  Also it was kind of a yellowed pewter with some shimmer.  As you can see, the weather turned icky, so I didn't get any nice sun pictures. ;__;


I used a base coat of Cheeky Monkey Get Wet, 2 coats of Damn I'm Hot, and a top coat of Seche Vite.  The formula was just a tiny water on here and I did have to shake it quite a bit as the color had settled.  

I think this would be a good base color but overall it's just too bland for me to wear alone.  I'd like it with some crazy glitter on top, personally.


Cheeky Monkey can be purchased on their website [official website] for $15 a bottle.

Cheeky Monkey Camel Toe vs China Glaze

Yesterday I showed you Cheeky Monkey Cosmetics Camel Toe.  Well I went through all my polishes and grabbed the only colors that looked remotely close, but as you can see in this bottle picture, neither color is that close.  I chose China Glaze Far Out from the Retro Diva collection and China Glaze Chocodisiac which is not a big 3 free color from the Guilty Pleasures Fall 2006 Collection.  


For the Cheeky Monkey, I had a base coat of Get Wet.  For both China Glaze colors, I had a base coat of Seche Natural.  I used 2 coats of color for each polish, and topped all with Seche Vite.

As you can see, there isn't a dupe here.  Far Out has a darker base with a slight gold shimmer, and Chocodisiac has a much darker base than Camel Toe.  While you could buy both the China Glaze colors and a base and a top coat for the same price as the Cheeky Monkey, if you're looking for a coffee caramel color, Came Toe is still the way to go.

Cheeky Monkey Camel Toe

Today's post was actually a reader's request.  By all means, feel free to email me (address on the sidebar) with your requests or questions on any of the polishes I own.  I'm constantly trying to keep my spreadsheet updated with all my polishes, and overall, I would love to get them all swatched!  I'm not on a "no-buy" by any means, but I'd like to at least wear half of what I have, haha.


Cheeky Monkey Cosmetics Camel Toe is listed as a medium dark neutral beige.  Now, I find it to be more of an orange based brown - kind of like a coffee caramel, if you would.  It's a creme which actually surprised me a little - I kept thinking there was some hidden shimmer in there, but nope.  Great neutral color for the office, if you ask me.


I used a base coat of Cheeky Monkey Wet Dream, 2 coats of Camel Toe, and topped it with Seche Vite.  The formula was very smooth - not runny or thick and had excellent coverage.

As you can see in the sun, it's pretty close to my own skin tone (at least to me) - with the orange showing up a little more than the brown.

However, in the shade it does look a little darker but overall it's a very wearable color - nothing bold or in your face.  Again, great for the office.


Cheeky Monkey can be purchased on their website [official website] for $15 a bottle.

Beauty Debutante Posts

I recently had two more posts over at Beauty Debutante - one on a tanning lotion and another you've seen here on Polish Galore... a neutral nail polish ^_^  Please feel free to read, comment, share, and most of all, enjoy!

• Sothys Sun Care Progressive Sunny Glow Lotion, Sun-Sensitive Areas Care
• Neutral Nail of the Day: Cheeky Monkey Hangover

Cheeky Monkey Lucky U

So, here's the deal.  Cheeky Monkey Cosmetics was super nice enough to send me a press sample of their new Spring 2010 colors, Tease, Get Wet, Booty Call and Filthy Madame.

The first time, Filthy Madame exploded  in the mail (yes, exploded) due to this insane Texas heat, and ruined Get Wet and Booty Call.  Tease was saved because she was wrapped up in a piece of tissue paper that was separate from the other three.

The second time, Booty Call was the girl to explode, covering Filthy Madame and Get Wet.  

This is when A at CMC and I got creative.  This time, she was going to put each bottle in a plastic zip lock bag, so IN CASE it exploded, it wouldn't get anywhere but the bag.  She also paid the extra expense of using UPS instead of USPS because with Customs, it was taking 10 days for my package to come to me.


So package three... third time's the charm or three strikes and you're out?

So I give up.  It was Filthy Madame again that exploded - check out the dried polish up in the top right hand corner.


However, one good thing came out of all this - which is what this blog is really about.


Coming soon to Cheeky Monkey!  

Lucky U is a metallic spearmint color with a slight pearl thing going on (or at least that's what I kept thinking).  I used a base coat of Cheeky Monkey Wet Dream, 2 coats of Lucky U and a top coat of Seche Vite.

(Boo nubbins.)
See what I mean about that metallic/pearl/PRETTY green?  It's almost like dewy grass - such a happy little color.

Goes well with all that grass I have in the background.  Hurricane Alex was slated to go anywhere from Mexico to 30 miles south of me (where my parents live), and all we ended up getting was TONS of rain.  We're still getting rain.  Anywhere from 1-5 inches a DAY.  Then we get sun.  TONS of sun.  We're talking 100+ degrees.  So guess what rain + sun = ?


MOSQUITOES.  And guess who's allergic to their bites?  Myself and my son.


Anyway, rant over.

Even in the shade, this color is amazing.  No streaking or application issues - actually the hardest thing I had to do was paint my right hand.  I've been swatching so much and staining cabinets in my BRAND NEW KITCHEN, that I haven't had a chance to wear a full manicure in over 3 weeks.  Sigh.


As soon as I get the release date on this beauty, I'll update this blog posting.  Another winner from Cheeky Monkey Cosmetics!  Additionally, and I must mention this... seriously their customer service is amazing.  I called the company directly to talk to A, and she personally answered and we chatted about what was going on with my bad luck.  She even remembered that I was remodeling my kitchen and asked about it!  How many times can you say a company REALLY cared about you?  I can think of very few, but luckily, I've had the chance to work with some amazing polish companies and it just really makes all the difference.


Cheeky Monkey can be purchased on their website [official website] for $15 a bottle.


Disclosure: The product[s] in this post was [were] provided to me by the company for consideration.  For more information, please read this post.

Cheeky Monkey Martini Daze

Cheeky Monkey Martini Daze is listed as streaky silver - how's that for a description?  Heh, I was hoping this was more of a creme, but it's definitely a shimmer - reminds me of a chrome even.


I used a base coat of Cheeky Monkey Wet Dream, followed by 3 coats of Martini Daze, and I did not use a top coat.  I was hoping that Martini Daze would be more of a solid grey than a silver.

Oh shiny nails.  I did use 3 coats instead of the recommended 2 since I felt that after 2 I still had a little VNL.

Under my patio, I have this odd green sheen that comes off on my nails sometimes (as you see on the middle finger especially).  I assure you that there is no green in this polish.  ^_^


Overall it was a nice color to wear - you can see the brush strokes a bit but it's definitely more of a silver shimmer than a streaky silver.


Cheeky Monkey can be purchased on their website [official website] for $15 a bottle.

Cheeky Monkey Party Whore

Cheeky Monkey Party Whore is medium coral pink and quite a pretty spring color.  Because of the coral (and maybe because of my new China Glaze Flip Flop Fantasy), this almost looked neon to me during the day, but it is definitely a creme.


I have a new friend who is in LOVE with corals and so I wore this one especially for her.  ^_^  Because I'm freaking that I still have my long nails, I used a base coat of Seche Retain, followed by Cheeky Monkey Wet Dream.  Next was 2 coats of Party Whore, which had excellent coverage but the formula was a little thick for me.  I may end up thinning this one just a little.  I topped it with a coat of Seche Vite for faster drying time, and happily wore this manicure for two straight days.

Here's a sun picture - as you can see, there is a tiny neon like quality in this polish, but nope, just a creme.

I actually took this picture the day before, when we were still overcasted.  It's such a smooth buttery polish - very happy with this color, when I didn't originally think I was a coral person.


Cheeky Monkey can be purchased on their website [official website] for $15 a bottle.

Cheeky Monkey Come Hither

Come Hither was an awkward color for me in the bottle.  It looks black, or even espresso brown, but when I put it on my nail wheel, I totally saw red.  Yes, red creme.  Cheeky's website describes it as black plum, so black purple?  Either way, I knew I needed to try it on.

I used Cheeky Monkey Wet Dream for my base and started with 2 coats of Come Hither.  However, I wasn't totally happy with it application with 2 so on my index and middle fingers, I put 3 coats.  I did not use a top coat, since this stuff was pretty lethal without it (shiny wise).

I guess I can see the whole black plum thing now - but this was only in the "sunlight" (which for me is cloudy with a bit of sun right now).  It was easier to see the "plum" with 3 coats, but it was definitely more reddish purple with 2 coats.  In the shade, this color was just super dark - I'd like to wear it during the day.

Cheeky Monkey can be purchased on their website [official website] for $15 a bottle.

Cheeky Monkey Hot Slut

Check out that rain!  I even got some on the bottle cap.  Well despite the flash flood warnings and the tornado watches, I must continue to swatch!  I ended up purchasing the entire Cheeky Monkey line of polish, mostly because I absolutely wanted to try them all.  When the box arrived, I pulled them all out and arranged them on my shelf, and well, like the ditty that she is, Hot Slut caught my eye.

Cheeky's website calls Hot Slut a "soft red with blue".  I personally didn't see the blue, but this was a HOT red for me.  In fact, I liked it so much that I wore it for THREE days, which is almost a record for me - well, it is a record for a red for me.  (Purple still holds my "one week" manicure record.)  The application on this color was awesome - so much pigment in just one coat.  I used Cheeky Monkey Wet Dream for my base, and just to be consistant, I used 2 coats of Hot Slut, and a top coat of Seche Vite.

No sun, but I snapped a "rain" picture

Maybe I do see the blue?  Either way, I love this color.  It's my new favorite red.  I also grabbed a picture under my porch.

This red is ALMOST a jelly when you add the top coat, but it's really a creme.  It was almost cherry tomato red in my eyes, but either way, it was freaking awesome.

Cheeky Monkey can be purchased on their website [official website] for $15 a bottle.