Showing posts with label NCLA. Show all posts

NCLA Iridescent Dreams


I was pretty happy with NCLA started coming out with holographic polishes. You know how much I love my holos! I've been trying to work on my stash by posting more polishes that I've purchased, and this was one of them! Today I have Iridescent Dreams, a plum holographic. I used a base coat of Cult Nails Get It On, 2 coats of polish and finished with Digital Nails Ain't Nobody Got Time For That. The formula was a little thin, but 2 coats did leave me opaque.


I took this first photo in my light box. You can see that the holographic properties are more scattered, meaning you get a slight cascade of rainbow versus linear where you'd see a straight line of holo. That's fine - I like all holos, but I was a little surprised by it at first.


You can really see the scatter in the sunlight. Again, not a bad thing, but not my favorite kind of holo. They all have their place!


Finally one photo in the shade, because like just about every holo ever, there is a duller side and that's when you have no sun. Boo hiss. It's still a pretty light purple/plum shade though!


NCLA [Website] [Facebook] [Twitter] [Tumblr] [Pinterest] [Instagram] is available on the website for $16.00 to $18.00 a bottle and in a variety of stores. The HOLOS line sells for $18.00.

NCLA An L.A. Fairtytale


This Spring, NCLA launched a new 4 piece collection of matte glitters called An L.A. Fairytale.

NCLA New Top Coats

NCLA released two new holographic top coats last month that are sure to transform any manicure.

Party Favorite

Shimmer Me Pretty


These mesmerizing and playful top coats will instantly give your manicure a glamorously distinguished finish. Both are available at ncla.com for $18.

NCLA JetSetter

Today I received the cutest press package for the new NCLA JetSetter collection - the boxes are totally collectible! Please enjoy the following press release - all images courtesy of NCLA.


NCLA Sweet Revenge

This summer, NCLA launched their Sweet Revenge collection - 3 sweet and spicy hues inspired by a day at the carnival. Did you know that NCLA is not only big 5 free but also cruelty free? You can purchase these online at NCLA or at high-end stores like Kitson and Fred Segal for $16 each. (Images courtesy of NCLA)

Mostly Sunny With a Chance of Sprinkles
Sunny skies with one ominous cloud, this light blue lacquer has a dark side: navy glitter.

Not So Sweet
Feeling not so sweet? Fool your frenemies when you wear this cotton candy pink shade.

Sugar Fix
Coming down from a sugar high never felt better! This light grey lacquer with fuchsia and electric blue glitter is sweet to the max. 

CPNALV 2013: NCLA Fall 2013

My first stop at Cosmoprof North America Las Vegas 2013 was purely by accident. I was going to meet with NCLA later that day but their booth was conveniently located next to my first appointment so I decided to stop in and say hi! First off, it's NCLA, all caps. That part made me happy to know I've been (sometimes) writing it properly.

First off, how cute is this retail display for NCLA? While they are looking to tweak the design a little, I was pretty obsessed with it - even asking what the cost was because I thought "How cool would this look in my home?"
Seriously, I think I need to just buy one and display. The only problem is that they sit 3 deep and I'd rather all my pretty polishes showed through so maybe I need to just keep expanding on this idea.

This fall, NCLA is coming out with a new 4 piece collection titled North of Sunset, which is another tribute to living in LA.
  • Dead End Gorgeous - a vampy navy with purple and blue microglitter
  • Lauren Canyon Lolita - I have no idea what color this is because while it looks light purple in that bottle, my paper swatch was more mauve. You'll just have to wait for the official press release on this one!
  • My Dad Invented That! - mind you, I was disappointed when I was told that Elin's dad didn't invent this polish. But it's a beautiful multiglitter in a gunmetal grey base.
  • My Spa Comes To Me - a khaki creme.

More information including shipping should be available at the end of August.

NCLA has also been known for their nail wraps. They have many successful lines and partnerships, including one that was awesome but I wasn't allowed to photograph (or talk about).

One that I can talk about is the Clueless inspired wraps!
The first plays homage to Cher's closet and the matchmaking tool. The second is based loosely off Cher and Dee's outfit. The third is a cute play on the scene where Cher gets her driver's license. Finally, the fourth wrap you see is a first for NCLA - it's the first all words based wrap! There are many cute sayings like "As If" and "Whatever". These will be available in September.

On the bottom rack, we have the new Transparent Nail Wraps, also launching in September. You can wear them alone or over a colored polish. They have quirky designs like naught and nice, hair, and faces.

Finally, when I get home, I'm going to an official wear test for their new Flawless top coat. I have it at home - I just need to test out the NCLA system - Gloss It, color and Flawless. NCLA says they get an easy 7 day wear with no chips, dents, tip wear. So I will give it the old college try.

NCLA [Website] [Facebook] [Twitter] [Tumblr] [Pinterest] [Instagram] is available on the website for $16.00 a bottle and in a variety of stores.

Live from Cosmoprof North America 2013!

So after missing my flight, being rerouted 5 hours out of my way, and showing up 7 hours late, having my laptop wireless card go southside, my iPad not charge and a migraine the size of Texas, I am in Las Vegas for the Cosmoprof North America show!

Yesterday I met with a large diverse group of brands - NCLA (yes, it's in all caps!), China Glaze (Gelaze anyone?!), OPI (item coming this fall that I am jumping up and DOWN for!), Barielle (great story line behind each collection), Seche (much more pigment and boldness!), ORLY (flakie IN matte top coat!), Jessica (glow in the dark snowman ornaments anyone?), nubar (where have they been), and much more.

Tonight I have more meetings set with brands like essie, and CND plus something extra special that I hope I can talk about. Unlike last year, more items are embargoed this year... some I can't talk about until December! Some I couldn't photograph. But despite that, just know that this is the place to learn about new nail trends ... when I can talk about them!

Be prepared, tell your friends. 
Cosmoprof posts are coming!

Happy polishing!

NCLA United States of Glitter


Happy 4th of July! I'm spending this day working on PolishGalore because I'm packing my husband and son up to fly to Maine for three weeks.  PAAAARTY!  Meanwhile, I will be heading to Vegas next weekend for Cosmoprof North America and I'll get to see the lovely girls of NCLA again and I will finally figure out again HOW to spell their name when you write it out. I will then fix all my posts. (I'm not OCD, just precise.)

So for today's holiday, I thought I'd do it up with United States of Glitter, a red, silver and blue hexagonal glitter in a clear base. The glitter is reflective on its self like taco glitter but it doesn't curve up at all. I layered one coat of United States of Glitter over 1 coat of Cult Nails Tempest. My base coat was Cult Nails Get It On and I topped it with Cult Nails Wicked Fast.

The glitter behaved really well. I didn't dab it on, instead I brushed the nail two or three times lightly.

Love! I really debated on a base color but ended up going with white. I almost thought about a holographic top coat underneath but I think that would have been a little much. I am really appreciatively that the glitter laid flat and you didn't have to worry about it curling up or catching on your hair.

In the shade, the glitter still catches any light it can find and just dances around.

Love. I'm really glad I bought this when it went on sale. It was shipped out quickly and was here in plenty of time for Independence Day.

Have fun and be safe!

NCLA [Website] [Facebook] [Twitter] [Tumblr] [Pinterest] [Instagram] is available on the website for $16.00 a bottle and in a variety of stores.

NCLA As If!


So NCLA came out with their "Life's a Beach" pastel spring collection and I immediately grabbed the purple As If! to wear.  Yes, that is purple up there. The absence of color makes it hard to tell but wait until it's on my nails.  I used a base of Cult Nails Get It On, 2 coats of polish and a top coat of Cult Nails Wicked Fast.  Formula was super creamy, opaque, and perfect.

Look how awesome this is. I know that several companies did a pastel purple this spring but I love this one.

In the shade, this color looks a little more blue that purple but it's purple, I promise.

I'm especially partial to this indoor shot - I love how soft and delicate this color is.

Finally in some indirect light. Beautiful and perfect.

NCLA [Website] [Facebook] [Twitter] [Tumblr] [Pinterest] [Instagram] is available on the website for $16.00 a bottle and in a variety of stores.

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

NCLA and Glamour Mag

Got this awesome release in my email - super happy for NCLA!  Their wraps have been making the rounds in Hollywood, and here's just another example!  Do you get/read Glamour magazine?




Designers’ Resort 2013 Prints Featured on Limited Edition NCLA Nail Wraps
To be Sold Exclusively at Barneys Co-op and shopncla.com

NEW YORK, NY – Glamour has unveiled its latest designer collaboration for Fashion Gives Back—a project that gives designers the chance to create special bags, shoes, or tees to support causes they care about every year. This year’s charitable product is the new must-have accessory—eye catching nails: Glamour paired four designers—all known for their distinctive patterns—with nail gurus NCLA to create runway-inspired nail wraps. Signature prints featured in the Resort 2013 collections of 10 Crosby Derek Lam, Bibhu Mohapatra, L’Wren Scott and Peter Som, are transformed into limited-edition nail decals exclusively for Glamour. The nail art and original looksthat served as the inspiration from the designers’ collections are featured Glamour’s January issue, which hits newsstands nationwide on December 11.

All four versions of the limited-edition nail wrap kits will be sold exclusively at select Barneys Co-op stores and shopncla.com starting December 4. Easy to apply at home, each $16 kit contains enough wraps for three to four manicures. Five dollars of every kit sold goes to Girls Who Code, a nonprofit that helps young women pursue careers in technology and engineering.

About Glamour
Glamour magazine and glamour.com reach more than 17 million readers each month. Glamour was the first women’s magazine on the iPad and has launched popular special editions, apps and books—including two New York Times best-sellers—and received a record number of National Magazine Awards, including Magazine of the Year, honoring print and digitalexcellence.

About NCLA
Los Angeles based NCLA launched in 2011 with a collection ofbright bold easy-to-apply runway and street style inspired nail wraps. A line of vibrant long-lasting 5-free cruelty-free made in LA nail lacquers soon followed. NCLA has been releasing new collections of eye-popping solid, metallic, and glitter shades and fashion forward nail wraps each season since.  Nail Wraps + Nail Lacquer retail for $16.00 USD and are available worldwide in over 200 fine retailers including: Harvey Nichols, Kitson, Nordstrom, and ShopNCLA.com. They wish they all could be California girls. Now they can be with NCLA.

About Girls Who Code
Launched in Spring 2012, Girls Who Code is working to educate, inspire, and equip high school girls with the skills and resources to pursue careers in engineering and technology and become more engaged and empowered citizens. Together with leading educators, engineers, and entrepreneurs, Girls Who Code has developed a new model for computer science education, pairing intensive instruction in robotics, web design, and mobile development with high-touch mentorship led by the industry's top female developers and entrepreneurs. In its inaugural program, Girls Who Code empowered young women from New York City and will launch programs in cities across the country in 2013.



NCLA Rock Solid

NCLA is one of those brands that while I love it to death, these caps are going to be the death of me.  It's a false square cap that is supposed to be able to be removed to show a smaller round cap, but sometimes I can't get the square cap off and then my bottles don't line up perfectly, and THEN I RAGE. So if anyone knows how to get the fake square caps off without breaking anything, please do let me know in the comments.

Today I'm showcasing the finale of the Going Out in LA 2012 collection with Rock Solid. This is a fancy little grey that has a gritty glitter in it.  Talk about some extra texture! I used a base of Poshe, 2 coats of polish and a top of Cult Nails Wicked Fast.

I'm still hunting for my perfect grey, and this kind of comes close! The gritty glitter is definitely unique to any of my other greys, but if you don't want the sandpaper feeling, I suggest you add more thin coats of top coat.

In the shade, not much different - the glitter shows a bit more in the bottle, but I'm thinking of changing how I take pictures and show more nail than anything else. I'm working on revamping my self, you could say.

And finally in indirect light. The grittiness didn't bother me as much as I thought it would, but I did catch it lightly on things. The formula was nice and smooth (yes, smooth!) with no patchiness and quite opaque. I think this would be better suited to my nubbins that I have now than on longer nails.  Cleanup was normal - just a bit more scrubbing to get off the grit.

NCLA [Website] [Facebook] [Twitter] [Tumblr] is available on the website for $16.00 a bottle and in a variety of stores.

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

NCLA Call Me For The After Party

Polish people, unite!  From the Fall "Going Out in LA" 2012 collection by NCLA, today I have the murky blue shimmer Call Me For The After Party.  It's slightly metallic and slightly black/blue.  It's one of those colors that I don't mind on shorties but not a huge fan if I have longer nails.  Formula was consistent, and love that I did not have staining.  I used a base of Cult Nails Get It On, 2 coats of polish and a top of China Glaze Fast Forward because oddly I have a bottle at my desk so I grabbed it.  No issues with the polish wrinkling even though I had different base/top coats, which makes me pleased.

Here in the sun, you can see how it's kinda sapphire blue but not totally - not very black here and the metallic is more shimmer?

But in the shade, I feel that the color has more black in it and maybe looks a bit metallic - but not futuristic metallic... more like 80s metallic.

I also grabbed a shot in some indirect light to try and get a better look on the nails but I think I just got a better look of the bottle.  I can't always get the outer cap off NCLA bottles so they don't always line right back up when closed.  I will figure it out one day - my OCD requires it.

Overall this is not a bad polish, just not my style.  NCLA continues to deliver on good polishes with good opacity, no staining, and unique - I just don't love dark blue on myself.

NCLA [Website] [Facebook] [Twitter] [Tumblr] is available on the website for $16.00 a bottle and in a variety of stores.

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

NCLA Dirty Martini

It may be December but it's still hot here in South Texas so today I have Dirty Martini by NCLA.  This olive yellow-green creme is from the Fall 2012 "Going Out in LA" collection.

I used a base of Poshe, 2 coats of polish and a top of Cult Nails Wicked Fast.  This polish was very well pigmented and formulated.

Look how nice this is!  Now, on my middle finger you can see every single ridge I have.  To keep your ridges from being the center of attention, you can use a ridge filling base coat.  It's like a regular base coat but fills in the grooves of your nails so you have a smooth surface to paint on.  I like to buff my nails with a 4-way buffer that I get at Sally's Beauty Supply.  It's kind of cute to see my nubbin fingers - my nails are a lot longer now but I've also been religiously wearing at least a base coat on my nails, daily.

This picture is in the shade and while I didn't think it would be a color that I'd like, I LOVE it.  I don't know what it is about this color but it's not too pea-soup or baby projectile or any of the other images that I originally thought when I thought "olive yellow/green."

Especially in indirect light - I'm obsessed.  I think this color works well in other seasons as well - not just fall!

And finally, indoors with the flash - more yellow shows up here than in the other pictures.

While NCLA is definitely a higher end brand, I feel that it's totally worth the price tag for the formula and the range of colors.

NCLA [Website] [Facebook] [Twitter] [Tumblr] is available on the website for $16.00 a bottle and in a variety of stores.

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

NCLA Fall & Holiday 2012

Photo courtesy of NCLA Facebook Page


While wandering Cosmoprof North America on Day 1, I came across the booth for NCLA (hooray!), and I was hoping to finally get to meet the creator in person after talking to her via Twitter & Instagram for months.  I was shocked that she was as young as she is and so successful (and beautiful!) and frankly, some of her new polishes are to die for.  I was able to get a sneak peak of what she has coming out this fall and holiday 2012.


For fall, NCLA is coming out with the "Going Out in LA" collection - 4 colors that are all about the nightlife in the city.  Granted, my only experiences in LA have been at the airport, but I promise you, that will change one day.  I have too much love (and friends!) that are in that area, and way too much that I want to see before I go old and grey in this world.  (Haha, like I'll allow myself to go grey.  That's what hair dye is for!)


From left to right we have the stunning Call Me for the After Party, a metallic blue; Rock Solid, a charcoal polish with silver glitter; Without Me There is No VIP!, a burgundy metallic with slight rainbow holo glitter and Dirty Martini, an olive green/yellow.  Unfortunately, I do not have the release date for these polishes just yet but will keep you updated.


NCLA also has many different nail wraps to choose from (which yes, I suck at applying, but I watched the NCLA girls put on tons of wraps on men and women alike without a bubbling edge or ragged tear, so it's just me) and this year they will be coming out with two limited edition "lace themed" wraps.
On the left is I Am Your Muse, a red with black lace print and Roomservice: Stilettos & Champagne, a silver with black netting lace.


Finally we have the 2 holiday sets coming out this winter.  These gift boxes will contain 2 bottles of pre-existing colors (as shown on the left and right) and a limited edition NEW color (in the middle).


The Glitz contains the new limited edition High Above The City Lights, which contains shards of rose gold glitter.


Meanwhile The Ritz includes the new limited edition Let's Pop Bottles, Pink Champagne! a metallic rose.  Pricing on these holiday gift sets was not available, nor was their release date.  At press time, the two limited edition polishes will ONLY be available as part of the holiday gift sets, and will not be sold on their own.


There will also be 3 more nail wraps for Fall/Winter 2012 but I did not have permission to share those at press time.  They do not appear to be limited edition.