One more posting with long nails - I was at a Sally's one day when I spotted this ORLY on sale for $2.99. I figured for three bucks, it was worth the gamble. I decided to use my existing manicure of Stunning Stilettos for my index and middle fingers and attempted to wear this over bare nails on my ring and pinkie fingers. This is a gold and pink microglitter in a clear base. The yellow base that you see is an illusion. I can't explain it. I promise.
Okay, what? I'm lost. Can you see it?
I mean, really?
Indoors with the flash, you can see it a bit!
It's hard to see, but it's there. Much a waste of my money. This is 2 coats of Fifty-Four over all nails and you can barely tell I have anything on. This is from the Classic Collection but seriously?
What really gets me is that the product pictures I've seen for this polish has a PINK/PURPLE microglitter bottle with a clear base. What happened to my bottle?! I don't know what's going on but it looks like I got a bad bottle. No wonder it was only $3.
You can purchase Orly for $7.50 through their website, or it's available online at Head2ToeBeauty for $10 and in Sally's Beauty Supply stores for $8.99. Additionally, you can Like them on Facebook or follow them on Twitter.
Disclosure: The product[s] in this post was [were] provided to me by the company for consideration. For more information, please read this post.
Oops! This was pre-chop of the nails (oh I miss you, long nails). Stunning Stilettos is also from the Fall Fashionista Fall 2011 collection from FingerPaints and it's a slate grey creme with a hint of blue tones. I used a base of Duri Rejuvacote, 2 coats of polish and a top of CND Air Dry. The formula was nice and smooth.
Once again, I had some issues with opacity on my ring finger. I've since buffed my nails down a bit so I wonder if that will help any. I always start my manicures by cleaning my nails with Zoya Remove+ to get rid of any oils or mess on my nails. But the color is pretty awesome regardless - a nice slate grey.
Here you can see the blue undertones in the polish - oh shade. Very smooth finish as you can see.
Finally indoors with the flash and you can see my opacity problems in the ring finger but otherwise it's a pretty awesome opaque grey! I definitely can see myself using this many times in the future since I really do like this color. You can always add some Konad to it in a black or even a shatter! Oh the possibilities!
FingerPaints [Website] [Facebook] [Twitter] [Blog] can be found in Sally's Beauty Supplies stores and online for $4.99 USD each.
Disclosure: The product[s] in this post was [were] provided to me by the company for consideration. For more information, please read this post.
So ORLY (which I still don't know how to pronounce. Is it O-really like the Internet meme or is it Or-Lee like I've heard some people say) came out with a new line of FX polishes - Mineral FX. I saw these at Cosmoprof North America but forgot to photograph them (go figure). I tried setting up an appointment to talk to the company, but they were booked and I missed out on finding out what was what. I originally LOVED Rock Solid, and kept thinking how it would be mine - a charcoal grey with holographic glitter? Yes please.
I used a base coat of Seche Natural, 2 coats of polish and a top of Seche Vite. This polish does dry gritty, so you may want to add 2 coats of top coat.
Unfortunately for me, this polish does NOT look as amazing on the nail as it does in the bottle. The glitter really gets lost in the polish which is not what I was hoping for.
In the shade, the glitter pretty much gets lost completely. I kept thinking my nails looked like concrete.
Finally indoors with the flash - you can see loads of glitter in the bottle but not as much on my nails.
I was super disappointed by this polish - so much that I seriously considered taking it back to the store and I've never done that before. This line is more expensive than normal ORLY colors and I just wasn't happy with it. I ended up putting it back on my shelf - maybe one day I can find some love for it.
You can purchase Orly for $7.50 through their website, or it's available online at Head2ToeBeauty for $10 and in Sally's Beauty Supply stores for $8.99. Additionally, you can Like them on Facebook or follow them on Twitter.
The final color in the OPI Brights "Pirates" collection is Stranger Tides, a green based grey creme. This is another one that in promo pictures, I kept thinking "Meh" but once again...
I used a base coat of OPI Natural Nail, 2 coats of polish and a top coat of OPI Top Coat. The formula was smooth.
This color is only slightly darker than Skull & Glossbones and with a green tint to it. It's almost like a nude but not? Very unique in my group of polishes.
Look at those dry cuticles. :| I really do love this color in the shade as well.
Finally indoors with the flash shows off that green well. I live off the Gulf of Mexico and sometimes the water looks murky ... not really THIS murky, but with the seaweed... I ended up using this color as a base coat for another red OPI color for my pedicure and it REALLY made the red pop! (I might blog about it later, but I'm still kinda feetphobic.)
OPI is available at Professional Salons, including Beauty Brands, Beauty First, Chatters, Dillard’s, JCPenney, Pure Beauty, Regis, Trade Secret, and Ulta, for $8.50 ($10.95 CAN) suggested retail for each Nail Lacquer. Please visit their website for details [official website].
Disclosure: The product[s] in this post was [were] provided to me by the company for consideration. For more information, please read this post.
I decided to take yesterday's manicure up a notch by adding a coat of shatter/texture/crackle. Nicole by OPI's Red Texture is similar to OPI's Red Shatter except without the jelly finish. This is one coat of Red Texture with a top coat of OPI Top Coat.
I attempted a diagonal pattern on my index finger, but it didn't work too well. I'm still getting the hang of it. You can also see that my cuticles need some help, especially my middle finger which tends to go flat instead of curved (like my ring finger). Oh nail issues!
In the shade, you can't see much of a difference - I kind of like the nude look of the base color (it's really grey).
Finally indoors with the flash - I really like the vibrancy of this color but if you already have OPI Red Shatter, not sure you need both. I do like that this didn't gunk up in the bottle like some crackles/shatters do.
Nicole by OPI is available beginning at ULTA, Meijer, Harmon, HEB, Sears, Wal-Mart and more for around $8 a bottle. For more information, visit their website, follow Nicole by OPI on Twitter or become a Facebook fan.
Disclosure: The product[s] in this post was [were] provided to me by the company for consideration. For more information, please read this post.
Note to self: Don't try to take pictures late in the day. Sigh. So this color doesn't look as great in the sun as it should. It's a light grey, no yellow to it. Skull & Glossbones from the OPI Brights "Pirates" collection is one that I thought wasn't going to really wear well on me (or just be too dull) but I was pleasantly surprised. I used a base coat of OPI Natural Nail, 2 coats of polish and a top of OPI Top Coat (which I added two mini bottles of Rapi-Dry too before realizing they were different top coats. Oops.).
Do you like the huge chunk I somehow took out of my bottle? I'm not sure exactly when this broke, but the OPI bottles are made of thick glass so it didn't affect the polish at all. You can see how red my fingers look (again, the sun) but that this is a nice putty grey.
Here in the shade, the color is much truer to life. It's a putty grey with no yellow, delightfully creamy - not watery like my Steady As She Rose.
Indoors with the flash looks a lot like the shade - although you can seem some streaky un-evenness on my index finger. My index finger is giving me all kinds of issues right now - I have a cut cuticle on the side, and my cuticles need to be cleaned up - polish is pooling around them. I'll get it done, promise!
Overall - a good office nude, and the name is pretty darn cute. I want to see if I have some dupes since it is a creme but I'm still having to hold back on comparisons.
OPI is available at Professional Salons, including Beauty Brands, Beauty First, Chatters, Dillard’s, JCPenney, Pure Beauty, Regis, Trade Secret, and Ulta, for $8.50 ($10.95 CAN) suggested retail for each Nail Lacquer. Please visit their website for details [official website].
Disclosure: The product[s] in this post was [were] provided to me by the company for consideration. For more information, please read this post.
Jesse's Girl Cosmetics has partnered with JulieG from YouTube to create the JulieG Collection! Today I have Stiletto, a purplish grey (promise!) with some light silver shimmer in it. It's kind of like a putty grey but you'll see in a bit that there is some dusty purple in it.
I used a base coat of Zoya Get Even, 2 coats of Stiletto and a top of nubar Diamont. The formula was nice and smooth, but I did feel like the brush was a little on the thin side for me... sometimes I feel a little spoiled by the OPI Pro-Wide brush because I have a lot of OPI's here (to swatch!).
Oh yes, I'm back to super nubbins. :[ I broke 3 nails over the course of a day, including my middle finger way down under the free edge (ow). Super nubbins make me look like I have baby hands! So as you can see, there is a slight shimmer but it's a lovely grey at the same time. I haven't watched all of Julie's videos to know why she called this Stiletto, but it's a very interesting color!
In the shade, the shimmer is shown in the bottle but lost on the nail (go figure).
Indoors with the flash, you start to see the shimmer a bit again but overall just the lovely dusty color of the polish.
Now when I was appling Stiletto, I immediately thought it looked like deborah lippmann's Waking Up In Vegas so I pulled out my handy dandy nail sticks that I've been working on (see this post from More Nail Polish to see what I'm talking about) to check it out.
Close, but not quite! Waking Up In Vegas (stick 185 on the left) is more light grey than Stiletto (stick 177 on the right) where you can start to see that purple grey that I originally mentioned at the top of this post. This is why nail sticks are SO handy for me. I don't have to paint my nails with each color anymore, just look at my spreadsheet, pull the sticks, and check it out! #winning
The JulieG Collection is a limited edition collection available at Rite Aid stores starting Labor Day weekend and will be available online at Jesse's Girl Cosmetic's website (not available yet). They retail for $3.99 each ($1 more than the original core line).
You can visit Jesse's Girl on their website, Like them on Facebook and Follow them on Twitter.
Disclosure: The product[s] in this post was [were] provided to me by the company for consideration. For more information, please read this post.
When Zoya's fall Smoke and Mirrors collection arrived at my house, I decided that instead of swatching my favorites first, I'd attempt to go in order. Then I realized how many other polishes I had first, haha. Well, not FIRST, but I still have to show you Zoya Touch! Jana is from the "Smoke" collection and is a "smoky mauve quartz creme." I used a base coat of Zoya Get Even, one coat of polish (instead of 2) and a top coat of Zoya Armor.
In the sun you can see it's kind of a mushroom purple taupe - but without any of the shimmer in it. Definitely a good fall color (even though I'm totally not ready for fall!)
Random, I know, but I love how this polish looks smokey in the bottle. It's a new texture! Overall I'm iffy on this color. I like it for fall, but it's not a good staple for me. I'm still new to the whole "other side" of nail polish - dark colors that aren't red (or purple!). It's pretty but I don't know that I'd buy it alone.
Zoya can be purchased on their website for $8/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.
Continuing with the Texas collection, this is It's Totally Fort Worth It. For the record, I kind of avoid the Dallas-Fort Worth area, sorry friends. It's just way too far north for me. Now, this color is weird. It LOOKS like a grey creme but it's not.
Welcome to a grey shimmer. I used a base of OPI Natural Nail, 3 coats of polish and a top of OPI Top Coat. I decided to shift my hand so you can see that this is anything BUT a creme.
Can you see the sheer tonight?
In the shade, it's a bit more opaque but barely. It also seems really more of a gloss.
Finally indoors with the flash (and one nick later), you can see that this color lacks some serious punch. I was really kind of sad because there's nothing special about this for me. No duochrome, no sparkles... boo. Then again, that's kind of how I feel about Fort Worth :P
OPI is available at Professional Salons, including Beauty Brands, Beauty First, Chatters, Dillard’s, JCPenney, Pure Beauty, Regis, Trade Secret, and Ulta, for $8.50 ($10.95 CAN) suggested retail for each Nail Lacquer. Please visit their website for details [official website].
Disclosure: The product[s] in this post was [were] provided to me by the company for consideration. For more information, please read this post.
Please enjoy the following press release from Deborah Lippmann!
SHOW WORTHY
Deborah Lippmann’s new shade, STORMY WEATHER, is a collaboration with fashion designer Narciso Rodriguez.
Usually Narciso requests a nude nail to complement his minimalist designs, but for fall 2011 around he wanted something bolder—a color with strength and edge to offset both his collection and the softness of the hair and makeup. For the perfect custom finish, I mixed (and mixed) a new shade by hand in just 24 hours. The final product: an edgy granite that emanated power and intensity. The models who walked the show (and who rarely, if ever, comment on the nail color) gushed over the shade. And so STORMY WEATHER was born an edgy granite (crème) for a strong fall statement.
XOXO,
Deborah
Moving on to another collection that is already heading out Sally's Beauty Supply doors (but is still on etailers lists) is the Crackle Glaze by China Glaze. This is the first set of crackles - not the metallics (but I have those too). I've already reviewed some, but now I'm finishing them up. First today is Cracked Concrete, a slate grey.
I painted my nails first with CND Blackjack and OPI Alpine Snow. I added a top coat of Seche Vite and let it dry BEFORE adding Cracked Concrete. Some people find it easier to use a crackle/shatter coat on wet (or slightly wet) polish, but I find it better over dry.
As you can see, it crackled nicely! I used a thin coat that covered the entire nail in 3 swipes and this is what I came out with.
It's a lot like China Glaze Recycle for its base color. No yellow tones (yay!) and no red tones (yay again!) but just a nice grey.
Indoors with the flash - not much else to say here. :] If you're into grey cremes, I'd say get it!
Disclosure: The product[s] in this post was [were] provided to me by the company for consideration. For more information, please read this post.
I follow a few Tumblr "blogs" (I don't really know what you'd call them, maybe it's just "tumblr"?) and I've been noticing a lot of China Glaze Let's Do It In 3-D postings from their Kaleidoscope collection. This is a rainbow holo (not linear) in a charcoal grey base that I originally hated. Seriously, I nearly gave it away last year because I was so underwhelmed by this polish. Today I decided to try again.
I used a base coat of Nfu-Oh Aqua Base which takes a bit longer to dry than normal base coats because of its thickness, but provides a nice smooth base for the nail polish. Next I added three thin coats of Let's Do It In 3-D. And then I fell in love.
Not going to lie - I took about 50 pictures. However, I'm going to spare you and only show the best one that showed you that holo goodness we all love. Yay!
However in the shade, well you know the story.
Boo shade.
Indoors with the flash provided a bit more holographic pictures, but not by much. This is definitely a "wear in the sun and blind everyone" type of polish - which is fine by me.
While this color is discontinued, you can find it sometimes on eBay (ouch on prices) or in small/local beauty supply stores or salons.
Check out this line up. From left to right we have deborah lippmann Wicked Game, OPI Not Like The Movies, Sephora by OPI Mash Up, wet n wild Gray's Anatomy, and Zoya Adina. This was a reader suggested skittle to see how they all lined up with each other. Here's a couple more bottle shots for fun.
I did three coats of each polish - no base, no top coat.
Thumb: deborah lippmann Wicked Game
Pointer Finger: OPI Not Like The Movies
Middle Finger: Sephora by OPI Mash Up
Ring Finger: wet n wild Gray's Anatomy
Pinkie Finger: Zoya Adina
Yay for cloudy pictures... BOO. I do hate that I didn't have sun this day.
This is a shade picture - look how dark Adina looks!
And one indoors with the flash.
Overall?
Wicked Game and Gray's Anatomy are VERY similar.
Not Like The Movies had a silver glitter which made the polish look more foggy than the rest.
Mash Up has a green flash instead of purple.
Adina is a darker orchid purple with a yellow olive green flash.
Disclosure: The product[s] in this post was [were] provided to me by the company for consideration. For more information, please read this post.
