Illamasqua Information

I still haven't seen a bottle of Illamasqua in person, but I'm hoping that will change soon.  I went to my local (and by local, I mean 176 miles north of me) Sephora on Monday but nada.  Official PR below:

Since its launch in the UK last November, Illamasqua has caught fire with beauty aficionados thanks to its unique night-time make-up concept and extraordinary color range – and has now become the hottest, most buzzed-about brand in the industry. Thousands of professional make-up artists, club kids, beauty junkies, industry insiders and even cutting-edge celebrities like Sienna Miller, Lily Allen, Adele, Beth Ditto and Karen O. are clamoring for the newest, best and latest colors and textures from Illamasqua.

In fact, it’s this global demand for Illamasqua that prompted the brand to finally bring its top 200, best-selling products to the United States through Sephora, the ultimate beauty authority. Its much-anticipated debut will be at Sephora’s newest location, 5 Times Square, on July 31^st, as well as on Sephora.com. 26 additional Sephora stores throughout the country will carry Illamasqua in October of this year.

News of the Illamasqua launch leaked and spread quickly among fans, including beauty bloggers who were among the first to post about the launch with rabid anticipation, sharing the news of this one-of-a-kind, make-up line with their readers. This loyal, cult-like following is not just because of the professional quality and range of products to choose from, but because of the unique point of difference as a night-time make-up brand that encourages self-expression and the unleashing of the alter ego.

Created with the eye of world renowned make-up artist Alex Box, and developed by a team of leading chemists and manufacturers of stage and screen make-up, Illamasqua offers everyone – from London club kids, visionary make-up artists and global fashion icons, to the passionate everyday beauty consumer – the tools to create the most striking, expressive looks possible.

A huge range of Illamasqua’s best-selling colors will be available in the U.S., including 40 different eye shadow shades, 22 high-performance nail varnishes, color-intense lipsticks, lipglosses, lashes and much more, creating a kaleidoscopic, pigment rich palette sure to seduce with its heady mix of color, creativity and limitless imagination.

Illamasqua is available in the United States exclusively at select Sephora locations as of October 2009 and on www.sephora.com. For more information, log on to www.Illamasqua.com

Illamasqua (from what I can tell) sells for $14 a bottle and they have 22 shades currently available.  I'll keep looking and get back to you ^_^

China Glaze Poolside Sneak Peek

While Fed-Ex is officially off my Christmas list, they did FINALLY bring me my China Glaze Poolside samples!  I'm attempting to swatch now, but other bloggers weren't kidding when they said "THESE ARE BRIGHT."  My camera has been FREAKING out, and I even tried my light box out (finally).

So here's my little preview - I'm working my way though my reviews ^_^

Pool Party, Flip Flop Fantasy, Sun Worshiper, Yellow Polka Dot Bikini, Kiwi Cool-Ada, Towel Boy Toy.  Poolside launches both domestically and internationally on April 1, 2010


China Glaze [official website] can be found online through several etailers, including my favorite Head2Toe Beauty [official website], Sally's Beauty Supply [official website] as well asTransDesign [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.

Rescue Beauty Lounge Surfer Girl

They aren't even out but the new Surfer Girl colors from Rescue Beauty Lounge are already pre-sold out.  ^_^  I've actually asked about review samples, but didn't receive a reply email.  Official release below:

Doesn't everyone want to be an uber-cool Surf chick? With that perfect salt-styled hair, glowing skin and laid-back attitude. Those sporty-fresh models at the Proenza Schouler Spring 2010 show inspired me to bring vintage surfer-chic to the beaches of Manhattan and beyond. I even learned some surf-speak to name our latest collection:
Diddy Mow, a surf term for a harsh wipeout, is a putty green—the color of sand through sea water, the moment before you eat it!
360° is a move where the surfer and board spin around on the face of a wave. It also is a gorgeous deepwater aqua blue polish.

And nothing sets off a tan (bottle or spray, of course) like Bangin'—a hot red coral like the sun sizzling on the horizon.

And if Spring weather seems far away, fear not. These colors are wonderful accents against late winter’s grays, browns and blacks.

Pre-order now—the web is already buzzing about these new colors. Then get ready to “hang 20” glamorous nails at your next mani/pedi.

A Collection

Not complete yet, but I'm helping a friend with her senior art project on "Collections" so I hauled my collection up to her.  It was also the first time I had counted all the bottles & products I have.  Rough picture until I can get hers (taken with my iPhone)

 Total count: 321 polishes and treatments & 12 bottles of remover.

While not complete, I also was able to fix my spreadsheet.  (I need to add collection names and blog postings)

List of Polish Galore Stock

Cheeky Monkey Hangover

Cheeky Monkey Hangover is described on their website as "mouse's back" and is a light brown/grey concoction with tiny (and I mean TINY) sparkles, and I swear I saw purple and blue sparkles in it.  It gives just a tiny bit of shimmer to it, instead of being a creme.  At first I thought I wasn't going to like this shade at all, but I'm very impressed how neutral it is and how the light plays on it.  I have a sun and shade picture, but what I couldn't capture was my bathroom light and how it almost made the polish look like a very dusty grey purple.  Great for the office!


More tag love!

And my sun and shade pictures.  As you see, I'm back to SUPER nubbins.  My nails started peeling - PEELING and I'm freaking out.  I used 1 coat of Cheeky Monkey Wet Dream for my base and a coat of Seche Vite for my top coat.  This was the recommended 2 coats of color but I wasn't as happy with the formula on this one - the first coat seemed a bit thick and with extra wiping, the second coat went on well, but the polish just seemed thicker than Staggette.

Cheeky Monkey Cosmetics is based out of Canada and you can order right from their website [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.