Friday, November 30, 2012

Color Club- Sugarplum Yum over OPI- You're a Doll!


I have another holiday-themed combo that turned out great! This is Color Club- Sugarplum Yum layered over OPI- You're a Doll!
Sugarplum Yum was released in the exclusive Sally's scented holiday collection last year. It is composed of small green hexes nad larger purple hexes. This polish also smells great! It smelled of berries with a little hint of grape.

Here is a picture indoors without the flash. Sugarplum Yum was so packed with glitter that it only needed one coat! 

With the flash, you can see the distribution of glitter. Application was a breeze.

Here's OPI- You're a Doll! with the flash before I added Sugarplum Yum. You're a Doll! is very similar to "Sheer" Your Toys (featured in my previous post) only it's a pale pink shimmer. It has those very tiny copper flakes distributed throughout it. It is from the same collection, OPI's 2008 Holiday in Toyland collection. The formula of this one was thin, but it was opaque in three coats.

Without the flash. This pale pink is very elegant! It would be a great polish to use for a job interview.

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

American Apparel- Meteor Shower over OPI- "Sheer" Your Toys



I have a beautiful combo today! This is American Apparel- Meteor Shower layered over OPI- "Sheer" Your Toys.


Gold and gray go so well together!



Both of these polishes played together very nicely. Meteor Shower is composed of gold foil shards. It almost reminds me of Christmas decorations or Goldschlager. It was very vibrant and the shards came in a variety of different sizes. American Apparel nail polish retails for $6 and can be purchased in the store or on the American Apparel website. Usually they have a deal where you can purchase three bottles for $15.


I had to take a picture of my left hand to show you how giant the gold flake was on my pinky! Only one coat of Meteor Shower was necessary. Application was fairly easy, but there are some pieces of the shards that are curled, so it's helpful to use a toothpick to press them down into the polish while it's still tacky. I topped this off with a coat of Gelous followed by a coat of Seche Vite so it stayed put!


Here is a picture of it without the flash in indoor light. The gold flakes are very reflective and "Sheer" Your Toys looks much darker here. I imagine that removal of Meteor Shower would be somewhat challenging, but mine peeled off because I used the white glue base coat method. I never want to go back to using foil again.



Here's a picture of "Sheer" Your Toys indoors with the flash before applying Meteor Shower over it.This color is beautiful! It has a very faint shimmer composed of silver shimmer particles with a slight hint of copper shimmer. It was released in OPI's 2008 Holiday in Toyland collection. This polish is sheer, but it builds up. The formula was a little bit thin but it's completely opaque in three coats; which is rather good for a polish with the word sheer in the name. I own nothing else like this shade. I was lucky to come across this polish dusty hunting, but AveYou still has it in stock for $8.50.

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

OPI- Is that Silva?



Recently I wore OPI- Is That Silva? This is a magnetic polish that is part of OPI's Skyfall holiday collection this year. I just love magnetic polishes, and I don't own enough of them. Is That Silva? Is a gunmetal shimmer with scattered holo micro glitter before the magnetizing effect. This photo was taken indoors with the flash and you can really see the holo micro glitter!
Here is what Is That Silva? looks like sitting in my car in the sunlight.


Here it is indoors without the flash. The lighting in my apartment was somewhat dim.

I also took a picture before I used the magnet. This is just one coat of Is That Silva? The formula was great and it was completely opaque in two smooth coats.
This is the magnet that came with it. Compared to other magnetics I've tried, this magnet was much easier to use! It was clear and had a place to put  your finger. It was nice being able to see through it because I was able to get my nail as close to the magnet as possible and make sure that it wasn't touching the magnet and getting smudged at the same time. The magnet has a diagonal line pattern.

Over the Thanksgiving weekend, I met up with some fellow bloggers that are also in a nail polish group I'm in on facebook. We had to take a picture of all of our nails together :) It was great meeting everyone! Is That Silva? also looks amazing in that lighting. We did a lot of shopping!

I've seemed to acquire a massive amount of polish and more is on the way because I took advantage of Black Friday and Cyber Monday Sales!
Del Sol: Trick or Treat, Peek a Boo, Starry Night and OPI- What's with the Cattitude?

These were polishes gifted to me and received through secret swaps! First is a pink glitter franken made for be by a friend, Essie- Miss Fancy Pants and Mint Candy Apple, China Glaze- Under the Boardwalk, and Zoya-Aurora

H&M: Purple Sprinkles and Confetti Time, Happy Hands: Banana Stand and Springs, and Nails Inc- Sweets Way (Now I have all of the polishes in the sprinkles collection!)

Funky Fingers- Venom, Mood Ring, and Pink Pixels

Sephora by OPI: Studs & Stilettos, Come to Pappa-razzi, Slushied, and It's Real 18K Gold Top Coat. I snagged all of these on sale at Sephora with the exception of Come to Pappa-Razzi.

Monday, November 26, 2012

Butter London- Tart with a Heart

Before I showcase the next polish, I wanted to congratulate Kristine O. of winning my portion of the multi-blogger Thanksgiving giveaway. I will be mailing out her prize shortly. I'd also like to thank everyone for participating, and new followers welcome! I definitely plan on doing more of these giveaways in the future so keep on the lookout!
This is Butter London- Tart with a Heart. I purchased this in a duo set with The Black Knight at ULTA last holiday season. It is a clear base filled with gold micoglitter and color shifting opalescent glitter. It is beautiful!

This is one of the more subdued glitters that are work-safe for places with strict dress codes. I also chopped my nails down to nubs and I'm really liking them that way. This polish looks amazing on them! Tart with a Heart was a little on the sheer side and this is three coats. It built up pretty nicely and the application was so smooth. This shade would also be ideal as a layering polish. These pictures were both taken indoors without the flash.

Indoors with the flash, you can see that the predominant color of this shade is a light gold. I definitely recommend this one! Butter London retails for $14 and can be purchased at ULTA, Nordstrom's and on their website.

Saturday, November 24, 2012

Sally Hansen- Pumpkin Spice


This is Sally Hansen- Pumpkin Spice. I thought it would be appropriate for the Thanksgiving season since it reminds me of pumpkin pie. This can also be a Halloween season shade. Pumpkin Spice is a sheer gray jelly filled with tiny pieces of orange glitter. This shade started popping up in stores around fall 2011 and I didn't see many of them floating around.
In the bottle this color looks like it would have opaque coverage, but it's actually super sheer! I am wearing three coats of it and you can still see some streaky spots. The formula was rather thin. If I would have known bare spots would be this noticeable in photos, I would have added a fourth coat.

With the flash, you can see how the gray base builds up.  I really liked the concept and name of this shade, but if I wear it again, I'm layering it over another shade.

Thursday, November 22, 2012

Sephora by OPI- 212-SEPHORA


I wore Sephora by OPI- 212-SEPHORA. The name of this polish is actually the number to call the Sephora in Times Square. I thought that was interesting. This is a brilliant shade! It's a black jelly shimmer filled with flakies and prismatic glitter! I can't classify this polish as one finish alone because there's just so much going on.

In daylight you can see all of the different flakies in this. The formula on this was really good, but a little bit on the streaky side so this needed three coats to be opaque.

The flakies flash from orange to green and the smaller pieces of prismatic glitter flash all kinds of colors. Due to the orange flashes of the flakies, it gives the illusion that this polish is brown, when it fact it's just flakies in the black jelly base. This polish isn't a true black. I would consider it more of a charcoal.

An indoor shot with no flash most accurately captures this shade. It looks almost black in some lightings. This reminds me of a darker, more glittery and flakie-filled version of the newer OPI- My Private Jet.


Here is a picture indoors with the flash. You can see the prismatic glitter! I wanted this polish for such a long time because I was unable to find it at Sephora. I stumbled upon it in a blog sale a few months ago. Now I am seeing this shade at Sephora and it is also on the Sephora website.

I hope that everyone had a great Thanksgiving! 

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Revlon Whimsical


This is Revlon- Whimsical. It is a sheer milky blue base with medium blue and pink hexes as well as smaller particles of glitter. Whimsical started popping up in the drug stores earlier this year. At first it was rather difficult to track down, but over time it has become more commonly found.

Although this shade is sheer, I didn't think it was as sheer as others perceived it to be. I am wearing three coats of it, and I probably could have even added another to make the color more bold. A white or light blue would look neat layered under this as a basecoat, but I really enjoy the way glitter looks when it is suspended in a jelly alone. This shade is a pre-made jelly sandwich in a bottle.
This is a very close dupe to Deborah Lippmann- Glitter in the Air. I was just about to purchase that one until I discovered this. Whimsical is a much less expensive alternative and very close! 


Monday, November 19, 2012

Light Blue Gradient



I have a special mani to show everyone today. This is a gradient mani using only Wet n Wild- Blue Wants to be a Millionaire. I got many compliments on this, and was asked frequently where I got my nails done; but I did these myself and it was fairly easy! Blue Wants to be a Millionaire is a sheer blue jelly with micro prismatic glitter particles. It builds up very nicely and is opaque in three coats. Although it looks like the finish of this would be rough due to the glitter, it was so smooth that it felt like I was wearing a creme. I topped it off with one coat of Gelous followed by one coat of Seche Vite.



I did not use a sponge of any sort with this gradient, just the polish brush. First I painted my entire nail with one coat of Blue Wants to be a Millionaire. I then painted about 2/3 up my nail with a second coat. Lastly, I painted a third coat on the top third (the tips) of my nails. This turned out amazing and this polish works so well for gradients!

The formula on Blue Wants to be a Millionaire is INCREDIBLE! I had this mani on for over three days with no chips whatsoever! I didn't want to remove it, but I have plenty of untrieds to get through. This polish can be found fairly inexpensive at Rite Aid, CVS, and Walgreen's. It usually retails for $1.99, but Wet n Wild usually has good deals and I've seen it for $1. The pink sister polish to this (in the same collection) is Hannah Pinktana. I did a gradient using it last Valentine's Day.

I have been slacking on regularly updating my hauls, so here are some goodies for your viewing pleasure!

Wicked Polish! The names of these sold me. Plus they're very unique! 

F4 Polish- Drunken Zombie and Candy Lacquer- O Christmas Tree

Loreal- Amazon's Flash, Julep- O Canada!, ULTA- Hide and Go Sequins mini (Deborah Lippmann- Across the Universe dupe), Blue Cross Halloween pumpkin, Disney Villains unamed bronze shimmer

All that Glitters- Horror Business and Night Fright and Illamasqua- holiday duo with Glitterati and Viridian (my first Illamasquas!)

HURRY UP AND ENTER THE THANKSGIVING MULTI-BLOGGER GIVEAWAY! LESS THAN TWO DAYS LEFT :)

Sunday, November 18, 2012

Julep Taylor


I have a quick post tonight. This is Julep- Taylor. It is a super bright, extremely shiny cobalt blue creme.  I wore it with my green jacket and I thought the two colors worked really well together.

It's so shiny it's almost reflective! It looks like it could be a jelly. I am wearing one coat of Seche Vite with it. 
I took this picture as sun was coming in my window, and the blue looks more subdued in these images. I assure that it is very bright!
The formula on this was wonderful and it applied in two smooth coats. I really like the brushes in the Julep bottles. The brush conformed to the shape of my nails very well. This formula was also long-lasting.

Saturday, November 17, 2012

Gray and Black Glitter

I have a gray and black glitter combination today. As a base I used NOX Twilight and then I topped it off with All That Glitters- The Gold Rush
The Gold Rush is absolutely amazing! It is composed of medium black hexes, small piceces of silver and black glitter, sparse pieces of black bar glitter and giant prismatic gold hexes. All of the glitter particles are suspended in a sheer black jelly base. The giant prismatic gold hexes were my favorite part about this polish. Look how they reflect rainbows in the sunlight!


Here is another angle of this. The Gold Rush was loaded with glitter and it only needed one coat over the light gray. If I was going to wear this alone, it would probably need about three coats.
All That Glitters nail polish can be purchased from the Etsy Store  for $8 a bottle. There are many awesome shades to choose from.

Here is NOX-Twilight in artificial light without the flash.  I am not certain if NOX Twilight is the name of this line of polish, but NOX Twilight was all that it said on the bottle, so I just assumed that this shade was named Twilight (it's quite festive for the movie release isn't it?) This was a pale sheer gray creme. I am only wearing two coats of it because I topped it off with The Gold Rush. This would probably need three coats to be worn alone because it was a little bit runny.
Here is a picture with the flash. I enjoy the packaging of these bottles. The Cullen seal is pretty neat. Twilight is one of my guilty pleasures! This is the only NOX shade that I own so far.

Don't forget to enter the Thanksgiving Multi-Blogger Giveaway! It will be closing in a few days. Click the image on the right sidebar. Good luck everyone :)