Finger Paints in Shades of Dark

 

Like most dark polish shades, Shades of Dark was extremely hard to photograph! The nuances of the color's purple-y blackness don't show through the camera lens very well. The formula is very shiny and wearable with one coat but not totally opaque. One coat shows more of the polish's reddish-purple undertones but stays a little too streaky for my liking.  With two coats the polish is dark and edgy without being high school goth black.

Revlon Nail Enamel: Flirt

 

Can I just say that I'm in love with this color? Flirt is Barbie pink meets a very pastel Easter lavender. Like the Revlon Colorstay Polish in Pale Cashmere the drying time leaves a little to be desired. I kept smudging my nails just by touching them to see how dry they were. Compared to my OPI and Essie polishes these Revlon formulas take AGES to dry. However, beauty is a pain and if you like a color you just have to stick it out. 

 I think the picture below shows a little better how this polish has a slight pastel lavender tone to it. I would love to do some kind of pastel nail art with it. Maybe a moon manicure with white? Or even a pastel green like Essie Navigate Her?

Also, next time I have any free cash I'm going to order this NARS Sea of Love set or the NARS Beach Lover set both from Sephora. I've never owned a NARS product and this would be a great starter set.  

*Remember to follow me on Bloglovin'!*

Revlon Colorstay: Pale Cashmere

 

Yesterday, I celebrated my birthday and as a treat to myself, I decided I could go buy $20 worth of drugstore makeup. I posted my small haul yesterday on the blog. I painted my nails with Revlon Colorstay's Pale Cashmere last night and I'm loving the pinky-creamy color. 

The application itself was a little rough. I'm so used to the drying time of Essie colors that I kept smudging my nails thinking they'd be dry already. It took forever, I swear. Also, the brush itself is a little wide and stubby. It isn't bad, just different than Revlon's regular polish which is thinner and lengthy. 

I'm too much of a polish addict to test Revlon's claim that this polish can stay on up to 11 days continuously. Maybe next time I'm on vacation I'll see if it really does. Which, for my sake, I hope a vacation comes a long real quick! I'm drowning in homework! 

**Remember to follow me on Twitter, Bloglovin', Pinterest and Instagram!  

A quick swatch of Julep's Sofia

Since I liked Julep Maven's Natasha polish, I decided to do a quick swatch of their varnish Sofia. The polish is a springy green with fine, blue glitter. From looking at the bottle, I wished I would of had it on St. Patrick's Day.

But, I'm sad to be the bearer of bad news. I really disliked this polish. The formula was very thin. My swatch is three coats and you can still see through the polish. For those who don't mind translucent polishes this probably won't bother you. Just make sure to apply a topcoat, after I let the varnish dry the color was a little dull. 

**Remember to follow me on Pinterest, Bloglovin' and Twitter!

Julep Maven Varnish in Natasha

 

I've got two different kinds of pictures taken by my iPhone (DSLR was dead! I hadn't noticed till I went to go use it!) of Julep Maven Varnish in Natasha. The top photo is in indoor light with a little sunlight filtered through a window. The lower photo is out in direct sunlight. 

Natasha is very similar to Essie's Meet Me at Sunset. It is very opaque, even with just one coat of polish and has a fairly good sheen to it. The color didn't chip at all during the three days I was wearing it. Really, the only reason I took it off was because I painted my toe nails with Essie's Ole Caliente and ruined my Natasha manicure in the process! 

My only minor gripe was the formula was a little drippy! When I would take the brush and dip it into the bottle and pull it out polish would drip every where! Even when I tried to regulate the amount of polish that got on the brush and the stick it would still run and drip down from the plastic stem. I accidentally dripped a few dots of orange onto my carpet! Oops!

In non-Julep Natasha news, I have got a major sunburn on my chest. Which, for me, is my number one burn spot other than the part of my hair. I need to be a little more vigilant about applying sunscreen if I don't want to age my skin so much! For some reason the burn is just absolutely itchy and it is driving me insane!

 

 

 

 

Essie and Julep Show down!

L to R- Essie Ole Caliente, Julep Maven Natasha, and Essie Meet Me at Sunset

I decided to swatch my three orange-y polishes. Obviously, Essie Ole Caliente is much more of a reddish pink than the others who are a little more "true" orange. I haven't tried out my Julep Maven Nail Varnishes just yet, so I'm not sure what their wear time is like. The Natasha shade was pretty opaque with one layer and went on smoothly. 

In the picture below, Natasha is a little lighter than Meet Me at Sunset. Natasha is more like the color of an orange traffic cone.They are very, very similar shades, almost dupes, but I'm not sure I would categorize them as dupes for sure. I think that Meet Me at Sunset has a little more depth and shine and Natasha might be redder, but only by the tiniest amount.

 Soon, I'll do a long wear test on Julep's Natasha, then we'll see who the winner is! Since, Ole Caliente is much different than the others, it already wins for being a gorgeous orange red. 

L to R: Ole Caliente, Natasha, Meet Me at Sunset

  

**Follow me on Bloglovin', Twitter and Pinterest!

Essie Pink-A-Boo

 

So, I don't think my camera really captured the shimmer in this polish all that well and truthfully, it seems a little more pink in real life. Not sure why all my photos look so washed out! Essie's Pink-a-Boo is a glittery, sheer baby pink that isn't too sheer. In the photos, I only used two layers, I thought about doing three but my laziness overtook me. I think three would probably look about the same as two.

The micro glitter in the formula catches the light easily. I see mostly pinks, but occasionally catch a cool blue from the glitter. This nail polish is great for those who like baby pink colors. I'm not usually one of those folks, but I could see myself wearing the color again. It is classy without being too "old". The shimmer and the tone of the pink really bring out a young girl vibe. I think my niece will enjoy it.

Essie To Buy Or Not To Buy

 

In contrast to my lost post in which I very much disliked Tour de Finance, I adore To Buy or Not To Buy. The pastel lilac color is perfect for an Easter manicure. If I had a steadier hand I might trying drawing a little yellow baby chick on my ring finger. 

In my swatch above I used three thin layers, although two thicker ones would probably suffice. Also, in real life this manicure is much shinier and maybe a little bit more saturated than my camera let on. 

**Remember to follow me on Pinterest, Bloglovin', and Twitter! 

Essie Tour De Finance

Okay, I have to admit, I'm a huge Essie fan. However, I'm not the biggest fan of Tour de Finance. The pink reminds me of an 80s themed Barbie color (which by its self is just fine, don't get me wrong). The application was smooth and two coats did the job just fine. 

Skip to this afternoon, not even a full 24 hours after the application and my right hand's pointer finger already has a massive chip. Luckily, I usually take a photo of my left hand, which is above, but you can still see small chips on my middle finger. Other Essie Spring 2012 and Resort 2012 polishes seemed to last forever. And, I mean annoyingly forever. I would be rubbing away at full manicures six days after I painted it. 

I should give Tour de Finance some credit. The color is great, the application is smooth and it fits well into a summer polish collection. I can also see my little nieces and cousins wanting the polish applied to all their little toes and fingers. Which, truthfully, is probably what I'll save it for. 

 

Essie Navigate Her - Just in time for St. Paddy's Day!

I just barely got my nails done for St. Paddy's! A little late and with a little less flair than I was going to do but Essie's Navigate Her fits the American-Irish holiday quite nicely. The soft pastel green isn't so obnoxiously green that I would feel weird wearing for the next few days. It is a perfect creamy Spring pastel.  No wonder Essie put it in their Spring 2012 collection.

Normally, I'm pretty hard on pastel colors. They are not my favorite. I tire of "baby" colors, like baby pink or baby blue very easily. But, not this pastel green. I keep thinking up combos to pair this shade with . . . maybe a lovely lilac for some geometric color blocking? 

Well, enough of the holiday crap, when it comes down to it, Essie's Navigate Her fits right in with my nail polish collection. I have no other pastel greens and, of course, like other Essie formulas, this polish goes on streak free and only needs two coats to reach full opacity. Safe to say, I'm a little in love with this color. 

Essie Sure Shot

 

I'm loving Sure Shot by Essie. The pinky fuchsia color harkens back to the decade of my birth (the 80s). If I was rockin' some eighties throw-back looks I would pair this polish, with its subtle blueish/cool-toned  shimmer with this Revlon lip butter for some matchy lips and nails. 

 

The formula itself was classic Essie; Dries fairly fast, settles down to dry without streaks, and takes a few days to chip off. In fact, I'm still wearing the remnants of the shade right now. This shade is from the Resort mini collection I mentioned previously. For sure, this lacquer will be slapped upon my toes multiple times this summer for those sunny beach days.

**Remember to follow me on Pinterest and Twitter!!

Kate Moss for Rimmel Lipstick

I'm in love with the packaging. I want to buy more of her colors just for the tubes alone!

 

My new favorite drugstore red lipstick is Kate Moss' #1 shade for Rimmel. The lipstick formula is smooth and moisturizing without being too shiny and I did not have a problem with fading unless I was chomping down on some food. When I was eating the lipstick did transfer to the cup/spoon/food but it miraculously did not smudge outside of the edges of my lips or even my teeth.

My only little nub of criticism deals with the scent. To warn you, I'm a pretty scent-sensitive person. A whiff of certain alcohol-laden floral perfumes or sickly, sweet "beachy" clothing store body sprays  gives me massive migraines. This lipstick's scent wasn't unbearable and it definitely did not give me a migraine, but the odd smell, which I can't really place (cherry soda mixed with face powder?) leaves much to be desired.  

So, even though this little review ends on a bad note do not be under the impression that I don't absolutely adore this lipstick. In fact, I've been searching for more occasions to wear it! 

*iPhone swatches below. Sorry, was pre-DSLR!

 

Essie No More Film

 

Here are some swatches of Essie's 'No More Film' from their Resort Collection. Luckily, I've got my DSLR going, so the picture quality is much, much, much better than my iPhone for close-ups. 

I really love this color due to my lack of a non-shimmering navy blue in my polish collection. This particular polish has a hint of purple in its formula, but when on the nails it comes across and a dark, almost black, blue. Like most Essie products, the application is easy and with this color, one coat is really all you need. 

I'm wondering what Essie's Luxe Effects in 'As Gold As It Gets' would look like on top. I bet the Luxe Effect topcoat 'Set in Stones' would be very striking.

Essie Resort and Spring 2012 Swatches

This picture makes me long for my Nikon DSLR! Soon, I will have that bad boy back and the quality of my photos will be much better!

So, the picture of above shows the swatches from the Resort Collection. From top to bottom it goes: She's Picture Perfect, Pink-A-Boo, No More Film, and Sure Shot. I thought this not so great iPhone shot of the colors really did not do No More Film justice. It is much more of a dark navy than is shown on my ring finger. My shoddy photography skills also seemed to miss the shimmery sparkles in Pink-A-Boo!

Below is a shot of just the bottle. Imagine those two colors mixed when you apply the color in real life. It isn't black, but it isn't a purple-y navy either. However, I can say that I absolutely adore the color and have now painted all ten of my digits with it. Better shots will be taken, I promise!

Below this text are the swatches for the Essie Spring 2012 collection, minus two colors that do not come with the minibox foursome. From top to bottom: Navigate Her, Tour De Finance, Ole Caliente, and To Buy or Not To Buy. 

All of these colors are great additions to my polish collection. Once again, I'd say my iPhone's camera distorted Tour De Finance, like it did to No More Film, it has much more shimmer and is not as flat as it seems in this photo. It reminds me of a color you'd wear on a tropical vacation. I can't wait to paint my toes with it this summer. Ole Caliente is similar to my previously mentioned Meet Me at Sunset. However, I'd say it is more of pinky tangerine, versus the reddish orange of Meet Me at Sunset. 

Essie Meet Me At Sunset

Excuse the rough application :)

I recently realized I was desperately lacking a reddish orange polish in my collection when I saw Pantone's color for 2012. This color isn't exactly Tangerine Tango, but it definitely fits my reddish orange criteria. 

The color's formula is similar to Essie's Chinchilly. It takes three coats to get to opacity and even then, if your coats get too thin you might see through the layers just a little. In some lights I can see through my ring finger's layers just a bit.

All in all, this color will be great on my fingers and toes during the summer. I can't wait to try out some contrasting color nail art designs, maybe Essie's Mint Candy Apple? 

My favorite "greige": Essie's Chinchilly

 

This not the best photo (come on iPhone 4S, you can take better pics than that!). However, this is one of the best neutral nail polishes I own. I'm still on the "greige" bandwagon. One of my favorite looks is a very shiny, greige nail. It is fashionable, yet understated. It is wonderful for professional arenas or other areas you may feel a black or bright color may seem too juvenile. 

This picture is 3 coats of Essie's Chinchilly polish, with a swipe of Seche Vite on top. The photo below is a photo of the manicure today, exactly six days after I applied it. Only a few of my fingers sport tiny chips on the very tip of the nail, probably from opening soda pop cans or shuffling through my backpack. That is some pretty good wear!

What neutrals or other "greiges" do you guys like? 

6 days later

Clinique's Almost Lipstick in Black Honey

 

I've been using Clinique's Almost Lipstick in Black Honey for years now. Despite the ominous dark shade when you first open it up, it applies as a sheer, yet definitely build-able, berry shade. I'm usually never without this lovely "almost" lipstick. I know I can apply it well without a mirror and that even if it does smudge, it won't be very noticeable.

 

I've seen that Clinique has come out with a few new Almost Lipstick Honey shades and I'm very curious to see what they look like on. 

Essie Mint Candy Apple

 

As you may be able to tell, I'm a little bit of an Essie lover. I really enjoy their range of colors, formula and the size/fanning of the the brush. Today, I used Essie's Mint Candy Apple to liven up my nails and I'm thinking later tonight I might practice some nail art on top. I'd say that Mint Candy Apple runs a little thinner than most Essie nail polish (similar to my previous review of Over The Top). I used three layers (plus Seche Vite!) to achieve total opaqueness.

Servin' Up Sparkle: 1/3 of Serena William's Wimbledon Themed Nail Polish

 

Last Christmas my mother gave me the Wimbledon set from Serena William's Tennis themed nail polishes. Oddly, my Wimbledon set only came with two nail polishes, Servin' Up Sparkle and Your Royal Shine-ness. Most of the promos for the Wimbledon set indicated that a metallic purple color named Grape. . . Set. . . Match also came with it. However, mine didn't. Oh well, at least I got the sparkly silver ones! 

Here is Servin' Up Sparkle on top of Essie's Over The Top, a slate grey-black. I like to put Servin' Up Sparkle on top of any formula with great color, but streaky application. Unlike, the vast majority of my Essie nail polish, Over The Top was thin and streaky. It really didn't look good alone even with three layers. Servin' Up Sparkle really reminds me of diamonds or a disco ball, especially when the light catches it. 

Here are some more photos of the combo:

 With the unforgiving flash from my iPhone