Japanese OPI DS Design

Good morning, Dear Reader!

Today I have the last of my Japanese OPI Designer Series polishes, OPI DS Design (DS 012-JP).  This one is holographic like the others, but the holo pigment is much finer in Design.  Its main color is kind of a beige, very subdued.  The polish was a bit thinner than the others, and Design needed three coats to be good.

Japanese OPI DS Design Nail Polish, Three Coats

I really like polishes like this when I don't want something too over the top but still want something fun to peek it, like holiday gatherings (other than Christmas, as Christmas nails are my equivalent to Christmas sweaters).  DS Design's holo effect is quite strong (light bright enough to show the color washed out the holo a bit in the picture), so it's one of those that's really entertaining to play with in the light.

That's what I know this morning.  I bet I'll know a little more after some coffee, and I'd wager I'll be fully equipped to face the day after some vitamins.  Since the coffee and vitamins have yet to happen, you know what I know so far today, so until next time,  love and nail polish to you!  

FingerPaints Winter Dreams Collection

Good morning, Dear Reader!

Sally Beauty Supply sent me samples of their FingerPaints Winter Dreams Collection for Holiday 2010 to review, and I have swatches of them for you today.  I'm a fan of FingerPaints in general, particularly the seasonal collections, but the FingerPaints holiday collections are always my favorites with great colors and finishes.  The Winter Dreams Collection does not disappoint, either - every one of these polishes is a winner.

Winter Wishes is an elegant champagne shimmer with very fine gold glitter.  I used two coats of Winter Wishes and topped it with a coat of Seche Vite so you could see how it really looks (the glitter was making it look less than attractive without top coat).

FingerPaints Winter Wishes Nail Polish, Two Coats

Holly Good times is a mixture of gold and red fine glitter in a clear base.  I used two coats to make it opaque, and somehow this one reminds me of apple cider.

FingerPaints Holly Good Times Nail Polish, Two Coats

Just Plum Fun is a rich plum with a subtle shimmer, also a two coater.

FingerPaints Just Plum Fun Nail Polish, Two Coats

Merry Mittens is a rust red shimmer with fine gold glitter.  In two coats, the polish is opaque and the fine glitter shows through very well without being over the top - it's festive without being too much at all.

FingerPaints Merry Mittens Nail Polish, Two Coats

Mistletoe Mischief was the only one of the six that required a third coat for me.  The polish was a bit thin, but for a Christmas green shimmer with tiny flaky bits, I'll do a third coat.

FingerPaints Mistletoe Mischief Nail Polish, Three Coats

Last up, in keeping with the traditional ordering of things, is my favorite of the collection, Mulberry Madness.  This one's a mulberry base with silver and mulberry glitter.  It's gorgeous and it's good in two coats.

FingerPaints Mulberry Madness Nail Polish, Two Coats

So those are the six colors in FingerPaints' Winter Dreams, and I really like every one of them.  As for generalities regarding the collection, I found the shimmers with lots of glitter (Winter Wishes & Mulberry Madness) were quite thick, but after two thin coats and two coats of top coat, they're perfect.  With the other four, when applying them I questioned whether they could be possibly opaque in inly two coats because the first looks really thin, but they're just fine.  No changes have been to the brush or bottle, and I had nary a wonky brush, so I really have nothing at all to complain about.

The FingerPaints Winter Dreams Collection will be available online on Sally Beauty Supply's site and in stores in November.  That's all I have for you today, Dear Reader, so until next time, love and nail polish to you!  

More Limited Edition Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicures

Good morning, Dear Reader!

There was good sun yesterday, so today I have more swatches of the new limited edition Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure nail polishes, another three.

Before getting to today's, I ought to mention that taking off Problem Child was a huge hassle.  Those little flaky bits were seriously stuck on there - I'd rather remove Starry, Starry Flight twice than remove Problem Child once.

On to new pictures... Golden Ticket is a gold glitter that I thought wouldn't be opaque, but three coats later it was.

Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure Golden Ticket Nail Polish, Three Coats

Feeling Saucy is a fuchsia shimmer that was good in two coats.

Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure Feeling Saucy Nail Polish, Two Coats

Fedora is a really nice brownish beige with a gold shimmer, also a two-coater.

Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure Fedora Nail Polish, Two Coats

You can see the variety in this collection, and that there are quite a few really strong colors.  I hope to one day get past the names.

That's the update for today, Dear Reader.  Until next time, love and nail polish to you!  

Color Club Untamed Luxury Indulgence Collection

Good afternoon, Dear Reader!

This morning I had a chance to swatch the other half of the Color Club Untamed Luxury colors, the Indulgence Collection, that I'd promised you a while back.  The colors are tame, but modern and quite nice nonetheless.  Like the others, the polishes applied well and were easy to control, and all but one of the seven were two coaters, with the seventh requiring three coats.  The dry time for these is good.

I took the pictures in very early morning sunlight, so it's not the most even light I've ever had, but it gives you a good look at the colors and their finish.

Pretty in Platinum is a pale shade that's a cross between beige and grey, with a subtle shimmer.  This is two coats.

Color Club Pretty in Platinum Nail Polish, Two Coats

Wild Orchid is neither wild nor orchid, but a good color.  It's a light greige with a sparkly shimmer, and I used two coats.

Color Club Wild Orchid Nail Polish, Two Coats

Soft as Cashmere is a muted brown beige creme, and this is the one that needed three coats to be totally opaque and even.  Having said that, I'll let you assume the polishes that come after it are all two coaters.

Color Club Soft as Cashmere Nail Polish, Three Coats

Positively Posh is a muted brown creme.

Color Club Positively Posh Nail Polish, Two Coats

Jewel of a Girl is a deep reddish brown shimmer.

Color Club Jewel of a Girl Nail Polish, Two Coats

Nothing but Truffle is a deep brown shimmer.

Color Club Nothing but Truffle Nail Polish, Two Coats

Ready to Royal is a deep plum creme that looks almost black on the nail.  Not quite black, but almost.

Color Club Ready to Royal Nail Polish, Two Coats

That's all of Color Club's Indulgence Collection, which wraps up Untamed Luxury.  As you can see, all seven shades are pretty tame, very work-safe colors.  At the same time, I find them to be very modern, pretty representative of what we're seeing a lot of this year.  I like them.

That's it for today, Dear Reader.  Tomorrow I'll resume with SpaRitual's Imagine Collection, and until then, love and nail polish to you!  

China Glaze Vintage Vixen Swatches, Part II

Good morning, Dear Reader!

As promised, I have swatches of the other half of China Glaze's Vintage Vixen Collection for you this morning (manufacturer samples).  These were again three coats in artificial light.  A few could have used a fourth coat, but I wanted to be consistent.

Swing Baby is a great champagne shimmer, but I can still see through it after three coats.  It would need a fourth.

China Glaze Vintage Vixen: Swing Baby Nail Polish, Three Coats

Hey, Doll is a light reddish brown shimmer, good in three coats.

China Glaze Vintage Vixen: Hey, Doll Nail Polish, Three Coats

Bogie is a really interesting eggplant purple shimmer, good in three coats.

China Glaze Vintage Vixen: Bogie Nail Polish, Three Coats

Midnight Mission is a great shade of blue with silver microglitter, and was good in three coats but for one bald patch I didn't notice until I was selecting pictures.  Had I seen it when taking pictures, I could have fixed just the one spot.

China Glaze Vintage Vixen: Midnight Mission Nail Polish, Three Coats

Emerald Fitzgerald is a very nice dark green shimmer.

China Glaze Vintage Vixen: Emerald Fitzgerald Nail Polish, Three Coats

First Class Ticket is a dark bluish purple, and the one I'm wearing.  The picture is before top coat.

China Glaze Vintage Vixen: First Class Ticket Nail Polish, Three Coats

That's the end of China Glaze's Vintage Vixen Collection.  I told you there wasn't a bad one in the bunch!  I still think some are better than others, but they'll all get used by me.

That's all for today, Dear Reader.  Until tomorrow, love and nail polish to you!  

China Glaze Vintage Vixen Swatches, Part I

Good morning, Dear Reader!

The mystery package I mentioned yesterday turned out to be samples of China Glaze's Vintage Vixen Collection from the manufacturer, and I have swatches of half of them for you this morning.  The collection consists of 12 shimmers (or microglitters), and there's not a bad color in the bunch.  Some are better than others, but none elicits the ol' "What were they thinking?" question.

Today's swatches are under artificial light, and are just some six - I took two of the three pack boxes and swatched.  Each required three thin coats to be opaque and even, but the dry time on the one I'm wearing is above average.  There were no changes in the brush or bottle to mention - they're what you've come to expect.  Application was good and I found the polish easy to control.

Classic Camel is just that - a classic camel shade with a good shimmer.  Unfortunately, it's not a great color on me - it makes my hands look pink.  However, it's the same color as my favorite winter coat, so I'll still be wearing it.

China Glaze Vintage Vixen: Classic Camel Nail Polish, Three Coats

Ingrid is a kind of muted brown with gold shimmer.

China Glaze Vintage Vixen: Ingrid Nail Polish, Three Coats

Going My Way? is a shimmer the shade of a chocolate Labrador Retriever.  This one was a little brushstrokey on me.

China Glaze Vintage Vixen: Goin' My Way? Nail Polish, Three Coats

Jitterbug is a silver shimmer with microglitter.

China Glaze Vintage Vixen: Jitterbug Nail Polish, Three Coats

Foxy is a great rusty red shimmer.

China Glaze Vintage Vixen: Foxy Nail Polish, Three Coats

Riveter Rouge is the one I chose to wear, although the picture is before top coat.  It's a deep red with silver microglitter.

China Glaze Vintage Vixen: Riveter Rouge Nail Polish, Three Coats

That's the first half of the China Glaze Vintage Vixen swatches, and I'll have Part II for you tomorrow.  Until then, Dear Reader, love and nail polish to you!  

Nails Inc Diet Coke Nail Polishes

Good very early morning, Dear Reader!

I mentioned yesterday I had some things to swatch for you, and the Nails Inc Diet Coke nail polishes were high on the list.  These were (or are, I'm not sure which), a freebie with purchase of Diet Coke in the UK.  I believe that Diet Coke is the nectar of the gods, so if it were me in the UK, I would have qualified for a zillion of each of the four shades.  Since it's not, I have one of each.

These were all two-coaters and went on well, and are all cremes.  The first three are swatches, the last a manicure with Nails Inc Kensington Caviar base and top coats.  Since there's no sun now, I used artificial light.

London is beige, and a nice one.

Nails Inc Diet Coke Nail Polishes: London, Two Coats

Milan is the Diet Coke red shade.

Nails Inc Diet Coke Nail Polishes: Milan, Two Coats

New York is a muted fuchsia, slightly jelly.

Nails Inc Diet Coke Nail Polishes: New York, Two Coats

Paris is a really nice purpley plum.

Nails Inc Diet Coke Nail Polishes: Paris, Two Coats

Realistically, the only color I see tying directly in with Diet Coke is Milan, but that's just a detail.  With my newfound love of Nails Inc and what a great novelty these are, I had to find a way to get them, and I'm glad I did.

That's all for now, Dear Reader.  Until next time, love and nail polish to you!  

BB Couture Hands of Hope Collection

Good morning, Dear Reader!

BB Couture's Hands of Hope Collection in no longer available, but since I thought the collection was something noteworthy BB Couture did, I decided to tell you about them anyhow.

For one month this collection was available, and 25% of the sales went to the Red Cross for Haitian relief. The colors were available individually or in the collection, but on the last day of its availability, it went on sale with free shipping, so I bought it.

The colors are actually quite pretty, although none is so unique you'll be kicking yourself for missing out. I needed three coats of each, and photographed them in a brief moment of sunlight.

Paradise is sort of between an off white and a beige with a little shimmer in the bottle, but not so much on the nail.

BB Couture Hands of Hope Paradise Nail Polish, Three Coats

Cap-Haitan is a lavender creme.

BB Couture Hands of Hope Cap-Haitian Nail Polish, Three Coats

Labadie Beach is a pretty bright pink shimmer.

BB Couture Hands of Hope Labadie Beach Nail Polish, Three Coats

Kyona Beach is a pretty mint creme, with the down size of having a few stray little white bits in it.

BB Couture Hands of Hope Kyona Beach Nail Polish, Three Coats

Tortuga Island is a lime shimmer which was a bit sheer after three coats.

BB Couture Hands of Hope Tortuga Island Nail Polish, Three Coats

Bassins Bleu is a bluish minty creme.

BB Couture Hands of Hope Bassins Bleu Nail Polish, Three Coats

With Hands of Hope came a freebie bottle of BB Couture's top coat, and I tried it out. It's not for me. It says it's quick dry, but I washed my hair about two hours after doing a manicure and got smudges and dents galore. That was disappointing.

So this noble effort from BB Couture is my effort for today, Dear Reader. Until next time, love and nail polish to you!

China Glaze Specialty Nail Polish

Good afternoon, Dear Reader!

I have more China Glaze Glitters for you. They're officially called "Specialty" polishes, since the total release of fifty includes chromes and normal polishes as well as glitters. I went with that for a title today because one of today's is a regular polish, and also because I was feeling a bit lazy about coming up with a good remark to follow "China Glaze Glitters" in the title - nothing felt too inspired.

I didn't plan to do swatches today, but I have fantastic sun, a rarity this time of year, so I grabbed four from my sparkling*nails box and had at it! All of these are two coats, none with a top coat. I'll start with the regular one and move on to the glitters.

Strawberry Smoothie is a glowy pink shimmer.

China Glaze Strawberry Smoothie Nail Polish, Two Coats

When I was swatching this one, I thought it needed a little something (seeing the pictures I see I judged too harshly), so I added one coat of Bad Kitty. From some things I've read, I understand the regular polishes might have glitter "mates," but since I don't get China Glaze press releases or samples, I have no more info on that than the average Joe. I just winged it on this one.

China Glaze Strawberry Smoothie Nail Polish, Two Coats, with One Coat China Glaze Bad Kitty Nail Polish

I'll show you the rest in order of glitter size, which would put Stellar next in line. This one is a slightly mauve, almost neutral, very sparkly shade, full of tiny silver glitter.

China Glaze Stellar Nail Polish, Two Coats

Silver Lining also has fine glitter, very dense silver glitter in a clear base.

China Glaze Silver Lining Nail Polish, Two Coats

Treasure Chest, the last one for today, is a clear base packed with regular and hex glitter, both gold.

China Glaze Treasure Chest Nail Polish, Two Coats

There are more where these came from, Dear Reader! I've just found that my patience for swatching is limited to four colors.

In totally unrelated news, Barielle came out with a matte top coat - I got one in the mail yesterday. I'll do a side-by-side comparison in the next few days on the matte tops coats I have to show you what your options are for those.

Until tomorrow, Dear Reader, love and nail polish to you!