Essence Colour & Go: Chic Reloaded

Believe it or not, this is actually my first Colour & Go polish!  I knew they had these at Ulta, but I never went looking for them.  It was only when I found out through Nouveau Cheap that the Essence sharpeners are dupes for Urban Decay's Grindhouse sharpener that I sauntered into the Essence aisle.

Unfortunately, there weren't any sharpeners left.  It seems like whenever I really want something, it's sold out.  (It took me months before I was able to get my hands on Nicole by Opi Kim-Pletely In Love and Revlon Whimsical.)  But I did come away with this pretty polish. :)

This is 2 coats over Zoya Ray, but it definitely did not need any underwear.  Chic Reloaded is opaque in 2-3 coats on it's own, so a base color is unnecessary.  I thought Ray would make the duochrome pop more, but it looked the same as when it was swatched on its own.

To simply describe the polish, it's a sheer black base with pink to green shifting shimmer.  The black base gives it the pop and opacity it needs.  In the sun, it looks more like a grey shimmer polish with pink and green shimmer.  But in the shade, it's a gorgeous green to pink duochrome.  You can also see some teal and purple if you look closely.  And at extreme angles you might even see some orange and gold.

I also found the brush easy to use.  It has a wide, flat brush like OPI, which I love.  I'm not a big fan of small, thin brushes.  It's the main reason why I don't really go for Essies.  These Essence bottles also have customized caps that reflect the polish inside.  How cute!  Best of all, these were only $1.99 at Ulta.

I don't know why it took me so long to try these!  I'm definitely a new fan. ^^

Have you ever tried any of Essence's Colour & Go polishes?  If you have, let me know which colors are must-haves.  I'd love to check them out! :)


Liz

OPI Germany for Fall 2012 Swatches

It feels more like fall today because it's so chilly!  I'm glad I got my swatches done ahead of time, since it's cloudy out.  Today I have my swatches for the rest of the Germany polishes (basically the non neutrals).  I covered the neutrals in a different post, which can be found here.

Nein! Nein! Nein! OK Fine!, 3 coats: charcoal grey creme with a hint of green/blue.  It's a nice dark polish, and a offers a softer look for those of us who love black.

Born Pretty Store Swarovski Flatback Review

Hi everyone!  I was really excited to try out these Swarovski flatbacks today!  I got mine from Born Pretty Store, and they are the 144 Swarovski flatback SS20 Clear Crystal 2028 Nail Art.*  Here's how they looked right out of the package.

flash

I spilled them all out and look how gorgeous they look!  The above pic was taken with flash, so you can see how they look when the light passes directly through them.  Depending on how the light hits them, these crystals will glow with shades of pink, orange, blue, and purple.

One thing I noticed right off the bat was that these crystals are huge.  When looking at these online, I wasn't sure what size to order.  One thing I really wanted was for the crystals to be obnoxiously iridescent, which was I settled on size SS20.  But wow, these are big!  As a result they look a bit bulky on the nail.  This side view will show you how much these stick out from the nail.

Whew~  Because the crystal is so big and colorful, I decided to complement it by painting my nails in modest, neutral colors.  Here's the look I came up with.  Nice and simple.  The pictures below were all taken in natural sunlight.

Okay, so here are the pros and cons.

Pros

• Shinier than regular rhinestones: They do not dull when sealed with top coat, but remain shiny.  They also have a lot more depth and iridescence.
• Reusable:  You can reuse these! Simply rub the polish off with acetone, and it will look good as new.  The foil back remains intact even after a good rub with acetone, so if you wish you can definitely use them again on a different mani.
• Brilliant color: It doesn't compare to any of the rhinestones I currently own, and I have a decent collection of them.  The multi-colored effect is really beautiful.

Cons

• Too big: This has more to do with the size I ordered than the quality of the item.  I think SS20 is tad bit too big for nails.  They're best suited for flat/wide nails or a blackberry bling (thumb nail accents).  Otherwise, these could also be used for decorating cell phones, etc.
• Price: This depends on how you look at it.  It's definitely a lot pricier than regular wheels of rhinestones.  This particular pack of crystals cost $12.46.  However, I think this is a fair price for 144 Swarovski crystals.

Verdict:  I'm satisfied with the product in itself.  I think the crystals are of good quality and the fact that they are reusable makes them even better.  The only downside would be the size, which is not a deal breaker since BPS sells crystals in all different sizes and colors.

If you plan on getting these for nail art, I would recommend getting a smaller size.  However, I cannot guarantee that the smaller sizes will be as iridescent.  I specifically wanted ones that would sparkle pink, blue and orange.  The smaller ones may just be clear, so make sure you are getting what you want.

Overall, I really love these!  I can't get enough of them, and I could stare at them all day.  Time for some serious blackberry bling! :)

Availability:  You can buy these and other nail art items from bornprettystore.com*.  You can also use my coupon code for 10% off!

What do you think of these?  And would you wear big crystals on your nails?  Let me know in the comments! :)


Liz

*The polishes reviewed in this post were sent to me for my honest review.

Links followed by an * are affiliate links.

Zoya Gloss Collection Swatches

Katherine, 4 coats: a vampy eggplant jelly gloss.  This isn't one of those red-brown vampy shades.  It definitely stays true to its purple base.  While I like the color, unfortunately the formula is just as problematic as any other vampy polish.  The color applies very unevenly.  Even at four coats, you might notice uneven application.
 

***

Frida, 5 coats: a teal blue jelly gloss.  4 coats would have been fine for this shade, but I wanted it to be darker for pictures.  However, even at 5 coats you can see that it is still quite sheer.  (Yes, I have those white bruise marks on my ring finger.)  With that said, I love this color.  It's so gorgeous and shiny!  This is a color I wouldn't mind doing a few extra coats for.

***

Paloma, 3 coats: a berry pink jelly gloss.  OMG!  Haha, I don't use that word often, but this color is so pretty!  It's my favorite of the bunch, and the most opaque.  It's a lot lighter and brighter on the nail than in the bottle (as are all of these).  In the bottle, it just looked like another berry shade, but on the nail it's more of a berry-magenta mix!  It's also so shiny and so squishy and gahhh...  It makes me want to eat my nails.  Haha.

You can also layer glitter under these for a jelly sandwich look.  Here I layered two coats of OPI Pirouette My Whistle under one more coat of Paloma (making it 4 coats).  At four coats, Paloma become slightly darker and almost fully opaque (as far as jellies go).  The purple in it is also more emphasized.

Verdict:  Out of the three shades, I was definitely impressed by two of them: Frida and Paloma.  If you love jellies and sheers, these might just be for you.  They are definitely sheer though, and that's how Zoya is marketing them.  If you follow Zoya on Facebook, you might have seen their numerous pictures of ways to layer the glosses with glitters to make glitter sandwiches and ombres.

Availability:   This collection is currently available on Zoya.com for $8 each.  You might also find these at Ulta as well.


What do you think of these sheer glosses?  Is this something you would wear?  Let me know in the comments! :)


Liz

*The polishes reviewed in this post were sent to me for my honest review.
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Julep Maven Unboxing: September 2012

I got my Maven box in the mail today!  It came really early this time.  I kind of unwrapped this mindlessly while watching tv, so all of the wrappings are undone in my pics.  The polishes came in a cute polka dot tissue bag. :)  Okay, so let's see what I got!

First off, there were two info cards and a cute magnet.  This month's box carried Julep + Trina Turk collaboration shades.  The colors were inspired by Trina Turk's Modernist Maverick Collection; hence, the fashion design theme.

The products I received were two nail polishes and a mascara.  The two polishes are Gunta (royal blue creme) and Popova (kelly green creme).  I think these colors are gorgeous, especially since I love blues and greens.  They did, however, remind me of two shades from China Glaze's Safari collection.  I quickly went through my stash for a bottle comparison and here's what I found out.  As far as I can tell, Popova is more green than CG Exotic Encounters, while Gunta leans more navy than CG Man Hunt.  So I compared Gunta to CG First Mate and they look almost the same.  Of course, I'm don't know how they will compare on the nail, but in the bottle they were quite similar.

Here's the mascara in Espresso Brown.  On the packaging, it says: "Instant glam for any look plus lash growth enhancement ingredients as your secret weapon.  Micro fibers lengthen, strengthen, and plump to boost the luster of every lash.  Super-fine applicator smoothly separates and coats with emollients, antioxidants, and conditioners to lock in moisture and protect from breakage."  Whew, that's a lot.  Hopefully it lives up to all that.  I am excited about trying this, but I do wish that the mascaras kind of followed the Trina Turk theme as well.  I wouldn't mind some blue mascara!  But I guess not everyone would like that. :P

If you're interested in becoming a Maven, you can use my link to sign up at Julep Maven*.  Please note that your first box will be an introductory box.  I believe you can use code PENNY to get your first box for only a penny. :)

So what are your thoughts?  Have you received your Maven box yet?  Which product are you looking forward to the most? 


Liz

Links followed by an * are affiliate links.

Zoya Diva Collection for Fall 2012

Hello!  I was originally going to split this collection into two posts, but I decided swatch and edit everything today!  So here are my swatches for the whole collection. :)  (P.S. This is a picture heavy post).

Elisa, 2 coats: a classic red with slightly brighter shimmer.  Elisa had great pigmentation and flowed onto the nail easily.  It's not very unique, but it's pretty nonetheless.  I love the two-coat formula. :)

OPI Germany: Neutrals Can Be Fun Too!

If you're like me, you might associate nudes and neutrals with the words "plain" and "boring."  Even when I like a neutral polish, I can't bear to wear it for more two days before I'm itching to wear something more exciting.  Playing off the skittles trend, here's a way to spice up your neutral manis. :)

The great thing about neutrals is that there's really no limit to the combination of colors you can use.  It will generally look very put together, even if you use all different colors.  For the look above, I used the three neutrals from OPI's Germany collection.