Happy Friday! :)

Urban Outfitters Smush (mint) + Skin Food PK 217 Hot Fruit (coral) + China Glaze Luxe and Lush (flakie)

Liz

Butter London Black Knight Rises

Black Knight, 3 coats: a black jelly base filled with fine silver, red, blue, fuchsia/pink glitter.  I don't know why, but when I first got this I wasn't as enthralled by it as I am now.  At the time I didn't think the colored glitters showed up as much as I thought it would.  Maybe the lighting in that room was bad, or maybe I was blind?  I finally pulled out Black Knight again today and did a full swatch.  I'm so glad I did, because it's really gorgeous!  And yes, all the colored glitters show up well in all their sparkling glory.

It's so sparkly, it's blinding my camera!  You really have to see it out in the sun. :)  Next time, I'll probably just layer 1 coat of Black Knight over a black creme.  The glitters are really dense, so I think it'll look the same.

What do you think of Black Knight?  Do you own this beauty? 

♥ Liz

Waiting for Autumn

Is anyone else anxious for fall to get here?  I've never been eager to see the end of summer, but this year I can't wait for cooler weather.  Well, until it gets here, at least I have this beautiful Models Own polish to keep me entertained.

sunlight

Aqua Violet, 3 coats from the Beetle Juice collection.  It was sheer on the first coat, but built up nicely in 3 coats.  Like the name says, it has a strong aqua to violet duochrome.  But those aren't the only colors I'm seeing.  Turquoise, teal, light blue, periwinkle, purple.  I can't stop looking at this polish.  It's like a chameleon.  But enough talk.  I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.

shade

 

I really wish my pictures did this polish justice.  I got mine from Urban Outfitters on sale for $5 (retail $10).  If you can't find it there, you can also purchase Models Own polishes from http://www.modelsownit.com.


Liz

Popular Starry Pink

Introducing Revlon Popular, formerly known as Starry Pink.  Popular is a sheer, pale pink polish with fine and medium silver glitter.  The glitters submerged in the milky base tend to be white or grey, depending on how much polish is covering it.  I'm wearing 4 coats here for pictures, but 3 will do.  The formula is on the thick side and can dry a little slowly.  I had some trouble with balding and dragging, but adequate dry time between coats should eliminate that issue.

I like this polish, but I don't love it.  Don't get me wrong, it's pretty.  But maybe I was expecting something more from all the gushing reviews I've read.  It's quite flattering though, so I think it'll grow on me. ^^

Do you own Popular/Starry Pink?  What were your thoughts on it? :)


Liz

Red velvet & TRIaccents

Today's polish is this gorgeous cranberry red polish from Skinfood!  It's called RE107 Red Stone (레드스톤).  Red Stone is not any ordinary shimmery red polish.  It's a glass fleck!  It's actually quite complex; gold glass flecks with fine purple and red glitter/shimmer flecks.  The purple is more visible in sunlight, making the red lean more purple.  You might see it better in the bottle shot.

I'm wearing 3 coats for pictures, but it was opaque at 2 coats.  The formula was on the thick side, but flowed easily.  Perhaps a bit too easily, as I had trouble with flooded cuticles.  Might have been me, might have been the polish.  Once I got the hang of it, I was in love.

Overall, there's so much depth and sparkle to this polish.  It's definitely one of my favorite reds now.  I've actually been looking for this shade of red, so that was enough to win me over.  Doesn't it remind you of red velvet?

shade

 

I decided to add some glitter later on by doing what Leigh Ann calls a "TRIaccent" (aka a triangle tape mani).  I've seen this before but never got around to trying it out.  Leigh Ann recently put up a tutorial, and she showed so much enthusiasm for this mani that it made me want to do it as well.  What do you think?  I don't like how the middle nail turned out though.  I tried to cover my nail tip, but the result looks weird.  I think I'm going to try this again with different colors. ^ ^


P.S.  If you're interested in purchasing Skin Food nail colors, there are 7 stores all located in California.  If you don't reside in Cali, try giving them a call and see if they'll accommodate you.  Otherwise, Ebay is always an option...

What are some of your favorite red polishes?  Let me know in the comments! :)


Liz

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.