Tuesday, January 27, 2015

Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Colors that Soar

Hey everybody :)  I hope you're well today.  I have a collection review for you from Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear, and the display is named Colors that Soar.  It's made up of 8 polishes, most of which are rather runny two, to three-coaters.  I also think that a lot of these are easily dupe-able so if you have something else you may not need these, however they are at a budget-friendly price.  As always, if you'd like to see live application of these and really see the formula, you can do so here:

Let's look at the polishes:
First up we have this muted green/aqua called Cuteapillar.  This needed two-to-three coats and was runny, but if you just take your time and make sure your brush is not overloaded, it looks really pretty on the nail.  Still the formula isn't that awesome, so if you have something else in this shade, and you probably do, then you don't really need this, in my opinion.


The next polish I want to show you is a rather interesting one called Fan Appeal.  It's this oil slick green purple with tons of pink shimmer.  I've shown it to you here at one coat over the dark purple in the collection.  You can wear it by itself, it's ok.  But when you wear it over a dark color, it really shines.


Another topper polish in the collection, this is Fly By and it's a turquoise shimmer.  I've shown you two coats over the first polish, Cuteapillar.  This one's really pretty and not as dupeable within my collection, but you do have to do a two-step process.


The next polish is this lovely royal blue luster called Monarch-y.  This is two easy coats and I had no staining issues which made me appreciate it even more.  One of my favorites in the collection.


Another favorite is this very deep violet cream called Painted Lady.  I've shown you two coats here and while I really liked it, there are a lot of dupes out there for this one- to name a few, Sally Hansen Plummet, Orly Wild Wisteria, and OPI Vant to Bite My Neck.


One of the polishes in the collection that I feel is a definite pass is this one called Social Butterfly. It's a light pink with just a touch of warmth and lots of subtle shimmer that you may not be seeing here, but in person it's definitely there.  This is three coats because it's on the sheer side.


There's a great, juicy orange in the collection and it's called Sweet Nectar.  I was worried that this would be too sheer but actually this is two great coats and I enjoyed the crelly formula.


There's one purple polish in the collection, and it's called Wing It.  This is another that i'd pass on.  It had a runny formula, and with so many dupes out there, it's probably not worth your time.  This is two coats.

Well that wraps it up.  I hope you're having a great day and I'll see you back next time.

Over and out

Monday, January 26, 2015

Saturday Random Swatchfest 1/24/2015

Hey loves!  Sorry this is coming in a few days late.  This weekend we celebrated my husband's birthday so there wasn't much time for me to blog, but better late than never :)  Let's look at these 10 random polishes from my collection.  As always, if you'd like to see live application of these polishes, you can do so here:


Let's look at the polish:
We'll start out this Swatchfest with OPI Fashion a Bow from the Gwen Stefani Holiday 2014 collection.  I ended up really loving this one.  I just love red crellies.  The look of this slightly-squishy finish in a red is just something so special.  This is two easy coats.  A


Sparitual Wilderness is our pink polish but it's a pink/peach/gold shimmer combo.  It's also a textured polish.  For crying out loud, this polish is so, so pretty!  This is two coats, but you could probably get away with one coat.  A


Dermelect Head Turner is a super juicy, sunny orange crelly.  I really ended up liking this one even though I thought it was going to be too sheer.  However, it was this super-lovely loud but pretty
color.  Just loved it.  A


OPI Good Grief! is from the Peanuts collection that came out in the end of 2014.  This is still a tiny bit patchy at two coats, which is what I've shown you here.  This is a very sunny, bright medium yellow! kapow!  I really like this one for a pretty basic yellow cream.  B+


Our green polish this weekend is China Glaze Gaga for Green from the Spring 2012 Electropop collection.  This is a yellow-toned green cream and I've shown you two coats here.  This was just a tiny bit too sheer for me at two coats, but I don't really love having to do three coats with creams.  It's still nice though.  B


Zoya Liberty is a pretty warm-feeling medium blue pixie dust.  I don't know what it is about this one. When it dried, i didn't like that strong contrast between the darker blue textures and the bright sparkly blue, but it is still pretty.  This is two coats.  B+


Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Plummet is a lovely one-coater deep violet.  I've shown you two coats here, but you really don't need it.  Fabulous, wish all cream polishes had this nice of formula.  A

 
Wet n' Wild Yo Soy is a lovely taupe nude from the newly-packaged release of polishes.  I really like this shade and for $0.99 I think they did a great job.  This is two coats.  A


KB Shimmer Holly Back Girl is my glitter polish this week.  It's from their Holiday 2014 collection and I looooove it :)  I received this as a gift from a girlfriend, and I know it's not the holidays anymore lol but I don't really care.  I'm going to be lovin' this baby for years to come.  This is two coats, and the white base is a little bit sheer at two coats, but I just love how vibrant the glitters are. A


OPI First Class Desires is my A+ polish of the week!  I'm so in love with this deep purple base that is just filled with gold shimmer.  So divine.  You're looking at two coats, and if you're wondering, this is very similar to Zoya Sansa.

And there we go! Another Swatchfest is over.  I hope you've had a wonderful week and weekend and that you're staying warm and safe.  Please let me know in the comments below what your favorite polish of the week is.

See you back next time :)  Over and out.


Tuesday, January 20, 2015

OPI Hawaii Collection | Live Application and Possible Dupes

Well hello there!  I hope you're ready for another great, big Spring collection today!  This time it's coming from OPI and it's the Hawaii collection.  Just perfect, because I'm not sure there's anything else as enticing right now during these cold months than laying on a beach in Hawaii. :)  There are 12 polishes in this collection and they are tropically-themed colors and names reminiscent of Hawaii. As always, if you want to see these polishes reviewed with live application, you can do so here and the review includes a lot of possible dupes for these polishes as well:

Let's look at some polish:

Aloha from OPI is a fantastic red/coral/pink cream that is practically opaque at two coats.  It's not a super unique polish, but it sure is nice.  This is two coats without topcoat.


Do You Take Lei Away? is the only neutral polish in the collection.  It's a taupe/nude two-coater cream.  I was really glad they included this clean nude in the collection to compliment all these brights.  It's a great shade and I've shown you just two coats here without topcoat.


Go With the Lava Flow is a lovely two-coater strawberry/orange packed with gold shimmer.  This wasn't really a color in the collection I gravitated to but it has great application and I've shown it at two coats without topcoat.


Hello, Hawaii Ya? is one of my favorites because it's just such a great combination of gray and purple.  Mmm, these gray-toned polishes are right up my alley.  This is two coats of this great cream without topcoat.


Is Mai Tai Crooked? is a peachy warm orange cream.  It's lovely but it could certainly have a nicer formula, especially when compared to other polishes within the collection.  This is just two coats without topcoat.  It is very similar to Where Did Suzi's Man-go? from the 2014 Brazil collection, and you'll see this comparison along with many others in my video review.


Just Lanai-ing Around is a mid-to-deep rose cream with very subtle shimmer.  I really enjoyed this polish and it's very unique in my collection.  This is two coats without topcoat.


Lost My Bikini in Molokini is such a gorgeously-pigmented grape cream.  This is really lovely at two coats- it has a great formula.  You're looking at two coats here without topcoat.  It's one of my favorites from the Hawaii collection.


 My Gecko Does Tricks is one of two greens in the collection.  I loved this yellow-green lustre.  You're looking at two coats on its own without topcoat.  I also looks really nice as a one coat topper.

Pineapples Have Peelings Too! is the most out-of-the-box polish in the collection.  It's a yellow-gold lustre polish that leans a little frosty.  It has micro glitters of all different colors and hex glitters in the same shades.  This feels very carnival to me and almost feels more like mardi gras to me instead. This is two easy coats.


Suzi Shops & Island Hops is a pretty baby pink, or ballet slipper pink.  It has just a tiny touch of warmth in it.  This is two coats, but you might want to take it real thin and do three coats.  I didn't enjoy the formula here.  With all the baby pinks out there, in my opinion you probably don't need this one.


That's Hula-rious! is a delightful pastel green mint.  It's very light, and unfortunately had a little bit of a tricky formula.  Not too bad, but I had to be careful with my brush to get it smooth in two coats. I'm showing you those two coats here and no top coat.


This Color's making Waves is a silvered blue, aqua lustre with little gold flakes in it.  Such a unique shade.  It seems like it might be a duochrome, but it doesn't shift between shades, just really lustrous. This is two coats on it's own, no topcoat.  It also looks great, one coat over the dark purple in this collection.

That's it!  I hope this helped you make decisions about which polishes need to go on your must-have list.  Have a great day and I'll see you back next time :)

Sunday, January 18, 2015

Saturday Random Swatchfest 1/17/2015

Welcome to another Swatchfest :)  We're going to look at 10 random polishes from the "untried" portion of my collection.  If you'd like to see these applied to the nail, you can do that here:


 First up we have Sparitual Tapestry from the Wander collection.  I am so in love with this red and it dries satin matte.  This is two coats and it looks even more amazing with topcoat as I've shown below.



For pink we're looking at Deborah Lippmann I'm Not Edible.  I'm showing you three coats because the pink base is kind of on the thin side.  But isn't this an interesting polish?  All the little specks in here are so fun.  B


The next polish we'll look at is FingerPaints Figure of Art.  This is two coats of the bronze metallic.  I was only ok with the polish, you know- there's nothing super special about it.  I found it in a clearance bin, but the formula was ok.  B


For yellow, today we're looking at Orly Hook Up.  I was hoping this wouldn't look quite as frosty as it does.  It's a very sunny yellow with shimmer and it is pretty frosty.  This is three coats.  B-


China Glaze Treehugger is our green polish of the week.  This is two coats and as you can see, the nail bed still shows through.  I really love this shade, and the shimmer is super pretty.  I just wish the formula was a bit more opaque.  I still loved it though :)  A-


Our blue polish this week is Wet n' Wild Putting On Airs.  It's from their newly-released set of polishes, and this is two coats.  I think it's pretty and it went on easily.  A


American Apparel Violet Panache is a gorgeous purple metallic with pink flash.  This is rather sheer, so you may want to do three coats.  I've shown you two here.  A-


Our neutral polish for the week is OPI Love is Hot and Coal from the Gwen Stefani Holiday 2014 collection.  It's a chocolate frosty shade, which to be honest, isn't my favorite.  I'd rather it were a cream, but hey, what are you gonna do?  This might be right up your alley.  This is two coats.  B-

 
Our glitter polish of the week is this super loud red from Revlon called Confident.  It's a red base with red hex and bar glitters  I really surprised by how pigmented this is.  A-


Now, for my A+ polish of the week, I'm sharing Pahlish Violet Gumdrops with you.  Oh my goodness, look at this divine color!  I'm obsessed with this deep violet mixed with holo.  So special, and it's a one-coater!

Hope you're having a great day and that you saw something that interested you here.  Go play with your polish now :)  See you next time!

Bonita- Greetings Earthlings and I Flippin' Love Love It Displays

Well hello :)  I hope you're having a great weekend!  Today we're going to look at two more displays from the brand Bonita that I spotted at Rite Aid.  There is a foil/metallic set called Greetings Earthlings and the other is made up of creams and glitter toppers and it's called I Flippin' Love It.  As always, if you'd like to see live application of these polishes, you can do so here:

Let's look at some polish, but first, formula.  All from the first set are pretty much one coaters, and really messy to remove because the silver in all of them stays around for a while and gets all over your fingers.  I feel like these are just ok, especially since the price is just $1.50 but I don't think you need to run out and get them right away.  In the second display called I Flippin' Love It, the creams are all on the thin side, and I feel like the glitters are the real winners. 
 #hashtag is a lovely, light gold metallic.  This is two coats.


 Next up is Bond, Jail Bond which is just a basic silver metallic.  This is one coat.


 The silvered-blue is Greetings Earthlings and this is one coat.


 The really aptly-named penny-colored metallic is called Penny for Your Thoughts.  This is one coat.


 Probably my favorite, this is Sea Me.  It's a silvered-sea green and I'm showing you one coat.


The last one in the first collection is a red/pink metallic called Truth Fairy.  As you can see, it's pretty much just like the rest.  This is one coat.


The first one from the second set is this lilac crelly.  It's called Caitlin's Kisses and it's definitely on the thin side.  I wouldn't rush out for this one, but it can be said for the whole set that it's ok for the price if you want to pick these up as a whole for someone just getting started with polish.


Next we have Hostess With the Mostess which is a creamsicle orange.  Again, kind of a thin formula and this is two coats.


They included a very basic red, and this is probably the cream with the best formula.  It's called Santa Kissed My Mom and this is two coats.


The first glitter in my collection is my favorite because I enjoy this gold and pink combo.  It's called I Could Care Less.


The red glitter in the collection, it's different-sized glitters in a clear base.  This is two coats and it's called I Flippin' Love It.


The last glitter is called It's Showtime.  They are bright magenta glitters in slightly-larger sizes than the red one.  This is two coats.

I hope this helped you decide if you need any of these.  Have a fabulous day and I'll see you back next time!