Saturday Random Swatchfest 1/31/2015

Hello Loves!  Time for another Saturday Random Swatchfest.  I hope you've been having a great day and week.  Today we're going to look at ten polishes I swatched this last Saturday that came from the untried portion of my collection.  As always, if you'd like to see a live application review of these polishes so you can see formula, you can do so here:

Let's look at the polishes:

First up we have two coats of OPI Just Beclaus from the 2014 Gwen Stefani Holiday collection. This one is great and even though it didn't really look like anything special in the bottle, the formula is impeccable and I'll be pleased to wear this all year round.  A

Our pink polish this week is Spoiled Cotton Mouth.  This is two easy coats, and is a slightly warm medium pink.  For the price(under two dollars) this is a great pink polish.  A

Next up we'll look at China Glaze Elfin' Around.  This is a red/orange/pink metallic that has a heavy silver base that really clings to the nails.  You're looking at just one coat here and I really enjoy how easy it becomes opaque, but it does stain the nail a bit pink, which isn't as bothersome as when a blue or green stains, but nonetheless, it's a factor.  B

Our yellow polish is Julep Lexie.  You're looking at two coats here, and this one was not easy to get smooth on the nail.  Due to its tricky application, I can't recommend this polish to you- even though it is so sunny and pretty.  C

For green, we'll look at Misa Catch a Flick.  This is a lovely dusty sea green cream that has an easy application.  I'm showing you two coats.  A

This super bright blue cream is Sinful Colors Why Not.  I'm showing you two coats and it doesn't really have a superb formula, but more importantly it stained my nails.  Even though this is a brilliantly bright blue, I wouldn't bother picking it up.  C-

Our purple polish for this week we're looking at Nicole by OPI Back in My Gloria Days...  This is three coats and I'm so in love with this gorgeous plum shimmer.  I don't mind the three coats, this one's divine.  A

Sally Hansen Bare It All is a lovely tan nude that reaches this level of opacity at two coats.  I think it's great for the price and you'll probably be able to find this in one of the newer displays from the Xtreme Wear line at Walgreens.  A

For glitter this week we're looking at China Glaze I'm a Go Glitter.  This polish comes from the SURPRISE! collection and is a combination of yellow, blue, medium pink and fuchsia hex glitters in a clear base.  This applies pretty well without too much dabbing needed.  B

And now, for our A+ polish of the week I have Zoya Dream to show you.  This may be one of my favorite polishes I've swatched in a while.  It's absolutely divine.  If you love polish- you need this polish.  It's amazing.

Well that's it for this week.  I hope you saw something you liked.  Have a great week and I'll see you next Saturday :) xoxo

Over and out

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

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.

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 :)

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!