Thursday, April 5, 2012

Lady In Red

There is a special place in my heart for red sequins. <3 Way back when, in the Dark Ages (1997), I wore a red sequined dress to my Senior prom. Red is definitely my color, and I looked fab in my dress, if I do say so myself. :) That night was special, and filled with many wonderful memories of friends and times gone by.

Today I have for you a mani that, for me, evokes fond memories of that late Spring evening with my boyfriend (now husband) as we danced to "Lady In Red" by Chris DeBurgh, and it seemed we were the only people in the room.

I started with 2 coats of OPI Wocka Wocka from the Holiday 2011 Muppets collection. It's my go-to red polish - OPI makes some fabulous reds, no? I love the shimmer in this cerise shade.



Then I added 2 coats of Jordana Glitters in Sequin, a clear jelly base with fine red microglitter and larger hexagonal "circus glitter" throughout.







Wocka Wocka applied beautifully, and I had no placement problems with the glitter at all.  I'm so pleased with this look! This is definitely a twist on the standard red mani, and it's so shiny and sparkly!

What do you think? What is your "go-to" red polish? How do you dress it up?

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Pink Wednesday

Many nail bloggers & polish fans participate in "Pink Wednesday," an homage to the movie Mean Girls, in which The Plastics” always wear pink on Wednesdays.



I'm kind of anti-pink in general. I don't care for the gender-specific connotation placed on the color, not to mention that pink looks, well, pretty terrible on me. :) When my daughter was born, I swore I'd never dress her in pink ... but that quickly ended due to the excessive amount of pink baby girl clothes available, and later, to her own love of wearing pink. That said, I rarely participate in Pink Wednesday - in fact, pink is probably just after yellow and orange on the list of polish colors I own the least of ! Still, my little girl loves pink in every incarnation. 


So today, in honor of my sweet girl Daelyn and all things pink, I give you ... Pink Wednesday!




This is 2 coats of Claire's Candy Shop (a sheer pink jelly packed with circus glitter, and a dupe of the Deborah Lippmann polish of the same name) over 2 coats of Sinful Colors Beautiful Girl. Even for an "anti-pink" like me, I have to say I was pleased with the combo, and it really does remind me of candy! 


What are you rocking on this Pink Wednesday? :) 

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Color Club Take Wing Collection - Summer 2012

It's National Find A Rainbow Day, and I couldn't think of a better way to celebrate than by showing you this sparkling rainbow of amazing shades from Color Club! This is the gorgeous Take Wing collection for Summer 2012. All the colors in this collection are inspired by the iridescent colors found on butterfly wings.  


All of the Take Wing shades are dreamy, glass-fleck shimmers with a sheer, jelly quality. As if that weren't enough to get you excited, each shade has a bit of duochrome shimmer to illustrate the filmy, shimmery quality of the wings of butterflies.

Left to Right: Wing Fling, Sparkle and Soar, Daisy Does It, Fly With Me, Metamorphosis, Sky High

First up is Wing Fling. I'm not a huge fan of pink polish, but I'm a sucker for a beautiful glass fleck, and this one is! These polishes, as I mentioned, seem to fall into the increasingly-popular "sheer shimmer" category that has been all the rage for Spring. You can see that there is still visible nail line even after 3 coats of this beauty. So, yes, it is a bit sheer, but nothing a little underwear or a few extra coats wouldn't cure. In the right light, this eye-popping pink also flashes blue and purple (the subtle duochrome I was referring to above). 



Pink butterflies are rare in nature, but they do exist in places like Australia and in tropical rainforests!


Next up is Sparkle and Soar. I am NOT a fan of orange polishes (it's one of two colors I simply can't carry off with my skin tone), but I have to say, I fell in love with this one. Again, application is sheer but I'm not bothered by it. The glass flecks in S&S shimmer gold and yellow with an occasional greenish tint. My nails looked like they were on fire! This is definitely an orange I will be wearing again.




This butterfly (actually a moth) is called the "Painted Lady." Fitting, no? 


This is Metamorphosis, and one of the standouts from the collection. At first it looks a bit like Zoya Charla (or one of her many dupes), but I think it has a different color & density of glass fleck. Metamorphosis glances blue & purple depending on lighting, and my pictures don't do it justice - it's simply stunning. 



The Emerald Green butterfly, showing her true colors. 

Sky High is, for me, the other true standout in this collection. Sure, it looks similar to some of the other blues out there (Orly Sweet Peacock, Color Club Cold Metal), but once you see it on the nail you realize it is not the same in either formula or appearance. The grainy glass fleck look, sheer application & texture, and purple shift set this stunner apart from her sisters in the polish world. 


The Blue Morpho. My favorite butterfly, and one of the most amazing colors found in nature. 

Next we have Daisy Does It. Yellow is the second of the two colors I usually don't wear - my olive skin just doesn't play well with yellow or orange. I do love this shade though! You can see the orangey-gold shimmer, and in sunlight this beauty even casts a subtle greenish glow.


Papilio lycrophon butterfly. Some believe that seeing a yellow butterfly is a sign from a loved one who has passed who wants to grant peace to those in mourning. 



Finally, Fly With Me. This is another of my favorites from this collection. I have many greens like this one, but none so shimmery, and none with the gold-green color shift Fly With Me displays. 


Although often Color Club polish collections can be found on the cheap at Ross or other outlet/wholesale stores, this one has not been spotted outside of online beauty supply retailers to my knowledge. You can pick up the set or individual shades at Transdesign.com, or from the Color Club website at http://www.cosmeticgroup.com/.

What do you think of this bright, sunny collection for Summer? I hope you enjoyed my swatches! Get out there and find your own rainbow today! 

Thanks for reading! 

Monday, April 2, 2012

Sinful Colors Cast Away - Olympia

Today I'd like to share with you a gorgeous combo for Spring - Sinful Colors Olympia topped with CND Effects in Emerald Shimmer. Unfortunately I didn't take any pics of just Olympia; this particular shade of green, although one of my favorites, doesn't look great with my skin tone. I hear that SC Olympia is a dupe for Essie Navigate Her, but I don't have that one to compare. These photos represent two coats of Olympia with 1 coat of CND Emerald Shimmer; all were taken outdoors in sunlight.




What do you think of this Spring-y combo? I didn't care for Olympia on its own (on me) but I think the shimmer adds a special touch and definitely improves the appearance with my skin tone!

Sunday, April 1, 2012

A. England Tristam

One of the polishes I've had my eye on for AGES and been wanting so very badly is the lovely A.England Tristam. Thanks to the fantastic Jamie at NailsAdored, this polish dream has finally come true! She gave me Tristam, along with several other gorgeous polishes and goodies, as part of a Secret Bunny gift exchange in a group we belong to on Facebook. I could not have been more stunned when I opened my package!


Look at all the treats! Tristam, Jordana Glitters Sequins, Jordana Glitters Cosmic, Jordana Glitters Celestial, Zoya Mitzi, Zoya Lolly, nail stickers, candy, lovely beauty samples, a gorgeous rhinestone studded container, candy, and Birthday Cake Oreos! Jamie truly outdid herself and all I can say is THANK YOU!!

Of course I couldn't wait to put Tristam on my nails, seeing as how I've been waiting SO long for this beauty! Tristam is a gorgeous purply-blue with a (relatively) subtle scattered holo effect. She is so beautiful, and applied like a dream - 2 coats for glossy full coverage!

Outdoor, overcast

 Indoor, flash

 Outdoor, sunlight

Indoor, artificial light

A.England polishes can be purchased from their website, http://www.a-england.co.uk/. Thanks again to Jamie at NailsAdored for fulfilling a longtime polish fantasy!