To celebrate my new found color choice freedom, I pulled out one of the loudest polishes in my collection, Misa Green with Envy. This is a bright (and I mean BRIGHT) lime green. It’s extremely different, I don’t own anything else quite like it. I didn’t have any application issues (it actually applied really well) but it seriously took like 5 hours to get this manicure done. Every time I finished, I would dent one finger – it happened 6 different times! I used 3 coats of color and 1 coat of Misa BACKbone as the base and 1 coat of Seche Vite as the top coat. If I’m ever feeling particularly adventurous I might try to do a half-moon mani using Green with Envy and OPI Don’t Know… Beets Me.

If you haven’t taken advantage of the exclusive Misa offer I posted about before, tomorrow (Friday the 30th) is the very last day to get a free polish and order polishes at a discount. I recommend calling them (1- 888-733-6472), instead of using email, if you decide to place a last minute order.

I’m a Barielle fan girl, so you can imagine my excitement when I read that Barielle would be launching a line of colors designed by Celebrity manicurist, Elle. And what an awesome new line it is, Elle has whipped up some truly incredible shades. So far, I’ve *loved* what I’ve seen on ALU and Scrangie. And for us girls who need to wear work-appropriate colors, Elle’s spring collection looks extremely promising as well (swatches coming soon).

Date Night is my first venture into the Shades line and I am completely, totally in love. The color is very well pigmented, perfect in two coats. My one criticism is that the polish dries extremely fast, which can be bittersweet. If you take too long to apply you might get a little bit of brush drag but it’s workable.  The color is SPOT ON – seriously, golf clap for Elle. The community has been clamoring for greens for a while, so it’s great that designers are finally starting to listen. This green is particularly beautiful. Dark, but not too dark, shimmery but not ‘cheap’  shimmery, perfect.

Girls have been spotting these polishes in CVS Drug Stores but you can also get them online at barielle.com.

Whoooooops. Apparently, Joy is from the warm set and Admire is from the cool set. My apologies, I mixed up the colors while I was swatching and neglected to double check the sets before posting. Thanks to Sminkan for pointing out the discrepancy. In any case, here is the second set of colors from the Romantique collection. Like before, these are all one coaters and I didn’t use a top coat. Enjoy!

(Please take note of my side comment in the Cool Set post concerning the color accuracy of these swatches.)

China Glaze Admire is a pink metallic-y shimmer. The warm set is much more ‘feminine’ that the cool set so I figured this color belonged to the warm set.

China Glaze Delight is a metallic-y brown. Love this one. I have a soft spot for brown cremes, but every once in a while a shimmery one finds it’s way into favor as well.

China Glaze Emotion is like… metallic pink bubble gum. I’m not sure how I feel about this one. In a way, it’s unique. I think I have to wear it as a full manicure to make a final decision.

China Glaze Magical is a sort of pinky-taupe metallic. Scrangie hated it, I love it. This is one is borderline work appropriate, if you can get away with slightly out of the ordinary work polish.

China Glaze Passion is an antique gold. This one is my absolute favorite from this collection. It’s very wearable. In my opinion, it’s not too yellow. I’m always looking for the perfect gold for when I finally try the MAC Antiquitease mani I’ve been meaning to do – I think Passion is it.

Finally, China Glaze Poetic is a… uh… bronze-y pink/peach? It’s a strange color. I’m not sure how I feel about it.

For a few seasons now, China Glaze has released thematic, well balanced collections. Their main seasonal collections have consistently included something for every taste. So, golf clap to China Glaze – their design department knows what’s up.

Like seasonal collections in the past, Romantique consists of two sets, one cool, the other warm. Most of these colors apply perfectly in one coat. One Coat. People have been saying that for a while but I dismissed it thinking that one coat meant one massive-absurdly-thick coat but no, really, opaque bottle color coverage in one normal coat. The theme in this collection is a frosty metallic finish. When I first saw the promotional images I thought these were going to be chrome, they aren’t. Instead the finish is shimmery, nearly foil like. These colors, with their amazing pigmentation and viscosity, are going to be perfect for use with the Konad. All these swatches are 1 coat of color over 1 coat of base coat.

A note on the color accuracy of these images: These colors, due to the finish, are really difficult to capture accurately with my lighting set up. Most of the colors are deeper in real life. Additionally, the finish is not uniformly reflective like it appears to be in some of these photos. These colors have  a lot of frosty sparkle. I really recommend looking at Scrangie’s swatches which were taken in sunlight, in my opinion her images are a better depiction of these colors.

China Glaze Awaken is described as a platinum silver, I think it’s more like a silvery charcoal. This color is grunge-y. To me it has a steampunk feel to it. This swatch is one coat of color, no top coat.

China Glaze Cherish is a metallic-y moss green. I couldn’t capture the color correctly, it’s much more green toned in real life. This swatch is one coat, no top coat.

Adore is a metallic-y turquoise. This one is a standout for me. I’m going to go nuts using this color with Konad over black. 1 coat color, 1 coat base.

Devotion is a metallic-y lavender. This is my second favorite from this set. It may just be me but I feel like this shade of lavender was made to be worn with this finish. 1 coat of color, 1 coat of base.

Harmony is metallic-y purple. My third favorite, I feel like this color flattered my skin tone the most – I consider myself a warm tone even though I’ve never really understood all that jazz about cool tones and warm tones. 1 coat of color, 1 coat of base.

Joy is a metallic-y purple toned mauve. This is 1 coat of color, 1 coat of base.

I’ll report back with my Konading experiments at a future date.

(Click here for the mega sized picture)

Color Club may have just saved spring for me. Looks like they are releasing three collections this season. This one, the second collection I’ve seen, is called ‘Femme Fatale’. It contains 2 holographic polishes and one black glitter polish. Not to mention that I am a HUGE fan of white polishes. I am so excited for this collection I can hardly contain myself. I don’t have names or a release date yet but I’ll let you guys know more as soon as I find anything out.

If you follow my blog, you know how important today is to me. So, in good polish addict form, I had to choose a color that reflected my feelings about this historic day. Darren Garnick recent asked me if I was doing anything special with my nails for the inauguration. My initial reaction was, hell yes. I wanted to do something ridiculously flashy, like yellow, to represent my happiness and my hope for a brighter future. Instead, I decided to go something flashy, yet subtle. I figured OPI Designer Series Coronation (the name is fitting in a silly way) would be the perfect color.

Coronation was recently released with the new Designer Series colors (all of which you can see on Scrangie’s blog). I was pretty surprised to find that Coronation applies like a glitter top coat. Essentially, this polish is extremely dense multi-sized holographic glitter suspended in clear polish. With just one coat you get an effect similar to other dense glitter top coats. I put it over Zoya Trixie, it looked nothing short of amazing.

The holographic effect isn’t the uniform oil slick effect found in previous Designer Series colors. Instead, it’s like an amalgamation of multi-sized glitter each flashing brilliantly and individually. The shape of the glitter is irregular, each one like flecks or erratically cut chucks. I see as many as 3 different sized pieces of glitter. When applied with multiple coats (3 is what I did for the picture above) the very small pieces of glitter come together to build opacity. The image to the left was taken with flash and shows Coronation’s holographic glimmer. In the sunlight you get a slightly more uniform holographic reflection but it’s not high intensity, meaning the holo isn’t as colorized or rainbow-y as other holographic polishes.

A while back I confessed that I stopped using nail strengtheners after reading on the Beauty Brains that strengthener contains chemicals that can actually be counter-productive to having strong, healthy nails. The people over at Nail Tek read my article and contacted me about a new product they developed. The offending chemical in normal strengthener is formaldehyde, which according to the Beauty Brains, combines with keratin protein in nails and can actually cause them to be more brittle and, therefore, more prone to breakage.

Nail Tek created a big 3 free strengthener and replaced formaldehyde with naturally occurring aldehyde extracted from citrus. The normal Nail Tek line, for people who use strengtheners, is already the most popular treatment on the market. So, I decided, why not, I’ll give Citra a whirl. Nail Tek tiers their products to specially target whatever nail issues one is encountering. The Citra line is divided into three products. Nail Tek Citra I is for protecting nails that are already strong and healthy. Nail Tek Citra II is for peeling, soft, or thin nails. It’s supposed to seal the peeling layers and reinforce the nail. And finally, Nail Tek Citra III is for dry brittle nails. This formula is supposed to help condition nails and replenish moisture which helps nails resist stress. Most girls use Nail Tek products as their base coat or under another base coat.

My nails are already strong so I’ll be using Nail Tek Citra I on my right hand, which is more prone to breaks than my left hand, for the next two months. My left hand will act as the control group, I’ll continue using my regular regime for result comparison. My Mother, who has chronic soft peeling nails will be using Nail Tek Citra II. I’ll have to call her everyday to remind her though. This experiment was supposed to start last month and when I called my Mother for results today, she said, “Huh, what? What product?” D’oh.

I know many of you use the normal Nail Tek line religiously, but have any of you tried Citra? I’d be interested to know your observations.

I’m pretty late to the party, other girls have been digging BB Couture for Nails for a while. Poison Ivy, a gorgeous mid-tone creme green, is the color that initially piqued by interest in this brand. I’ve gotten to the point in collecting polish where I pretty much only get interested in new brands if they tote unique colors. Poison Ivy is definitely that. This green is bright, yet muted. It reminds me of the Brazilian flag. I’m impressed with BB’s color array, a lot of unique cremes and glitters.

The formula for this particular color was highly pigmented, but less powdery than Rescue Beauty Lounge. The viscosity was good although a little on the thick side. This manicure was composed of base, 2 coats of colors, and 1 coat of Seche Vite (my Seche is in desperate need of some thinner as you can see by the tiny surface bubbles on my middle finger nail). My only complaint is the length of the brush wand. I like shorter wands because shorter wands make it easier to control the the amount of polish the slides down the brush during application. If the brush is too long, one can end up with too much polish on the brush which causes pooling at the cuticles. It’s not a huge problem, it just takes some adjustment in application style. I’ve picked up a few colors and I can already say that this is the beginning of a love affair. I’m excited to see what else BB Couture for Nails has in store for us.

BB Couture for Nails is also available on www.overallbeauty.com.

(Click here to see massive image.)

Their names are Front Row Diva, Runway Muse, Vintage Couture, Ready to Wear, Fashion Addict and Catwalk Queen. I’m really digging the holo, 2nd to the right. I know a lot of you were hoping that the Color Club spring collection would be those amazing Japanese exclusive glitters but unless they are releasing an additional collection it’s not looking to good for us, at least not this season. *kicks dirt*

Edit: Here’s the link to the Japanese site that has the glitters: Nail Nail Forsythe It’s the third collection from the top.

A while back I posted alternatives to Chanel Gold Fiction. I theorized then that Chanel was just testing the waters for a major price jack and after the release of the Moscow collection and the price increase of their regular polish, I think it’s safe to say that I was right in my assessment. As much as I love nail polish, I can’t bring myself to spend $30 dollars on one bottle, so I’ve abstained from the pricier Chanels even though in my heart of hearts I secretly yearn for them. My feelings must have been pretty obvious because my Mother picked up on them when we were doing some Christmas shopping together. We stopped by a Chanel booth and I lamented the price of Gold Fiction and said, “You know, it’s really just too bad. I would buy it for $20 but, on principle, I won’t buy it for $30.”

We walked away and that was that, or so I thought. My mother had been very generous to me throughout the year and Christmas isn’t a big ordeal at my house anyway so I wasn’t expecting anything. But on Christmas Eve, my Mother came home with a little tiny box,  inside was Chanel Gold Fiction. It was so incredibly thoughtful of her for so many reasons. First and foremost, it’s something that I wouldn’t buy for myself and I only told her about it in passing. I truly appreciate that she listens to my fanatical nail polish ravings which often irritate most people in my life. I’m also grateful that she actually got me nail polish. Let me explain, people in my life don’t buy me nail polish unless it’s at my specific direction. My roommates, for example, say, “hey, what do you want for X event?” I say, “Nail polish.” They say, “Ok, here’s a credit card, spend X amount.” Sounds weird, I know, but they’re guys so they don’t relish in gift buying. Other people in my life say things like “Hey, what do you want for X event.” I say, “Nail polish.” They say, ” Noooo, I’m not getting you nail polish.” Of course, I always appreciate whatever gift they ultimately decide on, but I chuckle a little whenever that happens. I mean, I know I’m hard to shop for, it’s not like I have some huge, pervasive, glaring hobby, that I’m constantly talking about and on which I spend all my free time. : P

Gold Fiction is surprisingly beautiful, shockingly so. I wasn’t expecting to like it as much as I do, but I’m still not sure that I would bought it myself. It did, however, make a wonderful gift. Sadly, now that I own Gold Fiction I can say that my previous suggestions don’t even come close to the color or the finish. Other bloggers have suggested that Gold Fiction is the truest gold on the market, I think I have to agree. The finish is sparkly but subtle, very refined and sophisticated. For me, it was a 3 coater. My only complaint is the incredibly annoying opaque bottle. *shakes fist at Chanel* Honestly, I like this polish enough that it’s making me reconsider my decision to refrain from purchasing the Moscow Collection. I think if I had the money sitting around, I’d set my principles aside and splurge for them.

A lot of you asked me for a good alternative to the white version of OPI Bubble Bath so I figured now would be a good time to pick up the count down again. OPI Time-less is More is whiter than Bubble Bath and it doesn’t lean towards pink but I passionately love this color. In my endless search for the perfect off-white, I’ve tried many, many polishes and, to me, this is absolutely the most perfect one. It should be everyone’s go to off-white. You can read my original post on this color here¹.

I also have an announcement unrelated to nail polish. Some of you may remember that I’ve been on the job hunt. I’ve received an offer from the State Attorney’s Office (Florida’s equivalent of a District Attorney’s Office) in which I’ve been interning and I’ve decided to take the position! I’m so excited that I’ll have the opportunity to continue working with them as an Assistant State Attorney upon my graduation. This is truly a dream come true. Annnnnd since this is my final semester of law school and I won’t be interviewing any longer, I don’t have any professional obligations so I can wear ridiculously unprofessional colors! For those of you that like to see professional colors, I’ll still be posting those too but now there will a good mix that should make everyone happy.

When my obsession with nail polish first sprouted, I really wanted to find the perfect soft shade (a mission that continues to this day.) Everyone recommended the quintessential soft color, OPI Bubble Bath. Soon thereafter I conned my roommate into placing an order for my birthday, I asked for Bubble Bath. I had never seen pictures of it so I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect, I just knew it was a flattering soft very light milky color . I received a bottle of very light, milky pink nail polish.

Since I didn’t know what to expect, I took my pink, wore it, liked it, threw it in with the rest of the stash and moved on to other colors. A little while after that, someone posted on MUA requesting suggestions for a milky off-white. Another person suggested Bubble Bath. I thought it was a weird suggestion because Bubble Bath was clearly pink, not white. So I said something to that effect in the thread. We argued back and forth a while, both of us utterly baffled at how the other could mistake what was so clearly one color for another color. Eventually another member clued us in that we were both right. The more recent version of Bubble Bath was pink. The original Bubble Bath was, in fact, white.

I hunted around for this version for a really long time and couldn’t find anywhere. I had just about given up when Dami of Perfectly Polished Tips hooked me up with a bottle. I love this soft off-white milky color way more than the subsequent pink version. However, to my major shock, the pink version which is OPI’s new formula, applied better than the the white version which is OPI’s old formula. The common belief is that OPI’s older formula is vastly superior to the newer big 3 free formula but that’s definitely not the case with this color. I had to use something like 5 coats of color with the white version and it was fairly streaky. The pink version was perfect in 3 coats, very easy to apply.

Here they are, the sneaky polishes together. The original version does seem to have a slightly pinkish tinge. This leads me to believe (and this is all conjecture) that it is possible that the new version is a mistake, too much pink pigment in the batch. However, the color is so different that I wonder whether OPI purposefully changed the color of Bubble Bath. I’d email them and ask but I have a feeling the answer would be “we didn’t change the color.” *cues X-files music*

(Sorry, I’m watching the final disc of entire X-files series right now. I have been unduly influenced. haha.)

Soon we’re all going to be bombarded with the spring collections so I figured I would kick off Spring ‘09 with a collection from Spring ‘08. Zoya Blissful is a pretty, light and demure collection. All the colors in this collection are subtle and work appropriate. It’s definitely not exciting, but I like it.

Zoya Felicity is rose with subtle pink and gold sparkly shimmer. It’s work appropriate with a kick. This swatch is 3 coats.

Zoya Laurie is jelly-like sheer pale baby pink cream. It’s opaque at 4 coats but can be worn at varying levels of sheerness with less coats.  Laurie is more cute than it is professional, I probably wouldn’t wear this one in really conservative officers.

Zoya Lulu, a jelly-like sheer light peach, is one my favorites from this collection. It reminds me of Rescue Beauty Lounge Starfish Patrick but it’s not a dupe. Lulu is not as bright, however, I think this would be a good substitute for anyone who hasn’t taken the RBL plunge yet. Lulu takes 4 coats for opacity but can be worn with fewer like Laurie.

Zoya Miley, a jelly-like sheer pale lilac cream, has been one of my favorite Zoyas for a really long time. I’ve been on a mission to spread my love for it since I first tried it on. It was one of my choices for the Zoya Mini-Collection promotion last year and I also ROAK’d  it to Dami of Perfectly Polish Tips. She raved about it as well. Like Lulu and Laurie this is a 4 coater if you want bottle color but it can be worn with fewer coats.

Zoya Penelope, a dusty mauve cream, is a Mom color. It’s chic and professional.  This swatch was 3 coats.

Zoya Zanna is a muted dusty rose cream. As many of you know, I have a thing for dusty versions of traditional colors so I’m really digging Zanna. This swatch was 3 coats.

Happy New Year Everyone! I have a few nail polish related resolutions this year. First and foremost, I’m going to cut back on my nail polish expenditures. I’m only going to order colors when I run out of staples and I plan to limit myself to 3 to 5 per order. I’ll allow myself impulse buys but only for colors that are hard to find and already on my wish list. Addicts refer to this sort of endeavor as a low-buy/no-buy. I don’t know how successful it’s going to be but I’m going to try!

We’re finally approaching the top 10 in the countdown.  Number 11 is an exhibitionist, OPI Designer Series Exclusive.

Don’t mind my bottle, it’s a little jacked-up. Exclusive is an older color and I believe I received it in a swap. I’m a pretty huge fan of holographic nail polish in general but there is something particularly beautiful about Exclusive.

My love for this color is surprising because I’m really not a fan of pinks but Exclusive is just so… luxurious and exquisite. My picture above just does not do it justice. The nail wheel swatch to the left is more accurate in showing the amount of bling one should expect from Exclusive. As you can see, this color goes all out. Love it.