Reswatch: SHCSM Dorien Grey

While I do love how grey polishes look on other people, I'm not too crazy about them on me, with the exception of this one. I think I might have posted it sometime last year, but I was looking back through my old photos and oy. Horrendous. Since I wore it again recently, I figured I'd go ahead and repost it. In the shade:

I remember having quite a bit of trouble with this the first time I used it. It was streaky and watery and a four-coater. It has improved with time though. Since it's thickened up a bit, it's now much easier to work with. It still needs three coats for opacity, but that's alright. It dries nice and shiny too. Both the photos in this post show the polish without any top coat. In the sunlight:

So yeah. Nothing particularly exciting or innovative here, but a pretty decent color (with a fabulous name) nonetheless.

Thanks for looking and commenting, and enjoy the rest of the week!

OPI Smitten With Mittens

OPI Smitten With Mittens was released as part of the Holiday Wishes collection in 2009. It consists of big gold glass-flecks/foil-y flecks in a red jelly base. As a result, it usually looks like a red glass-fleck or glitter, but sometimes when the light hits it right, you can see bits of gold. It's lovely, and opaque in 2 coats despite the jelly base. I think the opacity of the base is the reason that the gold isn't too visible. 2 coats plus top coat.

It's definitely on the cool side of red, but close enough to neutral that I think warmer skintones like mine can pull it off. It's a bit bold for me, but I love it. The formula is great, and I have no complaints about the drying time.

I think Zoya might have a few reds sort of like this. Jade or Delilah, maybe? I think those are actual glitters, and red ones at that, so the finishes are definitely not the same. It also reminds me of OPI Ali's Big Break from the Burlesque collection, but I think that one has a brighter red base, and red/pink flecks rather than gold.

They might be worth looking into though, since Smitten With Mittens has been discontinued, and seems to go for around $20 on Ebay. That said, it's not all that hard to find. I've seen several bottles at several different CVS stores in my area.

Thanks for looking and commenting, and enjoy the rest of your week!

OPI DS Mystery

OPI DS Mystery was released along with OPI DS Glow in Fall 2009. I know Mystery was a huge disappointment for a lot of people, because the OPI Designer Series had previously put out such awesome holos, but I really like it. Yes, it's pretty much black, but it's not just black. It has flecks of gold and copper-ish shimmer that are not at all obscured by the base! Mystery seems to have been REALLY unpopular though, because I found it on clearance for $3 at some Trade Secrets-type store. OPI DS polishes usually sell for $12.50, lol! This is 2 coats, plus top coat.

The first coat shows that Mystery actually has a purple base, but by the time it gets opaque, it's pretty much black anyway.I guess if you're not a dark polish lover, I understand the hate for it, but I personally feel most comfortable in dark polish of some sort, so naturally, I am a fan. I tried taking a shot in indirect light to show the shimmer a little better:

.......Yeahhh, I don't think that worked too well, but whatever. It's great. The formula was great too. And I had no issues with the Pro-Wide! I think I'm finally starting to get the hang of that thing. Aww yeah.

Thanks for looking and commenting, and have a great week!

Funky Fingers Purple

I don't really know anything about this color, aside from the fact that it came in a set called Mini Brights from Five Below, the same set as the green franken I showed you a little over a week ago. This one is also really sheer, but it is not a disappointment! I'm quite smitten with the color, actually, and wish I could find a full-sized bottle. 4 coats, with top coat, in the shade:

That shimmerrrrr. Usually I have some issues with purples that are too cool-toned, but I think this is close enough to periwinkle that it's all good.

Awkward mini bottles are awkward. I tried photographing this in direct sunlight to show you how glowy and awesome the shimmer really is, but once again, I was ready to hulk smash, lol. That whole color-accuracy thing just wasn't happening. The shimmer kept pulling purple, but it's very distinctly pink! I decided to try my cell phone camera, and while it's far from perfect, it's certainly better than my actual camera.

So vivid! And I'm pretty sure this is a unique color. I can't think of any dupes or near-dupes off the top of my head, so I'm gonna go ahead and call it unique. Awesome stuff.

Thanks for looking and commenting, and I hope you're enjoying your weekend!

Orly Lunar Eclipse

Orly Lunar Eclipse was released with the Cosmic FX collection from Fall 2010. It's a blue foil-y glass fleck in a blue jelly base, with a purple shift. That purple shift had me ready to hulk smash everything! I could not capture it for the life of me. But it's there, I promise, haha. It's not like those polishes that look duochrome-y in the bottle and then completely fall flat on the nail! This is 2 coats, with top coat.

It's so vivid! I love it. This was one of my favorites when it came out, and I wore it a TON that winter, but for the last year-ish I haven't reached for it much. I don't know why, because every time I use it for a mani or pedi I remember how awesome it is. I especially love it in the shade.

I think Lunar Eclipse has a dupe in Sally Hansen HD Laser, but Laser is very sheer. Orly Stone Cold is similar, but doesn't have the purple shift, and the shimmer is also different- those are more like small blue flakes of shimmer. Sparitual and Orly are made by the same company, so Lunar Eclipse is also sold in Sparitual form as the color Meditate on This. I don't think the Cosmic FX colors are easy to come by in person anymore (unless your local Ulta has a bunch of leftover stock), but the Sparitual version is available at Sephora, and is the same price as Cosmic FX and Mineral FX polish.

Thanks for looking and commenting, and HAPPY FRIDAY!

Deborah Lippmann Wicked Game

Alright. You ready for another sheer disappointment??? No? Oh well, neither was I.

Deborah Lippmann Wicked Game was released in Winter 2009, along with Happy Birthday, if I recall correctly. It's a purple/pink-green duochrome in a sheer grey base that you may have seen before, because it's really not all that unique. I think the grey-purple-green thing is probably the most common color combination for duochromes........before we get to swatches, let's drool over the colors in the bottle. It looks so cool!!

Don't trust the bottle. This is 4 coats, in the shade.

Let's pretend that I did a good job cleaning up this manicure, and let's also pretend that there wasn't any VNL after four coats. In sunlight:

I was quite concerned about the brushstrokes I saw while the polish was wet, but they pretty much completely disappear once dried. You can see the green at the sides there. Here are some awkward angled shots in the shade, so you can see the shift:

It's not that bad. The shift is pretty cool, I just think for $16, the opacity should be much much better. Mind you, the application was good and I didn't have to deal with an obnoxiously long dry time.

I think the part that bugs me the most is the fact that there's a $2 dupe for this $16 polish: Wet n Wild Grey's Anatomy, from the Fast Dry line. Luckily, this polish is one that I borrowed from my mother's stash, so it's not actually mine. :P I am just really disappointed because I've got a few Lippmanns of my own, and they set my expectations pretty high. They're fantastic.

I think next time I'll try layering this over a lavender or light grey creme. Hopefully that won't totally kill the color shift.

Thoughts? Suggestions? Rants about high-end polish?

Thanks for looking and commenting, and enjoy the rest of your week!

Franken Friday #6, and a Jelly Sandwich Fail

Happy Friday!! My lab finally has power back, and I'm hoping everyone else affected by that storm has gotten their power restored too. Today's franken is a blue-green shimmer that was originally part of a Funky Fingers mini-set. The original color was a light blue with yellow shimmer, and it was very very sheer. Sometimes I'd wear 4 coats on its own, and I still had a ton of VNL, but it looked pretty cool. I got tired of it though, so I added SHCSM Navy Baby, which darkened the base and tinted the shimmer. This is the result, in the shade:

Navy Baby is a very opaque polish, and I added enough that this polish is now opaque in 3 coats, which I think is pretty reasonable. In direct sunlight:

In the bottle, it looks like a blue-green duochrome with a red shift when angled away, but sadly that property doesn't actually translate onto the nail. It's all good though, because this is still completely unique in my collection.

Earlier this week, there were a bunch of blog posts dealing with jelly sandwiches, so I figured I'd do one just for kicks and giggles, and....yeah. Didn't turn out too well, LOL. Here it is, as a cautionary tale. 3 coats of Verity Deep Violet, 1 coat of OPI Last Friday Night, 1 coat of Verity Deep Violet, and 1 thin coat of Finger Paints Asylum.

Could've been worse, I guess, but it's still pretty bad. :P

Have a great weekend, and thanks for looking and commenting!

Petites Color Fever Zodiac

Petites Color Fever isn't a brand that I'm too familiar with. I've only ever seen it at Rite Aid, and the colors generally haven't caught my interest, with the exception of Zodiac. Zodiac consists of purple/magenta glass-flecks in a warm purple jelly base. Like most glass-fleck polishes that I've tried, it needs 3 coats for opacity, but compared to the last few polishes I've tried, this is a welcome relief. In direct sunlight:

I do love a nice purple, and this fits the bill. No complaints about the brush or formula. In the shade:

The flecks in this polish shift from purple to magenta when you tilt your nails back, but I just couldn't photograph the shift. It's all good though. I had originally planned to do some sort of red/blue or something, since it's July 4th, but obviously, that didn't happen, lol.

Thanks for looking and commenting, and enjoy your day off (if you're in the U.S.)!

Milani Dress Maker + Comparison

Milani Dress Maker was released with the Haute Value collection from Fall 2010, and is known to be a dupe of Chanel Jade. I believe it's also similar to Dior Waterlily, minus the revolting rose scent of course.

Unfortunately, Dress Maker is really sheer. This is 5 coats, with top coat, in the shade.

I rather like Dress Maker. It's got enough yellow in it that it works with my skintone, but it's not so yellow that it borders on lime green, which I thoroughly despise. I'm also quite a fan of the green shimmer. It's subtle, but in this case, I think it works. Unfortunately, you can still see a bit of VNL at 5 coats...not good. In direct sunlight:

I also compared it to my 2 other mint greens, Sinful Colors Open Seas and Sinful Colors Mint Apple. I used 3 coats of each in the following photos.

Obviously, they have very different finishes. Open Seas is a creme, Dress Maker has small particles of subtle green shimmer, and Mint Apple has larger particles of silver and yellow/gold shimmer. Dress Maker is the most yellow-toned of the three, and I think Open Seas is the most blue-toned. It almost looks aqua next to Dress Maker. 

Thanks for looking and commenting!

Nicole by OPI Back to Reality...TV

Man, I didn't plan on buying any of the Kardashian colors (and I refuse to indulge their ridiculous need to replace all c's with k's), but it happened. I actually wanted Sinful Colors Zeus, from the Castaway collection they put out this Spring, but I never found it. Bummer, because Sinful Colors is 1) awesome, 2) cheap, and 3) not Kardashian. There were some pretty cool colors in it aside from Zeus too, like Olympia and Athens, but like I said, it never turned up at any of the drugstores I checked. Boo. So I wound up with this instead. It's...kind of a disappointment, honestly.

First of all, that bottle. It is so awkward to hold. Who designed these things?? Horrendous. This polish did come with the Pro-Wide brush, but I didn't find it to be a problem at all, surprisingly enough. I really like the color, and application was good. Aaaaand that's about where the good stuff ends.

One of my biggest gripes with this polish is the shimmer. It's really only visible in direct light. I have Pure Ice Busted, and I could add that in for more shimmer, but that brings me to my next gripe: it is so. freaking. SHEER. This is four coats. FOUR. For a fairly basic lavender shimmer. And if I were to add Busted for more shimmer, the base color would become even more sheer. All the reviews of Zeus that I read stated that it was opaque in 2 coats. Zeus is 1/4 the price, and twice as opaque. Not cool.

Don't get me wrong, I really like the color, but frankly, for $8, I expected better. I won't be buying any more Nicole by OPI polish, unless they put out something really special.

Thanks for looking and commenting, and have a great week!