Color Club Beyond

Color Club Beyond is from the 2013 Halo Hues collection. It is an AWESOME black linear holo. Ever since I saw pictures of the holo My Private Jet, waaaaaay back when, I've been lusting after a black holo, but didn't want to pay those kinds of prices, and skipped out on other black holos for various reasons. I am once again pleased to say that Beyond is exactly what I wanted! It's amazing. Here's a picture in the shade, so you can see the base color:

And here it is in the sun:

Yaaaaay rainbows. It's actually more holographic than that- my camera has a hard time picking up the rainbows, so if you look at the bottle, that's closer to what it's like. I tried snapping a super awkward photo to get the rainbow to show up better:

This is much closer to how it actually looks- especially at the blurry nails. I think the rainbow sort of disappears when my camera focuses on it :| Here's another photo, because...why not.

Yeah, it chips quickly, but it's a holo so no surprise there. It's solid in 2 coats, and I had no trouble with application.

Luckily, there are lots of options for us black holo lovers now. HITS Zeus looks pretty close, but slightly less holo, Ozotic Pro 526 looks blacker but less holo, and Layla Flash Black is a lot more holo but more of a dark grey, but these are all pretty cool.

Have you tried Beyond, or any other black holos? What do you think?

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

Crowstoes A Christmas Crow

Aww, Crowstoes month is coming to an end. I hope you've enjoyed the month-long onslaught! I've saved my favorite for last. Crowstoes A Christmas Crow, like Maxxed Out, is part of the CROWSmas collection from this past holiday season.

DISCLOSURE: A Christmas Crow was sent to me by Crowstoes for my honest review.

A Christmas Crow is a smoky dark brown, almost black jelly packed with color-shifting red-gold shimmer and glitter. Here it is at four coats alone:

It's still a bit sheer, but passable in this state, I think. Also, the formula was great! I told you previously that I had to add quite a bit of thinner to get my other glittery Crows the way I liked them, but this needed no thinner. Excellent.

I just love the shimmer! But here's the real stunner: A Christmas Crow over black.

Hold me. It's AWESOME. Oh, and sorry about the random change in nail length! I received the package with polishes to review just before getting my cast off, and I was so excited about this one I wore it over black as soon as I got home from the doctor's office!

I used 2 coats of A Christmas Crow over 2 coats of Sinful Colors Black on Black. The black base made the shimmer stand out, and it is just fantastic.

A word of caution to those with sensitive noses- use this in a well-ventilated area! A Christmas Crow had an unusual, strong smell, and while it didn't bother me, I wanted to point it out just in case it made a difference for one of you. I can't remember where, but I recall reading about another polish of a similar color with a similar unusual, strong smell, which leads me to wonder if it has something to do with the colorants.

DISCLOSURE: A Christmas Crow was sent to me by Crowstoes for my honest review.

Have you tried A Christmas Crow? Thoughts?

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

OPI Metallic 4 Life

OPI Metallic 4 Life was released with the Nicki Minaj collection in early 2012. It's a black jelly with tons of silver glitter. Too much glitter, in my opinion. I used 2 very thin coats over a black base and probably should have stuck with one.

Meh. It's not a bad color, just not my thing. It seems sort of messy-looking...

I figured I'd try it matte, since I clearly don't like this as is...

Nope. Should've left it glossy. Oh well, they can't all be winners. I do love the idea of silver glitter in a black jelly base, so I'm debating decanting some of it and adding clear and a little bit of black. The formula wasn't bad, and frankly I didn't want to wear this long enough to comment on wear, so I do want to clarify that it's not an issue of quality or anything. I just think the glitter:base ratio is way off for my tastes. On Friday, I'll have something much much better to show you. :) And one of these days I'll learn to keep track of what day it is, lol!

Nicole by OPI Luke of the Draw looks pretty much the same, if not slightly more dense. But given that they're both OPI products, they're probably just rebottled versions of each other.

Have you tried Metallic 4 Life? How did you feel about it?

Thanks for looking and commenting, and I hope you're having a great week!

SHCSM Greige Gardens + Lynnderella Connect the Dots

SHCSM Greige Gardens is a relatively new core color. I don't know details of the release, but I started seeing it in stores last spring. I love these types of greige/purple-y colors, but I always worry about how they'd look against my skintone, so I never bought any, but I recently found Greige Gardens on clearance at Target, and decided to cave. I'm glad I did, because it is lovely.

This is 4 coats, without top coat. It dries glossy, and the formula is smooth, but it's a lot more sheer than I think a creme should be. 4 coats for a creme is a bit much. I'm hoping this will go the way of Dorien Grey and improve with time, because I really like this color.

Then I decided to top it with 2 coats of Lynnderella Connect the Dots, and one coat of Gelous. I am in love with this combination.

YAY, square glitter! Those black squares are my favorite part of Connect the Dots, aside from the gigantic black hexes. I know there are tons of alternatives and approximations of Connect the Dots out there, and lots of drama associated with all this, but I still think this one is the nicest. Even with the bar glitter. Can't believe I'm saying this, but I think the bar glitter fits in really nicely with the other glitters, without reminding me of bacilli or beard trimmings.

It's also worth noting that I've now had this polish for roughly a year and a half, and I've had no issues with sinking glitter, or warping/bleeding/melting, so I'm very pleased in that regard. I totally understand why extensive testing isn't practical for indies, but it is still one of my concerns as a consumer, so I thought I'd throw that in there. If only Lynnderellas still cost $12...

Now, let's talk about similar polishes. For Greige Gardens, three polishes come to mind: Parlez Vous OPI?, A-England Guinevere, and China Glaze Below Deck. Parlez Vous OPI is warmer, more purple, and discontinued; Guinevere is more purple, although I have a hard time judging warmth vs. coolness because of variations between swatches; and Below Deck is darker, warmer, and more purple. Below Deck is definitely the most different of the four.

Connect the Dots, as I've previously mentioned, has a buttload of cousins. I vaguely considered listing them, but ain't nobody got time for that. Except for Chalkboard Nails. Her black & white glitter mega post is awesome and really helpful, so I'll just direct you over there, and you can see for yourself.

Greige seems to be one of those love it or hate it sorts of colors- how do you feel about it? Have you tried Greige Gardens, or Connect the Dots? Or perhaps any of the other black and white glitters? Thoughts?

Thanks for looking and commenting, and I hope you're having a great week!

Revlon After Party + L.A. Girls Uninhibited

Today's manicure is one that I'm feeling pretty "meh" about. 3 coats of After Party, 1 coat of Uninhibited, 1 coat of Gelous, which clearly wasn't enough to smooth it out.

I think the glitter is cool, I just chose the wrong base for it. Or maybe it needs to be matte.

Thoughts? Feelings? Any recent manicures that just didn't do it for you?

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

Sally Hansen Insta-Dri In a Flurry

Sally Hansen In a Flurry is a limited edition polish for Fall 2012. Look at me, posting something LE while it's still available! I think. Anyway, In a Flurry is a very interesting polish. It consists of blue and green flecks and fine purple shimmer in a dark, murky, blackish green base. On its own, it requires 3 coats, so here's that in the shade. I'm not sure how much it shows in the photos, but a fourth coat would have done some good.

Be gentle, this is my right hand! I was too lazy to swatch twice, so I have it on alone on my right hand, and layered over black on my left. As always, you can click on my photos to get a closer look.

I'll be blunt: this polish is pretty disappointing on its own. It looks stunning in the bottle, but I feel that a lot of that gorgeous, complex shimmer gets lost in the base, despite the fact that it's sheer enough to need 3 coats. Now, if you layer 2 coats over black, it looks much nicer.

In the sun:

Now that it's layered over black, you can see some of the shimmer. It's still not as nice on the nail as it is in the bottle, but over black is a drastic improvement.

I feel like it just looks a lot cleaner and more crisp over black. Here's a macro in some crappy lighting so you can see the texture of the shimmer:

The shimmer still kinda gets lost in the base, but as a black polish lover, I am still a fan of In a Flurry. This is my only Insta-Dri because the brushes are so bad, but I'm actually willing to overlook it for this.

On a side note, I think I'm finally getting used to squovals! I kinda like them at this shape/length, actually. It's an interesting change after having round/oval nails for so long.

On yet another side note, HOW 'BOUT THAT ELECTION? This was the first election I could legally vote in. I am so excited, and I am so happy that MD passed Questions 4 and 6.

Thoughts? Feelings? Have you tried In a Flurry? Do you hate the Insta-Dri brush as much as I do?

Revlon Facets of Fuchsia

Revlon Facets of Fuchsia was released as part of the Expressionists Collection in Fall 2011. The collection also consisted of a blue glitter (Blue Mosaic), a greige creme (Smoky Canvas), and a silver glitter in a pink base (Starry Pink). I believe most of these colors have been revamped (read: renamed) for Revlon's new line, but they should still be available. Facets of Fuchsia now goes by the name Scandalous. Here, I've layered 2 coats over 1 coat of Wet n Wild Black Creme.

As you can see, Facets of Fuchsia consists of tiny purple hex glitter and larger purple hex glitter in a sheer black base. I think it could reach opacity on its own in 3 or 4 coats, but the end result would also be quite lumpy that way, so I chose to layer it. This way, I only need one coat of my regular top coat (Revlon's Quick Dry), and it's almost completely smooth. There is a little bit of texture, but it doesn't bug me, so I left it that way. I did have to place the glitter a bit, but nothing to complain about. In direct sun:

I've told you before of my love for black, so it shouldn't be surprising that I like this as much as I do. Bonus: it's a sort of-dupe for Deborah Lippmann Bad Romance! I think the glitter in Facets of Fuchsia is more dense, and Bad Romance has a more opaque black base with more purple glitter (as opposed to the fuchsia leanings of the Revlon), so I do prefer this one. Plus...$4 versus $18.....gotta love cheaper approximations! Revlon seems to be pretty good at that. 

Did you pick up any of the Revlon Expressionist colors? Thoughts? Feelings?

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

Revlon Chic + Lynnderella Connect the Dots

So, I've probably told you many many times of my love for Chic and Connect the Dots, but for some reason it didn't occur to me to wear them together until now. WHY DID IT TAKE ME SO LONG? I'VE HAD BOTH THESE COLORS FOR MONTHS.

This is two coats of Chic. I used one sort-of coat of Connect the Dots over top of it, but I kinda dabbed it on rather than applying a "proper" coat.

It might be because I haven't pulled out Connect the Dots in a while, but I did have a bit of trouble placing the glitter, and I had to fish for the big square pieces. I was able to get one of those giant hexes though, so I am pleased with that! They usually don't lay flat, but if you give it 3 or 4 minutes to set, and then gently press it down with a fingertip or something, it stays, and doesn't snag on everything.

Of course, I had to try wearing this matte. Under artificial light:

So cool. And almost entirely smooth! No Gelous required.

As I've mentioned before, Chic is part of Revlon's core lineup, so that shouldn't be hard to find at all. Connect the Dots (and all other Lynns, for that matter) is another story. I believe they're currently being sold on Ebay for $20 each.

There are a TON of indie alternatives to Connect the Dots if you'd rather not buy the Lynnderella (or if you'd just rather not pay $20 for a polish that was once sold for $12)......... Chalkboard Nails put together a fantastic comparison.

Thanks for looking and commenting, and have a great 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!

SHCSM Petrol + LA Splash Midnight Rain

Petrol is one of the colors released as part of Sally Hansen's Spring 2012 collaboration with Alexander Wang. The brand also collaborated with Tracy Reese and Prabal Gurung, but none of those colors appealed to me. To be honest, Petrol was the only color that piqued my interest, and it wound up being quite a disappointment. See that nice, rich, dark navy blue in the bottle? See that ridiculous black color on my nails? I already have 2 bottles of black cremes, I did not need this :|

Lame. Super lame. Under artificial light (still lame):

Brush and formula are good, as usual. I'm probably going to dump out a bit and top it off with Essie Mesmerize or OPI Ski Teal We Drop to lighten it up a bit. Petrol in its natural state did, however, make a great base for LA Splash Midnight Rain!

Midnight Rain consists of small red and blue hex glitter (with the occasional odd piece of silver hex glitter) and superfine blue square glitter in a sheer navy base. I used 2 coats over Petrol, and no top coat. Most glitter polishes dry dull, but Midnight Rain is surprisingly glossy! I've been drooling over Midnight Rain for about a year now, and I randomly came across it at Harmon the other day. Unlike Petrol, Midnight Rain does not disappoint.

Man, I love glitter. I love the way the red glitter stands out against the blue. It's just awesome, and a welcome relief after the disappointments that are Petrol and Pinta.

Enjoy your weekend, and thanks for looking and commenting!

Nails Inc. Baker Street + Lynnderella Connect the Dots

Baker Street is a fairly new offering from Nails Inc. I first heard about it when photos of Beyonce wearing it started floating around the intarwebs, and even though I don't really care for her, the nail color piqued my interest. 

A lot of times, when I've spent a lot of time drooling over a particular color, I'm left rather disappointed once I actually get my hands on it. Not the case with Baker Street! It's quite a chameleon. Indoors, it's dusty and fairly muted, but outside, it's ridiculously bright and vivid. Even one of my male friends (who ordinarily couldn't care less) looked at my hands and remarked, "Those are the bluest nails I've ever seen."

The formula, however, leaves something to be desired. It was pretty thick, which is easily remedied with a few drops of polish thinner, but it was also streaky and bubbled a little. In order to disguise these flaws, I applied 2 coats of Baker Street over my usual base (Essie Fill the Gap), waited for it to dry completely, applied a coat of Gelous, and then a final coat of Baker Street. Problem solved! It's more effort than I'm used to putting in for cremes, but it works.

I should mention that these photos are not even remotely color-accurate. Baker Street, in person, is a little darker, and has a touch of purple, but I tried photographing it under a few different lighting conditions and could not get it to look right. My dad even let me use his Nikon D3000! But that was even worse, LOL. Ironically enough, the closest I got...was with my cell phone. My Droid 2 and it's crappy camera did a better job of capturing the color than 2 proper cameras.

It's still not totally accurate, but it's a lot closer than before.

Here's Baker Street with 1 thick coat of Connect the Dots dabbed on:

I didn't use any top coat in that photo, so you can still see some texture from the glitter, but I actually kinda like it that way. Connect the Dots is just a bottle full of awesomeness and win. Which reminds me, I still haven't posted Very Pretty Vampire...I need to get around to that, haha.

Thanks for looking and commenting!

Deborah Lippmann Ruby Red Slippers

Here's another one from my Top 20 post that I did at the end of December. Deborah Lippmann Ruby Red Slippers is comprised of small red hex glitter and big red glitter suspended in a black jelly base. In order to conserve the glitter polish, I layered 2 coats of Ruby Red Slippers over 1 coat of Sinful Colors Black on Black. Since it's a glitter polish, Ruby Red Slippers did dry with some texture, but it wasn't too bad. Here it is without any Gelous or top coat:

Still pretty shiny, despite the texture. Of course, it's even better with 2 coats of Gelous to smooth it out.

The glitter is a pretty interesting color. I figured it was a neutral red, but whenever it catches the light, the glitter turns this bright, fiery orange-red.

Man, I love this color. I know there are dupes out there, but this one was a present, so I like this one best.

Thanks for looking!

Quirius Sunshine Energy + Lynnderella Connect the Dots

Quirius is a less well-known brand, and one that I don't have much experience with, but turns out they make killer neons! murkyDismal on MUA posted a photo of Sunshine Energy, and despite the fact that I don't like pink too much, I don't wear much orange, and I'm not big on neons, I really really liked the color. Luckily, it was at a nail supply not too far from my house, and it was pretty cheap. $2 or $3 if I recall correctly. It's so insanely bright!

I first showed you Sunshine Energy as a base for Connect the Dots in my Top 20 post, but here it is on its own. You have to be careful with application since it's a neon and neons are pretty prone to streaking, but this one isn't bad at all compared to some others. 3-4 coats.

It photographs more orange than it is in real life, but it's awesome either way. I also like the typical flat, matte neon finish. I think it goes well with a color this loud and vibrant.

I'm not really sure how, but Sunshine Energy made it into my Top 20! I didn't have photos of it on its own when I wrote the post, so I showed it to you as a base for Lynnderella Connect the Dots. This is that combination, with a matte topcoat:

Neon cremes and Connect the Dots are a match made in heaven.

It looks like there are flecks of white dust or something on the surface of my thumbnail, but that's actually the speckled white shimmer in Connect the Dots, and it doesn't actually look like dust in person.

Thanks for looking!