Sunday, August 28, 2011

OPI In the Spot-light Pink

I went to my local salon for a manicure a few days ago so that my nails would get the TLC they needed before the Maroon 5 concert. (Which was AMAZING, by the way.) I had planned on doing this really awesome gradient manicure that faded from deep maroon to a medium pink color. Needing a base color to ensure complete coverage, I decided to go with a really pale pink that would be easy to build on and chose OPI In the Spot-Light Pink from the Femme de Cirque collection.

But a funny thing happened shortly after I returned home…

I fell in love with the color.



As you may have figured out by now, I love cheery, sparkly polishes or dark, vampy hues. But rarely do I wear pastels, let alone those of the "barely-there" variety.

In fact, I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that this is the first time I've worn this kind of natural-looking shade that I can recall.

There is something very classy about this color, even in its sheerness. It's glossy without a top coat, but with one, it's a true stunner.

If you're in need of a polish for a french manicure, I'd highly recommend In the Spot-light Pink. It's a great neutral tone without a streaky application.

Saturday, August 27, 2011

OPI Let Me Entertain You

Last winter, OPI indulged my love of all things sparkly with their Burlesque holiday collection. I decided a few weeks back to bring out Let Me Entertain You, a glass-flecked bright pink polish. You can also see a hint of blue sparkle in the second picture.





The application was nice and smooth, with two thin coats. I love OPI's glass flecked polishes because they're never thick and goopy like other brands. This one was no exception to the rule.

And even though I wore it a full eight months after I first purchased it, the polish was perfect for summer.

Please note that while this was not a dupe for MAC Bad Fairy, as has been falsely spread around the interwebs for months, I will be posting swatches of the dupe shortly down the road.

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Hard Candy Beetle (MAC Mean and Green, Orly Space Cadet dupe)

I'd been coveting MAC Mean and Green, as well as Bad Fairy, ever since the Venomous Villains collection came out last year. But as a college student, I couldn't justify spending $14 on a nail polish (I have a hard enough time justifying $5 for OPI on clearance!). Even when Orly's Space Cadet came out and was a dead-on dupe, the $10 price tag was just too high.

Enter Hard Candy Beetle, from the 2010 Holiday collection exclusively at Walmart. Not only is Beetle another dupe, it's a cheap one at $4. I had a hard time finding it by school, but when I ventured to the Freehold Walmart to pick up some things for the upcoming semester, I found it laying all by itself. I knew at that moment the stars had aligned... and I needed that polish.



Beetle is definitely a duochrome, flashing green, gold, and purple. And boy is it a STUNNER!

Below, you can see a little more of the green and gold.



Check out these three bottle shots... they almost look like entirely different polishes!





So what are you waiting for? Go out and get Hard Candy Beetle already! It's the only Beetle I'll ever be happy to see on my desk.

Sunday, August 14, 2011

China Glaze Senorita Bonita

I'm more of a blue-purple (aka Blurple) kind of girl. But considering the rave reviews I've been hearing about Senorita Bonita from the CG Island Escape collection, I had to try her!



And as purple as it seems in the bottle...



Here's the color in the average light of my bedroom. Looks pink, doesn't it?

Even the slightest change in angle means a change in shade. Just look at that blue shimmer!





The color went on like a dream and I'm absolutely in love with it. Even my mom wore it on her toes! (It seems like she actually takes my polish advice these days) Definitely gets my stamp of approval!

I'll leave you now with a picture of CG Senorita Bonita in sunlight, next to my Summer Storm hibiscus. Enjoy!

Monday, August 1, 2011

Mets-icure!!!

As many of you know, I'm a huge sports fan. My favorite of all is baseball and I've been in love with the New York Mets since I was eight years old. Knowing I was going to be at the ballpark this weekend, I decided it was time for a game-friendly manicure.

Since the Mets' official colors are blue and orange, I thought a funky french would be appropriate and easy enough. Well, especially after five attempts at water marbling ended in disaster and a near-disastrous spill on my desk.

I used Art Club nail art polish in blue and orange, with silver glitter from Kiss for the center of the flowers.