Archive for category China Glaze
Polish Comparison Swatches – The Best Kind of Post When You’re Sick
Posted by Latoya in American Apparel, butter London, Chanel, China Glaze, Comparisons, Coral, Deborah Lippmann, Nail Polish, Red on April 9, 2013
So yea. I sneezed funny on Sunday and then the next day I was sick with a cold. Has that ever happened to anyone else? I’m being dead serious – it’s like the sneeze dislodged the sickness or something. Ugh. Anyway, I was off work today and pretty much was a slug all day; even looking at the computer screen hurts my eyes. I am weird and don’t take medication when I’m sick (unless it’s that time of the month – then, JACK ME UP BABY) because I feel like it just masks the pain and makes me stay sick for longer. Or I’m a martyr. Either or. At least I know when I get pregnant one day I’ll be totally used to not being able to take meds (but I will not hesitate to get an epidural – eff that). So there’s that.
Anyway, I have photos of two polishes I had done comparison swatches for but never posted them, so here they are. First up is Chanel’s Orange Fizz (which I happen to be wearing this week, and seriously – I LOVE IT SO MUCH you guys should all buy a bottle, it’s good times) which I swatched against all my other orangey-coral polishes (spoiler – there are no dupes that I own, so you should just go buy a bottle of the real stuff):
Left to right: China Glaze Flirty Tankini, LA Colors Magnetic Force, Chanel Orange Fizz, China Glaze Surfin’ for Boys, Deborah Lippmann Daytripper
Thumb: China Glaze Flirty Tankini; Index: Chanel Orange Fizz; Middle: LA Colors Magnetic Force; Ring: China Glaze Surfin’ for Boys; Pinky: Deborah Lippmann Daytripper
You can see that aside from the LA Colors shade, the rest of the polishes are all in the same vein, but Flirty Tankini is less saturated and dries with a flat finish (though probably the closest match); Surfin’ for Boys is more pink and with a pearlesence about it; and Daytripper is more pink. What I love about Orange Fizz is that it’s super-shiny on it’s own, has a squishy quality to it, and is somehow both soft enough for spring but bright enough that it will be awesome in summer too 
The next polish I have to show you is one I recently picked up from American Apparel, called Downtown LA. I was in the store a couple weeks ago buying Neon Violet for a gal at work, since she loved it so much on me, and decided to take advantage of the buy 3 for $18 deal (I also picked up their matte top coat for fun). Downtown LA is a bold red that leans ever so slightly orange. It is exceptionally close to butter London’s Come to Bed Red, though bL’s version really is more of a true red without the orange lean. I can tell the difference between the two but if I didn’t tell you, I’m sure you wouldn’t guess:
butter London Come to Bed Red; American Apparel Downtown LA
Index & ring: butter London Come to Bed Red; middle & pinky: American Apparel Downtown LA
I have a hard time wearing red polish as I find on my skintone it looks a bit garish; however, I wore Downtown LA last week and actually liked it quite a bit. The warmer tone of the polish worked better on me than Come to Bed Red has in the past, and I made sure to cut my nails super-short which made the manicure less in-your-face. I won’t be stocking up on red polishes any time soon but it’s still nice to have a few great ones in your arsenal! I’ll likely pass along my butter London shade – I always hate to part with more high-end brands but I know I’ll never choose it over the AA color. I have to say, I really like AA polishes – they are almost one-coaters and apply so well!
So, I hope this keeps you entertained until I get better! I usually go into repair mode when I’m sick and rarely stay down for long, so I’ll be up and kickin’ by the weekend I’m sure 
What do you do with your nail polish dupes? Do you find red a difficult color to wear?
Celebrating the Arrival of Spring With New(ish) Nail Polish Pretties!
Posted by Latoya in Blue, butter London, Chanel, China Glaze, Coral, Green, Nail Polish, Sally Hansen, Spring 2013, White, Yellow on March 20, 2013
Though I’ve been in somewhat of a nail polish slump, similarly to filling in gaps in my makeup collection, I’ve been picking up polish shades here and there that fit in nicely with the array of colors I already have. For the most part, I’ve been beefing up my existing collection with shades that are generally thought of when we think ‘spring’ – pale, pastel-like shades that have a fresh, soft, feminine quality to them. I know that there’s no need to stick to ‘seasonal’ colors any more, but I personally like to change the tones I wear (for both makeup and nails) each season, and typical spring shades are no exception.
I actually don’t own a large array of pale nail polishes, as I normally gravitate toward broodier, richer tones, but this season I’ve accrued five new shades that I’m totally digging, which means I now have a good handful or two of polishes that are just perfect for the spring season. My two favorites from past years have been Zoya’s Marley and MAC’s Mischievous Mint, and now joining those two are: Sally Hansen Barracuda, a pale yet bright blue; China Glaze Dandy Lyin’ Around (new from this season’s Avant Garden collection), a shimmering white; butter London’s Bossy Boots, a pale pistachio green, and Jasper (new from the Sweetie Shop Spring 2013 collection), a pale lemon yellow; and Chanel Orange Fizz, a slightly muted coral orange.
Sally Hansen Barracuda is a Complete Salon formula, which is supposed to mean that its the full meal deal, with base & top coat qualities rolled into the one polish. I actually do find these polishes to wear better without base coat, and the swatches below with sans top coat – as you can see, this baby is SHINY. There really is no need for top coat unless you need a quick drying one to get it on and get out the door. I found it did require three coats to achieve full opacity and to look it’s best, so if you’re in a hurry you may need a fast-drying top coat anyway. However, I found that it dries relatively quickly on it’s own, so its not an absolutely necessary step. Also, I have to mention that I adore the brush on these polishes – it’s wide and thin and covers almost my whole nail bed in one go. Application is a breeze!
China Glaze Dandy Lyin’ Around was a recent lemming of mine, having only first seen it on All Lacquered Up (a blog, by the way, I’m pleased to see back in action!) this past week. A couple weeks ago, Taylor of My Lucite Dreams posted about a white polish, and it looked SO lovely on her but I knew the white polish trend was NOT going to be my friend. However, when I saw Dandy Lyin’, I had a feeling that it’s softer, sparkling quality might be a way for me to try the trend, and I was right!! I really like this polish a lot, even despite the fact that it’s sheerness and slightly streaky quality requires three coats – just be careful in your application. It’s worth the effort for me as I’m loving the look on my hands! I can’t wait to try it on summer toes Note that no top coat was used, and I don’t feel it needs one, unless you want to get that smooth, uber-glossy look.
butter London Bossy Boots has NOT been a recent lemming; in fact, I wanted this bad boy last year but held out until a couple months ago when I got it on discount. As a general rule, I do not like green nail polish – not on others (typically) and definitely not on me. However, light greens are totally exempt and I love the way they look. I’m not 100% sold on the yellowish undertones in Bossy Boots as being the best for me, but I still enjoy this shade and am glad I finally picked it up. The application was good with no real troubles – shown is with two coats – although it would benefit from a top coat to give it a bit more gloss and shine (no top coat used in photos).
butter London Jasper was another longer-term lemming of mine since the launch of the Sweetie Shop collection earlier this year. I could have easily bought every shade from the release, but held myself back to just this one. I don’t own a single yellow, and dislike most versions of the shade, but this pale shade hooked me from the get-go. I love it on and it just screams spring to me. I’ve read conflicting reviews on this color’s formula – I don’t have a lot of experience with pale yellows, but I think that this formula is pretty darn good. It does require a bit more attention to application, but as far as it goes this is a good formula with minimal issue, for me at least! I did go with three coats just to get the best opacity, but it wasn’t that much of a pain. Like Bossy Boots, it would benefit from a shiny top coat, which I did not use in these photos.
Chanel Orange Fizz was sort of a random buy, which happens very rarely these days. When I picked up a few things from Chanel earlier this year, I was disappointed with the spring shades released but wanted a new polish. This one grabbed my attention and I’m super-happy that I bought it, it’s a stunner! This shade is obviously more pigmented/intense than the other shades I’ve shown above, but it still has a soft quality to it that feels spring-like to me (though this will also be kick-ass in summer!) The formula is thicker (typical of many Chanel polishes, I’ve found), but flows well and is self-leveling – again, just take care in your application and you should have no problems. I love the glossiness of this polish on it’s own – no top coat needed! I used three coats in these swatches, and you can still see slight VNL, but in person it’s hardly noticeable, and you could probably opt for two coats – I’m just fussy 
So there you have it! A handful of pretty polishes – a perfect way to shove usher in spring
So! What spring shades are you lemming/have you picked up? Do you go with softer shades or stick to whatever floats your boat at the time?
Take China Glaze’s Nail Apps for a Quick and Easy Spin!
Posted by Latoya in China Glaze, Nail Polish on August 29, 2012
Since I’ve been so busy, I’ve been relatively slow in my manicure upkeep – at the moment I actually have just a couple coats of Deborah Lippmann’s ‘Turn Back Time’ base coat on since fixing nail polish chips while traveling is SUPER annoying. Last week, I threw on a pair of China Glaze nail apps I’d received from Nail Polish Canada as they seemed easy to apply and required no drying/wait time. What more can you ask for?
The China Glaze nail apps are made from real nail lacquer, and are like a decal for the entire nail. Each pack retails for $11CAD on Nail Polish Canada and contain 16 apps of various size, which is essentially good for one application with a few leftover for mistakes/emergencies. I chose the ‘Cherry Blossoms’ design, which is cute little red cherry blossoms on a creamy white background. The process is insanely simple. After separating the decal you want from the strip, you peel the backing off the decal and then the front and apply the sticky side to the nail, choosing the appropriate size for each. Then you merely tear off the tab, fold the free edge down, and file it off to your nail shape. It’s really as easy as that! The whole process took me maybe 5-10 minutes to completion. They also provide the file and orangewood stick for you to push your cuticles back if need be.
I wore these decals for about 3-4 days and had absolutely no peeling, chipping or the like – just minor tip wear which I actually think I caused when I originally filed them. While I liked the ease of these decals and durability, the one drawback was that the sizing seemed off. There were many small decals that did not fit the width of even my smallest nail, and only a handful of sizes that were the perfect fit for most. See evidence below.
However, this problem was not terribly noticeable and I can get past it. It’s going to be impossible to have a one size fits all as everyone has different shaped nail beds. Overall, they were fun and easy, and while not the *cheapest* option for just a regular-day mani, they’d be fabulous for an event – and they’d probably last a lot long than I left them on. I was able to wash my hair and do my regular thing without even a hint of peeling (strangely however, they came off easily by just pulling an end and peeling off). If you’re in the market for some fancy nail art, for whatever reason, I think these are a great option and pretty much fool-proof!
Have you tried nail apps before, or would you? Do you still paint your nails while traveling or leave them be?
*Product was provided by the PR company/brand for my unbiased consideration.
So Many Products, Not Enough Time…Interim Quickie Polish Post
Posted by Latoya in Aqua/Teal, Blue, China Glaze, Comparisons, Nail Polish, Orange, Summer 2012, Zoya on July 13, 2012
Hello everyone! I have an insane backlog of products I want to show you desperately, but have just NOT had the time to take photos of anything – such is the way Summer goes, I guess! We’ve been having just the most spectacular weather you could imagine which means I’m outside as much as possible, which is absolutely lovely Tomorrow I plan to get up and do a major photo and swatch session so hopefully in the coming days you’ll have a ton of eye candy to ogle In the meantime, I’m going to do a post a la Liz (aka Beauty Reductionista) to fill the void. Enjoy!
Zoya Arizona
It looks different in different light eh? I’d say the last photo is the most color-accurate. This is a sad polish. The formula was atrocious, gloppy and streaky (this is three coats) and while I liked the color, I didn’t love it so much that the crappy formula was worth dealing with. I wore two full mani’s with this, but I’m am DONE. Swap!
China Glaze For Audrey
Another slight color-shifter. It’s most like the second photo I would say. Since I broke the seal on aqua polishes with Zoya Wednesday (which was a counterpart AWESOME to Arizona’s TOTAL FAIL), I decided to go all in and pick up this cult shade to wade in the aqua pool a bit further. I like it! I don’t think aqua will ever be a ‘go to’ shade for me – I still this it looks much better on fairer skin – but it’s a fun shade to wear in Summer, and I’m glad I found a few to play nice with This was an easy-to-use formula, no issues. Here it is compared to Wednesday:
(No, I did not wear these as a mani/pedi combo LOL!) In the first photo, with flash, they look quite similar, but in the second you can see that Wednesday is dustier and more muted. I think I’d actually prefer the reverse to this – Wednesday on fingernails and For Audrey on toes. But they’re both pretty
China Glaze Ridin’ the Waves
I’ve already shown swatches of Ridin’ the Waves, but I wanted to show it again when I wore it as a full mani, with a coat of white polish underneath to make it really pop! Although I don’t like the sheerness of this polish – it tends to be a bit streaky, so even over white it was tricky (as you can see in the first & second photos) – I love the shade; it’s vibrant without being too in-your-face, and the jelly texture is a nice switch-up. It’s not quite as bright as shades like Nails Inc. Baker Street, but it comes close.
Speaking of nail polish, I would be remiss if I didn’t let you know about the contest going on at Nail Polish Canada – they’re giving away a lifetime supply (approx. 25 years worth) of CND Shellac to one winner! Though I know a few people were a bit offended by the somewhat poorly delivered joke about living too long to surpass the ‘lifetime’ claims, regardless, this is a pretty sweet giveaway for anyone who loves having their nails polished to perfection but doesn’t want to deal with the hassle of upkeep. “CND Shellac is a cross between nail polish and gel. Shellac is applied like regular nail polish and then cured using a UV lamp. Shellac lasts much longer than your regular manicure; up to 14 days without chipping or peeling. Dry time is instant, making the application process fast and ensuring your polish doesn’t smudge.” This would almost be a sort of hell for me because I love changing my nails so frequently, and so the fabulous technology would be completely lost on someone like myself, but I can think of a number of gals who would LOVE to win something like this and put it to very good use!
The winner will be selected August 7th, and contest is open to residents of Canada and the US (excluding Quebec), so boogie on over to NPC and check out the full details! Best of luck to all who enter!
I hope everyone has a lovely weekend full of tons of sunshine!! Get ready for a barrage of posts coming next week – it’s gonna get a little crazy
Thoughts? (about Arizona/For Audrey/Ridin’ the Waves/Nail Polish Canada joke/life in general)???
Birthday Manicure!
Posted by Latoya in Aqua/Teal, China Glaze, Just for Fun, MAC, Nail Art, Nail Polish, Pink on May 26, 2012
Good morning everyone! I’m up and at ‘em this morning, as today is the official celebration of my 30th birthday (which isn’t actually until Monday)! I’m pretty pumped – my bf has planned the whole thing and it’s a total surprize, I have no idea what we’re doing! You can be sure to hear all about it next week 
In the meantime, because I’m not sure what’s going on – which means I don’t know how to dress – I did a birthday celebration manicure, since fun nails work in any situation!!! I thought about it all day yesterday (even during work training – oops), trying to think about what I could do special. I was keen on the idea of another gradient/ombre manicure, as I love how they look and they’re so eye-catching. I decided to do contrasting pastel-type shades, and I LOVE how it turned out. Take a look!
China Glaze Pink Plumeria & MAC Mischievous Mint
My technique has improved since the last time; I made sure to use only one shade on the tips, and mixed the edges of the dollops of the two shades together on tinfoil to ensure a softer gradient (in the last one, I just had a splash of the tip shade on the foil which I picked up with the sponge), a tip which I learned from this tutorial. MUCH better than before, though I could still use some practice. You can see on one of my pointer fingers that the pink is a little more saturated than the rest. Oh well, I’m determined to get this down pat – it’s one of my favorite nail looks right now!
I’m off to enjoy the day now, I hope you all have a lovely weekend – it’s pretty full for me but I’m off on Monday so you can be sure I’ll be posting a little something then
China Glaze Summer Neons Collection: Part II (Swatches and Review)
Posted by Latoya in Blue, China Glaze, Coral, Green, Nail Polish, Pink, Purple, Summer 2012 on May 23, 2012
You remember how yesterday I talked about my admiration of those fabulous bloggers who were in the business of swatching full collections of nail polish on the regular? Well today I’m in admiration of anyone who buys a home!! Holy moley, let me tell you – it is SUPREMELY exciting to buy your first home (I guess, any home really!) – but there is so much to learn and info to absorb, wowza!!! It’s a lot for a brain to handle. Thankfully we’ve had absolutely stellar people working with us to find the condo and get our financing in order, but its been a relatively consuming pastime for the last few weeks. Well worth it, but mindblowing all the same!!
Anyway, we spent some time at the bank tonight wrapping things up, then come home to make dinner, then talked numbers some more…suddenly my evening has gone *poof* and I’ve hardly even done anything! I really wanted to get the second part out for the Summer Neons collection from China Glaze though, so here I am! The second half is just as eye-popping as the first, so get ready!
I’m With the Lifeguard is a ‘glimmering lime green,’ and while I love this shade in theory – makes me think of lime koolaid! – I’m not liking it on my skintone at all, though it is lovely to look at. The last picture is the most accurate for how bright this is. I found 3 coats was best to even out a bit of streakiness, and it had a similar formula as most other shades – thicker but fairly easy to work with. This dried semi-matte.
Sunlight
Sunlight
Sunlight (different setting)
The description of Ride the Waves - a ‘dark ocean blue’ – is so terribly enticing to me. Due to the sheer, thin, jellyish formula, it really made me think of the deeper waters of the Caribbean! To avoid any VNL, 3 coats is absolutely necessary. I really like this shade – it reminds me of Nails Inc. Baker St. (which Beyonce was apparently wearing shortly after she had Ivy Blue, hence everyone wanted it) but it’s not quite as electric, though it’s still really very eye-catching. It’s darker and not as cool-toned in real life, and the squishy nature looks like you could just drink it up. As I was wearing it as my mani this week, I realized it would be perfect as a base for Lippmann’s Across the Universe!
Indoor lighting
With flash
Natural light
Sunlight
Just as juicy and ripe-looking as the fruit to describe it, Under the Boardwalk, a ‘fluorescent raspberry’, has almost the same formula as ‘Ride the Waves’, but not quite as jellyish. Again, 3 coats best, though 2 is workable here, and it’s deeper in tone than it looks in photos. I feel pretty ‘meh’ about this shade – it’s quite nice but nothing stand-out to me in any way.
With flash
Sunlight
Sunlight
Love’s A Beach, a ‘sizzling hot pink’, is slightly warmer than ‘Hang-Ten Toes’, but the differences are slight and I personally wouldn’t feel it necessary to own both. If I had to chose, I think I’d pick this shade, as the blue-leanings are less pronounced. Formula was good; it applied easily without fuss. 3 coats were used here for good measure.
With flash
Natural light
Sunlight
In theory, Surfin’ For Boys would be the ultimate shade: a ‘glistening bright coral’? Sign me up! However, there’s something off about this color for me; I think it’s the shimmer which looks almost purplish in certain light, and just feels a bit gaudy to me. It’s actually remarkably similar to another shade I own, LA Colors in Magnetic Force, except I think I like that polish better (well, at least the color). However, I think this is still a great shade for summer, and definitely a perfect pedi shade. It went on very easily in 2 coats, and dried semi-matte.
With flash
Sunlight
Sunlight - different setting
Last but not least, we have Flirty Tankini, a ‘shimmery strawberry smoothie pink’ with a particularly good formula. I could have done 2 coats with no problem but I did 3 to be nitpicky. I really liked the sweetness of this shade and though it went particularly well with my skintone. The shimmer was understated (as it didnt’ contrast with the base color) and I’m looking forward to wearing this as a full mani very soon!!
With flash
With flash
Sunlight
That wraps it up for the China Glaze Summer Neons collection! I liked this half equally as well as the first, and I have my faves – Ride the Waves, which grew on me, and Flirty Tankini, which is just too darn pretty! Though I enjoyed the formula of most shades as a whole, it was a bummer to apply 3 coats for almost all of the polishes here. A suggestion was made that I could layer these shades over a white polish to let the neon qualities really pop, and I think I’ll take that recommendation to heart. Every single shade was majorly bright, and to enhance that aspect would only serve to make this collection that much more special (and allow less coats of color overall!).
As a whole, I found a few of the shades in the collection not as unique as I’d like – some seemed to replicate shades I already have in my stash. However, I chose those shades for a reason, so what’s not to like? lol One complaint I have about the collection as a whole is that there are a fair amount of shades that are quite similar to each other – there are no dupes, but they’re close enough that I personally wouldn’t feel like I needed to own both/all. However, in person the differences between them are more obvious, so you may refute me there and I would be OK with that Really, this collection is the epitome of fun, splashy shades for Summer, and if you want them all, who am I to argue?
What is your idea of the perfect Summer polish shade(s)? Would you try out a neon polish?
*Product samples were provided to me by the PR company/brand for my unbiased consideration.
China Glaze Summer Neons Collection: Part I (Swatches and Review)
Posted by Latoya in Blue, China Glaze, Coral, Nail Polish, Orange, Pink, Purple, Summer 2012, Yellow on May 22, 2012
Before I begin, I just want to give some serious accolades to any bloggers out there that have swatched an entire nail polish collection for our viewing pleasure. O.M.G. I’ve done maybe 4 swatches at a time, which was still quite a task, but 12 shades!?! Good grief! I spent most of my day Saturday and part of my day Sunday painstakingly applying each of the 12 shades of the Summer Neons collection from China Glaze, fearful that I was going to lose my sun, waiting between coats, hydrating and rehydrating my cuticles, and taking shot after shot of my nails to capture each shade as accurately as possible. Man Oh Man. It was truly exciting to have the opportunity – receiving the big box in the mail and knowing I’d never otherwise have such a chance – but I just wanted to give a shout out to the more established bloggers who are used to this sort of thing. You rock!! It’s quite a job, and I will forever have a different appreciation for collection swatches moving forward. Thank you, my lovelies
Ok, with that out of the way – let’s get to the polish, shall we? Today I bring you the first part of my swatchapalooza; there really wasn’t a defined split between the shades, so I just kind of put them together in a way that made sense to me. The collection as a whole was a surprize hit for me. In promotional shots, I was unsure how I felt about a bunch of neon shades with shimmer – typically odd colors like electric green and eyeball-searing yellow do NOT do it for me, and I’m not a fan of shimmer overall – but somehow they made it work in a big way with this collection.
First up, we have Sun-Kissed, described as a ‘hot highlighter yellow’, and it was exactly that! I would never in a million years imagine I’d like a shade like this, but consider me converted! Somehow, this super-bright shade won me over, and I definitely see a full manicure with this in my near future. Obviously, I don’t have much experience with yellow polishes, but from what I hear they can be tricky to work with – this shade, while slightly streaky, was relatively painless to apply; you can get away with 2 coats but I applied 3 for the best opacity. Like many shades in the collection, it dries semi-matte.
Indoor lighting
With flash
Sunlight
Sunlight
Next up, Orange You Hot? - a ‘bright orange with attention-grabbing gold glimmer.’ I find the shimmer particles very fine, and the gold tone is lost in the base shade, but it’s still lovely. I liked it but didn’t love it on my skintone – I think it’ll be more of a pedi shade in my rotation than anything else. I felt similarly about the formula; it was good but not great. I applied 3 coats to get the smoothest application possible.
Indoor lighting
With flash
Sunlight
Sunlight
~Ah~ Pink Plumeria. My personal favorite of the whole collection. A ‘light pink with gold shimmer,’ it came out more like a coral-pink on my nails, and was soo flattering. It retains quite a neon look but in a way that’s tasteful and eye-catching rather than gaudy – it’s actually brighter in person than I was able to capture in these photos. The gold shimmer really gave it an extra-pretty sheen. Application was pretty good – 2 coats was sufficient, and how I wore it as a full mani, but I think 3 would probably be better, as it had a hint of patchiness on a few nails.
Indoor lighting
With flash
Sunlight
Sunlight
Hang-Ten Toes was actually the first polish I tried on from the collection; a ‘bubblegum neon pink with iridescent purple shimmer’, it looked and sounded far too enticing to pass up. In person, this shade is searingly bright – I found it difficult overall to capture the true neon nature of most of the polishes in the collection, this one in particular (I took about a million shots of this polish, and I’m still not satisfied!). Easy flowing with good consistency (you don’t need too much on the brush), it dries to a semi-satin finish. At an angle, the shimmer is somehow both obvious and elusive, which gives it mysterious depth. 2 coats is enough to reach good coverage, but 3 erases any VNL. I found the drying time of this shade was slower than I’m used to – which I found for a handful of shades in the collection (perhaps because I was applying 3 coats for many of them).
Indoor lighting
With flash
Sunlight
Sunlight
On of the best formulas of the bunch, Beach Cruise-r is a ‘glimmering fuchsia grape’, which only required two smooth coats to full opacity. On the nail, it reminds me a lot of American Apparel’s Neon Violet except with shimmer. This kind of color is a bit unexpected in Summer I think, because it has a deeper jewel tone that makes me think more of Fall, but the brightness makes it appropriate and fun for the warmer months too. Like Neon Violet, I’m slightly ambivalent toward it as a mani, but quite like it as a pedi shade. It’s brighter and more richly hued in person – closer to the last shot, below.
Indoor lighting – looks so purple!
Sunlight
Sunlight
Sunlight
Finally, we have Splish Splash, a ‘bright sky blue shimmer,’ also with a great formula, though 3 coats is still best. This is not at all my kind of shade, but is an absolutely glorious color on it’s own – I want to own other things in this shade (just not wear it on my nails). Looking at these photos, I’m mesmerized by this color; but with my skintone, it looks a bit garish. In person it’s much more blue than aqua like it looks in these photos – closer to the last shot, below.
Indoor lighting
With flash
Natural light
Sunlight
Sunlight
And so we conclude Part I of the Summer Neons collection! Overall I felt that there were some beautiful shades, even if they all didn’t ~go~ with my skintone. While many of the shades required 3 coats to look best to my liking, I still felt that the formulas overall were quite good; they didn’t dry too quickly and cause dragging, and applied very easily for the most part, with an excellent consistency in formula. Mostly I found that they were just a touch sheer and just the slightest bit patchy, but applying 3 coats cleared any of those issues up with ease. I also normally do a fast-drying top coat, whereas I used none in the swatches above (nor base coat), which could be why they seemed to take longer to dry than normal. In any case, I liked some of the shades so much that I’d be more than willing to put up with the extra coats. They all scream Summer to me, and just make me happy looking at them!
What are your thoughts on these shades from the collection? Are you into neon brights? Would you prefer them with or without shimmer?
*Product samples were provided to me by the PR company/brand for my unbiased consideration.
China Glaze Summer Neons Collection for Summer 2012
Posted by Latoya in China Glaze, Nail Polish, Summer 2012 on May 2, 2012
For the past couple years, I found my interest in Summer collections limited – I always gravitated toward the more moody hues of Fall and Winter. However, this year for whatever reason, I am LOVING all these bright, happy shades! My meager collection of sunny shades is slowly growing, and China Glaze’s upcoming Summer Neons collection fit perfectly into my vision of fun Summer shades I MUST own.
The line-up of these sizzling shades are:
· Pink Plumeria: Light pink with gold shimmer
· Under the Boardwalk: Fluorescent raspberry
· Splish Splash: Bright sky blue shimmer
· Love’s A Beach: Sizzling hot pink
· Hang-Ten Toes: Bubblegum neon with iridescent purple shimmer
· Beach Cruise-r: Glimmering fuchsia grape
· Orange You Hot?: Bright orange with attention-grabbing gold glimmer
· Surfin’ For Boys: Glistening bright coral
· Flirty Tankini: Shimmery strawberry smoothie pink
· Ride the Waves: Dark ocean blue
· I’m With the Lifeguard: Glimmering lime green
· Sun-Kissed: Hot highlighter yellow
The Summer Neons collection will be available in June 2012 at fine salons and beauty supply stores nationwide. 
What shades are catching you eye from this collection?
China Glaze is free of DBP, toluene, and added formaldehyde. For more information, visit: www.chinaglaze.com.
Breaking Out of My Comfort Zone: China Glaze Crackle Glitters!
Posted by Latoya in China Glaze, Glitter, Nail Polish on April 17, 2012
I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not a big follower of trends – not because I’m too cool for them, but because sadly, I’m just not that trendy LOL! I often favor classic and simple over original and eye-catching – though from time to time I’ll branch out and try something new and exciting. This week, I was able to check out for the very first time, a trend that blew up in the nail polish world this past year – crackle polish. China Glaze has come up with several adaptations to the crackle phenomenon, and this time around it’s meshing with another popular nail technology, glitter! The China Glaze Crackle Glitters feature four shimmering shades:
- Glam-More: a bold fuchsia
- Luminous Lavender: a luscious light purple
- Gleam Me Up: a bright sky blue
- Jade-d: a radiant bright chartreuse green
As it’s my first run-in with crackle polish, I made sure to understand how to use them properly. A lighter coat creates a fine crackle, and a thicker coat will offer a deep shatter effect. Apparently, you can brush it sideways or at an angle to also create different looks. I suspect the technology has improved since the first slew of these polishes as it really wasn’t that challenging – the main point is to be sure that the coat(s) of whatever base polish you use is fully dry before applying any of the crackle polish, or the effect won’t come out as well. I found out the hard way, and the crackle pulled apart my base coat as well and left bald spots (as evidenced by my pinkie).
I began my experimentation using OPI’s I Brake for Manicures, a deep dark eggplant, as the base shade. I think black would’ve look best, but shamefully I don’t own one (something I must remedy IMMEDIATELY). After a little trial and error, here’s the results (first picture, natural light; second picture, with flash):
Top to bottom: Glam-More, Luminous Lavender, Gleam Me Up, Jade-d
My first go around didn’t fully produce the results I wanted – Luminous Lavender is the sheerest of the bunch, and as such, the crackle effect was nearly negligible. As well, I wasn’t pleased with how Glam-More, my favorite of the four, turned out. Re-done, here’s my second try (first picture, natural light; second picture, with flash):
MUCH better!! (Note that I didn’t use top coat in any of these shots) With the ‘effects’ properly showcased, I was able to analyze just how I felt about the crackle trend. Sorry to say, it’s still not my cup of tea – I guess my anal nature likes things to be a bit more precise, and the crackle effect just looks haphazard and messy to me. But, if I were feeling particularly ‘adventurous’ shall we say, I’d certainly give Glam-More and Gleam Me Up another shot – the color of these two shades is simply luminous and would look absolutely stunning against a true black base. Partially because of it’s sheerness, and also because of it’s pale tone, Luminous Lavender left me cold – and Jade-d, while quite funky, just isn’t my bag either.
For those of you who DO love a good crackle to spice up your manicure, China Glaze’s Crackle Glitters will be available at salons and beauty supply stores nationwide in May. As always, China Glaze polishes are free of DBP, toluene, and added formaldehyde!
What do you think about crackle polishes? Do they rock your world, or can you take ‘em or leave ‘em? Any of these pique your interest?
*These products were provided for my unbiased consideration by the PR company/brand.
It’s Over For Another Year…Lent 2012 Conclusion and Considerations
Posted by Latoya in Benefit, China Glaze, Eyeshadow, FOTD, Holiday, Lips, Lise Watier, MAC, Make Up For Ever, Make-up, Musings, Nail Polish, Rescue Beauty Lounge, The Lent Experiment, theBalm, Zoya on April 5, 2012
Well another year has passed, and that means another Lent and a challenge to embark on. Six weeks ago, I revealed my plan to you for this year’s Lent, which was MUCH tamer than last year (giving up buying cosmetics cold turkey – gah! What was I thinking!?):
1) Write a blog post every single day, with the exception of Sundays
2) Wear every single makeup item in my stash at least once
3) Post regular FOTD pictures with the evidence
It was a pretty easy year, I have to say, which is why you didn’t get many updates from me as the weeks passed. I started strong with the FOTD pics (though failed at making them look good!), but as time wore on I found myself still mostly wearing the same old looks and products I always do. It was an unsuccessful Lent in that respect, but not entirely a waste – I did learn a few lessons!
First, I came to some conclusions about blogging and how I plan to proceed with writing posts. While I almost always have a plethora of things I’d like to write about, near the end of the 6 weeks I found that I was feeling less enthused about blogging – working on a computer all day to come home to work for another few hours, every single day, started to get to me. Could have been year-end as well, but in order for me to maintain my blogging integrity and the quality of posts I want to produce, I think every second day or so is more reasonable for where I’m at right now. I really want to engage with more people, either our in the community making myself present, or through my own posts, and I’m barely finding the time to write a post, take good quality (as I’m able) photos, respond to comments, read others blogs and comment….it’s a lot of time and as I’m no night-owl…it gets pretty strained. So while I tried and mostly succeeded to write every day, it’s just not feasible for me if I want to still enjoy blogging as much as I do. I hope you all understand!
Second, and much more entertaining, I did experiment with makeup more than normal, working with shades that I had deemed unwearable and pairing them with different products to ‘figure them out.’ With the exception of a handful of shades, I’m pleased to say I did wear everything in my stash at least once. I had some particular successes:
- Wore MUFE Aqua Liner #5 (an aqua), a bold shade I was hesitant to wear, on the top lash line with minimal other makeup, and actually ADORED how it looked – and how wearable it turned out to be! A perfect look for Summer!
- Paired MAC’s Shimmermoss, another aqua shade, with MAC’s Petrol Blue liner (smudged at the lash line) to create a deeper, more intense teal shade which looked much better on my darker skin tone.
- Wore UD’s Kush (kelly green) from the BoSIII palette on Saint Paddy’s Day, along with Lise Watier’s Folie de Pomme loose shadow (golden green), and it looks absolutely amazing!
As to be expected, I also had some failures:
- I struggled to find ways to wear MAC’s Madly Magenta Cream Color Base, a deeply saturated violet pink (tried it on lips as well as cheeks, and I’m not too sure…*see below*).
- Several shades from the UD BoSIII palette continued to be completely unworn: Perversion (matte black), Uzi (glittering white), Midnight Cowboy Rides Again (glittering champagne), and Money (pale aqua-blue with a touch of glitter)…can you see a trend here? The shades with glitter (hello, fall-out!) are just so tough to pull off!
- Still haven’t taken the time to figure out NARS Habanera…I feel like the lack of effort I’m putting into it might be indicative of it’s fate.
Overall, while there were some shades I discovered new uses for, or learned how to wear them properly, there were also shades that just aren’t going to and won’t work for me. A lot of the more cool-toned, blue-based shades I own I think will have to go – I just don’t feel comfortable wearing them. The UD palette also is a bit of a thorn in my side, because while half the shades I love, the other half are essentially useless to me. It’s a bit frustrating! However, there are still some items that are a work in progress, and I’m going to continue to investigate whether or not I should hang on to them, such as Tarte’s Blushing Bride Cheek Stain (I think I’m too dark to make this work, as it’s quite sheer); Smashbox On Trend Cream Eye Liner, a deep khaki (I’m bringing it to Jamaica to try smudging it out a ton, as that feels like the just right look for the trip); and Clinique’s Salt & Pepper Lid Smoothie (a shimmering silver-grey that would be a great base for certain looks).
Lastly, I did improve my photography skills a bit when it comes to taking FOTD’s, though I still have a LONG way to go!! Here are a couple looks I shot over the last few weeks:
Wearing: Lise Watier Folie de Pomme loose shadow, theBalm Down Boy blush, MAC Madly Magenta CCB on lips
Wearing: MUFE #2 Yellow Eyeshadow, MUFE #0L Aqua Eyes, Benefit Bella Bamba blush, and MUFE S4 Star Gloss
So. While Lent this year wasn’t much of a big hoopla as it has always been for me in years past, nonetheless I still took something away from the experience, and it wasn’t for naught! I plan to continue to go through my stash regularly to weed out products that just aren’t right for me and could use a better home, and I’m definitely going to keep trying to experiment – with both products and photos. Blogging as a whole is a constant learning experience for me, and one that I relish and take great pleasure in. There will never be a shortage of things to discover and write about!
Oh, one last thing before I go – here was my Easter mani for the week:
Wearing (thumb to pinky): Zoya Cho, MAC Mischievous Mint, China Glaze Sea Spray, Zoya Marley, RBL Poco a Poco
(Tee hee!!) Happy Easter/Long Weekend everyone!!
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