China Glaze Ahoy!

I've been drooling over promo images and early swatches of China Glaze's spring collection, Anchors Away, for a few months now.  I seriously want the entire collection.  All of them!  I didn't expect to find these until late this month or even next month, knowing how slow my Sally's is at getting new collections and how fast new collections go at my Ulta.  Much to my surprise, I found a completely full display of Anchors Away at Ulta while I was there to pick up a few other things.  YAY!  While I really wanted to just walk up to the register with all 12 polishes (and the cardboard display), I managed to find some self-control and got two - Sea Spray (which I'll review soon) and this one, the lovely Ahoy!

I honestly forgot how much I love pinks.  I wear them all the time as pedicure colors, but I can't remember the last time I wore a pink manicure.  I guess I got swept away by all those edgy neutrals, lol.  But not anymore!  Ahoy! is a berry pink jellyish polish with deep gold glass flecks.  I LOVE GLASS FLECKS.  The trend really started this past year, and as far as I'm concerned, it can just keep right on rolling!  :-)  It adds such depth and interest to this polish.  And it applies smooth as butter in two easy coats.  What more could I as for?  Please click to enlarge these photos so you can see those gorgeous glass flecks!

Here's a comparison of Ahoy! with China Glaze Strawberry Fields.  Sorry for the blurry photo of the nail wheel - my camera finds it hard to focus on this type of finish.  Kinda frustrating, actually.  But you can still see the difference in color between the two.  Strawberry Fields is more of a medium, warm-toned pink, while Ahoy! is deeper and more cool-toned.  Strawberry Fields is also a creme finish, and the gold shimmer/glass flecks is more apparent with this one.

(L) Strawberry Fields, (R) Ahoy!

(L) Strawberry Fields, (R) Ahoy!

I feel like a broken record sometimes when I say this, but these two are definitely sisters.  :-)  Different enough to own (and LOVE) both!  You may have a tougher time tracking down Strawberry Fields, but Ahoy! is out now, so pick it up while you can! 

A Quick Comparison: OPI Done Out in Deco

Fun fact:  During my epic hunt for Done Out in Deco, I tried to fill the void with a few other similar purple OPIs - Parlez-Vous OPI? and Do You Lilac It?  Now, I still have yet to try either of these as a full manicure, but I was definitely curious of how they compared with Deco.  I finally picked up a few nail wheels today, so I decided to do some comparison swatches.  This is two coats of each.  Click to enlarge for detail.  :-)

Left to Right:  Do You Lilac It?, Done Out in Deco, and Parlez-Vous OPI?

I had originally thought Do You Lilac It? would be pretty close to Done Out in Deco, but even in the bottle, they're totally different.  Do You Lilac It? is much brighter and more saturated in color.  It might be closer in color to Zoya Malia, but I don't own that one to compare.  I think it would make a great pedicure color, especially for spring.  It's the easiest to get out of these three, as it's part of the core line for OPI.  

On the other side, Parlez-Vous OPI? is like Done Out in Deco's darker older sister.  It even has the same dusty quality to it that Done Out in Deco does.  These two are definitely in the same color family.  I could totally see these two as a mani/pedi combo or even part of an  ombre manicure.  Unfortunately, OPI decided to discontinue Parlez-Vous OPI? (I know, right?!), so you may have a hard time tracking it down outside of internet stores.  But if you can, you won't regret it.  It's beautiful!

Bottom line:  These are totally different enough to own all three.  Yay!  I'm just loving these colors right now, so I'll probably be expanding my collection of lavenders/lilacs. 

OPI Done Out in Deco

There's a story behind this one.  A few weeks ago I was working the front desk at the spa I work for, when one of the estheticians, Melissa, came up to write follow-up recommendations for her client.  My eyes went immediately to her nails (usually unpainted), clad in this fresh, gorgeous, pale lilac purple.  "OHMYGODWHATISTHATINEEDITNOW," is what I was thinking.  "Melissa!  I love your nails!  What color is that?" I managed to get out instead.  She said "Um, Deco...something-Deco, I think?"  "OPI Done Out in Deco.  Done."  Music played, cherubs sang, and a lemming was born.  I began stalking swap lists on MUA.  Three failed swap attempts, before I finally got this bad boy home.  And so worth it!

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I love this for so many reasons.  It's refreshing after all this snow and cloudy days - winter in general, really.  It's actually the perfect color for spring.  Maybe this will be my Easter manicure!  :-)  Also, this baby was a two-coater.  TWO coats!  Not that the formula was an absolute dream, but I've had far too many struggles with four-coat pastels.  Complete opacity in two coats?  Yes, please!  The only down side here is that it debuted in spring 2009 with OPI's South Beach Collection...and it didn't make the perm line.  The good news is that even though you can't just pick this up at your local Ulta, you can still find it online pretty easily (and cheap!).  It's also readily available at beauty supply stores, if you have access to those, or know someone who does.  Happy hunting!

OPI Black Cherry Chutney

The unthinkable happened today.  My super weak nails  decided to revolt against me.  I got a small break on the corner of my pinky nail on my left hand, a huge crack in the nail on my left middle finger and then, just to put the cherry on top, I got a huge break on my right pointer nail.  It hasn't been a good week for me in general, so the last thing I wanted to do was file down my long nails to nubbins.  Luckily, I didn't have to file down as short as I was thinking I was going to have to go.  To "celebrate" my shorter length, I decided to bust out a good vampy color - the kind that always looks great on short nails.  Enter OPI Black Cherry Chutney.

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By the way, I SWEAR I'm not this pale in real life.  I think the combination of my Ott-Lite and the dark polish sent me to Paleville.  I only recently got this (I know, right?!), after seeing how wildly popular it is on MUA.  It's kind of the Queen Bee of vampies, and I can see why.  It's a blackened plum with fine reddish shimmer.  It's dark, but definitely not black.  I'll have to see how it looks under the fluorescent lighting at work to get a better feel for it.  I'm sure application would've been great, if it weren't for the fact that I wound up with a wonky brush.  I had to surgically remove two bristles from it that were saluting me, and then the bottom of it was still pretty frayed out.  *Sigh*

But overall, it's a great color - chic, and I liked it more than I thought I was going to.  It's also super easy to find, as it's part of the core collection.  So, if you're like me, and have almost no vampies, this is a great place to start!

Essie Limited Addiction

So, I know this came out a good solid couple months ago, but I figured I'd pay homage to the red that finally ousted OPI An Affair in Red Square as my favorite red.  I didn't think it could be done!  An Affair in Red Square was the first polish I ever needed to have.  It was the first time I felt from a polish that draw and allure that is all too familiar now.  Oddly enough I picked up Limited Addiction on a whim.  I needed a good deep-ish red creme, and it just seemed to fit the bill.  Classy, luxe, and beautiful.

Application is a dream with Limited Addiction.  It's almost a jelly, but two coats is still plenty to get the coverage you need.  I used three coats here, but that's because I'm a doof and managed to put a dent in one of my nails.  I threw a third coat over just the one, but then it was a smidge deeper than the others (D'oh!), so naturally the rest had to get a third coat as well.  Oh well, it was worth it.

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Mental note:  In the future, take pictures of Essie polishes with your right hand so the bottle doesn't look upside down (oops lol).  It was surprisingly hard to photograph this.  No matter how hard I tried, I still couldn't get it to be exactly color accurate.  Sorry!  Imagine it to be maybe a shade cooler and a little brighter, but still just as sexy.  If you don't already have your Holy Grail red, try this little number out!

My Favorite "Edgy Neutrals"

Edgy neutrals are some of my absolute favorite polishes.  I really can't get enough of these purpley-taupe colors.  While I wouldn't say these are really "interview-appropriate" colors, I would definitely say these are safe to wear around the office (unless you work somewhere with a super conservative dress code).  They're perfectly low-key, without being boring in the least.  These types of color have really surged in popularity over the last few years, which I couldn't be happier about!  There's a ton of them out there, but these are five of my personal favorites!  As always, click to enlarge the photos to see the details.

 OPI You Don't Know Jacques - This dark mushroom brown creme has become one of OPI's staple colors, but would you believe I only just got my hands on this about a month ago??  It's so popular, sometimes it's hard to pin down.  Application was good, but it took three coats to really even out.  It's thinner than I would expect from OPI.  The first coat goes on kind of streaky, but it smoothes itself out nicely by coats two and three.  It was originally released as part of OPI's France collection in fall 2008, but luckily, this has become part of the core collection, so for $8.50 you can pick this baby up at your local Ulta.

Sephora by OPI Metro Chic - A purpley-taupe creme dream.  This one is lighter, dustier and more purple than You Don't Know Jacques.  This polish was a HUGE hit when it was released in fall 2008, and has really become the face of the edgy neutrals.  Application is good with this as well.  Usually this is a two coater for me, but my skills were lacking today, so I used three.  This is only available at Sephora, and for whatever silly reason you'll pay $9 for it instead of the standard $8.50 for OPI.  The brand has been affectionately abbreviated "$OPI" in the nail polish community.  I don't see any difference between pigmentation or application between the $OPIs and the regular OPIs, but at least know that it'll be $0.50 more well spent!

Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Mystic Lilac - I would put this polish in my top five polishes of all time - I love it that much!  It's a dusty lilac purple with the most gorgeous contrasting green shimmer.  It sounds like it would be the most awful color combination, but look at it!  It's beautiful!  Application is smooth, but in order to really allow the green shimmer to show through, it has to be very sheer.  Therefore, this is definitely going to be a three-coater.  I've seen some get away with fewer when layering it over another color (Sally Hansen XW Concrete is popular), but I prefer it all by it's gorgeous self.  The downside is that this was released this fall as part of a limited edition seasonal collection.  It can be a little hard to track down now, but if you can, I'd highly suggest it!  It's the only polish I have a backup of, and I'm thinking of trying to hunt down at least two more!  lol

Revlon Perplex - Look familiar?  It's because it's an exact dupe of Chanel's super popular fall release Paradoxal!  I hunted this sucker down something fierce.  I went to six CVS's in one day about a mont ago with no luck.  Turns out I just jumped the gun a smidge, because they're out at most CVS's now.  This a gorgeous dusty purple with subtle shimmer.  It's sooo lovely!  The shimmer is less noticeable indoors, but even then it looks like a chic purple creme.  Application is unbelievable with this.  Revlon really outdid themselves here.  With careful application, this is a ONE coater!  But you know I need two.    LOL.  If you like this, go hunt it down now, because it's limited edition!  Only cost me about $6, but you could probably catch this in some kind of BOGO 50%.

China Glaze Recycle - Another one of my all-time favorites.  This is a perfect concrete grey creme with an *almost* greenish tint to it.  ALMOST.  I don't know what it is about this polish, but I just adore it.  There's a lot of greys hitting the market recently, but this one is still unique.  Application is flawless in two coats.  It debuted in spring 2008 as part of China Glaze's Ecollection (all of the polishes being named after eco-friendly things), but you can still get this fairly easily online and probably for cheaper than its original price.

Hope you enjoyed!  I'd love to see these colors more often in the office environment!  I need to try to follow up this post sometime with my favorite blingy glitter "don't-even-think-about-wearing-this-to-work" polishes.  :-)

Deborah Lippmann Across the Universe

Well, HELLO GORGEOUS!  I've had this baby since Christmas, but I've been saving it for just the right occasion.  When a friend of mine invited my husband and me out for happy hour at the cutest little restaurant/bar, it just felt like the perfect time to bust it out!

Across the Universe is a cocktail of small blue glitter with larger blue and green hexagonal glitter, suspended in a deep blue jelly base.  And boy is it delicious!  Deb really knocked it out of the park with this polish.  It's absolutely stunning.  I used three coats here for opacity, but it would look just as gorgeous with one or two coats layered over a navy or teal.

Application was actually a lot easier than I expected.  The jelly base isn't runny at all and really stays where you put it.  You should definitely let each layer dry completely before starting the next to avoid cuticle drag or accidentally moving around the glitter.  Also, it dries a little flat and bumpy, so you'll want a nice layer or two of top coat to smooth everything out and get that high gloss finish.  Please click to enlarge the photos and see this polish in all its glory!

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I just adore this!  Hubby actually said this was probably his favorite polish that I own.  That's a HUGE compliment coming from him!  I also love that Deb's inspiration for her polishes is music.  She names most of them after songs.  I think the Beatles would totally approve of Across the Universe's namesake.

The only downside to Lippmann polishes is the hefty $18 price tag, but trust me, it's absolutely worth every penny!  Run, don't walk, to your nearest Nordstrom or www.lippmanncollection.com (Can you really run to a website? *shrugs*) - you won't regret it!