Orly Out of This World

If I had to pick the most epic collection from last year, Orly's Cosmic FX would without a doubt be it.  Full of six unbelievable duochrome polishes, it was like Orly bottled up a little bit of magic in each one.  Yes, magic!  Being a complete nerd, they sold me on their space-themed names and futuristic looks, so I managed to pick up the entire collection over the last six months or so between getting the actual Orly polishes and then some of their dupes.  Just for the record, I have:

Orly:  Space Cadet

         Galaxy Girl

         Out of This World. 

Dupes:  Sally Hansen Laser (dupe of Lunar Eclipse)

            China Glaze Zombie Zest (almost dupe of It's Not Rocket Science)

            OPI Catch Me in Your Net (dupe of Halley's Comet).

I'm sure I'll end up showing you every single polish from the collection, but today I have for you the lovely Out of This World.  (You can find the entire collection and amazing swatches here from Michelle at All Lacquered Up.)

Out of This World is a deep blackened purple with brighter, more red-toned purple and gold duochrome shimmer.  It's almost a foil finish, but I'd still file this one away as a shimmer.  Application was a breeze in two coats.  I'd say in terms of color, it's slightly more red-toned in real life than in these pictures (stupid purples always photograph more blue - whyyyy?!), but these are pretty darn close!

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I just love this color!  It's got such depth!  Unfortunately, it's probably one of the least duochrome polishes in the collection.  You can see that gold flash around the curve of the bottle, above the Orly "O", but it just doesn't translate to the nail very well.  Ah, well...so the duochrome won't catch your eye from across the room, but I promise you that gorgeous, mysterious color will!

The Cosmic FX collection was released in fall of last year, which means it's pretty much gone by now.  You may find a few spare bottles at your local Sally's or Ulta.  The good news is that this collection was so awesome it was duped by pretty much every company out there.  If you love Out of This World, but can't track it down, go for Zoya Julieanne instead.  You can get it for $8 at http://www.zoya.com/.

Out of This World and Julieanne are reminiscient of Zoya Mimi from their summer 2010 Sparkle collection, so I did a quick comparison of the two for you.  What you see below is one coat of each, and this is where you see the major difference between the two (as usual, these two are both more red-toned in real life). 

(L) Orly Out of This World - one coat, (R) Zoya Mimi - one coat

Mimi is much more sheer than Out of This World (I can't speak to the opacity of Julieanne, as I don't own that one), and also a brighter, more vibrant purple.  Below is both of them at complete opacity.  Sorry for the strange background - it's my hand!  I had to put it behind the nail wheel, because my camera just wouldn't focus otherwise!

(L) Orly Out of This World - two coats, (R) Zoya Mimi - three coats

Yup, Mimi's a three-coater!  She also isn't even remotely duochrome, but she is stunning!  I wore Mimi as a pedicure a few weeks ago, and just loved how sparkly my toes were!  Out of This World/Julieanne is like Mimi's sultry and refined older sister.  Perfect for a night out or to say "Come hither..." with your nails.  ;-)

Verdict?  I absolutely adore both of these and think they're definitely different enough to own both.  I think it just depends on what kind of look you're going for!

Hope you all are having a happy Friday!  :-D

OPI Russian to a Party

This polish has a little bit of a back story.  I had been going back and forth on MUA with a girl in my area (Hi Jessie!!  *waves frantically*) about finalizing a swap - my Deborah Lippmann Bad Romance for her OPI Damone Roberts 1968.  Since she lived so close, I suggested that perhaps we could do an in-person swap and then do some dusty hunting after.  "Dusty" is a term used on MUA to refer to nail salons or beauty supply stores with an older stock of polish that might, quite literally, be dusty after sitting there for so long.  Dusty hunting is the act of going to this places to check out their stock and is a great way to find some old discontinued polishes that may be going for absurd prices on eBay.  It's kind of like a scavenger hunt.  Not all places sell their polish, and it may take some bargaining at the places that do.  She agreed, and our day was set!

You guys, it was SO fun, and we found a ton of awesome stuff!  The day's total finds, all OPI, all brand new:

Sapphire in the Snow

Merry Midnight (came in a pack with Sapphire in the Snow, a backup for me)

Paris Couture For Sure

Absolutely Alice (I already had this, but who couldn't use a backup?)

Russian to a  Party

Glacier Bay Blues

At Your Quebec and Call

 I gave hubby the choice of Sapphire in the Snow or Russian to a Party for my weekend manicure.  He chose Russian to a Party - a warm rusty red with golden red shimmer.  :-)

I forgot how strange it was to work with the old black label OPIs!  The formula is much thinner, and of course they don't have the pro-wide brushes (which I'm ok with, 'cause those brushes are just a little big for me anyway).  Even though the consistency is thin, the polish is still pretty easy to work with overall.  What surprised me was that it took three coats to reach full opacity and bottle color.  Three coats?  For a red?  From OPI?  Red is what they DO!  I mean, it wasn't a big deal or anything, but I'm just not sure I've ever come across a three-coater red from OPI.  Shrugs.

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Pretty, right?  It's so perfect for fall (so of course I'm wearing it in spring - d'oh!).  It's not flashy, and I'd definitely say this is work-friendly.  It's a color I think my mom would LOVE, but I wouldn't chalk it up to be a "mom color," if that makes sense.  It's just a really pretty and unique color.  I'm actually shocked that OPI ever discontinued this in the first place, especially considering their knack for awesome reds.

Unfortunately since this one is long gone, you'll have to resort to the interwebz to nab this one up (or go dusty hunting!).  You can get it between $10 and $15 on eBay.  If you love unique reds or warm feel-good colors, I'd say this one is worth the extra price to get it.  :-)

Butter London British Racing Green

St. Patty's day is long over, but I still have pretties to show for it!  To celebrate the holiday, Butter London ran a fab promo where if you bought $24 (I think) worth of stuff, they'd throw in a free British Racing Green polish.  Since British Racing Green had been on my wish list for a while, and $24 was easily covered by buying two other polishes, I was sold!  (I picked up Marrow and No More Waity Katie, so stay tuned for those!)

British Racing Green is a deep shimmery blue-leaning green.  The shimmer is pretty fine, but it's definitely noticeable.  It's almost a one-coater (This seems to be the standard for Butter Londons...awesome!), but of course I did two!  Application was good.  My only complaint was similar to when I reviewed All Hail the Queen - I felt like I needed to keep dipping my brush back in the bottle for more polish.  I just decided to get a huge blob on the brush at one time, and that made things much easier.  :-)

(click to enlarge)

I'm sad to say that after all that time it spent on my wish list, I'm a little disappointed in British Racing Green.  I mean, it's nice, but nothing to write home about really.  I like it, but I don't love it.  I did get a lot of compliments on it, though!  I think maybe I'm just not really a green girl (blasphemy, I know!).  Shrugs.

As soon as I applied it, I had a small panic attack.  I totally thought it was going to be dupey to China Glaze Jolly Holly.  It also reminded me of Orly Enchanted Forest, so I grabbed my nail wheel and swatched away.

(L) to (R):  Orly Enchanted Forest, Butter London British Racing Green, China Glaze Jolly Holly

Sigh of relief.  Definitely not a Jolly Holly dupe!  Jolly Holly is MUCH brighter and more warm-toned.  But look how close the base color of British Racing Green is to Enchanted Forest!  It's kind of like a shimmery version of it!  With better application!  ;-)  If you're a fan of  Enchanted Forest, I think it's definitely worth checking out British Racing Green.  (By the way, that's China Glaze White Cap over British Racing Green on the far right.  FAIL.  So glad I tried it on my nail wheel first!)

British Racing Green is part of Butter London's core line, and you can find it at http://www.butterlondon.com/, http://www.ulta.com/, and at some Ulta stores.  It's $14 a bottle, so if you have your "Holy Grail" deep green, you can probably give this one a pass.  But if you're looking for an Enchanted Forest with just a little something extra, it's a winner!

Barielle Elle's Spell

Remember my love affair with OPI Merry Midnight?  Boy, was that a gorgeous polish!  I loved it so much that I immediately decided I needed more flakie polishes in my life.  I already had Sally Hansen's wildly popular Hidden Treasure, but that's really more of a layering flakie, so I was really after one with a colored base that could be worn by itself.  Enter Barielle Elle's Spell.

I passed on Elle's Spell when it was first released with Barielle's Holiday Hustle collection from this past winter, but the photos on MUA were just to die for so I arranged a swap to get one for myself.  You may still be able to find this on clearance for dirt cheap at your local Ulta.  Elle's Spell (This sounds like more of a Halloween name to me...am I missing something?) is a cherry red jelly polish with red flakies that also show gold, orange, and green tones.  It took three coats to get full coverage, but the application was a dream!  Seriously, this was probably the easiest-to-apply polish I've ever worn.  The polish stayed right where I put it and I could get a really nice clean line.

I apologize in advance, because it was REALLY hard to capture all that was going on with this polish.  I feel like you need a ton of pictures to see everything, and even then it's not enough.  For the life of me, I couldn't get my camera to pick up on the green flashes the flakies will do at an angle.  Those of you who own Elle's Spell know exactly what I'm talking about!  But anyway, on to the pictures!  And definitely click to enlarge these!  :-)

(Holy cow, red polish makes my hands look so pale in pictures!)  Isn't it pretty?  The flakies are subtle, but add such depth to the polish.  This is why three coats is worth it!  Oooh...ahhhh!  

A few days later I wanted to spice it up a little.  Everyone on MUA raves about mattifying flakie polishes, Elle's Spell in particular.  One coat of Essie Matte About You top coat later, and here's the result:

Um.  Ew.  I mean, don't get me wrong, I love how the matte look really shows off the flakes and makes them look kind of "frozen," but it took that gorgeous cherry red and turned it to ruddy nastiness.  I was baffled - I've seen this EXACT look on other girls look amazing!  It just didn't flatter my skin at all.  I'll still give matte flakies another shot, but not with Elle's Spell!

On a side note, Elle's Spell has been mentioned as being a good substitute for Sally Hansen Hidden Treasure, as long as you wear it over a dark color.  Since I now own both, I thought I'd compare the two over black just to see for myself.  This is one coat of each over one coat of Wet 'n Wild Black Creme:

(L) Elle's Spell, (R) Hidden Treasure

The flakes in Elle's Spell aren't quite as big or as dense as the flakes in Hidden Treasure.  They're also definitely a little more red-leaning and don't show that green flash as easily (you can totally see it on the right edge with Hidden Treasure, but only just barely on the left with Elle's Spell).  Definitely not exact dupes, but I'd say it might satisfy your lemming for Hidden Treasure, if you don't own it.

Bottom line?  I need more flakies!!!  :-D

China Glaze White Cap

Ok, so you didn't have to wait very long for China Glaze White Cap after all.  I just couldn't resist that gorgeous gold shimmer anymore!  This is the third polish I picked up from China Glaze's Anchors Away collection from this spring.  I seriously had it in my hands at least three different times.  Pick it up...put it back...you know the drill.  Finally, I saw a photo of it layered over Essie Marshmallow (the combination I should have chosen for my last post.  Sigh.) from a girl on MUA - I was sold.  Picked it up  the next day!

White Cap is, as you can tell from the bottle, a milky white polish with gorgeous golden shimmer.  On its own, it's really sheer.  It's not buildable at all - way too sheer to wear on its own (for me).  If you like sheer polishes, then certainly give it a try by itself.  No one needs to see the horror that lies underneath my polish, so here I have it layered over China Glaze Sea Spray, from the same collection.  This is one layer, and it was super easy to apply.

(click to enlarge)

I absolutely LOVED this combo!  It's stunning!  It's so sparkly and delicate and beautiful.  For some reason it reminded me of Cinderella's ball gown (silly, I know).  I wore this for five days, and I couldn't stop staring at my nails!

I've also seen White Cap look amazing over white, black, taupe, green, and especially grey (try it over Pelican Grey from the same collection!).  The combinations are obviously endless, but those are just a few to get you started.  The Anchors Away collection was released a few months ago, but you can still find it at Ulta and at www.transdesign.com.  Unfortunately, Sally's did not pick up this collection (*shakes fist*).

Any other layering suggestions??  I can't wait to try this over other colors!

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Essie Marshmallow and Orly Winter Wonderland

Quick - someone write this moment down!  I'm about to show you a manicure I wore to work....and it wasn't an edgy neutral!  I KNOW, right?!  Don't worry, I'm not ill, and I promise you my unhealthy obsession with edgy neutrals has not ended.  *Cuddles with bottle of $OPI Metro Chic*  This was actually a two part manicure that spanned over four days.

I started out with Essie Marshmallow.  This polish had been on my list for a long time.  After seeing a comparison of whites from Scrangie (It's the second photo in this post.), I just had to have it.  Most whites are almost harshly opaque and somewhat chalky in texture.  Not Marshmallow.  It's a soft, squishy, jellyish white like no other.  Unfortunately, the price you pay for that squishiness is at least three coats.  There's no real application issues, it just takes that many to even everything out.  Scrangie used three, and you could certainly stop there.  I did four, because I wanted that extra opacity.  I love how it turned out!

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Such an angelic white.  And a nice change of pace from my typical "office colors."  I wore Marshmallow on its own for two days, and then I decided to spice it up.  I had a few "effect" polishes to choose from - Sally Hansen Hidden Treasure (an opalescent flaky), China Glaze White Cap (a sheer white with golden sparkles), and Orly Winter Wonderland (a soft white irregular fleck).   None of these are really buildable to opacity, which makes them great for layering.  Here's how each of them look over Marshmallow on my nail wheel (Sorry for the bad photos, it's difficult to capture the beauty in all of these!):

 (L) to (R):  Hidden Treasure, White Cap, Winter Wonderland

 (L) to (R):  Hidden Treasure, White Cap, Winter Wonderland

Why I didn't choose Hidden Treasure or White Cap is beyond me, but Winter Wonderland had been a lemming of mine since it came out in this past year's 'Tis the Season collection, and look how nice it is where the light hits it!  I had to try it out.  (And don't worry, White Cap will get it's moment in the spotlight soon!  hehe)  So here it is, one coat over Marshmallow:

(click to enlarge)

I promise you this looked better in person.  The lighting casts a strange beige color to it that isn't as noticeable in real life.  Maybe I should've taken a picture in the sun (D'oh!).  Can you see those irregular shaped flakes?  Winter Wonderland is kind of like if a shimmer and a flaky had a baby.  It's sparkly like snow on a sunny day.  It's interesting and pretty, and I did get compliments on it, but I'm not loving it.  Shame, since I waited so long to finally get my hands on it.  Oh well, back to the drawing board!

My St. Patty's Day Manicure: Zoya Ivanka

Happy St. Patty's Day!!  Are you wearing your green?  I am!  Today I have for you Zoya Ivanka, which I have been saving up for today since January!  I picked her up during Zoya's epic Facebook promotion where they gave away three free polishes just for hitting 20,000 fans!  You guys, Zoya is one of the most amazing companies.  They don't take themselves too seriously (I'm looking at you, OPI!), they have great products, fantastic customer service, unbelievable promotions, and they really listen to their fans.  If you haven't checked out any of their polishes yet - head over to http://www.zoya.com/, browse the endless selection, and create an account.  Word on Facebook is there's another epic promotion going down SOON.  Yay!!

Ivanka is a yellow-leaning green (a little warmer than shows here on the photos) and gold glass-fleck polish.  The base is kind of sheer but it builds easily for opacity.  Application is amazing, as usual for Zoya.  I used two coats, but I might could've used three.  She sparkles like there's no tomorrow, and these pictures don't even begin to do her justice!  Click to enlarge to see just a fraction of her beauty!

Ivanka was released with Zoya's 2010 summer Sparkle collection (the unbelievable collection that included Charla and Mimi).  I'm not a huge green person - I only have a handful in my entire collection - but Ivanka is a must-have.  I can honestly say she was worth the wait!  Totally unique and absolutely stunning!  You can pick this baby up for $8 at http://www.zoya.com/.

I would also urge you to pick up Zoya's Armor top coat along with it.  As reported here by Michelle at All Lacquered up, Zoya's formula doesn't play nicely with most quick-dry top coats, and may lead to chipping.  But I don't want to wait that long for my polish to dry!  Me neither!  I always put Zoya Armor over my Zoya polish and THEN top with my quick-dry top coat, and I never have any problems with chipping.  Boom - problem solved!  :-)

I hope today is the luckiest of days for you all!

P.S. - Whaddaya think of the new design?!  I'm loving it!!  Spankin' new header is compliments of the incredible Brandon Smith.  Brandon and I went to high school together back in Missisippi, and he is genuinely one of the nicest and most talented people you could ever meet.  His work will knock your socks off.  You can check him out over at http://www.brandonasmith.com/.  Thanks, Brandon!!  :-D