Another Look: Illamasqua Raindrops

After all the Christmas glitter and festive holiday polish, I needed a palette cleanser before I jumped into my next glitterfest on New Year's Eve.  I remembered how much Jessie raved about Illamasqua Raindrops, and since it's been sitting in my untrieds for far long enough (September at least), I thought it fit the bill quite nicely.

Raindrops is a pale greyed out blue polish with these amazing tiny silvery microflakies.  It falls heavily on the sheer side, but it has to, or else those beautiful flakies just wouldn't show up.  I used three kind of thick coats here, but if you're a thin-coat kind of girl, you'll probably need a fourth.  The application was flawless and streak-free.  Would we expect anything less from Illamasqua?  Definitely click to enlarge these photos and see how awesome this is!

 (click to enlarge)

 (click to enlarge)

I owe Jessie SO much for this polish.  She totally surprised me by picking this one up for me when she ordered her own Raindrops during the big summer sale.  She's a peach!  Raindrops is everything I hoped it would be.  It's subtle and delicate and absolutely perfect for cleansing the palette between glitter bombs.  Looks just like raindrops on a window pane.  Sigh.

The downside to showing you guys this one is that it's a UK-exclusive.  And it's discontinued (Whyyyyy?!  *shakes fist*).  That being said, it's NOT impossible to get your hands on.   There are a few that pop up at any given time on MUA, and although there's only one for sale now, I expect to see more of them listed on ebay in the future.  I always hate to show polishes that are hard to find, but this one is just too lovely to not show you.

I hope everyone's had a great week so far!  It's almost the weekend, and the hubby and I will be celebrating both our birthdays with good friends!  Can't wait!  :-)

Illamasqua Phallic

After I showed you a polish named after an "infertile man", I thought it was finally the right time to show you a polish named after the male crotchal region.  Yeah, Illamasqua went there.  I put off trying this one far too long....here's Phallic!

It's not exactly what I would've picked when choosing colors to represent male genitalia, but Illamasqua went with a deep midnight blue with blue shimmer.  It's kind of that glass-fleck style shimmer, but it's super subtle.  Much more than these photos would suggest.  What surprised me most, though, was the formula.  Illamasqua is known for unbelievably smooth formulas and great wear, but this one was thick and globby and hard to apply.  I ended up using two blobby coats, and I had major chips within two days.  Not a good way to start off.

 (click to enlarge)

 (click to enlarge)

These photos are too flattering of this polish.  I wish it looked like this all the time.  The shimmer is to DIE for - like little blue stars in the night sky - but it only comes out to play in direct lighting (i.e. sunlight or when you stick your hand under a lamp, lol).  Most of the time you're looking at a deep blue creme with, like, three shimmers.  I suppose if you love deep blues or vampy colors, you may be able to overlook the lack of shimmer, but for $14 a bottle, I WANT SHIMMER, DAMNIT!

I guess that's what I get for buying a polish named after a penis.

(Compliments of www.jamesvandermemes.com)

100 Posts Giveaway!!! Illamasqua Raindrops and Deborah Lippmann Glitter in the Air Combo!!!!

So I had heard on Makeup Alley (MUA - an online forum for beauty junkies) that Raindrops by Illamasqua was on sale for 5GBP (about $8), but it didn't entice me enough to buy based on history alone.  This polish made a big splash when it came out in 2010 as one of the winner of Illamasqua's Nail Varnish Competition.  The promo shots of it and the story behind the inspiration sent the internet a-buzz with excitement.  When the polish actually came out, some were disappointed, which is probably why it ended up in the bargain bin on Illamasqua's website.  Something made me change my mind (find out below), and just before the end of the sale I caved.  Now that I have it, I can not fathom for the life of me why people are not in love with this polish.  I sure am.  The color is so beautiful, it's got a wonderful jelly consistency, and the soft silver flakes are just....so...beautiful.  I think this polish may have earned a spot in my top 5.

Anyway, the polish was never released in the US, only in the UK (Illamasqua is a British company).  So while I thought it was pretty, I wasn't into polish enough to order it from overseas.  Then 2 weeks ago, I saw this post on Spaz & Squee and immediately went to order Raindrops online.  Have you looked at the post yet?  No? GO LOOK! :) I'll be here when you get back.

So there I am, scrolling through Cilucia's pictures, marveling at the soft blue-ish grey jelly, dazzled by the small silver floating flakes, secretly pinning for perfect nails like hers when BAM!!!! What?!?! Use Raindrops and the most perfect backdrop EVER (in my humble opinion) for Deborah Lippmann's Glitter in the Air?!?!??! Hell Yeah!  I have Glitter in the Air and I love it, but I never know what to wear it over.  I usually go with the general baby blue everyone does, but you loose some of the contrast with the blue glitter when you do that.  Anyway, at this point I've ordered 3 Raindrops, one for me, one for my lovely friend Courtney, and one for one of you.  I rushed over to Zappos and did a mini Butter London haul, threw in another Glitter in the Air (you wouldn't think I'd let mine go now would you!) and a giveaway was born.  Just in time for us to turn 100 :).  

So let's first start off with my pictures of Illamasqua's Raindrops on it's own.  It's 100 times more gorgeous in real life you guys.  I promise :).  The darker shot was includes because if you click to enlarge it, you can see the flakes better.  This is 3 coats to opacity.  I've heard others say they needed 4, but I do tend to do thicker coats than I should.  I had no issues with drying, smudging or bubbling.  Perfect formula for a sheer.

Illamasqua Raindrops

Illamasqua Raindrops

Illamasqua Raindrops

Now it's time to celebrate the 100th post, throw some "glitter in the air", and top off my mani.  Here are the shots of 2 coats of Glitter in the Air over my 3 coats of Raindrops.  I think next time I will only do one.  Here is a hint on using Glitter in the Air - dip the brush in the polish, wipe one side of the brush off inside the bottle, before you apply look at the other side, if you aren't happy with the variety or quantity of glitter, do it again before applying.

Deborah Lippmann Glitter in the Air over Illamasqua Raindrops 

Deborah Lippmann Glitter in the Air over Illamasqua Raindrops

Super extreme close-up! Can you see how soft and pretty this is?  You can also see the flakes from raindrop peaking through.

Deborah Lippmann Glitter in the Air over Illamasqua Raindrops

If you must have these and don't want to wait for the giveaway to end, Raindrops is still available on Illamasqua.com, but it's back to full price (13.50GBP or $21.50!!!) plus international shipping!  Glitter in the Air is $18 and can be found online at Beautybar.com, DeborahLippmann.com, Zappos.com or Nordstroms.com.

So now that you know the story behind my new love - it's time to give away some polish.  I've got one brand new in box Deborah Lippmann Glitter in the Air, and one brand new in box Illamasqua Raindrops.  Both of these puppies will go to one lucky winner.

Shiny and New!
Deborah Lippmann Glitter in the Air and Illamasqua Raindrops

Win these!

Contest rules and information:

1. You must be a public follower using Google Friend Connect (GFC).  New followers are welcome.  To follow, click the Join this site icon on the left hand side of the blog.  Make sure you opt to follow publicly.  If you are not a public follower, you will be disqualified.
2. To be a contestant of this giveaway you must fill out the contest form below.  One contest form per person. Required information is your GFC name and email address (for contact purposes only).
3. One entry is automatic for all contestants.  A second entry can be earned by linking to this contest.  A valid link to your twitter posting, facebook post, or blog post linking back to this giveaway page must be entered on the contest form to earn this second entry. 
4. The giveaway will close on Tuesday, September 27, 2011 at 10:00PM E.S.T.
5. The winner will be selected using random.org.
6. The winner will be contacted by email and will have 48 hours to respond.  If the winner does not respond a new winner will be selected.
7. The contest is open internationally.

Good luck everyone!!!

The giveaway is now closed.  Thanks to everyone who entered, and GOOD LUCK!!

Another Look: Illamasqua Baptiste

Hey guys!  What do you think of our new header?  Courtney made it and it's totally awesome.  I'm obsessed!  So I messed around with the layout theme a bit to better match it.  What do you think?

Now onto the nail polish.  When Courtney and I first met, she went on and on and on :) about this Illamasqua polish called "Baptiste" and how it was the sexiest polish of her life and if she could marry it she would.  So some time later, I had the opportunity to swap for it.  Then about 3 months later I finally got around to wearing it.  I seriously thought Courtney was going to disown me as a friend for not wearing it sooner.  About a week after the big move, my other half and I got to sneak away to the beach for a day.  Most people would wear a fun bright summery color to the beach, or if you are like Courtney, you wear a holo.  Me, I opt for a deep vampy purple. :)  Well in my differences I thought some beach pictures to show off Baptiste's shimmer would do nicely.  Plus it was one of those - "If I don't wear it now, I'll never wear it!!!!"

I think a good way to start off is to take another peak at the swatches Courtney put up of Baptiste back in February.  These pictures are awesome.  They show the shimmer, the depth, and of course the beauty that is Baptiste.  One thing you will notice in my picutres is the polish is nowhere near as glossy as it should be.  I got one word for you - sunscreen!  Do you guys have this problem.  It's always jacking with my nail polish.  I actually had OPI's Come to Poppy on my toes and it really jacked with that, pretty much leaving me with a matte neon coral.  Oh well!  (And yes I put sunscreen on my feet, everyone should! Just say no to skin cancer)

This is two coats of Baptiste.  If I had been more careful, I probably could have done one.  This is my first Illamasqua polish and I loved the formula and brush.  I didn't need any clean up!  I'm a sucker for a good formula.  Make sure you click these guys to see them full size!!!

Illamasqua Baptiste

Illamasqua Baptiste

This polish is very dark, and while it is easy to see the shimmer in the light, it is always very dark.  However, from afar I can instantly look at my nails and tell they aren't black, so that's nice.  Baptiste is part of Illamasqua's normal collection and is available at Sephora.  You can also buy directly from Illamasqua's website.  This baby is about $14, but I think well worth it!

Oh and good news!  My Tony Moly Galaxy polishes showed up!  So look for those coming soon.  I'm so excited I could scream :).

Illamasqua Rampage

So, remember how Illamasqua Baptiste and I were completely in love?  Well, after our honeymoon, I ran out to Sephora to pick up another one of my Illamasqua lemmings - Rampage.  It's known as "The Jesus" on MUA, so I of course only had the highest of expectations for it.  Let's just go straight to the pictures (I took a few in different lightings, because Rampage is apparently quite the chameleon).

Under my Ott-Lite:

Outside, on a cloudy day:

Rampage is a blackened, forest green jelly.  Somehow the jelly finish brightens it, so even though it's a deep green, it's still vibrant.  It walks the "almost black" line, but never crosses it.  It's definitely the green that OPI's Here Today...Aragon Tomorrow wanted to be.

I don't know, you guys - I think someone needs to take my temperature.  This just isn't doing it for me.  I mean don't get me wrong, the application was flawless in two coats (and I completely expected to need three) and it's a lovely color, but I just feel kind of meh about it.  I don't hate it, but it just doesn't blow me away.  And for $14 a pop, it better!

I did a quick comparison of Rampage (3 coats) with OPI Here Today...Aragon Tomorrow (3 coats) and Orly Enchanted Forest (2 coats).

(L) to (R):  OPI HTAT, Illamasqua Rampage, Orly Enchanted Forest

You'll have to take my word for it that my lighting is washing out these colors.  HTAT is not this green.  For all intensive purposes, unless you're in FULL, DIRECT sunlight, it's black.  That's what was so disappointing about it.   And I'm shocked at how pale Enchanted Forest looks compared to these two colors!  It almost looks grey!  Trust me, it's much more saturated than it shows in this picture.  I'm gonna have to do a post on it just to do it proper justice.  LoL

Bottom line:  I'm not all that impressed with Rampage, but if you love greens, I think it'll be a keeper for you.  Maybe a good St. Patty's day manicure??  :-)

Illamasqua Baptiste

Remember when deep purple vampies were all the rage a few years back?  In magazines all the models were rocking some deep mysterious color on their short nails.  It was actually the trend that set in motion my undying need for polish.  I needed a deep, shimmery purple polish.  For some reason, it was almost impossible to find.  I found a few deep creme finishes that I liked, but they just weren't quite what I was looking for.  I stumbled upon OPI Russian Navy, which I love, but it isn't purple.  It filled the void well enough.  Or so I thought...

You guys...the heavens have opened, cherubs are singing, and fairies are dancing around unicorns in enchanted forests, because I finally found my true love!  I'd been interested in Illamasqua Baptiste for a while, and I finally brought it home in a swap.  I know I love a lot of polishes, but I'm not joking - Baptiste is magical.  

I've heard nothing but rave reviews for Illamasqua polishes, and I know why!  Baptiste applied like a dream in two easy coats.  It's totally a one-coater, but well...don't we know me by now?  It's the most beautiful blackened red-leaning purple with red and blue shimmer - the same kind that makes Russian Navy so gorgeous.  It wears like iron, too.  I've had it on for four days now with only minimal tip wear.  I am so in LOVE with this polish, I've been staring at my nails all weekend!  

Unfortunately, cameras don't like to photograph purples, so please forgive me, as I had to color-correct the photos to show a more accurate color.  I still don't think I got it exactly right, but it's pretty darn close.  Please enlarge them to see up close!

Look at that shimmer!  *swoon*

Baptiste is all that and a bag of chips.  Seriously.  This is easily a Top 10 polish for me!  It's everything I ever wanted in a purple.  This was my first Illamasqua polish, but I promise you it's not my last (stay tuned for Rampage - brought it home this weekend)!  It's worth every penny of its $14 price tag.  You can pick it up at www.illamasqua.com, www.sephora.com, or at Sephora stores that carry Illamasqua, and I highly recommend you do, if you don't already own this beauty!

Baptiste, where have you been all my life?!