Ozotic Elytra 528 over Ozotic 505.

I hauled all six of the Ozotic Pro multichrome polishes last week and I planned to post the swatches of them before posting the swatches of this, but I just can't wait to show you this little number I have been sporting for the last few days.

This is one of the new multichrome glitter polishes from Exotic Pro, Elytra 528.  There have been a number of great swatches around of this over black, like You've Got Nail and Vettelicious.  So I thought I would do something different.

This polish is basically a glitter version of Ozotic Pro 505 (which is a dupe of Sally Hansen Turquoise Opal (which I'm giving away as a prize for my franken polish contest)).  I thought I would layer Elytra 528 over Ozotic 505.

This is base coat, one coat black, one coat Ozotic 505, two coats Elytra 528, two coats Seche Vite. This first picture was outdoors in indirect sunlight.

This picture is in direct sun, and the turquoise glitter was so blinding that my camera wouldn't focus properly.

Here is an upclose of the glitter, showing the colour shift.

And even closer of the glitter.  You can actually see the tiny shimmer particles beneath of the multichrome colour shift of 505.

I found this glitter polish had a surprisingly smooth finish.  It certainly isn't gritty like you would expect a glitter polish to be.  I also found that it removed pretty easily, I didn't even need to use the foil method to get it off.

These photos are only showing the green, turquoise, blue and purple flashes.  When layered over black you see purple to gold flecks at the right angle too.  I personally think 528 has the best colours and most noticeable colour shift out of the three Elytra's.

In case you didn't know, these can be purchased from piCture pOlish, and they do ship internationally, although they are $$$$$ especially as the Aussie dollar is strong at the moment.

Nude nail polish is the latest trend and Zoya has it!

More reviews on the three new nude nail polish colors of the Zoya Nail Polish Touch Collection (Zoya Minka, Zoya Shay and Zoya Pandora)... proving that "less really is more" sometimes!

"I'd be hard pressed to pick a favorite of these because all three of them are really cool,
and they're coming out just in time for my renewed love of shimmers."

Nailphile

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"Overall, I like this collection..."

a lot of contests and such

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"They really deliver on the promise of  full coverage nude(s)"

Let Them Have Polish

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"This collection delivers something for everyone, and unlike most nude polish colors on the market these polishes have a lot of opacity. Less is more, and in a sea of brightly colored polishes sometimes it's nice to opt for a more subdued look."

Meowalycat - Beauty Product Junkies - BellaSugar

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It's not about finding a perfect match to your skin tone but rather about finding the one that coordinates. Our color experts logged many hours creating the perfect full-coverage nude nail polish shades! Since then we've found that most people can wear one of the three new nudes in the Zoya Touch collection no matter what!
Zoya Nail Polish

"You know what? They're (Zoya Nail Polish) right!"

Manicure Mommas

OPI Serena Williams’ Glam Slam! Series

Get “Unbeatable” Sparkle!

OPI Unveils Three New Shades from

Serena Williams’ Glam Slam! Series

OPI joins tennis superstar Serena Williams in announcing the latest three lacquers in the Glam Slam! collection. To celebrate the world’s oldest, most prestigious tennis tournament, Glam Slam! England features two duo-packs filled with sparkle.

The first Lacquer set includes Your Royal Shine-ness, a metallic silver shade, paired with Servin’ Up Sparkle, a shimmer-packed silver glitter. The second Lacquer set also features Servin’ Up Sparkle, along with Grape…Set…Match, a metallic purple.

“England’s premier tennis tournament warrants colors with extra glitz and glamour,” said Suzi Weiss-Fischmann, OPI Executive VP & Artistic Director. “The next big trend in nails is making lacquer look 3-dimensional by adding different micas and glitters, turning fingertips into jewelry. With two bold metallics and a sparkling glitter, these colors are fit for royalty.”

“For stand-out nails, I love experimenting with different glitter shades,” explains Serena Williams. “The new Glam Slam! England lacquers can be worn alone for a bright pop of color, or layered with Servin’ Up Sparkle to create a textured effect.”

Serena Williams has received the World Number One in singles ranking by the Women’s Tennis Association on five separate occasions, along with being listed as sixth on the all-time greatest champions list. Additionally, she has won two Olympic gold medals in women’s doubles and has earned 27 Grand Slam titles to date. Serena is the most recent player to have held all four Grand Slam singles titles simultaneously and only the fifth woman in history to do so.

 OPI/Glam Slam! England

Serving Up Sparkle

Grape Set Match

Your Royal Shine-ness

New shades in the Glam Slam! collection will be introduced to coincide with each of the four major tournaments, beginning with the Australian Open in January 2011, followed by launches in May 2011 for the French Open, June 2011 for Wimbledon and August 2011 for the US Open. As with all OPI Nail Lacquers, the Glam Slam! collection contains no DBP, Toluene, or Formaldehyde, and each includes OPI’s exclusive ProWide™ Brush for the ultimate in application.

Glam Slam! England will be available beginning June 2011 at Professional Salons, including Beauty Brands, Beauty First, Chatters, Dillard’s, JCPenney, Pure Beauty, Regis, Trade Secret, and ULTA, for $14.95 ($20.95 CAN) suggested retail for each duo-pack.

For more information, please call 800-341-9999 or visit www.opi.com. Follow OPI on Twitter @OPI_PRODUCTS and become a Facebook fan!

provided by pr

Until next time please have a great nail polish day. (✿◠‿◠)

Franken Contest Reminder and ABCs

I thought I better do a reminder about my create a franken polish contest.  It closes this Thursday - 2 June, and so far I have received ONE entry.  So she's a shoe in for the prize at the moment!

And now, I've realised how much I enjoy reading other people's ABC's, so for the first time, I will reveal a little more about myself.

A. Age: 36
B. Bed size: King
C. Chore you hate: All of them, that's why hubby is so good at them.
D. Day: Sunday
E. Essential start to your day: Peeing
F. Favourite colour: Red, but not on my nails.
G. Gold or Silver: Gold.
H. Height: 5'9" or 175cm
I. Instruments: Recorder, triangle, tambourine - anything my 3 year old can play.
J. Job title: Team Leader in a Federal Govt Dpt.
K. Kids: Two, 3yo and 4 months.
L. Live: North Canberra
M. Mum’s name: Dorothy.
N. Nicknames: Caddy, Cath, Wellsy, Wellsette,
O. Overnight hospital stays: Two, to have my bubbies.
P. Pet peeve: Drivers that don't know how to merge.
Q. Quote from a movie: At the moment, Mr Three is totally into the Cars movie, so my favourite quote is Mater saying "He did what in his cup" after McQueen tells them that Doc won three Piston Cups.
R. Right or left handed: Right
S. Siblings: Two older brothers.
T. Time you wake up: 6.30ish
U. Underwear: Always, although I have been known to partake in an occasional 'No undie Sundie'
V. Vegetables you dislike: Jerusalem artichokes & broad beans.
W. What makes you run late: Kids, like Mr three chucking a wobbly, or Miss four months doing a serious mess in her pants, as we walk out the door.
X. X-Rays you’ve had: Wisdom teeth.
Y. Yummy food you make: It's all edible, but my specialties are: tomato savories and cheesies (both family recipes)
Z. Zoo: Love them, but only if the enclosures are appropriate, with plenty of room for the animals.

I like the fact that most other bloggers haven't been specifically tagging people with this, rather, they suggest you do it too if you enjoyed reading it. Jacie, I enjoyed reading yours, so anyone else that wants to do this, please do, and leave a link in the comments so I can have a read.

Essence - Got A Secret & BM-215

I was very excited when my new Bundle Monster plates arrived last week, I couldn't wait to try them out! I even shortened my nails to make the full nail images fit. It turned out they're not short enough, the images still don't fit and I had to do some double stamping. I really wish the full nail images were a tad bigger, 'cause I often fail at double stamping (and I want to keep this nail length :) ). But I think the result isn't too bad this time!

The base colour I used is Got A Secret from Essence, a light grey creme (two coats), I stamped it with China Glaze - Awaken and the fan image from plate BM-215. 

Thanks for watching!

SH OverCoat Antique Gold

Good Morning,

It's all about the crackle.  SH Overcoat.  Pretty cleaver of Sally coming up with the name.  I like the square bottle too with the crackle lid.  The prices of these are pretty steep don't you think?  $7.99 Gesh!  Some Walgreen's have them for $6.99 and  Walmart has them priced at $6.24.  The other problem I have with these is the brush...why is the brush sooo tiny?!  It would have been nice if these had the same brushes as the Sally Hansen complete salon manicure ones.

 I like Antique Gold's formula.  The gold is so sparkly.  I haven't tried the others yet.

                                  Antique Gold

I don't think pictures show the true actual prettiness of crackles.  After I applied a topcoat it glistens and shines can't see it in the pictures though.

China Glaze Blue Iguana with SH Antique Gold Crackle

Did you grab any of the Overcoats?  Which ones?  Which ones do you like?

Until next time please have a great nail polish day. (✿◠‿◠)

2011 Las Vegas Weekly Awards!

This past Wednesday I was invited to attend an event held by the Las Vegas Weekly, a weekly magazine here in Las Vegas. I was selected as the recipient of the 2011 'Best Blogger' award in the 2011 Weekly awards!! SO exciting!! :) Of course, since I was going to the event, I had to do Las Vegas Weekly nails, so I used one of the copies of when the story about me was in the Weekly last May to work into the manicure. (I was a tad overzealous in getting spare copies to keep, so I had a few issues to spare :-P) Check out the blurb about the award here!

Forgive me for not including my thumb in the picture- I swatched another color over it without thinking before I got around to photographing it. Stupid me. For the texture in the background, I transferred bits of the original article using alcohol onto the white background, then painted the Las Vegas WEEKLY logo over it. :)

My name on the big screen! :)

I used American Apparel Cotton as a base, with Claire's Stiletto for the red, and American Apparel Hassid for the black. Topped it all off with two coats of Seche Vite top coat.

Gosh Rainbow

Sorry for the unplanned hiatus everyone, it's my last exam in a couple of days, so I'll be back on form after that! I realise this isn't Nail Art, but I went to a Superdrug in a small town the other week, and found a bottle of the very rare, discontinued GOSH Rainbow - just sat on the shelf! For a fiver! It would be rude not to! A bit annoyed seen as I had also just bought Nubar 2010, which is a perfect dupe, but oh well! Rainbow is an effect topcoat containing iridescent flakies in a clear base, and it works better over darker base colours, giving a more subtle effect over lighter ones. Here is one (thickish) coat over two coats of Claire's Black, in natural light:-

LOOK AT THE RAAAINBOOOW

You can see more of the green flash here!

 

 

 

 

 

 

double rainbow, all the way accross the...nails?

 

 

 

As you can see, the coverage really is brilliant in one coat, I can't think why they discontinued it, along with Holographic. Maybe they didn't sell well because they don't look very impressive in the bottle? Who knows. This actually looks really interesting with a Matte Topcoat, it doesn't translate brilliantly in the photographs, coming across a bit milky looking (ooer), but IRL it looks really cool.

Ring finger and Index mattified using Claire's mattifying topcoat.

Just for my amusement, I decided to compare it with Nubar 2010. Overall, you can get exactly the same effect, but you need two coats of Nubar 2010 to create the same coverage that Gosh Rainbow can achieve in just one. Considering GOSH Rainbow is now Hard To Find however, 2010 is a perfect alternative. Sorry the lighting isn't as good:

Thumb, middle and Pinky, one coat of GOSH. Index and Ring, 2 coats of Nubar 2010

So there you have it. Two iridescent Flakie Topcoats, and no nail art. The next post I have for you will make up for it, I promise...it's FIERCE.

aaaaaaaand back into the pit of revision despair I go!

GREAT #bblogger chat tonight as well! If you don't know what's going on, on Twitter, at 8pm on Sunday evenings (UK time, GMT +1), Beauty Bloggers get together for a chat (using the hashtag #bbloggers) and talk about a different topic every week. Today, it was the controversial subject of self promotion, and there are some interesting opinions out there. Would love to see even more people there next week, so get involved if you're on Twitter!

Also guys, I have an FOTD (make-up look) that I could post for you, but every time I have done this in the past, it hasn't gone down awfully well, as I know a lot of you tune in for the Nail Art. Is this something you would like to see? Not really arsed either way? Or should I stop trying to flog a dead horse? Hahaha!

Emily xxx

OPI Nice Stems Summer 2011 Preview

Summer Pinks in Bloom!

Nice Stems! by OPI Revamps Nails with Vibrant Pink Hues for Summer 2011

Stop and see the flowers with summer’s Nice Stems! by OPI, a limited edition collection featuring four new nail lacquers in stunning shades of pink. With whimsical names based on their floral inspirations, these vibrant, flirty colors range from pale, frosty pink to rich fuchsia. Nice Stems! offers fingers and toes a perfectly pink shade for all of summer’s looks.

“These vibrant, feminine hues complement 60’s ladylike fashions, 70’s glam looks, and bold color-blocking, which are the season’s staples,” says Suzi Weiss-Fischmann, OPI Executive VP & Artistic Director. “The Nice Stems! collection also offers an interesting contrast and feminine accent to the punk and biker looks on the runways.”

Nice Stems! by OPI shades include:

Play the Peonies
We’d put our money on this lovely soft-pink.

Come to Poppy
Surrender to shine with this shimmering coral-pink.

Be a Dahlia Won’t You?
Give the gift of fabulous fuchsia—to yourself!

I Lily Love You
Fall head over heels with this light pink sparkle.

“Using different micas and glitters can give lacquer a 3-dimensional look,” adds Weiss-Fischmann. “I Lily Love You is a glitter coat that can be layered over any of the other three shades to add a bright sparkle; or, it can be worn on its own for a subtle tint of pink with strands of glitter.”

The Nice Stems! Nail Lacquers by OPI contain no DBP, Toluene, or Formaldehyde, and feature OPI’s exclusive ProWide™ Brush for the ultimate in application.

This limited edition Nice Stems! collection will be available beginning June 2011 at Professional Salons, including Beauty Brands, Beauty First, Chatters, Dillard’s, JCPenney, Pure Beauty, Regis, Trade Secret, and ULTA, for $8.50 ($10.95 CAN) suggested retail for each Nail Lacquer.

For more information, please call 800-341-9999 or visit http://www.opi.com/. Follow OPI on Twitter @OPI_PRODUCTS and become a Facebook fan!

Sent by pr

Until next time please have a great nail polish day. (✿◠‿◠)

Nfu Oh 93

I was so totally into my last mani that I just didn't want to take it off.  It finally starting chipping on the tips today, so I reluctantly took it off.  Then I did some swatching.

This is Nfu Oh 93.  I picked it up from Vivid Nails clearance sale for $2.

I really wanted to see this polish on its own. I wanted that bottle colour, no matter how many coats - I can not be beaten!. Six coats later, this is what I got.  Love it, great colour, but it would have remained dentable for at least a day!  Dented polish really irritates me, so I took it off, and....

layer it over black.  Actually I didn't use black, it was Ulta3 midnight, which is the blackest navy blue there is.  But one thin coat of midnight is fully opaque, unlike Ulta3 black satin.  I did two coats of Nfu Oh 93.  

I love it on it's own, but really its a perfect layering polish.  I bought quite a few of these really sheer Nfu Oh colours for $2.  But I have a feeling that, although they are different shades, they will all look the same over black.

The Cadet Shouts: "Sir! Yes, Sir!"

I'm a little late with my post for today, because I had a busy day: I went rafting with my husband's work. It was a very exciting experience, but I did swallow a lot of water (whew)!

About the nails: I wanted to spice up the military colour Sir! Yes, Sir! from Catrice I showed you yesterday. It's definitely not a boring colour, but after a day of wear this creme polish screamed for a little something something. So I sponged the tips with Space Cadet from Orly, which turned out great! Every time I use Space Cadet I'm amazed by all the colours it shows, wow. 

That's it for today, have a great weekend and.. thanks for watching! :) 

Zoya Touch Collection Swatches: Online nail polish experts talk nude nail polish

Naked Nails are Haute

Go ahead, go bare, being a nail polish nudist is so right now - Zoya is the New Color of Fashion

It seems everyone has been looking for full coverage nude nail polish lately and Zoya has delivered again. In fact, this collection was released a month early to meet the huge increased demand for quality nude or beige full coverage nail polish. With three metallic kissed nudes with yellow (Zoya Minka), red (Zoya Shay), and blue (Zoya Pandora) based undertones there is a coordinating nude for every skin tone!




Follow the links below to incredible nail polish swatches from beauty bloggers featuring the new Zoya Touch Collection

"The intention of this collection is to provide the perfect opaque nude for each skin tone. These are like foundation shades; you pick the one that compliments the undertones in your skin. What's nice about these is you aren't necessarily trying to match your exact skin color (like the 'mannequin hands' manicure), just finding which nude meshes well with your skin, so the right shade can work on anyone from dark to fair skin colors."

Scrangie - Nail Polish Swatches - Zoya Touch Collection

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 "All three were surprisingly pigmented – Zoya really meant it when they said these were full coverage, because these were nearly opaque in one coat, but I used two for the swatches." 

Temptalia - Nail Polish Swatches - Zoya Touch Collection
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"All the colors include a little bit of shimmer to them so they aren’t straight creams, which I actually prefer with these."

Vampy Varnish - Nail Polish Swatches - Zoya Touch Collection

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"New" Revlon Just Tinted

Good Morning on this Fabulous Friday!  Whoo Who it's going to be a long great weekend *-*

There was alot of talk on MUA/nailboard about Revlon Tints. Me being curious I stopped into Walgreen's after work and found them.  They are $4.99 so I grabbed one.  They rung up at $2.99 I went back and grabbed the other 3 along with the topcoat which was $3.59.  After the Cashier gave me my receipt she handed me a $3.00 off coupon.  She liked them so much so she grabbed 2 for herself and put them behind the counter. Lol!

Revlon Just Tinted is a new collection of 4 juicy colors along with a topcoat.  We call them jellies, OPI call them sorbets and now Revlon is calling them just tinted.  The formula is sheer and thin but buildable.  They dry to a plastic like matte finish.  Once you apply a topcoat they are super shiny.  

                                           Victorian   

Victorian is a bright pink tint. I applied one coat of SH nail quencher hydrating basecoat.  1 coat of Milani smoothe' basecoat.  Then 3 coats of Victorian. You still can see my vnl believe it or not its okay it doesn't bother me.

With Revlon Just Tinted Topcoat

I so would love to have every creme color I own in a finish like this.  It's just something about jellies, sorbets and just tints that I just adore so much!

Here is the untouched display until I got a hold of it

Victorian is the first one...notice there are 4 topcoats  

Are you a jelly fanatic?  

Until next time please have a great nail polish day. (✿◠‿◠)

Catrice - Sir! Yes, Sir!

Today I'm showing you Sir! Yes, Sir! from Catrice, a dusty brownish army green creme. Interesting colour, I'm surprised by how much I like this 'dirty' colour on my nails. 

The formula was quite thick, even after adding some drops of nail polish thinner it wasn't the easiest to apply. I got an opaque result after two coats though and I really shouldn't complain too much about a polish that costs only €2,49, right? :)

Thanks for watching!