Gotham Polish

Incoco's "Made In America" and "Tropical Escape" Collections

2015-07-03T09:02:00.000-04:00

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my disclosure policy here.

The design team at Incoco has been busy - but aren't they always? I received an assortment of new appliqués from two current collections to share with you! Let's take a look at some of the designs from the Made In America and Tropical Escape collections, which are available now.

Made In America

Show Your Stars & Stripes with Patriotic Nail Art – Three cheers for the red, white, and blue! Celebrate the Fourth of July with Made in America by Incoco, a collection of four festive nail art appliqué shades that reflect the patriotic spirit of the holiday. [source]

Incoco's 4th of July designs are some of the best. I loved my mani from last year! For 2015, there are four new designs to select. View them all here.

Americana

Made In America

Tropical Escape

Happy Summer! Celebrate the return of long days and hot nights with the Incoco Tropical Escape Collection. Whether you’re sipping cocktails poolside or jetting off to exotic beachside locales, treat your tips to flawless manicures in bright, bold shades and the season’s lush floral and tropical prints. [source]

How about these designs - they're so wonderfully summery. I'll take a pair of chic cotton shorts in each print, please :) See the entire collection here.

Summer Night

Tropical Getaway

Strawberry Daiquiri (pink cream) and Summer Dream (blue cream)

Read about my application and wear time experience here.

Incoco products can be purchased online http://www.incoco.com and in stores - find a store near you with the store locator (lots of Walgreens in NYC come up!) Patterned designs retail for $8.99 and solid color appliqués retail for $7.99 For the latest, follow Incoco on Twitter and Facebook.

Have a great 4th of July weekend!

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my disclosure policy here.

Cirque x Nordstrom "Poolside Collection": Swatches & Reviews

2015-05-30T11:08:00.000-04:00

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

Oh happy day! Brooklyn based indie nail polish brand Cirque Colors is participating in the next Nordstrom Pop-In and this time there are SIX brand new nail polishes!

Hold on - what the heck's this "Pop-In" business, might you ask? Here's what Nordstrom.com has to say: "Pop-In@Nordstrom is an ongoing series of themed pop-in shops meant to showcase deserving designers, expose you to something surprising and embrace Nordstrom's exploratory heritage...Because our Pop-In themes are temporary and ever changing, we hope you'll find something you love today and love even more tomorrow". OK, it's an assortment of interesting stuff that fits a theme and is available for a limited time.

This Pop-In is called "Nordstrom Goes Poolside" so there are lots of bathing suits and unique summery things to peruse (like this "MerFin"). Like the previous two Cirque & Nordstrom Pop-In collaborations, Poolside runs for a limited time only (now - June 28th) - although I predict a few of these polishes may sell out well before it ends!

Here's the inspiration behind the Cirque Colors' Poolside Collection:

Inspired by luxurious days, balmy nights and everything you need to have an amazing time by the pool - we've created an exclusive collection for Nordstrom's Poolside Pop-In, curated by Olivia Kim director of creative projects and Opening Ceremony veteran. This limited edition release features a range of cool-toned colors accented with poppy hues for a touch of Hollywood glam. Douse your tips with Julep, a refreshing mint holographic, or slip your toes into Rita, a fiery red creme. [from the press release]

Phew how's that for an epic intro? ;) Oh, one more thing - on the Nordstrom website, for some reason the colors are given incredibly generic names - for example, "Santorini" is called "medium blue". Your best bet to look these up is to just type "Cirque" into the search bar!

Rita

Rita (Nordstrom.com name: "tomato red") is a brilliant cherry tomato red cream nail polish. Rita is a spicy poolside diva nail polish, isn't she? The formula is thin but pigmented and it applies super smooth and evenly. If you have short nails with just a hint of visible white tips, you could wear just one coat. I did two to cover up the white tips of my nails. Rita dries super shiny!

Santorini

Santorini (Nordstrom.com name: "medium blue") is a rich & vibrant blue cream nail polish. Just do a quick Google image search of "Santorini" and it's easy to see the inspiration behind this shade! In the words of Liz Lemon, I want to go to there. But until then, you can wear this gorgeous blue on your nails and dream of far off places. The formula of Santorini is thin and borderline watery, but the pigmentation is still super intense. I'm wearing two coats.

Compared to NYFW, Santorini is a hair lighter and a little less intense. They're pretty close, but if you're wild about these kinds of blues and/or a dedicated Cirque collector/enthusiast, Santorini is a must have.

Monte Carlo

Monte Carlo (Nordstrom.com name: "sky blue") is a sky blue that borders on being a periwinkle cream nail polish. It kind of reminds me of UNC blue. The formula of Monte Carlo is slightly thicker than Rita and very pigmented. It applies pretty darn evenly - I needed only two coats for a perfectly opaque manicure (which is impressive for any sky blue cream nail polish!) This color blue looks a bit surreal when you see it on your nails - it's hard to describe, but it really pops. Monte Carlo also dries very shiny.

Summer Soire

Summer Soire (Nordstrom.com name: "pink coral") is a interesting glitter nail polish made up of pinky red bar glitter and tiny square glitter. The combo feels very Valentine's Day. I had no issues pulling glitter from the bottle and seen here I'm wearing is just one semi-thick coat over Santorini.

Julep

Julep (Nordstrom.com name: "mint green") is a Caribbean seafoam green holographic nail polish. How excellent is this!!! I'm guessing Julep will be one of the first colors to sell out :) Julep applies wonderfully and the formula is just slightly on the thin side. I'm wearing two coats. LOVE!

Cabana Capri

Cabana Capri (Nordstrom.com name: "cyan") is a sky blue holographic nail polish. OMG YESSSSS!!! SO MUCH WIN!!! These colors... Julep and Cabana Capri... are seriously a nail polish lover's dream come true. Coverage is slightly sheer and the formula is a tad watery, but it's not difficult to apply by any means. I'm wearing two coats. I absolutely adore Cabana Capri!

In case you were wondering, here's how Julep and Cabana Capri look next to Cirque's greenish blue holo Cerrillos:

The Poolside Collection is INCREDIBLE but what really puts it over the top are the dreamy holos - I predict the sell out risk is high!

The Poolside Collection polishes retail for $13 each and are available now through June 28 online at Nordstrom.com (free shipping!!!) and at the following Nordstrom stores (I believe there were more for the previous Pop-Ins but these are the five listed on the Nordstrom website):

Bellevue Square
100 Bellevue Square
Bellevue, WA 98004
425.455.5800

Downtown Seattle
500 Pine Street
Seattle, WA 98101
206.628.2111

NorthPark Center
8687 North Central Expressway
Dallas, TX 75225
214.231.3900

San Francisco Centre
865 Market Street
San Francisco, CA 94103
415.243.8500

Tyson's Corner Center
8075 Tysons Corner Center
McLean, VA 22102
703.761.1121

Will you be picking up any of the Poolside polishes? Or that MerFin ;) ?

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

Incoco's "Picture Perfect" and "Minimalist" Collections

2015-05-17T18:49:00.000-04:00

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my disclosure policy here. Incoco seems to always have new collections in the works! I received an assortment of designs from some current & upcoming collections to share with you. Let's take a look at some of the designs from the Picture Perfect and Minimalist collections, which are available now.

Picture Perfect

Bring the perennial floral trend to your fingertips with Incoco’s new Spring 2015 Collection: Picture Perfect. Eight new shades – from shimmering watercolor florals to vintage stripes & rosebuds – celebrate spring’s budding blossoms and picture perfect days. [source]

The Picture Perfect collection is Incoco's spring 2015 collection. I'm loving these flower patterns, especially since I wouldn't be able to freehand anything remotely like it (although I'm sure some of you could!). See the entire collection here.

Cherry Blossoms

Blushing Beauty

Vintage Charm

Minimalist

Less is more. The five shades in Incoco’s Minimalist Collection combine classic colors with refined lines and shapes for modern, high-impact nail art in minutes. [source]

Ooo these patterns are great! They may not look like much in the packaging, but just picture those perfect angles and lines on your nails.

Forte (the red) and Prelude (the nude)

Apex (the one with black triangles) and Finale - these both are gold btw, I know it's kind of hard to see!

Echo

Read about my application and wear time experience here.

Incoco products can be purchased online: http://www.incoco.com. Patterned designs retail for $8.99 and solid color appliqués retail for $7.99 For the latest, follow Incoco on Twitter and Facebook.

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my disclosure policy here.

Zoya Delight Spring 2015 Nail Polish Collection - Swatches & Reviews

2015-05-10T17:26:00.001-04:00

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

For spring 2015, Zoya has "delight"-ed us with six cheery & light nail polishes that are *so* hashtag spring. Let's take a look at the Delight collection!

Eden

Eden is a cool pink cream nail polish - it's not pastel, not bold, and not neon. The first coat applied evenly although a little sheer, but everything looked just fine after the second coat. Eden is nice but you might already have a few pinks like it (OPI Suzi Has A Swede Tooth and Shorts Story are pretty darn close). I would have loved to have seen some pink shimmer in Eden.

Daisy

Daisy is a light yellow nail polish with a DELIGHTful (see what I did there?) green-ish blue shimmer. Or maybe green and blue shimmer, I can't tell :) Here's something you don't hear often: the shimmer is more visible on the nail than it is in the bottle! The formula is streaky and I needed three coats, but honestly I wasn't expecting the formula to be amazing (yellow nail polishes are notoriously troublesome). Coverage, however, was much more pigmented than I expected (meaning Daisy wouldn't make a great layering polish). While it's not the first color in the collection I'd reach for to do a mani, I appreciate the unique-ness of Daisy.

Tiana

Tiana is a vivid pastel pistachio green cream nail polish. This color is so full of win!!! The formula was pretty good and I only needed two coats. Not life changing, but certainly adequate. Looking at my pictures though, in the bright lights, I see some patches. But whatever because look at it! This color is like the color of glow in the dark stuff, minus the glow. Tiana is totally on my short list of top ten favorites of 2015.

Lillian

Lillian is a lovely vivid pastel sky blue cream nail polish. It's not quite as starkly pastel as Tiana (Zoya's Blu is the blue equivalent to Tiana, IMHO... if this was an SAT question, it would go something like this: "Blu : Tiana :: Lillian : _____." Aaand the answer is Neely!). After applying the first coat, Lillian looked like a streaky mess. I was hoping all would be forgiven after the second coat, but unfortunately the second coat was streaky too. Three thin coats is the way to go with Lillian - or, you could blob on two thick coats if that's your style. Tl;dr: pretty color, OK formula.

Rayne

Two things about Rayne: 1. This is the color OPI's Nordic Collection was missing and 2. Y U NO CALLED ELSA?!

Now that I've gotten that out of my system... Rayne is an icy shimmery blue nail polish that glows. This polish is so packed full of shimmer that it may quite possibly be ALL shimmer - it almost takes on a metallic look. I was prepared for a super sheer formula, but to my surprise, Rayne was somewhat opaque and applies evenly! It's possible to achieve the color in the bottle in just three coats. I tried layering Rayne, and it looks nice, but it covers up the base color a lot so I wouldn't say it's necessarily a layering polish. However you wear it, Rayne is infinitely more beautiful than pictures can capture.

But seriously... it should have been called Elsa.

Leslie

Leslie is a lavender nail polish with blue shimmer. The formula is decent and I only needed two coats. Leslie is unquestionable a purple polish, but for whatever reason (science) the color tones ended up looking more neutral with my skin tone and it didn't look too great on me. Hopefully it will look better on you because it's such a pretty polish!

Bonus shimmer picture:

I love the color palette of the Delight collection. ~~Elsa~~ Rayne is beautiful, but for me it's Tiana FTW. Did you pick up any of the Delight polishes?

Zoya nail polishes retail for $9.00 and the Delight collection is available online. In New York City, Zoya can be purchased at several locations including Gideon's Drugs (1385 Broadway, corner of 38th St) and Ulta in the Rego Park Center. See the full list of retailers here.

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

OPI Nordic Collection: Swatches & Reviews Part 2

2015-04-14T21:00:00.000-04:00

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

[Part 1 found here] Let's take a look at the final six polishes in OPI's Nordic collection!

Going My Way or Norway?

Going My Way or Norway? is a light caramel yellow-brown cream nail polish. The formula is just fine and creamy, but unfortunately this shade isn't a good fit for me (it brings out redness around my nails). I'm wearing two coats.

Ice Bergers and Fries

Ice Bergers and Fries is another caramel yellow-brown nail polish - it's pretty much the darker version of Going My Way or Norway? The formula borders on being jelly/cream, but not as much as Skating on Thin Ice-Land (see: part 1). I'm wearing two coats.

Can't Afjord Not To

Can't Afjord Not To is a bright mango orange cream nail polish. It looks like one of the polishes from OPI's Brazil collection, doesn't it? The formula was just fine and I'm wearing two coats. PS - if you're viewing this on a MacBook and the color is jumping out of the screen - it's not so bright IRL!

OPI With a Nice Finnish

OPI With a Nice Finnish is an orangey-gold (but not quite copper) metallic nail polish that's borderline frosty. It's a lot like OPI 50 Years of Style, but more orange. I think someone with a sense of humor must have named this polish - frosty metallic is one of the most notoriously, erm, disliked finishes of nail polish. Finnish's finish shows ridges and the color accentuates the redness around my nails. I'm wearing two coats.

How Great Is Your Dane?

How Great Is Your Dane? is a dusty brown cream finish nail polish. I was really looking forward to this one - IMHO the color is gorgeous - but I was quite disappointed to find that it has the jelly-cream runny watery formula that several polishes in this collection have :/ Maybe you like this formula, but I'm not a fan. I'm wearing two coats.

My Voice is a Little Norse

My Voice is a Little Norse is a holo glitter in a mostly transparent brownish grey base. The pieces are not teeny tiny and not especially large - they're just... glitter sized? I expected Norse to be a sparse layering glitter but it covers quite well and evenly in one coat. The finish is gritty but could be tamed with a couple coats of thick top coat. The glitter appears a bit dull inside but really dazzles in sunlight. I'm wearing one coat over How Great is Your Dane? plus top coat.

What do you think about OPI's Nordic Collection? Dominated by dark purples and browns, this was a seasonally appropriate collection. I would have liked to have seen a fabulous icy blue and a mysterious Northern Lights color shifting green... one that could be layered over one of the purples, perhaps? Color choices aside, the real bummer for me was that quite a few of these polishes had a runny jelly-cream formula that I didn't find ideal to work with.

Have you heard - next fall, OPI is headed to Venice!

OPI nail polishes retail for $9.50 ($11.50 CAN) In New York City, my favorite places to shop for OPI products include Ricky's (various locations), Gideon's Drugs (1385 Broadway, corner of 38th St), Beauty 35 (505 8th Ave corner of 35th St and 8th Ave), and Duane Reade (various locations).

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

OPI Nordic Collection: Swatches & Reviews Part 1

2015-04-04T15:56:00.000-04:00

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

Some OPI collections are inspired by one city and others by several countries in a region of the world. One thing you can count on is that no matter where OPI takes us, outlandish and punny names will be there. For OPI's fall/winter 2014 collection, the destination inspiration was the Nordic countries Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden.

Inspired by the great northern lights in Finland, deep blue fjords in Norway, and colorful houses in Copenhagen, Nordic Collection by OPI brings the diverse colors of its namesake region to nails and toes for fall/winter 2014. This new collection of 12 lacquers features a palette ranging from spicy browns in shades of bronze, cinnamon and caramel to rich purples in wine, black cherry and blue-violet hues, with accents of creamy coral, pink and sea green.

“When creating colors for a new seasonal collection, I always draw inspiration from the food, music, art, landscape and street style of a particular destination,” remarks Suzi Weiss-Fischmann, OPI Co-Founder & Executive VP. “While conceptualizing the shades of the Nordic Collection, I ate cinnamon buns and drank glogg, snapped photographs of brightly painted houses, and gazed in wonder at the region’s topography – from the northern lights and midnight sun to lava flats and deep fjords. All of these diverse elements came together to inspire an equally varied array of colors that capture the aesthetic of the Nordic region.

“Contrasts were also seen on fall runways, where sheer fabrics were paired with fleece and& woolen plaids were embellished with colorful beadwork and intricate lace,” adds Weiss-Fischmann.

“Nordic Collection by OPI complements the oxblood, coral and earthy tones seen this season and offers a variety of hues. With so many color choices, the Nordic Collection makes it easy to experiment with new nail looks and cultivate personal style. I believe strongly in experimenting with beauty and fashion until finding a unique look. We are sure of only one taste – our own.” [from the press release]

The Nordic collection is made up of twelve nail polishes: nine cream finishes, one shimmer, one metallic, and one glitter. In this review, we'll look at the purples, the berries, the pink, and the outlying turquoise. Here we go!

Suzi Has A Swede Tooth

Suzi Has a Swede Tooth is a medium pink cream nail polish - it's a pretty basic color, but it has a stellar formula that's thin but provides full coverage. I'm wearing two coats.

My Dogsled Is A Hybrid

My Dogsled Is A Hybrid is a greenish turquoise cream nail polish with an awesome formula. You could conjure up a super preppy manicure wearing this with Swede Tooth. This kind of turquoise isn't a traditional fall or winter color, but whatever, I love it. I'm wearing two coats.

OPI, I'm curious. What is it exactly that makes your dogsled a hybrid? It's powered by dogs and... rocket engines?

Thank Glogg It's Friday

Thank Glogg It's Friday (good one, OPI!) is a shimmery dark reddish berry. This has a very "holiday" look to it and the shimmer is glowy like car paint. I'll admit my first reaction was that this was a boring and dated looking color, but on the nail it really looks great. The formula is on the runny side but it is still super pigmented - just use very thin coats and you'll be fine. I'm wearing two coats.

Skating On Thin Ice-land

Skating On Thin Ice-land is a dark purple nail polish with just a hint of berry. It's a nice color, but I wish it had the glowy shimmer like Glogg. That would have really put it over the top! The formula was thin and watery and that of a jelly-cream hybrid, which I find not ideal to work with. In the end, it looked fine after just two coats.

Viking in a Vinter Vonderland

Viking in a Vinter Vonderland is a blackened cool-toned purple cream nail polish. This color reminds me of the dark purple the sky appears in some photographs of the Northern Lights (btw check out this awesome time lapse). Unfortunately, V in a VV has the same weird cream-jelly formula as Ice-land and there's a really strong chance this will run into your cuticles when you apply it. I'm wearing two coats.

Do You Have This Color In Stock-holm?

Do You Have This Color In Stock-holm? is a vivid cool-toned purple cream nail polish. I did some serious color correction to get this to show up just right, and now it looks a bit too neon. Sigh. It has the same not-so-great formula as Ice-land and V in a VV. Maybe I'm the only one though who isn't wild about it, maybe some of you really like it :) I'm wearing two coats. BTW - the name of this polish is really cute, but when you see all those words squeezed on the bottom of this bottle you will laugh.

While I'm usually applauding non-traditional colors in seasonal collections, Swede Tooth and Dogsled felt out of place and weren't even very original. I think these could have been swapped out for some icy blues instead. Check back for part 2!

OPI nail polishes retail for $9.50 ($11.50 CAN) In New York City, my favorite places to shop for OPI products include Ricky's (various locations), Gideon's Drugs (1385 Broadway, corner of 38th St), Beauty 35 (505 8th Ave corner of 35th St and 8th Ave), and Duane Reade (various locations).

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

L'Oréal "Masked Affair": Swatches & Review

2015-03-15T14:46:00.000-04:00

You may have heard of this one by now - it certainly created quite a buzz - L'Oréal Masked Affair!

So what's the story? Back in January/February, L'Oréal released the Dark Sides of Grey collection made up of six polishes not so subtly inspired by (but sans official licensing) the movie inspired by a book inspired by a book: 50 Shades of Grey. The six polishes were just fine (check them all out here) but one in particular stole the show. Hiding in an otherwise unassuming collection was a holographic gem: Masked Affair. Once pictures started showing up on Instagram feeds, it quickly became the "must have" polish of the moment. But with only two bottles in each display, it also earned "hard to find" status. I was lucky enough to track it down at Bed Bath & Beyond. Let's take a look!

Masked Affair is a pale silvery lavender nail polish with lots of holographic particles. In certain lighting, the color appears more silver. The holo isn't as intense as a linear holo like Color Club Blue Heaven but isn't as sparse as Zoya's holos, for example (like these). Instead, Masked Affair's holo falls somewhere in the middle and creates a lovely twinkling effect.

Coverage is thin but the formula isn't watery. I found it to apply a touch streaky and needed three coats for an opaque finish. Also, and this sounds weird but it's true, I noticed Masked Affair had very little nail polish smell when I applied it.

The holo is visible indoors and it doesn't appear dull.

Flash! See how it looks more silver here?

Left: no flash | Right: flash

Masked Affair is a lovely holo nail polish and the drug store price makes it even more appealing. At Bed Bath & Beyond, L'Oréal nail polishes retail for $4.99 (the price is higher at drug stores around NYC). If you come across Masked Affair, I would recommend picking it up! But if you can't find it, I'm sure there will soon be another "must have" drug store nail polish to track down :)

Zoya Naturel Satins 2015 Transitional Nail Polish Collection - Matte, Glossy, and Wear Test

2015-03-01T14:57:00.000-05:00

Zoya Naturel Satins collection and Cirque Colors Holdfast™ Base Coat provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

Curious about what the new Satin finish nail polish from Zoya looks like with matte top coat and glossy top coat? So was I! Let's take a look.

With matte top coat, you can really tell just how not matte the Satin polishes are. One coat of Essie's Matte About You (which is one of the matte-est matte top coats out there, IMHO) consumes any remaining trace of shine in the Satin finish and ever so slightly lightens the color. This is the grey-blue Tove and I'm wearing matte top coat only on my pointer and ring fingers.

With glossy top coat, the Satin polish is transformed into a "regular" nail polish. In comparison to a glossy finish, the Satin finish looks dull. Here's Sage with top coat on my pointer and ring fingers.

Wear Test

I wore Ana for three and a half days and was very pleased with how well it held up. Underneath, I wore Cirque Colors Holdfast™ Base Coat (which is really growing on me as I use it more and more). I didn't experience any chipping and there was just a little bit of tip wear. This was quite impressive, especially considering there's no top coat involved here to help extend the wear time. The Satin finish does gradually polish to a shinier-than-when-I-started look, which is similar to what I've experienced when wearing a matte nail polish. Here are my nails after three and a half days of wear:

Have you tried any of Zoya's Naturel Satins nail polishes yet? What do you think? In case you missed it, I reviewed all six Satins polishes here.

Zoya nail polishes retail for $9.00 and the Naturel Satins collection is available online.

Zoya Naturel Satins collection and Cirque Colors Holdfast™ Base Coat provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

Weekend Shopping: Pizza Hut Nail Polish (and more)

2015-02-27T20:51:00.000-05:00

mmm river slush

If you're just here for the Pizza Hut nail polish link - here you go :)

Hi there and happy weekend! How's your winter going? Even though it's February and winter feels like it will never end, I've seen lots of spring collections popping up in stores and on my Instagram feed - I'm sure you have, too!

Here's what I'm shopping for this weekend:

Pre-order Cirque Colors' spring 2015 Awakening Collection.

Zoya's spring 2015 Delight collection is available online now.

Harmon Face Values in Chelsea consistently gets the good stuff... they have the new spring Essie Flowerista collection as well as the Nicole By OPI Coca Cola collection already! I *almost* bought Blossom Dandy but decided it was too close to Mint Candy Apple. I may end up changing my mind about that.

Speaking of Harmon, there's a new bluemercury coming soon-ish right across the street. It's still under construction, but the sign is up!

Nordstrom has three exclusive Deborah Lippmann spring 2015 colors: Come Fly With Me, Let's Stay Together, and You've Got A Friend. Link!

Incoco's Emerald City St. Patrick's Day collection.

Pizza Hut nail polish (not actually available for purchase, but real nonetheless).

Sushi socks (via Design Fetish).

I'm also loving...

Instagrammer you need to know about: Sarah McG (@sarahmcgphoto).

Leslie/Work Play Polish, Sarah/Chalkboard Nails, and Simcha/Miss Pop Nails were lucky enough to tour the OPI headquarters in LA!!! Don't miss Leslie's post all about it here.

See swatches and comparisons of the OPI Brights 2015 collection over at imabeautygeek.com.

The Orchid Show opens tomorrow at the New York Botanical Garden!

Frozen waves.

~~What color is the dress?~~ What are you shopping for this weekend?

Coming Soon from Cirque Colors: The Awakening Collection + Matte Look™ Top Coat

2015-02-23T21:21:00.001-05:00

Nothing brightens up a cold Monday in February quite like a new collection announcement from Cirque Colors! I know press releases travel around the internet incredibly fast these days, but in case you haven't seen or heard about this one yet, allow me to share with you these first images from The Awakening Collection + Matte Look™ Top Coat.

all images via Cirque Colors [source]

The transition from winter to spring marks the rebirth of mother earth and the revival of the human spirit. Inspired by the coming season, The Awakening Collection is a limited edition 5-piece ensemble of modern spring hues each with a unique shimmer effect. Love Stone, a soft pink with golden shimmer, was inspired by the rose quartz and it's emanating energy of self-love and compassion. New Moon, a sparkling slate gray, symbolizes the vernal equinox and a renewed sense of self. Awaken from your winter slumber with spring on your fingertips. [from the press release]

Love Stone - a petal pink with gold sparks

Hatch - a speckled white

New Moon - a concrete gray with silver sparks

Gaia - an inky black with silver flakes

Qi - a blue turquoise with gold sparks

I'm intrigued! These polishes are more subdued for Cirque (with the exception possibly being Qi - it's hard to gauge how bright that blue really is!) but at the same time, they still have that edgy Cirque-y-ness. The flecks of shimmer add a sophisticated softness and I'm thinking they will be even more dimensional in person (ex: Iris & Galinda). Also, points for a good "collection" vibe - Love Stone and New Moon in particular seem like they were made for each other. And may I just add: "♫♫♫ I think that she knows, think that she knows... ♫♫♫" ...anyone?...

The Awakening Collection will launch on CirqueColors.com on March 9th, but it's available for pre-order now - link! All five polishes are limited edition and retail for $13 each.

But wait, there's more!

Matte Look™ - This special effect top coat will instantly transform your look from glossy to matte.

The latest edition to Cirque Colors' expanding line of nail treatments is a matte top coat. I have no doubt that this will be amazing, as everything Annie releases is just awesome - I can't picture her putting the Cirque Colors logo on a sub-par product. Matte Look™ Top Coat retails for $10 and will also launch on CirqueColors.com on March 9th. You can pre-order it now - link!

Does anyone else feel like doing a Cirque manicure to celebrate? :)

Zoya Naturel Satins 2015 Transitional Nail Polish Collection - Swatches & Reviews

2015-02-11T22:16:00.000-05:00

Zoya Naturel Satins collection provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

"Zoya Naturel Satins is a collection of six new, neutral nail polish colors in an ultra-wearable, low-sheen, chic satin finish. A hybrid between matte and glossy polishes, the new Zoya Satin* formula provides opaque coverage and is longer lasting than traditional matte shades. The flawlessly smooth finish hides imperfections and creates a luxurious, satin finish nail look.

"The Satin formula is a hybrid between matte and glossy polishes and is not intended to be worn with a top coat.

"For best results: Prep nail with Zoya Remove Plus Nail Polish Remover, apply base coat and finish with 2 thin coats of any Satin polish." [source: announcement from Zoya.com]

After Zoya subtly declared textured polish as being "so over"* by ~~discontinuing~~ retiring their PixieDust line (which are still available - while supplies last?), I'm sure I wasn't the only one wondering what the Zoya fairies had up their sleeves. Enter: the Satin finish. It's not quite matte, though far from glossy, and it's even a little textured. The best way to describe these polishes is that they have an eggshell finish.

*OK "so over" is a strong declaration - a lot of us still love PixieDust - but it is true that Zoya is retiring them... check out Work Play Polish's post all about this topic here.

For the debut Satin finish collection, Zoya chose a soft color palette and is promoting these colors as being appropriate to wear during the transition between winter and spring (inter-seasonal?). Like their Matte Velvet polishes, the Satin polishes come in elegant frosted glass bottles.

With an eggshell finish and soft color palette, the six Naturel Satin polishes struck me as looking like wall paint. I was pretty set on this revelation and remembered that I had a little booklet of Martha Stewart paint colors (because I just can't bring myself to throw it away). Sure enough, I found a very close match to each polish in a Martha Stewart paint. And yes, I have pictures for you.

Ana

Ana is a chalky beige cream. For being a light color, this polish had decent pigmentation although the first coat did apply a little streaky. All was fine after I applied the second coat. I'll talk more about the formula and application at the end. You can see how with the Satin finish the light is still reflected, but it's muted.

If you're thinking Ana would be a lovely color for your walls, Martha Stewart's paint in Cotton Candy is pretty darn close.

Brittany

Brittany is a dusty mauve. The color reminds me of Zoya Rue and unfortunately, like with Rue, Brittany doesn't really get along with my skintone. I want to like it and I'm sure it looks really good on lots of people (sadly, not me). The formula was just fine and I'm wearing two coats. Here you can see the slightly textured finish - it's a little pebbly.

Brittany looks like Martha Stewart's paint color called Rosewater, don't you think?

Leah

Leah is a grey taupe with a hint of lavender. The Satin finish of Leah was more shiny for some reason. I'm wearing two coats.

Martha calls this color Wisteria Blue.

Rowan

Rowan is a chalky and brownish-greyish taupe. It's kind of the color of dust bunnies :/ The Satin finish of Rowan was more flat looking and you can see more little textured bumps. I'm wearing two coats.

Martha Stewart also makes a paint in this color - it's called Cavern. BTW the color right under Cavern was something about squirrels.

Tove

Tove is a desaturated blue that in certain lighting would pass for grey. In the bottle, I actually thought it was more grey but once I saw it on my nails, I saw that it was in fact blue. Sorry, that was a really boring story. AND THEN I FOUND FIVE DOLLARS. I'm wearing two coats if you're still with me...

You better believe Martha has a paint this color - she calls it Shale.

Sage

Sage is a dusty... get ready... sage green. The formula was especially good and coverage was almost perfect in one coat. I'm wearing two.

If you want a room painted in this color, pick up Martha Stewart's Milk Pail.

Formula and Application

I found the formula acceptable and consistent for each of the six polishes. While the first coat is borderline sheer, all is covered up with a second. The formula isn't runny. Dry time is no shorter or longer than with a "regular" polish, although overall it might take longer if you typically use a quick-dry top coat in your routine (as the Satin finish polishes are intended to be worn sans-top coat). The semi-matte finish appears as the polish dries - the thicker the coat of polish you apply, the longer it will take for the finish to appear. In fact, you might be tricked into thinking your nails are dry once you see the semi-matte finish, but take care as you will still be able to dent them until they have fully dried.

I read a couple of reviews where gals reported very different experiences with both the application (number of coats) and formula. While I didn't experience troublesome streaking, extreme sheer-ness, or anything particularly difficult about the application, it's worth mentioning that others did.

Ana, Brittany, and Rowan dried with more shine than Leah, Tove, and Sage did. I'm not sure why... maybe it had to do with the amount of polish I used in each coat?

Wear Time

I wore Ana for five days and experienced a little tip wear. No chipping. The Satin finish gets a little shiny, but otherwise the manicure held up quite well and I was impressed. This post is getting long so I'll show you pictures of my old manicure another day :)

Thoughts About the Satin Finish

I had some reservations about the semi-matte finish but fortunately the Satins didn't end up looking like dull nail polish in need of top coat. The finish feels soft and I liked feeling my nails... nothing weird. I also got a kick of out getting to skip the top coat step... one less thing, am I right? So while not Chris-Pine-riding-a-unicorn-serenading-baby-pandas-with-David-Bowie-songs thrilling, the Satins are more I-just-bought-awesome-new-nail-polish-that-I-can-wear-to-my-"has-a-no-wild-nail-polish-rule"-job exciting. Also, Zoya Satins strike me as perfect for editorial purposes. I predict we'll see the Satins on the runway at NYFW!

Now, what I really want to know is... which of the Naturel Satins hues would you paint your walls with?

Zoya nail polishes retail for $9.00 and the Naturel Satins collection is available online.

Zoya Naturel Satins collection provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

Weekend Shopping: Cirque Colors' "Mirror Mirror" Restock, MAC's New Studio Nail Lacquers, Zoya Satins, and More!

2015-01-03T11:47:00.002-05:00

a scene from Tiffany's 5th Ave holiday windows

Happy January 2015! I hope the new year is off to a fantastic start for you. There are sales and new things happening all over the place, so let's get right to it :)

Cirque Colors' hit silver foil nail polish Mirror Mirror is back in stock! While you're on the site, definitely check out the sale page.

MAC's new Studio Nail Lacquers for 2015 look intriguing - even if one of the polishes is named Kale Salad.

I found China Glaze's holiday 2014 Twinkle collection marked down (I think it was 50% off...) at Harmon Face Values in Chelsea.

Coming January 15th... the "next generation of Zoya Naturel": Zoya Satins! The skeptical side of me is saying "can't you just throw a matte top coat over nude polish", but knowing Zoya, I'm thinking these will have a little something else to them :)

If you're into grey polish, be on the lookout for OPI's Fifty Shades Of Grey collection.

Save an additional 40% off sale items from J Crew with code STYLE2015.

Even more sales... Racked NY shares with us 100+ sales to kick off 2015.

I'm also loving...

Every week, this hairstylist hits the streets of NYC and gives free haircuts to the homeless (insert clapping hands Emoji).

Time + color

Also for color lovers - here is a complete listing of colors in the L.L. Bean Home Fall 2014 Catalogue.

This neat visual representation of how many photos are uploaded to Instagram (spoiler alert: it's a lot).

What are you shopping for this weekend?

My Favorite Nail Polishes of 2014

2014-12-31T19:06:00.002-05:00

With the exception of Dance Legend Top Prismatic and ILNP Masquerade, the products in this post were provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

Wow where did 2014 go?! With 2015 just hours away, I can't believe it's New Year's Eve... and time for another annual "best of" post! Unlike years past when I've had to create NCAA bracket-like devices to narrow down my favorite annual polishes, 2014 was a different story. Outside my clear favorites, there were a lot of OK nail polishes (ex: the OPI Brazil collection), but it's not like there were dozens of colors fighting to claim a top spot.

Let's get to it - here are my favorite polishes of 2014 presented in order alphabetically by brand:

Cirque Colors "Cerrillos"

In April, Cirque Colors released a colorful seven piece holographic collection with formulas the applied like high quality cream nail polishes. My favorite color in the Heritage collection and one of my favorite polishes of 2014 is the vivid bluish turquoise Cerrillos. Full review and more pictures here.

Cirque Colors "Kontiki Collection"

In August, Cirque Colors blew my mind with three limited edition vivid nail polishes packed with color-shifting shimmer: Dear Dahlia, Thicker Than Water, and Midsummer Night. Of the three, I could not pick a clear favorite and decided the entire Kontiki Collection deserves to be on my favorites list. Full review and swatches here.

Cirque Colors "NYFW"

In September, Cirque Colors began releasing one to two cream colors each month and is slowly building a rainbow of cream nail polishes. The debut color in this endeavor, entitled the Metropolis Collection, was a brilliant blue called NYFW. What a way to kick off a collection! NYFW glows like the blue screen of death and applies perfectly, putting it at the top of my favorites list this year. Full review and more pictures here.

Dance Legend "Top Prismatic"

Dance Legend Top Prismatic sounds too good to be true - take any nail polish, add one or two coats of Top Prismatic, and you'll have a holo version of whatever polish you layered it over. I'm happy to report that yes it really does "holo-ify" any color! I love the way pastel holos look in particular - pastel holos for 2015, anyone? I fell in love with this magical polish the moment I saw it reviewed on Nihrida's blog and after checking the Llarowe website a few times, finally landed on it one day it was in stock. Check out Nihrida's beautiful swatches here. HOLO ALL THE THINGZ!!!

layered over Zoya Blu

ILNP "Masquerade"

One of my first ILNP nail polishes also became one of my favorite polishes of 2014... now I just need to properly swatch it for you :) From the summer 2014 collection, this is the strangely beautiful color shifting nail polish Masquerade. You've probably seen this one by now, but if not (or even if you have!), head over to Very Emily's blog for a full review.

Zoya "India"

From Zoya's fall 2014 Ignite collection, India lit up my nails. The internet went crazy for Sansa but this rich reddish purple nail polish with a ton of complex shimmer was one of my favorites this year. Full review and more pictures here.

Zoya "Remy"

Another gorgeous polish from Zoya's Ignite collection, wearing Remy is like looking into a bottomless & mysteriously crystal clear water cave. Full review and more pictures here.

Zoya "Yuna"

Also from Zoya's fall 2014 Ignite collection, Yuna is the cool greenish-grey nail polish with gold flecks of shimmer. It's so strange and awesome, I just had to include it. Full review and more pictures here.

Notable in 2014 was the slow but inevitable demise of the textured nail polish trend. The life cycle of this trend wasn't as dramatic as the crackle top coat trend, which seemed to crash and burn as fast as it rose in popularity, but instead, textured nail polish had a nice run and is slowly fizzling out. Also unlike the crackle trend - where did I put that bottle of Black Shatter? - I'll keep wearing textured polishes (Zoya Chyna and Tomoko come to mind). In its place, I'm sure another trend will come along - what will it be? I've got a feeling it might be the satin finish...

I'd love to know what your favorite polishes of 2014 are :) Thank you for reading Gotham Polish. I wish you a fantastic 2015!

With the exception of Dance Legend Top Prismatic and ILNP Masquerade, the products in this post were provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

Incoco's "Holiday Cheer" Holiday 2014 Nail Polish Appliqués

2014-12-21T17:07:00.000-05:00

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my disclosure policy here.

The holidays are a great time to show off your amazing nail art skills and bust out all those red and green glitters you bought at some point this year because they would be perfect for Christmas. But between wrapping, cooking, and packing, my nails are taking a beating and while I'd love to paint cute little snowmen, reindeer, or strings of Christmas lights on my digits, not only would I ruin them in a few hours, I feel like I don't have time to let even a single coat of nail polish dry.

The folks at Incoco were kind enough to send me their Holiday Cheer nail polish appliqués. These self-stick strips are made of 100% nail polish and are just what you need if you want festive nails but don't have time to paint your own intricate designs :) The hardest part will be choosing which one to wear!

These last two have a metallic duochrome finish and shift from green to blue:

Read about my experience with application and wear time here.

Incoco products can be purchased online: http://www.incoco.com. The designs in the Holiday Cheer collection retail for $7.99 - $8.99 each. For the latest, follow Incoco on Twitter and Facebook.

I wish you all the happiest of holidays :)

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my disclosure policy here.

Cirque Colors: The Metropolis Collection "The Devil Wears Cirque" and "Tavern on the Teal"

2014-12-14T17:11:00.001-05:00

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my disclosure policy here.

New for December 2014 from Brooklyn-based indie nail polish brand Cirque Colors are two new cream nail polishes released as part of The Metropolis Collection: The Devil Wears Cirque and Tavern on the Teal.

The Devil Wears Cirque

The Devil Wears Cirque is a gorgeous "fancy" red. I struggle with finding the words to describe reds, but it's medium toned red that falls between fire engine red and brick red. The formula is lovely and applied ever so slightly like a jelly. One coat covers beautifully but I wore two (I saw a slight translucency with one coat). But, that slight translucency adds a brightness that makes The Devil Wears Cirque glow from within. I'm wearing two and love the glossy finish.

Compared to Zoya Rekha and Livingston, The Devil Wears Cirque is slightly darker.

Tavern on the Teal

Tavern on the Teal is a dark bluish green (almost evergreen) cream nail polish. When I picture the color teal, the lighter Windows 95 desktop background comes to mind but a quick Google image search reminded me that dark teal is a thing. Tavern on the Teal is a touch greener than a true teal, but regardless, it's the kind of color that is impossible to show you without some color editing wizardry :) Like The Devil Wears Cirque, the formula of Tavern on the Teal is also a bit jelly-ish with a touch of translucency. I'm wearing two coats. Heads up: this color will stain when you remove it.

Compared to Color Club Gossip Column, Tavern on the Teal is a touch greener.

The Devil Wears Cirque and Tavern on the Teal are wonderful additions to Cirque Colors' line up. The formulas are so pigmented and easy to control and will make you forget this is a hand-made brand!

The Devil Wears Cirque and Tavern on the Teal retail for $13 each and are available now online at CirqueColors.com. Refer to the Stockists page for participating retailers.

About
Cirque Colors™ is line of hand-blended nail lacquers based in New York. The name Cirque, meaning ring or circle, represents the color wheel and the endless color possibilities in the continuum. Founder/Creative Director, Annie Pham, sought to develop colors that transcend those of conventional brands by experimenting with unique pigments and raw materials. All nail lacquers are 3-free, which means they do not contain toluene, formaldehyde or dibutyl phthalate (DBP). They are also scented with a blend essential oils that leave a light floral aroma after the polish dries. Made in the USA. For more information, please email info@cirquecolors.com.

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my disclosure policy here.

Zoya Entice Fall 2014 Nail Polish Collection - Swatches & Reviews

2014-12-06T15:09:00.000-05:00

Zoya Ignite collection provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

For fall 2014, Zoya released twelve new nail polishes in two collections: Ignite & Entice. The six nail polishes in the Ignite collection (reviewed here) are delightfully shimmery while the Entice polishes all have cream finishes. Let's take a look at the Entice collection!

Nyssa

Nyssa is a creamy milk chocolate brown cream nail polish. Brown really is the "it" color of fall 2014, isn't it? Nyssa has a hint of dustiness to it - it's more dusty than OPI Icebergers and Fries but not as dusty as a polish like Milani Teddy Bare. The formula was on the thin side and just "meh". I'm wearing two coats and top coat.

Geneviev

Geneviev is a dark cool stormy grey. The formula was surprisingly thin for such a dark polish but the second coat covered up the first thin coat decently well. I'm wearing two coats and top coat.

Margo

Margo is a rich reddish plum cream nail polish. The formula was great - hooray! It's nicely pigmented and easy to apply. I'm wearing two coats and top coat.

Veronica

Veronica is a rich berry cream that's redder in color than Margo. It's like a berry version of a brick red (brick berry?). There was no top coat needed for this glossy smooth finish! The formula is AMAZING - it's super pigmented and very easy to control. This formula is everything I hoped for in Nyssa and Geneviev (*hopes Zoya fairies are listening*)

Claire

Claire is a dark oxblood cream nail polish, because fall. The formula was thin and not fantastically pigmented. The second coat was thick and almost syrupy :/ On a positive note, the finish was super glossy. Claire is such a gorgeous color - if the formula were as stellar as Veronica, this would have been a contender for one of my top polishes of the year. I'm wearing two coats.

Ryan

Ryan is a vivid and deep navy blue. The formula was super pigmented and easy to apply (like Veronica). Bonus: Ryan didn't have that strange smell dark blue nail polishes often have! But before you run out to buy Ryan - and by run out, I mean open up a new tab in your browser - Ryan is really close to Sailor. Sailor is a touch lighter and Ryan is a little more saturated, but they are close enough that you may not need both.

The colors of the Entice polishes are fantastic but I would have loved this collection even more if all six polishes had great formulas.

Zoya nail polishes retail for $9.00 and the Entice collection is available online. In New York City, Zoya can be purchased at several locations including Gideon's Drugs (1385 Broadway, corner of 38th St) and Ulta in the Rego Park Center. See the full list of retailers here.

Zoya Entice collection provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

Cirque Colors: The Metropolis Collection "Knickerbocker"

2014-11-09T17:15:00.000-05:00

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my disclosure policy here.

If November was a color, it would be probably be brown. Turkey, fallen leaves, and leather boots... brown. It's fitting that for November 2014, the latest cream color released in Cirque Colors' The Metropolis Collection is a super dark/just shy of black espresso brown named Knickerbocker.

Knickerbocker is so richly pigmented that it's almost a one coat brown. The formula isn't too thick, but I did find that it thickened slightly on the brush as I painted my last few nails. I'm wearing two coats. Knickerbocker dries with a nice shine but I added a coat of Cirque's Liquid Laminate top coat for a super glossy and smooth finish.

Knickerbocker is very similar to Zoya Angelina and Essie Little Brown Dress.

I can picture Knickerbocker going so well with many of Cirque's glitter nail polishes (especially the rose gold glitter Stella and the brown/orange/black glitter French Roast)! I'm also picturing a neat gradient using the brown holo, Mink.

Knickerbocker is another great addition to Cirque's growing line up of cream colors. I wonder what new color December will bring!

Knickerbocker retails for $13 each and is available now online at CirqueColors.com. Refer to the Stockists page for participating retailers.

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my disclosure policy here.

Peanuts by OPI: Swatches & Reviews

2014-10-30T19:43:00.001-04:00

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

New from OPI for Halloween 2014 is a four piece collection inspired by the classic Charlie Brown cartoon "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown":

Peanuts by OPI brings to life Charles M. Schulz’s comic strip characters for Halloween 2014. Inspired by “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown,” the four new limited edition nail lacquer shades include seasonal yellow and black crèmes, as well as two black-based glitter hues.

“‘It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown’ is a classic, beloved film,” explains Suzi Weiss-Fischmann, OPI Co-Founder & Brand Ambassador. “Peanuts by OPI celebrates the fun, youthful nature of Charlie Brown, Lucy, Linus and Snoopy with four limited edition nail lacquer shades designed to capture the spirit of Halloween. With two crème and two glitter options, you can switch between a cheery yellow or chic black look, or try adding a layer of glitter for a unique finish.” [from the press release]

Let's take a look!

Good Grief!

Good Grief! is a dandelion yellow cream nail polish inspired by Charlie Brown's signature yellow shirt. It's not as highlighter yellow as it decided to photograph :) While the first coat gave me some trouble by being a bit patchy, the second evened things out nicely. This kind of yellow nail polish isn't really my jam, but I appreciate the inspiration behind the color. I'm wearing two coats. Oh, and in case you have it - Zoya Darcy is a very similar shade of yellow.

Who Are You Calling Bossy?!?

Who Are You Calling Bossy?!? is a jet black cream nail polish inspired by the color of Lucy's hair. The formula is thin but strongly pigmented. It's almost a one coat black but because the formula was thin, it was a touch patchy. If you want a solid black finish, go with two. TL, DR: ...Bossy?!? is an average black nail polish that isn't great but at the same time isn't awful.

To Be Or Not To Beagle and Where's My Blanket???

To Be Or Not To Beagle (pointer & pinky fingers) is a satin glitter made up of colorful hexagonal glitter, smaller black glitter, and black bar glitter in a clear base. Here's a nice example of bar glitter that isn't too offensive :) I was quite pleased with the amount of glitter I was able to pull from the bottle and deposit on my nails - I didn't have to fish for any shapes, either. I'm wearing one coat on my pointer and pinky fingers over Good Grief!

Where's My Blanket??? (middle & ring fingers) is a satin glitter made up of black, yellow, and orange hexagonal glitter, small black glitter, and even smaller black glitter in a clear base. The glitter was more sparse than ...Beagle. I'm wearing one coat on my middle and ring fingers over Good Grief!

The cream nail polishes in The Peanuts by OPI collection are somewhat forgettable but the satin glitters ...Beagle... and ...Blanket??? are worth taking a look at. I guess we will have to wait another Halloween to hope for an appearance by "The Great Pumpkin" orange nail polish ;)

OPI nail polish retails for $9.50. In New York City, my favorite places to shop for OPI include Ricky's (various locations), Harmon Face Values (675 6th Ave), and Duane Reade (various locations).

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

Harmon Face Values in Chelsea Now Carries China Glaze

2014-10-26T12:44:00.004-04:00

Big news, New York City nail polish lovers! Harmon Face Values, aka Chelsea's beauty mecca, now carries China Glaze nail polish. Unlike OPI and Essie which are as easy to find as Dunkin Donuts and Starbucks, China Glaze has been historically difficult to find in NYC. Brooklyn, Queens, and Staten Island have Ulta and Sally Beauty but until now there were only a few beauty supply stores left in Manhattan that carried the brand. Beauty 35 and Gideon's Drugs carried China Glaze for a short time but the brand disappeared from shelves in 2012.

Harmon had a nice selection of permanent China Glaze polishes, similar to what you'd see at Ulta or Sally Beauty, and they retail for $7.50 each. There were no seasonal collections and to be honest, if I decide there's an older China Glaze polish I need in my life I'll probably wait until I'm near Ulta with coupon in hand. But I'm hopeful that this means China Glaze's seasonal collections may show up, especially since this particular Harmon has been great for stocking new collections. And not to start any rumors as this is purely speculation on my part: maybe this means China Glaze will be available at Bed Bath & Beyond as well. You know, the ones with the Harmon beauty sections inside?

Anyway... tl;dr: you can now find a selection of permanent China Glaze nail polish at Harmon Face Values. They cost $7.50 each.

Harmon Face Values is located at 675 6th Ave between 21st and 22nd St. Not in NYC? Check out the website to see if there's a store by you!

Cirque Colors: The Metropolis Collection "La Vie Boheme" and "Concrete Jungle"

2014-10-05T17:02:00.001-04:00

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my disclosure policy here.

Last month, Brooklyn-based indie nail polish brand Cirque Colors launched The Metropolis Collection, "a monthly release series of creme-finished nail lacquers highlighting the great city of New York." [from the press release]. The first color in the series, NYFW, was a huge hit and I (as well as I'm sure many!) eagerly awaited the next color. Much to my delight, for October Annie released two new creme colors! Let's take a look at La Vie Boheme and Concrete Jungle.

La Vie Boheme

La Vie Boheme is a super saturated dark plum creme nail polish. Depending on the lighting, the color will range from looking like a dark black cherry to a dusty eggplant purple. La Vie Boheme dries a shade darker than it appears in the bottle. The formula is very thick (probably due to the extreme pigmentation) but I didn't find it difficult to apply. Coverage is almost perfectly opaque in one coat - I'm wearing two plus Cirque's Liquid Laminate top coat. Because it's so pigmented, you'll have purple fingers when you remove it. VIVA La Vie Boheme!

La Vie Boheme is as dark as Zoya Toni and Monica. While the hue isn't exactly the same, it falls in between the two but is closer to Toni.

Concrete Jungle

Concrete Jungle is a cool grey cream nail polish that's neither light nor dark. The hue is very slightly blue-leaning, but it's pretty much a grey-grey. The formula was packed full of pigment and a little streaky. I'm wearing two coats plus Cirque's Liquid Laminate top coat. Grey nail polish was a big trend several years ago and has since "faded" a bit, but Concrete Jungle has definitely rekindled my love of grey nail polish!

Compared to two similar grey nail polishes in my collection, China Glaze Concrete Catwalk and CND Asphalt are close but are both a shade darker than Concrete Jungle.

The release of La Vie Boheme and Concrete Jungle brings Cirque Colors' creme nail polish count to five. Annie has certainly established she can consistently create high quality creme nail polishes. I'm already looking forward to November's color/s!

La Vie Boheme and Concrete Jungle retail for $13 each and are available now online at CirqueColors.com. Refer to the Stockists page for participating retailers.

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my disclosure policy here.

Zoya Ignite Fall 2014 Nail Polish Collection - Swatches & Reviews

2014-09-29T21:00:00.000-04:00

Zoya Ignite collection provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

For fall 2014, Zoya released twelve new nail polishes in two collections: Ignite & Entice. The six nail polishes in the Ignite collection are rich and full of complex shimmer while the Entice polishes all have cream finishes. Let's take a look at the Ignite collection! These polishes dry slightly gritty so I'm wearing top coat in most if not all of my swatches.

Autumn

Autumn is a metallic copper nail polish with flecks of golden shimmer. Don't let the word "metallic" turn you off - this is not the streaky or frosty kind of metallic! The shimmer is quite visible - it rises to the surface and doesn't get buried in the base color. The formula was great and coverage was opaque in two coats. As overused as the term is, I will reluctantly admit that this nail polish screams "pumpkin spice". In the words of Doge: much fall, very impress, wow.

Teigen

If you casually follow Game of Thrones (say, for example, someone you live with has read all the books and tries to explain to you what's going on but you don't really pay attention), you might think that Teigen is the name of one of the characters. It's not. Teigen is a berry pink nail polish loaded with golden shimmer. Some of the shimmer flecks appear gold on the nail and some pick up pink tones. The formula is great and I'm wearing two coats.

India

India is a rich reddish purple nail polish with a ton of complex shimmer. In the bottle, the shimmer appears primarily golden but on the nail most becomes tinted reddish. The formula is easy to apply and I'm wearing two coats. I know Sansa is getting all the attention in this collection, but just look at India!

Sansa

Sansa is a deep grape purple (like the color of the grape Jolly Rancher) nail polish with a complex golden shimmer. Some flecks of shimmer appears gold and some pieces pick up some of the purple base color. But the shimmer doesn't get buried under the purple, which is true nail polish magic! The result is very luxurious. The base color has a semi-jelly transparent quality to it. The formula is sticky and doesn't glide on, but it is opaque in two coats. Sansa lives up to the hype!

Yuna

Yuna a cool greenish-grey nail polish with gold flecks of shimmer. I even see a flash of green in the sparkle. I had my doubts that the sparkle would get swallowed in the grey and not show up on the nail, but it does! More of that nail polish magic. So much win. The formula was easy to work with and I'm wearing two coats. Isn't Yuna a really interesting polish?

Remy

Remy is a super-saturated blue nail polish with golden shimmer. On the nail, the shimmer becomes tinted blue. This polish = looking into a bottomless & mysterious crystal clear cave water hole (is there a word for "cave water hole"?). The formula is easy to use. I'm wearing two coats.

Many times I've been disappointed by nail polishes that, in the bottle, appear to have amazing shimmer only to find that it doesn't translate to the nail - classic nail polish catfish action. But, the Ignite collection delivers on shimmer. While I think to a degree the shimmer will always look better in the bottle because it clings to the sides, at no point did I find myself thinking "meh, it looked better in the bottle" about any of the Ignite polishes.

Bonus bottle pictures, because SHIMMER!!!

The Ignite collection is all around a great release. The colors are rich, the shimmer is impressively complex, and the formulas are solid. Even for the gal who has it all, there will be a few must-haves from the Ignite collection!

Zoya nail polishes retail for $9.00 and the Ignite collection is available online. In New York City, Zoya can be purchased at several locations including Gideon's Drugs (1385 Broadway, corner of 38th St) and Ulta in the Rego Park Center. See the full list of retailers here.

Zoya Ignite collection provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

OPI DS "Tourmaline" and "Titanium"

2014-09-14T20:04:00.000-04:00

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

"This fall, OPI introduces a new Polished Quartz formula with two new semi-precious stone-inspired hues – DS Tourmaline and DS Titanium – to the Designer Series by OPI collection. Each Designer Series Polished Quartz nail lacquer features a semi-matte finish with intense three-dimensional sparkle." [from the press release]

DS Tourmaline

If you're an October baby, you're probably familiar with Tourmaline - it's one of your birthstones! You've probably also heard the word associated with hair dryers & flat irons (check out this article if you're interested in learning why). According to minerals.net, tourmaline is "is the most colorful of all gemstones. It occurs in all colors, but pink, red, green, blue and multicolored are its most well-known gem colors. Scientifically, tourmaline is not a single mineral, but a group of minerals related in their physical and chemical properties." [source]

OPI DS Tourmaline is bright pink with with pastel iridescent hexagonal glitter and very fine pink shimmer. There is no shortage of sparkle! Tourmaline has a satin and semi-textured aka "bumpy on purpose" finish, so let each coat dry fully before applying the next one. Tourmaline was easy to apply and I used two coats. Something about this polish reminds me of prom dresses of the 2000's.

DS Titanium

Titanium is the element Ti (and the name of a song by David Guetta - ha, now it's in your head!) While it's best known as a super strong material, I learned that it can also be a gemstone! I'm not even going to try to explain it, but if you're interested you can read all about that here and here.

OPI DS Titanium is a metallic steel grey with pastel iridescent hexagonal glitter and very fine iridescent shimmer. The first coat was disappointingly thin, but the thin formula permitted the glitter to show through the dark base color. I'm wearing two coats but probably could have used a third (see: pinky). Titanium has the same satin and semi-textured finish as Tourmaline. In the bottle this polish look amazing but unfortunately I wasn't crazy about how it looked with a semi-textured finish.

Because of the large glitter pieces, both polishes were stubborn to remove.

While Tourmaline and Titanium deserve credit for being packed full of pretty bits, I would have liked them more without the satin semi-textured finish (what OPI calls the "Polished Quartz" formula). They aren't as gritty looking as Lapis and Pewter were (which had what OPI called the "Raw Granite" formula) - instead, I'm sad to say that the "Polished Quartz" formula yields what appears to be just a lumpy glitter manicure. I'm not one to pile on loads of top coat over textured polish to achieve a smooth finish, but I hear it's something people do :)

It isn't clear which direction the Designer Series line will take next: the DS polishes have ranged from holographic, super glittery, shimmery, and now textured finishes. And to add to the confusion, the last four polishes have been named after gemstones and metals with semi-textured finishes named after rocks & minerals (just a small detail that is probably bothering lovers of the natural sciences and pedants alike.) The DS line almost appears to be OPI's special "test kitchen" and the only consistencies are the silver cap and higher price point.

OPI DS nail polish retails for $12.50. In New York City, my favorite places to shop for OPI include Ricky's (various locations), Harmon Face Values (675 6th Ave), and Duane Reade (various locations).

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

OPI Ford Mustang Collection: Swatches & Reviews

2014-09-07T16:18:00.000-04:00

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

OPI and Ford Motor Company are going full throttle and taking the “pedi to the metal” with the official launch of the limited-edition nail lacquer collection inspired by the popular Ford Mustang. The OPI Ford Mustang collection features six Mustang-inspired shades that are set to hit U.S. stores in July.
Coinciding with Mustang 50th anniversary celebrations this year, OPI marks the milestone with a standout collection of colors – all capturing the spirit, passion and excitement of Ford Mustang.
“For five decades, Mustang has represented some of the best of American culture, inspiring a feeling of freedom and independence,” says Melanie Banker, Mustang marketing manager. “We are excited to celebrate the iconic Ford Mustang with OPI and tell its story through color.” [source]

Race Red

The hero color of the collection, Race Red pays tribute to one of Mustang’s signature colors and brings to life the passion and excitement of the iconic car [source]

Race Red is the beloved fiery orange color of the Ford Mustang. Much like the Purse Blog forums, you better believe there are car forums - I found this thread dedicated to Ford Mustangs in Race Red :) The formula of Race Red (the nail polish!) is fantastic and it's almost opaque in one coat. I actually wore just one coat last week as my mani - it's been so humid I didn't feel like doing two. While a little thin, the coverage was even and looked fine. However, it chipped after one day :( Maybe if I had done a second coat it wouldn't have chipped so fast? Anyway, I think it's super awesome that this nail polish was created to exactly match a car color.

The Sky's My Limit

There is nothing like the freedom of the open road and shimmering, endless blue sky. This aqua hue awakens a woman’s sense of adventure and is a trend shade for summer going into the fall. [source]

Unlike some polishes that look amazing in the bottle but disappoint on the nail, The Sky's My Limit is the exact opposite. I actually didn't understand why everyone online was raving about this polish until I tried it. The Sky's My Limit is infinitely more beautiful than it looks in the bottle and than my pictures can capture! The shimmer is colorful and complex. The formula is equally impressive and covers well in two coats. While I'm not sure that it fits with the rest of this collection, for me The Sky's My Limit is the winner.

Girls Love Ponies

A woman is multifaceted; this grown-up pink acts as a reminder of her femininity, even as she takes to the wheel of the powerful pony [source]

Dear OPI copywriters: I don't need to be reminded of my femininity when I drive a car. The Mustang may be 50 years old, but this antiquated attitude has got to go. Girls Love Ponies is an unremarkable pink cream nail polish but the formula makes this one worth taking a look at. The first coat applies evenly and is just shy of being completely opaque. I'm wearing two coats.

Angel With a Leadfoot

Drive up and say “halo” to this celestial white. Whether worn alone or as an accent, white is essential to a woman’s wardrobe and to making a statement [source]

Angel With a Leadfoot is a stark white cream nail polish. The formula was decently opaque and not too streaky. If you're careful when you apply and limit the amount of brush strokes you use, you can get away with applying just two coats. I wasn't careful and needed three. I wore Angel With a Leadfoot for four days and it held up really great, although by the 3rd day it started to turn yellow. I'm not sure if that had to do with my top coat or the sun... has anyone else experienced a similar yellowing while wearing white polish?

The Mustang comes in white - Ford calls it Oxford White. Not sure why OPI didn't give this polish the same name?

Queen of the Road

Inspired by Mustang’s dramatic and perfectly appointed cabin, a black interior evokes sophistication and will always be a classic – just like the little black dress [source]

Queen of the Road is a super dark graphite with a hint of silver shimmer. I was really looking forward to this polish, but the formula was thin, a little runny, and not as pigmented as I hoped it would be (which was surprising for such a dark color). I'm wearing two coats. I like that Queen of the Road is inspired by the interior of the Mustang.

50 Years of Style

Just like Mustang, celebrate all your milestones with this made-to-party golden pearl [source]

Nope nope nope nope nope. 50 Years of Style is a dingy old looking frosty metallic gold nail polish. I didn't find it flattering, flashy, or special in any way - I won't be celebrating any milestones while wearing this polish if I can help it. If you work quickly, you can avoid excessive brush strokes. But the brush strokes aren't a deal breaker - the color & finish of this polish is. I'm wearing two coats.

In partnering with a car company like Ford, I can't help but think it was a missed opportunity not creating an entire collection of nail polishes in the same colors as Mustangs. One of the things I remember thinking about as a kid while being dreadful bored car shopping with my parents was how cool it would be if, when your parents bought a car, you would also get a matching nail polish in the same color of the car (and also that you would get a mini Matchbox car version of the car). I'm sure I'm not the only kid who was thinking about that :) I took a look at the colors the Mustang comes in. "Deep Impact Blue" and "Triple Yellow" in particular would have made great nail polishes!

While overall the Mustang collection isn't thrilling, I enjoyed seeing an actual car color become a nail polish. The Sky's My Limit is the clear standout, even if it is the most random color in the collection.

OPI nail polish retails for $9.50. In New York City, my favorite places to shop for OPI include Ricky's (various locations), Harmon Face Values (675 6th Ave), and Duane Reade (various locations).

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my full disclosure policy here.

Cirque Colors: The Metropolis Collection "NYFW"

2014-09-02T19:50:00.002-04:00

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my disclosure policy here.

New from Brooklyn-based indie nail polish brand Cirque Colors is The Metropolis Collection: "a monthly release series of creme-finished nail lacquers highlighting the great city of New York." [from the press release]. That's right, each month Annie will add a new NYC-inspired creme color nail polish to Cirque's growing line-up! The first color in the series, NYFW, launched today - let's take a look!

NYFW

For September 2014, the first color in the new Metropolis Collection appropriately named NYFW is a seriously vibrant blue. It's electric & vivid. It's dark or bright depending on the lighting. It glows like the blue screen of death. NYFW really lit up in the light box, so I adjusted the color and turned the brightness down a touch. In low lighting, it looks darker.

Like Memento Mori and Carpe Diem, Cirque's debut creme finish nail polishes, the formula of NYFW is first rate. The polish flows easily and at the same time is a breeze to control, which I find extra impressive for a hand-mixed creme nail polish. The pigmentation is great and NYFW is just about opaque in one coat. I used two. NYFW dries to a satin finish so I added Cirque's Liquid Laminate top coat for extra shine in my swatches.

Wear time was excellent. I wore NYFW for four days with Essie Fill The Gap basecoat and Poshe topcoat without any tip wear. The edges started to peel off on day four, but that's been happening to me lately with anything I wear over Fill The Gap. NYFW earned extra points by not excessively staining my fingers and fingernails blue when I removed it.

While there are similar colors available like Color Club Bright Night, Essie Butler Please, Kiko Electric Blue, nails inc Baker Street, RBL YKB: 2012, and Yves Saint Laurent Polish Bleu Majorelle, I actually don't have any of them! The closest color I have is a Color Club & Birchbox exclusive called Insta-This. Next to NYFW, Insta-This - a color, if you remember, I totally went crazy for - looked dull. I was wearing NYFW during a trip to Ulta and took a look at my mani next to nails inc Baker Street. In comparison, NYFW is a little bit darker, but that was just by looking at the bottle. I should really put them both on my nails before officially saying that ;)

The debut color in The Metropolis Collection really has set the bar high with regards to both the color and formula. So far I am impressed with Cirque's creme finish polishes and am already looking forward to seeing the next color!

NYFW retails for $13 and is available online at CirqueColors.com. Refer to the Stockists page for participating retailers.

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my disclosure policy here.

RickyColor "Hot Spots" Summer 2014 Collection

2014-08-28T17:50:00.001-04:00

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my disclosure policy here.

Summer is not over! There are still four glorious days left until Labor Day, aka the unofficial yet generally accepted end of summer. Four days to have the #bestsummerever and get sick on watermelon, develop an ear infection from swimming in the public pool, eat sand as you attempt to body surf, and end up with a rash from poison ivy. And four days to (seasonally) rock an obnoxious neon glitter mani.

New from RickyColor (local beauty/inappropriate birthday card shop Ricky's NYC's house brand of nail polish) for summer 2014 is the Hot Spots collection, made up of five neon satin glitter polishes. The formula was consistently easy to apply and I was able to pull lots of glitter from the bottle without any weird clumping. Let's take a look!

Governors Island Circus

Governors* Island Circus is a neon pink and white satin glitter nail polish. I'm wearing one coat over American Apparel Neon Yellow.

*that's right - it really is "Governors Island", not Governor's or Governors' Island

Sunday Morning Murray Hill

Sunday Morning Murray Hill is a neon pink, neon yellow, and white satin glitter nail polish. Nope, there's no orange in here - it's just ~~a trick~~ an illusion! I'm wearing one coat over OCC Wasabi.

Off Duty

Off Duty is a neon yellow and white satin glitter nail polish. I'm wearing one coat over American Apparel Neon Coral.

Central Park Boat Basin

Central Park Boat Basin is a bright blue and white satin glitter nail polish. Side note: is there actually a Central Park Boat Basin? There's the Central Park Boathouse and 79th St Boat Basin... anyway, your SAT word of the day is "portmanteau". I'm wearing one coat of Central Park Boat Basin over Sinful Colors Dream On.

Sample Sale Line

Raise your hand if you've ever waited in line at a sample sale. Got any good stories? My experiences have been pretty civil - I find getting on and off the subway during rush hour far worse. Sample Sale Line is a neon pink, bright blue, and white satin glitter nail polish. I'm wearing one coat over Cirque Colors Memento Mori.

These neon glitters are so much fun and I appreciate the hyperlocal names. RickyColor nail polishes retail for $6.50 each and in stores I've seen a 2/$10 promo. The formula is formaldehyde, toluene, and DBP free. RickyColor nail polish is sold in Ricky's stores (store locator) and online.

Go have the best last four days of summer ever!

Product(s) in this post were provided for review. Read my disclosure policy here.