Polish or Perish

China Glaze Some Like it Haute

2012-01-28T06:06:00.000-08:00

I have a serious love/hate relationship with this polish. On the one hand: it is really pretty. I love the fact that it looks quite grungy and reserved, with the charcoal and black glitter, but also quite fripperous (is that a word?). This is a very 'me' poilish! On the other hand...bump city! This is seriously the grittiest polish ever. Even after two coats of SV it was still really uneven to the touch. Which annoys me.

Also, because I find it really hard to photograph glitter, here's a blurry outtake where you can actually see the holo.

And one showing what the cat thinks of it.

Orly Fresh and Frisky (Happy Go Lucky, Fall 2011)

2012-01-27T14:12:00.000-08:00

Some collections scream the season in which they are released. Spring sees a lot of pastels, summer brings out the neons, fall and winter sees a lot more muted shades and vampies, and holidays are often glitterbombs. Never in my life would I have looked at Orly's Happy Go Lucky collection and thought, "Hey, that reminds me of buying No. 2 pencils and a required gym uniform."

Orly Fresh

This is green creme that has just a tad of jelly to give it the squishy finish. It is, like, a step or two below neon but stops short of it. The first layer makes it look like it'll apply somewhat thickly and unevenly but it looked perfect after only two coats.

Orly Frisky

Sky blue creme. Not as close to neon as Fresh. This one was a bit frustrating. Three coats, somewhat uneven application, and cuticle drag.

OPI Not Like the Movies (Katy Perry for OPI, 2011)

2012-01-25T06:07:00.000-08:00

When I got the nail polish, the bottle looked really amazing. It looked like very dusty, mossy green shot through with a ton of gold shimmer with a lurking hint of purple duochrome.

OPI Not Like the Movies

Then I put it on and... well, is it possible to be blown away AND be sort of "meh" about it? It isn't as lustrous as it appears in the bottle of it is is much more interesting on the nail. If you don't look too carefully, it looks like a dull silver polish. But then you get close and you see a slightly green-platinum duochrome, shot through with purple microglitter. Super fascinating manicure to look like but not beautiful, per se. But I have nothing else like it so... it's a keeper. :)

Speaking of keepers and things that are not like the movies, today is my fourth anniversary with my SO. It's been a very bumpy road with a lot of highs and lows (sometimes in the same day) and [insert roller coaster cliche here]. I think the way we met would qualify as a "meet cute". The rest of the relationship wouldn't merit a screenplay. This time last year, I had seriously considered leaving. One year later, I've never been so grateful for not turning around and running away as fast as I could.

Orly Emberstone

2012-01-24T19:00:00.000-08:00

I'm not going to lie, this wasn't my first choice when the Orly Mineral Fx collection came out, but what can I say... you put something on clearance (thank you, Sally's) and I am ALL OVER IT.

Orly Emberstone with Black Konad Special Polish and Bundle Monster Plate

I have to say, though, I really liked this polish. It definitely smoldered like embers due to its red-orange hue and the shimmer was great. I loved this Bundle Monster design as well as it looked both "flamey" and "flowery."

A winner, I'd say!

Happy polishing!

Chanel Graphite & Color Club Clean Break

2012-01-24T07:11:00.000-08:00

Chanel Graphite

When did I start buying Chanel polishes, jeez. Expensive habit, that. Should've never started... and I come up against the same question that I have with almost about 80% of the Chanel polishes that I buy: I love the polish itself but do I think it's worth $25? (Especially since Revlon seems to be having some success with their dupes of recent Chanel colors for a fraction of the price.) I have a ton of silver and gunmetal polishes but Graphite is probably better described as pewter because of the gold microglitter that gives it a warmer appearance than most silvers. It applied well in two coats and had pretty good staying power (which I find is true of many Chanel polishes). I think this one (like Particulaire, Jade Rose and Paradoxal before it) may become a "conference" polish. It's not the most understated look but it's still elegant and can pass for professional.

Color Club Clean Break over Chanel Graphite

A good white crackle is hard to find because most whites need multiple layers to appear anywhere near opaque. This one, which was sent to me for review by Color Club, is one of the better white crackles I've tried because it is a little more pigmented (but still crackles very well).

Closeup of Clean Break Over Graphite

I still don't know whether I like crackle polishes or not. I think they can look very, very cool. But they can look very messy if not applied well. They also take better to larger nails, I think. It's difficult to apply one uniform layer of crackle on a small nail because usually, the brush isn't big enough to do the nail in a single sweep... and it isn't large enough that two sweeps won't overlap. So crackles are very hit or miss with me. I'm endlessly surprised that crackle caught on as a trend. It's been around for awhile but now, it's everywhere. Is it because it's a way to... double one's manicurial wardrobe at low cost?

Essie Not Just a Pretty Face

2012-01-23T06:57:00.000-08:00

I've been really into sheers and nudes lately. What is happening to me?! I admit I chose this one mostly for the name, but it is cute. It's a kind of neutral pink with a touch of brown or mauve. It's a bit girly for my taste, but it is mercifully un-streaky, it's very shiny, and it dries in a flash. In fact I almost preferred this with one coat rather than two, and I'll definitely keep it in reserve as a 'silk stockings' polish.

But I don't think this is my ideal Essie sheer - I'd prefer something paler and a but more neutral. Still, plenty more to get through to find the perfect colour!

Essie Absolutely Shore

2012-01-22T07:00:00.000-08:00

(3 coats)

Formula problems (to put it mildly - just look at the photo) and a strangely blah and unflattering color (honestly, if a black woman can't work a pale pastel to death, who the hell can?).

To the purge pile she goes.

Lovely, dark and deep - Orly Enchanted Forest

2012-01-21T07:00:00.000-08:00

A true, deep green polish. Absolutely fantastic! The colour is deep enough that it makes it a nice neutral for me in wintertime. Maybe it's just the name, but it reminds me of playing in the woods at night when I was a kid - they always seemed to mysterious and full of magical things back then! My pic may seem a little dark, but this is one that never looks black - its obviously dark green.

What are you wearing right now? I need some mani inspiration!

kittytokaren

Deborah Lippmann Forget You and Candy Shop (Get This Party Started, Fall 2011)

2012-01-20T06:06:00.000-08:00

I don't understand at all why my SO didn't like these polishes. He's loved most of the other Lippmann chunky glitters I've worn. (He's even worn a couple himself!)

Deborah Lippmann Forget You

Basically, Lippmann Happy Birthday in black jelly. The above is three coats. And man, did it shrink a lot and fast. :( It's awesome because it's a version of Happy Birthday but on the whole, not super interesting.

Deborah Lippmann Candy Shop

I always want to write this as "Candy Shoppe" (as in "Ye Olde"). I don't know why. This one I loved for some odd reason: me and pinks don't get along. I think I would've liked the barbie pink base just a little bit more jelly but as it is, the bright Happy Birthday glitter gets shifted down just a tiny notch, which gives the glitter a bit of a matte appearance. Three coats. Shrinkage city.

Orly Bubbly Bombshell

2012-01-19T18:30:00.000-08:00

Well, hello, lovely glittery princess! Orly Bubbly Bombshell, would you like some konad black flowers? I think you would.

Post Options

Orly Bubbly Bombshell with konad black special polish

I love this Orly polish, even though it took three coats for opacity and then showed tip wear after 24 hours. I mean, it's just so... pretty. The little microglitter just picks up every bit of light and throws it all over the place. I'm not so sure how I feel about the black flowers, but you know about the konad bug, right? Once it bites, it is UNRELENTING.

Happy polishing!

Work appropriate glitter: Essie and Illamasqua

2012-01-18T06:50:00.000-08:00

As you read this I will be off to an interview (for a teaching job - it seems career opportunities are like busses, where I am concerned), so it seemed appropriate to show you something very pretty, but very understated. And - we have actual sunshine, so the pictures are decent! Yay!

I sort of nicked the idea for this off kittytokaren - Essie Brooch the Subject was one of my post-Christmas 'to hell with it' polish gifts to self, and I was intending to pair it with gold polka dots. Then I decided that if I completely stole her manicure I couldn't really post it without feeling faintly plagiaristic (not the done thing on a blog run by university types, obviously), so I decided to mix it up with one of my favourite glitters (Illamasqua Spartan) instead.

I L-O-V-E this manicure. Illamasqua have a reputation as being a company with quite outlandish colours, but I really love how the nude base makes this look so subtle. The glitter itself is awesome because it is a mix of gold and silver, and the glitter itself is irregularly shaped rather than square which makes it look almost like flakies when you move your fingers. The overall effect is quite neutral, so if yellow-golds scare you, this might be worth checking out.

Something for the interim - Essie Armed and Ready

2012-01-17T07:00:00.000-08:00

It is now the middle of winter. Fall and winter collections have long been out, but we won't see anything new for spring for a while - not that I'm super in the mood for spring anyways. But still, this is that dull time of the nail polish year where nothing is coming out that has me salivating. I'm not sure how, but Essie sensed this void and filled it with a fabulous little mini collection called "Go Overboard". It consists of three colours - a lilac, a teal, and this little number called Armed and Ready. I picked mine up at Target!

Please excuse my horrifically dry skin. I am super super dry, especially in winter. I happened to catch the light and decided to snap a pic for you anyways in the hopes of showing off the shimmer in this polish!! It is very subtle in the polish and hard to capture in photographs, but I quite like it that way. The base of Armed and Ready is a murky cool olive green. The closest thing I have in my collection is Essie Power Clutch, but that is more cool toned and grey where this has more brown - but still isn't overly warm. What makes this polish sing is the restrained helping of golden or coppery super microshimmer.

I like this polish quite a bit - it's neutral, while being a bit of a statement. It's tough and rugged, which makes it a nice contrast to feminine winter sweaters.

Have you picked up anything from Go Overboard? Any suggestions for a super hydrating body or hand cream for winter - I would love any recommendations!

kittytokaren

China Glaze Midtown Magic

2012-01-16T05:59:00.000-08:00

China Glaze Midtown Magic

As many had undoubtedly noticed, I took a very long hiatus from the blog in 2011. I just lost interest in nail polish, for the most part. So I remember very well the nail polish that brought me out of that funk: this one, Midtown Magic. I don't know what it is about this deliciously dark mahogany polish but the gold and red shimmer in this polish felt so elegant and playful at the same time. It's maybe not the most original polish but it is a lovely example of this color/shimmer combo. Two coats. Kept it on for days.

tapping on the mic

2012-01-15T07:00:00.000-08:00

*tap tap*

Hello, Polish or Perish! Remember moi? Long golden locks, a small waist, a lovely singing voice and the demeanor and cuticles of an angel? No? No one? Okay, that was all a lie. No matter.

Anyway, yes, it's been forever thanks to a shifting of priorities in many areas of my life (other than buying massive amounts of polish, *ahem*) but for now, I am back, just maybe in a little lesser capacity than before The posts might be a little shorter, but I'm going to try and make them a little more frequent, so I hope that sits well with all of you. For what it's worth, I've missed all of you, both Polish or Perish team members and all of you lovely readers!

I do have some good news, though! I'm hoping to jump back in not only with new colors, but a new love for konad nail art that I am slowly but surely trying to improve upon. Here's a nice little something-something I threw together last night, I hope you like it.

SH Pacific Blue with konad special white polish and the bundle monster plate BM20

Do you see that nice little claw I made for you? Do you see how it looks like I am fashionably modeling my manicure yet it also covers up my jacked-up middle finger nail? Yeah, let's just leave it at that.

Anyway, good to be bac, friends! Happy polishing!

Purge-Swatch Extravaganza

2012-01-14T07:00:00.001-08:00

Last weekend, I sat down and photographed my purge pile (blog sale coming soon-ish) and noted that I hadn't ever posted up photos of a lot of the colors I was getting rid of. I decided to do some quick and very dirty swatches. These are the results:

Eyeko Pastel Polish

(3 coats)

Why I'm purging: That should be fairly obvious.

Icing My Blue Heaven

(2 coats)

Why I'm purging: This color was advertised to me as being a dupe to MAC's Blue India. It most certainly is not. While the formula is good, this blue leans blurple, which always looks weird on me.

Eyeko Pretty Polish

(3 coats)

Why I'm purging: That should be fairly obvious.

Revlon Streetwear Scheming or Burnt (I can't remember)

(2 coats)

Why I'm Purging: I found this and shipped it to a friend but not asking her if I could decant some of it. But I've never worn it. It's cute but eh idk.

Brucci Grape Galaxy

(2 coats)

Why I'm Purging: My purple shimmer faze has come and gone.

China Glaze Mistletoe Kisses

(2 coats)

Why I'm Purging: This is just soooooo not me.

A! Raisin

(2 coats)

Why I'm Purging: I actually really like this color and the formula is pretty good (though, a bit chemically) - but I have too many almost-dupes to keep it around.

Nails Inc. The Donmar

(1 coat)

Why I'm Purging: I'm not a flaky girl and I already have 2. In fact the 2 others I own are on the bottom two fingers (the ring finger is Inglot and the pink is Nfu Oh). Each shows one coat of flaky and the Nails Inc. is not worth replacing one of the two. The flakes are smaller and way less dense. Boo.

ButterLondon (missing a label, I've been told "Royal Navy")

(2 coats)

Why I'm Purging: (1) I own this color already a thousand times over and (2) I wore it on my toes and it chipped off in days.

Elizabeth Arden Red Door 11

(2 coats)

Why I'm Purging: I'm not purging Ruby Red Ruby yet (calm down) I just remember that my girl RMC had requested a swatch of RRR over a warm red and Red Door 11 is undeniably a tomato red. It's also undeniably old, gloopy and full of chemicals.

Lynnderella All Hallow's Eve

(2 coats)

Why I'm Purging: This is just soooooo not me.

Why I stopped using Diamont: Chanel Coco Blue and China Glaze Papaya Punch

2012-01-12T06:41:00.000-08:00

I loved Diamont but the quick drying time and its longevity finally could not hold up to the sheer number of bubbles it causes in most of my nail polishes. After taking these photos back in the early fall, I started using Poshe as a topcoat for cremes and subtle shimmers (on my fingernails) but everything else still gets Diamont.

China Glaze Papaya Punch

Sent to me from China Glaze, from their Island Escape (Summer 2011) collection. Bright papaya orange creme. Kind of hell to apply (four coats to even out), took a quite a bit of time to dry. I loved it... except for the Diamont bubbles.

Chanel Coco Blue

From Chanel's Jeans collection. A light blue creme with very fine white shimmer. Three coats, kind of middle-of-the-line Chanel quality. I've had better, I've had worse. Not worth $29 but I like it enough to keep. (Also, I give "keep" preference to short square bottles. So much easier to organize into compact spaces.)

China Glaze gussied up green

2012-01-11T07:38:00.000-08:00

I remember wearing this a couple of summers ago and absolutely loving it. So I flung this on as my pre-Christmas mani, since green seemed appropriately festive. But actually, I can't remember why I loved it. It was a total PITA to apply. I managed to pull an entire nail of polish off 25 minutes after application because it would. not. dry. And the colour, while undoubtedly pretty, wasn't worth all the hassle either. Sigh...

Sorry for the rubbish pictures, I took this off before I had a chance to try and get outside, in focus shots...

More Color Club Foiled (Fall 2011) swatches

2012-01-10T06:38:00.000-08:00

The rest of the Color Club Foiled collection that CC sent me for review.

Color Club Lumin-Icecent

OK... that's a pretty bad name for a polish. But sure, why not. Light blue foil with slight greenish tinge. Really nice one. Two coats.

Color Club Cold Metal

Ordinary but very nice dark blue foil. One coat does the trick. :) Gotta love those. Dried super fast. Best five minute mani ever.

Color Club Hot Like Lava

Favorite polish from the collection but worst photos ever! I don't understand what went wrong with my ability to use a camera but all of these photos came out blurry and very, very orange. And my skin looks bizarre in the first one. So annoyed. But the polish was great. Another one coat polish, super fast dry time. This was taken on the third day of wear and is a very aptly named for a hot pink foil.

A Little More Luxeffects - Essie A Cut Above

2012-01-09T07:00:00.000-08:00

I was feeling a little bummed out so a while back I picked up Essie's A Cut Above at the drugstore to cheer myself up. The morning after this impulse purchase, I felt a bit guilty. I mean, what am I going to do with giant pink glitter?!

Turns out, that answer is put it over a neutral and smile secretly inside. (Piff would be proud.)

I put it over Essie Hot Coco and I quite like it! I think that because there is multi-sized glitter in their it keeps it from looking like diseased pock marks - which is usually what I think hexagonal glitter looks like. The glitter is quite dense - above is one coat! Something a little new for me, but I couldn't help looking down at my hands and wiggling them in the sunshine when I was wearing this! Somehow I feel like I can better get away with this so close to the holidays. Never fear, I'm sure a creamy neutral is on the horizon for the next mani...

Would you wear it?

kittytokaren

Orly Rock the World (Mineral FX, Holiday 2011)

2012-01-08T06:30:00.000-08:00

Orly Rock the World

And rock my world it DOES. Gorgeous, gorgeous muted rose with gorgeous gorgeous gold and bronze microglitter. It feels like a very conventional combination but it is so bright and festive. From some angles, it looks more magenta but others, it looks more wine red. Either way, shimmer everywhere. Three coats.

Ciate Cookies & Creme

2012-01-07T07:00:00.000-08:00

(2 coats)

This is far and away one of my very favorite nudes. It applies so evenly despite being sheer.

This sheer nude isn't peach based, pink based, or white based, it is beige based and I think it would look great on pretty much every skin color.

I wore this for a 2-day-long meeting with clients. I loved looking down at this.

Butter London Dosh with Claire's Gold Glitter Topcoat

2012-01-06T06:10:00.000-08:00

Butter London Dosh with Claire's Gold Glitter Topcoat

Spruced up the Dosh mani from yesterday's post with... I think four? coats of a holo gold topcoat from Claire's. I wish this could've been more opaque on its own but it serves its sparkly purpose quite well as a topcoat. It surprises me to no end that Claire's Accessories often turns out really great polishes. It's because I think of Claire's as a store I went to as a tween to get cheap-o jewelry. You know, after hitting Contempo Casual. Before it got bought by Wet Seal. (There, I just dated myself.) So I always feel a little sheepish hitting Claire's at the mall. See, I try to appear as if I'm just a really cool young aunt who buys her cool young niece some cool young nail polish. I don't make up stories about my non-existent niece but I try to give off the air of aunt-ness in my carriage. But usually, my brightly made-up nails give away my game.

Butter London Dosh

2012-01-05T06:05:00.000-08:00

Learn something new every day... "dosh" apparently is slang for "money". (Maybe everyone else knew that, but I didn't.)

Butter London Dosh

Slightly swampy green shot through with a lot of gold shimmer. It's a bit on the thin side (this is three coats and you can see just a little bit of VNL at certain angles) but it applied very well and had really great staying power. This was taken on the first day of wear (you can tell because there are a couple lingering pieces of glitter clinging to my nails from a previous mani) but I wore it happily for four days without chippage or shrinkage.

Closeup of Dosh

A Nude Nail for Red Lips - Essie Sandy Beach

2012-01-04T07:00:00.001-08:00

Another classic Essie today - Sandy Beach! I'm in a very nude-nails-and-red-lips kind of mood lately - not sure why! With a little bit of black gel liner it feels very clean and classic with a bit of glam, which is exactly how I want to start off the new year! However, I seem to have just as difficult a time finding a red lipstick as I did my perfect red polish. Reds with more orange look best on me for sure, but I like something with some depth to it that isn't overly light and bright. Sigh. Let the hunt begin! But at least I have the manicure portion nailed! (Har. We are all about dumb puns at PoP lately.)

Sandy Beach is a lovely nude that isn't too pink, but also not too orange or yellow. (For example, Fed Up has more of a yellow tinge.) Please excuse my bedraggled looking nails...they are not very pleased with me at the moment!

Back to red lips - does anyone have a fabulous red lipstick recommendation for me? I'd love to hear your favs and suggestions for me!

kittytokaren

Sally Hansen Touch of Mink

2012-01-03T07:00:00.000-08:00

(2 coats)

Ayayayay, I really apologize for the swatch quality on this one. This was after a few days wear. Should have refreshed with a TC before photographing.

This just goes to show that I can't judge a book by its color (badum cha). I held the bottle up to my nails countless times and shriveled my nose at the prospect. I was CERTAIN that it would clash with my skin.

Well it dried much darker than the bottle color and worked wonderfully. Yay another taupe that works for me!

Polish or Perish

China Glaze Some Like it Haute

Orly Fresh and Frisky (Happy Go Lucky, Fall 2011)

OPI Not Like the Movies (Katy Perry for OPI, 2011)

Orly Emberstone

Chanel Graphite & Color Club Clean Break

Essie Not Just a Pretty Face

Essie Absolutely Shore

Lovely, dark and deep - Orly Enchanted Forest

Deborah Lippmann Forget You and Candy Shop (Get This Party Started, Fall 2011)

Orly Bubbly Bombshell

Work appropriate glitter: Essie and Illamasqua

Something for the interim - Essie Armed and Ready

China Glaze Midtown Magic

*tapping on the mic*

Purge-Swatch Extravaganza

Why I stopped using Diamont: Chanel Coco Blue and China Glaze Papaya Punch

China Glaze gussied up green

More Color Club Foiled (Fall 2011) swatches

A Little More Luxeffects - Essie A Cut Above

Orly Rock the World (Mineral FX, Holiday 2011)

Ciate Cookies & Creme

Butter London Dosh with Claire's Gold Glitter Topcoat

Butter London Dosh

A Nude Nail for Red Lips - Essie Sandy Beach

Sally Hansen Touch of Mink

tapping on the mic