polish insomniac

OPI I Don't Give A Rotterdam vs OPI I Have A Herring Problem (OPI Holland Collection)

2012-01-27T11:26:00.000-06:00

OPI I Don't Give A Rotterdam, OPI I Have A Herring Problem

Today I have a super quick comparison for you! I received the OPI Holland collection last night, but won't be able to swatch it until Monday. I wanted to wear one of the shades as a mani, but couldn't make up my mind between I Have a Herring Problem and I Don't Give a Rotterdam! I decided to swatch them together to help me make up my mind. (I Have a Herring Problem won!)

OPI I Have A Herring Problem (top)
OPI I Don't Give A Rotterdam (bottom)

OPI I Don't Give A Rotterdam, OPI I Have A Herring Problem

OPI I Have A Herring Problem (top)
OPI I Don't Give A Rotterdam (bottom)

So do you need them both? Duh! I love them both, but they are definitely distinct shades!

Polishes provided for review. Disclosures: polish insomniac at times reviews products provided by a representative of the company. When we do so, we specifically state so. We also use affiliate links. For more, please see the disclosure page.

You Need This - China Glaze Electric Beat (plus Bonus KOTD)!

2012-01-27T09:57:00.001-06:00

China Glaze Electric Beat

Remember when I showed you my Electropop Haul? That was over two weeks ago! WHY did I put off wearing Electric Beat? OMG I L♥VE IT! (But what's with the name? I don't get it.)

Electric Beat the perfect blue - dusty without being dark, bright without being cyan.... I just love it! I had a very hard time taking pictures of this polish, only one (above) came out "true" to color!

I loved this polish so much I extended my mani by making it a KOTD (Konad Of The Day) the next day. I used a plate I already owned, M79, with the Konad White Special Stamping polish... It didn't turn out like I had imagined, but it was still cute!

The China Glaze Electropop collection is already available online and in professional beauty supply stores. It should be available very soon inside your local Sally Beauty!

Will you be picking up Electric Beat?

I purchased this polish at my local beauty supply.
Disclosures: polish insomniac at times reviews products provided by a representative of the company. When we do so, we specifically state so. We also use affiliate links. For more, please see the disclosure page.

Dior Spring Roundup and FREE SHIPPING!

2012-01-25T13:53:00.001-06:00

I have been putting off posting these pictures of the two polishes I purchased from the Dior Spring collection because I could not get the pictures to come out the way I wanted. But I couldn’t keep them to myself when I found out that Kristina, the counter manager from the Dior counter at Macy’s is having a free shipping event - today (1/25/12) and tomorrow (1/26/12) only! Details at the bottom of this post!

The two spring polishes are actually scented, they smell like roses! I like the fact that they are not strongly scented - I have a really sensitive nose and strong florals give me a headache. Waterlily is definitely the star of the two. It is very very similar to Chanel Jade, which was incredibly popular. Forget-Me-Not is a more demure shade of purple. It reminds me of a darker Illamasqua Velocity. The formula on Waterlily was spot-on, but Forget-Me-Not was a little thick.

Back to FREE SHIPPING! Today (1/25/12) and tomorrow (1/26/12) only you can receive FREE SHIPPING on *any* Dior cosmetic purchase by calling Kristina at Macy’s Bellevue at 425-688-6368. She will be at the store from 9:00AM - 7:00PM PST both today and tomorrow. If you call and she is not available you can leave a message for her, OR you can TEXT her directly! Talk about Customer Service! You can text her at 425-941-6265.

I have included some links below to other bloggers who posted about the Dior Spring Collection!

Blushing Noir - Dior GRANVILLE GARDEN 002 Garden Clutch Makeup Palette
Blushing Noir - Dior 841 GARDEN ROSES 5-Couleurs Garden Edition Eyeshadow Palette
Prime Beauty - Dior Milly Garden Clutch
Café Makeup - Dior Garden Pastels 5-Color Eyeshadow
Café Makeup - Dior Spring 2012: Rose Glow Awakening Blush

So what are you waiting for? Give Kristina a call RIGHT NOW and let me know what you ordered!!!

*Polishes in this post were purchased by moi.

Kat Von D Wonderchild Swatches and Review

2012-01-25T13:01:00.000-06:00

Kat Von D Wonderchild

I am in love with this polish! Kat Von D's first attempt into the world of nail polish brought us four polishes (check out the bottle shots here). While on the expensive side the B3F formula on these is great. The short brush and stubbly handle weren't the greatest, but I had no problem controlling the polish.

At $12 a pop, however, the only one I think unique enough to justify the price tag is Wonderchild. Wonderchild is a foily purple based duochrome that leans from violet to deep purple to fuschia. think I am going to let the pictures do the rest of the talking!

It's worth noting that these polishes are LE (limited edition). If all the shades do not sell out (due to the high pricetag) they might end up on in the sale section! On a side note, I am pretty sure that Kat Von D is a Sephora brand, made and distributed by Sephora. Can anyone confirm that?

What do you think? Will you be picking any up, or taking your chances that they will go on sale?

This polish was purchased by moi.
Disclosures: polish insomniac at times reviews products provided by a representative of the company. When we do so, we specifically state so. We also use affiliate links. For more, please see the disclosure page.

How Freakin' CUTE is this??? Stila Love at First Sight

2012-01-25T09:09:00.002-06:00

Stila Love at First Sight Blush Palette

I will be the first to admit it, I have a thing for blush. I don't even *like* heart designs, but put it on blush and I am a goner. I have all of the Physician's Formula Happy Booster blushes, and of course I have last year's Stila V-day blush. I WANT the Stila Love At First Blush Palette RIGHT NOW!!!

Disclosures: polish insomniac at times reviews products provided by a representative of the company. When we do so, we specifically state so. We also use affiliate links. For more, please see the disclosure page.

So that's why they make Konad Special Stamping Polish...

2012-01-24T10:41:00.000-06:00

I haven't done any stamping in a long, long time. See, when I moved to Iowa, I lost my double ended KONAD brand double stamper. I have a few other "off brand" stampers but they just don't work as well. I FINALLY placed an order for one at OC Nail Art, and I thought I would show you what I got!

Two-sided Stamper

White Special Nail Polish

M84 Image Plate

M85 Image Plate

I never bought Konad Special Polish polish before, but I used it yesterday over Essie Absolutely Shore and I loved it! SOOOOOOOO easy to use. If you are a stamping newbie, I highly recommend picking up some of this polish!

I bought a gift card for OC Nail Art for 25% off! I basically got everything you see on this page (except the Essie) for less than $19!

Why didn’t you MAKE me try these earlier? Sally Hansen Salon Effects in Laced Up and Frock Star

2012-01-23T16:39:00.000-06:00

I am serious, though. Why haven’t I tried these before? Maybe the $8.50 price tag turned me off (although they do got on BOGO sales quite often). Maybe it was the thought of wearing them long enough to get my money’s worth? Or MAYBE it was the fact that I had so other similar products fail me? Yeah, I bet it was the last one.

The first design I decided to try was Laced Up. Honestly, I tried it first because I didn’t think I would like it (and if I messed up then, oh well)! Well color me surprised, other than a few basic mistakes in my application(which you can see on my ring finger), they looked awesome!

If you read the directions, which are detailed and easy to follow, it takes only a few minutes to apply. If you are bull-headed like me and try to apply them without reading the directions, it will take you a little bit longer =)

I applied Frock Star (above) in the dark while I was watching a movie, so I am not surprised that I filed a little bit of the polish off my tips!

If you have relatively short nails like me, each package could do two sets of nails. Or you could do your toes. I have Frock Star on my big toes right now!

In my head, these are great for a few reasons:

If you are horrible at nail art
If you are having a bad day and no matter what polish you apply it smudges before it dries
If you are traveling and want to change your mani on the fly. One of my blogger friends mentioned applying them in an airport during a layover!
THEY ARE MADE OF NAIL POLISH - no damage to your natural nail bed during application OR removal!

Oh, and the bonus reason these are so awesome? HOLIDAY DESIGNS! Have you seen the Valentine’s Day ones yet???

Are you like me? Have you foolishly resisted Sally Hansen Salon Effects? Or do you love them as much as I do now?

Products provided in exchange for an honest review.

Scar Relief

2012-01-23T09:06:00.001-06:00

Something I don’t talk about much is an old, ugly scar on my knee. I received the scar as a result of an ACL replacement back in 2005. When it was healing the scar seemed to get worse instead of better, bigger instead of smaller. I hated it. I hated the way it looked when I wore dresses or skirts. I hated the way it made my knee look, droopy and old beyond its age. So when I was offered the chance to try Kelo-cote, and advanced formula scar gel, I jumped at it!

What They Say:

Kelo-cote® is a patented silicone scar treatment for managing and preventing scars that are abnormal. Proven as a highly effective hypertrophic scar and keloid treatment.
Kelo-cote® gel self-dries to a waterproof membrane that acts like an extra layer of skin. Helps to soften, flatten and smooth the scar while maintaining the moisture balance and elasticity of the adjacent skin.

What I Say:

The gel was easy to apply, the narrow tip prevented too much product from being squeezed out at one time. The scar on my knee is still present,but it does not look as ugly or as angry as it once did. Highly recommended!
Kelo-cote can be purchased from SkinCareRx for $37.60. You can get free shipping with purchases of $49 or more!

This product was sent for free in exchange for an honest review.

Disclosures: This product was sent for free in exchange for an honest review

Guest Post: Keeping your Nails in Tip-Top Shape

2012-01-22T09:01:00.000-06:00

In order for your nails to look good, you’ve got to take care of them. Nail polish looks great and it’s good for strengthening nails and covering up any issues – but it’s no good chucking coat after coat of polish on nails that are suffering - instead here’s our guide to stripping back and looking after your nails.

Firstly, get them sparkling clean. That means removing every last trace of your last lot of polish – which is best done with an acetone free polish remover. Yes, an acetone-based one will strip the polish off faster, but bear in mind that acetone is a solvent – it’s pretty harsh stuff – so unless your last polish was a heavy duty sparkly one, stick to the kinder acetone-free removers, and take your time over it.

Now, wash your hands thoroughly to get rid of all the polish remover, and give your nails a gentle working over with a good quality nail brush. While you’ve got nail polish on it’s easier for dirt to accumulate beneath your nails, because you can’t see it; so now’s a good time for a full clean-up – plus with no polish on you’ve got no worries about chipping.

Next, dry your hands thoroughly and moisturise both the skin and the nails. You can buy specialist nail and cuticle moisturisers and cuticle oils – or just use your favourite brand of moisturiser and be sure to include your nails and cuticles (which most people miss when they moisturise their hands). Cuticles can be gently pushed back with an orangewood stick, but don’t cut them away – they’re there for a reason.

Shaping is next, if you need it. If you have soft or brittle nails you may prefer to file them while you’re still wearing polish, to give them extra support, but if you have good strong nails it’s preferable to trim them up as part of the clean-up and care process. And whether you cut and file or just file (it’s a personal preference), invest in a glass nail file for a lovely clean finish.

With all that done, your nails are clean, shaped and beautiful – just as nature intended! Now you have two choices – you can either wait for the moisturiser to sink in fully and then start applying base coat for your next polish; or better still leave them au natural for a few days before you polish again – letting light and air get to the nails. If you don’t polish but still want a finishing touch, gently buff the nails to a good shine, so it looks like you have clear varnish on even though you don’t.

Lastly don’t forget – to keep your nails in great condition, get a professional manicure when you can, protect your nails with gloves when you’re doing chores like washing up (to keep them dry and detergent free), and eat foods with plenty of calcium and Vitamin E.

This guest post was contributed by Katie who writes on beauty tips and makeup advice at Cafe La Moda.

Saturday SPAM: The Flakie Edition

2012-01-21T09:30:00.000-06:00

Today is the last day of Flakie FEVER! I will be showing you all the polish combo's that didn't make it into their own post.

Inglot 205 over BYS Ultra Violet

Nutra Nail Golden Crystals Top Coat over China Glaze Sacred Heart

FingerPaints Twiested over Diamond Cosmetics Crushed Velvet

Hits Lambada over Bootie Babe Lime So Fine

I hope you all enjoyed Flakie FEVER! I gotta admit, I am FLAKIED OUT!

Beauty Blogazons Weekly Roundup 1/21/12

2012-01-21T09:01:00.000-06:00

Perilously Pale- Lise Watier 2012 Aquarella Collection Round-up and Face of the Day

Confessions of a Sarcastic Mom- The one with Julep Molly

Midnight Manicures- Friday 13th - My 13 favorite manicure and pedicure products from 2011.

Polish Insomniac- China Glaze Aquadelic - Comparisons and Dupe Search!

Blushing Noir- NARS Paramaribo Duo Eyeshadow Swatches, Review and EOTD - Spring 2012

The Beauty Delicacy- Winter Proof Your Skin

Stephanie Louise- All Things Beautiful – Zoya Fleck Effect Swatches January 2012

Creatively Yours By Ro- Top 25 Under 25 Sephora

The Kracked Kat- The Best Christmas Present...EVER!!! Unicorn Puke

Glitter.Gloss.Garbage- Nicki Minaj OPI Swatches

Want To Speed Up Your Blowdry? You Need It Factor!

2012-01-20T09:48:00.001-06:00

I was recently given the chance to try a new shampoo and conditioner that promised to reduce your dry time by 50% and I jumped at the chance. I mean, who wouldn't want to reduce dry time by 50%? And when the bottles arrived, I thought to myself, who doesn't want pretty shampoo and conditioner in their bathroom?

I am really picky about shampoo and conditioner. If it doesn't smell good, I won't use it. If it doesn't feel good, I won't use it. And due to my color treated hair, I try to avoid ANY shampoo with SLS (sodium lauryl sulfate).

The first thing I noticed about It Factor shampoo was the smell... I was pretty sure I had smelled it before! I *think* it smells like Paul Mitchell Awapuhi shampoo!

What They Say:

It FactorTM Quick BlowdryTM shampoos and conditioners are nothing short of a hairstyle revolution: the first and only shampoo and conditioner system combination to reduce drying time by up to 50%.

Available exclusively through professional salons, It FactorTM is safe for all hair types and free of harsh sulfates, parabens, sodium chloride and alcohol. It FactorTM"s proprietary VaporBoost SystemTM speeds up the natural process of evaporation by reducing the bond between water and the hair shaft. When heat is applied, the water releases from the hair more easily and turns to water vapor more quickly, creating extraordinary hair in a fraction of your normal blow-drying time.

It FactorTM Professional Haircare is:

The FIRST and ONLY shampoo and conditioner combination to reduce drying time by up to 50%
Formulated with our proprietary VaporBoost SystemTM, which speeds up the natural process of evaporation
Multi-purpose, leaving the hair clean, soft, shiny, healthy, bouncy, detangled and sleek ...no other product needed
Safe for all hair types including colored and chemically straightened
Free of harsh sulfates, parabens ,sodium chloride and alcohol

What I Say:

It definitely shortened how long it took to dry my fine, way past the shoulder hair. I can't say it was 50% faster, but it was definitely 25-30% faster! It also seems to make my slightly frizzy fine hair smoother. I can absolutely see purchasing this shampoo and coniditioner to use in the summer! Also, it did a great job of maintaining a fresh dye job!

It Factor will be available at professional salons, and will be $22.50 for 8.5 fluid ounces of shampoo or 6.8 fluid ounces of conditioner. Visit It Factor Beauty to find a salon near you.

Flake FEVER - FingerPaints Flecked

2012-01-19T09:01:00.000-06:00

FingerPainted Flecked over Orly Witch's Blue

This is my favorite combo thus far: FingerPaints Flecked over Orly Witch's Blue. I love how the green and blue flakies stand against the deep blue background. I used two coats of Witch's Blue and two coats of Flecked.

I hope you can still get your hands on these FingerPaints flakies (if you haven't already)! They are an awesome bang for your buck. Witch's Blue is an older Orly polish that is still available on Amazon.

Flakie FEVER: Barry M Indigo & Inglot 204

2012-01-17T10:13:00.000-06:00

Today’s Flakie FEVER post is one of my favorite flakie manis I have done so far. I used Barry M Indigo Blue (which I received in a swap from Rebekah) and Inglot 204, which I also received in a swap. It’s readily available in the US now! I love the look of tone-on-tone flakies.

Although the Inglot are among the most expensive flakies I own, I think they are the easiest to use. This is just one coat! They DO take a longer than normal time to dry though, so I suggest using a top coat like Seche Vite.

Barry M polishes retail for approximately $4.60 (US) and can be purchased directly from http://www.barrym.com (they do ship internationally to most countries, including the US). The Inglot flakies retail for $10 and can be purchased here.

Kat Von D High Voltage Bottle Shots

2012-01-16T16:16:00.000-06:00

I just saw the new Kat Von D High Voltage polishes on Scrangie and knew I had to have them. I ran over to my Sephora to see if they had them in stock... none were on the floor but I asked a Sales Associate and she found these in tht back for me. The store had all but one, Mad Max (naturally the one I really wanted)!

Kat Von D Wonderchild

Kat Von D No Regrets

Kat Von D Sparklehorse

I probably won't have time to swatch these today, but I wanted to share the bottle shot with you anyways.

Scrangie mentioned the bottles reminded her of the WnW Craze bottles, and I can't help but agree!

If your store does not have them in stock (or in the back) you can find them here.
And yes, they are limited edition!

Flakie FEVER Continues! Finger Paints Asylum

2012-01-16T09:12:00.001-06:00

Happy Monday, everyone! I hope you had a great weekend. Here in the US, today is a holiday, so I hope YOU have it off from work!

OK, back to polish. You all know I have flakies on the brain! I love trying unexpected combinations when it comes to layering flakies, and here I applied two layers of FingerPaints Asylum over Bootie Babe Electric Lemon.

FingerPaints Asylum is an awesome flakie with red, orange, gold, green and blue flakies. I have paired it over a lot of different shades, but I wanted to find a shade that with bring out the lighter shades of the flakies. I think I accomplished it, what do you think?

I have a lot more flakie combinations to show you during Flakie FEVER, so stay tuned!

Beauty Blog Link Love 1/14/12

2012-01-14T09:11:00.002-06:00

At Musing on Beauty, Mariella gives Japanese brand Suqqu a try with their Reset Cleansing Oil.

At long last, BB creams are (finally!) hitting it big in North America. Check out theNotice's BB cream coverage, which has only just begun.

polish insomniac shows us how to make a difficult polish look good!

The Pink Sith has FINALLY finished her quest for the elusive L'Oreal Infallible Eye Shadows! Read about the colors she got and see what she thinks!

Have old dried out nail polish strips and don't know what to do with them? Musicalhouses shows you how to save your dried out nail polish strips!

Miss Beauty Nerd loves nude colours, especially ones by Bobbi Brown. Currently, she's coveting the Bobbi Brown Nude on Nude Eye Palette!

Check out Jenn from Spiced Beauty's current obsession from Sleek makeup.

Phyrra shows you the latest lip product she's been lusting after, new Fyrinnae Lip Lustres.

Looking for a full coverage foundation that doesn't feel like a full coverage foundation? Gouldylox Reviews checks out this one from Tarte and puts it's lofty time promises to the test!

My Lips But Better learns the hard way Tweezerman's nail files aren't nearly as good as their tweezers.

Wishing for Spring like Tracy at Beauty Reflections is? Then take a look at the new Lise Watier Aquarella Spring 2012 Eyeshadow Palette.

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Beauty Crazed is giving away a giant pile of makeup to celebrate the new year! Come enter and decide for yourself just how crazed they really are!

FLAKIE FEVER: Specialita Hits Samba (over Cremoso)

2012-01-13T09:12:00.001-06:00

Today is the first day of FLAKIE FEVER on polish insomniac! Unless you are living under a rock, you know that “flakie” topcoats have taken the world by storm. The first polish combo I am showing you is from Specialita Hits, a Brazilian brand. I received this polish in a swap with Sarah of Them Pretty Colors. I actually did this swap with her over a year ago, but they were not available in the US until recently.

The base color is Cremoso, a gorgeous hunter green with gold shimmer. I topped it off with Samba, a green flakie in a translucent green base. I just love how all of the Hits flakies are named after dance styles!

You can purchase Hits polish from http://shop.llarowe.com/ and if you want to check out more swatches of the Hits brand, check out The PolishAholic!

Too pastel??? China Glaze Sweet Hook

2012-01-12T09:19:00.000-06:00

China Glaze Sweet Hook

Do you ever buy a polish, then get home and think, why the heck did I just buy this? I do it all the time. I am especially susceptible when its a spring China Glaze collection. I buy all these soft pastels that I would never wear, because standing next to the other colors in the collection, they look awesome. But then I get home and apply them and think, "Wow, that's a wimpy shade!" It's what happened a last year with the China Glaze Up & Away polished. I bought them because they all looked so pretty together, but swapped all the pastels away. AND that's what happened with Sweet Hook from this year's Electropop collection. Even DH was like, "I don't like that on you."

It's not that this is a bad color. It may look great on you! But on my I like my purples a little darker and a little dustier. Sweet Hook has way too much pink in it for me. Oh well, one for the swap board, I guess!

p.s. Oh, and if you do decide to buy this? It was a PITA to apply. Make sure you have a leveling top coat handy, like Seche Vite!

China Glaze Aquadelic - Comparisons and Dupe Search!

2012-01-11T09:01:00.000-06:00

China Glaze Aquadelic

I am sure you remember my last comparison and dupe search, which was for Color Club New Bohemian. I have ANOTHER shade to add to my growing collection of aqua shades, China Glaze Aquadelic from the Electropop collection!

I will briefly discuss the formula with you. It was not the easiest to apply, as it was rather thick (but not unbearably so). But it only took two coats and it self leveled with ease. I will probably add some thinner next time I wear it

When I purchased Aquadelic I couldn't wait to go home and put it on. These types of shades really brighten my day! But I was SURE I had a dupe. Let's find out, shall we?

Essie Greenport, NYS Baby Blue, ChG Aquadelic, ChG For Audrey, Orly Gumdrop

Orly Gumdrop, ChG For Audrey, ChG Aquadelic, NYS Baby Blue, Essie Greenport

Orly Gumdrop and China Glaze For Audrey are dustier and bluer
NYS Baby Blue is very similar, but lighter and requires more coats
Essie Greenport is both greener and darker

So once again, I find myself without a dupe! What a shame =)

Quick Haul Post!

2012-01-10T16:38:00.002-06:00

Gothica Lolita, Sweet Hook, Aquadelic, Kinetic Candy, Electric Beat

Asylum, Flashy, Flecked, Motley, Twisted

Today I am showing you some of the polishes I have purchased recently. The first picture shows the polishes I picked up from the China Glaze Spring 2012 collection, Electropop. Every time I see the name of the collection in writing, I think it says "Electro-poop!"

I didn't get all the FingerPaints Special Effects at the same store - but I did find them all! I also used these awesome coupons to get them at a huge discount!

Have you picked up any of these polishes?

Perfect for a 60 degree winter day, OPI Are We There Yet?

2012-01-10T11:19:00.001-06:00

It’s going to be 60 degrees in Iowa today. It’s January people! So I reached into my unpublished folder and pulled out this gem from the Fall 2011 OPI Touring America collection.

In my opinion, this shade makes much more sense in the spring than in the fall!

I hope your day is as gorgeous as mine!

*polish was provided for review, but I didn’t get to keep it*

Win an iPad2 or a Kindle Fire from Rafflecopter!

2012-01-09T17:31:00.000-06:00

I have done a few Rafflecopter giveaways on this blog. It has seriously changed the way a blogger hosts a giveaway... so much less work AND so much more fair! Now to spread the word to others, Rafflecopter is hosting its own giveaway, with some pretty awesome prizes! Here are the deets:

Nine months ago, we set out to build an app that makes it simple to manage the process of running giveaways on your website. Today, we're excited to announce that Rafflecopter is now open to the public! To kick off the launch, we want to give you the chance to win an Apple iPad2 or one of two Kindle Fires. Check out the new Rafflecopter entry form while taking a crack at winning some awesome prizes:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Oldie but Goodie: China Glaze Eyes Like Sapphires

2012-01-09T07:13:00.001-06:00


China Glaze Eyes Like Sapphires

China Glaze Eyes Like Sapphires was released as part of the 2006 We Adorn You Collection. It is an absolutely stuning sapphire blue with tiny silver glitter. The glitter is not gritty, rather the polish is completely smooth. This is a "white label" China Glaze, which means it was made before China Glaze was B3F.

The formula is perfection, just what made those old chemically polishes awesome: thin without being runny, opaque with out being goopy, and dried quickly. I used three coats topped off with Revlon Quick Dry Top Coat.

You can still find Eyes Like Sapphires online at e-tailers 8ty8 Beauty and Head2Toe Beauty.

Do you own this polish? Or do you still need to track it down?

How to make a polish look good - Orly Androgynie

2012-01-05T20:43:00.001-06:00

Orly Androgynie was a polish released as part of the 2011 Orly Holiday Soiree collection. I wasn’t able to get my hands on it until recently. I almost didn’t get it because people had complained that it did not look the same on the nail as in the bottle. I decided to purchase it and made it a personal challenge to make the polish look good!

1. Invert the bottle! This is something I recommend you do with any glitter polish, but especially with larger hex glitter. The glitter will settle to the bottom of the bottle where the brush can’t reach it. You will want to flip it upside down for at least 30 minutes. If you forget to flip it over, you can always roll it between you hands for a few minutes. I actually forgot to invert my bottle, so I rolled it between my hands for almost five minutes, keeping an eye on the balls to make sure they were breaking up the glitter that had settled to the bottom.

2. Layer it! Find an appropriate “underwear” shade for your polish. Find the base color of your polish (in this case black) and apply it as a base color over your basecoat. Make it perfect!

3. Apply your polish. In this case, I only used one coat, as not to bury the hex glitter in the jelly base. This allows the glitter to really pop against the black!

4. That’s it! You are done! Now the polish is not obscuring the glitter with the jelly base.

I hope you found this helpful!