My unnatural disaster

Never let it be said that I only show you my best side!  I tried something new today and, well, behold my failure. 

After telling you of the tutorial about how to do a sponge gradient at Makeup Withdrawal’s web site, I thought I’d give it a try.  Hers looked so lovely.

What I did wrong:

1. Picked two colors with too much contrast
2. Picked two different formulas (a creme and a foil)
3. Used a sponge eye shadow applicator that was too small
4. Rushed
5. Got mad at myself (lighten up; it’s just nail polish!)

I used a medium-light pink creme called Shelby and a purple foil called Carly, both from Zoya and both of which I’ve already reviewed.  Love them each on their own.  Together…. no.  My attempt looks messy and sloppy and I don’t like it at all.  It was so hard to make the gradient look even and the polish went all over my nails.  Anyway, here are the crime scene photos, the first in reflected outdoor light and the second with the flash.

Isn’t it awful??  When I recover, I plan to try it again but next time I’ll use two colors that are more similar, make sure they’re the same formula, will use a much larger piece of cosmetic sponge, and I’ll take my time.

Hope you all get a good laugh from this and see what not to do!

How to do a polish sponge gradient

Short post today, and I’ll be scarce this weekend because I have sooooo much going on, but I wanted to tell you about this great tutorial posted by Makeup Withdrawal.  You can also get to it via Zoya’s blogspot.

Isn’t that beautiful?  I really want to try it!  I’m thinking two shades of pink, or a pink and a purple.  Wait, maybe silver and blue.  The possibilities are endless.

I’ve also read of using disposable sponge eyeshadow applicators instead of cosmetic sponges, and I might try that since I think the handle would make it easier to maneuver.  We’ll see.  Hope everyone has a great weekend and I’ll see you on Monday!

By the way, did you know Zoya’s web site has a new feature — wish lists!  Look under your account. 

“Dark Shadows” from Orly

Well, it looks like OPI isn’t the only polish company to have movie tie-ins.  Orly has debuted its “Dark Shadows” collection to coincide with the soon-to-be-released movie by the same name from director Tim Burton.  It stars Johnny Depp and, well…

For those of us of a certain age who remember the original “Dark Shadows” gothic soap opera (1967-1971),  the new movie’s being a comedy might seem not quite right, and indeed, I’ve read that many fans are outraged.  But hey, it’s Tim Burton.  On the bright side, Jonathan Frid, who starred as Barnabas Collins in the original TV show and the movie “House of Dark Shadows” (1970) has a cameo in the new movie as a party guest.  This is especially poignant because Mr. Frid recently passed away on April 13th at the age of 87.  A Friday the 13th…..  oooOOOOoooo….

If you’ve never seen Mr. Frid as Barnabas in the soap opera, enjoy his melodramatic entrance, in all its glorious black and white:

Who else remembers rushing home from school to watch the show, especially once the supernatural elements really got going?  It was our generation’s “Twilight,” in a way.

On to the nail polish!  It’s a small set of four colors:

The colors are, left to right:

• Buried Alive — a shimmery/glittery dark earthy brown
• Grave Mistake — a blood red creme
• Mysterious Curse — a shimmery dark blue with hints of purple
• Decades of Dysfunction — a skin-toned (if you’re a vampire) ultralight grayish-pink

I love the names!  While I’ve seen Orly for sale at Sally Beauty Supply and CVS Pharmacy (SRP $8.50, on par with OPI, etc.), I’ve never tried it so I really can’t comment on its application and quality.  But I just might have to buy a bottle as a tribute to the original Barnabas.

Blue Wants To Be a Millionaire

… is the actual name of this polish from Wet n Wild.  It’s from their Fast Dry line and retails for $1.99 at drugstores and department stores.

It’s a sheer light blue base full of multicolored ultrafine glitter, and it gives a striking three-dimensional holographic finish.  It’s so sheer that you need a lot of coats on its own; I’d recommend layering it over another, more opaque color.

The formula was good but as with some other Wet n Wild products, the brush was very thick and held a lot of polish.  I had to scrape and scrape the brush against the neck of the bottle or else it was gloppy.  Here are five (!!!) coats, no top coat, in indirect outdoor light:

With the flash:

And in direct sunlight:

A closeup of the gorgeous holo sparkle:

These are unretouched photos, but the holo finish makes my nails look almost fake!

One thing I really liked about this polish is that it left zero visible brushstrokes or streaks.  Also, unlike some polishes that call themselves holographic but are merely glittery, this one doesn’t call itself that yet it is.   If you’re looking for an inexpensive blue holographic finish and don’t mind dealing with a thick brush, Blue Wants To Be a Millionaire would be a great choice.

What a difference a brush makes

I was looking at some of the colors in my Zoya Flash Collection and deciding what to swatch next, when I thought one color looked very familiar.  Sure enough, Jolene is a dupe for Cotton Mouth from Wet n Wild’s Spoiled line.   I swatched Cotton Mouth here, earlier this year.

Both are bright, bold, Barbie-pink cremes.  Cotton Mouth is $1.99 at CVS Pharmacy (used to be a CVS exclusive; not sure if that’s still true) and Jolene has an SRP of $8.00 but I get most of my Zoyas directly from their web site when they’re on sale.  Jolene was $6 because I bought the whole Flash sampler, six polishes for $36.

I liked Cotton Mouth well enough when I swatched it in January, but at the time wasn’t really in the mood for a summery hot pink.  It covered well in two coats and was very glossy.  Jolene needed three coats for the best coverage and was also extremely glossy.  Here it is in indirect outdoor sunlight:

And with the flash:

To really see the colors side by side:

Yep, they’re dupes, all right!

But there was one big difference in the two brands, and that was the brush.  All the Spoiled polishes I’ve tried have extremely large and uneven brushes.  They are the spatula-style, which I like, but they’re so big that they’re awkward.  I feel like I’m holding a paintbrush.  I have fairly large hands and nails and don’t see how anyone with tiny nails would manage a Spoiled brush.

Really, the polish itself seems similar although I haven’t done a wear comparison.  If the price is your deciding factor, then Cotton Mouth is much cheaper.

If you look closely at the last photo, you may be thinking that the application actually looks better with the Spoiled polish, and I agree.  But I remember that I had to take a cotton swab dipped in polish remover and do a fair amount of cleanup with that one.  Here are the brushes side by side, the Spoiled brush on the left and the Zoya brush, which is a very typical one, on the right:

It’s HUGE!  Let’s look at the Spoiled brush up close:

See how unevenly trimmed it is?  I really hate working with brushes like that.  This one is so big it’s the Godzilla of nail polish brushes.  No, wait, I take that back — since it’s hairy and shaggy it’s the King Kong of brushes.

And with that alarming visual, I’ll say bye for now!

There’s no place like chrome — new chromes from Essie!

It’s not official yet, but I’ve read word of a new collection from Essie called “Mirror Metallics” and they’re chromes.  Don’t have an expected release date but I’m hoping this summer.

Colors are, left to right:  No Place Like Chrome, Blue Rhapsody, Nothing Else Metals, Good As Gold, Penny Talk

I think they’re really pretty, and since I gravitate towards cool shades, I’m loving the silver, blue, and lavender.

So what’s a chrome polish?  Is it just a fancy name for a metallic?  As I posted back in February, there are some good visual dictionaries on the internet about different polish formulas and finishes.  Chromes and metallics are pretty much the same thing, although duochromes are metallics that flash different colors depending on the lighting and angle.  Chromes/metallics are not frosts, which have a pearly white sheen and often show brushstrokes like mad.

Chromes and duochromes seem quite popular lately.  I reported on a future set of duochromes from China Glaze, but these Essies look gorgeous, feminine, and fun.

Ah, pink

Pink.  I love pink polish.  It can be wild and bright, or calm and muted.  Today I’m going with a shade for the weekend that is unabashedly a Mom Color.  And I’m OK with that!

Meet Kylie from Zoya.  It’s a medium cool dusty pink with a faint silver shimmer.  It’s also rather sheer, so I’m going for just a wash of color and am not trying to get it to look opaque.  My swatches have more of a coral tone than how it looks on Zoya’s site.

By the way, don’t confuse Kylie with Kylie2!  Kylie2 polish is darker coral creme, not like Kylie at all.  Wonder why they gave two polishes practically the same name?

I think Kylie gives my nails a pretty, old-fashioned shell pink look.  This is two coats in indirect outdoor light:

Hmm, it looks more sheer on some nails than others — user error, I suppose.  With the flash:

And under indoor artificial light, which really makes it look more peach/coral:

Really nothing earth-shaking to say about this color.  I like it for times when I want my nails to be understated and simple.

Let’s compare: green foils

It’s supposed to be sunny this weekend, with the warmest temperatures so far this year, so with all the grass growing and the flowers and trees budding out, I’m in the mood for some green.

Here are two green foils from Zoya, Meg from the new Surf Collection and Apple from the Sunshine Collection . Sparkly green polish might seem a little “out there,” and if you’re not comfortable wearing such shades, that’s OK.  Years ago I never would have.  But nowadays I’m more of the “What the heck; it’s fun” mindset.

Both look fairly similar in the bottle.  Meg is on the left and Apple’s on the right:

Meg is slightly lighter, while Apple is a little darker and more blue.  While the colors are close, the formulas were not.  Both applied well and easily, but Meg is much more opaque and packed with foil particles and I only needed two coats.  Apple’s translucent base was more apparent and even though I used four coats I could still slightly see my nail line.  Both have gold sparkle but Meg also has some silver sparkle.

Here they are after just one coat so you can really see the difference in opacity.  I have Meg on my index and middle fingers, and Apple on my ring and little fingers.  With the bottle of Meg:

When I was done (2 coats Meg, 4 coats Apple, no top coat), this is what it looked like, in indirect outdoor light with the bottle of Meg:

With the flash, which makes the color difference more apparent, with the bottle of Apple:

And then under indoor artificial light which also plays up the differences, with the bottle of Meg:

I like both but if I could only get one it would be Meg, because it covers so much better.  What can I say; I’m impatient and I love it when polishes cover in just one or two coats.  I’d like to use Apple as a sparkly top coat over another polish, though.  Both are pretty shades of green.  I like Apple but I love Meg!

Quick update on the Zoya Earth Day sale

Just FYI — the Zoya web site is accepting orders TODAY for the Earth Day sale, which is polish at half-price (subject to terms and limitations).  Read the fine print HERE.  The announcement from Zoya said it was only good the 21st and 22nd, but orders are going through.

If you want to wait and decide on your colors, that works too, but some may sell out and backordered polishes will be dropped from orders.

Have fun choosing your sale polishes!  A tip:  if you like a certain kind of finish, use that as a search term, for example, “foil.”

Zoya colors — how to decide?

Ah, it’s an embarrassment of riches.  Zoya is going to have its Earth Day promo this weekend (see my previous post) and the thought of all those beautiful colors at half-price makes my head swim and my credit card start to heat up.

To help you — and me — decide on colors, I wanted to point you in the direction of some other bloggers who’ve posted great swatches in the past.  In no particular order:

The Lacquerista — this post is heavy on reds and pinks.  But man oh man!  Now I want Divincia and Alegra.

The Polish Addict — this is a blog that’s no longer kept current, but some of her older swatches are as fresh and tempting as ever.  Not a fan of the long pointy nails, but hey, they’re not my nails.

All Lacquered Up — this link goes to the True Collection review, but you can check her site for even more swatches.

The PolishAholic — her review of the new Surf Collection, awesomeness in a bottle.  Again, you can search her site for many, many more swatches.

Enjoy!