A new summer color from Butter London has appeared

Back in late March I posted news of Butter London’s summer collection, Summer Holiday:

They’re available now at Butter London’s web site (SRP $15) and retail stores, and I like that some of the colors such as the chocolate glitter are atypical for a summer collection.

Suddenly, though, there’s a new color in the set, and I believe it’s exclusive to Ulta.  Don’t have a local store to check, but it’s on their web site.  Meet Keks, a bright sky blue!

No news about it on Butter London’s own web site.  I had to look up the meaning of “Keks” and apparently it’s slang for “trousers.”  Um, OK.

Keks would be gorgeous paired with some of the other colors in the set, like the silver or gold.

OPI Bond Girls — the mini set review

I’ve been looking forward to OPI’s Bond Girls Collection of Liquid Sand matte textured polishes since I first heard about it in March.  I picked up the mini set of four this weekend at Trade Secret, a chain beauty supply store.  The set of four was $12.95 US which I thought was a bit high, but then again the Liquid Sand polishes are more expensive than OPI’s regular ones.

As is typical of OPI’s minis, the bottles are super mini — only 1/8th of an ounce or 3.75 ml.  You couldn’t get more than a couple of full manicures from one bottle, but they’re more like samples to see if you like a polish enough to buy a full-size version.

Application was good; be sure to apply thin coats and let each coat dry thoroughly for the matte look.  I used three coats of each polish.

First I tried the one I’d been looking forward to the most, the light pink Pussy Galore (hate that name!). It was very sheer and looked OK after three coats but could have used a fourth.  It’s a light baby pink with subtle darker pink sparkle that didn’t show up well in my photos.

I think it’s only OK, which surprised me ’cause I’m usually such a fan of pink.

Vesper is unusual.  It’s a sheer dark purple with tiny specks that look like black pepper.  It looked so different depending on the number of coats that I wanted to show you.  Left to right, I have one coat, two coats, and three coats.  Not a fan of this one; it looks more like dirt or a stain than polish to me.  As you can see, one coat and two coats look patchy, but three coats look almost black.

I liked the purple Can’t Let Go from OPI’s Mariah Carey Collection better:

Jinx is coral — more orange than pink — with lots of gold sparkle.  In fact, all the sparkle keeps it from looking matte but it’s very pretty and summery.

Where have I seen this look before?  Destiny from Zoya and JulieG’s Sugar Rush are very close.

I do like Jinx better than The Impossible from OPI, which was more reddish and didn’t dry matte for me:

Finally, the white polish called Solitaire is unique.  It dries matte but has a small amount of silver shimmer that’s pretty without being overwhelming.  It reminds me of sunshine glinting off fresh snow, and I love it!  I’d wear this summer or winter, and wouldn’t it look stunning on dark skin?  Under indirect outdoor light and then in direct sunshine:

There are two other colors in the Bond Girls set, which I didn’t buy — gold Honey Ryder and blue Tiffany Case.  You can see swatches of them here at work/play/polish.

My favorite of the four Bond Girls minis is definitely Solitaire and I want a full-sized bottle.  White polish is tough for me — usually I think it looks like I spilled White-Out on my fingers — but Solitaire is different.  Pussy Galore doesn’t thrill me like I thought it would, I have dupes of Jinx, and Vesper is too blackened for me.  If you don’t have a coral-orange like Jinx, though, I highly recommend it.  Seems to be a very “in” color this summer.

New from Nicole by OPI — two limited edition neon mini kits

Official press release:

Nicole by OPI Announces Two New Limited Edition Neon Mini Kits, the Brand’s First Neon Lacquer

Nicole by OPI launches its first neon nail lacquer with two limited edition mini kits. Scandalous! Neons includes vivid shades of blue, purple and pink while the Notorious! Neons includes vibrant shades of green, fuchsia and orange.

Each Neons kit includes a special white base coat, to be applied before adding color, allowing true neon pigments to pop. “These kits offer the hottest hues in a mini size to complement summer styles,” explains Suzi Weiss-Fischmann, Nicole by OPI Executive VP & Artistic Director.  “Think of your nails as a blank canvas.  With these color combinations, there are endless options for creating works of art.”

In addition to the white base, Scandalous! Neons includes: Blue Neon (this blatant blue is deliberately belligerent), Purple Neon (this attention-seeking purple is a real publicity hound), and Pink Neon (this pink’s purpose is to provoke your senses).

Along with white base, Notorious! Neons includes: Green Neon (this gossip-stirring green is the talk of the town), Fuchsia Neon (this fuchsia is famous for being unabashedly bold), and Orange Neon (this outrageous orange doesn’t know the meaning of meek).

“The shades included in both sets are perfect for accessorizing fingers and toes with bright pops of color,” adds Weiss-Fischmann. “The first step is to apply the white base coat followed by the desired neon shade; finish with one coat of Nicole by OPI Top Coat Plus to achieve intense neon color with a glossy finish.”

Nicole by OPI formulas are long-lasting, fast-drying, and salon-quality.   Scandalous! Neons and Notorious! Neons mini packs will be available in stores beginning May 2013 for $10 each at retailers including Meijer, CVS, Duane Reade, H-E-B, Kroger, and ShopKo.  Top Coat Plus will be sold alongside the kits for $7.99. In Canada, the kits will be available for $12.50 each and Top Coat Plus for $10.99 at Loblaw, Jean Coutu, Rexall, London Drugs, and Shoppers Drug Mart.  

For more information, visit nicolebyopi.com. Follow Nicole by OPI on Twitter @NicoleByOPI and become a Facebook fan!

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So if you’re into neons or know someone who is, these would be cute sets to have.  Please note how tiny the bottles are.  I think of minis as being around 1/4 ounce but these are what I personally call “ultra minis,” only 1/8 ounce.  Still, they’re nice if you know you won’t be wearing any one color all that much and/or you just want to give them a test drive.  Plus they make great gifts.

Simply Irresistible

Disclosure:  This set was sent by Zoya for review.

Took me a while, but I finally have Zoya’s Irresistible Collection to show you!  Through no one’s fault that I can see, the first set that Zoya sent me was lost in transit.  It was entered into FedEx’s system and then… nothing.  But as they say, better late than never.    It was much appreciated for Zoya to send me a replacement.

Irresistible is a set of six bright foils.  I’ve only mentioned about a hundred times how much I love a foil finish, because it’s shimmery and glittery without having either visible brushstrokes or chunky glitter.

The formula of all six was very consistent — not too thin, not too thick.  For each polish, two coats would have been enough for decent coverage but I used three coats because I think the third coat brought out the richness of each color.  All photos are shown in reflected outdoor light and then in direct sunshine, with no top coat.

First — Kerry, a sunny yellow-gold.  It’s not a daffodil color nor a bronzed gold.  If anything, it might have a very faint greenish tint.

Amy is an intense orange with a lot of gold shimmer.  Outdoors in the direct sun (second photo) I think it leans red.

Tinsley is the one I was looking forward to the most, and I’m not disappointed.  It’s the epitome of the term “rose gold” — a pretty rose pink with tons of gold shimmer.  It kind of has a duochrome look going on too, because at different angles (first and second photos), you see either more gold or more rose.

Bobbi is another pink, but is cooler in tone, much more fuchsia, and it has silver shimmer instead of gold.  Love this one too.

I liked Rikki, a cool fern green, a lot more than I expected.  Greens are tough for me to wear and often bring out weird tones in my skin, but I think Rikki looks great.  Must be the silver shimmer it has.  I also saw a few flecks of gold in the direct sun.

Similarly, Hazel has both silver and gold shimmer, and is a light steel blue that looks darker in the sun.  Could be wintery-looking but also great for summer — a nice change from neon blue or turquoise.

I love the Irresistible Collection and it’s perfect for summer.  My favorites are Tinsley, Bobbi, and Rikki.  Hazel’s right up there too but I wonder if I have a near-duplicate.  Kerry and Amy would probably look much better on someone with a different skin tone than mine (I’m such a self-critic).

Here are all twelve of the Irresistible and Stunning polishes together.  As you can see, each one in its set has a somewhat close shade in the other set, but Stunning is all cremes.  From top (12 o’clock position) and moving clockwise:  Kerry, Darcy, Amy, Thandie, Tinsley, Micky, Bobbi, Yana, Rikki, Josie, Hazel, and Rocky.

Disclosure:  These polishes were sent by Zoya for review.

Kimmy

Hope you’ve gotten your Zoya Earth Day half-price sale polishes picked out!  If not, no rush — you’ve got through the 26th to place your order.

Sometimes it’s hard to choose colors.  For one thing, there are so many.  For another, some of the colors look similar.

Today I have a gorgeous red to show you that I’ve had for a long time but just haven’t swatched.  It’s Kimmy, a fiery red from the Sunshine Collection which was first released for Summer 2011.  All six polishes in this set are chock-full of sparkly gold microflakes, and they’re metallic and glittery without having large chunky glitter.  I’ve swatched Faye, Apple, Tanzy, and Rica from Sunshine previously.

Kimmy should not be confused with Kimber or Kym (Zoya, I beg of you, please stop with the similar-sounding and similarly-spelled names!) although all three are beautiful reds.  Kimmy has a warm, slightly orange tone.  It reminds me of Elke but is more glittery.

Two coats gave good coverage, and the formula was as smooth and as streak-free as possible.  Absolutely no visible brush strokes.  Have I mentioned I hate visible brush strokes?  I hate visible brush strokes.

Here’s Kimmy, two coats, no top coat, under indirect outdoor light and then with a fill flash.

This last photo, under weak direct sunlight, shows a slight pink tinge.  Interesting!

So if you’re looking for a bright summery red that sparkles but doesn’t overwhelm, maybe Kimmy deserves a spot on your wish list.

Zoya’s Stunning Collection — the review

Disclosure:  This set was sent by Zoya for review.

Zoya is rolling out some beautiful polishes for us this spring, as part of their official summer releases.  Today I have the Stunning Collection.

Stunning is a set of six cremes, but Thandie, Micky, and Yana have an extremely subtle shimmer.  It’s so faint I thought at first I was imagining it.

First I tried Darcy, a bright daffodil yellow.  I found the formula a bit thin, and the application streaky and patchy on the first and second coats.  I used three coats.  This photo and all other photos today are under indirect outdoor light and are shown without any kind of top coat.  All other polishes required two coats.

Hmmm, doesn’t wow me.  I love the color yellow in general but don’t think Darcy flatters my skin tone and actually think it makes my skin look grayish.  I swatched Zoya’s Creamy last year, and while I no longer own this color, I don’t think there’s a big difference between the two.  You might have better luck wearing this one; I’ve read at least one blogger who said Darcy was her favorite from the whole set.

Thandie is a bright (not neon) medium orange that has a slight dusty hue.  I rarely find an orange I like, but this is one of them!  Don’t think I have anything like it in my stash.

I was really surprised at how much I like Thandie.

Micky, whose name makes me think of my favorite Monkee from the ’60s — go ahead and laugh, I don’t mind! — is a medium coral pink.  I love pinks but tend to reach for cooler or lavender ones, so the warmth of Micky is a nice change.

Micky’s a fun retro look.

Yana looks only slightly darker than Micky in  the bottle and in these photos but I think they look much different in person.  Yana is a bright geranium pink.  Love it.  Like I don’t wallow in pink already!

Rocky is a medium blue, slightly dusty.  I was reminded of two other cremes from Zoya, Robyn and Yummy, but I like Rocky better because it’s not as bright or neon.

Finally, Josie is a medium grass green, not a lot to say about it.  It’s pretty but for some reason doesn’t grab me the way most of the rest of the set does.

Overall, I think the Stunning Collection is great for summer.  Makes me think of citrus fruit, flowers, grass, and blue sky.  My favorites are Yana, Thandie, Micky, and Rocky.

I also wanted to compare the bottles in Stunning to five of the ones from last year’s Beach Collection.  Beach had no yellow, and Stunning has no light pink like Beach’s Shelby (not shown).  In my opinion, there are no duplicates.

Disclosure:  The Stunning Collection was sent by Zoya for review.

P.S.  I will not be able to review the Irresistible Collection for at least a few more days.  Zoya sent it but it has vanished into the ether. 

Lets compare: PixieDusts plus others, Part II

Disclosure:  Some products in this post were sent by Zoya for review.

So glad that many of you found my comparisons yesterday helpful!  More today.  LOTS more.

First of all, here are three polishes that I’ve swatched in the past but will not be comparison swatching today because they aren’t even remotely similar like I thought at first:

(l to r) Solange, Ziv, and Piaf, all from Zoya.  Solange is a yellow-gold matte textured PixieDust, Ziv is a metallic true gold foil, and Piaf is a very light yellow shimmer.

Let’s look at dark oranges:

(l to r) Zoya Milla, Zoya Myrta, JulieG/Jesse’s Girl Sugar Rush, and Zoya Destiny.

Milla is a coral-pink-orange jelly with some gold flakes, Myrta is a medium-dark orange foil from last year’s fabulous Surf Collection, and Sugar Rush and Destiny are matte textured polishes.

All photos are under indirect outdoor light, and again, I’m holding a bottle of Zoya’s Raven for contrast.

I’d consider Sugar Rush and Destiny duplicates.  Their formula (excellent), color, and finish are all so close I don’t think I could tell them apart.  Myrta is a great foil and Milla is a pretty polish that doesn’t get near the love I think it deserves.  You could do a jelly sandwich manicure with it.

Now, silvery lavenders:

(l to r) Zoya Julie, Milani Hi-Res, JulieG Crushed Candy, and Zoya Stevie.  OPI Can’t Let Go is hovering in the upper right corner only because it’s another purple matte textured polish, but as you can see, it’s much darker and more blue-toned than the others and I won’t be swatching it today.  You can see my swatches of it here, and I like it a lot, but it is quite dark.

Julie is a light shimmer, Hi-Res is a very glossy holographic glitter (unfortunately discontinued but I see it for sale online occasionally), and Crushed Candy and Stevie are matte textures.

No dupes.  Crushed Candy is more pink and has larger glitter than Stevie.  Julie and Hi-Res have completely different finishes.

Since we’re looking at these, let’s bring back Miranda from yesterday.  I turned these bottles — Miranda, Crushed Candy, and Stevie — sideways so you could see more of the polish.

Crushed Candy seems to be a color in between the pink of Miranda and the lavender of Stevie.  I LOVE all three.

Let’s move from pink to red:

(l to r) Zoya Miranda, JulieG Hot Cinnamon, and Zoya Chyna.

No duplicates.  All are pretty; Chyna has more of a ruby tone.

Even though I showed blue ones yesterday, I want to revisit Zoya Liberty and compare it to JulieG Blueberry Fizz and Zoya Nyx:

Gee, why did I even show Liberty again?  Not even close.  Blueberry Fizz and Nyx are similar but not dupes — Blueberry Fizz is more of a sky blue and has larger silver glitter, and Nyx is thinner and more steel blue.

Finally, just because I can, here are JulieG Rock Candy and Zoya Vespa compared to each other:

Not close.  Rock Candy is thicker, more of a teal green, and has larger silver glitter, while Vespa is thinner and a light gray-green.

Whew!  Hope I haven’t overwhelmed you with samples and comparisons.  Of all the polishes today the only true duplicates in my opinion are JulieG’s Sugar Rush and Zoya’s Destiny.  Both are excellent polishes from great companies.  The JulieG polish is less expensive but the bottles are smaller as well.

Disclosure:  Some products in this post were sent by Zoya for review.

Lets compare: PixieDusts plus others, Part I

Disclosure:  Some products in this post were sent by Zoya for review.

Yesterday when I was swatching all six of Zoya’s new Summer PixieDusts, I was reminded over and over of other polishes in my stash.  So today I broke out a bunch of them for comparisons that I hope you will find useful.  (And fun — don’t forget the fun!)

For gold-toned light oranges, I have:

(l to r) Zoya Rica, Zoya Tanzy, JulieG/Jesse’s Girl Tangerine Dream, and Zoya Beatrix.

Rica and Tanzy are regular glitter/flake polishes, and Tangerine Dream and Beatrix are matte textured ones.  You can see my full review of the three gold-toned JulieG/Jesse’s Girl textured polishes here.

For all my swatches today, I used three coats of each polish, even if two was enough coverage, and took the photos under indirect outdoor light.  I’m holding a bottle of Zoya’s Raven for contrast.

Tangerine Dream and Beatrix are, to my eye, duplicates.  If you like the color of those two but don’t want a matte textured finish, then Tanzy is very close.  Rica is slightly more pinkish/reddish than the other three.

Considering price?  SRP (not counting any sales or promotions that may occur) is $8 each for 0.5 oz/15 ml for Tanzy and Rica.  Beatrix is $9 for the same amount of polish, and Tangerine Dream is $3.99 for 0.35 oz/10 ml.

Next, I compared several pinks:

(l to r) Zoya Nova, Zoya Astra, Zoya Miranda, and OPI The Impossible.

Nova and Astra are fine glitters, and Miranda and The Impossible are matte textures.

No dupes here.  The Impossible is more of a coral pink, has sparse hex glitter, and the full-sized bottles of it contain large star glitter which does not appear in the mini bottles.  Astra is a clear base (or maybe a very light pink) with pink and red glitter, and Nova is a sheer purple-pink base with pink glitter.  Astra and Miranda are close in color but the finish is totally different.

Astra and Nova are no longer available as minis, but can be bought as full-sized 0.5 oz. bottles.  The Impossible mini is available as part of a four-bottle set, which I reviewed here.  OPI’s Liquid Sand polishes can all be purchased as full-sized bottles as well, and I believe the SRP is $9.

Finally for today, let’s get the blues:

(l to r) Zoya Noel, Zoya FeiFei, Zoya Liberty, and OPI Get Your Number.

Noel is a medium blue foil, FeiFei is a sheer-but-buildable steel blue shimmer with micro gold flakes, and Liberty and Get Your Number are matte textures.

No absolute dupes here, and I think all four are quite interesting in their own way.  Liberty and Get Your Number are close in color and finish, but the latter has more sizes and colors of glitter, plus a little holographic glitter flash.  Noel is also similar in color but has a completely different finish.  FeiFei is more grayish.

More comparisons tomorrow!

Disclosure:  Some products in this post were sent by Zoya for review.

Zoya Summer PixieDusts — the review

Disclosure:  This set was sent by Zoya for review.

Have been looking forward to this set of matte, textured, sparkly,  PixieDusts from Zoya ever since they were first announced.

If you’re new to the world of matte textured (MT) polishes, they’re different from regular polishes in that they have a sandy or sugary feel (not sandpaper-rough), and dry to a matte or mostly matte finish.  Different companies have different MT polish looks, as might be expected.  A few have no sparkle at all, a look I don’t personally care for because to me they look like bumpy dried paint.  One company at least has a fair amount of chunky glitter in its MT polish.

I prefer the slightly sparkly look; it’s the Goldilocks of MT polishes — not too dull, not too glittery.  Juuuust right.

Application of these Summer PixieDusts was excellent.  Be sure to use thin coats and let each coat dry thoroughly before you apply the next one for the matte look.  Zoya recommends not using a base or top coat, but a clear shiny top coat gives these polishes a gorgeous different look as well.

There are three warm colors with gold sparkle — yellow-gold, light orange, and medium-dark orange, and three cool ones with silver sparkle — medium pink, lavender, and bright blue.  Each is shown under indirect outdoor light, with the flash, and in direct sunshine.  Some of the sunshine photos look like I added little fake “starburst” sparkles, but I didn’t; that’s really how the polish looks. 

First up, the lightest, yellow-gold Solange.  I like that it’s neither too yellowish or too brassy.  Wouldn’t it look great with, say, a teal shirt?  Three coats.

Beatrix is citrus orange, light and sparkly.  The color seems halfway between Solange and the next color, the darker orange Destiny.  Three coats.

Destiny was a bit of a surprise for me.  Instead of being just orange, its base is a sheer coral-pink.  Only needed two coats of this one.

Miranda was the one I was looking forward to the most and it does not disappoint.  I love trying different colors but pink always calls to me!  Three coats.

Stevie is lighter than I expected from the promo photos but it’s still very pretty.  It’s like the MT version of Zoya’s Julie.  I used two coats.

Liberty is probably the most intense color of the bunch.  Liberty with an accent nail of the previously released red Chyna for the 4th of July?  I just might have to try that.  Two coats.

Oops, this next photo is outdoors but the sun went behind the clouds and refused to come out.  The nerve.

Overall I love this set and it’s so bright and summery.  They seem to have more fine glitter and be less matte than Zoya’s first PixieDust set, but I wonder how much of that impression is due to the much brighter, higher angle sunlight today as compared to a few months ago.

SRP is $9 per 0.5 oz/15 ml bottle.  Available at http://www.zoya.com or at select retailers and salons.

My favorites are Miranda and Liberty, but I hope the warmer colors look better on me when I get a little tan this summer.  Which are your faves?

Tomorrow I’ll post some comparisons between these polishes and matte textured ones from other collections, and also between these and some older Zoya polishes..

Disclosure:  This set was sent by Zoya for review.

Summer collection from Butter London

Hi from my vacation, all !  I know I haven’t done any swatching in a while, but while I’m traveling it’s tough to juggle polish and besides, I don’t have my computer or regular camera. I’m coming to you live from my iPad and am still trying to get the hang of it.

Read some news of a summer collection from Butter London called Summer Holiday that looks interesting and a little different. A lot of the colors strike me as fall-like. Here’s the media release:

http://ww1.prweb.com/prfiles/2013/03/20/10554622/Summer2013-Media.pdf

Aren’t the colors gorgeous? Not your typical summer brights or pastels. Color names and descriptions are:

Bit Faker- Full coverage chocolate glitter
Sun Baker- Metallic burnished orange
Champers- Sandy beige shimmer
Poole- Opaque turquoise crème
Marbs- Rich metallic gold
Bobby Dazzler- Vibrant metallic silver

Do you see the magic word??? CHOCOLATE!!! Bit Faker, the chocolate glitter, looks like a must-have for me. I’m helpless in the face of chocolate, and apparently in merely the mention of it too.

Available now at Butter London’s web site (SRP $15) and they should be in stores soon.

Probably won’t be posting again ’til after Easter. Tonight I’m off to the asylum! Anyone care to guess where I am?