NOTD - Fix My Fail Contest Entry

Hello everyone! Today, I have my mani entry into Lacquer or Leave Her's Fix My Fail Contest. The contest is just for fun, and it is fun to do as well! I definitely had a great time trying to think of how to keep as many of the original fail mani elements as possible. There were two choices and I chose the Aphrodite Lacquers Margarita Fail. Here is what I came up with:

L-R: China Glaze Def Defying, Color Club Eternal Beauty, Kiss French Manicure White

I used two coats of ChG Def Defying then used a dotting tool to dot on the flowers and dot-stripes with CC Eternal Beauty and Kiss white. The concept behind this was that the mani was supposed to kind of resemble a shooting star. Where the flowers are the stars and the white dots trail behind them going from large to smaller dots. I love the holographic flowers, so pretty and eye catching~

Thanks Lacquer or Leave Her! for holding this contest! This was the push I needed to get back into nail art.

Swatch - OPI Play The Peonies

Swatch swatch swatch! I am trying to swatch as many of my polishes and post them before I leave my stash behind again. This is easier said than done, since I do not do swatchathons like many bloggers. I like wearing each colour as a whole mani to ensure full enjoyment of the polish (I mean that is why I bought it, right?). With nail art and an untried challenge planned, the swatching process will take longer but I am very excited for all that is to come!

OPI Play The Peonies:
Very light pink frost. Nails look like pink pearls! Part of the OPI Nice Stems! Summer 2011 collection. This is a very delicate colour that I can see being popular for weddings. My tip for application is to apply with a very light hand to prevent streaks/patches and minimize brush strokes. Applying top coat helps to minimize brush strokes and bring out pearly shimmer. Pictures show two careful medium coats without top coat.

The picture below shows the pink in this polish against a pure white object held by my hand:

Specification:
Formula - Decent, easy to work with, very subtle patchiness at two medium coats if not applied with gentle touch
Pigmentation - Good, no visible nail line after two medium coats
Shine level - dull, top coat recommended
Prone to - Brush strokes, patchiness
Wear - Chips easily and tip wear visible in 1-2 days
Removal - Easy

I did not love this polish as much as I was hoping, but that is probably because I was not due for a nail palette cleanse, yet. This polish is being used as a base for some nail art, so stay tuned for that!

What are your thoughts on this colour? Do you own something similar?

Swatch & Review - China Glaze Hologlam collection

Here comes the highly anticipated China Glaze Hologlam collection. I am definitely late to this game, but no one ever gets tired of looking at holographic polish swatches, right? The collection contains 12 colours, but I only picked up the six more unique colours. There is so much to say about this collection, in other words, this will be a long post, so get comfortable! Pictures first, the rant comes second.

The polishes all had great pigmentation, only two coats were needed for full coverage. All swatches show two coats without top coat (base coat presence is specified).

These four swatches were done with OPI Nail Envy as base coat. Therefore, some of these swatches are patchy. I thought I would show these imperfections, so you guys can avoid the mistake of using a base coat under these polishes.

When Stars Collide:
Plum purple. This is a beautiful colour and truly unique for a holo polish. I expected this to be my favorite out of the collection and it is. Holo strength is strongest out of the six, you can even see the holo indoors slightly (first picture).

Strap On Your Moonboots:
Navy blue. Expected stronger holo for this dark colour. Slight staining of nails noticed after removal.

Not In This Galaxy:
Peachy coral. Holo is stronger than expected. This is my surprise favorite of the collection. The colour looks so pretty and delicate.

Infra Red:
Magenta. Holo not as strong as expected; in fact, it might be one of the weakest ones out of the six. However, I do love the colour of this polish. Definitely one of my top choices out of this collection.

Why it took me so long to figure out not to use a base coat escapes me. Anyway, these next two swatches are without base coat (or top coat as mentioned above).

OMG A UFO: 
Moss green. Colour is a tad lighter than bottle colour. Stronger holo than expected. Very unique colour.

Take a Trek:
Denim blue. In real life there is no green tints/hue/influence at all in the colour of this polish. I have noticed some internet swatches show this colour as teal, but this is a true blue. Weaker holo than expected, weakest of the six actually. The colour is very interesting, I do not own any denim blues so this is a great polish to add to my stash.

Specifications:
Dry time - Fast, but not as fast as Color Club holographic polishes.
Shine - Dull, no shine, flat-looking, top coat recommended (see below for TC details)
Wear - Chips easily and tip wear in 1-2 days
Prone to - Brush strokes due to slightly frosty finish
Removal - Easy

*Application: on bare nail was awesome! Dragging will occur if you take too long, since the polish dries faster than regular creams.
Application warning: do not use base coat! This will cause major dragging and clumping resulting in major bald spots and lumps. Some bloggers use Nfu Oh Aqua Base under finicky holo polishes.

*Top coat: does not affect holo, so I recommend putting some on otherwise the mani looks dull. Tried Seche Vite and OPI Top Coat, found SV scattered the holo a tiny bit making holo tiny bit weaker (not noticeable difference).

*Holo property: under the sun is quite strong and very noticeable (stronger than shown in pics). Indoors you will see muted holo as well (not as subtle as I expected actually). Different shades have different holo strength. I tried my best to gauge holo strength among the six.
Holo strength (strong to weak): When Stars Collide, OMG A UFO, Strap On Your Moonboots, Not In This Galaxy, Infra Red, Take A Trek

I like that there are some unique colors and the colors show up strong. However, this collection is just wimpy compared to the Color Club Halo Hues collections, which offer Hercules' strength holo and super easy application with awesome formula (with base coat!). Not to mention the CC polishes are quite a bit cheaper.

What are your thoughts on this collection? Will you be picking some up or passing? 

NOTD/Haul - Random Pick-Me-Up Glitters!

I was having a pretty rough day yesterday, so I decided to run some fun errands and catch some sun. In the end, my errand trip did cheer me up significantly! Managed to lend a few good movies, pick up my ring from routine rhodium plating (it was so shiny!), and stumbled across some polishes resulting in this haul.

In Canada, there is a Claire's (or Icing now I suppose) equivalent called Ardene's. The store used to only sell jewelry, polish and hair accessories. However, somehow over the last 10 years or so, clothing and shoes have taken over half the store. Anyway, the bright colours and girly atmosphere drew me in; nothing cheers me up more than a super girly store (okay....maybe except polish). Seeing the polishes, I rummage through them a bit not taking them seriously because I admit I am kind of a polish snob. Polish snob meaning I do not "usually" buy drugstore, clothing store, or other random polishes. With that said, if there is a unique polish I will get it! Back to the polishes, I liked some of the glitters they had and I look up to see a sign saying they are 80% off! Immediately, I grab all the glitters. Some of you may wonder just how much each polish cost after discount...hold on to your hats...they were 90 cents each (and that's after taxes)! Could not pass up on that deal.

There are some truly spectacular polishes in here that I am extremely excited to try out. I especially love the holographic label sticker on the bottle of the bottles. All nail polish should have their names printed in holographic paint!

 Just look at these two holo glitter polishes that caught my eye! So pretty and sparkly!

 Here is a closer look at Tigers eye, the silver holo glitter polish that I could not wait to layer over something.

I layered one coat of Tigers Eye on top of China Glaze Turned Up Turquoise. Not sure how I feel about this combination. It looks kind of tacky to me, but I will wear it for a couple of days to see if it grows on me.

In case some of you are wondering about the quality of the glitter polish, this guy is definitely not nearly as good as China Glaze, OPI, or any of those types of brands. This polish takes a longer time to dry, dries kind of sticky, smells awful (like plastic) and the holo part of some glitters have stripped off. However, the glitter coverage was pretty good and application was easy. All in all, the quality is not great but I still like the look of the polish. For 90 cents, I am very happy!

What are you guys' take on clothing store polishes? Do you guys consider yourselves polish snobs?

Swatch & Review - OPI Couture de Minnie Collection

I am so so excited to show you guys this upcoming OPI collection! Yes, this may look like the same collection re-released from last year, but trust me this collection has a lot more to offer than what meets the eye. I couldn't believe I saw this collection at a salon when this isn't due out until June. What is even more awesome was the salon was having a sale on all their OPI polishes! I had to ask the receptionist twice that the new Minnie collection was part of the sale, too. I just couldn't believe it! Bringing home the whole collection was unexpected, since the original plan was to only get the glitter and liquid sand. They all just looked so amazing in person! On to the polishes shall we?

 L-R: Minni Style, A Definite Moust-Have, Innie Minnie Mightie Bow, Chic From Ears To Tail, Magazine Cover Mouse

A Definite Moust-Have:
Hot pink with strong red influence (hybrid of hot pink and red). The colour is more red on the nail compared to in the bottle (more pink). I do not see fuchsia at all for this colour, which is how the polish is described by OPI. I always thought of fuchsia as a purple with heavy pink influence. There is this fine, subtle shimmer/sheen that makes the polish look velvety. Great formula, almost a one coater, and no staining upon removal! Top coat recommended since finish is not super shiny. Surprise favorite for me! Two coats without top coat shown below. Pictures look orangey red, but in real life the colour is definitely pink.

I tried changing the colour using a computer program, but the pictures ended up looking weird. Nonetheless, this will give you an idea of what the polish looks like.

Innie Minnie Mightie Bow:
Dark cherry red cream with faint pink shimmer. I love the name of this polish, it's just too cute! Awesome formula and pigmentation: one coater! Dries to a dull finish, top coat highly recommended because it brings out the glow-from-within property this polish has. This guy is a major stainer, so beware! Polish is darker than seen in pictures. Two coats without top coat shown below.

Chic From Ears To Tail:
A true bubble gum pink with tiny, barely-there white shimmer. Formula is runny and thin (streaky on first coat, slightly patchy at second). Finish is shiny. One the nail, the shimmer is not noticeable but more obvious than the shimmer in OPI You're Such A Budapest. You can see the shimmer in the first picture on the nail and in the bottle if you click to enlarge the picture. Pictures show three coats without top coat.

In case you were wondering (I sure was):
Colour-wise this one is darker than OPI Pink Friday (baby pink, more white), but lighter than OPI If You Moust You Moust (blue-toned pink). I do not have these polishes to compare side-by-side, so this is just from comparing other swatches online.

Minnie Style:
Red and white hex glitter in clear base (all glitter pieces the same size). Glitter pay-off is good, one coating using dabbing method shown in pictures. Glitter lays flat against nail (no bumps), but due to this removal is very tough! Pictures show one coat of glitter with top coat. 

Magazine Cover Mouse:
Strawberry-coloured base with pink and gold sparkles liquid sand. Great formula, pigmented: One coater! One coat gives you a pink-strawberry colour, whereas two coats gives a red-strawberry. Dry time and removal are like other liquid sands. Pictures show two coats without top coat. 

 These next two pictures are blurred so you can see the gold and pink sparkle in this liquid sand.

In the end, I ended up liking this collection a lot more than I originally anticipated. I always knew my favourites were going to be Minnie Style and Magazine Cover Mouse, but A Definite Moust-Have was a surprise. If you love red, consider getting Innie Minnie Mightie Bow due to its awesome formula. In my opinion, Chic From Ears To Tail can be passed up if you already have something similar, because the formula is subpar. Hope you enjoyed this review and thanks for reading!

Which polish will you be picking up from this collection?