swatch-a-palooza

here's a big ol' mass of swatches for your enjoyment.*caution: lots of pictures ahead!*

revlon rose zing is a polish i borrowed from my sister. i believe this one is discontinued, but you still might be able to find it in some drugstores. it's a gorgeous peach gold shade with a rose tinge. i absolutely fell in love with this color when i put it on. the formula was amazing and the shine was just as good as a higher-end brand. i like revlon's bottle and brush design too, very simple and easy to use.

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sunlight

this shade is a weird one.  it's purpleish-brownish taupe with a blue sheen.  kinda crazy.  also the bottle is positively lethal!  city lights is an old victoria's secret nail polish i borrowed from my sister that has the weirdest packaging design ever.  the handle is like 5 inches long, pointy and thin.  the brush is pretty good but it's hard to get over the novelty of the weird bottle.  the base is very "opi" style but it has squared off edges on the top. i really like this color though, it reminds me of the MAC shadow blue-brown over a base of black.  this is three coats.  (i apologize PROFUSELY for the nasty hair in these photos,damn thing snuck in there!)

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this is another victoria's secret (crazy bottle) polish that i borrowed from my sissy. it's called golden mauve and i'm totally enamored with it!  i doubt these are big 3 free, haha, but i loved the formula.  they went on seamlessly and despite their sparkle/metallic look, the brush strokes were pretty minimal.  this is three coats.

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this pretty sky blue polish is a limited edition maybelline called pie in the sky.  not the best formula, a tad thick and gloopy, but the color is really nice.  it reminds me a lot of essie lapis of luxury.  it wasn't that hard to work with, definitely not the worst i've ever dealt with.  this is two coats plus a few bubbles sprinkled in there (ew).

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i am huuuuuugely addicted to mint greens, so i knew, absolutely knew i had to have this guy.  maybelline's limited edition minty is a nice green pastel creme that was unfortunately a bit on the thick side.  it is different than the other mint greens i own, it has a bit more yellow in it i think, so i like it a lot.  this is two coats and a LOT of bubbles :(  will have to thin both of these maybellines before i wear them again i think.

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this ulta polish is in the old style bottle, i even think i got it on sale when they were liquidating all their older polishes.  mango reminds me slightly of bb couture's tequila sunrise but i think this is a bit more intensely pigmented and is slightly darker.  the application is amazing too.  *sigh*  i love orangey coral colors :)

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this is another polish my girl lipglossiping sent me from the UK, george superstar.  gorgeous olive shimmer polish :D  and any derivative of olive green makes me happy.  these bottles are so no-fuss, very dip and paint style haha.  this is two coats of london prettieness :)

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this polish is from the gap.  i'm pretty sure they don't make nail polish anymore, although they should, because the ones i have (inherited from my sister) from them are pretty fun.  this varnish is called pink spritz, it's a milky pink creme with chunky white (?) pieces of glitter and tiny sparse holographic glitter.  it's definitely not what i would call "modern" but it's certainly cute.  this is three coats.

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and last but not least, this is devious by ulta, in the new style of packaging.  i'm a sucker for cool bottles.  this isn't my favorite packaging, but i do like the tallish rectangular bottles.  the brush handle is what makes it lose favor in my opinion, if it had a round handle (i.e. barry m, which i love!) i would like it more.  devious is a rich purple, with a tad bit of blue in it.  nihrida did a comparison post between this and zoya's pinta and they're super close.

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ick, i got bubbles in that one too.  oh wells, it happens to everyone huh!  hope you enjoyed these pics and we'll see ya tomorra lovelies!  i have many reviews to do, so be prepared :D

blue & gold ruffian

i wish i was better at nail art. i just don't have the patience. i'm pretty perfectionist, so if it looks the slightest big off, i take it all off and start again, and then end up getting frustrated. so this was a big deal for me haha. a "ruffian" manicure design is a crescent moon "tip" shape of polish of a different color at the bottom of the nail.  it was created by the ladies at CND (creative nail design) for the NYFW Ruffian Fashion.

"For nails, we created medium length, tailored shapes in matte midnight blue with a crescent gold chrome moon nestled into the cuticle area, extending gracefully up the sides. The vision for this nail came from the sky – which appeared a golden crescent moon only the day after our meeting. I think it was a divine message!!" - CND

i decided to try this seemingly simple design out because it's really sexy haha and at the time, i had just gotten a new blue polish from the UK (via Lipglossiping, thanks girl!) and was wearing a gold mani so i figured, why not! it was a bit harder than i first anticipated but i was pleased with the result. i used George Indigo Dazzle (blue) and Orly Luxe (gold).

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do you like this modern take on two-toned nails? i personally think it looks very hip and dirty hawt. i thought about mattifying the blue, as they did for the CND looks, but loved the shimmer so much in indigo dazzle i left both colors shiny.

anti-valentine's day mani

here's my anti-valentine's day manicure. i was not in the spirit this year. or any year really. even when i am in the "lovey dovey" mood or whatev haha i still don't really relish the valentine's holiday. i think it's a silly reason to celebrate and spend money and it usually ends in disappointment. and i have to watch other people get gifts and hear about "amazing" valentine's day dates the next day and it's just lame to me. so yeah. not to be bitter haha! i swear i'm not a grumpy person normally :)

this is three coats of a George (based in the UK) polish, raincloud, that Charlotte from LipGlossiping sent me from a contest I won in December. super cute, really sheer on the first coat but built very nicely. an art deco sparkly red for the heart and china glaze ink nail art lacquer from the ink collection they did in summer 2008. it may seem like i just slopped on the words, but i actually wanted it to look deconstructed and non-perfect. kind of like graffiti. anyway, hope you had a nice weekend and that a real holiday like President's Day (for of all those in the states) is going well for you!