Orange
NOTD – Cleveland Browns Opening Day Spirit
I’m not a sports fanatic or anything but I love me some Cleveland Browns football. In this town, football is king. No matter how bad the team sucks, we continue to support them and sell out the stadium. As season ticket holders we never miss a game, except maybe the lame pre-season ones. And for today’s season opener against Tony Romo & the Dallas Cowboys, I did a Browns themed mani in our team colors, natch. I wonder if Jessica Simpson will be there, cheering on her boy.
Such a mani requires the perfect shimmery brown and true pumpkin orange nail lacquers. I chose Zoya Pia and Carolyn New York Spanish Harlem. A pretty good match, no?
What’s on your tips today? Are you supporting your favorite team with polish?
China Glaze Operation Colour for Fall 2008
 POW! BANG! SPLAT!
Operation Colour from China Glaze will certainly make an impact when it hits shelves this month. Inspired by the bold splashes of color found in graphic novels and comic books, this is not your typical Fall look. You won’t find any burnt, vampy or dreary shades here. Instead, China Glaze is taking on Fall in technicolor. |
 With the Costume Institute’s Superheroes exhibit coming to a close this weekend, it seems appropriate for this collection to come along as a way to keep a little superhero fashion alive in everyday life. It’s almost as if these shades were ripped right from the exhibit and red carpet. Just look at the Emilio Pucci dress Joy Bryant donned for the exhibit’s gala in May or the Thierry Mugler graphic novel inspired bodysuit on display at The Met and you’ll see what I mean. |
Overall, I think this collection is a fun change of pace. A nice twist on what we’d normally expect for the colder months. Though I must admit that I’m more in love with the concept and palette as a whole than I am with the colors individually. But I am impressed with the pigmentation. It makes the formula a bit thicker than I would prefer but even the lighter shades only take two coats. The first will be a bit streaky but the second smooths it out. The only one I had any major issue with was Agent Lavender, it didn’t spread out on its own. It required a bit of coaxing.
Secret Peri-Winkle is by far my favorite color in the collection. A gorg mid-toned combo of violet and sky blue, this creme is perfect for cool and neutral tones. I just love it!
Code Orange, like the other shimmers in the lineup, isn’t at all sparkly. The shimmer just adds a little glint of sheen to this tangerine hue.
As I mentioned above, Agent Lavender was my problem child. There’s one in every bunch, isn’t there? But what I love is that unlike most light purples I wear, this one doesn’t make me look like an alien. I find it quite flattering.
Golden Opportunity reminds me of the yellow brick road from the Wizard of Oz. Gleaming goldenrod at it’s best.
Revolution is a tomato ketchup red creme. Not utterly unique but a nice warm red.
Pink Underground is a shade with a twinkle in its eye. The fine bright pink shimmer gives this polish a slight blue/berry cast in the sun. This isn’t your average pink.
The Operation Colour collection is on sale NOW at 8ty8Beauty.com and I’m sure Head2ToeBeauty.com will have it up soon. What I really love… is that they’re releasing the set in minis (pictured right). I first saw them with the Immaterial Gurl collection and they’re just adorable.
So what do you think girls? Comic book colors for Fall. Is it genius or not for you?
Images: All Lacquered Up, China Glaze, Style.com & Flickr.com
China Glaze Immaterial Gurl
You know that we are living in a material world
And I am a material girl
A material, a material, a material, a material world
Material Girl lyrics by Peter Brown & Robert Rans
Even though Madonna’s song was about materialism and not fabric, it’s hard for me not to look at the imMaterial Gurl collection from China Glaze without hearing those lyrics in my head. I can’t sing to save my life but in the comfort of my polish room, I was belting it out like a champ while testing these shades.
A collection of six textile themed cremes, the imMaterial Gurl nail polishes are a girly change of pace compared to their bolder Spring/Summer offerings, Ink and Ecollection. With a diverse range of hues to flatter most skin tones, rich pigmentation and a high gloss shine, these are not what I’d call “must have” colors but they’re definitely good staple shades to round out your collection.
For the most part the formula was spot on. Two coats for perfect, even coverage. The only notable exceptions are Second-hand Silk and Heirloom Organza. The consistency was a bit thicker and not as flowy so, I had to use three coats. All shades are shown without a top coat, just their natural glossiness.
The imMaterial Colleciton is available now and can be purchased online from 8ty8Beauty.com and Head2ToeBeauty.com. China Glaze is also carried in ULTA and Sally Beauty Supply stores but call for seasonal collection availability.
It’s A Neon, Neon World With Essie & Orly
As my favorite nail color queen, Rihanna, has already shown us, bright, bold, in-your-face shades are what’s hot right now. She’s been spotted wearing orange, teal, purple, etc. and even though she’s driving the bandwagon other young celebs are jumping on board. Take Lindsay Lohan for example. She wore a hot pink to match her prom-tastic dress at her 22nd birthday party and was caught lighting up (don’t do it!) with glowing orange tips.
To feed your need for neon, Essie and Orly have hit us with a one-two punch of bright, four color collections for Summer.
The Essie Neons are quite a departure for the usually subdued brand. They tend to target the conservative, classic nail fanatic. I give Essie two thumbs up for addressing the trend. Unfortunately I have to give a thumbs up/thumbs down to the formula. While half the shades (Mini Shorts & Short Shorts) were OK, the others (Bermuda Shorts & Shorty Pants) were pretty nightmarish. As expected, the neon pigments cause these polishes to dry matte but for some reason they don’t smooth out easily. You have to put in some work to avoid an uneven texture. But the colors, love them! Mini Shorts is definitely my favorite.
Orly High Voltage is a mixture of saucy shimmers and punchy cremes. The gold shimmer in Heat Wave is captivating. As soon as I picked up the bottle, I had to have it on my tips. It’s really a stand out lacquer for me. Charged Up is a nice grape but it’s also the only polish I had application issues with. I needed three coats to get even, full coverage. And if I were picking a hot reddish pink, Hot Shot would be my choice. It’s way more vibrant in person, somewhat shocking.
The polishes pictured are shown with a top coat since the majority dry matte. I chose images for each lacquer that best represented the color so they aren’t all shown in sunlight.
The Essie Neons and Orly High Voltage collections are available now online and in stores including hair and nail salons, Trade Secret, ULTA, Sally Beauty Supply and Regis. Contact your local retailer to check availability.
Chanel Robertson Boulevard Nail Colour Collection
When I was in LA last month, I desperately wanted to stop by the new Chanel boutique on Robertson Boulevard but time wasn’t on my side. The reason for my desperation… the Robertson Boulevard limited edition Nail Colour Collection. Sold exclusively at the Robertson boutique from now until the online launch in July, this collection was created by Peter Philips, the new Global Creative Director of CHANEL Makeup.
Based on the bold pop art imagery, I wasn’t expecting the slight softness I saw in the shades I tested. It’s this quality that makes them very wearable, even for Chanel’s more conservative clientele. As expected, the lacquers applied flawlessly and with excellent pigmentation, I barely needed two coats to reach bottle color. At $25 a bottle, they better.
Rodeo Drive is a warm grapey purple with subtle silver shimmer. In the sun it reminds me of the cartoon character Grape Ape. Of all the polishes in this collection, Rodeo Drive was the one I most looked forward to seeing so I’m glad it lived up to my expectations.
L.A. Sunset is a creamy melon orange with a high gloss factor. I wouldn’t classify it as a bright per se but it’s definitely bold and summery. A perfect pedicure shade.
With the popularity of yellow polish this season it’s no surprise to see one included in this collection. However, I was surprised at how sweet and sexy L.A. Sunrise looked on Selma Blair’s tips in InStyle‘s June edition. No mustard or neon here, just a gorgeous lemon sorbet. I plan to order it the day of the online release.
Melrose, L.A. Sunrise, L.A. Sunset and Rodeo Drive will be available for purchase exclusively on Chanel.com in July. You can sign up on the CHANEL site to be notified of their release.
Lisa N.
Ms Meatballhead
Birdie
Spa pediccure chairs
