Glitter

China Glaze Fortune Teller Nail Polish Swatches & Review

By Michelle Mismas on October 13, 2009
in China Glaze, Fall 2009, Glitter with 26 Comments

I’m not one for the whole Halloween thing. The holiday has always spooked me out, no pun intended. So when I when I caught a glimpse of China Glaze’s special release for the season, Fortune Teller, I was all, “That’s a concept I can get behind!” Astrologists, psychics, palm readers, etc. I’ve been to at least one of each in the past. Do I believe everything they say, no, but I find it entertaining.

The wizards at China Glaze who created this color were definitely in a mysterious mood for Fortune Teller has a magical, fall feel. Check it out!

Fortune Teller is a Sally Beauty exclusive release part of the Spellbound collection. Along the lines of Lubu Heels, it consists of a semi-sheer glossy black base packed with multi-sized copper colored glitter and irregularly shaped particles. I’d say it’s the copper version of Lippmann’s Ruby Red Slippers.

Of course such heavily packed, chunky glitter means the polish dries with texture. That’s just a downside of these types of polishes. Though a layer of Seche Vite cures all. Because the base is semi-sheer I ended up using three coats to make it completely opaque.

Sunlight

China Glaze Fortune Teller can be found in a 6-piece seasonal display at Sally Beauty and retails for $5.99 ($4.49 with a Beauty Club Card).

How many of you have already bought Fortune Teller? What do you think of it? Have any of you had trouble tracking down a bottle?

The ALU Archives – China Glaze Dorothy Who?

By Michelle Mismas on September 24, 2009
in Blue, China Glaze, Glitter, The ALU Archives with 8 Comments

The ALU Archives focuses on older, beloved shades from the All Lacquered Up stash.

Last night I went to a screening of the Wizard of Oz with the winners of my giveaway courtesy of China Glaze. In select theaters across the country the film is being shown in Hi-Def to celebrate its 70th Anniversary. Being that I had never viewed the film on anything larger than a 27″ TV it was a thrill to see Judy Garland singing on the big screen. In lieu of the standard previews they showed a whole package about the making of the movie with casting info (I never knew Buddy Ebsen was the original Tin Man) and cast interviews. It was really cool. If you can find a screening in your area I highly suggest going.

Of course such an event requires a WoO themed manicure and naturally Dorothy Who? was my pick. Check it out along with a fun pic of me and the giveaway winners after the jump!

You guys I can NOT WAIT until the Wizard of Ooh Ahz collection returns. Mainly so I can stop using my old bottle of Dorothy Who?. I love the old gal but she’s not in the best shape. I’d like to preserve her as is without attempting to add thinner. As you can see Dorothy Who? is a glitter packed gem.

Similar to Ruby Pumps the blue and silver glitter is suspended in a sheer electric blue base. It does dry with texture so you need a thicker high gloss top coat (ie Seche Vite) for a glass like finish. I just wish my camera could capture how truly magical this shade is. There is a fire and brilliance that the camera just doesn’t see.

Jammies, Heather, Julie, Me, Gena and Christine
Here we are pre-movie. Julie even wore sparkly red heels to match her Ruby Pumps manicure. Though talk about a small world. I’ve known Julie via Facebook for a couple years now though we met for the first time backstage at Fashion Week and Julie did Gena’s nails for prom. I love those kind of random coincidences.

So who else is dying to see the new Wizard of Ooh Ahz polishes?? It’s got to be one of the most anticipated collections of the year. I just know it will be a sensation.

butter LONDON Fall-Winter 09 Swatches & Review

By Michelle Mismas on September 9, 2009
in butter LONDON, Creme, Fall 2009, Glitter, Green, Orange, Pink, Purple, Shimmer, White with 22 Comments

I’ve been champing at the bit to get my hands on butter LONDON‘s British Racing Green ever since I eyed it backstage at Vena Cava during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week last February. A couple months ago we got a peek a the rest of the Fall/Winter collection and now I finally have it in my hot little hands.

A set of five diverse and unique shades, Creative Director Nonie Creme designed this collection to give women colors with personality that punch up the muted tones seen on the runways. Check them out after the jump!

First off, let’s talk about what’s new for Fall 2009; a revamped butter LONDON bottle. Hearing your criticism regarding the hard to remove outer cap, bL has replaced it with an easy glide version. No longer shall we debate whether you’re supposed to polish with the outer cap on or off. The decorative raven printed on the inner cap solves that mystery.

Now on to the polish. The formula with these is on par with a couple noted exceptions. Rosie Lee, being a clear based glitter, required three coats as did Pearly Queen (the frosty white). Unfortunately my travel schedule to NYC limited my time so rather than wait until next week when I return, I did some quick one finger swatches for you.

Of course I had to do a full mani with British Racing Green. How could I resist?? The shade reminds me of a vintage MG convertible only better because of the shimmer. We’re not talking standout sparkle but the shade is so vivid that even in incandescent light I can pick up on it. Hand this polish a prize because it’s a winner!
The name Rosie Lee kind of speaks for itself. A sweet, dazzling rosy pink it becomes foil-like in the sun.
Scoundrel is a medium reddish lilac creme that’s just dark enough for me to avoid “alien hand” syndrome. It’s not bright but it definitely has a kick!
Can you say pumpkin? Minger‘s warm undertones give this nontraditional fall bright a sesonally appropriate feel.
Pearly Queen is my only disappointment in the bunch. It’s plagued with brush stroke issues and the hue just doesn’t work on me. To put up with brush marks I better LOVE the color.
The butter LONDON Fall/Winter 09 collection retails for $14/ea or get the Fashionista’s Favourites Fall 2009 pack and receive all 5 polishes for $45. The collection is on sale now at butterLondon.com and coming soon to Beauty.com.

What do we think Fanatics? Are you dying over British Racing Green like I am? Which fall bL’s do you plan to purchase?

CND Green Scene Colour and Gold Sparkle Effect

By Michelle Mismas on August 4, 2009
in CND, Fall 2009, Glitter, Green with 28 Comments

Today I bring you two more colors from the upcoming CND Colour & Effects line. To recap, CND is revamping their brand by introducing 50 Colours and 15 Effects that can be layered to create over 800 different nail shades.

The Colours include a range of cremes from white to black, vivid primary and secondary hues and three chrome metallics. The Effects include pearls, shimmers and sparkles in various shades like violet, copper and emerald.

I’ve been playing with some of the Colours and Effects I brought home with me from Cosmoprof and today I’m sharing my latest combo Green Scene and Gold Sparkle. Take a peek after the jump!

A green lover like me couldn’t resist the lure of Green Scene. I swear it was calling me from across the room at the CND launch party. It’s like I could hear it saying, “You know you want me. Get over here and play!” And play I did. When it came time to swatch the new colors, I had a ball testing different Effects over Green Scene and my fave of them all is Gold Sparkle.

Green Scene is very vibrant with a slight bluish undertone. The formula is smooth and well pigmented only requiring two coats. As I mentioned in my last CND post, the brush is flat but not too wide with triangular bristles that make application a breeze.
Adding a layer of Gold Sparkle totally blinged out the look. Gold Sparkle is a clear base filled with multiple sizes of gold glitter. There are some large flecks dispersed among the micro-glitter giving a gilded finish.

The CND Colour & Effects line will launch in the Fall at salons and spas in the US. Colours will retail for $9, Effects for $11. CND is carried in over 90 countries and you can find a salon or spa near you using the Salon Locator on the CND website.

Also, I wanted to address your comments and tweets regarding the pricing. We all have our own points of view regarding price and what is expensive to one person may be justifiably affordable to another. With that in mind, I try to review polishes without regard to cost but so many of you have been vocal about the price jump with CND. While the Colour price is not that much higher, the bottle is smaller. And if you want to recreate the look I’ve shown you, it will cost $20. Then again a bottle of Chanel is $23 and it’s just one look. It’s all in the eye of the shopper.

Now I’m not going to comment personally on the pricing but I will throw out my theory regarding the increase. The concept behind this line is that you’re compiling a nail wardrobe. That these are the only colors you need to create 800+ nail colors. In essence, once you buy their entire line, you’re done. So perhaps they feel this price is appropriate for the amount of color combinations you’re getting. That’s up to you to decide. Again, this is just my explanation and not coming from CND.

So with all that out of the way… what do you think of Green Scene? Don’t you just love how well Gold Sparkle compliments it?

CND Colour, Effects and Henna?

By Michelle Mismas on July 27, 2009
in Blue, CND, Glitter with 15 Comments

Happy Monday Fanatics! After another fun but tiring weekend away, this time with my Michigan/Cedar Point friends, I have some fun nail pics to show you.We drove up for German Park, a festival that takes place at the German Park Recreation Club the last weekend of June, July & August. It’s a lot of German food, beer and music in a very off the beaten path type location. We went and staked out a couple picnic tables for a day drunken stupidity, good food and card games. Thank goodness we had our preggers DD to cart our tipsy butts back.

While I was there I snuck out to meet up with one of my fave fellow bloggers, Christine from 15 Minute Beauty Fanatic, which meant an early morning mani was in order. I’ve been carrying around a couple of the new CND Colour & Effects polishes since becoming obsessed with a certain color combo so that’s what I went with. Check it out after the jump!

As I mentioned in my Cosmoprof Recap, CND totally revamped their line with the introduction of Colour & Effects. They’re releasing 50 Colours in a range from the whitest white to the blackest black with primary, secondary and metallics thrown in to provide a well rounded palette of shades. In addition, the 15 Effects allow you to transform the Colours with sheer pearls, shimmers and glitters to layer over top. It’s similar in concept to the brand Nailtini only the polish quality is like 100 times better.

Let’s talk about the polish. The new CND formula is 3-free AND free of the dry time issue that plagued CND polishes in the past. I’ve tested it now using a few different top coats and those old denting problems are gone. They also have a new ergonomic bottle with a rubberized cap and a NEW BRUSH!!

The brush is flat but not too wide. It’s about a 1/3 the width of my pinkie nail which means I can fan it out without hitting skin but the actual bristles are what make it unique. They are very thin but triangular in shape. I’m not sure why that makes a difference but application is AH-MAZING!! Seriously you guys, I’m so in like with this polish I want to send it a note to ask if we can be BFFs.

So when we got the chance to play with the new Colours & Effects at the Cosmoprof launch, the combination I loved most was layering Sapphire Sparkle, a smooth, bright blue glittah, over Inkwell, a blue-black creme. There’s something about the glitter in this one that makes it look purple-ish depending on the light. I took way too many pictures but I’m sure you won’t complain over that.

Now you may have noticed the mention of Henna in the title. Well one of the people we met at German Park is a henna artist. Julie of ~~Arbor Henna~~ is a friend of a friend who joined us after the festival for a bonfire in our friends’ new fire pit. We were rained out so she brought out her henna cone and bindis for a little body art fun.

I’ve never worn henna before so I was fascinated to hear her talk about how there are different types of henna paste and how you should avoid toxic “black henna.” How she mixes her own and scents it with lavender (it smelled so fab!).

As she started drawing the design on my hands, she did warn that copious amounts of German beer may effect the results. Considering that I have a hard time drawing a stick figure when playing Hangman, I think she did a pretty wicked job, no?

My friend Jewels also got in on the henna action with an even more detailed design. We passed out shortly after so the henna got plenty of drying time on our skin. Julie told us that the design would continue to darken and then fade as our skin exfoliates but I didn’t realize how intense it would look.

Here we are today, approximately 36 hours after she applied the design and I’m totally loving it. I’m told it can last anywhere up to nine days with proper care and moisturizing so unless you work in a relaxed environment, like I do, you may want to consider a less conspicuous placement should you delve into henna art. Since I’m way too much of a baby to ever get a tattoo, this is a perfect alternative.
What do you all think? Are you liking my CND combo? Are you a fan of henna?