Nicole by OPI - It's All About the Glam

 Today's post is a quickie. As much as I don't like the idea of the Kardashians, I have to say that those girls have style,and Nicole by OPI did a great job capturing them in a lacquer form. You're looking at It's All About the Glam today, which is a pretty bright white with a slight silvery pink shimmer. I couldn't bear to muck this one up with additional glitter or stamping yet. I like that it's not at all frosty the way some white shimmers end up.

It's All About the Glam applied beautifully for a white polish, which means there was a little streaking, and it requires more coats than a dark red would. These pictures are after four coats. The brush is great. It's nice and wide, so you don't need too many strokes to cover your nails. I really like this polish, and I've been a fan of Nicole by OPI for awhile, but this collection has turned out some great shades. I've seen comparisons showing some dupes (a lot of times from OPI colors), but if you don't already own them, or have a hard time finding OPI shades locally (like me), these are a great substitute.

Kim-Pletely in Love with Fabulous is My Middle Name!

 CAUTION: PHOTO SPAM AHEAD

For those of you who read my tweets (@MWGirlieGirl), you probably saw I picked up some of the Kardashian Kolors on my shopping trip the other day. Continuing my recent pink kick, the first one I tried was Kim-Pletely in Love. I'm almost sad I mucked this one up with some glitter, but the end result was pretty.

The shimmer on Kim is barely there, but so pretty. It's nearly impossible to photograph, at least with my camera. This pic shows off the shimmer, even if the color isn't super accurate. Even in person, it's subtle, so I thought I'd liven it up a little. Also, I couldn't wait to wear all the new polishes. If I could have found a tasteful way to wear them all, you be I would have.

For the glitter, I used Fabulous is My Middle Name, also from Nicole by OPI, but not a Kardashian Kolor. This one is WAY fun, and I foresee this being a party time staple. This picture actually shows the little bar glitters pretty well. There are bits of hot pink, red, blue and gold in a clear base with a microglitter that appears to be kind of a champagne color. I just dabbed a little near (and on) the cuticles and blended down the nail. I added a pink rhinestone on the middle finger. I think it's off-center. Maybe that's just me.

I took some bottle shots to get a better sense of the colors. The second one of Kim-Pletely in Love is horrible, but the only way I could find the glitter without it being all blurry and rotten looking.

Both of these colors are so pretty, I couldn't stop taking pictures. Kim-Pletely in Love would make an awesome french manicure pink, if you're into that sort of thing. I'm not normally into french manis, but I did actually like the VNL on this one. It took 3 coats on most fingers, 4 on my middle nail to cover some yellowness (Thank you, Dree...).

I was really happy with the formula on both of these. The brushes were both great, though I do like that the Kardashian Kolors have a bit wider, thicker brush. It's not quite the controversial Perfect Stroke Brush, but it's nice. I think Fabulous is My Middle Name would easily build up for a crazy glitterbomb mani, but also is great for layering.

Belated Blogaversary Giveaway!

After posting pictures of my polish stash the other day, it dawned on me that I've been at this awhile...and that I missed my 6 month blogaversary. I had planned to do some kind of giveaway if I managed to continue this hobby for 6 months...and I did!

Being late for stuff pretty much sums up my life some days, so I decided to give some things away. Better late than never, right? The question is...what to give away?

It dawned on me that whatever products I choose essentially constitutes an endorsement from me. Since I am purchasing the prizes with my own hard earned dough, I felt it was only right to show love to the companies who have shown me love. Retweets from Zoya, Color Club and Nicole by OPI have gotten me TONS of page views, and I love all of their products, so my prizes were chosen.

Now for the specifics:

Prize #1: One bottle of Zoya Nail Polish. You can choose any color available on their website. I will have it shipped directly to you.

Prize #2: One of the Kardashian Kolors from Nicole by OPI. Since I can't find a way to buy directly from Nicole's website, I narrowed this one down to the Kardashian Kolors so that your choice would be readily available.

Prize #3: One bottle of Color Club Nail Polish. Like Zoya, any polish available from the website is up for grabs, shipped directly to the address you provide.

How do I win these fabulous prizes, you ask? Simple. Follow the blog. This is mandatory. If that doesn't happen, you don't get any of the other bonus chances. You can also earn entries by following @MWGirlieGirl on Twitter, Retweeting about this giveaway, and by "Liking" this blog post on Facebook. 5 total chances to win per person.

Entries will be accepted until 11:59PM (Central Time) on February 15, 2012.

This is my first giveaway, so if there are any kinks along the way, please bear with me. I'm using the Rafflecopter widget below to run the giveaway, so hopefully this will be a smooth process.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Multiplication of thePolishes: How the Stash Has Grown...

So, here's the funny thing about being a beauty blogger: You accumulate a lot of stuff. I've always had a fairly well-stocked vanity, and I'm not quite at the level of having closets dedicated to my goodies, but I'm getting there fast. Case in point. My first post, the polish stash looked like this:

This was everything I had for nail supplies. Everything. All in two neat little boxes. The collection of polish alone now fills two boxes completely, and the third doesn't even come close to holding the removers, creams, decals, cotton swabs, etc. I use.

This is just the polish and a few nail-specific odds and ends. I didn't even go up to the bathroom to get the removers and magic potions. And this is after my sister raided my stash and took little pieces of the collections I wouldn't wear on a regular basis, and I gave some of the unused bottles out for stocking stuffers at Christmas. My goal is to keep everything at a manageable level so my boyfriend doesn't start refusing to come to the girl den that is my apartment. Neatly organized in three little scrapbook boxes...for now...

Nicole by OPI Something About Color (Fall 2011)

I Love You Cherry Much, It's Not Me It's Blue, Sounds Grape to Me, Green Up Your Act

I Love You Cherry Much, It's Not Me It's Blue, Sounds Grape to Me, Green Up Your Act

I Love You Cherry Much, It's Not Me It's Blue, Sounds Grape to Me, Green Up Your Act

During my little hiatus, I managed to do a little swatching, and one of the sets I got to was Nicole by OPI's fall collection. I've seen mixed reviews on other blogs. The name of the collection is Something About Color. Several other reviews have said this set doesn't look like a cohesive collection. I can't say I disagree with that thought. At the same time, the name of the collection can be interpreted pretty loosely. Each of the 4 colors fits a trend in fall fashion. Every collection I've seen has a murky or dusty green. Red is definitely hot. A smoky bluish or purple color fits with the trends. And what fall collection is complete without a burgundy or plum?

I Love You Cherry Much is not my usual red. I normally opt for a darker, creamy red, but this one is amazing. It glitters no matter what light it's in. It seems like a pretty universally flattering color, and it's fun and vibrant. It's right on par with the bright red fashion this fall. The formula is flawless. It'll cover in two coats, but I use three to hide my nail lines.

 

It's Not Me It's Blue is the same formula as I Love You Cherry Much, but in a lovely Periwinkle blue color and a little more sheer. I use three to four thin coats. There are flecks of silver in this one, it seems, and flashes of pink. The last picture is in dim lighting with the flash on my cell phone. In bright sunlight you see more of the blue.

Sounds Grape to Me is pretty much the same formula as the other two shimmers. Two coats was plenty for this one. I'm not normally drawn to shades of burgundy like this, but the best part of this one is that it is actually the color of grapes. Other bloggers said the name was weird considering it's not the usual purple color we refer to as "grape." I have long wondered why they always call bright violets and purples "grape." I have never seen a grape that color. Ever. I wore this polish while I was at the grocery store. I compared it to an actual red grape. It was the right color. Nicole by OPI wins the prize for the first brand of anything to make something the color of a real grape. Yes, these are the things I think about.

Green Up Your Act is the only creme of the bunch. while it looks a tiny bit out of place with the shimmers in this set, but the color is really pretty. Greens like this can be tricky on my skin, but Nicole managed to make one I can wear. It's less yellow than the greens we saw from Zoya and China Glaze. I think I'm going to have to do a continuation of my comparison post with Dree and Westside Warrior, adding in the greens from Nicole by OPI, Essie and Wet'n'Wild...and anything else I find between now and then.

All in all, I'm happy with this collection. It's affordable, easily accessible and fits the trends for the season. I got this set at Target, and I'm sure it's available online, as well. Target sells each bottle for $7-8.

Back from Hiatus!

I really must apologize for my absence. I have been fighting a cold the last couple of weeks, and haven't been motivated to much of anything...except sleeping. That I can ALWAYS get motivated for.

I did make a feeble attempt to post last week, and while the nails were great, the Blogger app for Android leaves a little to be desired where layout and photo quality are concerned. Also, it kept force closing and deleting half the text of the post. I gave up and accepted the magic only happens from the desktop. *sigh*

Here are the high quality pictures from the phone camera. I got the look with I Love You Cherry Much from Nicole by OPI's fall collection with China Glaze Liquid Leather stamped on top using plate M69 from the Born Pretty Store.

Indoor lighting.

Blurred for extra sparkle.

I've gotten several little goodies in the mail recently, so there will be plenty of posts to come. I would save so much money if I couldn't shop online from my phone...

Gameday Nails - Week 4

I know. I'm late. Busy weekend with lots of company and little time for posting. On top of it all, I've been sick for the last week, so every spare moment has been spent napping.
I DID have time, however, to do my nails. As usual, my Nikon dislikes red and thinks any polish containing red, berry or pink should be mauve and fuzzy. Pictures are courtesy of my HTC Thunderbolt.
This week, I was doing good to get my nails painted and stamped, so there's no real theme besides the obvious red and black. I used I Love You Cherry Much from Income by OPI's fall 2011 collection for the base, Liquid Leather by China Glaze for the stripes, an plate m69 from Born Pretty for the stripes.

Gameday Nails - Week 1

University of Nebraska Memorial Stadium (Yes, it's normal to see that much red.)

 If you haven't noticed, I like football. I like it a lot. I was born and raised in Nebraska. We love football. If you're not from Nebraska, chances are, you think we're insane. The whole state.

We are not all THIS insane. Not quite.

Now that I have a brand new blog and a brand new season is upon us, I'm making it my mission to have some awesome red nails every weekend in honor of my beloved Cornhuskers. For the season opener, I used my new franken, still unnamed, and Color Club's Smash Hit crackle polish. I also added hints of Nicole's Nickels from Nicole by OPI for a hint of sparkle.

Like the previous shots of my franken, these were taken with my phone (HTC Thunderbolt), since my Nikon refuses to recognize the color as red and not a strange blurry mauvey pink.I added one that was slightly out of focus to show the sparkle. The top coat/glitter combo really made this manicure look awesome and edgy. You'll also notice that I didn't paint the entire nail with Nicole's Nickels. I literally made a little swipe on each nail in various patches. I love the whole effect.

I did wonder what would happen if I added some white, so I tried it on the other hand.

I didn't clean this up at all, and I didn't like it as much. In hindsight, I probably should have used gray or at least less white. I ended up removing it and matching the other hand. We may try this look later. I call do-over.

I'm seriously excited to see how many red/black/white/gray combinations I can come up with. There are 12 games. 14, if all goes well. Hmmm....

Nicole by OPI and the Magic Perfect Stroke Brush

Day two of my drugstore shopping spree brings us the goodies from Nicole by OPI.

Polish number one is Let's Get It Star-Ted. Ever since Nicole released the glitter polishes with big hearts in it, I've been waiting for stars. Hearts are fun, but candy pink hearts don't read grown-up, unless it's Valentine's Day. Stars, on the other hand, can be a little edgy if paired with the right colors.

Let's Get It Star-Ted is pictured above with just a plain base coat and top coat (as you can see by the slight yellowing on my nails...). This one is a little tricky to apply. The base is clear with little flecks of glitter, which goes on really easily. The tricky part are the stars. You kind of have to fish them out of the bottle, and they don't always want to come off the brush. I expected this one to be a little difficult, and the stars are fun, so I'm really not disappointed with the purchase.

Next up is Sea How Far You Go. This may be the first gold I actually like on me. There's a cloudy pewter/gray mixed in that keeps it from being too yellow for a lot of wearers. The formula went on smoothly, and was opaque in two coats. The fact that it was also in the random clearance basket at Target for $4 makes it my bargain for the week.

The last of my Nicole by OPI purchases was Iceburg Lotus. I looked at the nail polish display, and this one just jumped out at me. Formula was about the same as Sea How Far You Go for smoothness, though this one was a little thin and took three coats to cover my nails. Iceburg Lotus is a great teal with a pretty purple/blue shimmer. It makes me think of mermaids a little, and I'm really excited about this one.

One other thing I'd like to mention about these Nicole by OPI polishes is the brush. Sea How Far You Go and Iceburg Lotus, as well as a few shades already in my collection have little stickers calling attention to the new perfect stroke brush. Kids, they are not making this up. I have pretty steady hands and can get a good finish from most polishes. This brush makes it super easy for most anyone to get a great finish and is tapered to help keep the cuticles clean during application. I haven't gotten any of the creme shades yet, but the shimmers and glitters go on flawlessly. I even TRIED to mess the finish up, and after pushing down too hard, all I got was polish on my cuticles. The picture below is right after application, no clean up and no photo editing.

Nearly flawless. If you have trouble with application or are new at doing your own nails, this is an excellent way to get started. If you're like me and usually in a hurry, these are great time savers, since you don't have to worry about clean up, and the drying time is great. I'll make sure to update once I get a newer creme in my collection and let you know if the brush holds up.