OPI 'Nice Stems' Summer '2011 Collection: Be a Dahlia Won't You? Swatches

The 'Nice Stems' Collection was released in June '2011. I like this collection but I do feel like the colors are a little boring and typical. I feel like they could have been a little more creative?! I don't know! Like usual, I love the names and 'Be a Dahlia Won't You?' is one of my favorites :)

I could only justify buying one from the collection right now and I had a hard time choosing between this one and 'Come to Poppy', which is such gorgeous coral niceness! I still kinda want to go back for the 'Come to Poppy'...ahhhh is it worth it?? Does anyone out there think it is a must have color? Also, 'I Lily Love You' is really cute in the bottle, I always love the way sparkle polishes look in the bottle, but this one is not unique enough for me to want to buy. I also heard that 'Be a Dahlia Won't You' is an exact dupe of China Glaze's '108 Degrees', just a heads up!?

From left to right: 'Play the Peonies', 'Come to Poppy', 'Be a Dahlia Won't You?', and 'I Lily Love You' (Another super cute name!).

OPI 'Be a Dahlia Won't You?' and on the ring finger over OPI's 'Be a Dahlia Won't You' is 'Teenage Dream' from OPI's Katy Perry collection and as a topcoat, and only because I have run out (but it does look pretty), 'I Juggle Men' from OPI's Femme De Cirque collection.

Again, on the ring finger over OPI's 'Be a Dahlia Won't You' is 'Teenage Dream' from OPI's Katy Perry collection and as a topcoat, and only because I have run out (but it does look pretty), 'I Juggle Men' from OPI's Femme De Cirque collection. 

Are you loving the "Nice Stems'? haha addressed to my ZERO followers :( bahaaaa ... maybe one day someone will read this? ;)

Christina :)

Favorite Nail Polish of the Week: Layla by Zoya with swatches!!!

This weeks featured favorite is: Zoya's 'Layla'

It is a bright coralish, pink color that is perfect for the first full week summer! Almost like rubbing a highlighter on your nails :) I LOVE this polish. Zoya nail polish is usually about nine dollars at selected Salons. I like this nail polish without a topcoat because it dries with an almost matte finish, but a glossy topcoat will really make the color pop.

Zoya was awarded for making the longest wearing natural nail polish in Women's Health Magazine. Zoya nail polish is cruelty free and 5-free (without Toluene, Formaldehyde, DBP, Formaldehyde Resin and Camphor). All good things :)

Zoya 'Layla' with a Steadtler gel highlighter.

Nails were opaque after two coats, which I like :) The photos really don't do the brightness justice.

What are your favorite Zoya nail polish colors? What are your favorite summer nail polish colors?

Christina :)

OPI The Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides Collection Spring '2011

OPI released the Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides Collection on May 20th, 2011.

From left to right: 'Skull & Glossbones', 'Stranger Tides', and 'Mermaids Tears'.

'Steady As She Rose', 'Sparrow Me the Drama', and 'Planks a Lot'.

And finally, the Silver Shatter.

I bought the mini collection, which has: 'Skull & Glossbones', 'Stranger Tides', 'Sparrow Me the Dramma', and 'Planks a Lot'. I really like the mini collections. I know they don't last as long but you get to try out four different polishes from the collection and...if you're like me, then you don't ever really go through an entire full size bottle anyways- unless it becomes one of my all-time-favorites! Anyways, swatches below!! :)

From left to right: 'Skull & Glossbones', 'Planks a Lot', 'Sparrow Me the Drama', and 'Stranger Tides'.

'Skull & Glossbones'- One of my favorites of the four. A nice tan kaki, glossy color. Shear and streaky until the third coat for me but keep in mind I do paint relatively thin coats.

'Stranger Tides'- A light sage green color, like a green kaki. Also goes on shear and streaky but opaque after three coats.

'Sparrow Me the Drama'- A really pretty dark dusty rose color. 

'Planks a Lot'- A really pretty dusty, pastel purple. Similar to OPI's 'Do You Lilac It' but darker. This one is my favorite of the four. It goes on the nicest, being almost streak free and opaque with one coat.

All OPI nail polishes are manufactured 3-free (without DBP, Toluene, and Formaldehyde). They are also cruelty free, so you don't have to feel guilty!

Overall, I really like this collection and would still love to get a full size of the 'Mermaids Tears' for my collection. I love these colors under some of the newer shatters, like China Glaze's 'Cracked Candy' over 'Sparrow Me the Drama' or 'Planks a Lot'. I took pics for an upcoming shatter combinations blog.

I am not sure what I think of the 'Silver Shatter'? Especially with all of the different shatters coming out. Does anyone own and recommend it?... or dislike it? Thoughts?

Christina :)

St. Ives Mineral Clay Firming Mask

I bought this mineral clay mask from Wal-Mart for around six dollars and I really love it! Honestly, I am a big fan of a lot of St. Ives products already, so I wasn't surprised to like this too. 

The back of the tube says, "this mask, with kaolin clay, deep cleans while visibly firming and tightening the skin". The directions say, "to use when you need an extra deep clean. Begin by cleansing face. Apply a thin and even layer to skin avoiding eyes, lips, and hair. Once mask is completely dry (10-15 minutes), rinse with water. In case of contact with eyes, flush throughly with water.

I find this mask to be very refreshing and relaxing at the same time. I love the way it smells fresh and minty and feels tingly on the skin. There was a point when I first used this product where I was a little concerned that my skin was burning and that I would have to wash it off, leaving my skin red and irritated, but I washed off a little area and it looked good, so I stuck with it and I am glad because my skin loves it. I consider myself to have pretty sensitive skin too! 

I also love the way when it dries it really tightens around my face pulling everything in. I try to stay away from anything that will make me laugh to avoid getting the smile lines while the mask is drying. It is nice to just sit down, listen to some music and moisturize my hands, feet and body while waiting for the mask to dry. I find it takes longer than 10-15 minutes, I would give it 20-30 minutes to fully dry before washing it off. When I wash it off my face feels invigorated and super soft, and looks clean and shiny :)

I looked it up and apparently, kaolin clay, which is composed of aluminum oxide and silica, has the ability to dry the skin, fighting acne, as well as increasing localized circulation, which can help to fight inflammation. It is likely that the tightening effect that you feel after using the mask is caused by the moisture that is removed from the skin. Kaolin clay is also used in makeup to stop powder based formulas from caking. The ingredients also list Rosemary leaf extract, caffeine and ginkgo biloba leaf extract, which probably contribute to the nice smell, decreased inflammation and feeling of softness after.

Christina :) 

Nicole by OPI The One Less Lonely Girl Collection in "Baby Blue"

The above information and picture was taken from the Nicole by OPI website at http://www.nicolebyopi.com/collection/one-less-lonely-girl-collection

This collection, a collaboration with Justin Bieber, was released by Nicole by OPI in January '2011 at drugstores and Wal-Marts. Apparently Bieber wanted to raise awareness and funds for a nonprofit organization called Pencils of Promise (PoP) that helps build schools and increase educational opportunities in the developing world. Weird for a guy to be involved in a nail polish collection! But it is for a good cause! :) 

I mainly tried this out because I was looking for a nice creamy light blue polish. I specifically went for 'Barracuda' by Sally Hansen or 'Borrowed and Blue' by Essie but these were both all sold out :( This "Baby" Blue from Nicole by OPI caught my eye, so I thought I would give it a try.

It is a little darker than I would have wanted a "Baby" Blue nail polish to be, however, it is pretty true to the color in the bottle so I knew what I was getting into when I bought it. It is a nice Smurf blue color. I actually really like it. The only complaint I have is that it went on streaky, even after a couple of coats? I think it might be because of the brush, which seems to be too short and therefore too firm to achieve the perfect coverage.

On my ring finger over top of the "Baby" Blue is OPI Katy Perry's 'Last Friday Night' and OPI Femme de Cirque's 'I Juggle...Men' as the top coat because I find 'Last Friday Night' to be a bit chunky, leaving a rough finish to the nail without a topcoat.

I am interested in checking out a couple of the other colors and the silver glitter (despite my hatred for removing glitter after, it looks really pretty when it's on). If I do I will update this blog post with new swatches.

I am trying to push out posts for all of the pictures that I already have so there will more very soon...

Christina :)

China Glaze Celtic Sun (Neon) swatches

So the other day my boyfriend came home with this bottle of China Glaze Celtic Sun (Neon), which is this bright yellow highlighter color. I am pretty sure this bottle is from a collection that was released in summer '2010? But I can't really find anything about it on the usual blog sites that I follow. BAA I found it and it is from the INK collection, summer '2008 :/ Eek, that was a while ago? It is a pretty vibrant, cool color if you can get it almost opaque. I didn't try putting a base coat of white under to see if that would make it more opaque- I think that would probably help?!

Celtic Sun is a perfect summer color. I love bright colors for the summer. Sometimes I find yellow polish makes my finger nails look dirty or sickly, but I feel it is easier to pull off when it is this bright. If you can't find Celtic Sun, you could probably find China Glaze's yellow polka dot bikini (cute name)! Unfortunately, it also lives up to being a shear, streaky formula that requires many coats to  get it to appear opaque, similar to the actual color you see in the bottle. As you can see the finish of Celtic Sun is matte.

All China Glaze nail polishes are cruelty free and manufactured 3-free (without DBP, Toluene, and Formaldehyde).

I honestly really love this color and would definitely wear it again! It goes perfectly with the bright pink on my toes...which is totally going to be my first 'featured favorite of the week' this coming Sunday, so you will hear all about it then!! :)

Christina :)

First Blog Post AND OPI Texas Collection from Spring'2011

OPI released the Texas collection on February 2nd, 2011.

I bought the Texas Collection Lil Shooters mini set of 4 bottles, which includes: Austin-tatious Turquoise, I Want to be a Lone Star, Do You Think I'm Tex-y?, and a RapiDry Top Coat.

I liked this mini collection so much I have been trying to grab up large sizes of my most favorite colors. I only have three of the jellies in large size and at this point I doubt that I will find many of the others that I would LOVE to have, specifically 'I Want to be a Lone Star' :)

As this is my very first blog post (And I have been meaning to do this for a long time), it will likely be disorganized and somewhat outdated...but if you are like me and just looking for a specific color to use or compare with another, you won't really care. This blog will be somewhat of a disorganized record of every nail polish I have ever owned/worn. My First weekly blog will be "Featured Polish of the Week" where I will talk about and show my most favorite nail polish from the past week. I will probably do this every Sunday.

I will occasionally post other reviews if I really love something. My obsession is nail polish, I am almost always changing colors on a regular basis. My nail polish obsession started with  clear polishes or light pink, fresh colors. I used to shy away from bright colors. Not anymore! I don't really feel like there is any color that I wont wear. I stay away from some because they just don't look nice with my fair skin tone but I will always give anything a try. Blah. Rambling now.

Anyways, this blog will be about documenting every kind/color of nail polish that I can get my hands on. I will try and do something cool and new every once and a while- if this is even possible, there are already so many amazing bloggers out there! :)

Back to the OPI Texas collection...

I know I should likely start with swatches of the lil shooters but I still haven't had a chance to do that yet, not that I haven't worn them a lot already, just that I didn't formally take pictures to post. This blog idea although old, is still relatively new in the making. And I need to try to NOT melt off my fingers by painting them multiple times daily, which is one reason why I said it will likely be disorganized at first. I have formally taken pictures of the three large jellies (OPI says 'sorbet') that I have: Too Hot Pink to Hold 'Em, Guy Meets Gal-veston, and Houston We Have a Purple. I LOVE these colors and have been wearing them periodically throughout the spring and so far summer of 2011. They are perfect summer shades of bright pink, coral, and purple. 

All OPI nail polishes are manufactured 3-free (without DBP, Toluene, and Formaldehyde). They are also cruelty free, so you don't have to feel guilty.

OPI: Too Hot Pink to Hold 'Em

And on the nails...

OPI: Guy Meets Gal-veston with OPI: Katy Perry's Teenage Dream on top of the ring finger

OPI: Houston We Have a Purple

I love the finish of these polishes. I am not a fan of the fact that I have to paint so many coats in order to get it to be opaque but I love the 'sorbet' finish. It is perfect for when you are sick of sparkles, glitters, and metallics. I think jellies are great for the summer season and I LOVE to add some glitter or shatter to the ring fingers too :) 

Hopefully this is an okay first blog entry. Much more to come!!

Christina :)