Revlon-Perplex (Erika)

So... I decided to revisit Revlon nail polishes when I found a bottle of the coveted Perplex. Revlon released this a few months ago, with no mention from them, that it was an obvious copy of Paradoxal from Chanel. I do have to say, Revlon you sneaky bastards.. you did it! It is an almost dupe for Chanel's. The only qualm is that this seems to have a bit more of a shimmer in Perplex. But that's about it.

Now, this is a gorgeous color.. no doubt. But, One question directed towards Revlon: What the hell is up with your formula?

I swear, I waited between coats and air dried for almost an hour and it still smudged. After an hour. Also, bubbles.. is their a reason that every time I use Revlon NP, it bubbles?

This polish is a keeper, but I think I'm going to add some kind of thinner to see if I get better results.
Here are comparisons between Perplex and Paradoxal:

Now, the stock photo of Paradoxal isn't much of a help, and seeing as I don't own my own bottle of it(hello, why do you think I got the cheaper version?) Now If you look closer at the picture of the Revlon, you can see the bubbling. Ugh. I no likey. I even tried a glitter topcoat..and it just did not help at all. Oh.. Revlon, what am I going to do with you?

Next blog: Nail polish wants of the moment!

Mail Day! China Glaze Innocence, Zoya Sparkle Gloss, & My First Santee (Julie)

Boy there's no better way to top my day then to come home with packages waiting for me :) I absolutely love the China Glaze Innocence, it's such a pretty baby pink and I think it'll make a nice french mani color. The Zoya sparkle gloss is so amazing! It's very impressive in the bottle and I tried it on one nail and it dried really fast which is a major plus. Santee, this swatch is called Moon Light Glitter. It's my first Santee and honestly, it looked prettier in the stock photo, and in person is not as impressive. I have yet to swatch it though, so that is subject to change!

I'll get around to swatching these either this evening while recuperating from my cold and watching tv, or some point this weekend. For now, here's some close ups for a better idea of the colors.

Don't these two just make you think of all things girlie and bubblegum and unicorns? haha. No, really! This is super femme - and i LOVE the idea of the two of these combined.

an update on the santee, i just attempted to swatch it, and it took me about 3 minutes per finger just to get about 5 stars on each. It's tough to maneuver them out of the bottle, and they barely come up on their own. So this was a complete fail. Cute idea with a decent concept, but a failure of an execution. I guess that's what you get for $2.00.

Another update- i topped the santee with a top coat, and the stars are peeling right out of the polish. Cheap cheap!!!

The Prettiest Swatch That You NEED! (Julie)

after an impatient wait, Hard Candy Break Up showed up today! It's from their Just Nails line. I absolutely cannot wait to swatch this! I would have today but I'm laying in bed sick as a dog with my nose involuntarily dripping, and needless to say, I'm not up for inhaling fumes right now unless they're vix vapor related.

But here's a few shots of the absolute beauty that is Break Up. The glitter is powder pink and powder blue, and I can just imagine how amazing this would look on top of either color (blue or pink) and I can't wait to try it out tomorrow!

Please click on the image, I provided insanely large photos so you can see the glitter close up.

As far as where to buy, I got this on eBay for $8 including shipping. I have never seen these in stores though.

As promised, here is the swatch! The first photo is 2 layers alone, second is topped with Pixie Dust by China Glaze. Sorry my cuticles are uber yucky this week - I've been doing a lot of NP removal and that really kills them!

My picks from the Zoya Promo (Oh thank-you Zoya! - Julie)

wow thanks Erika for staying on top of Zoya in order to find out about this fabulous promo. I cannot believe they were giving away THREE free bottles! Isn't that insane? And none of that "buy this and get that free" just..."here, take these three, just pay for the haul to your place" now that is what I call a deal. How do they have anything left in stock after that??

Ok with that said, both my mother and I participated, so I have 6 polishes to brag about, considering I will have to go to mom's and hijack them after she gets bored of them. ;)

For myself, I chose:

Alix:

Jo: (I've been eying this swatch for a while!)

Kelly: (it reminds me of a darker prettier and more purple version of China Glaze's Recycle)

And mom got:

Brenna:

Luna:

and Edyta:

Zoya Promo (Erika)

As a lover of Zoya, I have been buying zoya for the past 3 years. Like whenever the mood strikes or when they are having a promo.

Well, if you follow them on Twitter, and of course on facebook, you would know that they are giving away 3 nail polishes*! You choose the colors and put in the code( like them on face book to get the code. But lets just say its a combination of a certain social network's initials and a happy new year;)

Here are the the three that I picked(this was a hard one, as I had 12 already that I needed to get...yes needed! haha ):

Reece

Now, I own a good amount of colors like this, but something about Reece just caught my eye, it's like a pink, gold and purple swirl of awesome but still feminine enough to wear to work. A great color for the spring. It's from the 2010 Reverie Collection. I have to say it reminds of an oil slick, like the effect when oil and water mix together.

Snowcicle

I made the background of snowcicle black so you can see the color that it is. This is stated by Zoya "Zoya Nail Polish in Snowsicle can be best described as: A sheer veil of sparkling, snowy white with iridescent glitter. Adds a glistening icy look to any color or French manicure"
I am hoping this a dupe for a beloved Avon NP that I used to use that was discontinued a few years ago that stupid me forgot the name!

Diana
Diana is a jelly based gorgeous red, I don't own a lot of jellies, but this is one color that I have eying for a good while. The one thing that I love about jellies is that they dry super fast! I mean for me, that is!

More to come! Julie also took part of this promo and will be blogging about her picks very soon!

*Buyer pays shipping and handling fee of 6.95$

Sephora by OPI - And Then He Said - Beautiful cream color! (Julie)

This was one of my amazing xmas gifts from Erika - And Then He said, a Sephora by OPI color. I don't have many cream polishes, but recently decided I want to get some. Then for xmas I received an awesome gift set with mini polishes. In the set, this particular color stood out the most to me. It goes great with my pale skin - it's so beautiful! It's a creamy rose-beige color. The application is flawless too! 2 coats and it applied so smooth and evenly, and looks so professional! Thanks Erika :) :)

Oh, and I've made a few eBay purchases lately (surprise, surprise!) so these beauties are on their way to my door step and will be available to swatch soon! -

Zoya- Sparkle Gloss Top Coat (one can never have too many sparkly top coats)

My first of this brand which I've heard is very inexpensive, but it's not sold in my area - they're called Santee Plus Vernis. There's actually a seller on eBay who sells a set of 12 colors - full size bottles, for $14.99 and free shipping. Here is Moon Light Glitter..the color I bought.

I also got a great french mani color. Innocence by China Glaze.

And last on its way is Hard Candy "Break Up" which is a really beautiful large chunky glitter color which is similar to their other swatch "Hot Pants" but is a clear base, not a translucent pink.

Goodies in the mail today (Julie)

today i got my first konad stamp kit! I took it out and started to mess around with it a little but it didn't come out so good. Later this evening my sister-in-law is coming over and we're going to give it another shot. I'll post pics as soon as we're done playing!

Also got a new Zoya swatch called Roxy. It's an ultra glittery color. It's very pretty, reminds me of raspberries. Takes about 3 coats for full color.

New Brand Discovery (Erika)

Sorry for the lack of posts on my part, after the holidays and dealing with being sick (cold sores and all) Julie and I decided to swap christmas gifts before I made my pilgramage back to work in Staten Island. We also hit Barnes and Noble for some much needed leisure, ah...

But while in Rite Aid we both discovered a brand called Jesse's Girl (yes like the super corny song title...) and the colors were out of this world amazing. I picked up two colors( I will post my haul soon!) and one of them was a complete dupe for Zoya's "Charla". The picture of my nails does not even do this justice! They are spot on the same color. The shades of blue, gold, silver and green. It's like a mermaid tail in a bottle.

Zoya "Charla":

Now if you want the look of Zoya "Charla" but for half the price, then pick up a bottle of "Glee" by Jesse's Girl

Here is one more picture for your viewing pleasure: