Nubar "Gem"

What a gem! This is a gorgeous color, and the name fits perfectly!

Nubar "Gem" is from the Nubar Prisms Collection released in 2009. This collection comprised of scattered holographic shimmers.

Nubar "Gem"
3 coats with top coat

Bottle Shot

Nubar "Gem" is a mousy pinkish taupe shimmer with a ton of tiny holographic glitter. This is a scattered holographic, and it is delicate and gorgeous!  It is light and applies thin, so three coats is necessary to get the accurate color you see in the bottle.  The holographic glitter does dry with a very fine grainy texture, so top coat is necessary to smooth it out, I used my usual 2 coats. :)

When the light hits the glitter the right way, this is what you get...

I love this color, it is very feminine and adds the right amount of glitter and slight duo-chrome effect to make it stand out from your average taupe. WIN WIN! :)

You can find this color for $10.00 online at bynubar.com or at your nearest local retailer.

Keep It Sweet!

From my niece Lys!

Hello!

Today I have an extra special post, because I was gifted two polishes from my wish list from my niece, Lys.

Nicole by OPI "Fresh Squeezed" and OPI "Alpine Snow". I have "Alpine Snow"- Matte, but I do not have the regular version. DUH! *smack forehead* .

Since you all have seen white polish before, here are swatches of the Nicole by OPI Color.

Nicole by OPI "Fresh Squeezed"
3 coats, no top coat

"Fresh Squeezed" is a super juicy orange jelly-like polish with added metallic orange glitter. I have wanted this polish for a long time,  but because my wish list grows everyday with new polish, some of the older "wish list" colors get lost in the list. Good thing my niece remembered I wanted this, and grabbed it for me. Good lookin out babe!

This applied smoothly, but it was a bit thin, so 3 coats was necessary for opacity.

Here is a pic of it in indirect lighting...

I love that glitter, it is so pretty, and makes this polish perfect for summer! In the sunlight it is bright orange, but indoors the red undertones make this polish darker and the glitter more poignant.

Lys is such a sweetheart, she packaged these up and shipped them to me cross country.  She reads my blog often, and I always send her polish and tools to use. I think I was more excited that she learned well from me, and packed the polish properly using lots of bubble wrap, baggies and a box. Woo Hoo!!!

Thanks Lys, I love you!

Keep It Sweet!

Dermelect: Haute Digits for Fall/Winter 2013

Dermelect Cosmeceuticals Launches ME’s Front Row Lacquer Collection

Great Neck, NY (May 2013) – Straight from the runway and right to your fingertips,  Dermelect Cosmeceuticals launches ME’s Fall/Winter 2013 Lacquer Collection, Front Row.  Featuring four new hues that complement the season’s hottest trends, these lacquers will also keep your nails healthy with Dermelect’s signature anti-aging & peptide-infused formulation designed for women who desire to grow out long and strong natural nails.

“From the fur frenzy to fierce patent leather, Dermelect’s Front Row collection is all about texture,” says Celebrity Nail Tech, Elle.  “These colors almost mimic expensive luxury fabrics from this season’s runways.” 

With a jewel and earth-toned color palette, these creamy colors are your ultimate accessory:

·         FEROSH-a rich luxe red

·         SOPHISTICATE-a cool cashmere taupe

·         SHE-SHE-a patent teal

·         EXCENTRIC-a lavender grey fusion

 HOW IT WORKS

The first coat instantly bonds to the nail, while the second fuses with the base coat to create a flexible web of color that resists chipping and improves brittleness.  The ME colors combine fast drying, high shine and a healthy ‘green’ dose of vitamins, peptides and moisture, offering a colorful solution to the contemporary woman’s beauty concern—aging nails and hands. 

KEY INGREDIENT

·         ProSina Protein Peptide-Hydrolyzed Keratin extracted from New Zealand sheep’s wool that strengthens the nails and moisturizes the skin.  

BENEFITS

·         Strengthens weak, brittle nails

·         Restores nail flexibility

·         Helps nails resist chipping and splitting

·         Provides long-lasting, high shine and bold color

·         Water and detergent resistant

·         Protects against UV rays

·         Formaldehyde, DBP and Toluene FREE

·         Cruelty FREE (no animal testing)

Dermelect’s ME Front Row collection, available August 2013, retails for $14.00 and can be purchased online at www.dermelect.com and at high-end apothecaries, beauty boutiques, salons, spas, medi-spas and doctors offices.

*Info sent by PR

Deborah Lippmann: NEW! Jewel Heist Collection

SINFULCOLORS INTRODUCES SINFULSHINE

SINFULCOLORS INTRODUCES SINFULSHINE

Step Up to Extreme Shine

Every woman deserves to shine. Now she can...with SinfulShine™ - a new high-shine, trend-setting collection of nail polish launching in 2013 from SinfulColors.

The new SinfulShine™ high-gloss, high shine nail polish with Gel Tech^TM is a self-curing polymer formula that delivers the same high shine gloss as an acrylic UV cured gel without the hassle of a special lamp.  SinfulShine™ is five times more glossy than a patent leather shoe*... now that's shine!!!

* 2012 Glossmeter Study.

FEATURES/BENEFITS/KEY INGREDIENTS:

• Gel Tech^TM technology formula provides opulent, rich color and brilliant shine
• Plasticizer System for smooth application and helps prevents chipping
• Gloss Finish, smooth application without a special lamp
• Made in the USA; Formaldehyde, Toluene and DPB free, never tested on animals

32 HIGH SHINE, GLOSSY SHADES:

ALFRESCO: sky blue                                      ALL THE RAGE: petal pink           

AMAZONIAN: sparkly jungle green               AT SEA: pale turquoise       

BANANAPPEAL: mellow yellow                      BLUE SUEDE SHOES: gray blue

BOTTOMS UP: blue denim                             BREAK AWAY: deep sea blue      

COME HITHER: deep pink                              DARK ROOM: black            

DEVIOUS: devil red                                           I'M BLUSHING: light pink

IN THE LIMELIGHT: moss green                    MARDI GRAS: soft coral     

MAN HUNT: military green                               MOST SINFUL: royal blue    

MY KRYPTONITE: grass green                      NOUVEAU PURPLE: deep purple

PICANTE: fire engine red                                 PRAGMATIC: lovely lavender       

REBEL: taupe                                                    RENDEZVOUS: mint green  

ROYAL FLUSH: bold berry                              SAILOR'S DELIGHT: faintly pink

SET THE MOOD: touch of teal                        SKINNY DIPPING: gentle blue 

SPITFIRE: lightly lavender                               STEEL RESERVE: steel gray  

TAN LINES: pinky beige                                   VIP: hot pink

WISP: white                                                       YOUR'S TRULY: bubblegum pink

PRICE/AVAILABILITY:

$2.99 exclusively at Walgreens stores.

*Info sent by PR

Keep It Sweet!

Nicole by OPI "Notorious Neons": Swatches and Review

Yep, here is a cute little manicure I did for a recent nail challenge in one of my nail groups.

The challenge was neon manicures for Friday...yep that was it, and it was perfect for me, because I had this set out on the counter and I needed to swatch it so.....2 birds, 1 stone!

I applied 2 coats of the white, and then followed up with my handy-dandy dotting tool and made "leopard-like" markings using the remaining 3 colors.  I say "leopard-like", since my skills were lacking at the time and my markings are not the best, LOL.

The neons are a bit thin, so if you do use them for a full manicure, I strongly suggest several coats.  Plus, if you want the "neon-effect" to be at its best, you'll have to do a white base before applying them.

Nicole by OPI formulas are long-lasting, fast-drying, and salon-quality.   Notorious! Neons mini packs are available in stores NOW for $10 each at retailers including Meijer, CVS, Duane Reade, H-E-B, Kroger, and ShopKo.  Top Coat Plus will be sold alongside the kits for $7.99. In Canada, the kits will be available for$12.50 each and Top Coat Plus for $10.99 at Loblaw, Jean Coutu, Rexall, London Drugs, and Shoppers Drug Mart.  

For more information, visit nicolebyopi.com. Follow Nicole by OPI on witter @NicoleByOPI and become a Facebook fan!

*Product sent by by PR for review.

Dance Legend Thermo Trio No. 1

Today I am super excited to share with you a polish all the way from RUSSIA!  

Dance Legend Thermo Trio "No.1" is a thermal polish, so it changes color from hot to cold, but this one is even better than the average Thermal Polish. Not only does it change from 1 color to the next, it changes into 3 different colors, depending if your hands are hot, warm or cold! WOO HOO!!!!

First,  let me tell you that it is amazing, and thankfully it is available from several different US distributors:

The company directly Dance Legend
US distributor Ninja Polish
US distributor Llarowe
Facebook US distributor Color4Nails

Okay now for the pics...

This is how it is normally on my hands.  They are hot/warm here. I applied 2 coats of the DL to my nails, and for the accent nail I applied 2 coats of OPI "Alpine Snow", and did a drip decision (using my dotting tool) on top using the DL. Followed by 2 coats of top coat.

Then I decided to dip them into ice water for a couple seconds...

Yep, isn't that amazing!!! I love these pics because you can see the 3 colors all at once! When hot is is a pale blue/purple...then  when warmer it is a warmer purple, almost pink, and then when it is cold, it is a dark/deep purple.

My nails have a funny shape in these pics, because the water is dripping off of the ends. I love the color change on the accent nails the most.  

Now, while I wore this manicure, my nails only changed when...

I washed my hands in cold water
I grabbed ice out of the fridge
I applied hand sanitizer
My hands were cold (which is rare for me)...that's why the color change did not last too long :(

Of course, if you "run colder", you will have a more dramatic change. Also, if your nails are longer, then the tips have a chance of remaining darker then the rest of the nail closer to your skin :)

Overall this polish was fun to wear, and I wore this manicure for 5 days.  I only had a small chip on my right thumb (as usual), and the polish was easy to apply, and wore very well. Nice and durable!

I'll share pics of the other bottle I own, Dance Legend Thermo Trio No. 3, in the coming weeks.

Keep It Sweet!

Yellow Ombre Manicure

Happy Yellow day...no actually it is National Hot Dog Day today, and what's the best condiment on top of a hot dog?...MUSTARD! Well, at least that's what I like on it :)

So in honor of this day, I give you a yellow ombre manicure!

Thumb to Pinkie:

Ilamasqua "Scorch"
China Glaze "Lemon Fizz"
China Glaze "Happy Go Lucky"
Barielle "Lemon Drops"
Essence "Sundancer"

I tried to find a super light yellow creme in my stash that would have worked instead of the white thumb, but.... no dice! I thought Sally Hansen "Yellow Kitty" would work, but it was not light enough.

Here are all of my yellow creme colors, that I swatched to find the right shades...

As is typical of most yellow polishes, these required 3 coats to be perfectly opaque, with no bald spots!

Happy National Hot Dog Day!

Keep it Sweet!...your life...not the hot dog, LOL! :)

Zoya: Stunning Collection for Summer 2013

Yep, this past weekend was gloomy and I could not get some of my much needed swatching done, so today's post will be only half of Zoya 2013 Summer releases called "Stunning".

Zoya Stunning Collection for Summer 2013.

Zoya "Darcy"
3 coats, no top coat
sunny yellow cream

This was smooth and bright and semi-easy to apply. But I did see some bald spots after 2 coats, so I applied 3 to be on the safe side.  This is by far the best yellow I have ever applied to my nails. It's a keeper!

Zoya "Thandie"
2 coats, no top coat
citrus orange cream

This is a dusty orange cream applied perfectly.  This colors is not an "In Your Face" kind of orange cream, it's dusty and prominent, and has a slight shimmer that is hard to see on the nail.  I like it.

Here is a bottle shot showing the shimmer, which does not show up on the nail.

Zoya "Micky"
2 coats, no top coat
amazing coral cream

They call this a coral cream, but I disagree. It's pink! A pretty pink, but definitely pink.  I guess we can call t "coral pink", but ...nope...it's PINK!  This was a bit thick and applied a bit unevenly. This too has a slight shimmer to it, but it is not easily seen on the nail.

Zoya "Yana"
2 coats, no top coat
rubine red cream

"Rubine Red", I'm not going to lie, I had to look up this color, Basically it is a raspberry cream. It's pretty, applied smoothly and has a subtle shimmer which I really like in this color.

Zoya "Rocky"
2 coats, no top coat
serene blue cream

Woo Hoo for the blue! No shimmer, just awesome cool blue creme. No issues in application, smooth and easy.

Zoya "Josie"
2 coats, no top coat
grassy green creme

East green creme. A perfect grass green, subtle, and not too bright. Smooth and easy to apply.

Overall this collection comes off as "simple and repetitive", but they are perfect! Some of the colors are ones we have sen before, but others are just different enough to justify owning them.  My favorites are "Josie", "Thandie" and "Darcy" are my favorites!

This collection is available at Zoya.com for $8 a bottle.

*Product provided by PR for review