Color Club "Safari Garden" for Spring 2014

Here are some fun colors from Color Club that are perfect for Spring and Summer!

The names are cute too!

Color Club "Lion's Den"
3 coats, no top coat

Here it is again in indirect light.

This sheer formula packs a lot of punch...in three coats! This is a metallic shimmer that delivers flashes of gold, pink and copper. This is super pretty in person and would look great on summer tanned skin :)

Color Club "Nail-Robi"
2 coats, no top coat

 This polish is a smooth rich purple creme. It reminds me more of a fall color, but once it is paired with the other colors in the collection, it does have a "Spring Time" feel to it . It applied well in two coats, no issues...except for the camera :)

Color Club "Tribe and True"
2 coats, no top coat

 This is a bright moss green crelly (a cross between a creme and a jelly). It's smooth and bright, and covered well in two coats. I had no issues getting this to apply well to the nail and I actually like the color, BUT I can't see myself wearing it as a full manicure. I can only take this color in small doses. Maybe as nail art, or an accent finger on the pinky nail, LOL! Small doses!

Color Club "Look, Don't Tusk"
2 coats, no top coat

This is a bon white ivory creme. I say "bone shite" because bones are not perfectly white, but actually have a little ivory in them. I really like this color, and I prefer this to white polishes if you are going to do an all white manicure. This color is less harsh than white and looks great on the hands, plus it applied perfectly in two coats.

Color Club "In De-Nile"
2 coats, no top coat

This light baby blue creme screams, SPRING! I love it, it's perfect and applied well in two coats!

Color Club "Safari Sunset"
2 coats, no top coat

This is a very pretty peach based polish with added golden shimmer. The shimmer is very subtle which makes this polish very wearable. It was easy to apply in two coats, and would be perfect for a summer wedding or any event when you want to look feminine and pretty.

My favorites are "Nail-Robi", "Look, Don't Tusk" and "In De-Nile". Do you see any that you HAVE to have?

Keep It Sweet!

*Products sent by PR for review. 

Sally Hansen "Pacific Blue"

Yes, Sally Hansen's "Pacific Blue" was a beautiful color.
Yes, Sally Hansen changed  the color recently.
Yes, the "new" version is still blue,

BUT..

No, the new color is not the same
No, the new color does not have the same formula and YES, the new color sucks, so the old formula and color are worth hunting for!

Here are some bottle shots of the old and new color, side by side. The old formula is on the left, new formula is on the right. Also, my old bottle (from my stash) has a different number. My old bottle has "33" as the color number, but the two bottles I found in the store are numbered "420"...this is so strange! :)

I found a couple other blog post where their bottles were also numbered "33", HERE and HERE!

WEIRD!

It's crazy how different the new color is, once compared to the old.  They literally are two different colors!

Nope, I did not buy the new formula, because it's crappy, it sucks and I refuse to support the purchase of a color that is CRAP! #everypennymatters

So here is the old, gorgeous formula. :)

Sally Hansen
"Pacific Blue"
2 coats with top coat

 Gorgeous muted soft blue creme! I purchased a back up bottle recently, but these swatches are with my old bottle which is probably over 5 years old.

Why did they make the big change? Who knows the real reason. Sally Hansen PR has responded that they were making room for more colors, and thy are just trying to keep the brand current and "progressive".

Honestly, we will never know the real answer, all we know is that the old color is gone.  So if you loved it, cherish it, and start searching for a back-up bottle.

You can google this color and you will find several bloggers and post about the whole issue, and the uproar it caused.

Even though it IS a blue, I wasn't "gah-gah" for this color. Since I have so many "blues", and so many polishes, it's hard for me to grow attached to a blue polish, like I used to.

But I will say, that I strongly dislike it when a company takes a beloved color and "mucks it up"...That just sucks!

OPI did it with "My Private Jet", more recently China Glaze did it with "Flip Flop Fantasy", and now Sally did it with "Pacific Blue", and I heard "Mellow Yellow" too... like we wouldn't notice..Pfftt....

Keep It Sweet!

Dare to Wear "Pearl Rose"

Happy Monday!

I was browsing at my local Beauty Supply Store recently, and I ran across a pretty red polish by "Dare to Wear".  I don't browse often (I'm a shopping list kind of gal) but that day, I decided to check out the displays and there was a new display for "Dare to Wear" called "Mermaid Treasures".

I was surprised because the name of the collection grabbed my eye, but the colors did not :(

However, the red was worth grabbing.

Dare to Wear
"Pearl Rose"
3 coats with top coat

This is a pink based red shimmer with added gold micro flecks. The micro-flecks shimmer gold and pink, so pretty!  It's the perfect red for summer without being too deep like most reds for Fall. I wanted to make sure I got the full richness of the red, so I applied three coat even thought it was fully opaque in two coats.

Here are some pics in indirect lighting, so you can see the gold flecks.

Yep, this polish did not disappoint. As in most D2W polishes, it applied well, smooth and easy and definitely worth every little penny. I say "little" because this beauty only costs $3 or $3.25, I can never remember the exact price. LOL :) I just know it's cheap!

Keep It Sweet!

Porcelain Nails

Hello, the official day of Summer begins June 21st...are you ready? I'm not, LOL!

Summer is a very busy time for me, this is the time of year I grow SUPER envious of my friends who are teachers and educators. If they choose, they get the summer off, and I DO NOT! Grrrrr :(
Back to my manicure. With this manicure, I wanted a porcelain white manicure, but I did not want all white nails.  So I used...

My ever faithful OPI "Alpine Snow" and for a little "kick" Pretty Serious "BSOD" ...which stands for "Blue Screen of Death". LOL!  Yep, you know the screen you get when your computer goes to CRAP...yep, that's the one!

I topped both with matte top coat by Butter London, and I was done!

OPI "Alpine Snow" applied well in two coats and with the matte top coat is remind me of a perfect porcelain bowl.

"BSOD" was a breeze, too! Two coats of each color, one coat of fast dry top coat and then one coat of matte top coat. Wallah!

Pretty Serious "BSOD" is an amazing blue glitter, it dries to a smooth high shine and twinkles indoors and under the sun, gorgeous! It even sparkles with a matte top coat...nothing is stopping this blue glitter from shining!

I loved this manicure, and with all the top coats and layers, it lasted a full 5 days, no chips! :)

Keep It Sweet!

Skater Ramp Manicure!

It's that time of year again, SUMMER or as I like to call it "The time when my nephew sends me repeat iMessages asking for a ride to the skate park", LOL!

Yep, I know he will ask me at least a couple of times, and this summer I may even say "yes", LOL!

So this manicure is for him!

I used two new colors to the Nicole by OPI collection, "Teal Me Something New" and "This Blue Is So You!".

I applied two coats of each color to the corresponding nail, and then I topped the opposite colors on the center fingers, using a swiping motion with the brush. No stickers, tape or stencils.

Because N.O.P.I's formula is not the most opaque in one coat, it took several swipes and coats to get the top color to cover the nail in the ramp design.

"Teal Me Something New" is a an amazing teal green creme. GORGEOUS and covers well in two coats, however this one stained my nail beds HORRIBLY!  I actually had an idea that this would stain, so I applied two coats of base coat, but it still stained some of the edges of my nail bed. :(

"This Blue Is So You!" is a muted dark blue creme... not black and not navy, just dark blue. Great in two coats for a regular manicure, but not thick enough or opaque enough for layering nail art.

The teal creme covered amazingly well. The dark blue did not cover as well, and left a couple bald spots on the ramp design. :( No matter, I think I'll replicate this for an upcoming manicure for an event, using another brand. :)

Now that I am looking at this design, it also reminds me of the old Atari symbol.  You can grab these colors and others by Nicole by OPI, at your local drugstore or Target  :)

Keep It Sweet!

*Product sent by PR for review.