Essie Playa del Platinum

Sorry if things are boring around here lately, folks, but I have been busy-busy and job interviewing, so nudes it is! Today, I have for you yet another: Essie Playa del Platinum. It was a recent acquisition, and I'm glad I rounded out last year's resort collection. This is a strange and amazing color. It's very nude, but also kinda putty like. It's got a definite green and/or yellow-ness to it, especially in the bottle. Oh the nail though, it transforms into a lovely neutral shade, that is simultaneously flattering, office-appropriate, and due to it's drab nature, kinda subversive.

I think this is two coats, and it was lovely enough that I wore it for a few days, even after my interview:

And in this job climate, I actually did something bonkers: I turned down a job recently. Ugh. It was something I thought I wanted, but the starting pay was too low (we're talking $10 here, and I've got a MA), the commute was 40 minutes (which for 10 bucks is insane), and they wanted me to say belittling things to their customers who missed appointments on the phone. This was reception in a chiropractic office, by the way. It's about half of what I'd like to make and that I think I'm worth, so I turned it down. I'd rather wait tables in our neighborhood (and would probably make more money doing so.... I like restaurant work, and did it for 8 years on and off during high school, college and grad school) than put myself in the position of something I'd hate. On the bright side: I'm waiting to hear back from the job I would *love,* and since both interviews went well, I'm hopeful. They said this week, either way, they would let me know. I love companies who let you know either way, because there is nothing more degrading than just being brushed off and ignored.

Digression! So Playa del Platinum. I really want this job, so let's hope it brought me a little luck :)

Essie Splash of Grenadine

This color came out last summer with Turquoise & Caicos, Lapis of Luxury and Playa del Platinum. These are four great colors, I don't regret a single one. This one was the last of the set, which I acquired recently. When it arrived in the mail, I made a face. Has this color always been so.... pink? I guess I had it in my head that it was deeper and closer to magenta. This is a straight up lavender pink color. It's quite pretty, but not as I remembered. Hope it's not a dud bottle.

It's a nice polish though, with that weird almost jelly (but not quite) texture that some creme Essies have. This is 3 coats.

What's funny about this is that the color almost (but not quite) makes me look... tan. I am not tan at all, so this is kind of amusing to me. I'm not sure about this one, it's definitely my least favorite of the set, but I think that's because I'm preternaturally afraid of pink. Any thoughts? 

China Glaze White Cap over Essie Marshmallow

A couple posts back I mentioned that I had recently decided I needed a couple polishes from China Glaze Anchor's Away, a collection I had passed on (with the exception of Ahoy!) more times than I can count since it debuted. One of the polishes I decided I needed was White Cap, and here it is.

White Cap is pretty ridiculous, it's this softspun white with crazy golden shimmer that is ever so slightly opalescent. You could probably make it opaque with numerous coats but instead I wore it over my favorite white, Essie Marshmallow. For the record, Sally Hansen Hidden Treasure over Essie Marshmallow is one of my favorite manicures of all time. It's like having opals on your nails. Marshmallow is a jelly white, and its formula is kinda bitchy, but I love it anyway. It's the perfect blue toned squishy white.

This is 3 coats Marshmallow, 1 coat White Cap.

I wore it to an interview, and kept it on. So pretty. I may even try it over other colors. I don't know if I've ever publicly proclaimed this on my blog, but I kinda hate layering. I'm not very original about it, I often pass up polishes if they necessitate layering. This may stop I guess, because I find myself gravitating towards them again and again lately.

OPI Turquoise Shatter over OPI Guy Meets Gal-veston

Both of these polishes are kinda old news by now. After trying crackle/shatter polishes from Cover Girl, IsaDora, China Glaze, La Rosa, etc etc, I think I like OPI's the best. The shimmers are a bit difficult, they need to be thinned and are a bit finicky about how wet/dry the polish underneath needs to be. The creme/jelly ones: Black, Navy, Red, White, all seem to work pretty well. But keep thinner on hand, it really is your friend as these little brats get chunky in a hurry. Similarly, the OPI Texas collection came out quite a while ago, and originally, I bought nothing. And then... a bug bit. I ended up with three of the "sorbets": Guy Meets Gal-veston, Houston We Have a Purple, and Too Hot Pink to Hold 'Em. I also bought It's Totally Fort-worth It, but I hate it. So pretty in the bottle, but awful on the nail. The sorbets, however, are wicked nice. Great formula and super shiny.

I wasn't really sure what to pair with Turquoise Shatter, which is a beautiful, glowy, shimmery turquoise. I first thought gold, but then decided to try it with Guy Meets Gal-veston, a juicy coral, underneath. The result is kinda tropical, and I love it. I think a chartreuse would also look cool under it. Neon yellow too.

3 coats of GMG, and Turquoise on top:

I'm basically in love with this, I'm wearing it for the long weekend here (a civic holiday, yay Canada!). Spending time with the in-laws and nephews. Enjoy your weekend!

The return & 16 manicures!

Hello readers, if there are any of you still out there!

I disappeared for a few months here, and with good reason: I was writing my Master's thesis. I thought I might be able to keep up with my blogging, but with two jobs and various life-craziness-health-related things going on, it just wasn't possible. But: on Friday, I turned in my thesis, and now I'm trying to remember how to resume a normal life! I just turned 25 in October, and finishing my Master's degree is a big deal for me. I finished my Bachelor's in 3 years (I was already a year ahead in high school, too), and after that I sort of lost my way. I turned down a full scholarship to do grad work at Emory University (after driving all the way down there with my stuff, no less). I took some time off and went back to the University where I got my Bachelor's. I did 3 semesters of grad coursework and then... never wrote my thesis. The university gave me a lot of trouble, they kept "forgetting" to notify me about course sign up and advisement.... and I inadvertently took a (calender) year off. This made it harder to get the project going, as to do your thesis it's good to have a current relationship with a professor, so they can serve as your advisor. I seriously considered abandoning my grad work. I was 23, burnt out on school, and feeling drunk on freedom. But... in the end, I opted to go back and finish, and I'm so glad that I did. It was a huge accomplishment, and I graduate on December 5th (finally!). I've considered going back to do Ph.d work, but that will be for another time in my life, I think. My Master's is in English, my focus being American literature, specifically Nathaniel Hawthorne.

Over the months, I did manage to take a few pictures... My nails have been of varying length over this time, tending towards the nubbin side of things... they're still kind of finicky. I hauled a lot too: Burlesque, NARS vintage, RBL sale, ChG holiday, and lots of Old OPI's that I've been acquiring... But anyway... what I have to show you isn't representative of everything, to say the least, but it's something.

Random spam for the last few months:

OPI Wing It!

Barielle June Bug (wore this for 4th of July... that's how old this is!!)

OPI Lucerne-tainly Look Marvelous

Sephora OPI Midnight Mambo

China Glaze Foxy

OPI Diva of Geneva

China Glaze Midnight Mission

China Glaze GR8

Streetwear FX Flash (green) (awful pic, sorry... hard to capture)

Borghese Nero Magico (seriously gorgeous... underrated)

MAC Bad Fairy

OPI Show Bring on the Bling

NARS Midnight Express (I think this was day 2 or 3, looking a bit worn)

Color Club Pucci-licious

Orly Galaxy Girl

My Current Nails: China Glaze Zombie Zest (a bit late, I missed Halloween!)

The varying lengths are kind of amusing. Hopefully I can get back into the swing of things here! Not sure I'm up to posting every day or anything, but I'd like to keep it up :-)

Thanks for looking!!

Maybelline Banana Puddin' & Juicy Tomato Swatches

So, for those of you who have entered the giveaway we're having HERE (still plenty of time to enter), here are some swatches of the featured colors:

Banana Puddin'

Let me just say this: I think this is the prettiest soft yellow out there. It's not as stark as American Apparel Butter or as yellow as China Glaze Lemon Fizz, I think it's the perfect balance of yellow and white. Also, the formula's good, but a tad sheer. Easily buildable though, this was three coats.

Juicy Tomato

This is a classic orange red (sorry it's so messy!). It really lives up to its name. It's a jelly, but a bit on the sheer side. It is buildable, but not like Banana Puddin'. For those of you that are into this, this color is phenomenal. Great formula, gorgeous shine and color. I did three coats for this swatch, so you can see how it builds.

Cropping a boatload of photos as we speak, lots to come :-)

Zoya Swatches Part 2

OK, here's my second batch of Zoya swatches! I just want to profess my love for this brand. I love their freebies and have excellent luck with their customer service. I love their color and finish selection and the quality of their products. I love the bottle, brush, and generally the formula. I love that they're "green." Yay Zoya! Enough of my babbling, onto the swatches :-)

Here's a few links back to polishes I've already featured:

Zoya Verushcka

Zoya Nova

Zoya Rea

And the rest....

Dominique. One of my favorite reds, very opaque, very bright. More orange toned than blue, but not overly so. 2 coats.

Deidra. Kind of a toned down version of Zara, but more taupe. Very cool. I never wore it before this swatch and I underestimated it. 2 coats.

Meadow. 2 coats. Like Zara also, but pink. 2 coats. Not my speed but a pretty polish.

Avril. Very opaque pink based neutral. 2 coats.

Buffy. Bought this just for the name (Huge Buffy the Vampire Slayer fan). Frosty beige shimmer, not that flattering on me, but perhaps so on darker skintones. 2 coats.

Demi. 2 coats. Pinked mauve creme. Nice formula and opaque.

Trixie. Silver foil, photographed terribly. Very blingy and pretty. 2 coats.

Emme. Awful light pink frost. OK formula, just awful looking on me. 2 coats.

Juicy. A neon red purple jelly. 3 coats.

Dakota. One of my favorite pedicure reds. Didn't realize how sheer it was until I put it on my nails. I can't remember if this is 2 or 3 coats. Very pretty blue based red.

Pippa. Yellow creme (not neon). Tricky formula. 2 coats.

Paz. Neon orange creme. Very sheer. This is 3 coats. Definitely needs something under it. Very bright.

America. A muted coral-red, very pretty. 2 coats, great opaque formula.

Goldie. A super shimmery (frosty?) gold, hate this shade of gold on me, but nice polish.

Harlow. Matte velvet. Pink shimmer, a bit purple too. Love matte velvet formula. 2 coats.

Dovima. Shimmery matte velvet black. More matte than this, it wasn't totally dry. 2 coats.

Loredana. Ultra shimmery matte velvet grey. 2 coats. Love this one.

Posh. ONE coat. Gorgeous matte velvet red shimmer. One coat. LOVE.

Dita. Gorgeous saturated fuchsia creme. 3 coats.

Katy. Pretty medium bright pink shimmer. 2 coats.

Also, on another note, if you're experiencing any difficulties viewing anything, let me know! I recently moved this blog from my old gmail account to its own gmail account, but I think I've got everything working. I'm excited for sparkly paints. to have its own identity though!

Thanks for looking!

Zoya Swatches Part 1

So, my friends, here is my first installment of my Zoya swatches. They were sorta quick 'n' dirty, meaning that I used only basecoat and however many coats of color it took to be opaque. No topcoat, no cleaup. I wrote a couple thoughts on each just to be helpful. Without further ado, here's the first batch!

Savita. Matte Velvet. 2 coats. Medium purple shimmer, kinda pinky duochrome in certain lights.

Ali. Neon pink creme. 2 coats.

Renee. Neon pink, leaning more coral. 3 coats.

Blair. Awesome velvety blackened red shimmer. More depth than pictured. 2 coats.

Sloane. Deep shimmery purple/wine color. 2 coats. Beautiful.

Envy. Deep green creme. Mine is very obviously green, some say it's very blackened. I disagree, but that's me. 2 coats. Gorgeous.

Sofia. Pinked purple. Maybe magenta? 2 coats, lovely.

Ginessa. Gross shimmery white with silver glitter. Pooled and looked lumpy. 3 coats.

Racquel. Warm red creme, 2 coats, great formula.

Sam. Deep blood red, so gorgeous, 3 coats, excellent formula. My most used Zoya.

Roxy. Medium fuchsia jelly with glitter. I only put on 2 coats but you need three. GORGEOUS.

Zara. Light lilac with intense gold shimmer, so pretty and understated. 2 coats.

Lael. Slightly darker than this, a straight up plum creme. Great formula. 2 coats.

Rihana. Medium pinked purple shimmer with a definite gold flash (can't see below though). 2 coats. Like Blair, much richer in person.

Jo. Medium periwinkle shimmer. 2 coats. First time I wore it I hated the formula, but while swatching it was nice! Hit or miss, I guess. Cool color.

Yasmeen. Definitely one of Zoya's stars, a deep shimmery purple with strong gold flash. 2 coats, deep, rich, velvety gorgeous (like Blair & Rihana, better in person). Love.

Tallulah. Wicked bright shimmery blue. Love this!! 2 coats. So happy and pretty.

Pinta. A blue toned plum creme (Lael leans more red). 2 coats, another gorgeous Zoya creme.

Richelle. A gold foil shimmer, mine had the WORST formula, similar to Ginessa. Lumpy and pool-y, I hated it! The color is so neat. 2 coats.

Midori. Shimmery spring green with strong gold shimmer, 2 coats. Very fun.

Phew!!

I've got another whole batch coming at you tomorrow! Thanks for looking :-)

ALSO!!! There is a wicked RBL giveaway happening here. GO ENTER for a chance to win all three new Surf Collection colors!