OPI Miss Universe Swimsuit... Nailed It!

I was originally going to post my swatch of this with the other two Miss Universe polishes that I bought (Crown Me Already & It's My Year), but after swatching all those sparkly purpley pinks, I decided that this one deserved a post of its own. Swimsuit... Nailed It! is seriously and most probably my favorite blue polish of all time (most certainly of this past year). It is the most perfect shade of vibrant, shimmery, true blue foil. I love it, and even though I love Crown Me Already!, I must brainwash you into agreeing with me in that this is the gem of the collection.

Two coats, flawless application, long wear, ohmygod beautiful.... and as the polish and Andy Bernard like to proclaim, OPI seriously nailed it here. (I'm just, as I type this, getting the double entendre of "nailed it." Nail polish. Doh.)

The best and worst thing about these photographs is that they're a bit washed out (not to mention that my camera hates this type of foily shimmer). So in real life, this is even more deep and vibrant and amazing. Buy it. Buy it now! (This was in no way endorsed by OPI, I swear!). So that's my love letter to Swimsuit... Nailed It! Was there any polish you loved this much this year? Do tell.

The Case of the Sparkly Purpley Pinks: OPI It's My Year, OPI Rally Pretty Pink & Zoya Faye, A Comparitive Study

Last week, I posted about OPI Crown Me Already from their recent Miss Universe collection. That polish was amazing, I couldn't get over it. During my little blogging hiatus, I also wore the other two polishes that I picked up from this collection: It's My Year and Swimsuit... Nailed It! So I re-swatched them for you all (so no nice, cleaned up manicure shots, sorry guys!) and included a comparison swatch for It's My Year, as a few polishes looking quite like this one have appeared on the market recently. (We'll return to Swimsuit... Nailed It tomorrow, because it deserves a post of its own.)

We'll start with It's My Year. I apologize in advance for the way this type of shimmer makes my camera freak out. It's like it can't properly focus on it because it's so blindingly awesome! This swatch is 2 coats, which looked opaque until the flash. In practice, I recommend 3 coats for this color.

You may find yourself thinking that this looks a lot like another recently released OPI polish: Rally Pretty Pink, which came out in one of the Serena Williams sets with Red Shatter.

Here's Rally Pretty Pink (3 coats):

Are they dupes? Nope! In the bottle they look much closer than on the nail. RPP is much, much warmer, more of a mauve than a pink, and the gold shimmer is much, much more apparent. Much, much. Haha. So, at this point, you're probably asking yourself what they look like side by side. Here you go:

That's IMY, RPP, IMY, RPP, from left to right. See what I mean? And now, of course, you're thinking that both of these polishes look a lot like another little pretty (which actually came out first) called Zoya Faye. Which I also happen to have (I have a problem... as my husband would say, "It's some kind of itis.")

From left: Zoya Faye (3 coats), OPI RPP (3 coats), OPI IMY (2 coats).

Obviously, as you can see, Faye and RPP are the closest of the three polishes. They share a softer quality, and a rosier, mauve shade. Equally high on the gold shimmer quotient. IMY is more straight-up purple, though it's still red-leaning. Between Faye and RPP, I'd say there are subtle differences. Faye is...  slightly, ever so slightly, more subtle than RPP. I can't explain it, it's just softer. You most definitely don't need both.

Final summation: all three of these polishes are beautiful. You most definitely do not need all three. I prefer the OPI formula, so between Faye and RPP, it's RPP all the way for me. Faye is great though, so if you have it, rest easy. If I had to pick one of the three, however, the winner here is It's My Year. It captures the vibe of all three polishes, but I prefer the more vibrant purple base. If you're really into polish, you may be able to justify owning both IMY and RPP, but honestly, even that's overkill. It's My Year all the way!

Hope this helps someone out there! 

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 :-)

OPI Shrek Swatches, Wet 'N Wild Summer Swatches, Haul & More!

Howdy guys! I have been neglecting things around here this past week and I regret it because thanks to Brooke over at Getcha Nails Did and her fabulous New Blogs On The Block feature, we have a few more followers! Woo! I really want to have a giveaway because I hit a pretty VTHF (drugstore) dusty motherload a couple weeks ago. Not at the Dollar Tree even, someplace totally random, and something harder to find than what's been showing at at Dollar Tree recently. Not that I'm bribing people to follow but...... I'd like to get a few more before I attempt anything like that..... ;-) More to come on that later.

This is a lengthy post, so brace yourselves! I went out today to hit a few haunts in my lovely hometown of Albany, NY. This meant I went to the mall, where we have a beauty supply that occasionally publishes 30% off three items or more coupons. They have a good selection of Essie, some Orly, China Glaze, all Color Clubs (core & LE), CND, etc, etc, as well as a full range of OPI, and they get the new collections. Enter Shrek. A collection of cremes, devoid of pink or red, including a few real bizarre ones. I only hauled a few, and they came to about $16 after my coupon, yes, for all three.

L to R: Fiercely Fiona, Who The Shrek Are You?, Ogre-The-Top Blue

OPI, you are being such a bitch lately, so I'd better get used to paying retail for you, because your creme formula is one of my favorites. It wears like iron. I didn't get Funkey Dunkey even though I wanted it badly, but I have China Glaze Grape Pop so I made myself say no (BTW I would've had to buy this one separately for retail at Trade Secret anyway, because the beauty supply was out). And the two pastels were too dupey of everything else coming out lately. I'm weak though, so I may go back for Funkey Dunkey yet. Dunkey??? Anywho, these look awesomely pigmented and weird... two things I love in a creme.

Here's some very dirty swatches (can you see why I don't do this often??)

L to R: Who The Shrek Are You?, Fiercely Fiona, Ogre-The-Top Blue & Wet 'N Wild Blueberry Fizz for comparison (see below).

Then I hit up a Rite Aid and they had the new Wet 'N Wild Wild Shines, were are ridiculously cheap at 99 cents, so I bought the 4 that appealed to me.

L to R: Berry Jubilee, Blueberry Fizz, Candy Apple Twist, Mint Fusion.

I'm crazy for bright cremes lately, though Mint Fusion has a bit of shimmer to it. These look bangin' for the price, so awesomely gorgeous. They're all kinda jelly-ish, too. But not the kind that would require 4 or more coats.

Bad swatches:

L to R: Berry Jubilee, Blueberry Fizz, Candy Apple Twist, Mint Fusion.

I also caved and bought Claire's Magic because it was $2 and someday I will want it like I wanted Yel and have to resort to begging and pleading for it.

No swatch of this one because I got tired and it's old news anyway.

Update: So, a few posts ago I mentioned that Bundle Monster dropped the ball on my 21 plate order. It's OK, they're probably getting a shitload of orders lately and not entirely prepared. As you all know and probably agree, it's about how the situation is handled afterward. I tried calling them with the number listed on Amazon. I didn't reach anyone, so I emailed. I received a response within an hour or two, stating that they'd send out the missing plates. I have to be honest: I wondered if I'd ever see them. Not that I didn't trust them, but they're a fairly new guy on the market, and have been getting a lot of orders lately. Who cares about some girl who was missing 2 plates? But they did!!! I got them today, less than a week later, the exact two I was missing!!!! I even ended up with a mystery plate. With my original order, it was missing BM05 and BM21, but there was another plate thrown in: B72. Not BM 72, just B72. It looks like this:

So I have this weird little plate that I'm not even sure where it came from. Anybody know if it's part of a different set? The point of this was just to reassure that Bundle Monster CS is, in fact, very good. Don't hesitate to contact them if you have any trouble.

Also: If you're looking for storage solutions for your Konad or Bundle Monster plates, check THIS out. It's my method (though not my idea), and I think it works super well!

OH, and incase you are not aware (though I'm not sure how you couldn't be), Zoya is having a promo with the code "LIPPY", which is officially for 3 of their Hot Lips Lipgloss, free. But, it shows up as an $18 discount and you can use it on polish & remover! I love Remove + but I don't buy it anymore because it's too expensive and I find Onyx (purple) to work just as well. If Remove + is your only poison, then it's a GREAT deal. I ordered 3 Zoyas I felt I was missing: Astra, Robyn & Sienna. It ends May 12th, so hurry!

OK, phew, back to NOTD's tomorrow, friends. I've got a few stocked up. Thanks for reading!

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!