Essence Modern Romance

Hi everyone! I have another Essence Colour & Go polish to share with you today. Modern Romance is a pale, pastel peach with pink shimmers.

The pink shimmer that is so pretty in the bottle unfortunately doesn't show up much once on the nails. The formula for this is somewhat runny and streaky, making application a little difficult. The thin, runny consistency has a tendency to pool around the edges of the paddle brush, no matter how many times you wipe along the neck of the bottle. This resulted in coverage that was thin in the middle and thick along the edges with every swipe of the brush. I did two coats for the swatches, and you can still see some bald spots, so it can definitely benefit from a third coat.

You can find Modern Romance at Ulta, HEB, and Fred Meyer for $1.99 for 0.27 fl oz.

** This post contains a product that was provided to me by the company for honest consideration. How I obtain the products does not influence my opinion. For more info, please view my Disclosure Policy.

Essence Ultimate Pink

Hiiiii lovely readers! I'm in a particularly great mood today because work has given us two extra days off for the weekend, which in conjunction with the holiday on Monday, makes for a five-day weekend for me. Let the relaxation begin! :-)

Essence recently revamped their Colour & Go line with 18 new colors that come with new bottle and brush designs. I received a few colors to try out, so I will be sharing them with you. Today I'll start with Ultimate Pink, a girly, medium fuchsia pink with a creme finish.

While Ultimate Pink isn't a particularly original color, this sort of bright and summery pink is definitely a crowd favorite. The formula is a little on the thin side, and it spreads out easily into even coats. It is not runny and there is no pooling, but I did notice some bubbles, probably due to the thinner consistency of the formula. 

Here's how the new bottle and brush stack up against the old one. 

You can see that the new bottle is bigger—0.27 fl oz versus 0.16 fl oz, and the new price reflects that—$1.99 versus 99 cents. The new brush head is wider than before and is rounded like a paddle. While I love the bigger width, I'm not a huge fan of the paddle shape. The rounded corners make it hard to get clean, defined corners on the cuticle-side of the nail. I do like that the new bottle is easy to open and close, and you even get the feedback of a little click once the bottle is tightly closed.

You can find Ultimate Pink at Ulta, HEB, and Fred Meyer for $1.99 for 0.27 fl oz.

** This post contains a product that was provided to me by the company for honest consideration. How I obtain the products does not influence my opinion. For more info, please view my Disclosure Policy.

NARS Andy Warhol Collection Nail Polishes for Holiday 2012 Preview

This landed in my inbox recently, and I wanted to pass it along to you guys. NARS is paying homage to Andy Warhol with their holiday collection for 2012. It is quite a large collection, and I am sharing with you the nail polish portion of the collection below. (All info and images are courtesy of NARS.)

Andy Warhol’s world has been inspiring François Nars for years. Now NARS introduces a limited edition collection in the spirit of Andy Warhol. From the formulas and shades to the packaging and names, every element of the collection evokes François Nars’ take on the cool, image-rich, character-laden world of Warhol.

Everybody is a Superstar. At least for 15 minutes.

NARS Andy Warhol Color Collection Nail Polish

BACK ROOM Black

NEW YORK DOLLS Purple

SUPERSTAR Teal

15 MINUTES Lemon Yellow

TV PARTY Vivid orange

Retail: $18. Available October 1 at Sephora and sephora.com

BEAUTIFUL DARLING GIFT SET

Candy was the ultimate blonde bombshell. She was Andy’s greatest actress, even though she was a man. She said “You must always be yourself no matter what the price. It is the highest form of morality.” She thought beauty was a duty and worked harder at it than anyone.

Accompanied by a silver deluxe cosmetics bag, the gift set includes:

CANDY DARLING NAIL POLISH Electric Pink

FEMME FATALE DUO EYESHADOW Sheer white shimmer and fresh mint green

WOMAN IN REVOLT LARGER THAN LIFE LIP GLOSS Hot pink

Retail: $49. Available November 1 at narscosmetics.com

PHOTO BOOTH GIFT SET

Andy believed in a trademark look. His silver hair made him look ironically young. His shades added mystery. He looked like he had a secret, even if he didn’t. He was shy of strangers but he liked being famous. He said it gave him an aura.

The gift set includes:
SILVER FACTORY Aluminum
CHELSEA GIRLS Innocent, flesh-toned beige
SOUP CAN Perfect red
BACK ROOM Black

Retail: $35. Available November 1 at narscosmetics.com


WALK ON THE WILD SIDE GIFT SET

In 1964 Andy painted flowers because he wanted to make something pretty. Decades later they still look fresh, popping out of any background like a pretty face.

The gift set includes:

SILVER FACTORY ILLUMINATOR Aluminum

IT NAIL POLISH Black violet

ORGASM LARGER THAN LIFE LIP GLOSS Peachy pink with golden shimmer

Retail: $39. Available October 1 at Sephora and sephora.com

What do you guys think of this collection? Will you be picking any of the items up? For me, I am looking forward to Superstar, TV Party, and Soup Can, though I will probably wait until I see swatches before I make my final decision. :-)

OPI Deutsch You Want Me Baby

Today, we're wrapping up OPI's Germany Collection with my favorite color of the bunch. Deutsch You Want Me Baby is a rich, burnt, shimmery orange with a metallic finish.

This polish epitomizes the color of fall for me. It calls to mind Halloween and Thanksgiving, falling leaves, pumpkin carving, and apple cider. It's vibrant and deep, without being too dark. I love the bronzed and burnt tone of the orange that adds a level of originality and interest. Under certain natural lighting, I can even see a hint of pink in its orange shimmers.

Now that I have gotten through the whole collection, I have to say the ones I love the most are the vibrant jewel tones and vampy colors. Deutsch You Want Me Baby, Danke-Shiny Red, and German-icure by OPI are my top picks, but if I had to go with just one, Deutsch You Want Me Baby is my unequivocal choice. :-)

I would love to know what you think of this collection. What are the hits and misses for you? Will any of them be making it onto your wishlist?

You can find Deutsch You Want Me Baby at your local nail salons and beauty stores for $8.50 for 0.5 fl oz.

** This post contains a product that was provided to me by the company for honest consideration. How I obtain the products does not influence my opinion. For more info, please view my Disclosure Policy.

OPI Danke-Shiny Red

Today, I have another vibrant jewel color from OPI's Germany Collection to show you. Danke-Shiny Red is exactly what you would think from its name: a shimmering medium red with a metallic finish.

This red leans slightly on the cool side with pink hues in both its base and its shimmers. With this one, OPI continues its streak of excellent formulas for the collection. One coat is all I needed for opacity, though the result is a little pinker than what you'd see from the bottle, so I did two coats in order to match the deep, rich red of the bottle. I do admit I have a weakness for red jewel tones. As the weather turns colder for fall, this sexy, vibrant, glowing color is definitely one I'll be reaching for and pairing with soft sweaters and high-heeled boots. :-)

You can find Danke-Shiny Red at your local nail salons and beauty stores for $8.50 for 0.5 fl oz.

** This post contains a product that was provided to me by the company for honest consideration. How I obtain the products does not influence my opinion. For more info, please view my Disclosure Policy.

OPI German-icure by OPI

Today, I have the second dark vampy color from OPI's Germany Collection to show you. German-icure by OPI is a dark brown base with tons of red and gold shimmers.

In the shade, away from direct light

German-icure by OPI looks very close to Every Month Is Oktoberfest in the bottle, so let me try to explain the difference. German-icure has a dark reddish-brown base, whereas Oktoberfest has a purple base. German-icure's shimmers are predominantly red and gold, while Oktoberfest's are pink and purple. They actually look quite different once on the nails. If you are trying to decide between the two, go with Oktoberfest if you are looking for a cool-toned vampy color, and go with German-icure if you want a more warm-toned vampy color. 

German-icure's formula is a little thinner, so two coats is necessary for opaque coverage. For me, this turned out to be a surprise favorite from the collection. I didn't think I would like this dark color quite so much, but once on, it looks absolutely beautiful, and its warmth compliments my coloring. 

You can find German-icure by OPI at your local nail salons and beauty stores for $8.50 for 0.5 fl oz.

** This post contains a product that was provided to me by the company for honest consideration. How I obtain the products does not influence my opinion. For more info, please view my Disclosure Policy.

OPI Every Month Is Oktoberfest

Happy weekend, dear readers! Hope you are enjoying what is left of the summer. :-)

Today, I have one of the two dark vampy colors from OPI's Germany Collection to show you. Every Month Is Oktoberfest has a dark purple base and loads of red and purple shimmers.

This base of this polish is a deep, blue-leaning purple, but that probably isn't what interests you about this polish. What really elevates it into a fascinating polish is its multi-colored shimmers. I can see predominantly red, pink, and purple, as well as some gold shimmers around the edges. The shimmers all come out when the light hits it, and give off this glowy, lit-from-within look, especially coming from such a dark base. This is another great formula. First coat is almost opaque, but you'll need that second coat to reach the dark, vampy depth of color that matches the bottle.

You can find Every Month Is Oktoberfest at your local nail salons and beauty stores for $8.50 for 0.5 fl oz.

** This post contains a product that was provided to me by the company for honest consideration. How I obtain the products does not influence my opinion. For more info, please view my Disclosure Policy.

OPI Suzi & the 7 Düsseldorfs

Today, I have another jewel color from OPI's Germany Collection to show you. Suzi & the 7 Düsseldorfs is a dark royal purple with lots of shimmers in a metallic finish.

This is a pretty evenly balanced purple, leaning just a little more red than blue. The purple, blue, and pink shimmers in it add a lot of depth to this color. The formula is a little streaky, so I ended up doing three coats to even everything out. We have gotten a few rich purple polishes for the fall, and this one is probably my favorite. Its red tint and pink shimmers help offset the blueness of the purple, which looks more flattering against my skin tone.

You can find  Suzi & the 7 Düsseldorfs at your local nail salons and beauty stores for $8.50 for 0.5 fl oz.

** This post contains a product that was provided to me by the company for honest consideration. How I obtain the products does not influence my opinion. For more info, please view my Disclosure Policy.

OPI Unfor-Greta-Bly Blue

Hi lovelies! It's Thursday, the week is winding down, and that means the weekend is almost here. I can't wait. This has been a stressful week for me. We had our annual performance review at work over the last few days. I am relieved that the outcome is I have a job for another year and don't have to worry about this again until next year. ;-)

Continuing with OPI's Germany Collection, we have now come to the jewel and vampy colors. Today I have Unfor-Greta-Bly Blue, a dark blue with shimmers and a metallic finish.

The shimmers in here are of a medium blue color, and serve to really brighten up this polish and add a lot of depth to the color. There is just a hint of gold in the blue shimmers, so that at times you will see some flashes of green if you are looking carefully. This one reminded me a lot of Zoya Song, so I dug that out for a quick side-by-side. As it turns out, Unfor-Greta-Bly Blue leans more green, is less intense in color, and does not have the chunky shimmers that Song has.

You can find Unfor-Greta-Bly Blue at your local nail salons and beauty stores for $8.50 for 0.5 fl oz.

** This post contains a product that was provided to me by the company for honest consideration. How I obtain the products does not influence my opinion. For more info, please view my Disclosure Policy.

OPI Schnapps Out Of It!

Continuing with OPI's Germany Collection, I have Schnapps Out Of It! for you today. This is a brownish red with small silver shimmers in a pearly finish.

This is a hard color to describe. OPI categorized it as mauve, but I don't see too much of that. Instead, I see an interesting shade of brownish red that makes me think of red clay or red bricks. The formula is a little thicker than the rest of the collection, but it is still easy to work with. What you see in the swatches is only one coat, which is all that is needed for opacity. This dries to a pearly, satiny finish, so you'll need top coat for a glossy shine.

You can find Schnapps Out Of It! at your local nail salons and beauty stores for $8.50 for 0.5 fl oz.

** This post contains a product that was provided to me by the company for honest consideration. How I obtain the products does not influence my opinion. For more info, please view my Disclosure Policy.