Chanel Rose Exuberant

I purchased this nail polish not too long ago ($39 AUD from Myer).  It's one I've been eyeing forevaahhh and the only reason why I never got it before is because I already have so many pinks. My current favourite pink shade is OPI's Kiss Me On My Tulips, but the formula for that is a bit streaky for my liking (see a review for that here).

Chanel Rose Exuberant is extremely similar to Kiss Me On My Tulips.  It is a vibrant cream and is great for a pop of colour.  However, Chanel's formula is sooooo much better.  It's smooth and streak free and in fact I would've gotten away with just one coat.  In the photos you'll see two coats, but seriously, one application is enough to yield an opaque and streak free finish.

This is Rose Exuberant in low lighting.  Still so pretty, yes?  I think that given the fact that one coat is enough (therefore more wears out of a bottle), $39 is not bad to pay for a polish that has an awesome formula and is a colour I really love and will wear over and over agian.  What do you think?

Cajun Shrimp (on my toes)!

If you can get past how ugly my feet are (hairy toes, anyone?) perhaps you will enjoy the Cajun Shrimp I put on it yesterday.  It is a cream based orangey-red nail polish by OPI that was included in The Best of the Best mini collection which came out eons ago (ok, maybe just over a year ago).

In natural lighting it looks like a very vibrant coral red.

In low lighting it looks orange!

This is not the kind of colour I usually go for but it has grown on me quite a bit.  I think it's perfect for summer as it's a cheerful, bright colour and compliments my skin tone fairly well.  My feet have been in nothing but thongs as of lately - you can see those horrible thong tan lines, can't you?  When wearing thongs, I always like to dress up my toes in a cute colour.  OPI Cajun Shrimp fits the bill :)

Kiss Me On My Tulips

This weekend is a low key one for me, so I decided to perk it up by wearing a super bright, fun colour on my nails.  Kiss Me On My Tulips is part of the Holland Collection by OPI, designed for spring/summer 2012.  I love pink nail polish, however this colour isn't all that unique.  It's a hot pink.  There are lots of similar pinks that you can find by O.P.I. and other brands.  I think that Chanel's Rose Exuberant is quite a good match and in fact, that's why I decided to get this one instead, to save a few dollars.

Perhaps I should have gotten the Chanel instead, because I find the formula of Kiss Me On My Tulips (which is a creme) to be a little streaky.  I had to apply three applications to get an even coverage.  It's not too bad, two coats would have been sufficient but I'm quite pedantic about little things like that.

The good thing about this colour is that is doesn't seem to chip as easily as some other colours by OPI. Being a creme probably has something to do with that.  Or perhaps it was because I applied three coats, which I rarely do. Hmmm?!

A day old, in artificial light.

A day old, in natural light.

Right after application, in natural light.

I really like the other colours in the Holland collection, so I'll probably get them at a later date. I love the look of Pedal Faster Suzi, but I have enough pinks as it is so I'm trying to venture out and discover other colours. Vampsterdam and Dutch Ya Just Love seem like good contenders!

My weekend is extremely low key, I haven't left the house at all yet but tomorrow is another day.  My nails will be flaunted then, although it's not hard to miss.  Especially in this drab weather!  Kiss Me On My Tulips is definitely a great colour to perk up your day.

Mecca Cosmetica - You Make My Heart Sing

This is just a post showcasing some very poorly swatched colours in the 6 set of mini nail polishes called "You Make My Heart Sing".  While Mecca Cosmetica really does make my heart sing, their set of mini polishes doesn't quite do it for me.  I'm not too big on the colours, but I do like that it sits very prettily on my vanity.  This was a christmas gift :)

Firstly, let's get into the general basics.  This set is available at Mecca Cosmetica stores or online (website here).  It costs $60 AUD for 6 x 9ml "classic glide on" nail polishes.  The colours are quite varied and ideal for someone who likes wearing nail polish but doesn't do much experimenting with colours.  So in other words, this set was ideal for me as I am a french manicure girl.  If I wear colour, it will almost always be red or pink and be on my toes.

Ironically, I decided to write this post because I was wearing the pinky-purple shade (Timandra) on my toes and thought it would be a good opportunity to put up some swatches.  Toe swatches are gross, but rest assured my photos are poor in quality so no harm will come to your mental health after seeing my horrific piggies.  Having said that, the colours you see are true to life.  So these swatches won't be completely useless!  I'm sorry about the poor quality of the swatches, though.  I am extremely lazy and halfway through painting my nails I got bored and wanted to do something else.  Such is life!

Anyway, while most of these so called "glide on" polishes did just that (glide on smoothly), I found that the lightest two shades of pink were quite gloppy and left a streaky finish, even after three applications.  But perhaps that was just my impatience at waiting for it to dry before putting on another coat?  All the other colours were very easy to apply and gave a streak free finish.  In fact, one coat would have been sufficient for the darker colours.

Two days old.  Two coats applied.

Freshly applied.   Perdita, Thaisa & Virgilia have two coats each.  Jessica and Rosaline have three coats each.

I love pink polish, but I am not too fond of the pink shades in this set. Timandra and Virgilia are the only two shades I like, all the others I don't think go well with my skin tone.  So I doubt that I will be getting much use out of this set.   The quality of the polishes itself are quite comparable to O.P.I. and have lasting staying power, so if there were shades I really liked I would most definitely be in love with this set.  It's just that the colours aren't my cup of tea.  I will continue to wear Virgilia and Timandra, but I think the rest are destined to remain decoration for my vanity.

Vodka & Caviar by O.P.I.

I have had this nail polish for two years, and its consistency has not changed at all!  It is still the same as when I first bought it.  Most of my nail polishes get thrown out around the two year mark because they get dry and clumpy, but this one is still going strong.  It's so easy to apply, and looks great against my skin tone (in my opinion, anyway!)  I believe that Vodka & Caviar came out in the Russian collection a few years back.  I don't think it's available anymore, but I haven't really done much research into it.  I just wanted to show off my shiny, pretty red nails that I wore on the weekend :)

Both photos are two coats of Vodka & Caviar with a top coat over it by O.P.I.  It could've done with a third coat for the colour to be deeper, but I was in a hurry and two coats was sufficient.  I had not cleaned up the nails yet, so excuse the sloppy job!

Chanel Peridot: Pretty!

Feast your eyes on this baby!  Peridot Le Vernis, a unique green/gold nail polish colour from the Chanel Fall 2011 Illusions d'Ombres collection (alongside Quartz and Graphite).  In Australia, you pretty much need to sell your first born to obtain this. $39 AUD is the most I've ever paid for polish!  Was it worth it?  Well...

I find that this nail varnish does not streak and even after one coat, it looks opaque.  In the photos I have on two coats, just to make sure that the application was even.  It was so easy to apply.  I always make mistakes with other polishes, but with this one, I did not make one mistake whatsoever.  Weird!  Or ingenuity on Chanel's part?

In my opinion, it is definitely worth the price tag.  You're not going to find a colour that comes as close to this gorgeous mermaid green that looks gold in certain angles.  You know how bright and shiny a green christmas beetle is? That's pretty much what Peridot reminds me of!  It's such a rich, glorious, intense shimmery green/yellow that can look gold at certain angles.  Amazing!

Sadly, it doesn't look very pretty on my hands.  It kind of matches my NC40 skin tone too much.  I put it on today and freaked out about how it looked.  Maybe it's just because I'm not used to solid colours on my fingers, as I pretty much always wear a french manicure?  Hmm.  Whatever it is, I'm sure I can overcome it because it really is so pretty.  Have a look for yourself...

Natural lighting

Sunlight

Lights on indoors

With camera flash

What do you think?  Unique and pretty?  Or just a waste of money?

OPI On The Same Paige

This is from the OPI BrightPair collection, and to be honest, I'm just not loving it. It says that it's an orange-red, but to me it just looks orange. Only in certain lighting does it appear the slightest bit red. I don't really wear bright nail polish so this orange colour is very... well, colourful for me, but it's good for summer. Adds a pop of colour to your outfit!

This is a good colour for toes. I wouldn't recommend it for your nails, unless you specifically need orange. Great to wear with sandals. Yes, I know. I have ugly toes. And yes, I know. I have hairs on my toes. So gross. Am I the only girl that plucks hairs from her toes? I don't even think I should be posting this! LOL. Oh well.

O.P.I Shorts Story (From the BrightPair Mini Collection)

Awhile ago I bought myself a cute 4 pack mini collection of O.P.I nail polishes in the Brights collection. Well, technically, just 3 colours and 1 clear. Yesterday I had a chance to try out one of the colours: Shorts Story which is a hot pink. My model is the gorgeous Aliya, who is 4 and is a family friend's daughter. She's wearing just one coat. She chose pink because it's her favourite colour.

The other colours that come in the collection is A Grape Fill (rich purple), Shorts Story (hot pink), On The Same Paige (orange-red) and the O.P.I RapiDry top coat.

I've been dying to try out the purple. I will be using it for the first time this coming weekend. I'm going to wear the purple on my nails and either the orange or the pink on my toe nails. Well, that's the plan anyway. Lately I haven't had much time to play with my nails. They keep breaking, so I have to cut them really short... so ugly! I've been neglecting my nails lately. Hopefully I get to dress them up a little for the weekend.

The Polished Contest

Recently I've been getting into nail polish and I have just discovered an awesome blog that's holding a contest! Sarah of The Polished is giving away 3 nail polishes as first prize, 2 nail polishes as second prize and 1 nail polish as third!

To find out more about this contest, click here.

Here's 2 colours I really want:

OPI Do You Lilac It?

OPI Koala Bear-y

O.P.I Russian Navy and Chip Skip

I've been trialling O.P.I's Chip Skip. Let me just start off by saying that I was skeptical at first. It's a product you apply to your nails before you put your base coat on, it dries in seconds and is clear. It claims to prevent chips, and it really does what it claims! Your polish won't chip for a week or more. I've been wearing my polish since Wednesday last week, it's been 8 days since and not a chip in sight. Usually I start getting chips in a day or two! So the product does work, and I would definately recommend it.

The colour I'm wearing is Russian Navy by O.P.I. I wanted to get a really dark, almost black colour and I found it! It's good to wear with dark denims.