Comparison: Chanel Peridot and Missha HGR01

Around the time I got Chanel Peridot I heard about a possible dupe, Missha HGR01. Here they are side by side.

As you can see, they're not twins. They are more like cousins...the idea is the same, but the colors are different. In the photo below you can see the color shift.

Chanel on the bottom, the Missha on top. You can see that Peridot is predominately green and gold while the Missha is blue and green/gold.

Color shift on the nail.

In the sun it's amazing.

Fortunately I like both versions very much! Some may prefer the Missha over the Chanel, or vice versa, depending on color preference. Application was good with both polishes. The Missha is rose-scented. It is fairly strong, though things like that don't really bother me.

The Missha *is* less expensive than Peridot, but it's shipped from Korea and if you're in the US you'll probably want to order it from eBay. So a little inconvenient if you're into instant gratification. I think that if you already own Peridot, don't rule out the Missha. It's different enough to own both (I know you love to hear that).

Revlon Craving Coral

I'm not overall super jazzed about this manicure. Part of it is that I bought this polish for a kind of dumb reason.

Revlon Craving Coral came home with me during the Revlon/CVS frenzy earlier this year. I must admit I only bought it for the ExtraBucks. This is annoying to me because the first rule of ExtraBucks is buyeth not stuff you don't need. Otherwise you just end up wasting money, which sort of defeats the whole point. (This is why shows like Extreme Couponing drive me nuts when they show someone buying 93 bags of Texas Toast croutons. YOU DO NOT NEED 93 BAGS OF TEXAS TOAST CROUTONS.)

Anyway.

It's a pretty polish but it is still a little bit translucent at three coats, plus it was a little runny. Fail on both counts. Also, my Sally Hansen Insta-Dri top coat left these drag marks (you can see them in this picture, on my middle finger), which it tends to do if you use too thin a coat. Additional fail.

For funsies I pulled out everything in my stash I thought might be dupish.

Essence What Do U Think?, Diamond Cosmetics Cameo, Essie Chubby Cheeks, NYC Spring Street, Revlon Craving Coral, Revlon Chili, Sally Hansen Azalea. As you can see, many are not even close. The best candidates are Chili and Spring Street.

I struggled to get a shot where these didn't all look identical. From L-R: Spring Street, Craving Coral, Chili.

It's difficult to see here, but Craving Coral is closest to Chili. I like Chili a lot better so maybe Craving Coral will get re-homed. I should mention that NYC Spring Street is a superior orange - I bought it in lieu of a more expensive Essie polish and I really like it.

Here's a swatch of Revlon Chili, which is part of the Top Speed line.

Sally Hansen Golden Tourmaline

Holographic polishes have grown on me after not really being a fan for a long while. Maybe it's the summer sun pouring through my windows, but right now I can't get enough of them. I remembered that I had a couple Sally Hansen Prisms languishing in a drawer of my Helmer, so I decided to give them a whirl. I showed you Purple Diamond last time.

This is Golden Tourmaline.

I got very excited because I thought it would be a true red holo. And it is red, but the holo effect is not as strong in this one as in Purple Diamond.

(Here's Purple Diamond, if you don't feel like scrolling back.)

I wouldn't say this was "disappointing" per se. I still enjoyed wearing it. It just bears more resemblance to a straightforward red shimmer than a holo. It's still gorgeous in bright sunlight and would probably be a fun pedicure color. (Although I like holos on my fingers...so I can gaze at them admiringly. You know, like a lunatic.)

Lastly, a comparison.

Ozotic 511, SH Golden Tourmaline, SH Pink Diamond. This picture really shows how strong the Ozotic holo is compared to Golden Tourmaline. Pink Diamond is a little stronger, and the color is closer to the Ozotic.

I also tried a Sally Hansen Prisms duochrome, which I'll photograph in daylight tomorrow and share with you accordingly.

Soak Off Gel vs Nail Polish

Good morning, Dear Reader!

I decided to get over myself and deal with uneven nails for a week for many reasons, the greatest of them being that I wouldn't like myself as much if I were so high maintenance that I'd change it right away.  I've also been enjoying have sparkling pink nails far too much to interfere with them, so I figured that today I'd show you some better pictures of IBD Be Mine and do a rundown of what I see as the advantages and disadvantages of the soak off gel (or gel polish) as compared to nail polish from my current newbie point of view.  I'm sure in a month I'll have even more opinions, but it seemed like it might be useful to do now as well.

When I took pictures of Be Mine on Saturday, I wasn't yet over myself or my uneven nails enough to take the seventeen trillion different pictures it took to get a couple that are color accurate and show the cool glitter, but I am today.  I didn't want to sell this one short because I really fell in love with it when I saw a color dot on IBD's site.  It's in a Valentine's Day set called Kiss and Tell with three other colors for $25, but after doing some heavy-duty searching, I found it for $9 shipped, which was reasonable enough to try it.  So far, I'm thrilled, but since it's pink glitter in a pink base, that's predictable.  It still took two pictures to give you a fair look.

IBD Soak Off Glitter Gel in Be Mine, Accurate for Base Color

IBD Soak Off Glitter Gel in Be Mine, Better View of Glitter

It seemed like it might be handy to have gel pictures on the same page as the pros and cons for visual reference, but since we're all really clear on what nail polish looks like, it didn't seem necessary to put a picture in for that.  To compare them, I'll just start at the start, and my use of the word "gel" refers to both soak off gel and soak off gel polish.

• Nail Prep: gel carries two extra steps, application of primer and bonder.  Otherwise, it's the same as for polish, just filing, cuticle care, and cleaning up, but as we see this week, errors in filing aren't as easily corrected with gel since breaking the seal on the gel kind of defeats the purpose of wearing it.  I prefer nail polish for this part.
• Application: nail polish is much, much faster.  For me, neither is easier because a consequence of the slower pace of gel application allows for greater care to be taken, which makes it easier.  Mistakes with gel application can largely be corrected before curing, with the exception of the thing giving me a hassle, perfectly even sealer that doesn't touch any skin, applied with a nail polish brush.  It's so shiny that it's difficult to tell that it's uneven, and in both gel applications I've flooded one corner of one cuticle with sealer.  Next time, I'll apply it with a gel brush and that may solve that.  I prefer the outcome of gel application, but my attention span strikes again making it difficult for me to wait for things to cure between steps, so as far as the actual process of application, I prefer nail polish by a lot.
• Wear: here, gel very obviously is preferable.  My Gelicure Hot Pink lasted only six days with zero wear showing  (chips, worn edges, and break in the seal) because the outgrowth bothered me.  One of these days I'll have the nerve to commit to wear one until there's a chip.
• Appearance:  gel's a clear winner to me because of the finish - it's really much more shiny than polish can be.  The Be Mine manicure pictured above is finished with a sealer not as shiny as last week's and it's on its third day.  Even at that, it's shinier than polish with Seche Vite or Diamont an hour after applying it.  I think the fact that I can say that when the gel's a heavy glitter with one super thin coat of sealer is pretty impressive - it would take a ton of top coat to smooth out that much glitter in a polish.
• Protection of Nails: protecting my nails has always been just as important as appearance with wearing nail polish.  My nails break almost immediately if they're bare, and polish does a decent job of keeping them okay.  Gel, however, does an amazing job.  In addition to not breaking, my nails aren't wearing down in their usual spots from everyday life, and this is the first time that has ever happened.
• Removal: nail polish is way easier for me.  The biggest complaint I have about soak off gels in general is putting the stupid foil on my nails, it's just such a ridiculous hassle.  If I'm going to be adult and reasonable, I'll admit that it's a weird annoyance and it's not really a big deal, but either way, polish is far easier.  There's also the fact that in trying a new to me brand (IBD) and a new to me product (soak off gel in pots rather than a polish bottle), I am concerned about whether it will come off, which simply isn't an issue with polish (I always know that even the scariest glitter will eventually come off).
• Other: I had a slightly odd experience with the IBD gel over the weekend - late Saturday afternoon, my nails started to feel a little too tight for my nails beds.  Not painful or bad, just like they were about three pounds to heavy for the jeans they wore to a good Italian restaurant where they loaded up on pasta.  It's gone now, but was odd.  The other thing worth mentioning for me is the convenience of gel as a base for nail art - I find I'm willing to spend 20 minutes decorating, where if I have to apply a polish base I'm far less motivated by the time I'm able to finish it, and there's also the benefit of unlimited do-overs with gel as the base for nail art done in polish.

That's just about all that I can think of that has occurred to me thus far in the grave matter of soak off gel versus polish, Dear Reader, so I suppose I'll just wrap it up.  Until next time, love and nail polish to you!

 

OPI Black Shatter vs China Glaze Black Mesh

Hello again, Dear Reader!

I'm back again fast this time!  I put in a scary movie (Chain Letter, it was pretty bad) and I started thinking about the OPI Black Shatter/China Glaze Black Mesh Crackle Glaze comparison, then I finally got up and just did the manicure for it while I watched the movie.  It's what I should have done earlier, but I was tired and my brain was disengaged.  I was thinking I should post it since Black Mesh is going fast when it shows up, but it's definitely obtainable.

I used one coat of China Glaze Sea Spray from Anchors Away, which was all it needed, for the base color.  I'll show you that one alone soon.  For the comparison, I just went with the good ol' reliable every other nail for the two black crackle polishes, all topped off with a coat of Gelous and a coat of Poshe.  Here's how it looks.

OPI Black Shatter and China Glaze Black Mesh over China Glaze Sea Spray

Here's the same picture labelled with which is which: OPI on thumb, middle, and index, China Glaze on the ones in between.

OPI Black Shatter and China Glaze Black Mesh Crackle Glaze Comparison

They're both inky black, but the China Glaze is a lot less goopy to apply than the OPI, so China Glaze wins Round I.  Round II is how it looks, and there's a little difference between the two in how they crack.  The China Glaze breaks apart into more random pieces, while the OPI has longer lengthwise splits that make it look like little strips of black in some spots to me.  I prefer the appearance of the China Glaze to the OPI, so the winner in today's battle of the black crackle polishes is China Glaze Black Mesh Crackle Glaze.

That's just about all I know.  I'm sure as heck not spending another second on my nails today, so until tomorrow, love and nail polish to you!  

OPI Black Shatter & Mrs.Robinson

Good morning, Dear Reader!

Today's title seems ominous to me, like the nail polish equivalent of The Devil & Tom Walker.  Don't be scared, I promise it's not!

Today I have Black Shatter over Color Club Cub Mrs. Robinson, a neon purple creme.  I went to go get a neon purple, and for some reason I remembered Essie Perky Purple as the most neon purple, and also as kind of a PITA in that neon way.  Since I'd been sorting, Perky Purple was with Color Club Mrs. Robinson, which I recall being low maintenance, and I was surprised to see they're really close.  Not exactly the same, but close enough that I'll take the one that's less effort.  I grabbed the Essie bottle when I went out to take pictures so you could see them together.

Neon Purple Nail Polish Comparison: Color Club is my pick

I applied three coats of Mrs. Robinson (I really could have used two, but I hate even a hint of translucency to my tips) and let it dry before adding the Black Shatter.  I was pleased with my results evening it out with Gelous and then a coat of Poshe to dry everything, so I went that route again.  Here's the manicure.

OPI Black Shatter over Color Club Mrs. Robinson

This was one of the most physically painful rounds of pictures I've ever taken.  I have a weirdo chronic eye condition called scleritis that started in recent years (Google if you will, but the reason I didn't give you a definition link is that there are always absolutely awful pictures that'll give you the willies really badly), and I'm wrapping up a bout with it in one eye right now.  One of the major characteristics of scleritis is that it causes incredible pain in the affected eye when it acts up, and with that comes tremendous light sensitivity.  Well, the sun came out today and since my little town is pretty much shut down from the blizzard, there's undisturbed snow as far as the eye can see, so it was the glaring reflected light everywhere and I looked like half of my face was weeping the whole time I was out.  It's my own fault - I should have considered that before choosing the single most difficult color for me to photograph, the one I'm only able to get in direct sunlight.  I just thought I'd mention that so you know why today's pictures are some of my weaker ones - it could either be a more attractive picture or color accurate, so I went for color.

Enough about that!  It's time to show you who matches today's manicure.  

David Lee Roth

If you think about it, neon purple isn't a color a lot of people wear, but anyone who was a fan of good ol' Diamond Dave during the era when Van Halen became Van Hagar will remember this album cover.

David Lee Roth: Enamored with Bright Colors?

If I can't rely on the man on that album cover to appear in photos wearing neon purple and black together, I can't rely on anything!

In including DLR today, I certainly don't mean to classify him with hair bands of the '80's.  The fact is, he has a long track record of success that proves he's talented.  When his first solo album came out, I saw his live show to promote it, and he's a heck of a showman, and his success makes sense to me.  That being said, he really embraced the whole '80's over-the-top way of doing things wholeheartedly.  I know there are quite a few younger readers who probably don't have memory of this time, so I thought I'd show you a poster that was on my sister's bedroom wall then.  Here, you can see much of DLR's appeal was more in what he didn't wear.

Wow.

That was before the regrettable process of transformation...

I Don't Like Where This Is Going

Now Diamond Dave is everybody's Great Uncle Dave, and it's really, really not the same at all.  However, I think we can still take a few lessons away from these pictures: martial arts do a body good, everybody ages, and even if you're wearing spandex pants you can always find a place to stash your spare sweat socks.  It's all about learning.

So that's today's manicure and a corresponding picture from the '80's.  This work week's theme has evolved into an interpretation of the '80's through OPI Black Shatter, a far narrower and more specific theme than I ever would have consciously chosen, but it seems to be working out alright.  I think it would be fun to do another theme for next Monday through Friday, but I don't have any ideas that seem this silly.  If you have suggestions you think would be entertaining, please let me know!  If I get a few good ones, I'll put them to a vote over the weekend and go with the winner.

That's what I have for you today, Dear Reader,  until tomorrow, love and nail polish to you!

OPI Swiss Collection Comparisons part 2

I hope I got all of the comparison requests. If I missed yours or you have one let me know and I'll do my best.
OPI I'm Suzi and I'm a Chocoholic vs. Zoya Cola
Bottle picsChocoholic is more cool toned than Cola
In ShadeIn the shade/low light they look close but Cola is more orange/brown based to ISaIaC is cooler toned and more brick, brown red.
Full SunStill close but definitly not dupes.

Requested Comparison's OPI Swiss Collection

I had a couple suggested possible dupes in the OPI Swiss collectionFirst William tell me about OPI vs. Lincoln Park after DarkIn the bottles they look like possible dupes. William tell me about OPI looks a bit lighter than LPAD.
Index and ring finger William tell me about OPI. Middle and pinky Lincoln Park after Dark.On the nail you can see that WTmaO is a couple of shades lighter than LPAD.Also

Essie Fall Collection preview, Chanel Paradoxal

Hello. I hope you had a happy 4th of July, if you're in the US. Otherwise I hope you had a delightful weekend.

My boyfriend and I went to IKEA over the weekend so I painted my nails a sheer shimmery pearl color. I figured when you're assembling a million parts into a single television stand you don't want something that shows chips easily. And I was right!

A while ago I ordered some things from Nordstrom's beauty preview sale, including the Essie fall minis. I've actually decided not to keep most of what I ordered, but I'll keep the Essies. They're quite compact for storage and this is a nice way to sample the fall collection.

Here are some quick pictures.



Limited Addiction, Sew Psyched, Merino Cool, Little Brown Dress. All are cremes except for Sew Psyched, which has a very pretty subtle shimmer.

On the hand:




(Sorry...without thinking, I swatched my photo-taking hand, so it was quite comical trying to get all my fingers in frame. Apologies also for my dry-ass cuticles.)

I used two coats on everything except Merino Cool, which required three. The formula was best on Limited Addiction, which is two coats in the picture but could have done with one; and Sew Psyched, which was nicely pigmented as well. Merino Cool and LBD were streaky with the first coat and had some pull at the cuticles, so next time I'll wait longer before applying additional coats.

Limited Addiction is a very pretty red but unless you're looking for a red, why would you pick this one up? I'll never understand that. I'm told Sew Psyched is not a dupe for Rescue Beauty Lounge's Diddy Mow, but I don't have that one to show you a comparison. However I did compare Merino Cool to a couple of other Essies.


Chinchilly, Merino Cool, Mink Muffs

And some quick swatches on the nail:

Chinchilly, Merino Cool, Mink Muffs. No duplicates here.

And here's my current manicure, to show you that my cuticles really aren't that awful looking.

I don't think this is the purple shimmer some people wanted it to be, but I really am developing a fondness for this weirdo. Kinda raisin-colored, kinda brown, kinda purple, it is indeed a paradox.

Also, you'd better believe that when we went to IKEA I brought home some friends.

Everything's so nice and organized now. Thanks for feeding my OCD, IKEA!

The Color Club Rebel Debutante Mystery

Good morning, Dear Reader!

I got an order from Trans Design yesterday, and in it was another bottle of Color Club Rebel Debutante.  An all new color, in fact...

When I swatched The Rebel Debutante Collection, I did a comparison showing you it was identical to Poptastic's Twiggie (here).  The one I got yesterday is a completely different shade, not identical to Twiggie at all.  Here are the old and new Rebel Debutante bottles.

Color Club Rebel Debutante Nail Polish Bottle Comparision

I used the new Rebel Debutante this morning.  This is two coats, a dry manicure - it's a little bright for my camera to capture perfectly, but it makes the point.

Color Club Rebel Debutante Nail Polish, Two Coats

So Twiggie and Rebel Debutante are not the same color after all, we discover months later.

That's it for today, Dear Reader.  Until tomorrow, love and nail polish to you!  

Nubar 2010

Good morning, Dear Reader!

I looked at the forecast and saw that there's no sun in sight for a while, so I used the light box to show you some Nubar 2010 swatches and a comparison to Sally Hansen Hidden Treasure.

I'll start with the comparison.  With the bottles side by side, the base of Nubar 2010 is a lot clearer and the flakies more colorful.

Sally Hansen Hidden Treasure and Nubar 2010 Bottle Comparison

On the nail over Nubar Black Chrome, the flakes in Nubar 2010 are smaller and a good bit denser (there are patches missing flakes on the HT nails).  This is one coat of each.  On my thumb, you can see that the Nubar flakies reflect a lot of green.

Nubar 2010 & Sally Hansen Hidden Treasure Compared over Nubar Black Chrome

Now for the swatches... I tried it over pastels, neons, and some mid-tone shimmers.  Here are the pastels, China Glaze Something Sweet, Re-Fresh Mint, Peachy Keen, and Lemon Fizz.

Nubar 2010 Swatches over Pastels, One Coat

The neons are Color Club Jackie Oh!, Mrs. Robinson, Wham! Pow!, and Warhol.

Nubar 2010 Swatches over Neons, One Coat

The shimmers are Nubar Conserve, Raspberry Truffle, Pasadena Purple, and Sultry Red.

Nubar 2010 Swatches over Shimmers, One Coat

One thing I noticed is that the flakes appear to be a different color based on the base they're on.  They look more yellow on the pastels, opal-y orange on hte neons, and are all over the place on the shimmers.

For my Nails of the Day, I put Nubar 2010 over Sensual Red, and I'm happy with the outcome.

Nubar 2010, One Coat, over Nubar Sensual Red, Two Coats

I would have preferred sunlight for these pictures, but I also didn't want to wait a week to do them.  Those are my Nubar 2010 swatches for you, and the update for this morning.  Until next time, Dear Reader, love and nail polish to you!  

OPI Shrek Comparisons: The Blues

Good morning, Dear Reader!

I have more OPI Shrek Collection comparison swatches for you today, this time the blues.  I did them the same way as the purples - all are with base and top coat, dry, and thumb, middle and pinky are OPI, index and ring are the comparison color.  The pictures were taken in sunlight.

I'll start with What's with the Cattitude, the lighter of the two blues.  I compared it to Color Club Factory Girl (formerly Blue Light), Essie Shelter Island, and SpaRitual Full of Life (again, just using what was handy and seemed like it might be close).

Factory Girl was a close match, just a tiny bit lighter than the OPI.

OPI Shrek What's with the Cattitude and Color Club Factory Girl Comparison

Shelter Island is distinctly darker than the OPI.

OPI Shrek What's with the Cattitude and Essie Shelter Island Comparison

SpaRitual Full of Life was again quite close, bit a bit lighter.

OPI Shrek What's with the Cattitude and SpaRitual Full of Life Comparison

Clearly, the Color Club is the closest match, barely distinguishable from the OPI.

The darker OPI Shrek Blue, Ogre the Top Blue, I compared to Color Club Chelsea Girl (formerly 220 Volts), Nubar Hot Blue, and SpaRitual Crystal Eyes.  Each was a bit darker than the OPI.

Here is Chelsea Girl.

OPI Shrek Ogre the Top Blue and Color Club Chelsea Girl Comparison

This is Nubar Hot Blue.

OPI Shrek Ogre the Top Blue and Nubar Hot Blue Comparison

Finally, SpaRitual Crystal Eyes.

OPI Shrek Ogre the Top Blue and SpaRitual Crystal Eyes Comparison

Although they're not dead-on dupes, I think both the Color Club and the Nubar are close enough to the OPI to fill in for one another.

That's what I have for you this morning, Dear Reader.  Until next time, love and nail polish to you!