Browsing Tag

Nail Polish

Uncategorized

3.1 Phillip Lim for NARS | Crossroads, Other Side and Insidious Nail Polish

July 8, 2014

This month there will be nine nail polishes released for the 3.1 Phillip Lim for NARS Collection ($20 each for 0.5 fl oz/15 ml) – available July 15 on narscosmetics.com. I have three shades to share today in Crossroads (a deep purple cream), Other Side (chocolate cherry perfection) and Insidious (a metallic blackened bronze khaki). You can see all the shades on Vampy Varnish.

All the colors come with removable caps. The brushes are wide and slightly rounded at the tips but I found them to be on the larger side making it a bit hard for me to apply on my small fingers. It was still manageable but I had to do a lot of cleaning up with remover and Q-tips after application. I had to play around with various base and top coats. The new formula of the NARS nail polishes did not perform well with my usual Deborah Lippmann Rehydrating Base Coat (the polish didn’t glide over it) and Chanel Top Coat (it didn’t want to cover the polish smoothly). After testing with several of my go-to’s I found these worked best with Sephora Formula X Base and Top Coat.

The shimmer color applied well with just one coat. The creams I tested looked streaky with the first coat but evened out with the second for full smooth coverage.





Crossroads is a dark violet cream. It looks lovely on the hands but the texture of this one was a bit hard for me to work with. It bled easily making a mess of the cuticles. This one was really difficult to remove although it didn’t stain the nails. If you’re patient with this one, I think it’s worth the extra work it takes to apply.








Other Side is the perfect chocolate cream with a hint of red. It applied unevenly with the first coat but smoothed out with a second. It’s a dark almost vampy color but there is enough brown to prevent it from looking too dark.

Insidious is a metallic blackened khaki. It’s dark but not too dark. The shimmers make it glow in the sunlight. This shade will be exclusive to NARS boutiques and narscosmetics.com.


Comparisons to Tom Ford Bitter Bitch
Chanel Vamp
Chanel Diabolic (discontinued)
Dior Ultra Violet (discontinued)
Chanel Vendetta (discontinued)



I’m in love with NARS Other Side and Insidious as a close second. The colors are rich in pigment and with two coats you get full coverage. I did find application a bit hard because the brush is on the larger side. The formula has a medium liquid texture, not thin but not thick. I wore Cross Roads on the nails for 5 days before taking it off to test another color. By Day 5 I had a bit of tip wear on the index finger and thumbs but the rest were fine.
The nine shades will be available online at Narscosmetics.com July 15th and all other NARS locations starting August 1.
This review contains press samples sent by NARS for review consideration. For more information refer to my Disclosures.
10 Comments
Uncategorized

Chanel Secret #625, Atmosphère #629 and Orage #631 Le Vernis | Collection États Poétiques for Fall 2014

June 27, 2014
For the Chanel Collection États Poétiques there are three new Le Vernis Nail Colors in Secret #625 Atmosphère #629 and Orage #631 ($27 each for 13 ml/0.4 fl oz, made in France). All three colors are newly released shades. I was the most excited about Atmosphère but after playing with these for a few days, it turns out my favorite is Secret.
I get really excited when I find a good nude nail polish. Secret #625 is a perfect nude with a slight hint of pink. It definitely needs a good base coat underneath. The first coat will be slightly uneven in finish but the second coat levels out the texture and gives full coverage. It’s has enough color for my skin so it doesn’t give me corpse-like hands.

Atmosphère #629 is a unique pearly duo-chrome pink pearl with violet shimmer. It changes color as the light shifts. With one coat it’s more pink/lilac. With a second and third coat it becomes more like a pearl. I wanted to love this but find it looks odd against my skin tone making my hands look a bit sallow. I’m not sure if it’s just the fact that it’s summer and I’m craving bright colors right now that is contributing to my “eh” feelings about this one. I don’t hate it, but I’m not a huge fan. Perhaps it will grow on me. Some have suggested using this as a layering color. I’m not a huge fan of layering but this one does look nice over other colors.

Orage #631 is an indigo grey blue. It has a very slight hint of silver shimmer in the tube if you hold it against the light. On the nails you can see the sparkle in the sunlight but it acts more like a cream. Two coats almost gives full coverage. On me I found it still to be slightly transparent with two thin coats. On the hands it’s dark shade but not quite black. There is enough blue in this one to soften the color and prevent it from looking too harsh.

Some comparisons below. Orage is the only one I could find close alternatives to.

Swatched above:
Tom Ford Sugar Dune (discontinued)
Dior Icy Dew (discontinued)
Guerlain Stardust (discontinued)
Chanel Island (discontinued)
Dior Perfecto (discontinued)
Chanel Steel (discontinued)
Chanel Atmosphere layered over Secret and Orage
Close ups of the comparisons:

Overall three lovely shades for fall … but it’s not fall yet which is probably why I’m not over the moon in love with these. I think they will grow on me. Secret is another perfect nude nail polish I’ll be wearing a lot (going to try it on the toes this weekend). The other two are nice but for me not must-haves. That being said, Atmosphere is very unique and Orage is a nice dramatic dark shade that isn’t too dark.
These are part of the fall collection and should be available at all counters now. Online at Nordstrom,  Bloomingdales, Saks and Chanel.com.
18 Comments
Uncategorized

Chanel Collection États Poétiques | Fall 2014 Picks

June 26, 2014
Chanel Collection États Poétiques for Fall 2014 has arrived online and in stores. The ordered the nail polishes online and then checked out the entire collection in stores last week. The items I picked out include:
I’ll be reviewing the items in the next few days, I have the nail polishes swatched already and will be uploading pics as soon as I can 🙂

Did you pick up anything from the Fall collection? What are your thoughts?
12 Comments
Uncategorized

Burberry Summer Showers Lip Glow Balm and Nail Polish Comparisons

June 24, 2014
Here are some comparisons I swatched for Burberry Summer Showers Lip Glow Balms and Nail Polishes. First for the nail polishes, Burberry Summer Showers colors are Orange Poppy No. 221, Pink Peony No. 222 and Pink Azalea No. 223 (swatches and original post here):

Dior Red Dahlia (discontinued)
Chanel April (swatched here)
Dior Mirage 338 (gel shines swatched here)
Chanel Rose Insolent (discontinued)
Tom Ford Indiscretion (limited-edition, review here)
Tom Ford Coral Beach (discontinued, swatched here)
Chanel Starlet (swatched here)
_____________________________
For the lip glow balms, there are coordinating colors for the nails/lips and cheeks, colors for Summer Showers are Orange Poppy No. 01, Pink Peony No. 02 and Pink Azalea No. 03:

Hope this helps with your purchasing decisions! You may have similar colors or dupes in your stash.
7 Comments
Uncategorized

Burberry Summer Showers Lip Glow Balm and Nail Polishes | Orange Poppy, Pink Peony and Pink Azalea

June 23, 2014

The summer beauty release from Burberry Summer Showers features three coordinating colors for for lips, nails and cheeks in Orange Poppy, Pink Peony and Pink Azalea. Check the Behind the Scenes Burberry Summer Showers footage from Wendy Rowe. The items in the collection for summer include:
  • Lip Glow Balms ($28 each for 4 g/0.14 oz) are sheer tinted lip balms with SPF 18
  • Nail Polishes ($21 each for 8 ml/0.27 fl oz) come in three highly pigmented colors
  • Fresh Glow Blush ($38 each for 5 g/0.18 oz) are sheer dewy cheek sticks with a slight tint of color
I ordered the Lip Glow Balms and Nail Polishes from Nordstrom San Francisco. I decided to pass on the Fresh Glow Blushes since my skin reacts to their Liquid Foundation and Fresh Glow Liquids. I played with the items I ordered over the weekend. The colors are beautiful classics but the only items I feel are must-haves are the Orange Poppy No. 221 Nail Polish and Pink Peony No. 02 Lip Glow Balm. Since the colors are classics there are quite a few dupes. You can check out the full collection swatches on Gummy Vision and Natural N Chic Makeup.



My Burberry Summer Showers picks:






First up are the Lip Glow Balms. These are a sheer tinted lip balm. The color on these is very sheer if you swipe directly from the tube. To get more color use a lip brush (which is how I’ve been using them). Orange Poppy No. 01 goes on quite bright if you layer it swiping back and forth. If you swipe once or blot it goes on more natural and brightens the face. I found it photographed well. Pink Peony No. 02 is the perfect natural pink glow. It’s on the sheer side but it gives your lips a healthy pink glow. Pink Azalea No. 03 is lovely plum pink but the sheer texture makes it apply slightly unevenly on my lips (this can be fixed with a plum lip liner underneath). These are semi-hydrating. They have a glossy sheen in the finish but they aren’t super moist feeling like YSL Volupte Sheer Candy. I would say the pigment level falls somewhere in between YSL Rouge Volupte Shines and Tom Ford Lip Shines. 

The Nail Polishes are all summer-perfect colors however Orange Poppy No. 221 is the only one I find unique. It’s a bright orange but not floruescent or super bright. There’s a muted quality to it which makes it a good summer to fall transition color. There is a slight pearly quality to the polish but o the nails it looks more like a cream. Pink Peony No. 222 is a gorgeous deep pink cream but similar to other pinks from Chanel, Dior and YSL. Pink Azalea No. 223 is a mauve plum with a slight dusty quality. I found it similar to Chanel April/Coup de Couer. The formula of these is really good and you can get full coverage with two coats. The brush is on the wider side which makes these a bit harder to apply if you have super small fingers like me (my ring finger is a Size 4). It’s still small enough to apply easily, for me it just took a bit more care to not get polish all over my cuticles.

Overall a lovely palette of sheer summer brights that aren’t too bright. The colors are naturally flattering and beautiful for everyday wear. I’m in love with Orange Poppy Nail Polish. I’ve swatched and photographed comparisons but haven’t had time to label the items. I’ll update this post later this evening with those for reference.

The Burberry Beauty Summer Showers collection can be found at Nordstrom and Burberry. I’m not sure whether or not these are limited-edition but will update if I receive more information.

Have you checked out Burberry Beauty’s summer items? Now that fall collections are starting to hit counters what was your favorite summer beauty collection this year?

19 Comments
Uncategorized

Color Focus | Bronze and Metallic Nail Lacquers

June 16, 2014

This time of year my favorite colors for beauty are the bronzey metallics for well, everything: lips, nails and cheeks. For nails there have been quite a few lovely releases from early spring that I wanted to highlight.

  • Dior Vibrato 618 Gel Shine Nail Lacquer ($25) is a new color that was released with the reformulation of Dior nail polishes. This one is a bit harder to find in the US. You can order it from the Dior Boutiques (I ordered mine from Las Vegas Palazzo) or online at Dior.com or Selfridges. It’s a stunning metallic loaded with tons of different colors of sparkles. It has the complexity of Chanel Graphite but with a gold bronze base and with much better coverage. I found this to be a one-coat wonder but prefer two.
  • Tom Ford Incandescent ($32) was part of the Spring 2014 Collection and was highlighted back in February (here). It’s miraculously still available for purchase. If you haven’t looked at it yet, I highly recommend it. It’s a stunning rose gold bronze nail polish.
  • Bobbi Brown Raw Sugar Nail Lacquer ($15) was released with the Raw Sugar Collection (Shimmer Brick Eye Palette featured here), it’s a beautiful cool bronze metallic. I had to go to several counters before I found one that still had this in stock but it’s definitely still out there for purchase. You can still find it at Bloomingdales, Barneys and Bobbi Brown.
  • Bobbi Brown Bronze Nail Lacquer ($15) was released earlier this spring (swatches here). It’s still available for purchase at Saks and Bobbi Brown. I like that this is a good shimmer that doesn’t show brush strokes.
  • Burberry Metallic Khaki #202 ($21) is a dark bronze khaki gold shimmer. I like this one because it’s dark but not so dark that the shimmer doesn’t show through. In sunlight it’s really pretty. The texture is really smooth with the first coat being slightly transparent/jelly like. The second coat is what makes this one perfect.
  • YSL Bronze Aztec #28 ($25) is a dark metallic deep blackened bronze with gold shimmer. It has really good coverage with two thin coats and dries quickly.

Close ups and swatches, Dior Vibrato and Tom Ford Incandescent:

Bobbi Brown Raw Sugar vs Bronze:

Bronze:

Raw Sugar:

Burberry Metallic Khaki and YSL Bronze Aztec:

Comparison swatches below to some other bronzey metallic nail polishes: Chanel Delight (still at Chanel.com), Chanel Golden Sand (discontinued, similar Gold Shimmer in this Le Vernis Trio), Tom Ford Burnt Topaz (still available at Saks)

My current favorites are tied between Bobbi Brown Raw Sugar and Dior Vibrato. What’s your favorite bronzey metallic nail polish?
16 Comments
Uncategorized

Sephora Formula X Wunderkind

June 12, 2014
If you visit a Sephora store soon a massive redesigned nail bar featuring their new Formula X is bound to catch your eye. It’s a hard-to-miss wall of color stocked with tester, pull out clear adhesives for swatches along with nail polish remover and cotton. I’ve featured Push the Limits Nail Lacquer and The System / Delete. Today I’m featuring a new shade that was released for summer Wunderkind Formula X ($10.50 for 12 ml/0.4 fl oz).

Wunderkind is a dark shimmery blue with a slight purple tint. It caught my eye at the store and I swatched it immediately. The first coat is very very sheer but the formula is smooth and easy to apply. The second coat transform the color into a full coverage smooth slightly milky blue pearl. I like that it’s a dark blue with a hint of purple but that it’s not so dark that it turns black on the nail. The blue actually shows through making it more true to what you see in the bottle.

Here it is on me with two coats along with the Formula X Base Coat and Top Coat. The manicure looked fresh through Day 5 without any tip wear or chipping (I took it off on day 5 to swatch other colors). Here’s quick snapshot of the brush as well – the white cap pulls off.

A few comparisons to other blues: Deborah Lippmann Ray of Light, Chanel Blue Satin, Chanel Bel-Argus, Guerlain Riviera (discontinued) and Chanel Blue Rebel (discontinued).

Overall love for the formula, wear time, color and in particular love the reasonable price point. Wunderkind ($10.50) is part of The Cut Summer 2014 collection. Available now at Sephora.
Have you tried anything from the Formula X line? What did you think?
12 Comments