Deborah Lippmann 80's Rewind Dot Nail Art!

Good afternoon my fellow Lacquered Lovers!  Happy Friday to you all!  If you are in the US, happy 3 day weekend!  I'm heading down to DC this weekend with my boyfriend and his family and am so excited to get out of NYC for a few days!  But first, I had to show you the adorable manicure I did with my new favorite Summer nail polish collection, Deborah Lippmann's 80's Rewind Collection!  Now, without further ado, onto the polish!

I think this is one of my favorite manicures I have done recently!  I wanted to use all of the colors in this collection without making it look like a rainbow.  Since they are all super pigmented, I figured out that the yellow matched all of them and I could do dots!  I didn't want to just do "normal" polka dots though so I used two different sized dotting tools and switched up the direction of the designs!  I really love how it came out!  

Let's talk about the colors quickly.  Each color only required two coats and actually seemed like 1 coaters, highly pigmented with a creamy, easy to use formula.  On the thumb is Don't Stop Believing, which is a very orange based red, super bright and cheery for summer.  The pointer finger is Video Killed the Radio Star, a perfect dark royal blue.  The middle finger is Whip It, a bright slightly blue leaning pink.  The ring finger is probably my favorite, She Drives Me Crazy, a gorgeous green leaning teal.  Lastly the pinkie finger is Maniac, a bright purple cream.  All of the dots were done with Walking on Sunshine, possibly the best yellow creme I have ever encountered, so opaque that each dot only had to be placed on once.

Above:  A closer look at each nail

I really love this collection.  The colors are super bright and cheery for summer.  I'm so, so glad someone finally made a yellow that is super pigmented, not streaky, and works like a charm!  This is just so perfect for summer, every color had a wonderful formula and are great staples to have in your collection.  These polishes are all available now wherever Deborah Lippmann is sold for $18, but they are limited edition so be sure to snag them (especially Walking on Sunshine, Video Killed the Radio Star and She Drives Me Crazy!)

What did you think of these colors?  Would you try it?  Any must haves?  Any dupes?

The products in this post were sent to me for my unbiased review. Please see my disclosure policy for more information.

Deborah Lippmann Spring Summer 2014 Flower Nail Art!

Good afternoon my fellow Lacquered Lovers!  Happy Tuesday to you all!  I hope you are all enjoying this lovely Spring weather!  NYC has been beautiful lately and I wanted to do some fun nail art to reflect that!  As you all know, I absolutely adore Deborah Lippmann nail polishes and when I was sent her current Spring Reveries and 80's Rewind collections, I couldn't choose just one!  Now, without further ado, onto the nail polish!

Above:  Dot flower manicure

For this manicure, I started off with a base of both Blue Orchid and Flowers in Her Hair from the Spring Reveries Collection.  The dots in the middle of all the flowers is Walking on Sunshine from the 80s Rewind Collection.  The flowers utilize all of the other colors from both collections!  I love how bright and cheery this manicure was and the colors all just look so good together!  I used a dotting tool to create the flowers and all in all, the entire manicure probably took about 20 minutes.  Below, here is a picture, in rainbow order, of all of the polishes from both collections:

Ah they are just so fun and bright!  In fact, I think I will put them back on tonight!  The formulas on these were great, I was especially impressed with how well the pastels went on, completely opaque in 2 coats, no streaking!  All of these polishes are now available wherever Deborah Lippmann is sold for $18 each, however the 80's Rewind Collection is Limited Edition!

What did you think of these colors?  Would you try it?  Any must haves?  Any dupes?

The products in this post were sent to me for my unbiased review. Please see my disclosure policy for more information.

RickyColor The Pastel Opal Collection Skittles Manicure!

Good morning my fellow lacquered lovers!  Happy Monday to you all!  I hope you're all having a lovely week so far!  The sun is shining, it's finally feeling like Spring, and that means bright nail polish is on the horizon!  The lovely people over at one of my favorite NYC stores, Ricky's, sent me over their newest collection of RickyColor nail polishes and they are FABULOUS!  Now, without further ado, onto the polish!

These shades are BRIGHT!  RickyColor calls them pastel but I think they are more of a pastel neon.  This collection consists of three cremes and an iridescent glitter topper which I will test out soon for you all.  The blue is called BBCS at Cyrils and is the most muted of the bunch.  It's an almost dusty blue that had a great formula and was opaque in 2 coats.  The green is called Hudson Valley Getaway and is an almost neon mint green.  I'm kind of obsessed with it and had a great formula of being opaque in 2 coats.  Last but most certainly not least is the the pink Night at the Stalkhouse which is an almost neon salmon shade.  The formula on this was also opaque in 2 coats.

All in all, I was really impressed by this collection!  Usually pastels can be streaky or hard to apply but I had no issues with any of these.  The color payoff was so bright, the formulas easy to use, and they even made my super pale hands look tan!  Just for fun, I added Butter London Anorak on top:

All of these shades are now available at Ricky's stores and online for $6.50 each!

What did you think of these colors?  Would you try it?  Any must haves?  Any dupes?

The products in this post were sent to me for my unbiased review. Please see my disclosure policy for more information.

Milani Gold Label Nail Polish Collection for Spring 2014 Swatches and Review!

Good afternoon my fellow lacquered lovers!  Happy Friday to you all!  I hope you all had a lovely week so far and are looking forward to the weekend!  Today, I have 12 gorgeous nail polishes from Milani that they sent me to review to show you!

This Spring Milani is releasing 6 vibrant creme polishes and 6 different glitter toppers!  Now, without further ado, on to the polish!

 Above:  2 coats Colorful Coral

Colorful Coral is a very orange leaning coral.  This polish is super bright but has just enough pink to it to not be a true orange.  The formula was very smooth, completely opaque in 2 coats.

Above:  1 coat of Sugar Cane over 2 coats of Colorful Coral

Sugar Cane consists of pink and purple metallic bar glitter and multiple sized white hexagonal matte glitters in a clear base.  I'm not a huge fan of bar glitter so this was probably my least favorite.  I can't even imagine how many coats you would need to make this opaque but the glitter did come out easily.

 Above:  2 coats of Popping Pink

Popping Pink is a slightly lighter bright pink creme nail polish.  There is a hit of blue base to this but not overpoweringly so.  The formula was good, very smooth and opaque in 2 coats.

 Above:  1 coat of Sugar Rim over 2 coats of Popping Pink

Sugar Rim was one of my favorites from this collection!  All matte glitters in black, red, light blue and yellow in slightly varying sizes, I can honestly say I don't own anything like this.  All of these glitters are suspended in a clear base and apply really easily to the nail.

 Above:  2 coats of Splendid Strawberry

Splendid Strawberry is a more medium, red based bright pink creme.  This is a classic pink for spring and I'm sure there are dupes out there for this.  The formula was great, very smooth and opaque in 2 coats.

Above:  1 coat of Sugar High over 2 coats of Splendid Strawberry

The first time I saw the name Sugar High, all I could think of was Empire Records and Renee Zellweger singing on top of a roof.  That being said, this is another super unique glitter topper!  This polish consists of peach, yellow, light blue, cobalt, red and gold small hexagonal glitters in a clear base.  I love how different this is!  It reminds me of Easter.  The application was very easy to get the glitters out.

 Above:  2 coats of Vivid Violet

I think Vivid Violet is my favorite of the cremes.  This is a medium blue based violet and it's stunning!  It's very vibrant without being neon.  The formula was great, opaque in 2 coats and very easy to apply.

Above: 1 coat of Sugar Coated over 2 coats of Vivid Violet

Sugar Coated is a glitter topper full of multiple sized and shaped lime green matte glitters and a tiny bit of holographic glitters sprinkled in.  Usually I hate bar glitter but it's sparse enough here that I kind of like it!  The formula was very easy to work with and get the glitter out.

 Above:  2 coats of Showy Sea-Green

Showy Sea-Green is a muted bright green polish.  I guess I would call this a grassy green?  It's actually a really pretty shade because it's not yellow leaning.  The formula was great, opaque in 2 coats and very smooth.

Above:  1 coat of Sugar Burst over 2 coats of Showy Sea-Green

Sugar Burst is the light pink version of Sugar Coated.  All matte light pink glitters and tiny holographic glitters in a clear base.  It's actually very pretty and dainty, not as stark as a white would be but looks really cool over bright colors!  The glitters came out really easily and smoothly.

 Above:  2 coats of Power Periwinkle

Power Periwinkle is, as you might guess, a really pretty periwinkle!  This shade is a bit violet leaning and just super gorgeous on the nails.  The formula was a bit streaky on this one but was mostly leveled out in 2 coats.

Above:  2 coats of Sugar Rush over 2 coats of Power Periwinkle

Sugar Rush is a glitter topper with light pink, light green, peach, white and silver hexagonal glitters.  This was the only glitter that gave me a problem.  I found I had to fish to get the glitters out and had to just put a glob of polish on the nail and manually spread it out to get any sort of glitter coverage.  I had to use two coats for the coverage you see above and it was rather thick.

All in all, I think Milani did a great job with these.  The cremes were virtually all 2 coaters, very smooth, very opaque and easy to work with.  The glitters were unique, fun, and different!  These polishes will be out in February wherever Milani is sold and retail for $4.69 each.

What did you think of these polishes? Must have? Any dupes?

The products in this post were sent to me for my unbiased review. Please see my disclosure policy for more information.

Zoya Pixie Dust Collection for Spring 2013 Swatches and Review!

Good morning my fellow lacquered lovers!  Happy Friday!  I hope you are all having a wonderful week and have some good weekend plans coming up!  Today, I have one of my favorite collections from 2013 to show you!

The Zoya Pixie Dust Collection is made up of 6 different shades of matte glitter that dry to a gritty texture.  If you were following my NYFW feeds, you saw I was wearing them virtually every day!  Now, without further ado, on to the polish!

Above:  2 coats of Zoya Chyna

Chyna is by far the most sparkly of this collection and that's because there are extra red glitters in it!  I love how it's matte but kind of shiny at the same time.  It reminds me of a sparkly fruit for some reason.  The formula on this one was great, a bit thick however easy to use and just 2 coats for full opacity!

 Above:  2 coast of Dahlia

Dahlia didn't want to play nice with my camera but I think it's my favorite of the collection.  Dahlia is a jet black full of silver glitters that gives it almost a charcoal appearance.  The formula was great, opaque in 2 coats and minimal dragging.
 

Above:  2 coats of Godiva

Now you guys know me, I'm not a nude polish kinda girl but this is a nude I can get behind because it's so interesting!  This is a light beige, slightly yellow leaning nude pixie dust.  It has the same gritty texture and look as the rest but something about it is just so interesting!  The formula was a bit thick so I found two thin coats worked best.

 Above:  2 coats of Zoya London

London is amazing because it looks like sparkly pavement to me and I love that!  This medium grey has some silver glitter to it but the formula really does make it look like asphalt.  The formula was great on this one, opaque in 2 coats and easy to use!

 Above:  2 coats of Nyx

Nyx is a pretty cornflower blue that is a bit on the thin side.  I only used two coats and you can definitely see visible nail line so this one should be layered or worn with at least three coats.  The color is really pretty and it's very sparkly!

Above:  2 coats of Vespa

Lastly is Vespa, a light grassy green shade of pixie dust.  This is a really interesting color and I love it for Spring!  It's very light but doesn't look bad on my skin tone because it's not too yellow.  The formula was good, opaque in 2 coats and easy to use.

All in all, I really love the pixie dust polishes.  I love the gritty finish but like that it's not so gritty that I find it catching on things or scratching me! The glitter mixed into it gives it a really interesting look and they are just so fun!  Here are a few more looks I did with them:

 Above:  Zoya Pixie Dust Dot Skittles over Zoya Raven

 Above:  Zoya Chyna with an accent of Dahlia

 Above:  Zoya Dahlia with Nyx layered over everything but the ring finger

Above:  Me trying the elusive model pose with my zoya dot skittles

The Zoya Pixie Dust collection is now available on their website and wherever Zoya is sold for $8 a bottle!

What did you think of these polishes? Must have? Any dupes?

The products in this post were sent to me for my unbiased review. Please see my disclosure policy for more information.

Illamasqua I'MPERFECTION Nail Polish Swatches and Review! Plus a look into the minds of Illamasqua!

Good afternoon my fellow lacquered lovers!  Happy Friday to you all!  Today, I have a post I'm really excited about to show you!  Illamasqua just launched their I'MPERFECTION collection which stems from the idea that it's our imperfections that make us who we are and we shouldn't try to cover them up, but rather embrace and showcase them.

 



Today I'm going to show you the 5 nail polishes from this collection plus some pictures from a fabulous event I was invited to attend with Illamasqua where I got to be used as a model to show off a cool speckled eyeliner technique!  Just so you know, I put a top coat on for each swatch because otherwise the glitters can make them a bit rough.  Now, without further ado, on to the polish!

Above:  2 coats of Fragile with Top Coat

Above:  Macro shot of Fragile in the bottle

First up we have Fragile, a gorgeous robin's egg blue full of at least three different sized matte black glitters.  This is one of the ones from this collection that actually looks like a birds egg.  It's very delicate in color but then the black gives it a great edge.  The formula was great, opaque in 2 coats and very easy to get the glitters out.

Above:  2 coats of Freckle with top coat

Above:  Macro shot of Freckle in the bottle

I was really on the fence about Freckle when I first saw it but I think it ended up being my favorite in the bunch because it's so unique.  According to David Horne, Director of New Product Development and School of Make Up Artistry for Illamasqua, Freckle was the inspiration behind this entire collection and that inspiration came from a piece of rotting cardboard on the street.  Kind of an odd place to find inspiration but that's what makes Illamasqua such a unique company.  This shade is a darker nude, almost a dark beige full of the three different sized black matte glitters.  The formula was great, easy to use and two coats to be opaque.

Above:  2 coats of Mottle with Top Coat



Above:  Macro shot of Mottle in the bottle

I instantly loved Mottle because it looks like mint chocolate chip ice cream and that's one of my all time favorites.  I also love mottle because it's a gorgeous mint green shade that is a tad more blue based so it doesn't bring out the yellow in my skin.  The formula was great, opaque in two coats and easy to get the glitters out.

Above:  2 coats of Scarce with Top Coat

Above:  Macro bottle shot of Scarce

Scarce is a baby pink creme full of the same three sizes of black matte glitters.  This was probably my least favorite of the bunch but only because I'm not really a pink kind of girl.  However if you are, then this one is perfect!  The formula was great, opaque in 2 coats and the glitter was easy to get out.

Above:  2 coast of Speckle with Top Coat

 

Above:  Macro bottle shot of Speckle

Last but certainly not least is Speckle, a gorgeous lavender creme with the same three sizes of matte black glitters in it.  I love that this one is completely wearable for work while still maintaining a cool edge.  The formula was great, opaque in two coats and easy to get the glitter out.

All in all, I was really impressed by this collection.  As a blogger, I've seen a lot of milky polishes with glitters and lots of times they get clumped or thick easily.  These applies like normal polish and while they look sheer at one coat, they build up to full opacity in two.

Now right before these were released to the public, I was invited to a press event with David Horne, the Director of New Product Development and School of Make Up Artistry for Illamasqua and Joshua Heald, Illamasqua US Brand Ambassador to discuss the entire new I'MPERFECTION collection.  Here are some pictures from that night in case you missed them on Instagram:

 

Above:  The displays for the I'MPERFECTION Collection

 



Above:  David Horne showing how to do the speckled eyeliner in the new advertisements on me (they now have a full tutorial on their website.)  - Photo Courtesy of The Beauty Gnome

 Above:  Joshua Heald doing my eye on the other side.  Photo Courtesy of Miss Merli

 Above:  The finished product of the winged speckled eyeliner

Above:  My Illamasqua Galaxy nails I did for the event and Joshua Heald's nails which are Viridian with Smash layered on top with an accent of Mottle on top of Viridian.

So there you have it!  Speckled nail polish, speckled eyeliner and some fun pictures!  I hope you enjoyed this incredibly long post today!

What did you think of these polishes? Must have? Any dupes?

Some of The products in this post were sent to me for my unbiased review. Please see my disclosure policy for more information.