Is Bigger Better For Glitter? What If I Said Flaky Glitter?

I just have to face the facts. I'm going to wake up and it is going to be Jan 2, time to start a new year and new business contracts. That means Christmas and New Year's Eve will have flown by me and I'll be sitting here with a lot of Holiday polishes I never got to swatch. So, I better get busy!

Realizing this situation, I dug around the to-be-swatched drawer in the vanity. I was all set to pick out my favorite one and get crackin'. My first choice was China Glaze's 'Snow Globe' from their 2011 winter collection. In staying with the comparison theme, I dug some more and found Cosmetic Arts no-name flaky that is now 'Super Size Me Flaky'.

 

'Snow Globe' is the perfect name for this polish. You'll find a mix of holo micro-glitter along with a bit of holo hex glitter.

Sparkle-dazzle holiday. Yes, it does, indeed, look like a snow globe...

I picked this photo because it reminded me of the kid that got double-dog dared to lick a metal pole. You know, from 'A Christmas Story.' I can only guess that the little people in this snow globe are playing hide-and-seek.' But they must really suck at it.

Done digressing...
Cosmetic Arts is missing the fun by not naming their polishes. But, they are giving me some fun. When I first laid eyes on this one, I really did yell out 'Oh, shit!' I couldn't grab this polish fast enough when I found it at Ross'...

I don't think I have another polish that has flakes this size. Thus, 'Super Size Me Flaky.'

There was nothing that could suffice to showcase these topcoats other than a rich creme. I picked out 'Velvet Box' from China Glaze's current holiday collection. And, I think this one did the job...

On my thumb, middle and pinky finger, you see 'Super Size Me Flaky.' That leaves 'Snow Globe' for the index and ring finger. Now tell me, if you had 4 seconds to pause at a red light, wouldn't you stare at these?

 

Good grief, those flakes are on steroids. And I was flat out thrilled that this polish applied in a very well-behaved manner. 'Snow Globe' was thick and it wanted to bunch up at the tip of the nail. After patience with laying it down and going back over it before it dried, it fell into that scattered look.

I'm gong to play favorites all over this post...

 

I'm not a fast-food girl; I gave it up 9 years ago. But this is one time I have no regrets at all to ask for a Super Size.

Opinions? Envys? Revulsions?

Too Much Glitter? NEVER!!!

These are two spectacular, glitter-over-the-top, polishes I like...

One word to describe: SPARKLE. One word not to describe: boring.

If you were to ask me to pick you out one super sparkly polish, it would be one of these two. It's only when I see them together that I can make any comparisons, but no preference...

On the left is Icing's 'Pop A Bottle' and, on the right is Color Club's 'Sugar Plum Fairy.' Fairy dust and pixie powder!

'Pop A Bottle' has gold, magenta, and teal micro-glitter in a translucent, very light beige base. The beige helps the glitter become opaque after the second coat. The application of this one, at first, wasn't quite so smooth. It had a habit of bunching up at the tip. I worked at getting more of the glitter to adhere towards the base of my nail by dabbing the brush. After the first coat, however, the other two applied very evenly.

This is 'Sugar Plum Fairy' and it is an iridescence of all Holiday colors. The glitter appears to change color as the angle of view changes. Think of a soap bubble, and there you have it. The refracted light is all over the place so your eyes can't help but to look at it.

Now, comparing them on my nails...

'Pop a Bottle' is on the thumb, middle and pinky. I have 'Sugar Plum Fairy' on the index and ring finger. Are they just not the stuff from a Winter Wonderland?

Using 3 coats made these polishes opaque and awe-inspiring all alone with no color base coat necessary. No fooling, these are gritty. I am showing them to you without a top coat so their own, true shine comes through. And as with almost all glitter, there is the price to pay to remove the stuff. I didn't have to use the foil method but I did scrub, and scrub a lot.

With a closer look, 'Sugar Plum Fairy' photographs like a silver glitter polish. Regular photography doesn't have the ability to give a true depth of a holographic item. Since holograms are most noted when they are moving or light is moving across them, it just doesn't show the true nature. But, I think there are plenty of readers of beauty/nail bloggers that know just how magnificent holographic glitters/polishes can be.

I don't have a favorite between these two. Much like my two cats, I don't have a favorite but love them each for their own existence. So, in all fairness, don't ask me to pick one over the other. :)

Can you say which one is your favorite?

The Ugly Series: Part 2, Ugly Betty

Did you watch the series 'Ugly Betty'? I only did once. However, it reminded me of my start as a 'trimmer'. That's what the title was of the person who dressed the mannequins and made up the displays of clothing on the walls. I did this for a women's dress store that isn't in business any longer but, it was like the dual-sided 'Dress Barn' stores.

I started doing this in Orlando and transferred to Memphis. There, I rotated between 5 different stores. One store had 5 mannequins up on a 10 foot high ledge that was only 2-1/2 feet wide! Oh, and it had neon lights 'waving' on the wall behind the mannequins. If any part of you touched the light, you'd get a burn. However, what the company REALLLY didn't want was to have the lights fry out and then have to be replaced.

Look, I took this job because I thought it was glamorous. Gawd, NO! It was terrible. Dressing mannequins is not easy or fun.

A friend, who didn't work in the retail/fashion business, remarked that I looked like I was having fun dressing the dummies. I must mention, she said this to me as I was wrestling one of the mannequins apart and I wassweating profusely. I promptly set her straight by telling her I had a very 'close' relationship with each dummy. Why, yes. I had given each of them names. But, it was all the same name and, it began with the letter 'B'. And it sure in the hell wasn't Betty!! And with that, I grabbed the dummy's boob and wretched her upper torso away from the lower half. Hmpf...Take that 'Betty!!!'

Thus, my connection, albeit strange, to Ugly Betty.  Here's the manicure version...

Kleancolor's 'Holo Orange'. I used 3 coats and a top coat of China Glaze's 'Fast Forward Top Coat.'

I guess it's orange. But it's a murky orange. I love glitter and I love holographic stuff, but this one tests my loyalty. I'm thinking maybe it would be either one, better for the fall months or two, as a top coat over a tan or brown. It did become mostly opaque with the three coats.

It does seem a light enough color for summer. However, I'm going to let you tell me what you think.

And as far as the 'Betty's'; they deserve that rod up their backsides!

Narcissistic Nail Porn

That title will reel ya in!!! ;)

The dictionary says that narcissistic is:

–noun

1.

inordinate fascination with oneself; excessive self-love; vanity.

2.

Psychoanalysis . erotic gratification derived from admiration of one's own physical or mental attributes, being a normal condition at the infantile level of personality development.

 

So, am I a baby for loving this?... 

 Then, so be it!!!!  I love it too much to care if I'm being narcissistic.  I'm too busy getting off on my nail polish.  LOL!

It was time to get my nails filled.  I always take my own polish because then, I can touch them up if I need to.  Today I just happen to glance at the shelf they have of polishes to choose.  I saw a line up of 5!!! different colored holographic polishes!!!  Greedily, I snatched this one up and stuffed that Tronica I brought deep in my pocket!

This is from a company called 'BTouch'.  I googled it and came up with a distributor of beauty products in China.  Doesn't look like an easy way to order though.  Ebay proved fruitless.  And as much as I begged the owner of the salon to sell me that collection of holos, she wouldn't do it.  She said that she had just received them.  Gosh, there was a blue, gold, green (looked like a Christmas disco!), purple and red and this one.  It is called 'Multi Color Glitter.'  This company is really cheated the polishes by calling them 'glitter'.  Not one was named as a holograph.

The tech only put on 2 thin coats.  I would have made them a bit more thick to get rid of the VNL.  Geez, I don't care if I walk around with VPL if I can have this on my nails!

Talk about a lemming!!!  I want these polishes and I want them NOW!!!  My quest isn't finished until I can find them.  

 

The polish is a bit gritty and I bet I'll have to scrub to get it to come off.  However, that is going to be a some time down the road.  I plan on wearing this for many days considering I don't have the nail polish at my disposal.  I might be reviewing other beauty products for a while. ;)

I think this can be a dupe for many others we have available.  Would you need to get another one, if you had the chance?  How do you feel about being narcissistic with your nails?  Are you OK with that?

 

Just 'Tronica' Take It Away From Me

This post isn't meant to be a tease.  I just need to get my nails done. 

One of the long-term projects I have been working on with an international shoe company, has a launch this week and I'm doing a lot of promos for them.  I love new releases and the product is a huge hit.  So, I'm not going to get to the nail salon til this weekend.

However, I wanted to show you this new polish...

From China Glaze's Tronica collection, this is 'Electra Magenta.'  A magenta base with tons and tons of glitter.  A holographic polish lover's dream!  (That would be me!)

As pretty as I believe it is, it was a pistol to apply.  It wanted to dry quickly so there was no going back over a stroke; it got gloppy.  But once I figured that out and adjusted for that....SWOON!  I polished my nails late in the evening so there wasn't any sunlight, to speak of, to check out the color.  But I was running from room to room in my house gaga-ing it in different light.

On my way home from work, I snapped a photo whilst in my car (only at a very long stop light!).  I have only 1 coat of Seche Vite over 2 coats of 'Electra Magenta.'

Once I got home, I got busy getting a few photos in...

This color looks like it has 'texture' to it.  Reminds me of OPI's Designer Series colors.  Put me in the group that has fallen in love with the Tronica collection!

Did you get any polishes from the Tronica collection?  Do you think magenta is a purple or a pink?

'Dirty Deeds, Done Dirt Cheap' Manicure

In theory, lots of things should work out.  However, I find plenty that just don't.

Here is a polish from a few Christmas' past, China Glaze's 'Golden Enchantment'....

I got this really cheap off a Sally's clearance shelf.  I couldn't snag it fast enough!  One hot, sparkly holographic glitter!  Yep, all at once.  Look at them sparklies...

I didn't kid myself this time; I knew this was not going to be opaque with a hundred coats.  This is the color I chose to use as a base coat...

Out of the Alter Ego collection is Color Club's 'Revealed.'  Don't let it escape you, this does have a very, very slight pink pearl/shimmer to it.

Added together, I got...

Dirty Nails, Done Dirt Cheap.  Blech!  I look like a have failed to wash my hands and nails.  Worse than mannequin hands.

Dirty. And Cheap.  Definitely a mani I wasn't going to keep.  NEXT!!!

Just for kicks, the hyperlink is a parody; check it out.  Rock on, Angus!!!

Some of those light, dusty pinks make my nails/hands look dirty.   Does anyone else have that issue?

Holy Holo Gracious Green Polish

Kim, owner of Overall Beauty, tweeted that she had read, older women wear green polish to look/feel younger.  I promptly told her BALDERDASH!!  Green is for everyone!

 I took LOTS of photos of this one because I LOVE it so much I'd marry it if I wasn't already hitched.  That doesn't stop me from having an affair/love-fest with it!  This is Kleancolor's 'Holo Green.'

Don't even think about taking this green holographic polish away from me!  Partially, all the photo-taking was because I love this one.  If I had to wear only one green for the month, it would be this one.

I only did 2 coats on my ring and pinky fingers to show you how really sheer this polish is.  And on the other digits, I have 4 coats.  'Holo Green' was incredibly easy to use.  And this brand makes thick brushes so that's a large part of that.  I put on one coat of Nailene's 'Miracle Maker' as a top coat.

I think it's a jelly as well.  Now, as beautiful as this polish is, and I got 2 compliments wearing it, it is a pistol to remove.  If you decide to purchase this brand and try their holos, get Zoya's 'Remove+' and you won't have to say a single cuss word.

It's sad that the photos don't show you the truly awesomesauce of bling this polish has.  There is all the green sparkle you can imagine right here.

Although it is a lighter color, the holo effect doesn't diminish.  I feel lucky to have stumbled onto finding this.  I got it at a newly-opened beauty supply store, along with several other jelly holos. :)

Here's a big, baby crying at the door because I'm outside...

Have you tried a polish that's both a jelly and a holo?  Do you agree that green polish is great for any age?