The Leopard Gecko Manicure (Milani- Totally '80s)

Normally, I do not create nail art I am proud enough of to title an entire post with. Today, however, I feel I've created something unique enough to do this with. I was at a lecture yesterday, and one of the animals the guest speaker used in his study of reproductive behavior was this guy. Wild Leopard Geckos are only white and pale yellow with a variety of sizes of black spots.
The pale yellow I used was Milani Neon in Totally '80s. The color is a highlighter yellow-green, but is not so bright as to be garish on the nail. However, unlike my Kleancolor neons, this one definitely requires a white base, otherwise it will not be opaque. It's pretty subtle, and a good "my first crazy neon" polish.
To make this nail art, I first painted my nails with a basecoat, then painted them white. After the white dried, I got a wedge-shaped cosmetic sponge and sponged a little Totally '80s onto either the top or bottom third of the nail. When that dries, use a black nail polish to create large spots and a nail art pen or dotting tool to create smaller spots in the negative space. Finish with a topcoat, but wait for the design to dry, otherwise you will smear the black into the white.

Revlon- Hot for Chocolate

As much as some people seem to really like colors such as dark brown for fall, I just find it downright weird to paint my nails such a color. Hence, it is somewhat difficult for me to come up with creative ways to wear this polish. So, after watching Katy Perry's "Roar" for the ten millionth time, I decided to do a cheetah print on my nails with the polish.
To be honest, I don't really like this polish. It's thick, streaky, messy and is still somehow not opaque after two or three coats despite how dark it is. If it were less dark, I might like it, but it also chips in an annoyingly short amount of time to get any satisfaction from the polish alone.
Thus, I used it to add some more realistic color to my leopard nails. This look would be a little bit better if the color was a bit lighter, as it is indistinguishable from the black I used from a distance.
To create this look, I started off with a basecoat, and then one coat of a nude polish. Then I made splotches of various shapes and sizes of the aforementioned brown polish. After that dried, I used my Sally Hansen nail art pen to create little brackets and c shaped black spots on the nail. To finish off, I used my Butter London topcoat.

Sally Hansen Complete Manicure- I Pink I Can

This is one of the oldest, most trustworthy polishes in my collection. This color is tried and true, and definitely still available wherever Sally Hansen is sold. I have yet to purchase another Complete Manicure polish, but this is because there is just so much Sally Hansen to try out there.
The formula claims to be a topcoat, basecoat and color all in one, but since I am a chef and work in a kitchen for a living, I felt the need to add my own top and base coats to really protect the nail. I have worn it without in the past, and I am really impressed by the minimal wear it exhibits.
Another really nice thing about the design is the very wide brush it comes with. Wide brushes are a complete hit or miss, but this one provides control and leaves very little mess around the cuticles and sides of the nail. The finish is very glossy, and the formula is completely opaque in two coats, making this particular polish a really good value.

Spoiled by Wet n' Wild- Checkin' into Rehab

This rather unfortunately named polish is part of a new, somewhat higher quality than usual line Wet n' Wild is doing exclusively for CVS. They are $1.99 USD each, and if you live in a Rite Aid or Walgreens area, you can get them online (I hear the shipping is really cheap).
This is the second bottle of three that I have acquired over the years, and so far this is my favorite. The texture and formula are totally unique, like the base for a glitter polish but with very small and sparse glitters. This unfortunately makes the polish very sheer, requiring 4-5 coats to be satisfactorily opaque. However, because it is so thin, it does not pool or clump, making it very easy to control where it goes on the nail. I recommend this polish very highly, and I certainly think I'll try some more from the collection.

Kleancolor- Neon Yellow

Here is the second color in the six polish Kleancolor neon collection- yellow. I like to wear this color in the fall and the winter, because I think it provides a nice contrast to the reds, browns, blacks and purples people normally like to wear this time of year. This particular polish was bought online as part of a set, so I would estimate that purchased individually, it would be about $2 USD.
Let me preface this by saying I get a lot of mileage out of this polish. It is the only yellow I own, and I really don't see why I should get another one. Unlike many neon colors, this one becomes opaque enough in 2 coats not to require a white base.
The only drawback to this polish is probably just an anomaly to my particular bottle. It was the first in the set of six that I opened, and it had a very peculiar smell; not at all like nail polish but instead more like diesel or some other hydrocarbon fuel. The other five colors smell completely normally, so I think there was just a goof up at the plant or something.

Maybelline Color Show- Porcelain Party

Let me start off by saying this: I have along running history of being extremely disappointed with all the Maybelline products I have ever tried. From the clumpy mascaras to the sticky lipglosses to the crumbly blush, I was abut ready to give up on the brand altogether. However, the colorshow line of polishes made me change my mind. From the cute little packages to the wide variety of colors to the attractive prices ($1.99 USD,) I thought I would give it a try. Also, Jenny Fox spoke very highly of one of the colors in a recent YouTube video, and she is a dedicated Essie/OPI/Chinaglaze fan, so I thought I'd get the white polish for nail art and see how it performed.
Overall, I'm really impressed. It's a bit sheer, but with three coats and a topcoat, no one has to know it was from the drugstore. I use it for just about all my nail art, including as a white base for ombre manicures, neons and animal prints. Today, I chose to incorporate it into a simple French manicure, using Revlon in "Sheer Blush" as the French pink color.
All too often, French manicures look cheesy and overdone, and on the toes especially, a little white trash. My response was to put the white tip directly over the basecoat and then apply the French pink color and the topcoat to make the white less stark and make the whole thing look more natural.
Overall, I think this is the only Maybelline product I have ever liked, and maybe I will even get another one. They have introduced a line of polka dot nail polishes that have a colored base and contrasting matte circular glitters, which sounds interesting and worth a shot.

OPI- Black Onyx

When one gets into nail art, it is imperative to have a good quality set of striping and dotting tools, and of course a solid compliment of black and white polish. Black Onyx is my go-to black polish if I am creating a design that is beyond the scope of a black nail art pen. Of course, this particular polish also looks good by itself or with some glitter because the finish is very much unlike sharpie. OPI's permanent collection are usually about $9 USD, and always worth a look because only the most successful shades from the collections make it into the permanent lineup.

One surprising and disappointing thing about this particular bottle... when I got it home and opened it, several of the brush bristles were crooked and bent, making application messy and awkward. This is not typical of OPI, so I was a little bit surprised. That's something you could expect of an NYC or Wet n' Wild polish.

Below are my nails with a coat of Butter London nail foundation, Black Onyx, Essie's A Cut Above, and Butter London Hardwear P.D. Quick topcoat. To get the glitter fade effect: after your base color has dried, paint one coat of glitter about 2/3 of the way down the nail, and then go back with more glitter concentrated on the tip of the nail.

Sally Hansen Gem Crush- Showgirl Chic

Sally Hansen Gem Crush is a series of 8 polishes that joined the permanent SH lineup in early 2012. Each polish features a clear base with a very small glitter of one color and a larger glitter in a complimentary color. Showgirl chic has small silver glitter and larger (but not much larger) blue glitter accents. The bottles are about $6-7 USD and can be found just about everywhere.
Overall, I am quite impressed by this particular polish and the collection as a whole. Unlike many glitter polishes, the glitter is dense enough to completely cover the nail in two to three coats, not requiring a colored basecoat to make it seem opaque. This color is nice, but without the little flecks of blue would be nothing special. As these are glitter polishes, add an extra coat of your topcoat when you finish to keep the texture smooth and even.

Orly- Gumdrop

Gumdrop is one of the many pastel shades that came up in the aftermath of the so called "revolution" Essie's "Mint Candy Apple" started in 2008. Gumdrop is a lovely pale green creme, which is dark enough to be appropriate for seasons colder than spring and summer. It is part of Orly's permanent collection, which runs for about $8.50 USD each and feature an ergonomically designed rubber cap that gets updated every once in a while along with color and logo on the bottle. Mine happens to be the 2012 version.
This is one of my favorite polishes. I t applies evenly, is opaque in two coats and not sheer despite the fact that it is a pastel, and makes a great backdrop for any nail art design. Even without a topcoat, it is very difficult to chip. Of all the pastel greens and blues I own, this is my favorite because it is not too pale and not prone to dings and streaking.

The "Crackle" topcoat I put on a few accent nails here is Nabi's "Crack Nail" in Gray. I know this trend is a bit old, but this particular crackle effect topcoat is my absolute favorite at any price point I have ever had and occasionally I feel like wearing it.

Kleancolor- Neon Purple

Neon colors have been very popular for the last year or so, and so far my favorite collection of them is Kleancolor's. I bought them on Amazon for $12 USD, which is a pretty great deal for this brand. There are six polishes in the collection in every color of the rainbow except for red, and today I painted my nails with the neon purple.
The purple has a very understated shimmer to it which reacts well to a high gloss topcoat, giving it a shellac or gel effect. The color is dark and pigmented, but no so dark as to classify it is a royal purple. The formula is opaque in two coats, does not streak and has a unique color and shine. I love to use it in nail art designs as is evidenced by all the different blobs of color all over the bottle.
If you are looking for a cheap alternative to Essie's "DJ Play That Song," I highly recommend this polish.

 

Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear- Golden-I and Coral Reef

I have always had a mixture of success and failure with this line of Sally Hansen polishes, the lowest price point Xtreme Wear. In general, the metallic and shimmer polishes are very nice, but the glitters and cremes leave something to be desired. Today, I tried out two of these polishes for the first time: Coral Reef, a bright pink coral creme and Golden-I, a metallic, shimmery gold.
Coral Reef performed better than expected. The color is a bit too pink for my liking. Essie has a polish by the same name which is slightly warmer in tone and has more red in the color. Sally Hansen's is more poppy-colored and orangish. The formula was nearly opaque in one coat, but did pool at the sides of the nail a few times and was not very thick although quite pigmented.
My favorite of the two was definitely Golden-I. This metallic color was opaque with 2-3 coats and spread very evenly over the nail. Dry time was a bit long, so top coat application was sort of an issue. Overall, it had a beautiful finish and had lovely little gold flecks that looked really neat under bright light.

Also, these are not my hands. My friend Keri really wanted me to paint her nails these colors, so I did.

Mystery polish #1

In my collection, there is a wide variety of brands both high and low end, textures, colors and effects. Most of these polishes have a name and a number, which is useful for organization and to talk about the particular polish. However, there are a few polishes in my collection which I have either lost the label for or never had one in the first place.
This particular polish is from NYC's "Color in a New York minute" collection. It's actually really nice for such a cheap polish and I really like the color. I put up a picture of the bottle and swatched it on my toes. Can you help me out and tell me the name of this color? Thanks.

Butter London P.D. Quick Topcoat

I have been running out of my old Orly topcoat for some time, and so I went to the store today and purchased a topcoat and basecoat set from Butter London for $25 USD, which is an excellent price for such an expensive brand. It even came with its own adorable little case!
I have yet to try out the basecoat, but I put the topcoat on my nails and was very impressed. It does indeed dry very quickly and leaves nails feeling very hard and glossy.
To make a manicure really last, apply topcoat every other day. I think this one will be around for a while.

Essie- Lilacism

Lilacism is the palest purple polish I own. I believe it is part of the permanent lineup of Essie polish and first became available in 2012. Essie is most commonly about $8 USD a bottle, except for topcoats, Luxeffects and the repstyle magnetic polishes.
This particular polish is a pastel creme with a high quality formula and a narrow brush. However, it is a bit sheer because it is such a pale color, taking about 3 coats to get it opaque.
This particular polish has a flat top to the cap with the name of the color on a label on top and Essie is printed in white on the bottle because it came from a mass retailer (Target) instead of a beauty supply store. However, I have noticed no difference in price or formula whether I buy them from a drugstore or a professional cosmetics store.

Colors used in nail art on ring finger: Sinful Colors nail striper in Anxious Azure, black Sally Hansen nail art pen and Sally Hansen Diamond Lust in Black diamonds. Topcoat is Orly nail defense.

The polish on the left is Essie Luxeffects topcoat in "A Cut Above," which was purchased at a professional beauty supply store because of the big embossed E on the cap.

OPI- Bond, James Bond

I know Magnetic polish is a little bit too.. fall 2012, but for those who might be still interested in the genre, I will go ahead and tell you about this one.
The polish is a dull bronze color in the bottle, but using the magnet creates a golden color in the design on the nail. This polish was part of the James Bond/ Bond Girls collection OPI periodically releases to celebrate new Bond films, this one being from the release of Skyfall. The polish was rather expensive, $17.95 USD, but only to be expected because magnetic polish is about 30% more expensive than its ordinary counterparts of the same brands.
This is one of only two magnetic polishes I own, and this is the one I prefer, probably because OPI is a much more high quality brand than Nabi. The texture is similar to all the other shimmery OPI polishes I own, does not chip easily, and is really easy to brush on with the included pro-wide brush. The included magnet makes a lattice or fishnet type design.
As with any magnetic polish, the formula is a bit thick because of the metal particulates and will therefore take a very long time to dry.

To apply any magnetic polish:
1. Apply a base coat and a very thin coat of the color.
2. Apply another coat of the color to make it opaque.
3. Apply a third, very thick coat of the polish.
4. While the third coat is still wet, hold the magnet just a few millimeters from your nail.
5. Wait just a second and carefully move the magnet away from the nail.
6. let dry for about 15 minutes, then apply topcoat.
7. The whole thing should be dry enough to touch things without messing them up in the next 45 or so minutes.

Again, I'm fully aware that complex nail art, glitters and duochromes are the thing right now, but these are phasing out and going on sale at most retailers, so if you want to try it without spending as much as you would have a year ago, now is the time.

Review 9/10/13: Sonia Kashiuk for Target in Stop Whining

I got this polish at Target about 3 years ago, so I guess this is a testament to how long it has lasted as I have never had to thin it back out with any acetone. I believe it is part of the permanent lineup of her colors and it is relatively inexpensive.
The formula is creamy, applies well and is opaque in two coats. My only complaint is that it takes a while to set up and dry and that like most drugstore polishes, chips fairly easily without a topcoat.
Applying only one coat gives a lovely reddish color, so sometimes I like to paint my nails white and put one coat of this color over it.