Quick Look: Sally Hansen - Grape Race

Here's a quick peek at Sally Hansen's Insta Dri polish in Grape Race. This is part of a limited edition collection that didn't seem to have a name, but it came out this past spring. This is a really beautiful milky purple creme polish. The application was effortless, and the nice thing about the brushes on these Insta Dri polishes is they have rounded tips which make it really easy to get every bit of the nail covered without making a huge mess (especially nice if you have a hard time staying within the lines!)

I really enjoy the Insta Dri line by Sally Hansen, and Grape Race is yet another that I love. I've received quite a few compliments on this color, and I have to agree - it's gorgeous!

The accent nail is a purple glitter crackle from China Glaze called Luminous Lavender. I don't like how this looks at all - really it just looks like I have weird chunky glitter on my nail. Truth be told, I'm over crackle polish but I hadn't ever tried this one and wanted it out of my untried stash. 

I topped this manicure off with a coat of Sally Hansen Insta-Dri top coat and wa-lah!

What are you wearing this Wednesday? 

Quick Look: China Glaze - Creative Fantasy

This was one heck of a polish to photograph. My camera insisted on making it look blue, and even in this picture which is ALMOST the right color, it still looks bluer than in reality. Creative Fantasy is part of China Glaze's Cirque du Soleil Worlds Away collection which had a lot of fun colors, but of which I own only one.  This polish is described as neon purple, and has a jelly finish (which I love). I'm wearing three coats, and topped it off with Sally Hansen Insta-Dri top coat. Just one coat is horribly streaky, and two is almost right. Three is the magic number. 

--

(Funny side note - my husband took it upon himself to see if he could get the polish to photograph correctly... future nail blogger in the works?)

--

Zoya - Aurora

Say hello to my new favorite nail polish! Long have I been lusting over Zoya's Aurora, and a couple months back I snagged it and (true to form) I let it sit in my "untrieds" pile for way too long! This color is absolutely amazing, which you might have guessed I would say, as it's jam-packed with holographic glitter - MY FAVORITE!

Aurora is a gorgeous plum color that is really out of this world. It looks like there are neverending layers of glitter on my nails. Beware, once your nails hit the sunlight - you will not be able to look away! Aurora definitely lives up to the hype, and I'm so glad I snagged a couple polishes from this line (Zoya's Ornate collection). I can't wait to try this on my toes for summer! 

Have a great Monday!!

--

Nicole by OPI - Di-Vine is Divine

Today I've got an oldie but a goodie, a polish that has been sitting on my untried shelf for far too long. For some reason it just never caught my eye as I looked for something new to wear, but not any longer! Today I'm sporting Di-Vine is Divine from Nicole by OPI. 

This is two coats topped off with one coat of Seche Vite. The color is very pretty, a deep berry purple with a bit of shimmer. True to OPI fashion, application was very easy and smooth.

Funny enough, a couple years ago I wouldn't even wear dark purple polish like this. I just didn't like the deep, blue-ish hue. Nowadays, I've come around and actually enjoy purple nails every now and then. While this color is very pretty, there isn't anything too special about it. I'm not in love with it, although I don't dislike it. I probably won't reach for it again, unless it fits with a theme or certain outfit. There's just not much else to say! 

Essie - Splash of Grenadine

I am in love with this color. I don't even know what exactly you call this sort of almost neon pinkish purple, but Essie calls it Splash of Grenadine. This is a gorgeous summery pink/purple that is not something you see everday. 

I'm wearing two coats of Splash of Grenadine. Application was fabulous, and I easily could have used only one coat for an opaque coverage. I kept it nice and simple because I had a work event this weekend and didn't want to be too flashy. Even with no extra detail it's still a great stand alone mani. 

I think this would also look really pretty for a pedicure, especially with some fun designs or stamping.  What do you think? Are you in love with this color as much as I am?

Sally Hansen - Grape Escape

Today I decided to try something a bit vampy and out of season, just to break the cycle a bit. This is two coats of Sally Hansen Insta Dri - Grape Escape topped off with one coat of Sally Hansen Insta Dri top coat. It was really hard to capture the true color of this polish, although it does look quite blue in person, as the pictures show. In the bottle it is a gorgeous shimmering purple, but once on the nail, it comes off as a deep blue with purple tints.

In this picture it looks a bit more purple than the first. This picture is a pretty accurate depiction of the true color. I think this color would be good as a base for nail art, but on it's own it is rather boring.

I also put Grape Escape on my toes, and after one day of wearing it alone, I decided to top it off with China Glaze Platinum Pieces Silver Metal Crackle to make it a little more interesting.

Sally Hansen - Lavender Envy

Well, my nails are still looking pretty rough after I broke every single one while moving last weekend and sadly, this polish is just not the most flattering - but hey, I figured I better show you this one as proof that not every manicure is a success. This is two coats of Sally Hansen - Lavender Envy from the Xtreme Wear collection. The color itself is not so bad - it's a very sheer purple with greenish blue micro shimmer - but I think the Kleancolor - Matte Magic topcoat I used screwed everything up. 

Kleancolor - Matte Magic is a very thick and goopy top coat that takes forever to dry (are all matte topcoats like this? I have only ever tried this one, as I'm not a huge fan of  matte polish). It made the polish bubbly and it smeared and wrinkled and made a glob around my nail sticker. 

I'm going to be perfectly honest when I say I hate this manicure, but I'm just too lazy to do anything about it right now. Come Monday, hopefully my nails will have recovered a bit, and I'll do something much cuter than this! 

What manicure of yours did you absolutely hate?

Love & Beauty - Unnamed Polish

I know it's spring and I should be wearing all sorts of fun pastels, but for some reason, today I was craving something more vampy. And that's where this beauty of a polish comes in. This is an unnamed Love & Beauty polish that I got in a set for my birthday about a month ago. It's a beautiful eggplant colored creme polish, it's a shame it doesn't have a name! Just two coats and it was good to go! It looks much more purple in the sun, but in the shade it tends to look brown or black. 

Normally I don't like to wear such dark colors, as my skin is obviously very fair and dark colors are such a contrast, but this polish gives me hope that perhaps I can branch out a bit more than I normally do. I think it would look awesome with some gold or bronze stamping over the top, but I was feeling lazy. Next time. :)