Checkin' in

I've had a few people asking me where I've been so I thought I'd check in-

I'm still alive :) I just haven't really felt up to posting/email/twitter lately.

Normal posting will resume when I'm feeling better

China Glaze Poolside Collection Summer 2010

Okay, wow! Brightness! China Glaze has a tradition of doing neons each summer and I'd actually be a little worried if I didn't see a neon collection from them this year.... But... they did and here it is!

A quick note before I post the pictures: These pictures are not 100% true to life. Neons must really be seen in person to experience the full effect of the brightness and fluorescence of the shades. They do freaky things to cameras and the best photos I've been able to get of them are mere approximations. They are super bright, vivid and glowing in real life.

Flip Flop Fantasy. This is a super bright and almost... milky looking?... in-between coral orange pink shade. Out of all the shades, I'd say this is the most unique for sure. I can't think of another color that really matches this one. The closest I can think of is Jessica My Cabana Boy, to give you an idea of the shade.

Kiwi-Cool-Ada. Your standard medium neon green creme. Very glowy. Not totally unique, but still hot. There are just not enough neon greens in this world. I wish this was closer to Limonyte, but it's really closer to Color Club Limelight.

Pool Party. Super super bright glowing neon reddish-pink creme. This is a rich-toned neon, very colorful, very bright, very saturated. Much better in real life than in my picture.


Sun Worshiper. Light glowing neon orange creme. This reminds me a lot of that ubiquitous blue box of noodles with the unnervingly neon orange powder that's supposed to represent cheese... Unnaturally bright! This is almost like Color Club Explosive in color, very glowy bright-light fake-cheese orange with yellow tones.


Towel Boy Toy. This one is more of a bright than a neon even though it dries matte like neons do. It's a bright pretty sky blue with a very subtle shimmer to soften the overall look. Pool water!


Yellow Polka Dot Bikini. Woohoo, yellow! This is a lot like Celtic Sun but much more opaque and dense. Creamy base more than a jelly-like base. This was the sheerest of all the shades and I'm wearing four coats here, but the overall effect is definitely worth the trouble. It's not quite as bright as Essie Limelight but it is a lot brighter and yellow-er than Color Club Volt of Light.

The formula on these was okay. Not good or bad, kind of middle of the road. Not difficult to apply but not buttery-smooth-perfect, if that makes sense. Average. The only application issues I encountered were the watery consistency of Towel Boy Toy and the slight streakiness of Yellow Polka Dot Bikini. The colors are quite sheer on the first coat but are pretty much opaque in three. I'm wearing three coats of all but Yellow Polka Dot Bikini in these pictures and I'm satisfied with the coverage. A fourth coat would just be icing on the cake. And, like all neons, these dry to a matte finish. If you want them to be shiny, you will need to apply topcoat. If you like them matte, leave them as-is.

I love neons, so these were right up my alley. Even though the shades aren't totally unique, brand-new never-before-seen groundbreaking colors, they're still incredibly lovely. I think it's probably pretty hard to make an entirely unique neon so I don't fault them at all for that. I find that the formula, dry time and application of these is greatly improved from previous China Glaze neons and I'm rather fond of the intense glow these colors provide.

I don't have the exact date, but these are scheduled for a February release. Should be any day now!

(These were sent to me for review)

Savvy Red Caviar and CND Crimson Sparkle

Savvy Red Caviar with CND Crimson Sparkle. I am not totally in love with the new CND effects, but I really liked this combination.

Color Club Spring 2010 Rebel Debutante

The first of Color Club's spring offerings this year is called 'Rebel Debutante' and it's really different from what I'm used to from Color Club! Very unexpected. All cremes!



Best Dressed List. Looks like a nice fleshy light brown on me. Sort of a nude shade. Soft and flattering on my skin tone but I can see this shade working on a variety of tones.



Charity Ball. Oooh... yuck.



Gossip Column. Very nice rich medium teal. A little more on the blue side than the green side of teal, but not quite as blue as it looks in my picture.


High Society. Soft mousy grey with a little something more to it.... maybe a really subtle purple or reddish undertone? It gives the grey here a little extra richness and I can't quite place what it is.


Ms. Socialite. Medium red-toned purple creme. Love this one! Even though it's not really a bright shade, it still stands out.


Rebel Debutante. Ah, that's more like it. For a collection called 'Rebel Debutante', this seems to be the only rebellious color! It's a soft neon green. I know, that makes no sense, but picture it... A very soft, sort of light and almost pastel shade of green but with neon glow and intensity. I couldn't capture this color in pictures, it freaked out my camera.


She's Soooo Glam. A rich looking light pink. Very dense and opaque. I like the tone of this one, it looks half cute and half super 80's. I didn't quite capture the color in this picture, either. It looks better in real life.... richer... pinker. Different, another feature that I can't pinpoint.



Uptown Girl. Soft dusty mauvey lavender. We've seen a lot of colors like this in the last two years and that's a-okay with me! I personally love this type of shade.


Who Are You Wearing? A light white or dove grey with a subtle touch of lavender. Sort of like a creme version of Urban Decay's White Widow. Kinda spooky looking. Interesting. I like it, this is my second favorite of the collection for sure.

The formula was good. Standard Color Club formula, no real issues. I like that they seem to be really consistent. Maybe it's cause they're all cremes, but they all applied identically. This is two coats of all.


Overall, I'm 50/50 on this collection. I like almost all the shades (except Charity Ball, first time I've ever said yuck about a Color Club shade! Sadness) but they don't seem totally unique. But, more so, they don't seem like the Color Club I know and love! There's not much variety or innovation like I've seen in past Color Club sets. They're kinda sleepy, not lively. That's not to say I don't like this collection, because I do like the colors and the formula, it just seems... different. It doesn't seem to have that trademark Color Club spark. Color Club's other two spring collections more than make up for the lack of variety and excitement here, at least.

Neons and glitters are coming :)

(These were sent to me for review.)

Orly Metal Chic Collection

I was so torn on these. At first I thought, man, I'm matte-d out, I do not want to even look at another matte! But then I was like... well... I might as well take a look, I like the names... So I went to Sally, put them in my basket, brought them to the checkout and went eeeehhhh.... These are kinda boring. And I put them back! But then my curiosity got the better of me and I eventually ordered them from 8ty8 because they were way cheaper, and man, WHY DIDN'T I JUST BUY THESE THE FIRST TIME?! THEY'RE AWESOME!! ARGH!

Anyway. Yeah. I really, really misjudged these. Take a look.

Glam Rock. This is kind of a copper metallic-flake matte. See?? Isn't it cool? It's a lot like the OPI Suedes, but this is all metallic. Metallic base, metallic shimmer. Very interesting speckled effect.



Iron Butterfly. In-a-gadda-da-vida honey, don't you know that I love you... in a gadda da vida baby.... don't you know that I'll always be true.... Oh won't you come with me and take my hand.... Oh won't you... what? You honestly expected me to actually review a polish with a name like this? *continues rocking out*


Solid Gold. Very nice gold, a little orangey, maybe a hint of greenish-brown to it. I think my skin tone makes it pull more brownish. Nice metal flake action going on here. I'm diggin' it.


And, of course, with topcoat because DAMN:




Glam Rock.


Iron Butterfly. *organ solo*


Solid Gold.


The formula on these was excellent. Easy to work with, thick but not impossible, good opacity. They do dry quickly but not immediately so you have a little time to work. Really nice *fully* matte effect, not wishy-washy half-matte rubbery look that I hate. These are velvety.


So, yeah. They're kinda awesome. I am kicking myself for writing them off because I ended up liking these a LOT. Especially with topcoat.