OPI- Crepes Suzi-ette Has Stolen My Heart!

I am so excited! I won the giveaway on KittyPolishNBags, and my package finally arrived! Let me tell you, folks, this chick knows how to package things! Each bottle was wrapped in bubble wrap and taped closed. Then, packing peanuts surrounded the whole thing for even more cushion. Happily, it was a bit like Christmas in that I got to open each package individually, and I'd even forgotten what colors were coming! SO much fun!

Once I had them all opened and entered into my nail polish spreadsheet, I realized I needed to swatch the single OPI in the bunch. It's a creme color that screams fall to me, a deep spicy burnt orange that reminds me of nothing so much as pumpkin pie. It makes me think of leaves changing color, the crisp bite in autumn air, of sweaters and boots and scarves.

Also, I decided to experiment with swatching using artificial nails. I love the way longer nails look on me, but I don't like wearing them all the time. This is a fun diversion for me, but let me know what you think in the comments. If you don't like them so much, I'll try sticking to my own nails.

Back to the polish... It's another one of those lovely matte polishes that I probably wouldn't have chosen for myself, and yet now that I have it, I love it! Maybe there's a lesson in there...

Once I took these photos, I realized I wanted to see what this color would look like with the Glimmer Glosses applied. As you can see, the various colors really do change the color of Crepes Suzi-Ette! The first photos show the nails photographed using flash, which shows the shimmer nicely but seriously altered the color of these. As you can see, Grapefruit Glimmer is packed with a lovely cool pink shimmer, almost glittery. The other two have a more subtle shimmer. Blueberry Burst is full of a very subtle, almost hidden shimmer, while Cherry Fizz is almost all gloss, with just a touch of shimmer bits.

This photo, on the other hand, shows the color more accurately. Blueberry Burst turns the pumpkin pie color of Crepes Suzi-Ette to a deep chocolatey brown, very cool toned. I'm absolutely stunned by this, I wasn't expecting it at all. It's a beautiful brown packed with almost-hidden teeny tiny blue shimmer! Grapefruit Glimmer doesn't change the base color much, but adds an amazing amount of pink sparkle. And Strawberry Fizz takes this to an almost brick-red with the occasional tiny red sparkle. They're all absolutely gorgeous, and I'd wear every one of them!

So, that's OPI Crepes Suzi-Ette. They are fantastic! Have you worn this color? Do you like it? Also, what do you think of the nail tips for swatching? Let me know in the comments!

Nail Doodling: Playing With Nail Art Designs

I got bored again after wearing Shield for just a day or two. The cute little stencil wasn't enough... I had to find something else fun to do. I ended up taking a cue from my sketchbook and started doodling on my nails.

For my thumb, I first stenciled a leaf. Well, I think it's a leaf. It's the shape I used for the tutorial, and although it sort of looks like a crown I figured that if I put a flower on top of it, it would look like a leaf instead. I should have added some detailing to it, but it's not awful. Then I painted a swirly rose. I had a decent-looking rose after 2 colors (red and orange), but then I kept going with various colors (sheer pink, pink striper, white striper) and ended up with... well, this. It's not horrible, but it sort of looks like a badly-wound ball of variegated yarn. Yea... next?

I won't even show a close-up picture of the next one. I stenciled a dragonfly, but it was just... bad. You can see it in the group shot, though, without seeing it magnified to the point it just loses visual coherence. My middle finger was interesting, though.

I used my royal blue glitter striper to paint diagonal stripes onto my nail. Simple, but then I started to think... and I wondered what the water polish would look like over this. Sure enough, it changed the color ever so slightly. It's more visible in person, but since I can't upload my actual fingers, this is as good as y'all are gonna get.

 Finally, there was my pinkie. I pulled out BPAL's Blood Countess and my tiny striping brush and started to doodle swirls and dots. I think I like this one, although I'm not exactly sure. It made a pretty filigree, and the glitter shined through the bloody red in a very delicate fashion.

Of course, now I'm very tempted to do disturbing splatters and drips of blood down my nails with this one. Can't you see it? Ahh, it's so perfect for Halloween! It suits my mood the last couple of days as well! I wonder how well this polish would show on black...

Finally, here's the four nails together. See what I mean about the poor dragonfly? He looked much better in real life.

Ah well, it was a fun experiment! Do you ever doodle on your nails? I'd love to see what you do! Show me, or describe it in the comments!

Some polishes were provided by their companies' PR groups for evaluation.

Using Nail Stencils With Nail Art Pens? Why Not!

Having such a lovely metallic polish on my fingers is fun, but I get bored so easily. As I was looking through my polishes trying to figure out what to do to make things more interesting, I realize that I had some stencils that came with my Kiss Nail Artist Nail Paints that I'd never really used. I wondered if they could be used with nail art pens. I decided to experiment.

 

I pulled out my nail art box and started to experiment. I find my box lid makes a great surface to test on, and cleans up easily with a bit of tape. I painted a layer of Wet nWild Shield onto the box, let it dry, then pulled out my Sally Hansen Nail Art pens. I tried silver first, but then realized that silver on gold is basically invisible. I decided not to share the photos of that one... you can use your imagination, it'll be more helpful than the pics!

But I had more luck with the black pen. It went quickly, and I made sure I colored from the stencil into the nail, instead of from my nail out onto the stencil. That way, it didn't force any polish under potentially unsecured edges. Once I pulled up the stencil, I was left with a lovely design! It was time to move on to my nails...

I went with a single design on my ring fingers, just for fun. I was actually surprised at just how easy it was, and just how cute it turned out! Seriously, this was simple!! All I needed to do was add a layer of Seche Vite over it and I was done! However, this design would look adorable with rhinestone accents... I just didn't think to add any at the time!

Keep in mind that if you're using the Sally Hansen nail art pens that they're water soluble and definitely need a topcoat. If you leave them without it, they'll wash off or flake off, which isn't what you want!

Also, make sure that your nail art has dried with the pens or they will smear like crazy into your topcoat. Once they're dry they're fine, as long as you use alight touch with the topcoat. Once that's dry, they're all sealed in and ready to go!

So remember, the next time you pick up some Kiss Nail Artist Nail Paints to hold on to the stencils, because you can use them with any polishes you like!

Kiss products and Sally Hansen products were provided by the companies for evaluation.

Wet n Wild Craze- Shield

I've whined a good bit about Wet n Wild's basic polishes here. Maybe it's my base coat, maybe it's my application, maybe I got a couple of bad bottles, or maybe it's my chemistry. I have no idea. But I've finally found one that I absolutely adore...

Shield is a desaturated metallic gold that applied like a dream. The brush is very short and squatty, but I found that I had no problem with control, or with reaching the polish in the bottle (like the problem I've had with other bottles). This polish went on smooth and gorgeous and I had almost no need for cleanup, which is odd for me!


I'm also oddly amused by the bottle design. The swirly paisley on the cap makes me smile, and I think the bottle is just adorable. It's not really elegant, but it's cute as can be which also works for me!

I'm not sure why, but I'm often drawn to metallic polishes. It's sad, because they almost never look good on me! Golds are too yellow and make me look sickly, silvers are too cold and just look odd. But this? This is the perfect metallic tone for my skin, in my opinion, and happily I don't cringe when I see it on my fingers!

Unfortunately, I forgot one of the main things I've been testing when I use a new polish- I forgot the stample! I feel so silly, but there's no doubt in my mind that this would stamp beautifully, especially over black. Can't you just see it now...?

Making Faces With My Husband

Let me start by saying my husband rarely shows any interest in my nails. He thinks nail art is kind of silly, but he loves how much fun I have with my nail art and my blog. But recently he happened to be looking over my shoulder while I was cropping some pictures. Things got interesting then...

I was working on these photos of the stamped Bordello nails with a coat of Maybelline's Matte Maker. The matte topcoat did something interesting to Bordello- the satin finish somehow highlighted the shimmer in it, causing it to have a sheen almost like fabric. It's almost magical, really, seeing the change it made. I think I'll be using this Matte Maker again, perhaps to highlight areas on a nail design instead of over the entire nail.

Whew, that was long-winded! Anyway, so I'm working on a closeup of my thumbnail to show the pattern when my husband said, "That looks like a face!"

I turned to him, raised an eyebrow and said, "... wait, what?"

"A face," he continued. "You know, the eyes would go there, and the mouth..." He gestured with his hands, pointing in the general direction of my thumbnail photo.

I didn't know what to say, really. "I love you baby, but you're kinda weird," I said to him, giggling.

For some reason, he wouldn't take no for an answer. "No, really! Do it! Draw a face!"

So I did. He sat with me and told me where to put what, what colors to choose, even where to put the highlight in the eyes. It was cute, and I had to share. I had to tell him that it wasn't exactly what i would have drawn, though. Then he told me fine, to draw my own...

And so I did.

Mine was girlier. I think she could use some hair, too, but overall I think you get the idea. He liked my drawing too, and said she was cuter than his.

Then he dared me to post it to my blog. How could I say no? Besides, I thought it might make someone giggle...

Right?

Anyone?

Please tell me I haven't lost my mind. Please? :D

Manicure is done with Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab's Claw Polish in Bordello, Maybelline  Matte Gold stamped using Konad image plate m79, topped with a coat of Seche Vite, then a coat of Maybelline's Matte Maker top coat. BPAL's Bordello was provided by the company for evaluation.

Stamping the BPAL Bordello...

Once I got that luscious bunch of BPAL Claw Polish, I couldn't stop at swatching. I had to wear at least one as a manicure, and Bordello totally stole my heart. Something about the shimmery sparkly depth of it called to me, and I won't lie- I didn't fight it. I wore it plain for a couple of days, then decided to stamp it using one of the polishes from my recent Dollar Store haul- Maybelline Matte Gold.

It was really pretty, if I do say so myself. I went with a pattern I've used before, simply because I like it. For some reason, of all the image plates I have (hee, not that many), I tend to gravitate toward m79. I love the netted pattern, and although I keep wanting to use others, this one draws me in often.

This time, I found that the pattern stamped in gold played well with the shimmer in Bordello, really capturing the essence of the description of the polish. Black Phoenix Trading Post describes Bordello as "the bright raspberry of Dance Hall flocked wallpaper," and the subtle repeating print mixed with the shimmer really brought to mind aged dance hall patterns.

Because I had a coat of Seche Vite between the base polish and the stamp, there was a subtle depth to the finished look that I loved. The interplay between the shimmers was interesting, and although I finished with another coat of Seche Vite, they almost looked as if they should feel velvety, as if you could reach out and pet them and feel them soft and fuzzy under your fingertips. It was fascinating, and I couldn't stop looking at my nails, shifting them in the light, loving the look of it all.

Of course, the next step would be to paint a matte topcoat over this look, but that's tomorrow's blog. :D

I tried to capture this in a photograph and failed miserably. I wish I could take video of this, show you just how downright magical it looked, the silver shimmer in the Bordello shining up through the raspberry polish, and dancing with the gold stamp. Unfortunately, I failed as a photographer, and am left with only this single image. Sad, isn't it?

But you can imagine with me the sound of the dance hall piano, the laughter of the people inside...

BPAL's Bordello was provided by the company for evaluation.

BPAL has NAILPOLISH now!! Really!

For years, I've watched my friends geek out over BPAL. They get to into it, and it's almost like they've joined a cult with its own language, its own practices. They organize everything into spreadsheets, imps and wish lists, things to keep and things to trade, and elaborate discussions of dry down and top notes and things that I just don't understand. It's smelly stuff, how could it be that awesome?

I stayed away from the mania contently, without feeling the pull. It was easy, because I knew I didn't have the money to get involved, so I'd just watch amusedly from afar, never getting too close lest I be sucked in. That is, I stayed away easily until last week.

Last week, BPAL reached out and grabbed my heart in a sudden, unexpected gesture, and my life will never be the same again. After seeing Magic Maid's post all about the new BPAL Claw Polish, I found myself drawn in against my control. They looked so lush, so beautiful. I found myself at the Black Phoenix Trading Post looking at each polish and its description, swooning. I sent an email to them, congratulating them on their new line, expressing my pleasure at seeing them have such a lovely, expressive line of colors for their first nail polishes, and a request to be aded to their PR list for future information.

I was surprised to hear back from an absolutely wonderful person named Puddin. We had a fun email exchange, but most of all he told me to expect a little package from them. I was ecstatic! But when it got here, I was absolutely dumbfounded! That lovely man had sent me 9 polishes from the line that seemed absolutely perfectly chosen for me. I'm not sure how he did it, just that he did, and I couldn't wait to swatch them all... I interrupted the post I was making just to swatch and photo. Finally, I'm ready to post the results!

First I painted them onto my nails in a sort of blood-related skittles mani. It actually worked well, showing the relation of the colors and how they're subtly different from each other. Photographing these was almost impossible, because flash severely altered the colors, but shooting manual made the colors have an incredibly orange cast to them. However, with a bit of photoshop I was able to rescue the manual shots into something that's almost accurate.

These polishes are decadent. I mean that... they go on silky smooth, creamy as ... the creamiest thing imaginable. I struggle for words. The colors are divinely pigmented, ranging from the deep dark blood-colored Blood Countess, to the dried-blood shade of Lady Macbeth, and ending with the color of fresh arterial spray in Mme Moriarty. These shots aren't 100% accurate- Mme Moriarty truly is the color of fresh blood, deep red and thick and absolutely beautiful on the skin. Sed Non Satiata is a more pink shade, described by BPAL as being "Lust captured: pulsating deep burgundy." They're all absolutely gorgeous creme polishes that I am thrilled to have.

Moving on, there is the other four, which are less blood oriented: Maiden is a very sheer, pale pink that would probably be good for french manicures or for people who want a touch a color, but not a lot. Opium poppy is a vivid  pink for those who love color, a bright hot pink that commands attention. Bordello is my favorite- a silver shimmer in this deep pink that is simply stunning on the nail. One coat of this is sufficient, but I chose to do two coats for every polish. The last polish on this hand is Midnight on the Midway, a plum frost that is my least favorite of the bunch. It's not bad, by any stretch of the imagination, it simply appears slightly dated compared to the other shades. However, it's still lush and beautiful, covering generously with one coat.

The final polish in the bunch is Embalming Fluid, a gorgeous lime green in the bottle that applies sheer and glittery over any polish you put it over. Unfortunately, I seem to have neglected to get any photos of it!! I'll hopefully remedy that soon, and do an update on it.

Of course, by this point, there was only one thing to do:  I had to test the stampability of these polishes! I used my new method of stamping onto a white sticker that I then apply onto the bottle, so that I know just how well it stamps without having to jump into my spreadsheet to check it! My husband and I came up with the perfect word for these- STAMPLES! As you can see, they're all extremely good for stamping except for Maiden and Embalming Fluid, which left the page basically blank and are simply too sheer to stamp with.

I highly recommend enlarging this one to see the stample details!

And so we reach the conclusion of my epic swatchathon. These polishes are available at the BPAL Trading Post for $9 each, are big 3 free, and in my opinion are at least equal in quality with my Deborah Lippman polishes. Add in the amazing customer service and you cannot go wrong with any of these polishes. I think they are absolutely amazing, and I ended up wearing Bordello as my nail of the day for a full week! It stayed on until I took a very leisurely hour-long bath, which soaked the polish off several of my nails. But any polish would have done the same, so I'm not complaining about that at all!

So- if you're at all interested in these shades (and I do so hope that you are), when you head over to the Trading Post, be sure to tell Puddin you read about them here!