Uh Oh!

Sorry for the inconvenience, but if you follow me through Google Friend Connect, it looks like you are going to have to click to follow me on the new site. My blog posts on blogger redirect over there, but my new posts there don't show up on the GFC feed unless you follow me there. I hope that made sense because it did in my head lol.

I'm such a dinosaur...this is all completely over my head. Thank you for your continued patience during this time!

I've moved...

Thank you for your patience! I've finally gotten everything straightened out. The new site is at http://www.nailnoir.com. Please update your bookmarks, blogrolls, and subscriptions if you have not already done so.

Thank you and I hope to see you at the new site!

Comparison: Corals with Gold Shimmer

Today I am comparing Essence What Do U Think? and Pure Ice Twinkle. Both polishes have a coral base with gold shimmer. The base colors are very similar, but these are not dupes.

I have to apologize for the swatch quality. I had originally swatched these three days ago, but my camera would not pick up the true color indoors and we didn't get any real sun here until yesterday. By then, my nails had scuffs and nicks.

Anyway, here are some bottle pics:







As you can see, the shimmer in Twinkle is a lot finer than that of WDUT?

This is two coats of WDUT? on my middle and pinky, and three coats of Twinkle on my index and ring fingers.





As you can see, the shimmer in WDUT? is barely detectable on the nail, which was a disappointment because I prefer the larger shimmer particles.

Formula wise, WDUT? was superior; it was opaque in two coats. Twinkle wasn't bad, it's just a tad on the sheer side and needs three coats. Both applied well.

Even with the shimmer tease factor, I prefer WDUT?.

What Do U Think? lol

Happy painting!

Comparison: Shimmery Pinks

Today I have a comparison between Sally Hansen Bubblegum Pink, OPI Japanese Rose Garden, and Revlon Temptress. Each of these polishes are pink with fine silver shimmer. You can tell by looking at the bottles that they aren't dupes, but let's see how they compare to each other.




This is two coats of Bubblegum Pink on the pointer finger, two coats of Japanese Rose Garden on the middle and pinky, and two coats of Temptress on the ring finger (no topcoat on any):

Indoors shot; the shimmer in each of these is so fine that it all but disappears in indoor lighting:



Sunlight: there's the shimmer!





Bubblegum Pink is the...barbiest, for lack of a better word. Japanese Rose Garden has a tad bit of dustiness that makes it intersting, and Temptress is the lightest and most neutral of the three.

Formula wise, JRG won, but Temptress wasn't too far behind. BP was a little chalky and hard to work with.

Which do you like best?

Happy painting!

Comparison: OPI DS Extravagance vs. Ulta Material Girl

Today I have two burgundy polishes with rainbow holographic glitter. They look very close in the bottle and close on the nail, but there are a couple of differences.




This is two coats of Extravagance on the pointer and ring fingers, and two coats of Material Girl on the middle and pinky fingers. No topcoat on either:



Extravagance is a little more rich and vivid.



Also notice how glossy Extravagance is compared to Material Girl, which is dull and gritty to the touch. The scattered holo is pretty much the same, but Material Girl doesn't have that faint orange flash to it like Extravagance does(my camera never picks up the orange, but it's definitely there).





Formula wise, Extravagance is superior. Both go on smoothly, but Extravagance dries to a gloss. Material Girl definitely needs a topcoat for shine and a smooth finish.

If I had to pick one, it would be Extravagance, but Material Girl is a fine substitute. They aren't dupes, but they're close enough that you don't need both.

ETA: Material Girl removes like a glitter polish. In other words, you might want to use the foil method. Extravagance removes like any other non-glitter polish.

Happy painting!

Comparison: Maybelline Banana Puddin' and Revlon Sunshine Sparkle

Today I have two pale yellow polishes to compare. Banana Puddin' is a creme, and it's one of those discontinued shades that's fairly easy to find (try Dollar Tree). Sunshine Sparkle is from Revlon's new summer line, and it's a shimmer.



In the bottle, the base colors look quite close (sorry about the crappy bottle pics). Let's look at them on the nail. This is three coats of Banana Puddin' on the pointer and ring fingers, and three coats of Sunshine Sparkle on the middle and pinky fingers. No topcoat on either:



Sunlight:



As you can see, the base colors are not identical. SS is a shade darker and a little more vivid; BP is very pale.

Formula wise, SS wins for me. Yellows are notoriously difficult to apply, and these two were no exception. Even so, SS was completely even in three coats while BP was still a little patchy (you can see it on my pointer finger in the pic above).

If I could only choose one to keep in my stash, it would definitely be Sunshine Sparkle. The shimmer is really pretty and it's a tad easier to apply.

You don't need both. In indoor lighting, the shimmer in SS isn't noticeable unless you're specifically looking for it. I had a dinner to attend the day I swatched these so I painted my left hand with SS and left the right hand as it is in the pics. I couldn't tell the difference between the two in the restaurant.

Do you own either of these? Which do you prefer?

Happy painting!

Comparison: Pure Ice Purple Reign vs. OPI Catherine the Grape

Today I'm comparing two smoky purples. I originally thought these two shades were close, but after reviewing them side-by-side, it's clear that they are not.



This is two coats of Catherine the Grape on the pointer and ring fingers, and three coats of Purple Reign on the middle and pinky fingers (no topcoat on either):



As you can see, Purple Reign has a cool base while Catherine the Grape is more warm and red-based. The gold shimmer is also different; PR has large shimmer particles while CtG has ribbons of gold microshimmer.





Formula wise, CtG wins. It was perfectly opaque in two coats, while PR was still a little patchy after the second coat. Both were easy to apply and had good consistency.

Final Verdict: I originally called PR the more outgoing sister of CTG, but now I'm going to change that and call PR a second cousin LOL. They aren't even close to being dupes and if you love purple, you probably need both.

I'm going to be doing comparisons all week.

Happy painting!