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Thursday, May 31, 2012

Misa Got it Made in the Shade and Catch a Flick

Here are a couple Misa polishes I got recently. I really like Misa in general, though I wish I could see them in person (my friend got these for me from Transdesign).

Misa Got it Made in the Shade - 2 coats. I bought this because I read somewhere it was a dupe for Essie Da Bush / OPI Stranger Tides but slightly more opaque. It still felt very thin and sheer going on, but not nearly as thin as the OPI.


Comparison: Misa Got it Made in the Shade and Essie Da Bush - 2 coats of each, I think the Misa is a tiny bit more opaque, but it doesn't really make a difference. Both names are kind of dinky, though. I purged OPI Stranger Tides a long time ago, but I think this Misa is closer to the OPI than the Essie (which is a little bluer, on me, although they look identical in this picture LOL). I think I will be purging the Essie :O!


Misa Catch a Flick - 2 coats. I got this one because I read it was a dupe for OPI Mermaid's Tears, which I loved, but I can rarely stand OPI bottles and prowide brushes these days. I'll only keep an OPI if it is "OMG UNBELIEVABLE UNIQUE AND AWESOME", so I'm trying to dupe all the cremes I like and stop buying their seasonal collections. The formula on this one is really nice, I think I will keep it!


Comparison: Misa Catch a Flick and Zoya Bevin - 2 coats each. Since my purging cycle is greatly accelerated these days, I already sold my bottle of OPI Mermaid's Tears on my blogsale earlier this month LOL. I had purchased Zoya Bevin hoping to get rid of the OPI, and just decided to purge the OPI and live with the difference from the Zoya. However, when I look at this comparison and the one I did for OPI vs Zoya, I think the Misa really is super close to the OPI. Anyways, now I need to decide if I want to keep or purge Bevin.


Sorry for the lack of posts recently. I have not been buying much nail polish at all. I'm not finding many of the seasonal collections very interesting; is anyone else feeling the same way?

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Orly Jealous, Much?


Orly Jealous, Much? - 2 coats, but should have done 3. Sorry the lighting is off in this picture; some rogue sunlight made it through the blinds! I bought this because I thought it might be a dupe for American Apparel Office (a polish I LOVE, but hate the brand), and KarenD posted a comparison a while ago. The formulas are pretty similar.


Comparison: Orly Jealous, Much? and American Apparel Office - 2 coats of each, should have done 3! I need to find this colour in a 2 coater!! Anyways, the Orly is a tiny but more opaque, but both will need 3 coats so that's kind of moot. The AA looks a tiny bit bluer to me. Unfortunately, I think I still prefer the slightly bluer base from the American Apparel :( On goes the search...


Thursday, May 17, 2012

Indie Brand: Lilacquer (Shapeshifter Collection)

Disclosure: The polishes in the following post were provided to me for review.

One of my buddies from NB asked me if I would swatch her new frankens which were created using those awesome colour-shifting pigments. Her line is called Lilacquer and this debut collection is called "Shapeshifter". If you're interested in any of these polishes, check out her Etsy shop and grab them while you can! They are available in full size or mini-bottles.

My overall thoughts:
  • Great smooth formulas, easy to work with and layer over other polishes. It doesn't dry weird like some topcoats, where you can see a "ridge" at the sides of the nails (KWIM?)
  • The brushes are good (not crappy like some mini bottle brushes can be!)
  • Suuuuper dense with those pricey colour-shifting pigments! Just 1 coat of each over the base colours (except Tengu, which is 3 coats on its own)
  • I love how they are all named after "shifting" animals in various folklore! So cute! The descriptions are from Wikipedia.
  • Since I find it pretty difficult to photograph these types of polishes, I tried to insert an additional picture using my desk lamp and no flash from my camera. Those pics look a bit yellower and less of the nails are in focus, but hopefully it gives you a better idea of the colour shift.
  • Some of these have just 1 type of pigment, others have more than 1. Check out the descriptions, since it's hard to tell from pictures.
Enough talk, let's get on with the pics!

The lineup: Lycanthrope, Kitsune, Selkie, Tengu, Bakeneko, Puca, Leshy, Encantado


Close up bottle shots: Lycanthrope, Kitsune, Selkie


Close up bottle shots: Tengu, Bakeneko


Close up bottle shots: Puca, Leshy, Encantado



Encantado (over OPI Planks a Lot) - "Soft lilac base with delicate blue to green shimmers." This is my favourite of the bunch. This pigment is my favourite of the three colour shifting pigments available, and I love the light base. This combo reminds me a bit of that SH XW in Mystic Lilac (is that the right name?)







"Encantado is the Portugese words for "enchanted one", The Brazilian term is used for creatures who come from a paradisiac underwater realm called the Encante, and most often designates dolphins with the ability to turn into humans, and who are characterized by their superior musical ability, their seductiveness, and their attraction to parties. Despite the fact that Encante is supposed to be a utopia full of wealth and without pain or death, the encantados crave the pleasures and hardships of the human world."


Tengu (3 coats on its own) - "Rich red shimmery base with gold to green shimmers." I like how this one is opaque on its own. There are little green specks that you can see in low light, but were totally obliterated by my camera flash. Aghh!






"Tengu, meaning "heavenly dogs" are a class of supernatural creatures found in Japanese folklore, art, theater, and literature. Although they take their name from a dog-like Chinese demon (Tiangou), the tengu were originally thought to take the forms of birds of prey, and they are traditionally depicted with both human and avian characteristics."


Bakeneko (over Zoya Pinta) - "Deep purple base with heavy red undertones and copper to green shimmers with lots of gold flash." - It's GOOOOD.






"Bakeneko, meaning "monster cat" in Japanese folklore, refers to cat yokai (spiritual beings) with supernatural abilities akin to those of the kitsune or tanuki. They may use their shape-shifting powers to live a life as a human would normally, sometimes by taking the place of a member of the household after killing and consuming them in their sleep. Other stories tell about how a bakeneko may sometimes shape-shift into a beautiful girl, so that their owner would be able to marry them and have children."


Leshy (over Illamasqua Rampage - I should have done an extra coat of it!!!) - "Light green base with yellow undertones and a combination of gold to green and red to green shimmers."






"The Leshy is a male woodland spirit in Slavic mythology, Leshy is the protector of all animals and birds in the forest. He is said to have the ability to shapeshift into any form, animal or plant. When he is in human form, he looks like a common peasant, except that his eyes glow and his shoes are on backwards."


Púca (over Illamasqua Rampage) - "Dense dark green base with gold to green shimmers."






"According to Irish legend, the púca is a deft shapeshifter, capable of assuming a variety of terrifying or pleasing forms, and may appear as a horse, rabbit, goat, goblin, or dog. No matter what shape the púca takes, its fur is almost always dark. It most commonly takes the form of a sleek black horse with a flowing mane and luminescent golden eyes."


Selkie (over CND Midnight Sapphire) - "Clear based polish, very dense with shimmer, shifts from blue to green though the green is often hard to photograph!" - My favourite type of colour-shifting pigment :D






"Selkies are mythological creatures found in Faroese, Icelandic, Irish, and Scottish folklore. They are said to live as seals in the sea but shed their skin to become human on land. If a man steals a female selkie's skin she is in his power and is forced to become his wife. Female selkies are said to make excellent wives, but because their true home is the sea, they will often be seen gazing longingly at the ocean. If she finds her skin she will immediately return to her true home in the sea."


Kitsune (over AA Hassid) - "Clear based polish, very dense with shimmer, shifts from red to green, flashes a nice bright teal at the right angle!"






"Kitsune is the Japanese word for fox. Foxes are a common subject of Japanese folklore; in English, kitsune refers to them in this context. Stories depict them as intelligent beings and as possessing magical abilities that increase with their age and wisdom. Foremost among these is the ability to assume human form. While some folktales speak of kitsune employing this ability to trick others, other stories portray them as faithful guardians, friends, lovers, and wives."


Lycanthrope (over AA Hassid) - "Clear based polish, very dense with shimmer, shifts from gold to green."






"A werewolf, also known as a lycanthrope, is a mythological or folkloric human with the ability to shapeshift into a wolf, either purposely or after being placed under a curse and/or lycanthropic affliction via a bite or scratch from a werewolf. This transformation is often associated with the appearance of the full moon."

Hope you enjoyed that and have a great weekend (ok, it's only Thursday, but I am really needing the weekend, LOL).







Friday, May 11, 2012

Essie Swatches from various 2012 Collections

It feels like I have not posted a "normal" nail polish in a long time, LOL! Indie polishes are so hot right now, it's easy to forget about ye olde faithful, Essie.

I don't even know what collections each of these are from (I guess some combination of Spring, Resort and Wedding) and I have an even harder time remembering the names!

Left to Right: Who is the Boss, She's Picture Perfect, Navigate Her, Armed & Ready, No More Film

Essie Who is the Boss - I used to love Who's the Boss! I wonder if re-watching would destroy my fond memories of it... Anyways, 2 coats, formula not terrible for a pastel. Not as bad as last year's Borrowed and Blue! This is way more flattering on my skintone than that one. If B&B looked horrible on you, definitely try this one. It's instant love for me!


Comparison: Essie Who is the Boss and Essie Sag Harbour - 2 coats of each. They're similar in base colour, eh? Keeping both.



Essie She's Picture Perfect - 2 coats. I don't even remember asking for this, but it is kick ass. It sort of reminds me of that NARS Pokerface colour but much much cooler (and hence, more flattering on my skintone... at least I think so). I totally dig the finish of this (it's more like a pearl finish in normal lighting).




Comparison: OPI Planks a Lot (also looking for a dupe of this, ya'll), Essie Bangle Jangle, and Essie She's Picture Perfect - 2 coats of each. My stash is so anemic, I don't have a dupe for this! \o/ Keeper!



Essie Navigate Her - 2 coats. I'm not sure if I love this shade. The formula is quite nice, though.


Comparison: Essie Navigate Her and Illamasqua MILF (one of my favs, although people tell me to purge it all the time LOL) - 2 coats each. I'm not sure about the Essie. I'll need to wear it as a full mani and give it a good think.



Essie Armed & Ready - 2 coats. This is an awesome shade. The shimmer is overly represented here because of the flash I use, but it's still super gorgeous. The formula is perfect, too.




Comparison: Essie Armed & Ready and Essie Power Clutch - both 2 coats, and I love both. The second picture shows how the polishes look in normal indoor lighting (notice the shimmer in A&R is not as in your face, but still nice). Definitely keeping both.




Essie No More Film - 2 coats. I actually said "OH YEAH, BABY" outloud when I unwrapped this one. Perfect formula.


Comparison: Essie No More Film and Zoya Pinta- 2 coats each. This is going to be hard for me. I will probably purge the Zoya, but I'm going to need some time to think about that.


Hope you enjoyed that!

The next post is going to be another Indie polish brand, LOL. If you like those colour-shifting pigment topcoats, you're going to like that post!

Have a great weekend, and thanks to everyone who purchased from my blog sale! Ya'll are helping me keep my sanity by curbing a bloating stash!