2 coats

OPI Silent Stars Go By is a light pink liquid sand. It pulls sort of beige on me, which I actually really like. It ends up looking like a really interesting, neutral shade. The formula was great, super easy to apply. I love how quickly these liquid sands dry. They're the perfect polishes to grab when you're in a rush.

2 coats

OPI Baby Please Come Home is a greyed out lilac liquid sand. I'm a fan, but there's not  much else to say about this. If you like liquid sands, you'll probably like this. The color's really pretty, and it applied very easily.

2 coats

OPI All Sparkly and Gold is a dense, gold microglitter. I don't often love golds, but this is stunning! The gold isn't too warm, which is why I think I like it so much. The formula is great, applied with no issues. All Sparkly and Gold also dries with a smooth finish, so that's a bonus.



The OPI Mariah Carey Holiday 2013 collection retails for $9 each and is available at Ulta.

This is what happens when I have literally two minutes of free time to make a new post.

3 coats

OPI Underneath the Mistletoe looks like this ^^^. It's pretty! Great formula.





Buy it at Ulta for $9!

2 coats Emotions

OPI Emotions is a black liquid sand. There is black texture glitter and black hexes in a black base.I don't hate Emotions as much as I thought I would; it's more of a strong dislike. I still very much prefer glittery textureds. Emotions was opaque in two easy coats.



OPI I Snow You Love Me is faceted holo circle glitter in a clear base. This glitter is gorgeous but very sparse. The super thick, globby base doesn't help keep the glitter suspended, so it all just sinks to the bottom. I got the glitter to cover my nail with a little patience and a lot of crazy. I won't be doing that again. Pretty effect, though!



The OPI Mariah Carey Holiday 2013 collection retails for $9 each and is available at Ulta.

I'm quite disappointed with OPI's holiday collection. Typically, this is the collection that excites me the most, but there were just too many freakin' reds! Anyway, here's one of the more interesting (at least to me) polishes from the collection.

2 coats

OPI Sleigh Ride for Two is a plum red with a fine red shimmer. I really like the finish - smooth and glowy. This applied quite nicely with no major issues.

2 coats

OPI Miss You-niverse is a dusty eggplant creme that is perfect for the season. It is almost a one-coater, and the finish is so shiny and smooth. It's been a while since I've been impressed with an OPI shade, so I'm extra pleased with Miss You-niverse.



It stamps pretty well, too.

OPI Miss You-niverse stamped over Nails Inc. Porchester Square

OPI Miss You-niverse retails for $9 and is available at Ulta.

over 1 coat of Dior Incognito

OPI When Monkeys Flys is large gold hex and holo microhexes in a clear base. No longer a taco mess, it can finally be appreciated for what it is - a really awesome chunky glitter. Love it! Application was easy. I had no problem getting a nice dispersion of glitter onto my nails.



OPI When Monkeys Fly retails for $9 and is available at Ulta.

Quick update. I know my posts are typically sporadic, but the next two months or so will be even worse. I have a research opportunity that will take me away from my stash. I do have a few backlogged swatches that I will be posting soon. So yeah, pardon my silence, even though you're all probably quite used to it!



Anyway, onto this week's sammich






I used OPI Minnie Style from the 2013 Minnie collection and OPI Houston We Have a Purple from the Texas collection. I think they make a great pair, n'est pas? This is a total of 3 coats jelly and 2 coats glitter, with topcoat.

Although I have several Nina Ultra Pro polishes, I'd never actually used any of them until this mani. I have a habit of falling in love with a color, buying it, and then forgetting about it as soon as I put it away. Well no more, I say! I'm probably totally going to break that habit.

2 coats Violet It Ride w/ 1 coat OPI Polka.com, with topcoat

3 coats Glints of Glinda with 1 coat Pirouette My Whistle

OPI Glints of Glinda is a warm, sheer nude, and it's my favorite from the Oz collection. The formula is similar to the NYC Ballets - easy to apply and self-leveling. OPI Pirouette My Whistle had been untried for a year, so I figured it was time to throw it over something. I quite like the combo.



A much needed palate cleanser after weeks of brights.

2 coats

Dior 306 Gris Trianon is a putty grey creme. It has a touch of warmth that makes it more flattering on my skin tone than most straight greys. It doesn't scream Spring, which makes it a perfect addition to the light pinks in the collection. I like it!



The formula is pretty great. It was easy to apply, and I really liked the consistency of this one.



This immediately reminded me of OPI French Quarter For Your thoughts, so here's that comp

2 coats Gris Trianon, 2 coats French Quarter For Your Thoughts

Dior 306 Gris Trianon retails for $24 and is available at Dior counters and Sephora.

Considering I'm still on the fence about the liquid sands, I would say these two are my favorites from the collection.

2 coats OPI A Butterfly Moment, 1 coat OPI Pink Yet Lavender

2 coats OPI A Butterfly Moment, 1 coat OPI Pink Yet Lavender

2 coats over China Glaze Refresh Mint

OPI The Man With The Golden Gun is an 18k gold topcoat. The flakes are larger than Sephora by OPI It's Real but smaller than Zoya Gilty. I'll have a comp up soon.



I didn't love the application because the base is pretty thick, and the gold flakes are smaller than I expected. It is pretty, though, and I don't regret purchasing it.



Golden Gun retails for $30 and is available at Ulta.

Remember when OPI was awesome?

Here it is - the portion of my stash I was dreading to photograph. I honestly don't have as much as I thought I did, which is wonderful.

OPI

OPI

OPI

OPI

OPI glitters

OPI DS

A lot of these were dustied, hence the grody caps.

OPI, Sephora by OPI, Nicole by OPI

OPI minis

Purging these will be so much fun. :)

This week's battle features three mid-tone purple cremes. Surprisingly, I don't own a lot of these. The more examine my stash, the more I'm learning about what colors interest me. So far, coral is hands down the winner. What color dominates your stash?



Anyway, into the arena:

American Apparel African Violet, Barielle Grape Escape, OPI

Disclaimer: Purples are always a challenge to photograph, but I tried to
get the most color accurate photos (to my eye and monitor) that I could. I sacrificed focus for color, so sorry for any
blurriness you see.

2 coats

American Apparel African Violet has more of a red undertone than I expected. I think slightly warmer purples look better on me than the cool ones.



I thought African Violet would be on the thick and a one-coater like most of my AA's. However, its consistency is thinner and a bit tough to control on the nail. I was prepared for it on the second coat, though, and it was totally manageable.

2 coats

Barielle Grape Escape is just a touch cooler than African Violet, but it is almost negligible. They are pretty much dupes. The formula on this is quite similar to African Violet's formula as well.

3 coats

OPI Funky Dunkey is much cooler than both African Violet and Grape Escape. The formula is also superb compared to the other two. It practically applied itself, which is something that almost never happens with OPIs. Pleasant surprise.

3 coats of each

Battle casualty: Barielle Grape Escape. Another Barielle bites the dust!



I chose African Violet over Grape escape because I like the bottle and the brush better. Funky Dunkey's wonderful formula and cool undertone saved it from the purge pile.



Which polish(es) would you have purged?



Have a wonderful weekend!

A bit belated, but another battle in this purge war has begun!

OPI Mermaid's Tears, OPI Thanks a Windmillion, Zoya Bevin

Let's see who'll make it out unscathed.

2 coats

OPI Mermaid's Tears isn't a sage green, but I wanted to include it anyway. It's more of a minty green. Whatever it's called, I absolutely love the shade. However, Mermaid's Tears was a bit thin and streaky. I didn't love the application.

2 coats

OPI Thanks a Windmillion is more what I would call sage. Love it! I also really like the formula on this one - not too thin or thick and self-levelling.

2 coats

I think I prefer Zoya Bevin to TaW because it's lighter a bit more flattering. Like most Zoya cremes I have encountered, though, it was thick and finicky to apply.





Battle casualties: OPI Mermaid's Tears and OPI Thanks a Windmillion.



I feel Zoya Bevin suits my skin tone the best, and I really don't wear this shade or anything close to it very often. I'll deal with the formula by adding some thinner.



So, how do you feel about this week's battle? What would you have purged?

Recently, I spent a day with one of my very good friend's daughters, who
love getting their nails painted. Naturally, I put them to work
reviewing a few polish collections for my blog.

Ava, 8; Hope, 7 (happy birthday!!!)

You may remember Ava's review of Butter London's Spring/Summer collection. This time, Hope is up with her views on the OPI Nicki Minaj collection.



Since you've all probably been inundated with the swatches, just enjoy the novelty of it. :)

3 coats

OPI Did it on 'Em is such a pretty yellow green creme. It was a bit streaky on the first two coats, so I had to do a third coat to even things out.



Hope says: "I like it because it's green."



Simple enough.

2 coats

OPI Pink Friday is a light pink creme; it really pops. The formula is on the thin side, but it had a nice, smooth application.



Hope says: "It's beautiful! I will wear this every day*."



*She's not worn it since. :)

2 coats

OPI Fly is a bright teal creme. The formula is on the thick side, but it's totally manageable. It's nicely pigmented, too.



Hope says: "Woah. This looks like a sky!"

2 coats

OPI Save Me is silver microglitter and multicolored bar glitter suspended in a clear base. I didn't have too much trouble applying this.



Hope says: "This looks like sprinkles. Ooo, this polish has so many cute things!"



I concur.

3 coats

OPI Metallic 4 Life is a black jelly base with silver sequins. Easy application.

Thanks for reading!