Zoya giveaway alert!

Zoya is offering 2 free nail polishes when you pay the cost of shipping until 1/9/11! Items from the Spring 2012 collection are excluded, and the offer is limited to residents of the US. According to the comments at Nouveau Cheap, where I read about it, shipping will be around $6. Go to the Zoya blog post for all the details about the offer: http://zoyanailpolish.blogspot.com/2012/01/let-zoya-color-your-world-in-2012.html

Comparison-OPI Rally Pretty Pink vs. Orly Ingenue

OPI Rally Pretty Pink on Left, Orly Ingenue on right, 2 coats, sunlight

My good friend bought OPI's Rally Pretty Pink in an attempt to step out of her red/pink comfort zone. When we saw it at the store, it looked mainly gold. Once she wore it, she ended up falling in love with the way it flashes gold and pink. So much so that she wants a backup.  I got her a polish that's not exactly the same color but definitely seems like a dupe-Orly's Ingenue!

1/3/11 Weekly ads- my attempt

I feel a bit bereft without Nouveau Cheap posting the weekly drug store sales, so I'm going to do my version, a (mainly) polish round up.


-Rite Aid: BOGO 1/2 on ALL nail polishes!
-Walgreens BOGO 1/2 Cover Girl cosmetics
-CVS- BOGO 1/2 Cover Girl, Rimmel and Almay Cosmetics, & Cover Girl Natureluxe Gloss Balm is 2/$12
-Target-not much of note on makeup
-ULTA-$1.99 for Pixel polish, reg. $2.49, B2G2 free Ulta brand cosmetics, BOGO 1/2 off on Cover Girl, Neutrogena, NYX, and Rimmel.

Revlon Whimsical-OK, fine, I like it....

Revlon Whimsical over Color Club Factory Girl, sunlight

So my strong desire to get Revlon's Whimsical, the Deborah Lippmann Glitter in the Air dupe, was not a rational one. Basically, if there's an affordable Lippmann dupe out there, I want it. However, in all the swatches I had seen of Glitter in the Air, I had never been totally into the polish. It was a little too subdued for my taste, I think. I also didn't like how translucent it was, and the idea of having to wear a base color underneath.  I have to say, now that I've worn and swatched Whimsical over a few colors, I can see why the color was such a highly coveted one! Join me after the jump to see Whimsical over a variety of blues and other colors.

New Year's Mani-Color Club Untamed Luxury

Color Club Untamed Luxury, 2 coats, sunlight

I ended up running out of time for doing new manicure for New Year's Eve, but I'm still happy with the nails I had. This is Color Club Untamed Luxury, a teal green jelly polish with holo and green glitter.

1/01/12 Weekly Blog Roundup: more flakies and lists!

-Several blogs have posted the press release for Zoya's Spring 2012 collection, which features 3 flakies! Scrangie has already posted some swatches.
-More bloggers have gotten their hands on the Finger Paints Special Effects collection, including myself. THe master of watermarbling, Colette at My Simple Little pleasures has posted a  video  which has each over black and one color complimentary color apiece.
-There were lots more favorite nail polish lists as the year drew to a close. Everyone did a different format.  Let them Have Polish had a top 10 for major and indie brands, plus and honorable mention post, Swatch and Learn did a top 10 for polishes, nail art, makeup, skincare and cosmetics. Rebecca and Kayla finished their lists, Imperfectly Painted did her top 20 in several separate posts and also had her readers weigh in,  and the The Polishaholic didn't specify exactly how many favorites she chose. 
-Meanwhile, the Manicure Addict and iPolished chose their favorite manicures of the year and Enamel Girl did both a top 11 and a favorite manicure list and The Polish Insomniac reviewed her 5 most visited posts of the year.
-I enjoyed reading all these lists immensely, but I'm sure I'm missing some of them. I'm just doing the best I can based on what I can remember/find best at this time. I"m actually planning to do an uber-lazy version of my top 10 later this week, as well.  
-A final reminder to visit Sally's to check out their clearance section. I visited a location near work on Saturday and found some stuff that my local one didn't have, still at 50% the red tag price. 

NOTD-Sally Girl Back Off with OPI I Lily Love You

After wearing a lot of dark manicures recently, I was really craving a bright pop of color. You can't get more of a pop than neon, so I put on Sally Girl Back Off .   It dried really matte, so I added OPI's I Lily Love You for some flakie goodness.

Sally Girl Back Off with OPI I Lily Love You, sunlight