Crystal File 75: Got Your Sunglasses?

As any nail polish fanatic knows, super bright polishes are always in style during the warmer months. Bold, bright polishes dazzle in the sunlight, and play well with sun-bronzed skin. This season several of my favorite polish brands are introducing polishes that fit the uber-bright neon trend.

Before moving on to the photos, i want to mention one factor that can often take a polish consumer by surprise. Polishes that contain neon pigments ALL, to varying degrees, dry more matte that those that do not. The more neon, the more matte the polish will be when it dries. Although many are initially put off by this, all you need is a coat of your favorite shiny top coat and you'll have a brilliant, shiny manicure or pedicure. Now, on to the photos.

First up the Essie Neon Collection for summer 2009. I have seen these already at my local Ulta and Trade Secret stores, so they're readily available!

From Index to pinky the colors are Funky Limelight (the photo is of 5 coats with Poshe top coat, i highly recommend layering this one over white unless you don't mind visible nail line), Punchy Pink (three coats and top coat), Perky Purple (three coats, but should've done two, and it's brighter in real life than the photo), and Flirty Fuschia (three coats and top coat).





Next we have the Color Club Electro Candy collection. All of these shades do contain neon pigment and have lovely irridescent shimmer added.

All polishes are shown with three coats and top coat. From thumb to pinky the colors are Pure Energy, Electro Candy, What a Shock, Ultra Violet, and Tangerine Scream. Bottle shown in photo is Color Club Volt of Light.






And finally we have the gorgeous bright creme shades from Zoya's La Di Da collection. Thumb and index (Dita and America respectively) are not neons, but i included them since they're part of the same collection. The three neon shades, from middle to pinky (Ali, Paz, Renee) are shown with three coats and top coat.






I hope you'll all be inspired to try a few neons, i promise they will brighten your day! Please stay tuned for more fabulous polishes for summer!

Crystal File 74: My Newest Obsession (and Recent NOTDs)

I have this new obsession, and considering i never thought i'd have the patience to do any nail art what-so-ever, i am amazed at how addicted i've become. I am addicted to the dotting tool! The tool i've been using for my recent Polka Dot manis is actually an "embossing stylus" that i purchased at AC Moore for under $4. From what i understand this tool, while sold for use in card making and scrapbooking, is identical to a "dotting tool" one would purchase at a nail supply store. Ac Moore had a few different sizes/brands of this type of tool, each of which were double ended (each end being a different sized "dot").

Before i move onto some photos of my recent experiments in polka-dotting, i'll say a few words about using the dotting tool. This is an incredibly simple means of dressing up a mani. I've created all of these manicures using either regular polishes that are heavily pigmented (like Zoya Pippa, a bright, intensely pigmented yellow creme), or nail art polishes (such as Art Club White) which are by nature well pigmented.

I have found that the key is to test the polish i want to use for my pattern first. On scotch tape i put a couple of layers of the base i'm planning to use, and then i use my dotting tool to apply whichever polish i'm considering. I do this to avoid frustration, having tested, i already know if the polish i've chosen is opaque enough to create polka dots with. If you find that you have to put a large glob of polish on your nail to create an opaque dot, you might have chosen a polish that isn't pigmented enough. The down side to using too much polish for your dots is that you'll have a bumpy manicure, and you may also have trouble getting the dots to dry.

When you're applying the dots, hold the tool perpendicular to the nail surface and tap lightly to apply. The base polish does not need to be completely dry, but it helps if it has set enough that it isn't sticky. Practice helps again when you're figuring out how much pressure you need to use when applying.

Now, enough babble, onto the photos!

My first adventure in Polka-dots (China Glaze Entourage base and China Glaze Laced Up Polka-dots):




Next came Zoya Katy with Art Club White polka-dots on the ring fingers:




Then i took a break from the dot maddness, here are a couple of cloudy day photos of Zoya Tallulah (quite possibly my new favorite blue of all time!):



with flash:






And last, but certainly not least, my current Spring-y Easter Egg inspired mani using China Glaze Custom Kicks (turquoise) and Zoya Pippa (lovely bright yellow creme):






If you're looking for a fun way to jazz up your manis without having to use decals or commit to Konad, a dotting tool may be the way to go! This has turned out to be a simple and fun way to do a little something different.

Crystal File 073: Quick and Dirty!

Earlier this week i received the China Glaze Kicks collection and i have some very quick and dirty swatches of them to share. I am loving this collection. More so even than the Summer Days colors, if I'm being honest. For the most part these colors are pigmented enough to be opaque in two coats, with the exception of three of the colors which I'd consider jelly finish (How Street It Is, Style Wars, Sneaker Head), and one of the shimmers (Paper Chasing). I will add that for the most part I use a ridge filling base (Zoya Get Even) which can help hide VNL (visible nail line). These photos are no base, no top coat.

First up the cremes, my least favorites because I'm a shimmer kind of gal.

Index to Pinky: Oh How Street It Is, Sneaker Head, Style Wars, Laced Up (thumb is a repeat of Sneaker Head)





Next up the gorgeous blues and greens!

Index to Pinky: Paper Chasing (the base of this one is quite sheer), Entourage, Sky High Tops, Custom Kicks (a bit more dusty and turquoise in real life; thumb is also Custom Kicks).





Final photo Index to Pinky: Fly, Its Poppin, B-Girlz, Breakin' (thumb is a repeat of Its Poppin). Note there is a bit of VNL in this pic, but having done manis with a couple of these i can attest to the fact that a coat of Zoya Get Even solves any opacity issues.





I'm hoping i will get a chance to get better shots of these, especially my favorites of the collection (Fly, Its Poppin, B-Girlz, Custom Kicks, Entourage, Sky High Top). I also have the new Color Club Electro Candy collection in the wings to swatch this weekend, and i hope to have Zoya summer to swatch for you very soon! Stay tuned my lovelies :)

Crystal File 072: TGIF!

So, if I'm not mistaken, today is the first day of Spring. Mother Nature is certainly trying to pull a fast one up her, our high temperature is forecast to be in the low 40's! Complaints aside, it is Friday, and the sun is shining at least. I have a really lovely TGIF mani to share with you. I just received this beauty last night, and had to share it with my readers as soon as possible!

This is the gorgeous BB Couture Moon Over Manhattan. With it's dusty blue-teal base and subtle sparkle it is perfectly on trend for the spring season. The formula applied very nicely, two coats over Zoya Get Even base provided complete opacity. Even though this is a micro-glitter polish, the heavily pigmented base hides some of the sparkle, leaving it more subdued than the "typical" glitter. One coat of Poshe leaves it glossy and smooth. All photos taken in natural light.

This first photo was taken closest to the window, the intense light washes the color out a little, but it shows the sparkle well.













and a close-up to show how dense the micro-glitter is.




That's all for this installment! I hope you all enjoy the first weekend of Spring, whatever weather it may bring :)

Crystal File 071: Essie Introduces The North Fork Collection

According to the Essie press release this limited edition collection of three shades were inspired by the "soft hues that floated down this season's runways". The three colors in The North Fork Collection are each named for quaint vacation villages located on Long Island's East End. Essie Weingarten says, "The new nail colors remind me of the most beautiful blues that surround the North Fork" (from the Essie press release).

I just received these three lovely colors this morning and have snapped a few quick photos to share with my readers. Please excuse the rough shape my hands are in, i haven't been kind enough to them lately! Both cremes are pictured over Zoya Get Even base as they are a bit jelly-ish in texture, the ridge filling base helps aid opacity. All polishes are two coats, no top coat.


Greenport:




Misa Dirty Sexy Money compared to Greenport (DSM on index/top, Greenport on thumb/bottom)




Shelter Island (Misa Right Here Now, No More Later on thumb)




My favorite of the collection, although not very flattering on me, is Sag Harbor. A lovely, soft, shimmering, silvery blue, it is opaque at two coats. Photographed with no base or top coat.




The North Fork Collection is limited edition and will be available beginning in April. See anything you need? Let me know which ones you might be stalking :)

Crystal File 070: Nailtek Intensive Therapy II

As winter has lingered here, my nails have begun to show the effects in the form of peeling on a few of my nails. As a result of this I decided to finally give Nailtek Intensive Therapy II (therapy for soft, peeling nails) a try. I have to say, this turned out to be a huge mistake on my part. Unfortunately, I have come to suspect that the formaldehyde component in Nailtek actually intensified the peeling problem for me. Over the course of ten days, the peeling areas became much worse than I have ever experienced. Obviously I abruptly discontinued use of this product, as I don't think my nails could have tolerated even one day more!

I have heard many wonderful things said about Nailtek products, so I was quite disappointed. This is truly a product where individual results may vary. Keep in mind, I'm only posting this as a warning. I think any product can be worth trying, just be aware that some products can be counter-effective (which is a term I just made up, but hopefully you get the idea) depending on the individual.

In addition to this note on Nailtek, I do have to apologize to my readers for not having posted much recently. Both my Grandmother and my husband's Grandfather passed away recently, so we've been busy with funeral travel and such. Hopefully things will settle down now. I should have quite a few exciting new summer colors coming my way, so please keep checking in!

Crystal File 069: Zoya Scavenger Hunt for Summer Hints!

Zoya has decided to send you all on a scavenger hunt to all your favorite blog sites for swatches of their 12 new gorgeous polishes for summer. Here is the actual text of the press release:

Summer color is bright and fun,
Summer color is for everyone

Zoya Nail Polish announces Summer 2009 Collections…
LA-DI-DA and OOH-LA-LA

Summer preview coming soon…
6 creams – 6 metallics – 12 beautiful colors

Connect the (blogger) dots… 12 colors to collect!



This is one of the niftiest promo marketing ideas i've encountered! Have fun hunting all your favorite sites for the clues :)

My swatch is Katy, which is listed as a metallic in the La Di Da collection.



My gal Scrangie has Midori, Siobhan over at thenailphile has Paz, Vanessa at CasualLavish has Pippa, Kelly at VampyVarnish has Emme, AllLacqueredUp has Tallulah, and you can find Goldie at ClumpsofMascara. I'll try to continue updating the link list as more become available! UPDATE: Stephanie over at Polish Addict has Dita, and Dami of Perfectly Polished Tips has Ali. Enjoy!

Have fun "connecting the blogger dots"!