Tuesday, January 31, 2017

SinfulColors SWAK

I'm feeling pretty on top of things right now, because I've swatched the new shades in the SinfulColors Valentine's display, SWAK (Sinful with a Kiss), a full two weeks before the relevant holiday. This feeling will pass as soon as my gaze lands on one of the multitude of unpacked boxes around here, but I'm going to enjoy it while it lasts!

The four new colors in this display are Kissful Thinking (shade 2203), Break Dance Not Hearts (2201), Readie or Not (2202), and It's About Valen-time (2200). I decided to include the shade numbers because that's the main way I figure out which ones are new, look for the higher numbers that form a sequence.



Of course I went first for the glitter, Kissful Thinking. This has tiny white glitter and red lips shaped glitter in a very pale pink jelly base. I wanted to try it over a range of colors, so I did a white French tip on my index finger and put SinfulColors cremes on my remaining digits: Pink Smart on my middle, Feeling Great on my ring, and Gogo Girl on my pinky. I topped all my nails with two coats of Kissful Thinking, applying the lips glitter with a dotting tool once I'd fished it out of the base. A layer of clear topcoat finished it all off.





The other three new polishes are all metallic foils (basically a lot of silver shimmer packed in there), so I swatched them together, doing some somewhat wobbly heart nail art with them on my index finger over a white creme base. Middle finger is It's About Valen-time, a medium pink metallic. Ring is Readie or Not, a plum metallic. Pinky is Break Dance Not Hearts, a light purple metallic. All three of these have a great formula; two coats were plenty and they applied very smoothly.







I love these foils a lot; SinfulColors does tend to do really well with this finish, and these are no exception. The glitter takes a bit more fishing than I'd like to get the shaped glitters out, but I guess that could be a plus if one doesn't want red lips on one's nails for a particular mani.

Friday, January 27, 2017

Top 10 of 2016

I've done a Top 20 list every year I've been writing this blog, but 2016 was such a messed up year for me with all the travel and moving and my mom dying that I wasn't even sure if I wore 20 different polishes, so I'd decided to skip it. Then my friend Mel did a series of posts about her favorites in her blog Delicious Color, and I reconsidered. As it turned out, I had worn more than 20 polishes last year, but it was definitely a much smaller pool than prior years, so I decided to do a top 10 this go round.

Rimmel Mind the Gap Victoria, a light cornflower blue creme.



Kiko Velvet Satin Midnight Blue, a very deep navy matte shimmer.



SinfulShine Illusion, a blue shimmer.



Studio M Cherry Blossom, a pale pink shimmer topper, swatched here over Studio M By Design, a vampy berry creme.



LA Colors Color Craze Gel Magical, a lilac with gold and pink shimmer that can be worn alone or as a topper.



Orly Frenemy, a black jelly with silver holo microglitter and flakies, swatched here over Orly Makeup to Breakup, a dark teal blue creme.



Orly Color Blast Multicolored Gloss Glitter, a mulitcolored hex glitter topper, shown here in a jelly sandwich with Essence Nail Candies Peachy Keen:



Revlon Magnetic, blue glitter in a purple/blue duochrome shimmer base.



Lit NYC Power and Lovergirl, the former a blue/purple duochrome shimmer and the lattter a multicolored glitter topper, swatched together here.



I've pretty much gone back to my drugstore roots with this list. That makes sense, since I was on the road so much and dealing with other things, paying attention to indie releases was not a priority (and even if it had been, I wasn't home for weeks at a time, so getting them shipped to me would have been a challenge). I'm not sure what 2017 will bring. I have plenty of older indies in my untrieds, so I may start working through those as a supplement to the things I've been buying off the shelf recently.



Wednesday, January 25, 2017

Wheel B9: FingerPaints Glitters

The theme for the last few Nail Wheel Wednesday episodes has been "what have I unpacked recently that I have enough of to fill a wheel?", and this week is no exception. I have 20 glitter polishes from FingerPaints which were sitting in a staging area between packing box and stash storage.



(all have clear top coat in addition to coats noted below)

1. FingerPaints Sparkle Top Coat (3 over black) [this is a bit shifty to green, though I didn't manage to capture that in a photo]
2. FingerPaints Sparkle With Me (2 over black)
3. FingerPaints A Pink of Pixie (2 over black)
4. FingerPaints Frosty Night (3)
5. FingerPaints Silver Bells (3) [I thought this would be the same as #4 but the glitter in this is denser]
6. FingerPaints Gilded Chrome (3)
7. FingerPaints Crystalline Crush (3)
8. FingerPaints Stargazing Lilac (2)
9. FingerPaints Um-brella (3)
10. FingerPaints Metallic Moonlight (3)
11. FingerPaints Wrapped in Ribbon (3)
12. FingerPaints Stardust Blush (3)
13. FingerPaints Glisten Here (3)
14. FingerPaints Sugar & Spice (3)
15. FingerPaints Santa Kisses (3)
16. FingerPaints Movie in the Park (3)
17. FingerPaints Drummer Boy (3)
18. FingerPaints Ho Ho Happy Holidays (2)
19. FingerPaints Crystal Springs (3)
20. FingerPaints Shower with Flowers (3) [should have done this over black so the pale green matte glitter would show better]


Bottles 1 through 5:



6 through 10:


11 through 15:



16 through 20:




















Tuesday, January 24, 2017

First Displays of 2017

Time once again for a display roundup. Despite the lure of skiing (something between three and four feet of snow up on the mountain so far this month), I have managed to get down to the city a few times to hunt for nail polish. There's not a whole lot new in this lull after holiday collections and before all the spring ones have shown up, but there is some stuff beginning to appear.

Sally Beauty had a display with a China Glaze line I'd not seen before: Active Colour, another color plus treatment product like so many other brands have been doing. Clockwise from lower left: Made for Peach Other, Set in Greystone, Retreat Yourself, For Coral Support, A Nude Awakening, Preserve in Pink.



They also had a mini set with the same shades, called Mini Multi-taskers.



I haven't seen the Essie spring collection yet. Instead, at Fred Meyer and Walgreens I've seen displays that combine shades from previous collections. There are small (4-shade) and large (6-shade) displays labeled "Off Tropic". The big one has Peach Side Babe (summer 2015), Off Tropic (spring 2016), Tribal Text-Styles (summer 2016), Kimono-Over (fall 2016), Go Go Geisha (fall 2016), and Too Too Hot (summer 2011). The small display omits Go Go Geisha and Too Too Hot.





Fred Meyer is the only place I've seen the Essie Nail Art Awards display. These four shades are also previously released: After Schoolboy Blazer (fall 2013), In the Cab-ana (resort 2013), Blanc (core), and Guilty Pleasures (summer 2008). Contest entries are due February 20th; more information on the Essie website.



There are some new polishes from Essie, too. Fred Meyer was the first place I saw the new Treat Love & Color line, which is Essie's version of treatment plus sheer color. I later saw the same display at Rite Aid. Three shades here: Treat Me Bright, Sheers to You, and Laven-dearly.



Also, at Rite Aid I spotted the first new colors of Essie Gel Couture since the line was introduced last year: the Ballet Nudes. Left to right: Satin Slipper, Lace Me Up, Hold the Position, At the Barre, Perfect Posture, and Closing Night.



Fred Meyer had a New Year New Look display from Look Nail Color. Left to right: Matte Black, Gold, Gold Flakes, Matte Black (wondering if this was supposed to be regular Black and display was just messed with), Silver, and Strengthening Base Coat. Over on the right side is a foldable silicone Manicure Mat; I think this is the first one I've seen in a mass market store.



I happened upon an Orly Color Blast set at Kohls, themed for La La Land. This has three shades: Anything Goes (glitter in iridescent shimmer base), Cool in California, and Forget Me Knot. I miss seeing the new Orly collections at Ulta (they've had the new lines there, but not the seasonal collection), so I was happy to spot these.



The only new thing I've seen at Ulta this year so far is the OPI Gel Break 3-step treatment system. Step 1 is a serum-infused base coat. Step 2 is sheer color: Properly Pink, Too Tan-talizing, or Barely Beige. Step 3 is a protective top coat.



Sally Hansen seems to have stopped doing limited edition colors for now, but they do have some displays out now that showcase new shades in several of the lines.

New shades of Xtreme Wear are in a display called Rebel Glam: Rebel Red, Jam Sesh, With the Beet, Retro Grade, Heavy Metal, Garage Band.



A display called Completely Polished holds new shades of Complete Salon Manicure: Devil Wears Nada, Mauvin' on Up, World is My Oyster, Freedom of Peach, Hooked on Onyx, Society Ruler. This also has Moisture Rehab, an overnight treatment serum.



The new Insta Dri shades are in the Pink Fling display: Sugar Poppy, Make it Snappy, Peppy Le Fuchsia, ASAP Apple, Go Garnet, Seize the Gray.



Miracle Gel got the fewest new shades, only four in the Rustic Charm display: Little Peony, Sweet Tea, Bourbon Belle, and Poppy Patch.



The above displays were from Fred Meyer and Rite Aid. Walgreens had an encap which combined most of the new shades into one display, New Mani New You. Top row, Miracle Gel: Little Peony, Sweet Tea, Bourbon Belle, Poppy Patch, Wine Stock (core), V-amplified (core), Top Coat. Second row, Complete Salon Manicure: Clear'd for Takeoff (core), Mauve on Up (core), World is My Oyster, Hooked on Onyx, Society Ruler, Wine Not (core), Pat on the Black (core). Third row, Insta Dri: Clearly Quick (core), Sugar Poppy, Make it Snappy, ASAP Apple, Go Garnet, Cinna-snap (core), Expresso (core). Bottom row, Xtreme Wear: Invisible (core), Rebel Red, Jam Sesh, With the Beet, Retro Grade, Heavy Metall, Garage Band.



SinfulColors has a new collaboration with Kandee Johnson, with all new colors. I've seen it at Fred Meyer, KMart, and Walgreens. Apparently this display is only part of the collection, but it's the only part that's shown up in my stores so far. Left to right: Clear Coat (okay this is not new), Whipped Frosting, Kanfetti, Mint Chip, Candy Hearts, Pin Up Pink, Pink Velvet, Strawberry Milk.



SWAK Sinful with a Kiss is SinfulColors' Valentine's Day collection, which I've spotted at Rite Aid, Kmart, and Walgreens. Front section: Clear Coat (core), Break Dance Not Hearts (new), Readie or Not (new), Boom Boom (repromote), Kissful Thinking (new). Back section: Lie-lac (repromote), Gogo Girl (repromote), Pink Smart (repromote), It's About Valen-time (new), Kiss-ful Thinking (new).



The SinfulColors St. Patrick's collection is Luck of the Stylish. Front section: Rise & Shine (repromote), Green Ocean (repromote), I'm Clover It (new), San Francisco (repromote), Queen of Green (new). Back section: Gilded Goddess (shade number would indicate it's a repromote, but I don't remember seeing it before), Mint Apple (repromote), I'm Clover It (still new), Works Like a Charm (new).



The above display was at Kmart. I also saw Luck of the Stylish at Rite Aid with a slightly different lineup; it had the same new colors but some different repromotes. I'll show you this one, too, since the angle shows some of the colors better than the display shot above. Front section: Works Like a Charm, Jade Kat, Queen of Green, Feeling Lucky (repromote), White Haute (repromote). Back section: Gold 'n' Roses (repromote), Gilded Goddess, Queen of Green, I'm Clover It (two slots).



At Walgreens I saw a SinfulColors display with so many words on it I'm not sure what it's actually called. I think it's the new core colors for 2017. Left to right: Deep End, Jade Kat (also in St. Pat's display), Clear Coat (obviously not new), So Daupe, Snow Me White (definitely not new), Bitten, Jam Out, Apeasing.



At Kmart, I saw a very similar display card crammed with words but with a mostly different lineup of shades. Left to right: Clear Coat (core), Black on Black (core), Snow Me White (core), Bitten (new), Bluz Cruz (new), Cash Out (new), The Full Monte (new), Taupe is Dope (new).



Revlon tucked some new shades of Colorstay Gel Envy into a big endcap display that I saw at Walgreens. There's a lot of other makeup here, so I almost overlooked the polishes in the lower left.



Top row: Lucky in Love, Cha-ching, To the Chapel, Roll the Dice, Diamond Top Coat. Bottom row: What Happens in Vegas, Try Your Luck, Win Big, Smoke and Mirrors, Diamond Top Coat.



Rite Aid had a similar but slimmer Revlon endcap. Polishes here are (starting at top row): Lucky in Love, Cha-ching, Roll the Dice, What Happens in Vegas, Try Your Luck, Diamond Top Coat, To the Chapel, Smoke and Mirrors, Diamond Top Coat. Win Big was nowhere to be seen, but I'm sure it'll be in the core display before too long.



A different Walgreens had a shelf top display with just four of the new colors: Lucky in Love, Cha-Ching, What Happens in Vegas, and Smoke and Mirrors, along with two slots for the Top Coat.



That's all for this installment. I'm hoping by next time I'll have seen more spring collections. I am planning a trip back east, too, so looking forward to checking out Meijer and Five Below and CVS then.