OPI - Bling Dynasty (07/01/2011)

Color Description:  Looks a bit frosty in the picture but Bling Dynasty is an antique gold with tiny micro-shimmer which makes it a very regal.  I wanted a sophisticated neutral for a 3-day convention I'm attending this weekend and this fit the bill!


Similar To:  In the bottle it reminds me of Milani's Gold Lame and OPI Golden Rules!, but both of these have no micro-shimmer and would lean more on the frosty side than Bling Dynasty.


This Look:  One coat of Starting Over After Artificals, three coats of Bling Dynasty, and one coat of Shine & Hold topcoat.


Price Point/Availability:  As with most OPI lacquers, this retails for $8.50 and is from the Hong Kong Collection of Spring/Summer 2010.  It is still available online and in select salon locations.


Thanks so much for taking a look at this lovely lacquer.  Do you wear gold often because I don't?  But I'm glad I gave this one a try!

Repost for Pink Wednesday: Wet n Wild - Flirty Rose Creme

Color Description:  Flirty Rose Creme (451C) is a very pretty bubblegum pink.  It's opaque, but went on a bit streaky at first and leveled out with the next coat.  It is the most saturated pink I've ever put on. :)

Price Point:  I found this last December in the clearance section of Rite Aid.  It normally costs $0.99 and was 40% off which came out to $0.59.  This color was last reviewed on MUA in '08/'09, so I'm going to take a wild guess and say that this is a WnW discontinued color.

Similar To:  The current possible dupe that is still on the market is Revlon's Top Speed Pink Lingerie (110).  I just picked this one up today and after swatching both on scotch tape, they're just about identical.  Another color that is very similar is Milani Sweet which came out Spring 2010, however, Sweet is very sheer.  Is there any other color that reminds you of Flirty Rose Creme?

This Look:  BASE COAT - 2 coats of Nutra Nail Touch of Color Strengthener plus Green Tea; COLOR - 2 coats of FRC; TOP COAT - 1 coat of Sally Hansen Mega Shine.  The ring is from Forever 21 and I found this yesterday, as well. :)

Thanks so much stopping for by and commenting.  Which pink makes you feel well-polished?

Salon Spotlight: It's A Secret...

This is the first in a small series of my favorite nail salon's in the Los Angeles area that will be called Salon Spotlight!  I say "small" because I can literally count the nail salons on one hand that I've been to in the last 20 years and absolutely adored.  I must say that It's A Secret Salon is at the top of the list.

Margaret and Me with a little "swag bag" for my favorite salon owner! (6/2/2011)

Everyone knows that AllThingsNails! is a natural nail care blog but up until March of last year (2010) I had on acrylics and although I've since removed them and started maintaining my own nails, I still get questions on salons that I would recommend.  So, whether it be acrylics or natural nails, the salons that will be mentioned in this series are one of a kind. I would still go back to them for a little TLC in the future!


Margaret Thomas is the owner of It's A Secret in Culver City, California and I've known her since the early 90's.  She is one of the most creative and talented nail-artisans in the city and is always keeping up with her craft and at the top of her game.  Here's her story:


"Margaret Thomas had a vision 25 years ago to use nails as a canvas for her artwork.  Inspired by her best friend, Charlette Fortune-Key, who at the time adorned her hands with 3 inch nails, they set off to study the art of Nail Technology.  Over the years she has painted everything from flowers to sunsets, portraits of Michael Jackson, Diana Ross, Batman and the Joker and abstract designs.  In 1996 she placed 3rd in a National Nail Art contest sponsored by Flo-Jo, the Olympic Track Star famous for her long nails and original nail art.  That one nail received a prize of $1,000.00!  She has manicured nails for the cover of Essence Magazine, Actors, Musicians, as well as countless loyal customers over the years."


Well, I guess it's not a secret anymore - Margaret is true gem.  If you're in the Los Angeles area please feel free to call her to make an appointment at 1-310-216-9520.

Essie - Turquoise & Caicos (06/26/2011)

What a weekend!  My brother had three of his five kids graduate last week (M-W-F) and asked me to help with the festivities of his graduation party on Friday.  Since he has three girls who absolutely ♥ nail polish, I set up shop, literally SET UP SHOP in the girls room with all the fixings, neons, crackles and glitters and we had a ball.

I did nails from 5p until 11p at night!  The mothers, daughters, aunties and friends were elated to have a little color in their life and I was happy to share my love of AllThingsNails!  Needless to say, after at least 20 manis I needed a mani myself.  So I came home and put on Essie's Turquoise and Caicos...


Color Description:  Essie T&C is a beautiful and serene island ocean blue.  I say "island" because you would have to imagine being somewhere tropical to truly understand this beautiful lacquer like the Blue Hole of the coral reef in Central America, Belize (San Pedro Caye).  My husband and I had the privilege of snorkeling there in 1996; it's simply amazing!

Similar To:  This is extremely similar to the OPI Pirates of the Caribbean's Mermaid Tears.  See the water correlation there, again? These are interchangeable but definitely one of them should be in your collection. Orly's Ancient Jade has been said to be a close second, as well.

This Look:  T&C is very sheer so I put an white base coat on of Miss Marion's Super Base, then layered three coats of T&C with a coat of my topcoat, Shine and Hold.

Price Point/Availability:  If you're looking for Turquoise & Caicos, you might be having a hard time because it's form last years Essie Resort 2010 collection, which I believe was limited edition.  You may be able to still find it as some salons and online.  You may be better off looking for OPI's Mermaid Tears, a this point, though.

Well, off to my meeting in about an hour - we'll be in Orange County today.  Hope you enjoy what's left of this beautiful weekend and talk to you soon!

Pink Wednesday: Misa - Sandals, Flip Flops and Hip Hop w/ Kleancolor Chunky Holo Candy

Hi All!  Today (Wednesday) I'm wearing a funky fluorescent pink for Pink Wednesays - starring Misa's Sandals, Flip Flops and Hip Hop co-starring Kleancolor's Chunky Holo Candy and I must say they work well together.  


Color Description:  Sandals, Flip Flops and Hip Hop is from the appropriately named Look on the Bright Side collection and is a bright neon pink creme.  This is very pretty but not that extravagant so I thought I'd add some bling with the new Kleancolor Chunky Holo Candy which is a glowy pink/orange glitter suspended in a pink/coral jelly base.


Similar To:  Again, this color is not super-unique, other than the name and that it's a Misa - yay!  ♥ Misas... :)


This Look:  One coat of Starting Over After Artificials, two coats of Misa Sandals, Flip Flops and Hip Hop (very thick and goopy, which makes it slow-drying), one coat of Kleancolor Chunky Holo Candy and one coat of Z Top Coat.


Price Point/Availability:  You can still find this Misa's website retailing for $7.50.


I don't know about you ladies but I was intrigued with the name of this Misa and for that reason alone I swapped for it sight-unseen.  Have a great rest of the week and hope to actually post on Pink Wednesday next week...

Sephora by OPI - 212-Sephora (06/17/2011)

I have a handful of Sephora by OPI nail lacquers and 212-Sephora is the most unique of the bunch... it is phenomenal!


Color Description:  Described by Sephora as an opaque smoky black with iridescent, gold and copper chunky glitter, I say 212-Sephora is a multi-faceted flakie with holographic glitter in a deep brown base difficult to capture on camera.  It's a very Autumn color and is so appropriate for L.A.'s weather today, cloudy and wet but still beautiful!


Similar To:  A galaxy far, far away, but no, for real it's like nothing I know of - stand alone for sure!


This Look:  ... was a layering experiment that I ended up liking with one coat of Starting Over After Artificials, one coat of Cherimoya (Kleancolor) Moondance, one coat of Kleancolor Candy Chunky Holo, one coat of 212-Sephora and one coat of Shine & Hold topcoat.


Price Point/Availability:  212-Sephora is available in your local Sephora store and at Sephora.com for $9.50.


Well, once again, thanks for stopping by and reading.  Have a wonderful weekend and catch you next week.

Pink Wednesday: OPI - DS Passion

OTT Light w/ Lightbox

I didn't know DS Passion existed until a few weeks ago, but I'm glad I found it.  If there's one thing I love to collect, it's DS lacquers and this one fills out my stash nicely.


Color Description:  Passion is a golden rose duochrome with flashes of green (especially in the bottle).  It also contains micro holographic shimmer which is not as prismatic as other holos but is holo, nonetheless.

Window Light w/ Flash (duochrome in bottle)

Similar To:  Nothing really compares to OPI's Designer Series but Passion does remind me of the pink version of DS Illuminate.  I have nothing else in my collection that is exactly like this.


This Look:  One coat of Starting Over After Artificials, two coats of Passion and one coat of Shine & Hold.


Price Point/Availability:  OPI has discontinued DS Passion but it can still be found online.


That's all folks!  Talk to you soon...

Dare 2 Wear - Love Potion (A Year Ago)

Well, it's been 15 months since I've taken off my acrylics and about 9 months since I started the AllThingsNails! blog.  Today I reveal to you my nails a year ago!  


At this point in time, I was very happy with what I was learning from the Nail Care Board at MakeupAlley and was posting almost every NOTD there, however, I felt like I had a lot to say and needed a platform to really express the way I felt about nail polish. 


At any rate, Dare 2 Wear's Love Potion was my absolute favorite nail polish last June and since then I have new favorites but this is still right up there in my top five.

Ulta - Set The Nude (Comparisons)

This color choice was inspired by my friend of 25 years.  This weekend we were at an assembly in Mira Loma, California and had the best time of our life.  We ate, we laughed and I saw friends that I hadn't been in contact with in over 20 years.  Good Times!


Anyway, she was wearing Essie Playa Del Platinum and was astounded when I was able to look at her nails and name the brand and color (even though I don't own the color).  I was a little surprised myself - lol!  When I got home I searched for all colors that were remotely close to what it looked like on her.  


Well, from the title of this post, I'm sure, you can figure out which was my favorite.  I ended up picking Ulta's Set The Nude.  I liked the way it went with my complexion the most.  Sad but true, my least favorite of the bunch was the OPI - not warm enough for me.  When I scoured my collection this is what I came up with:


Similar To/Comps:  Hand pic from top to bottom you have Milani Bare to Wear (index), Ulta Set the Nude (middle), Color Club Who Are You Wearing (ring) and OPI Skull & Glossbones (ring).

Skull and Glossbones  | Who Are You Wearing | Set The Nude | Bare to Wear

Color Description:  Set the Nude, in my mind's eye, was the most similar to Essie Playa Del Platinum (or at least this is what I remember it looking like on my friend).  I haven't seen any comps between the two yet.  I really like the greyish, tanish, nudishness of this polish.

Point/Availability:  All lacquers should be availabe online with the exception of Milani's Bare To Wear which was limited edition at CVS a while back.  Prices range from $8.50 to $3.00.


Well, I'm getting another late start on today's Pink Wednesday theme but will be wearing DS Passion, if you're interested (lol).  Will upload post later on this evening EDIT: next Wednesday.  Have an great day, you all!

Kleancolor 230 - Chunky Holo Fuchsia over Essie - Your Hut or Mine (6/3/2011)

I've been extremely excited about the new Kleancolors of late and the Chunky Holos were at the top of my lemmings list!  So far, I've only found three of them in person, Fuchsia, Purple and Candy.  Here's a look at Fuchsia, though, I had the most difficult time capturing it on "film" - you get so much more in person than what the pics are showing.

Color Description:  230 is gorgeous iridescent glitter that sparkles gold, orange and green all suspended in a fuchsia jelly transforming any base color from wow to ooh wee! I layered this over my previous mani, Essie YHoM.

Similar To:  The effect of Kleancolor 230 puts me in the mind of the highly sought after Sally Hansen Hidden Treasure or Nubar 2010 and is just as exciting as the Nfu-Oh flakies with its fuchsia base.  This is what makes 230 a stand out - the jelly base is phenomenal and "word on the street" has it that Kleancolor is paying homage to the elusive Clarins 230 (see Scrangie pic).  Will do a post on this comparison at a later date.

This Look:  Two coats of 230 over YHoM, with one coat of Shine & Hold.

Price Point/Availability:  These have been on the market for a month, or so, however, and are available online $3.49 (+ tax) with a whopping $8.00 for shipping.  So if you can find these in a local beauty supply, that's your best bet; I've seen them for even lower than that.

Have an awesome weekend ladies!  I think I will keep this man on for a few days.  See you soon...

Pink Wednesday: Essie - Your Hut or Mine (06/01/2011)

Incandescent Lighting

It's 11:31p (PST) as I type and I'm absolutely determined to get this in, just under the wire, for Pink Wednesdays!  I decided to try out one of the Summer 2011 Essie lacquers from their Resort Safari-inspired collection - Your Hut or Mine (YHoM).  A very feminine pink with and even more femme fatale name.


Color Description:  Best described as a honeysuckle, Your Hut or Mine is a deep and dusty reddish-pink with secret golden shimmer (seen in the last pic).  This is the type of shimmer that can only be seen in certain lighting but is so gorgeous it makes your nails look deliciously shiny. 

OTT/Natural Bulb w/ Light Box

Similar To:  Did a quick check of the stash and nothing is similar.  However, YHoM is said to be to be an extremely close match to Pantone's 2011 Color of the Year - Honeysuckle; looked for myself and it's a dead-on match.


This Look:  One coat of Starting Over After Artificials, two coats of YHoM, and one coat of Shine & Hold.

Price Point/Availability:  I picked this up at a not so local beauty supply on my way home from my San Diego trip a few weeks ago.  Hadn't even seen a swatch or a press release for this when I bought it but really liked the color.  This will retail for $8.00 and will more than likely be limited edition since it's from the Summer 2011 Resort collection.

Halogen Lighting

Thanks so much for stopping by and I can't believe I've reached 250 readers!  I was happy to get my first 25, much less 10x that much.  Let me know your thoughts and TTYS!