Formula X Starfish

I know textured polishes are kind of over and done with but I'm really loving this one. There is just something so perfect about it. I can't quite get over the fact that I've bought two pink polishes this month (the other will show up in a future post I'm sure). Pink is not a color I really enjoy I'm totally not a pink person, but since I'm so pale and my hands are a bit red/pinky I think it makes a good "nude" for me. I find my fingers look elongated and this texture is so nice to feel.

Texture has never really been my friend it snags on stuff and I don't like feeling all the bumps, but this especially when worn at three coats has a very nice soft almost fuzzy sort of texture. I'm not a huge fan of leaving textured polishes un-top coated, but this is one that if I didn't have top coat I could definitely be fine with. It also helps that the polish is called starfish, even if it was the most ugly color ever I'd probably have to buy it because starfish are just so cute, and my favorite echinoderm [this is one of those times I wish I had had more time in undergrad and grad school to study more phylogeny/taxonomy type things, I at least managed two entomology classes over the years] .

Anyway, enough babbling!

The shimmer is iridescent, very ethereal 

So, in other words, this polish is a must have for super pale peoples like me, I never really have been fond of sheer whites/creams/pinks so if you want that sort of look without the boringness of sheer cream/jelly type polishes this might be a good option for you! I'm sure this would look amazing on darker skin tones too, it isn't so opaque that it would look too stark. Just go get it! Ignore that dusty purple, and bright teal [also in the Formula X sea glass collection], you don't need them! You just need starfish. But I'm just a bit biased maybe.








And you know me, can't leave you without a video! Only my favorite album about starfish ;-) by what is probably my favorite Australian band. Which[who?] excitingly, I get to see with Dude and my family in a month or so! I missed them last time they were in my state [I had an exam the next day or something :-( ] So exciting!

Anyway,
Happy Saturday
~Drastic

Revlon Transforming Effects Matte Pearl Glaze: A Pseudo Dior Perlé Dupe

So Thursday night I was a bit anxious for my procedure the next day, and when I'm anxious I start obsessing over nail polish (more so than normal), and I had been kind of obsessing over one of the Sephora Formula X brushed metallic polishes, I knew I didn't need it and would probably only wear it once, but I wanted it. So what do I do when I know I really shouldn't buy a particular nail polish, I go somewhere else and look at other polishes. I've ended up with some major polish regrets after doing this in the past, so normally now I just go buy the polish I'm fixated on and get it over with. But nonetheless, I went on to Walgreens anyway.  I nearly bought that L'oreal grey/purple holographic shade that is showing up in the limited edition grey displays, but I knew I wouldn't wear it, I just don't really wear holographics unless they have holographic glitter and even that has to look a certain way.

Anyway to get to the point of the story, on the top of one of the tallest shelf was the new Revlon shades for 2015.  Normally, I'm not a huge Revlon polish fan (though I do admit I love their fast dry basecoat, it is one of the few basecoats that I find actually helps my polish stay on longer) but I saw a whole bunch of toppers in the display and I have a topper problem, I need all the sheer shimmery color shifting polishes. So I stood on top of one of the bottom levels of the shelf (after gently pushing some Old Spice shower gel out of the way)  and risked life and limb to get a look at these toppers. There was a canary yellow sort of topper that I had to try really hard not to buy, as well as an interesting pinky topper. But the one I had to take home was the Matte Pearl Glaze.

As soon as I saw the frosted bottle I knew it had to be Revlon's attempt at recreating Dior Perlé. And since I'm a fifth of the way through my bottle of Perlé I knew I had to try it. And I told my self  I was doing it for scientific purposes, I had to know how close it was to Perlé.

Anyway, Onward to the photos!

Revlon Matte Pearl Glaze

In the photos above I'm wearing two coats of the Revlon topper on top of Essie After School Boy Blazer  except for my ring finger which has two coats of Dior Perlé. I topped it with top coat as it really brings out the shimmer. In the photos they look pretty similar, but in person they are a touch different. At two coats they both look pretty similar but once you put the top coat on you realize how much more depth the Dior one has. The Dior also has more of a satin finish where as the Revlon is very flat matte. I will share a photo below of the polish without top coat but I am warning you, I did not clean up the polish and I'm left handed so my left hand (which has been turning out nicer than my right lately) looks a little more sloppy than normal. But this photo really shows off the difference in the finish of these polishes.

As you can see my ring finger definitely has more shine to it than the other nails.

So the moral of the story is, basically if you missed out on Dior Perlé, this would be an acceptable option, it isn't a true dupe but they are definitely close and less discerning people would probably think they are the same polish, hence me calling it a pseudo-dupe. If you have the Dior one and feel like you are going through your bottle pretty quickly and would rather not use it all up, the Revlon polish would be a good substitute. The particle size is very comparable, and the colors are very close as well, the only real difference is the finish and I"m not sure if the finish is what leads to one having more depth (even with top coat) or if there is something in the formula that leads to that difference.

So despite not being a dead on dupe like I was hoping (but didn't really expect) the Revlon really is a good option. It is sort of the same but not totally.

Now that I've beaten that subject to death, I hope everyone had a good weekend!

~DA

Ohio State Nails: featuring Ciate Halo and Glitterfied nails Playoffs

I'm not usually a big fan of team spirited nails, not that I have a problem with it I just don't like to bother, but I did bother for the National Championship game mostly because I had a very appropriate polish to wear.  Dude's parents gifted me many nice things this year for christmas, one of them being a handmade nail polish.  I actually have only owned one indie nail polish in the past and I gave it away because it just wasn't my kind of color. I've always tended to shy away from indies mostly because a few years back I felt like there was always drama going on with people and different indie brands and that kind of just really made it not worth it for me. I also like the ability to see something in person first.

Anyway enough of my ramblings. Onward to the photos. I am wearing one coat of Ciate Halo, and two coats of Playoffs on top.

Playoffs is pretty nice, it is a mix of red, sliver and matte grey glitters. With some red squares thrown in. Super sparkly. Not much else to say. Life has been a bit crazy (like always I feel like things are always crazy for me) so hopefully I can catch up on some really neat stuff I've been wearing lately. I'm not too excited about most of the spring releases (I'm never too thrilled by whole collections anymore) but I am hoping to find that pink satin matte Essie (and I'm so not a pink person, but I feel like I need that polish) and I'm excited to get a better look at that yellow Zoya has for their spring collection. 

I hope you guys can find something to get excited about polish wise!

Hopefully this post all made sense, I was sedated earlier today for a procedure and I am definitely much worse off than I was when I had my wisdom teeth out a few years back. I suspect the Demerol they gave me made me a bit crazy. (Though I have to admit I thought people only got fentanyl for short outpatient procedures now a days.... def going to say no to that one next time)

~♥ Drastic

New Years Nails: Zoya Hazel and Essie Peak of Chic

Normally for New Year's Eve I just wear one of the many polishes I own that fit into the Christmas category. But this year I actually had something in mind for New Year's Eve and I felt like I had to wear it. I suppose this isn't exactly New Yeary either but more so wintery. Anyway, I felt that Hazel was the perfect icy blue (despite coming out in a summer collection)  and Essie's Peak of Chic always made me think of snow. So they seemed like perfect friends to layer. I was going to put the glitter on all of my nails but I thought it looked nice with just some glitter. This would also make a good Hanukkah nails look I think [the glitter could be candles etc].

Photos!

Zoya Hazel

So pretty in the sun

Essie Peak of Chic

 Hazel is interesting in that not only is it a pale silvery/icy blue but it also has yellowy/gold flakes as well. Peak of Chic is white matte bar glitter with holographic bar glitter. Peak of chic is so pretty in the bottle! I was considering doing a best of 2014 polish list, but I'm not totally sure if I should. I mean most people do a top 10, but I'm not sure I was really in love with enough polishes that were released this year to justify a top 10 list... maybe I'll do a top 5 from this year and top 5 other colors I liked in the year? Maybe I'll just not do that at all? I'll think about it.


Also the first casualty of the year! [Actually the first casualty of my nail polish life]

Urban Decay Zodiac

This was super disappointing, I was organizing my polish this morning and I went to open Zodiac up since I did not wear it during the holiday season like I expected and just wanted to contemplate it. Well I heard cracking and I just assumed it must have been gunked up (even though I've used it once) turns out all the threads cracked off, I went to re cap it after cleaning the broken glass off of my lap and i couldn't even close it properly without cracking even more glass. So I was able to clean out a nearly empty bottle of NYC Grand Central Station (or what ever their fast dry clear/topcoat is called) and pour most of the bottle into there. I saved the Urban Decay bottle [mostly b/c I love the cap] and was able to coat the inside with a layer of polish and I put a ornament wire on it and hung it up on my tree [which needs to come down soon come to think of it]. So now I can still look at how pretty it is in the bottle without having lost the polish.

Stay warm out there! It is supposed to get pretty chilly where I am this coming week.

~Drastic