j e l l y n a t

Chanel - 529 Graphite

2011-10-01T15:02:00.003+02:00

My ribcage injury still making me wish I was born a boneless worm (I barely can sleep at night and every slight move is a storm of pain) I really needed something to cheer me up. Going through my dozens (and dozens) of recent (and still untried) purchases, my choice went to Chanel "Graphite". At first you know, I thought only purchasing "Peridot" from the last Chanel collection and that's what I did. The choice seemed obvious as "Peridot" was quite destinated to be the standout. But when I saw "Graphite" in person, my vision diametrically changed and the apparently discreet dark grey won me with its mysterious elegance and took the standout place. I grabbed it along with "Quartz" (that looked so flattering on me) which I will also be featuring soon.

"Graphite" might appear like one more dark grey shimmer (this is what I thought before seeing it) but it's a bit more complex than that. This is a semi sheer (but opaque in 2 coats) dark grey base loaded with intensely sparkling particles. Not a pure black+white grey, it looks to me like it has some golden shimmer giving a slight platinum undertone to the polish. Very unique and warming. The undertones reminds me more of pyrite than graphite material actually but it doesn't matter, it's just me being picky with words again. Whatever happens, I find it immensely chic on my nails. Rock and classy.

The formula of the polish was nothing but easiness. I didn't even need a clean-up. The first coat applied well (even if sheer) and dried fast. So did the second. No need for a third. Ten minutes after having applied the second coat, I could ~~go frolic carelessly~~ have a cautious walk without fearing a dent on my nails. I'm wearing it here without topcoat, as ever. So far I've had it for 3 days now and still no tip wear. The alchemy has always been fantastic between Chanel polishes and me, yet I know every brand behave completely differently depending the persons. Texture talking, the surface of the polish is very smooth, no feeling of grittiness whatsoever.

The first day I tested it, I had it on only one nail and as I was outside, surrounded by the fields and the fantastically colored sky of the end of the day, I could see the sunset reflected on my nail. It was grey and blue and purple and pink and orange. That was magic, I wish I could have captured this moment. "Graphite" like a sparkled encrypted mirror captures every light, every shadow, every color and change according to every light. Magic, really magic. There is a lot of pictures, I know. But it's well deserved.

price: around 21€/25$

where to buy: local/online Chanel distributors

BRB

2011-09-28T13:14:00.001+02:00

Heya - I didn't really want to post this (talking about personal matters always make me feel terribly uncomfortable) but I don't like to disappear without a reason either! I still owe you the shading manicure video tutorial but couldn't do it in due time (Sunday) because the Miss Catastrophe I am get a bike accident on Saturday afternoon. It left me slightly injured with burnings, bruises and wounds on the right side of my face, an injured knee and a couple of broken rib bone (which is ridiculously painful). I could have posted but the painkillers left me sleepy and unable to concentrate for 3 days so I've simply decided to cut on them to get my head back. My ribs hurt but my mind feel clearer now which means I'll be back with posts before the end of the week. Oh and I can't wait to be at least half recovered because I plan to go to Ikea to pick a couple of Helmer. ;) See you soon! :)

Until next year

2011-09-23T13:10:00.005+02:00

Summer is reaching its end without having ever truly showed up here. It's been cold, grey and rainy all July and August long and all this give me the feeling of a profound frustration coupled with regrets and sadness: I always was a sun and summer person. No chance to see the sun before a long while as we're now entering our 8 months of cloudy and white blank sky routine. I can't even tell how I feel. And here I am again craving for California, missing something I have never had. How something you've never had can leave such a profound hole is literally beyond me.

Better late than never, it's only last week-end, I've had the most summer-like day. Nothing special happened. I've only gone for a 40km long mountain bike ride in our (nonetheless beautiful) countryside through the fields and our muddy paths full of rocks. At the end of the day, I was there among the never ending fields, the electric pylons, the most perfect pre-sunset sky ever, the horizon. And a fantastic feeling of space and freedom. The impression to be able to breathe at full lungs and feel like I finally belong this place. It's rare when it happens that I belong here. But I'd feel at home anywhere with my Eastpak on my back and my bike between my legs as long as I feel space and horizon around me (maybe that's why I was feeling so miserable the years I've lived downtown Paris - life is so promiscuous and suffocating over there). It was fresh and windy, I was chilly but that was like a real summer day cause you know, it just felt like it. I love the photos I took this day. Especially the reflection of the pylon in the mud pool. I've made a 180° rotation on the photo to make this little pool landscape look magic, look like the Moon (the pool I'm talking about is the one you can see on my bike photo, just above the seat). On my way back home I've picked apples and (tiny) pears (one inch and half high!) in an abandoned orchard. Life doesn't completely suck! =)

On this day, I'm wearing Alima mineral foundation in Olive 1 which is an absolutely perfect match to my slightly tanned summer skin. This summer, biking a lot (more than 500km) and walking (more than 300km) - I took some healthy and lovely slight coloring despite the spf50. I'm wearing a smokey eye made with black khôl and smudged out Alima eyeshadow in "Juniper" (a matte olive green almost the color of my eyes), Yves Rocher Felt-tip black eyeliner, Prestige "My biggest lashes" in black, elf blush in "Joy" and lipbalm on my lips. Nothing natural but being a dramatic make up woman it's my idea of a natural and earthy looking make-up.

Moreover, this post was only made to share some photos I'm feeling like sharing because I felt this day was a perfect moment of beauty. Oh and also to show my blonde hair as I've been blonde since last July!

Sinking into darkness

2011-09-20T11:33:00.001+02:00

It had been a while since I wanted to try a gradient manicure and it seems my wearing Nubar "Black Polka Dots" was a nice opportunity - I couldn't tell why but that is what the black dots inspired me: let them sink into the dark and since I loved this manicure so much, let's share.

I did the sheer black myself (blend some drops of China Glaze "Liquid Leather" into elf "Clear") and then gradually applied until I reached what I wanted. Despite the big number of (very thin) coats it required, this manicure dried super fastly - probably because elf "Clear" is fast to dry (I like it a lot). I enjoyed those nails so much that I worn them until they chipped (after 3 days) - there is something into the perpetually wet looking nails that I adored. Juicy. It looked fabulous with grey/black clothes, the matte depth of black corduroy and shinny leather.

Nubar - Black Polka Dot

2011-09-19T14:42:00.002+02:00

Although I own quite a number of them, I am not a big big fan of glitters in general. I don't hate them in the least but they're a bit to me what frost are to most. I fear the gritty texture like some fear brush strokes. To each their taste and preference. All this of course mean I don't buy many of them and when I do, it means it's really something. I didn't think twice when I bought "Black Polka Dot", anything black will tickle my interest.

"Black Polka Dot" is a top coat made of hexagonal big black glitter and tiny round ones suspended in a milky dark grey base. It's pretty unusual and cool which is why I guess it intrigued me so much. The grey base is very sheer and doesn't show up on nails. Here I'm wearing 3 coats of "Black Polka Dots" over Essie "Mademoiselle". I could say that "Mademoiselle" seen under fluorescent light is slightly grey toned now but it might also be my imagination tricking me.

I'm not the best at applying glitter top coats and of course the glitters didn't conduct like I wish they had. But the polish will leave you enough time to place the glitters like you want - I could spread the brush 2 or 3 times on every nail to rectify the placement. Despite this, the 3 coats I applied were very fast to dry. The glitter are thin and not bumpy which is something I really like about it. You can barely feel them on nails. The removal, like all glitters was difficult - no surprise about that. I see "Black Polka Dot" working over many colors and this polish is inspiring me a lot. Some might say it's not so well named as it doesn't look like real polka dots (which is true) but I take things as they come (life has learned me to do so) and love it for what it looks. It's so bizzarely festive and sober at the same time. You know? Like black confetti thrown all over the place at very sad funerals.

Essie - Mademoiselle

2011-09-16T00:46:00.004+02:00

Having in my drawers several hundreds of polishes I have never showed on this blog yet, what a shame to show the same polish twice, isn't it. But "Mademoiselle" being among the top search on my blog and having chosen to wear it those days, I thought I would show it again with better and bigger photos to help those who are in need to see it.

"Mademoiselle" is a jelly (gel like) sheer ballerina pink that can be used on its own or in a French manicure. It has this eternal softly feminine and classic look. Formula speaking it's streak-free and absolutely not problematic to apply. The polish is very sheer on nails, one of the sheerest polish I own in this type of color: one coat is nearly invisible. I'm wearing 3 coats because I preferred a more pronounced opal look but 2 is enough to give a glossy elegant look. Whatever happens, "Mademoiselle" is not made to be worn opaque and you couldn't reach the bottle color unless you wear let's say a dozen of coats. I'm not wearing top coat as usual and as you can see it's very glossy on its own.

One (and paradoxal) thing about this polish is that despite its very soft, delicate and discreet personality, it is uncompromisingly unforgiving and tough. I'm confident wearing it because my nails are not stained nor yellow but I think it is better not to have any discoloration to wear "Mademoiselle" because it wouldn't do much to hide it.

I know. It's not the most unique color in the world but I very like my hands with this polish on. I generally like to wear it when I don't want to have to think of my nails too much or don't want them under the spotlight. I have those kind of moments.

price: 8$

where to buy: ebay, head2toe

Peridot comparison

2011-09-13T16:05:00.001+02:00

clockwise: Chanel "Peridot", Sephora "Diving in Malaysia", Ozotic Pro "507", Classics Metallic "03"

from left to right:

Missha "HGR01", Classics Metallic "08", Chanel "Peridot", Sephora "Diving in Malaysia", Classics Metallic "03", Ozotic Pro "507"

from left to right: Chanel "Peridot", Sephora "Diving in Malaysia", Classics Metallic "03", Ozotic Pro "507"

Here is a comparison of Chanel Peridot and other polishes from the same color family (gold shifting to green): Sephora "Diving in Malaysia", Classics Metallic "03" and Ozotic Pro "507" (discontinued).

Ozotic Pro "507" is definitely out of the game as it's obviously more saturated, yellow and olive colored than the others. The three others are harder to distinguish and close enough to be called dupes.

While the differences are obvious watching the bottles, it is not as easy to distinguish them on nails. Indeed, it is very hard to part Sephora "Diving in Malaysia" from "Peridot". Those are basically the same looking polishes except that Chanel formula is a better and Chanel color base is just the slightlest more cool toned (but I swear your neighbor would not notice it unless he's a lacquerhead). Classics Metallic "03" on its side is also a very decent dupe. Certainly more warm toned than "Peridot" but due to the warmer golden base, the green duochrome is almost more obvious, brilliant and working better in my little opinion.

Sephora retails 4,90€ for 5 ml (0,98€ for 1 ml)
Chanel retails 20,60€ for 13 ml (1,58€ for 1 ml)
Classics Metallic retails 3€ for 11ml (0,27€ for 1ml)

Hope this helped!

Chanel - 531 Peridot

2011-09-11T16:59:00.005+02:00

Being kind of Fall/11 sensation (or may I feel so), "Peridot" has been featured on countless blogs since early summer as it has been released months ago in the USA but it only hit Europe in September. I guess it no longer has any side to hide but I decided to show it anyway. This post will be followed by a comparison where I'll show it's supposed and unknown dupes - so stay tuned!

I rarely - if ever - buy Chanel polishes. I like them and like the brand a lot but their make-up is - like for many of us - a bit too expensive for my purse. But the intriguing "Peridot" being my kind of color, I went for it. Opening my box, I discovered a cold bronze/gold polish with a green duochrome. The bottle shows strong blue flashes but the color never goes this extreme on nails and in most lights, Peridot waver from its silver sand bronze to its green side. It's really a polish for the Fall season, in fact such colors look wonderful in the forest among the trees. I had this polish on when I last made a long walk among the trees and couldn't have thought of a better color for moment when Fall is in the air. It borrows flashes of colors to the barks, the leaves, the water drops joyfully playing with the lower sun. Probably will it be even more in tune when the leaves start to turn yellow.

The formula is good and it requires 2 or 3 coats depending how thick they're done. I went for 2 normal ones and they dried very quickly. The power staying was nice without top coat, considering that frost/shimmer have less staying power than creme on me. As ever, my pictures are shown without top coat. Now it's funny you know. When I look at it in its elegant and timeless square bottle, I sometimes think that the polish is more stunning in its container than on the nails but it's still a shade I feel I will wear in the next following weeks as I'm fond of its almost sandy bronze base. Just… I wished the color effect could have been more profound. Profound like I love.

price: around 21€/25$

where to buy: local/online Chanel distributors

Backstage

2011-09-11T10:03:00.001+02:00

Despite my silence and absence of posts (I have yet about 10 posts of polish almost ready!), I can assure you I'm there and well there. I'm actively working on my nail polish ingredient database, getting my head into all my collection, brand websites and foreign brands (which is not always an easy task as I don't speak anything but French, English and a little bit of German). It's a very long work of documentation but a fascinating one to do as this list might (hopefully) be helpful at the end and I absolutely enjoy doing this kind of library work.

I'm unfortunately missing some brands - mostly from American drugstores and local worldwide brands. If you want to suggest a brand or send me a picture of an ingredient list, it's completely possible and even much appreciated! I'll eventually make a public call and will list the brands I'm missing. I don't need anyone to spend hours hurting their eyes on tiny letters and copying all those barbaric names (that I can cut and paste from my list), a photo is perfect by me. I'll credit everyone the way they want! Just feel free to email me: blog.jellynat on gmail.com.

Ok, time for me to go back to the list - even if I might be back soon enough for a post. ;)

Vintage Avon beauty

2011-08-29T12:30:00.002+02:00

Are you on for seeing make up from 1975/76? Fasten your seatbelt, I'm taking you on a time travel. I'm always late on new collections (don't blame me, I live beyond the pond and polishes must swim to come to me) but that time, I'm literally going beyond myself: 35 years late no more no less.

When I found 3 old Avon catalogues belonging to my mother in a cardboard box also belonging to my mother (from the time she was a Avon ambassador), I was super excited. Like a flea. I'm not a nostalgic person - quite the contrary - but for some reason I love to see how things were long ago, the kind of colors that were being released at that time, the packaging. Oldies - especially in beauty! - amuse me. No big deal if I like stuff I can't get, it's fun! I couldn't not share this and did some scan for your viewing pleasure. I hope you enjoyed the time travel!

On a side note, I've been amazed to find a glitter emerald nail polish in this catalogue - I expected to find only pinks, corals and red (and reality didn't contradicted me in some ways). But those catalogues are clearly telling me that green was in trend even before blue. I would have though that it was the opposite, that blue - and even purple - appeared before green. Not you?

Classics Metallic "08" and Missha "HGR01" comparison

2011-08-28T23:10:00.003+02:00

left Classics Metallic "08"; right Missha "HGR01"

from left to right: Classics Metallic "08", Missha "HGR01", Classics Metallic "08", Missha "HGR01"

As promised, here is the comparison between Classics Metallic 08 and Missha HGR01. I will say honestly that - unless you're holding here your favorite type of color and need to own them all - you won't need both as they're definitely perfect dupe. There are slight differences in the texture but they aren't enough to say they're unalike.

Both have the same color base, the same multichrome effect. The difference lays in Missha having thicker and more visible shimmer particles and Classics Metallic having a smoother appearance, close to chrome. Both apply in 2 medium or 3 thin coats, both have a good formula, both dry fast, both strictly have the same awesome effect (color and intensity). None is objectively better than the other, it's all about a matter of shimmer preference. Watching my nail wheel, I realized that Missha was applying with streaks which wasn't the case of Classics Metallic. I didn't notice it when I wore HGR01 due to the high shimmer factor, it's not a major problem. That is pretty all the differences I can spot.

The choice is yours to decide which one you want although Missha is a bit easier to find than Classics Metallic (I will be back with more info about availability once I know more). I personally prefer Classics Metallic because of its smoother appearance. Which one do you prefer?

Classics Metallic - 08

2011-08-24T14:00:00.002+02:00

Today I have a little beauty to show you. With a boring name, unfortunately. But we're not wearing names on our nails, right? So who cares about names as long as the polish looks good. "08" is one of thepolishes from "Metallic" line which count 17 colors in all. Does this one look familiar to you? Yes, it resemble Missha HGR01 a lot. They are undeniable dupes I can tell you already. However, there are some slight differences. There is a comparison post following this one where I'll shamelessly tell everything I know like a squeezed sponge. But back to "08" before!

It's a medium green metallic (almost a chrome) with a multichrome effect going from gold in sunlight to powerful glowing turquoise reflect in dim lights. The chameleon effect is obvious in all light and the polish never knows a dull moment. The application didn't cause me any problem. No visible brush stroke, smooth formula. You'll need 3 coats to reach opacity because it's a bit lighter in texture than I thought but it's not a problem as it dries very fast. I shall post swatches of it over black anytime soon! My pictures are show without top coat, as you can see it's really shiny. The brush is small and a bit thin but it remains pretty neat, you won't need a clean up afterwards. I'm not sure I needed to buy this polish as I already owned its Missha dupe but I'm a sucker for this kind of complex colors and it's something I'll always wear with lots of satisfaction.

It's only today I realized that the reflects and colors of this polish (and its alike Missha) resemble the colors of an aurora borealis. I have always wanted to see an aurora borealis. The sky, its endless possibilities and its direct connection to the cosmos fascinate me. Sticked to the surface by mistake, I have only had my mind to evaporate and feel free. Maybe someday will I go to the North Pole, nevermind how cold it is over there: I promise I won't forget my gloves. For some reason, I have a fascination for immense landscapes, silent places and no one around. The silence. The wind. The air. This is where I feel I could be in peace with myself and the whole universe. And there would be a swirling aurora borealis quietly, immensely laying there above my head.

price: around 3€ (without shipping)
where to buy: soon to be available at goldenrosemalta.com (I hopefully can be back with more info soon) (International shipping)

Ozotic Pro - 518

2011-08-19T00:32:00.007+02:00

It had been a while since I wanted to try some Ozotic Pro nail polishes despite their not being on the cheap side. For my first order I allowed myself 2 bottles: I chose the popular multichrome 505 and of course couldn't resist a holo. Having to choose between their 2 reds - 511 and 518, I went for the latter as it looked a little deeper and more in tune with my tastes. Red and me you know it, is a big love affair.

For some curious reasons, a red holographic polish is not easy to find. China Glaze, OPI, Nfu Oh, Sally Hansen to only name a few have all released some worthy owning holos in all sorts of colors but none of them ever really proposed a bright tomato or a cherry red (neither an emerald green either if it matters). Why so? No idea. Yet that'd be the combination of 2 things I adore in nail polish: the fascination of playful holographic particles in the sun light and the classic beauty of a femme fatale red nails. I placed my order and waited to see how I was going to be eaten with that 518. Opening my package from Australia one week later, I didn't know what to expect from Ozotic's formula but when I saw the red holo joyfully moving in its bottle in the dim light of my room, I knew I had not made an error. I put it on right away. It seems that red attract me more than a magic multichrome!

Anyway, the formula is not on the thick/opaque side like Nfu-Oh but more a semi sheer applying perfectly without a single streak. Its being sheer doesn't mean you can't build up (you can reach opacity in just 2 coats) but the sheer factor really improve the ease of application. I fact, I was pleased at how easy it was to apply. I didn't even bother applying it over my Nfu-Oh "Aqua Base" (especially designed for holo polishes) and because I already had my usual basecoat on (OPI Start to Finish), I decided to apply the first coat over it. Just to try and see, you know. To my biggest suprise, 518 behaved like a completely normal polish and not one of those beautiful but pasty holo divas that are the Nfu-Ohlos requiring special treatments and baby gloves. In fact, 518 applied like butter (perfectly fluid but not runny formula) and was opaque in 2 coats (tell me if I repeat myself). Plus it was shiny on its own. Worth the price if you ask me. Really I was impressed at how excellent it is. The holo effect is visible most of the time, even in dim indoors lights and of course it's fantastic under the sun making appear the polish far more red than it is. The only wrong side of 518 is… how smelly it is. It smells really strong and awful for a big 3 free so don't forget to open the window when you apply it because it can be irritating for the trachea (mine at least). That is so far the only bad side because it lasted 3 respectable days on my nails before chipping (which didn't stop me to keep it a fourth day).

Color speaking, when I had it on my sister said she really loved that "raspberry red" on me. So did I. I more see it like a strawberry red because it's not pink enough to be raspberry but that's me being picky with words again. Either way we're both right as it's a fruity. We're not holding our true red holo yet (518 is too dusty, pinkish and fruity to be a true red) but it's the closest I've ever seen in a red holo so am I going to be picky on its color? Not this time. Now since 518 is so easy to handle, it can be used as a top coat and be applied over a red creme (a true red or a cherry behaving better than a tomato) which will add more depth and brightness.

And here we almost have our red holo.

price: around 15AU$

where to buy: picture polish (international)

from left to right: 2 coats of 518, 2 coats of 518 over bright red creme (Zoya "Sooki"), 2 coats of 518 over bright tomato/orange jelly red (Ekineda "Fire Red")

Julie Hewett - Edie

2011-08-08T19:00:00.002+02:00

from left to right: e.l.f "Natural Nymph", Wet n Wild 903c "Just Peachy", Revlon Colorburst "Soft Nude", Julie Hewett "Edie", Mac "Creme d'Nude", NYX Lipliner "Nude Pink", NYX Lipliner "Peekaboo Neutral"

I've been wanting to try Julie Hewett lipsticks for a while and I am glad I could find some UK online stores distributing the brand within Europe. I have several lipsticks from the brand now to show you and the first of them is "Edie", a shade from the Bijou collection which only feature soft and sheer colors. The Julie Hewett website describe "Edie" as a "sheer true beige for the perfect "mod" lip". I'll describe it as a sheer peachy nude.  

To start, I'll say that I love the formula of this lipstick. It is made out a lot of vegetal oils and butters which is to me a big plus as I prefer to stay away from mineral petroleum based lipsticks (reason why is that they are emollient but end up drying out lips). Containing oils and butter, "Edie" is still not nourishing like my usual Yes to Carrots lipbalm for that much but I didn't expect so and at least it feels light, comfortable and not drying. The (buildable) sheerness of this lipstick is really elegant and what is great about it is that it is a real sheer that never apply or look streaky. Lips look really fresh. Also it's not flavored, I can't feel any smell or taste. As of staying power, no lipstick last on me very long so I can't really discuss the issue. In all, a great lipstick and I absolutely adore the doll lips it gives me.   

However how nice the lipstick might be, the color doesn't suit my fair olive skintone so much (I'm beige without a hint of peach - think cafe au lait with a lot of milk) and the joyful peach undertones of the lipstick make me appear slightly grey/green (as a reference, my go-to dark nude is the very grey toned beige MAC Freshbrew). I can only apply "Edie" fewly to somewhat make it work but it still makes me look greenish (I realize it's not so obvious in photo than it is in reality). I won't hold this against the lipstick (not everything works for everyone!) but I can't deny I mainly get misled by the "beige" description given by the brand. "Edie" is not a true beige unlike its official description. But even if it didn't work against my complexion, I see it wonderfully working for many persons - especially for those with peach or pink undertones. To compare it to some popular shades, it's slightly pinker than the more neutral MAC Creme d'Nude, not as orange and more pink than Revlon "Soft Nude", deeper in tone and more sheer than elf "Natural Nymph" (see comparison photo). As great as they can be, Julie Hewett lipsticks have the disadvantage to be pricey - still they are cheaper than Chanel or Yves Saint Laurent's lipsticks if it comes as a consolation. Will I repurchase? Yes but I would pick another shade.

price: 14£/16€/23$ for Europe 20$ for the USA 
where to buy: juliehewett.net (USA), cocktailcosmetics.co.uk (Europe/International)

ingredients: ricinus communis (castor) seed oil, caprylic/capric triglyceride, bis-diglyceryl polyacyladipate-2, octyl dodecanol, lanolin oil, euphorbia cerifera (candelilla) wax, isopropyl myristate, tricaprylin, mangifera indica (mango) seed butter, copernica cerifera (carnauba) wax, beeswax, microcrystalline wax, camellia sinensis seed oil, vitis vinifera (grape) seed oil, citrus aurantum dulcis (orange) oil, tocopheryl acetate (vitamine e acetate), caprylyl cglycol (and) hexylene glycol (and) phenoxyethanol, ethylexylglyceryn, bht. may also contain: mica (ci 77019), iron oxides (ci 77491, ci 77492), titanium dioxyde (ci 77891), carmine (ci 75470), blue #1 lake (ci 42090), red 6 (ci 15850), red 7 lake (ci 15850), red 22 lake (ci 45380), red 27 (ci 45410), red 28 lake (ci 45410), red 30 (ci 73360), red 33 lake (ci 17200), yellow 5 lake (ci 19140), yellow 6 lake (ci 15985).

China Glaze - Rich & Famous

2011-08-06T18:13:00.001+02:00

I know it's been a while since I last made a post but it's been difficult for me to make photos as we have a completely sunless summer (and it's not an exaggeration). Beside the occasional spot of sun when I rush to make some nail pics (since I still wear nail polish, I swear), no good light really to make long photo sessions (and that's what I need to make bottle shots, make lip/skin swatches). The sky remain either blank white/grey or rainy. So here are some rare sun photos of China Glaze "Rich & Famous"!

Back in the days, I remember its name being for a large part in my buying this polish. Well, not completely but… there was something in here that pleased me, tickling my imagination. At that time I was coveting Chanel "Melrose" and this one was - at least in my mind - close enough, both in color and name style. I still think nowadays we are in the same wave as "Melrose", unfortunately I don't own it so there won't be any comparison scheduled. "Rich and Famous" was originally released (long ago I guess) for the Monte Carlo collection then re-released for the What's Your Color? Collection (one color for every astrological sign), this one being assigned to Taurus. So far, it's an extremely easy to find nail polish so I guess it's also part of the core collection (if I'm not wrong).

"Rich & Famous" is nothing more nothing less the archetype of the ultimate bubblegum pink: medium neutral toned creme pink. Neither cold or warm toned. It's really girly, playful, youthful. Frivolous even. Cute anyway. The application is very smooth and easy. I'm wearing 2 coats and no top coat (as ever). The power staying goes from 3 to 6 days, depending what I'm doing with my nails but I should mention that ChG wears really well on me. As I'm going through my messy drawers, I realize I own many polishes in the same vein as it's a very common color, but if there was one to keep to me, that'd be "Rich & Famous". Not because it is especially unique but because I'm fond of its name and its perfect streak-free formula.

price: around 3$
where to buy: transdesign (international)

Zoya - Sooki

2011-07-12T01:09:00.003+02:00

While it's time for a lot of blogs to present fall collections in avant-première, I'm only able to show some of the Summer items I have bought. But it's still summer so I'm still in time, right? ;) Here is "Sooki" from the current Zoya Summertime collection, the only color I've chosen to buy. I have such a thing for red and find myself wearing this color so often on my nails (and clothes and lips also) that I couldn't resist picking up this one although I more than surely have enough bottles of red nail polish already. But red is sexy and eternal and it's always been my idea of being a woman since I was a little girl. I love red.

On the website, Sooki is described as a "Bright, clean, crisp cool cherry red cream with a subtle jelly finish". While it's really true (it's so bright, so strong and so joyful), when it's on my nails I more feel like I'm wearing a plain true neutral red (which I adore of course). In reality, it's cooler in tone than my pictures show - you know that red is almost impossible to render on a screen - they always look more tomato than they are. How picky might I be with description, Sooki is one of the best red I've worn and it looks perfect against a fair/light skin. Application is flawless (as often with red in most of brands - I've rarely - if ever! - been disappointed by a red) and while it was looking good after one coat, I added a second for more durability. As ever, no top coat. It dries fast, super shiny and last quite long. Nevermind all the bottles of red I was owning already, they all look different to me and I didn't go anywhere wrong picking Sooki. Yummy.

price: around 8$
where to buy: ebay (international) - zoya.com (US only)

Missha - HGR01

2011-07-01T01:08:00.006+02:00

It is rather picture heavy today! It is sometimes necessary when a polish has many faces and is, overall fascinating. I was really curious to try out Missha nail polishes for a long time as I had only tried their bb cream and sunscreen before. Because I didn't know much about its containing toluene or not, I played it safe and chose to only order one of them to try and my choice naturally went to "HGR01" because of its obvious uniqueness. Missha does not contain toluene but after extended research and some hours of traduction I can say that some Missha nail polishes still contains DBP. Beware if you prefer not to use it. It is claimed to be cruelty free, as this was written on a Missha sunscreen I own.

Back to the polish. HGR01 is a medium to light shimmer (almost brush stroke-free frost) green going from an elusive gold reflect in low lights to a very strong bright (glowing and gorgeous) turquoise effect. It's ever changing in every light and doesn't ever know a dull moment. It's a very fascinating and unique polish and I don't think I've ever seen such a color. It really deserve my plenty of pictures.

The application was very easy: the formula is perfect, neither thin or thick and dries fast. The brush can come as a surprise as it is reminiscent of the Sally Hansen Salon formula ones: large, short, flat with a rounded tip. You love or you don't. Personally, it's not my favorite type of brush but I don't hate them at all. Once you get used to it, it's very easy to paint your nail without having to make a post manicure clean up (I didn't do any). I did 2 coats and that was enough for a perfect coverage. Overall, an excellent quality.

To my biggest surprise, this a scented polish. It took me a while to figure out where this rose smell was coming out (the concept of scented polish is so not familiar to me that I didn't figure out - the only scented polish I ever owned was a Yves Rocher one (coconut scented) when I was 10 or 11. Back to Missha, the rose smell is not overhelming but present enough to be disturbing (or pleasant if you like it). Actually, I prefer my nail polishes not to be scented but in fact, this faded out rather quickly. 24 hours and I was done with it without I even did anything. The polish lasted me 3 days without top coat and without a lot of care (housecleaning isn't the best nail care). Not bad!

price: around 12$ (free shipping)

where to buy: ebay (international) - official website (Korea only)

Ekineda - Icy Rose (Icey Rose)

2011-06-21T14:40:00.001+02:00

Isn't it always superbly refreshing to discover a brand no one seems to know much about? Doesn't it renew all the interest and passion you might have lost into something if ever? When I came across that brand name of polish called Ekineda, my first reflex was to google it to find out if any of my fellow nail blogger had mentioned this brand before. So far, I found nothing. Unless my google search is doomed, I can conclude it's mainly unknown. "Great!" did I think. I love to explore new horizons. I love to be the first to leave my step into the fresh snow. Nothing excite me more than a new land to conquer and this is precisely what Ekineda looked like to me: a virgin land. So far, all I know is that it is a big 3 free English brand. I should maybe have written them to know more, ask them when the brand was founded, who they were. I bought their polish instead and tested them which is possibly even better than a thousand words. It's possible then that I have about a 20 of those to show you. I told you there was space to explore. Their color collection is small (30 colors) and I admit, pretty conservative (lots of pink) but the formula is smooth and great and there are some awesome finds here, like the drop dead gorgeous "Emerald Sky".

That being said, I won't be starting with this one and will do with a very special color. Maybe not so special to many (what can be so noticeable in a pink among thousand ones?) but "Icy Rose" is very special to me. Back in my early teenage, the French brand Bourjois had a polish in their permanent collection called "Violetta". Violetta was a chrome pink lilac. I have emptied three 15ml bottles of this one until they revamped it along with their bottle design. "Violetta" then became a banal coral based pink shimmer and a very disappointing misnommer. They ended up eventually discontinuing it. Good ridance.

I think I have searched for a dupe of the original "Violetta" starting from that time. I have bought numerous pink colors in the brands we all know without ever coming close (with the exception of CHI "Lost my Bi-CHI-Ni" which was in the good vibe). Believe me or not, a pink-lilac chrome that is not a dusty pink is not very easy to find. At least not one like I have in head. "Icy Rose" is not exactly like Violetta but come so close in the base color that I can consider myself happy to have found a replacement. As a matter of fact, Icy Rose is a pinch darker and it's perfect to me.

So, "Icy Rose" (on the website it is called "Icey Rose" but my bottle state "Icy Rose") is a pink that you'd think frost but as I can't see brush strokes on my nails (photo enhance them - they're not visible in real life), it comes as a chrome. A bright and strong pink leaning toward purple. Ekineda describes it as a dusky lilac-pink. I'll describe it as a varicose pinky purple. It's darker in the bottle than on nails due to the light reflective quality of the polish. As I didn't know the brand, I didn't know what to expect but the formula is superb, opaque in 2 coats and fast drying. The polish is neither too thin, neither too thick. The only bad thing is that it tends to bubble if I apply it too fast by a too hot weather. Also the polish will cheap easily without a top coat. Both issue can be solved in applying carefully when the weather is not too hot and applying a top coat. I adore it on my nails, as you might have guessed.

I can't believe I have emptied half a bottle of my "Icy Rose" already and it's barely been more or less a month since I discovered the brand. It's saying how I love it. And it's not every time that I'm wearing the same polish 4 times in a row. I will be featuring more color to present you the brand because I bought a lot of colors. Not everything is worthy for sure but isn't it like in every brand we know?

price: £5.00 // $6,25 // €5.63 for 11 ml
where to buy: ekineda.com (ship internationally)

A nice way to be back

2011-05-17T00:39:00.001+02:00

So... today I'm featured at my lovely friend's blog Sarah: Them Pretty Colors. I must say I almost said no to this lovely invitation because I am SO shy and uncomfortable about having the focus and the lights on me. Then I decided it was no big deal, that I should just relax and not worry too much. Aren't I right. I'm glad I accepted and honored Sarah thought of me.

I haven't posted much lately, not even giving any news. But it was quite for my good! I tend to think that when you need it, a break is always beneficital: I needed it. The truth is that I've been really absorbed by my body matters lately, concentrating on exercizing and way to improve my body shape. I'm an ex morbidly obese girl (I had always been fat all my life and I lost 155 lbs 12 years ago without any help) and it's a really long journey to re-appropriate your body back, polish the angles, shape, cure and forgive. I had been stable for years at US size 12 but thought last November it was time to work on my body again and lose some weight again. It's only last winter I could get rid of water retention (allelujah!), learn how to re-build my feet arches (that were flattened due to years of weight excess), correct my hip posture (and tone up my abs). I'm trying also to help my loose skin with cosmetotextile clothes (and it works). All these things are done all alone without any help beside my sister's emotional support so, it's a path as long as it is one getting me very rich of experiences and excellent lessons learned. That's mainly why I wasn't there posting about cosmetics. As I'm typing those words I'm in the best shape I've ever been in my opinion (considering my body history, it's all relative) even if it's not won and finished yet. For now I'm a French size 38 (US size 6) for a 5'3'' which I think is not bad for a girl who was more than 290 lbs 12 years ago and more than a US size 24. Maybe someday will I post before/after pictures of me? I have never done that. Mainly because I'm not the kind of person to stop, sit and watch behind. Once something is finished I set myself a new land to conquer!

Anyway, I have a lot to show cosmetic talking and I hope I can keep a nice routine with my posts. I've been in a total lipstick craze lately, red especially so I'll probably show a lot of lips things I grabed here and there. I have some pictures done already but haven't really finished anything yet. Oh well. Everything will be just fine. :)

Comme au Pérou

2011-04-12T14:34:00.010+02:00

A little bit of randomness today. I too rarely dare to share such thing by fear no one get interested. But eh… it's my blog at the end! I remember I talked about llamas when I was back to blogging after my unwanted technical break but never showed them.

When I was a young girl (probably about 8), my aunt went visiting Bolivia. She brought some typical Bolivian goodies, such as a brown woven blanket, 2 dolls (a man and a woman) stuck together and dressed in traditional clothes. I have spent a considerable time "torturing" the dolls to see what the woman had under her skirt and the man inside his pants. As a matter of fact, they were made of recycled newspaper and wire. My relationship to dolls is strange. When I was 19 years old, I found back my kid dolls in the ceiling of my parents. All of them were naked to the bones and their ankles were stuck together with pieces of nylon tights. Freud would surely have a lot to say about that but I digress. Let's be back to what my aunt brought back from South America. There was also some tiny hand made llama figurines (between 1 and 2 inches high). Basically a wire structure with white llama wool put all around (very smooth and very white). It was really well done and absolutely cute but playing with them, I think I broke more than one legs to the gracile creatures. God only knows where the poor figurines are now. Kids are really cruel. Never did I see a llama in a zoo after that and never did I imagine myself approaching a real one someday in my life. My link to llamas stopped with the dismembered figurines. Until 2 years ago.

The first time I saw "my" llamas, I was having a walk back in june 2009. I was at 2 bare kilometers from home (I walk a whole lot), it was a sunny lovely evening and summer was almost completely there. I couldn't believe my eyes. I love having a walk in our countryside but our said countryside is only inhabited by horses, ducks, gooses, goats and cows. Frogs too. I'm close to Lille, the perfect crossover location between Paris, London and Bruxelles. In my (over industrialized-post-industrial) area, it's raining a lot and the sky is always blank and grey. It's not the Peru here, it's the French North. The land is flat as a table and you can sit down for centuries waiting for a mountain to bump, it will never happen. The sea coast is not that far but still too far to be able to go casually. I'm living in a region nicknamed "le plat pays", or else worded, "The Flat Lands". Not a place where you usually come across llamas. That's why the first time I saw them, I couldn't believe my eyes. I remember telling that to my yet and now estranged closest friend F. and he teased me asking if I was not high, smoked pot or anything. I swore him I had seen llamas in a meadow near my home but that I would go back and check twice if I had not dreamed. So far, I had not. There was 5 llamas in a meadow.

F. and I are now completely estranged and sometimes, when I think of him and the things we have lived, shared and done together I feel like all this belongs to an other life of mine, me being just another person that has died with the relationship. I miss him and his charisma. Especially when I think of our happiest moments which have been very intense. But nowhere on Earth could we ever be friend again. Pages of our life must obligatory turn, one after the other - there is no point in trying to hold them back unless you're willingly trying to self-destruct. His page turned like the world was completely collapsing but also a genuine relief due to our respective very strong temper and personality. I'm not an easy one to handle, tame and understand. He wasn't either. All this left me with mixed feelings of love and hate, anger and regrets. I never get anymore confident after him and I learned to be on my very own, dealing with my problems, my joys and my doubts all alone. I have healed now, tranquility took a lot of time and strength to come. I've acquired more wisdom: you get used to loneliness. The end is always a beginning and I carry now in my backpack, the reassuring weight of the hardly learned lessons along with a huge scar inside and a hole that I suppose will never go away. Meanwhile, the llamas were standing still in their meadow eating and pooping peacefully, indifferent to anything but their quiet life. That's why I love animals I guess. Their equal temper. I have a powerful feeling with them too, something I cannot explain. I feel closer to the animal reign than the human one most of the time. Maybe that's why. I sometimes wish the easiness I have with animals could be the one I have with my siblings.

So there are 5 nameless llamas. They are really tall guys with a huge body. I'm 5'3'' and they're all at least 6'1''. Pretty impressive for a short woman like me. Their head is huge and they possibly have the most gorgeous eyes of the whole animal reign. Sultry. A look so full of sweetness with long lashes that you'd have to be a heartless monster not to find them irresistible. I don't know who they belong to but every time I am having a walk in their area, I am stopping by. With time, I have learned to know them, they all are so different. Some are more timid and slow. The bigger (grey and white) absolutely never approach. The red one is very dominant and more aggressive but in all, they are very curious and sweet animals. The meadow is quite big and I only have to come near to the fence to see them coming from afar nonchalantly, their lovely head undulating on their long hairy neck. They want to know everything, get interested in everything. Then they go back to their previous occupation if you have nothing to prolong their tickled interest. How curious they might be, they are a bit wild. They demean their ears and move their head when you're having a move putting them in doubt. Also they don't want to be touched. Every time I've passed my hand through the fence, they've stepped back. Too bad because their fur looks endlessly smooth.

It's only recently I've started to give them grass. Back in the winter when it was snowing, I was seeing them eating the bark of the trees in their grassless meadows. It broke my heart so I did my best to try to find a little bit of grass beneath the snow. From here, they get crazy and greedy (they only have dry grass and cereals to eat). Expectedly, they adore eating grass. Now every time I'm passing by, I pick some on the colliding meadow (where it's abundant because it's Spring!). The red llama (5th photo) is very jealous. He doesn't want the others to have the grass and I even saw him spit at an other who wanted to eat from my hand. It's a bad head. When he has attacked an other, he turn his head to me, watching me with his glamourous sultry and lovely eyes, as if nothing happened, telling me without a word "It's only between you and me now". But I'm not entering his games. I'm for equality and I guess he has understood this because lately he has been acting a bit more kindly. They are so smart! They also have their little tempter and in all they make me smile and cheer me up. I find them funny. When I meow like a cat, they watch me with eyes full of interrogations and seem genuinely interested. With time, I think they are used to me because they immediately come (no, even better: they almost run!) to the fence when I approach, certainly hoping for some fresh grass.

Our relationship is a bit interested for sure - at least on their side! - but I don't care. I adore to observe them and I feel lucky I could make a connection with those exotic and charming creatures. The Peru will be for later, then. And who knows, maybe someday will one let me touch their fur?

Nfu-Oh #62

2011-04-10T23:57:00.001+02:00

"Good news everyone!" It's sunny time in my area now and this is the good moment to wear my beloved holo. I have had the tendency to forget about the latest nail polish releases and have prefered to dig among my lovely (and mostly untried) possessions. I don't feel like necessarily wear what was freshly released at the moment. I don't know why. I haven't bought newly released nail polish in quite a little while anyway (China Glaze "Ahoy!" aside) because there is nothing really exciting (beside maybe Illamasqua "Bacterium" that I do not own yet but might if I remember not to forget). You get it, for now I prefer to enjoy what I already possess and have never even tried. Most of my holographic polishes for instance (and the whole OMG collection I own for months and never showed). Spring is holo time. Sometimes in summer, the sun is so strong that all that you do is seeking shadows and run away from it. How could you appreciate a polish that only live for the sun? The Spring sun is not of this nature and to me, April and May are really the best time for a holo. I am an admitted holover. All over holo.

I've digged among my polish and have unburried my Nfu-Of #62. And I unburried everything: the bottle, the color, the boobs, the good and also the bad sides… In the bottle it appears to be a frozen pinked beige. A neutral shade that is very much more flattering than silver holo on girls who tend to get red hands due to cold or exercise (yay for body moving but why do my hands get red?). Pure silver enhance the red of skin but such a delicate pinky beige smooth things out. In fact, it's very close to a warm silver (if that makes sense). The holo effect is quite intense in the sun and ridiculously fascinating and distracting. In full sun, the polish tend to appear more pink-lilac toned which surprised me. Indoors and in low light, it keeps a slight rainbow effect on a beige base. Outside in shadow however, it becomes a completely dull frozen pale beige. As mesmerizing as it can be in the sun, #62 has its dull moments. Yes it does. Not that I mind but if someone ever tells you Nfu-Ohlo never have a dull moment, it's not true.

The application was frantic and unpleasant. I've never felt in such a rush to apply. That's what happens when your polish dry quicker than speedlight. The polish is very thick and dries even before I get on the tip of my nails (which aren't even that long). The good side is that I had not a chance to get a smudge but I was in such a hurry trying to sort things out hoping for the best with this fast drying thick polish that I ended getting the inevitable: brush strokes. Yet I'm not bad at applying polish. But I'm not superhero Flash either (sorry to disappoint). I was genuinely wincing during application. Happily, the holo effect minimized my poor application but brush strokes were still visible when I was in shadow. Otherwise it required 2 coats that I did over the Nfu Oh Aqua base which - happily - improved the application considerably (the aqua base helps to make a more even out application of holographic polishes).

One more bad thing, the power staying is dramatically poor. Holo are known for chipping fast. But in general, polishes are behaving well on my nails and even the holos of my beloved China Glaze OMG collection can last 2 or 3 days before chipping. But this one lasted only 6 hours. Chipping remained discreet looking due to the color close to natural nails but still. 6 hours. It's all my fault you know: I'm using my hands to live, touch, manipulate object and then I wash them. In general, I am somewhat let's say… philosophical: when a really cheap product behave like a flake, I think "you have what you paid for, Nat". But does this apply to this one? Not really. At 13€ at a pop, Nfu-Oh holo polishes are not cheap. The staying power problem cannot be resolved with a top coat as it significantly dull out the holo effect (I tried and it's true). So what to do?

A great looking polish, no doubt about that and I love it. But I am at an end concerning its staying power and I am not sure when exactly I could wear a polish that I can't even trust a whole day. So where to wear it? At my own funerals? Mmh why not… I've always been a lot into black humour. This can be found at Fatal Beauty for French/Benelux girls (and shipping is free!) or Fabulous Street for US and International ladies.

Milani - Sweetheart

2011-04-03T15:39:00.008+02:00

There might be as many atoms in the universe as available shades of pink polish, I never quite seem to find "the ones". But it is all my fault, you know. I have high ideals concerning some colors (there are this way in my head and must not be otherwise on my nails) and fuchsia (or 'fuschia' whatever you spell it!) is one of them. I don't like my fuchsia to be too orange, too red, too purple, too light, too tamed, etc. I just want a maximum and furious pink. Something that slam everyone's face without I ever have to reach an hand and touch anyone. Violent and pure. Is it too much asking?

I bought Milani "Sweetheart" completely by chance (and curiousity), not even hoping it'd fit what I'm generally looking for and it is curiously very close to my ideal hot pink. It's a bright rapsberry creme, it's hot, it's feminine, it's fierce and it's girly. It's Love. Unfortunately, such shades are not very easy to capture and I feel like my photos couldn't quite completely capture it. The limits of technology sadden me sometimes.

Formula speaking, it was ridiculously easy to apply and only required 2 coats. I'm not wearing any top coat (do I ever anyway?) and it's perfectly glossy on its own. I know all this sounds like a too perfect portrait of a polish but this is real: "Sweetheart" is as great as this. I know this one has been discontinued (it was a limited edition released for Valentine 2009) but you can still find it very easily. Notably on a very famous auction website.

Whatever happens, when sun shows up after so many months of cold and greyness, I don't feel like wearing timid pastels. I feel like playing the big game without any transition and "Sweetheart" is a really great polish to celebrate a sun I have so desperately wanted to be back. I feel great.

Elf HD Powder vs MAC Prep+Prime Powder

2011-04-02T02:25:00.001+02:00

Even dry skins need a good setting powder! To sum up, I have a dry/dehydrated skin, with a fine grain and barely visible pores on the nose aisles. My skin has a tendency to look dull and feel like dry paper if dehydrated and not enough nourished. No breakout, no pimple. Never any natural oil on my face, not even on my nose. Why do I need powder then? After spraying my face with water and before applying my day cream, I apply pure vegetal oil - avocado or jojoba - to nourish it. Although it's efficient, it has the bad side effect to look shiny even after I apply my BB cream. Thus the powder need.

I generally only use powder on nose, nose aisles and forehead (my cheeks drink the vegetal oil so greedily that the shiny aspect rapidly disappear). But talc and sometimes kaolin foundable in most powders are a plague for a dry skin - I can stand it once in a while but certainly not everyday. Also it is uneasy for me to find a good color match. Still needing powder, my choice first went to the MAC Prep+Prime finishing powder a couple of years ago because it's totally transparent and doesn't contain talc. Few time ago, I decided to give a try to its cheap concurrent the elf Studio High Definition Powder out of pure curiosity.

MAC Prep+Prime contains 9g and retails for 19€ at MAC website. (ingredients: Zea Mays (Corn) Starch, Silica, Mica, Zinc Stearate, Caprylyl Glycol, 1,2-Hexanediol)

Elf HD Powder contains 0,28oz (8g), comes with a powder puff and retails for 6,80€ at elf website. (ingredients: Dimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Silica.)

Despite elf's jar being larger, you get a bit less quantity of product. Now although both powder promise and provide the same thing (colorless matte effect), they look and feel different on my skin. Mac powder contains mica and has a slight shine. Elf's HD powder does not contain mica and looks completely matte. Both feels smooth when you rub some product between your fingers yet to me, elf feels even smoother.

Appearance

- MAC Prep+Prime mattify well and the satin finish is really great. Without looking like a disco ball in the least, it brings something lively and fresh I love a lot.

- Elf HD Powder makes my skin silky and totally flawless reducing the pores on my nose aisles to… zero. I love how unreal my skin look but the effect can be a bit dull. I generally add shimmer on the top of my cheeks and temples to bring light.

Formula

- I have used Mac powder during an extended time but have never been able to use it everyday. I couldn't tolerate a daily use: it dries out my skin like crazy. At the end of the day with this powder, my skin tends to feel like paper, showing signs of visible de-hydration. It's dry to the touch, uncomfortable, lifeless and dull looking. I suspect corn starch to be the responsible element: my sister recently formulated a corn stash based finishing powder for me and it is also very drying. Although I will always reach for natural/vegetal ingredients, this one does not seem to do any good to my skin.

- Recently I've worn elf HD powder for one full week straight and at the end of the day, it still felt comfortable (even my cheeks!) and my make up still looked perfect before evening clean up. I'm not too hot on using nylon on my face (it's just a personal matter if I find that weird!) but my skin seems to tolerate it well.

Conclusion

Definitely, elf wins the match to me and it doesn't hurt that it is also the third of MAC's price. I really didn't expect to love it the way I do and truth to be told, I was afraid it would be even more drying than MAC Prep+Prime. Trying prove me wrong. Elf really propose here a keeper at bargain price. It doesn't mean that MAC Prep+Prime powder is bad. I genuinely think it does a really great job and I love the soft finish mica gives, but I wouldn't recommend it at all to dry skins. Normal and combination skins might find it better than I do.

** sorry for not talking about how those powders work on oily skin - there is no oily zone on my face ! :( **

black-eyed (placebo effect)

2011-03-31T01:40:00.003+02:00

Rarely do I ever mention music I love on my blog but never ever does the sun set without I listened to several hours of music per day. Like a fish without water, I suffocate without music. It's my first and bigger love and somehow, I've always been reticent to share or even talk about music on my blog. No idea why. I'm listening to Placebo a whole lot at the moment. I love Placebo. It's even pretty much all that I am listening for a couple of weeks. My affair with them is nothing new, I've loved them for years but it's more like I'm rediscovering their albums with a passionate pleasure. Bizarre feeling I adore. It's exactly like falling in love with an old friend. The song "Black-Eyed" (from the album Black Market Music) is on constant rotation for some days. I adore.

"Black-eyed" does (gorgeous) Brian Molko say? How inspiring. I had not worn my totally me make up in a while (I told you I was in a purple craze). Pure black eyes makes me feel like… me. To achieve it, I decided to play "minimum-maximum" which means, the less products for the maximum effect. I used:

- elf mineral eyeshadow primer
- black Sisley phyto khol in black smudged all around the eyes
- Heavenly Naturals "EMO" (very profound matte black). EMO is deceivingly impossible to blend with other shadows but very very good on its own.
- my mineral concealer powder (which is simply a mineral foundation) as a blender/highlighter/light shade
- elf mascara duo in black
- MAC "Creme d'Nude" lipstick

That look is very easy and fast to make (just blend, blend, blend the black shadow until it looks smocked) and is one of my big classics making me feel confident. Now excuse me, I have something to listen. But before please tell me. What is your "you" look? The one you feel that makes you feel the most like you?

e.l.f. Mineral Lip Gloss

2011-03-27T20:10:00.002+02:00

Elf has many lip products but so far the only ones I have been interested in have been those of the mineral line (lipsticks and lipglosses) because of their vegetal oil based ingredients. I have had those lipgloss for a long while, wearing them long enough to be fully familiar to them and how they conduct on lips and I think it's now time to talk a bit about those.... and show some swatches because the commonly knownillustrations of colors on elf website can be very misleading. Elf mineral lipglosses come in a container reminding of MAC's lipglasses and they apply with the same foam doe shaped applicator. Here's a photo of elf "Crystal Clear" beside MAC "Best of Breed", they look pretty cousin. Elf offers 11 shades from clear to red but most of colors are I would say earth toned and natural looking.

Bare, Au Naturale, Night Owl, Trendsetter

Trendsetter, Sonority Girl, Pageant Princess, Trophy Wife

Fierce, Wild, Daring, Clear

Bare

medium orange-y beige nude

Au Naturale

apricot frost

Night Owl

sheer brownish plum jelly

Trendsetter

semi sheer rose-plum shimmer

Sonority Girl

dusty neutral pink infused with gold

Pageant Princess

neutral baby pink infused with a slight gold shimmer

Trophy Wife

clear base with gold shimmer

Fierce

orange-coral frost

Wild

sheer fresh and flowery pink coral

Daring

pink based red sheer shimmer

Crystal Clear

clear

The formula and opacity tend to vary from a color to another. Some are more frosty opaque ("Au Naturale" and "Fierce") and some are more jelly-like ("Night Owl", "Wild"). Some applies perfectly and evenly ("Trophy Wife", "Daring", "Trendsetter", "Night Owl", "Wild") and some applies more streaky ("Au Naturale", "Pageant Princess"). My personal favorites are "Trendsetter", "Wild" and "Sonority Girl" because I find the colors of those to be really flattering ... on me.

I don't find those lipgloss to be sticky. In fact, I'm never bothered by how sticky a lipgloss can be but to compare, those are more light weighted than MAC Lipglass. "Crystal Clear" really feel like water on my lips, not like glue. What I like about those is that they are comfortable on lips. When I went for a walk and decided to wear "Au Naturale", I didn't have to even think of reapplying during 3 hours (although color quickly faded out) which is a long time to me who always badly need to feel moisture on my lips. After this time my lips were still feeling moisturized which pleasantly surprised me. Those lipgloss are not drying at all and I didn't encounter any allergy or reaction (I easily have that familiar stingy sensation - even among high end lipsticks). The final thing I love about those is the list ingredients. I will always privilege a lipgloss containing vegetal oils over all petroleum oils and this one as you can see it isn't too bad:

Mineral Oil, Coconut (Cocos Nucifera) Oil, Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, Hydrogenated Polyisobutene, Mica, Silica, Tocopherol Acetate(VE), Retinol(VA), Titanium Dioxide （CI 77891), Iron Oxides (CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499), Manganese Violet (CI 77742), Mica (CI 77019)

Also those are perfume free. No taste, no smell.

The main bad side - fast fading out appart - lays to me in the lack of fun in the proposed shades. Why not more fun? There are some I really like among these (I definitely see myself purchasing "Trendsetter" again) but in all, the choice color is reduced. I wouldn't expect a black or a blue lipgloss but at least a hot pink/fuchsia version of "Daring" would be for instance welcome. Also some might reproach those lipgloss to be on the sheer side (that being said some shades are more buildable than others). And it's true, they definitely are very sheer ("Night Owl" is the one showing up the less on lips along with "Crystal Clear" and "Trophy Wife"). It's not impossible to build a coverage but it requires to apply a couple more of layers that I'm not always patient enough to make. And yet, even built up they never really get near opaque (they are just glosses, not liquid lipstick). Sheerness is not a real problem to me as since my eyes are always (pretty strongly) made up I don't need much color on my lips but I see some being frustrated by how light the color is being delivered.

In all they are not the best glosses I have ever had tried, but I quite like these and often find myself wearing them even if I'd love more variety and freshness among colors. I love the friendly price (4€/3$/3£), the presence of coconut and castor oil and how elf is vegan/cruelty free. They feel nice and are natural looking which make them good for an everyday wear. They definitely can't compare to MAC in term of pigmentation and staying power but if you don't seek something too sophisticated and seek for a practical looking and comfortable lipgloss, you might give those a try.

Happiness is easy

2011-03-25T14:53:00.003+01:00

Flowers, skirts, ladybugs, sun. What is better for the soul than the glorious return of Spring? The sensation on skin of the warmth of a sun we thought forgotten? How I love this ephemeral season. The magical of rebirth. How I love the way it fills me with that unexplanaible violent feeling of being alive again, possibly deserving a little bit of this humble happiness.

Zoya - Skye

2011-03-21T00:04:00.001+01:00

It's almost Spring! Well technically it'll only be tomorrow but woosh… time is rocket flying, seriously. Still.. how good is it for the soul to leave winter behind? I so love Spring. To celebrate its return, here is a very delicate and fresh polish that is currently on my nails as I'm typing: Zoya "Skye". Zoya might be my favorite brand, I have not been much into their new releases lately and have more felt like digging into their less popular shades instead. Honestly, there are some gems for me here. Of course, it's sometimes a dice game to order online (no spoon for European girls, so lots of doubt between almost similar swatchless polishes) but more often than never, I have been positively surprised. I love to be surprised anyway.

So then, here is "Skye" from the Spa Essential collection. On their website, Zoya describe it as a warm toned dusty pale pink. The description is pretty accurate. It's indeed a muted pink leading toward peach. Despite its being a "warm" pink, Skye turned out on me as a… perfect mannequin hand polish for my NW15 skin.

Concerning the formula, I have read that some girls had bad trouble applying this one. Well, I didn't have too much problems on my side. I for sure found the formula not as superb as most of the Zoya I own (it is a bit uneven and relatively drying too fast for the small brush) but the application was nothing terrible either and what you see on my nails is just 2 (neither thick neither thin) coats and no top coat. Perfectly opaque, smooth. No streak, no bump, no mess. I have it for 2 days and no chip or anything. Let's see how long I can keep it. I'll let you know. In all, it's a great neutral for cool toned fair skinned girls and I will definitely wear this one a lot on my toes this summer as I love to go neutral with my feet. I know, we're barely at Spring doorstep that I'm already talking about Summer, I think I just live for Summer. I can't help it!

Nail polish ingredients database

2011-02-23T13:57:00.003+01:00

Hello everyone! Sorry for the lack of post. I'm currently working on a nail related time consumming little project. I don't know about you but I'm very careful with nail polish ingredients (due to some health problems that I don't find very interesting to mention) and have choosen to ban brands that still use toluene. That's only me and my health of course but I know some have such concerns and might be interested in having a page where every brand get listed with their ingredients. I will also mention if the brands are cruelty free as it's my opinion to think every brand should be. The reason why of this page is that it's not obvious to find ingredients/information sometimes and even less to find them listed together.

I will try to be as complete as I can and mention foreign and not so popular brands but I cannot obviously find everything as I don't have access to every brands made all over the world. If you want to take part or suggest brands and ingredients and are willing to help, I would be very happy! I will of course credit you. Just drop me an email (blog.jellynat at gmail dot com) and please don't forget to tell me your source (bottle/box/website/costumer service)! :) Ideally, I take what's written on the bottle but sometimes, websites provide them. If nothing of this is available, I drop a line to costumer services. Twice. Three times if needed. I'm a pain in the neck like that.

The page is here (on my page bar). Hope it will help at least a few people!

Promises of Spring's come back

2011-02-20T22:31:00.001+01:00

Every year, I'm craving for Spring to be back. I always felt I was never born to live autumns and winters. We're slowly attaining the end of February. Strange month of lost memory. I never remember February and I have no souvenir of something happening to me during this time in my life.

We're at more than six months of constantly grey sky and it was starting to get a dent on my general moods and my apparently unbreakable mute optimism. It's been almost a decade that I'm randomly repeating inside my head that I'm leaving everything to install and definitely live in Los Angeles. I also feel this way when the summer is sunless. Obviously, L.A. is just an unattainable dream for so many practical reasons but it's one of those maintaining me in hope. Just like the promise of spring's come back.

I was happy to see some days ago that the crocus flowers were in bloom. We also had the first day of full sun of the year. Cold still, but sunny nonetheless. Birds have started to sing joyfully again. It is as if everything was slowly going out of torpor and I really don't need more to feel a bit happy. Just a post showing some photos I took on this sunny day. It's all about flowers. Just looking at them makes me feel good and happier.

Revlon - Frankly Scarlet

2011-02-13T16:39:00.001+01:00

Can you believe I haven't worn regular Revlon nail polish since I was 16 years old? Back in the days, a school mate of mine had given me a bottle of red Revlon - I can't recall why and what was the name either. Geisha Red? Rouge de Chine? Damn, I normally have such a good memory but that time, the name escape me. I remember it was a super light red leaning coral, not my style at all. At 16, I was only wearing black, vampy plum jelly and sheer white so I probably wore it once and more than surely ended up frankening it.

Revlon is one of the few US brands available in French stores but I can't find more than 10 (very classical) shades in my area which explain why I never really got into the brand. Also we rarely have LE collections and 10€ a bottle is kind of a turn down to me. The release of the very popular "Perplex" woke up my interest in the brand and I ventured into ordering the infamous "Perplex" and "Frankly Scarlet" online (you know I love red nail polish and I can't resist it). Just a test to see how I feel toward Revlon after all those years.

I applied "Frankly Scarlet" the day I received it. To depict it, it is a medium red with a quite visible gold shimmer that disappear completely on nails (trapped in the pink toned red base color) and the polish appears a bit more cool toned than what the bottle promise. On nails, it's a fruity red shimmer screaming for summer. It looks very fresh, youthful, playful. I love my red to be creme, fatal and dramatic but this one while still being on the medium tone range (something that please me because I don't like light red too much), has a juvenile and cute character that I surprised myself to be fond of. Some might find it disappointing that it doesn't show up as a gold shimmer red, some might say it's not properly unique (which is true but red shimmer is quite something classic) but in fact, I loved it more on my nails than in the bottle. Formula speaking, I was very pleased. It required no clean up and applied literally by itself. I did 3 very thin coats but 2 coats would totally make it as the third added so few difference. I could slightly see my nail lines (due to the polish being slightly jelly) but it's not something I'm generally bothered by. No drying problem and I could keep it 4 days without top coat before it started chipping. Not bad! Will I keep on getting an eye on Revlon. Sure!

Peggy Sage - Splendid Grey

2011-02-10T15:04:00.001+01:00

Today I am showing you a polish I have worn a little while ago but never posted about. This polish was kindly gifted to me (among so many others!) by the sweet and generous Lily. I can find Peggy Sage in my area easily but they never have the late and ephemeral collections, just a (yet relatively wide) selection of the core line. I found a place where they carry the whole line but they only sell to professional of nail, beauty and hair industry. Bummer! Lily surprised me by sending me the polishes of the last winter collection that were on my wishlist! Thank you again! :)

From all my new Peggy Sage, "Splendid Grey" was the one appealing me the most and the first I decided to wear. I was really attracted by how it looked like in the bottle: a middle toned grey with pink undertones and small silver glitters. I found this shade quite unseen. Unfortunately, the diamond glitters were not as obvious on the nails are they are in the bottle. Still visible for sure but in most of the morose lights of my area, Splendid Grey looks like a plain grey creme. I really have to inspect my nails closely to see the glitter but who ever stick their nose on their nails to admire them on a daily basis? (not me) I am fine with its looking like a creme because I don't own much grey polishes (not even China Glaze Recycle for example - plain grey doesn't truly attract me) but I wished the glitters were less elusive. Because of its pink undertones, I think this might look better on cool skin tones than warm ones.

The consistency was slightly on the thick side, pretty pigmented but it didn't cause me trouble to apply it. I did 2 coats, no top coat and the polish lasted me 3/4 days before chipping. In all, it's a good polish. Peggy Sage makes real quality stuff and I sincerely do recommend the brand if you feel like trying it. None of the ones I have tried have a bad formula and even if they keep it relatively safe, I'm fond of their colors.

[manicure] - Broken hearted nail

2011-02-09T14:08:00.001+01:00

Hi everyone! I was kind of reluctant to post this manicure because it's kind of silly and ridiculously simple but finally decided to do it because I nonetheless like it and I wanted to show that crackle polish can have many unexpected uses beyond full nail layering.

I have had in mind to use crackle nail polish in a broken heart themed manicure in a little while. That'll make a sour little Valentine manicure. Nothing huge with crackles everywhere, just a little broken heart on one nail. I was wondering if crackle would be easy to handle out of its normal use and I can tell you it behave well. Barry M's one at least (I can't tell about other brand as this is the only one I have in possession).

I painted my nails with a hot pink, drew and cut a heart on scotch tape, applied it on a nail, layered one coat of red, layered one coat of Barry M effect nail polish hoping for the crackle to turn good and finished with top coat for a shiny look. This manicure is really simple and obviously using cracking polish for what it is: something broken.

ONLY Cosmetics - Violet (?)

2011-02-06T23:43:00.001+01:00

Today will be a strange post. I mean, I generally know what I'm talking about (I hope so, ah ah) but this time, it's a real pathway into darkness. I speak like I would walk in a completely dark corridor, desperately searching for a switch on the walls, or a door, an opening. Anything that would give me some response.

Excuse the wide load of pictures. There were even more but I tried to keep it reasonable. The polish I'm showing today has such a special place to me. Also it has so many faces and they couldn't show up in just a couple of pictures. On my nails, I layered one coat of ONLY Cosmetic "Violet" (?) over 2 coats of Nfu-Oh 554 which is an opaque purple.

Now the little story. I bought this nail polish back in February 2003 at La Samaritaine in Paris during the time I was living downtown Paris. I remember that ONLY Cosmetic retro futuristic sixties inspired stand (pure white shelves, sci-fi inspired) near the main exit of the store, I remember lots of color shift beauties. I remember the light off, the empty store, not even a sales woman. I remember longly hesitating between this one and an other one going from pink to green. The polishes costed me between 8 and 9€ (I still might have the cash ticket somewhere - I never get rid of it for some obscure reasons - the ticket referenced the polish as "violet"). I finally took this mysterious purple and offered my sister to chose a color as well. She picked a bright jelly orange of the same brand. At first, I was horribly disappointed by this polish. I mean, I expected it to be opaque and the formula is horribly sheer (10 coats would barely make show a slight purple tint). I would hate it never get quite near opaque. I had bought this purple to have a glorious purple on my toes and as I couldn't get what I was seeing in the bottle, I let it aside. I even almost tossed it some time ago. And I found it back in 2008, forgotten in a red vinyl vanity case where I put all the make-up I don't really use anymore.

Now I don't know much about this nail polish. It's a fine color shift shimmer/micro glitter going from blue/green to green to gold to orange to red in a very sheer purple base. This brand seems impossible to find nowadays. According to what I could find, ONLY Cosmetics was a - now defunct - Danish brand created in 2002. When did they stop their production? No idea. Who was behind the brand? No idea. Where was it sold beside La Samaritaine? No idea. Who else owns a polish from this brand? No idea. I don't even know the name because I had this time, the bad (now lost) habit to peel off labels. All I could find is this. ONLY seemed to be owned by a group also owning the brands DuWop and Bloom. Do I have any reader from Denmark who have known about ONLY Cosmetics and could share their memories?

Here is. I wish I could tell you "go and see here if you want to grab it" - you bet I would!! - but I unfortunately can't. I'm at a loss about this one and even clarins 230 is genuinely easier to find (don't you find that it quite abundantly popped up lately for something supposedly so hard to find?). Now you will tell me, what's the point Nat, in showing something no one can grab? Well, I don't know. Why not sharing and try to collect informations about this mysterious brand? Because I can try hard to find a response in the ever changing appearances of its colors, it tells me nothing else but "you'll never know who I am beside the fact I'm beautiful". And I think that for ever, it will remain the most elusive, precious and mysterious polish of my ever-expanding nail polish collection. It has no price anymore, value has lost somewhere between the anguishing process of time and the regret of having not grabbed more of the brand when it was still possible. Because you see, I can buy and buy new polishes, my eyes always come back to this half empty bottle, eluding so many other beauties by its opaque mystery. I feel a bit as if that was not me who bought it 8 years ago. Or maybe was that an other me? Definitely so lost in time I could almost believe it is not the same Nathalie who is here, talking about old things that belong to the past and haunt the present.

H&M - Moody Model

2011-02-04T02:43:00.001+01:00

If you ever come across me in my usual H&M store, that will more likely be in the nail polish aisle. I love H&M polishes. If I'm lucky enough, I'll find some new colors. Otherwise, I'll find an empty ray. Their polish sell out very easily. H&M is one of the rare brand offering very cool trendy colors at attractive price (3,95€ the bottle). I guess I'm not the only one to be annoyed by the uncool French polish scene and make my physical nail shopping here. Last time I went to H&M, I was lucky enough to grab the 2 ultimate bottles of "Moody Model". I don't usually pick 2 bottles of polish but this one is such a perfect, gorgeous, sexy "duck blue" that I had to. Did I say "duck blue"? Aww, sorry we call this type of color "bleu canard" in France and you know, old habits die hard.

To describe it "Moody Model" is a teal creme on the green side, intense, bright and deep. It's really flattering against a pink toned skin but for having made the test, it works against warm skins too. I didn't have much trouble applying it, in fact it went on very easily and my shots are shown without clean up. I applied 2 normal coats and it was really glossy. For once, there was top coat on my pictures (I applied it on the evening and when I woke up there was marks of my hair on my polish - I consider rocking the Yul Brynner hairstyle to remedy the problem) but frankly, it didn't change much to the glossiness.

I really adored wearing this one, there is such a very chic winter feel to this color. Deep enough to be classy, bright enough to be affirmative. I cannot tell how it compares to other popular teal creme as I don't own any beside Nails Inc. "Portland Place". I'll make a comparison post if anyone's interested (and even if not anyway).

The only thing that is a bit wrong is that it chipped quite easily on me. Two days of common life with the moody model and I was done with it. But maybe is that because I manipulate a whole lot of things lately. On the good side, it didn't stain my nails at all, although I kind of expected to. When I removed it, my nails had kept their usual pink appearance. I'm telling you: H&M polishes rule.

(PS. sorry for not having responded to comments posted on my previous post. But I've been in a blend of concentration problems and photo shoots. I love every comments and will reply! =))

Obsessively obsessed with purple

2011-01-23T03:35:00.002+01:00

It's been a while! I realize I've showed nothing of my recent purple make up obsession. True, I've been in a total purple folly lately. Eye speaking, I mean. I'm in the quest of finding the most perfect matte purple eyeshadow. Pigmented, smooth, not too red, not too blue. And it's less easy than it seems. Awaiting the Graal to hit me, I've been toying with all my purple toned eyeshadows for a long while now and I've almost only worn purple looks since Fall, declined in all kind of ways. Without even getting bored. I wonder why I thought before (I mean, years ago) that purple would never fit me. I can't think of a color getting along better with my eye color than purple. In fact, it's simple I find purple beautiful on every skin tone and with every eye color. Purple is beautiful.

Lately I've acquired 2 great eyeshadows: Shiro Cosmetics "Ratatta" (a deep matte purple) and Heavenly Natural Beauty "Captured" (a matte purple with a green shimmer). This is "Captured" that I'm wearing here. It's so so pretty and quite unique. Actually, it reminds me of Zoya "Adina" (which I adore) turned into an eyeshadow, minus the copper effect. I completed "Captured" with a tiny bit of MAC "Steamy" (aqua green with gold shimmer) on inner corner, MAC "Carbon" and MAC "Shock-a-holic" (bright matte purple) on external corner and of course, black khol, MAC "Blanc Type" to highlight and mascara. And elf Bedazzle lipgloss (totally transparent with a little bit of sparkling diamond shimmer). I really loved this make up. The green shimmer is really playing with the ambient lights.

Oh and as you can see on the full face pictures, I darkened my hair! I'm naturally ash-toned medium/dark brown with strong red highlights (no one in my family get red hair tendency - no idea where it's coming from) but I wanted a little change and was bored of my tips being redder/lighter than my roots. I hesitated between dark brown and getting blonde-red with blonde highlights (both blonde and dark fit me) but I finally opted for an almost black brown (Garnier Herbabrillance #300 applied 15mn instead of 10). Actually, the dye practically didn't change the root color and evened out the whole hair. Exactly what I expected!

[manicure] - Black storm nails

2011-01-17T19:16:00.008+01:00

How is everyone? I know I don't post much swatches lately but I feel like showing some of the manicures I've worn during the time of my absence. And it is... black again!

Here are nails I love a lot. It's actually an other attempt to the high voltage nails I've made quite a while ago at the beginning of my blog. As you might now by now, I love black and the matte/glossy association a whole lot so I prefer this version.

The base of this manicure is Orly Matte Vinyl (a must have) and the black flash is made with transparent polish (can also be achieved with a glossy black). It's not a very complicated manicure to do actually - I do it with scotch tape. With a minimum of patience and care, everything goes smoothly.

[manicure] - Leather nails

2011-01-10T00:02:00.006+01:00

I am pretty sure you have seen this all over the nail blog world already but here is a manicure made with the Barry M cracking polish! Cracking is seemingly the big Spring craze as OPI and China Glaze have jumped on the bandwagon but Barry M was already proposing this last fall. I have owned this polish since that time but have been unable to post, as you might already know. Better late than never!

Today I am showing you a manicure I love a lot. I will of course make a proper review of the Barry M nail effect polish (with advices and little experiences I've had with it) but I can already tell that it is drying matte. I must confess that the first time I tried it, it caught me off guard and although I am a huge matte black polish fan I still can't decide if I like that or not. I know I could reproach this polish its lack of glossiness (by adding a glossy top coat!) but instead of doing so, I thought I could take advantage of it combining it to a shiny black base (I used e.l.f. "Black"). Black is so beautiful and can be so visually rich when textured. The result is very much for my liking as it in some ways reminds me of grained leather. In fact, it goes very well with the grainy matte and black leather of the new pair of shoes I've bought lately (the gorgeous motor boots Ash Storm). I absolutely adore those shoes, they are so feminine/masculine and the manicure is really pairing well with them. Great combination to me. Actually, it's quite a sexy combo with a pair of black slim jeans.

[layering] - This place in cosmos where the stars get born

2011-01-03T15:53:00.001+01:00

Ah... Let's be back to the real matter of my blog: nail polish! To begin, you all know I have a new computer now and I'm not yet sure about the monitor. So if you find my pictures far too dark or if something get wrong, please let me know. :) Today I am showing you a layering I love a lot because it looks like the deep space and I love cosmos, big bang and all those things. This manicure was made with nail polishes belonging to my big sister. She is not a nail polish addict like I am but she nonetheless possess quite a lovely little collection.

As you might know, I love the layering thing a lot. It's probably my favorite thing in the whole nail polish universe. You can obtain such fantastic and unexpected effects. This manicure is nothing unseen but it is working quite well. I have used e.l.f "dark navy" as a base (my favorite navy polish ever - a dream of a formula) and have added one coat of Tony Moly "GP04" over it. Yes, "GP04". Probably standing for "Glitter Polish 04". The name doesn't make any sense (why do Korean brand all name their polishes this way?) but the most important thing when it comes to polish is in the bottle, right? "GP04" is a sheer jelly turquoise loaded with tiny square and bigger hexagonal silver glitter. It's quite too sheer on its own to be worn alone but it's perfect for layering because of its perfect gel-like formula. The blue jelly tint the silver glitters making them appear both silver and blue, it's really interesting. I will make a proper review of both those polishes in time of course. Tony Moly polishes are not very easy to find but here and there you will see them popping on the most popular auction website ever.

Spacetime Continuum (happy new year)

2011-01-01T22:51:00.006+01:00

Wait.

Is that time for resolutions already? Yes it is.

No no, please. Wait again.

I'm not the kind of person to make any New Year resolution.

As far as I can remember, I've never taken any new year resolution in my life. Not that I've never taken any but every big decision of improvement in my life has been taken arbitrarily, during the anguish of a sleepless lonely night no matter the moment of the year. Everyday is a good day to be a better person, I don't need the kick of time in my ass to remind me I should change what is wrong with me. This shouldn't change this year either. Or maybe should it.

I can't believe how fastly we've put 2010 behind. Maybe it's not a bad thing after all as it was kind of a miserable year. 12 months of solitude, doubts and fear of tomorrow. Let's hope 2011 will bring more light, more magic, that little thing that makes that life is worth being lived. Still, how fast have all those days gone? Does the time pass faster as it did when I was a child? Is time an elastic deal instead of the universal and immutable data I was told it is? When I was a little girl, summer vacations seemed to last forever. Sun couldn't stop shining. The splashes of water in the yellow swimming pool seemed to get suspended eternally into the air. Haunting my chubby little girl's body, I couldn't stop waiting to be a grown up woman. A femme fatale. My ideal of me. Now I'm grown up for a while now and I can barely move and open my mouth to say a word that a season has already passed. Where is my youth going away?

I'm afraid of time passing by. Not because I'm afraid to age (mmm maybe a little bit, it's true) but because I'm afraid of the nowhere I go. I'd like to know where I go, actually. Be confident. Believe in me, in everyone of my talents instead of fustigating myself, feeling guilt and putting myself down all the time. I will try to fix this in 2011. Maybe that is a New Year resolution after all. What are you waiting for, what are your wishes for this new year?

Let's hope that 2011 will be a good year for everyone of you. Let's hope we can all improve both what we are and our lives. Let's hope we'll simply be.

Happy people.

Ok one more thing before I go. You know what? I love my blog. I love being here. I love talking to you. Love you all.

So happy to be back

2010-12-20T01:17:00.002+01:00

It's weird to be here, writing. Talking to you all. Just like before. Oh didn't I tell you? I am finally here again. I've had a new computer for quite a while now (a 13'' unibody macbook pro - still faithful to Apple!) but as my old version of Photoshop was no longer supported by the operating system of my new computer, I still couldn't blog. I didn't see myself using anything else to edit my pictures. I've used Photoshop for 15 years now, this software doesn't have any secret to me anymore and it felt pretty empty to be in front of my computer without it. I know I could have been here, but I had not the heart to visit blogs as I was still feeling trapped, unable to blog myself. And… it was long to finally get my copy of Photoshop but I've got it now for some days which means I can go back to blogging! The whole hiatus longed for 2 long months and I feel like I no longer belong to the nail polish world anymore. Estranged from a place I used to feel familiar and at ease in. It's bizarre. It even took me some days before I could finally feel the heart to write this post. So shy to be back, wondering if you would remember me. Wondering if that was even worthy to be back, what kind of special thing I was bringing to an over-saturated blog world that already count so many excellent polish bloggers. I still don't know what I'm bringing but I thought I could try to get a response to this question simply keeping on blogging.

Curiously all this coincide with cosmetologyschool.org granted me with an award, one of the top manicure/pedicure blogs of 2010. It goes without saying I couldn't believe their nominating me it as I'm just a European second zone blogger! But things like this bring a lot of warmth to the heart and I would love to thank all of them for believing in me. I'm touched. Extra touched.

Now I would love to thank those who didn't stop following my blog the time of my unwanted absence. Thank you to those who joined too. Nice to meet you all! Thank you to all those who sticked by me, those who sent me a message to ask me if I was still in this world. I am. I might have not responded yet to everyone, I was touched deep down that some of you cared.

Anyway, very few and a lot happened the time of my absence. That's life, I suppose. I haven't been much in front of my computer anyway. I devoted a lot of my time …. knitting! It's damn cool to knit and I love to do everything by myself. I also took care of animals. There are 5 llamas around (I couldn't believe my eyes, the first time I saw them) and I love to visit them, they are so cute and interesting. I will show you pictures of them! On October 30 I also rescued a sick hedgehog who sadly died one week after - I'm still so sad since hedgehogs are my favorite animals ever (I adore them), so sad that I couldn't rescue him/her. Also I spent a lot of time making long walks, reconsidered my way to eat a little bit and I'm currently losing weight again too! Yay!

Being far from the polish blog world made me think about my blog and gave me some strange objectivity, as if it wasn't mine. I will be making some redesign soon. I hope to bring from change and some new fresh air in here too, I need it. Anyway, we'll see. Enough talked! It's so good to be back! How is everyone?

[comparison] - Zulu vs other dark green polishes

2010-10-06T14:25:00.004+02:00

Hi everyone! It's still challenging for me to post but I could manage to show you a quick comparison of some dark green polishes, including the newly released Nars "Zulu". I never bought darkgreen such as OPI "Here Today Aragon Tomorrow", Zoya "Envy" or Orly"Enchanted Forest", so please excuse my being unable to feature them onthis post.

from left to right: Nars Zulu, Nfu-Oh 569, Yves Rocher Vert Noir, LeChat Dare to Wear Enchanted Forest, Kinetics Velvet Green

Then, on every wheel:

1- Nars Zulu

2- Nfu-Oh 569

3- Yves Rocher Vert Noir

4- LeChat Dare to Wear Enchanted Forest

5- Kinetics Velvet Green

one coat

two coats


three coats

... and one more transparency photo!

Zulu and 569 are told to be decent dupes. It's true. However they aren't exact twins: 569's base is more on the yellow/bright side (but it's nothing that is truly noticeable at 3 coats) and for the same number of coats, it also appears slightly lighter. In short, Zulu is darker and more profound. That being said, on nails 569 makes a beautiful alternative and I swear your neighbour who is not into nail polish at all wouldn't see any difference between the 2. If you already have the cult dark green Nars polish, I don't think you need 569 but if you already have Nfu-Oh's supposed dupe and are found of dark green, you might find it hard to resist to the Zulu call.

Yves Rocher Vert Noir has the same darkness as Zulu except that the base is not forest but jewel/blue tone. It's as if Zulu had turned peacock toned. Vert Noir is an equally favorite of mine with Zulu. Absolute gorgeousness. Too bad it was LE and get only released on those ridiculously tiny bottles (same size as mini OPI) with that very hard to handle brush.

LeChat Dare to Wear Enchanted Forest is the most yellow based of them all. The base is clearly brighter too and also lighter.

The last, Kinetics Velvet Green is a very dark dusty green with a slight shimmer. It doesn't have the deep and intense quality of a jelly. Light doesn't pierce through it.

Here is, hope this helped!

Nars - Zulu

2010-10-02T01:31:00.004+02:00

There is no need, I think, to even introduce Nars "Zulu". Or should I? I know few about the original. I'm not even sure it was released in Europe. All I know is that it is with a couple of other polishes, one of the most sougth after polish ever, some kind of unicorn that few of us ever expected to get their hands on. Then Nars announced they would re-release it and it's finally there again. For real.

As a green lover, as a jelly lover, as a vampy lover, I've always wanted the more than elusive Zulu but I was never interested in even trying to go on a hunt for this one. I'm not rolling on gold like many of us and I must confess that what I paid for one bottle of this one full price is definitely my limit when it comes to nail polish prices. After I tested "Purple Rain" though (it never dried on me and I found the color unimpressive), I was a bit reluctant at the idea to buy this one, afraid to repeat an error (I gifted "Purple Rain") but I did it anyway. And you know what? I have no regrets.

"Zulu" didn't steal the craze that is surrounding it. It's as gorgeous as a dark and juicy vampy green jelly can be. Not too blue. Not too yellow. Just perfectly balanced and the perfect idea you'd have of a jelly dark green. Seriously, it reminds me of blood. Green blood, sapor, wild nature creatures. It is as beautiful indoors as it is in sunlight but I prefer it when the sun goes through this vegetal jelly and reveal its revigorating nature. I always say that I find green revigorating and I even more do when I see this one. Plus it's classy. Like a red jelly. Only turned green.

Formula speaking, it applied without a problem, smoothly, easily and I found it really easy to work with (jellies can be sticky sometimes but this one isn't). I did 2 coats and it's perfectly glossy (no top coat and I see myself in my nails like in a mirrir). It dries well, which led me to think that "Purple Rain" was really an incident and should not question Nars formula in itself.

Long story short: It's a must have. I'm in love.

One last thought about "Zulu": when a brand re-release a strongly sought after item, it kills speculation. I have just one thing to say. Respect Nars. Respect.

Back on track

2010-10-01T11:54:00.003+02:00

Hello everyone! How are you all? Can you believe we're already in October? Ok, enough rambling, I'm back! Well kinda. Pretty much more half back. My computer is still on repair and I still don't know what's up with it (the guy at Apple told me it could be a major system failure, a hard drive problem or a motherboard problem which I already suspected). I don't know when I'll get my computer back but awaiting it, my sister could fix the internet connexion on my second laptop so I can be there. And I'm here! My old laptop is painfully slow making it a real challenge to edit pictures and even be on the internet (it drives me crazy) but it's better than nothing. I missed blogging. Thank you to all those who sticked by me...

One week off blogging was weird. You know, when I don't post I usually always work for my blog (making photo, editing them, writing). I work all the time. But that time I couldn't really continue as all my photos/text are on my ill computer and I wasn't just in the mood to start everything from scratch. The laptop I'm currently using is the one I had before the ill one, it's 8 years old, tough although it has suffered a hard drive crash in 2007 (I changed the hard drive and did data retrieval myself - a real challenge!) and it's kind of outdated. It has reconverted now as my "travel computer" (because it's small sized and really convenient) as well as "emergency computer" (always there when the other has a problem). It's practically empty since the new hard drive and doesn't feel like home like the other. I feel a bit estranged on here. Weird how our computer is like a familiar room. It's my will to keep it clean and empty but as I knew I would have to use it for a little while, I did some necessary change, calibrating the screen, asking my sister to fix the connexion, etc. So it's better now. As blogging was minor, I took the opportunity to make something I hadn't done in ages: music! All my samples (all the ambient sounds I collected) are on my other laptop (arrggghhhh!!!) but I could start a couple of tracks anyway. I can't be without having a creative outlet it seems!

Anyway, all this to tell that I'm back - not quite like I used to be yet but things should go back to normal anytime soon and awaiting this, I can at least show you some beautiful polishes I've shooted again. Ok, I should stop talking and finish the edition of my pics. But it's so good to be back that I had to say hello!

Rotten Apple

2010-09-25T23:06:00.003+02:00

Just a quick note sent from my sister's computer. My computer has died today and refuse to start. Well, it starts over and over and over again on its own or just ask me to start again. Not sure if this is the hard drive (where all my swatches are stored) or the motherboard that has crashed. I have just tried everything to get it on, starting from the DVD (doesn't work), linking it to an other computer on target mode (doesn't work), de-activating extensions (doesn't work), initialize P-Ram (doesn't work). Nothing. Dead. The worse is that Apple replaced the initial motherboard of my Mac Book one year ago because I had a computer coming from a defectuous lot. I think I'm cursed. I will only be able to call Apple on Tuesday morning and figure out what's wrong.

Anyway, all this to tell that no computer = no post and no reply to comments and emails. Sorry for not responding to all the kind comments, emails and such. I'm just technically unable until I have my computer repaired. Hopefully I'll be back before too long. Hopefully.

----------------------

Petit message rapide envoyé de l'ordinateur de ma sœur... Mon ordinateur vient de rendre l'âme. Impossible de le redémarrer et j'ai techniquement essayé tous les trucs possibles. Il est complètement HS. Désolée de ne pouvoir répondre à personne. Tant les commentaires que les emails (je pense à toi Marie, à toi aussi Emilie... désolée les filles). Je serai incapable de le faire tant que je n'aurai pas fait réparer ma machine.

Aww it sucks hard. All my work is here. :(

Love, Peace and hopefully see you before too long.

Zoya - Shawn

2010-09-25T02:22:00.002+02:00

Today I'm showing you the first polish of my little personal fall trend: Zoya Shawn from the Wonderful Collection. I'll talk about the formula immediately because I feel this way today: it is excellent and creamy, neither watery, neither thick. Shawn is well pigmented and only required 2 coats to get a full coverage. No top coat as ever and you can see how shiny it is on its own. Now the color. Maybe will I be biased about this one: I'm a big green fan, you know. Not only when it comes to nail polish but green in general. I love green in general, yellow based green. I find this color to be relaxing, profound and fresh, full and revigorating. If I'm big on green this Fall, it is especially for army/olive green creme. Shawn is not properly an army green, it's more of a moss tone but it shares with army colors this muted and rich vegetal feel. Shawn is a deep, earthly yet bright sapor. It reminds me of the soft and smooth moss enlighted by the sun, undergrowth. I had never since a polish color like that, it's very unique. It doesn't enhance the pink undertones of my skin and to be honest, I see this one working on practically every skin tone. Vegetal colors suits every skin to me. Have you already seen anyone look bad in a forest? Not me.

Speaking of forest, I have spent a lot of time in the forest nearby lately. Well, it's not technically a forest or if it is, then it's a a very small one. I'd say it's more a wood. Few people venture here in general. Since the end of August, I've been picking delicious boletus mushrooms or I've just enjoyed the golden lights undergrowth. This time of the year is truly the best one to enjoy the forest. The leaves are still green and on the trees, barely losing their color and the lights are lower creating striking views. I also love the humid smell of the ground. I've always loved being all alone here, surrendered by those quiet giants that are the trees. I love when their branches make lugubrious cracking noises, when their head indolently move in the wind, when their delicate leaves shiver. I generally sit all alone on a dead trunk and I let the eternal quietness of the trees invade me. I've never found anything better to release tension. And you see, I associate the green color to this quiet and earthly well being.

[makeup] - Classic eyes

2010-09-22T01:42:00.001+02:00

Long time no fotd! Lately I've been wearing lots of black/purple eyes but never took pictures. I'll have to! Although I find it hard to work with, MAC "shock-a-holic" eyeshadow is very inspirational. Anyway, I'm used to wear pretty dramatic eye make up on a daily basis but last Sunday I felt like wearing something softer and definitely classic. This is simply a super soft satin smoked grey eye with a winged liner and soft red lips. Super simple, nothing outstanding but I've very loved wearing this make up. I feel it could be worn for every circumstances, every weather, every place. What is your classic type of make-up?

face

MAC Studio Moisture Tint in "Light" (tinted moisturized), MAC Moisturecover (concealer under the eyes), MAC Select Sheer Powder in NW15 (on nose and forehead), Biguine Make-Up "Rose Tendre" (blush on cheeks), ck Calvin Klein "Urban Lustre" (highlighter on cheeks, nose, chin, forehead)

eyes

MAC Soft Ochre paint pot (base), Givenchy Kajal Khol [black] (on upper and lower waterline), basics trio-eyes shadow "Soft Addict" (light pink on lids, medium satin grey smudged all around the eyes, ivory on the brow bone), MAC Mineralize "Interview" on external corner (dark blue side), Debby 100% Volume mascara "Extra Black", elf Cream Eyeliner "black", MAC "Copperplate" on the eyebrows

lips

elf Mineral lipstick "Barely Bitten" (coral red)

[comparison] - Taupe polishes

2010-09-19T18:50:00.010+02:00

Heya everyone! How are you all? Today, I have made a little polish comparison for you. I already made a mushroom toned polishes comparison a while ago (see here) and also a post about Chanel Particulière vs other taupe but as my stash welcomed some new polishes that were recently released, I thought I would make an update just to help anyone who need to see how x polish compares to y. I hate myself for having forgotten to include Confetti Moonstruck! But it more belongs to the dirty purple family than the taupe to me. I have still not bought Chanel Particulière although I want it but it'll be there anyday, I promise. Sorry for not being able to include it here right now. Awaiting this, let's go to the pictures!

OPI You Don't Know Jacques

OPI Over the Taupe

Color Club Positively Posh

Essie Mink Muffs

Milani Teddy-Bare

elf Smoky Brown

OPI You Don't Know Jacques

OPI Over the Taupe

Color Club Positively Posh

Essie Mink Muffs

Milani Teddy-Bare

elf Smoky Brown

- OPI You Don't Know Jacques and Color Club Positively Posh are practically dupes. OPI is slightly greener/colder than Color Club that is bluer (and a smidge darker) but on nails, you could hardly spot the difference.

- OPI Over the Taupe and Essie Mink Muffs are the warmest taupe of the bunch. They almost belong to the milk chocolate territory to me, especially Essie Mink Muffs. OTT has slight pink undertones.

- Milani Teddy-Bare and elf Smoky Brown are pretty close in luminosity but elf Smoky Brown has purple/blue undertones.

The warm taupes (OPI OTT and Mink Muffs) are really the hardest to pull out on my beige/pink undertones skin. Milani Teddy-Bare is the greyest of all and has that elegant muddy feel that make it so easy to wear and classy. Easily the winner of the bunch to me with the now classic OPI You Don't Know Jacques. But elf Smoky Brown is also a really nice one for a ridiculously cheap price. I hope this helped!

Ciaté Paint Pots - Cupcake Queen

2010-09-16T14:50:00.008+02:00

I was recently given the opportunity to test a Ciaté polish, "Cupcake Queen". Before I talk about the polish itself, I'll mention that Ciaté possess the most seducing bottles ever, so very feminine with their cute little black bow. Really the bottle I feel like leaving here on my bedside as it reminds me how great sometimes it is to be a woman.

Ok now let's talk about what is inside the bottle. "Cupcake Queen" is a bright cool hot pink with an electric blue shimmer. The blue shimmer might be prominent in the bottle, it becomes quite elusive once the polish get applied on nails (you have to stick your nose on your nails under strong sun to see the blue shimmer - yes I did it. But who ever does that anyway?). You won't have the bottle blue flash on the top of your fingers but as I was wondering where the vibrancy of the polish in the sun was coming from, I realized it was due to that invisible blue shimmer literally electrifying the pink. So it's here, acting but not as we expect. It's very subtle and I love it.

The formula is honestly perfect. I did have zero problem. It applied evenly and dried fast on me. The polish is well pigmented and 2 coats are enough to get that good result: my nails are indeed shown without post application clean up, not bad as you can see! The brush is long and easy to handle (neither too hard, neither too soft). It is easy to make a fast and neat application. One more thing: as ever this is shown without top coat and it's shiny on its own. As a conclusion, maybe not the polish the bottle promised but one loved wearing for its girly electric feel.

**This polish was sent to me by Ciaté for review purposes**

My personal Fall 10 trend

2010-09-14T13:36:00.010+02:00

Oh, how I would love to try to prolongate summer as long as I can... I would live an eternal summer with day extending up to 10 pm, bright luminosity, warmth. I wish I could live in a warm place. I was born right in the middle of summer and as a real summer child I only feel alive when the sun is shining. I can't help but thinking that we're almost done with summer and that fall is arriving for good: I'm chilling as I'm writing those lines. Yes, I'm chilling. It's still technically summer (until September 20) and every leave on the trees is still green on here but we're losing minutes of luminosity everyday and it's completely dark at 8.30 pm now. Even the environmental lights are starting to change, getting lower, less bright. That being said, I love Fall. I love it because we still can enjoy golden lights, delightful walks in the forest, great bike ride and delicious sunny days while being cuddled in a warm wool and a long scarf. It's time now to let summer shades asid. So what do I feel like wearing this fall? Earthly tones. Even earthly blue. Shades I haven't seen in a long long while or never seen before, some that has not been overdone (did you hear me say taupe?). That being said, if you want some taupe you have the choice! My favorites are Chanel Particulière for its putty yet so elegant feel, OPI You Don't Know Jacques** because it has become a timeless classic, Milani Teddy Bare** because it's a great cheap alternative to Chanel Particulière and elf Smoky Brown** that is to me an underlooked little beauty.

Mustard - Mustards creme are my biggest current obsession. I find them curiously sexy. They don't necessarly fit my neutral fair pink undertones skin but they have a warm edgy feel that I find revigorating. We haven't seen lots of them around and it's refreshing. Among old shades, we have Misa Hot Couture**, Revlon Street Wear Burnt** (creme version), Revlon Street Wear Dijon**. Not sure if they are easy to find but more recently there has been China Glaze Classic Camel**, Barielle Aura Angora or Butter London Bumster. Those great shades can make the trick and fulfill your mustard wishes.

Army - One color I have always adored (I even frankened one) is army green. I'm not sure why I feel this way but my intuition tell me they might get bigger and be exploited in a cream or subtle shimmer form in the nextcoming times. I especially like the creme Zoya Shawn**, Jessica Victorian Crush**, Rescue Beauty Lounge No More War, OCC Swamp Thing. There are also some shimmers like OPI At Your Quebec & Call, Revlon Street Wear Burnt (the shimmer version), BB Couture Grenade. Chanel also released a trio of kaki shades, Chanel Kaki Brun, Chanel Kaki Rose and Chanel Kaki Vert. Of course, the last is my big favorite.

Greyed - Dusty and greyed out blue and greens are also in my mind, the gorgeous Misa Dirty Sexy Money** is wonderful under a lower sun, so is NYX Algae**. Essie Sew Psyched (or even better: Rescue Beauty Lounge Diddy Mow) has the perfect dusty feel. In the same dusty spirit, there is also Rescue Beauty Lounge Orbit Non Sufficis or Avon Olive Green (both are dupes), BB Couture Kelly's Green. I have a desire to find the most ideal peacock blue-green but I have not seen any polish coming close to what I have in mind lately. I feel like wearing this elusive shade so maybe will I have to franken it!

Warm Nudes - I'm also feeling like wearing warm nudes like Peggy Sage Beige Cachemire**, Jessica Creamy Caramel** or OPI Samoan Sand**. Not everyone loves a nude but I love an opaque cream creme, it's never out of place. There tons of them beyond the 3 I mentionned.

Warm Grey - After having had so many purplish greys like OPI Metro Chic, OPI Parlez Vous OPI** or more recently Confetti Moonstruck** and Essie Cool Merino, I'm more feeling like wearing Warm Grey like Essie Chinchilly, Color Club Soft as Cashmere** or elf Desert Haze**. Once again, the elf shades might not be truly innovative but they really are beautiful to me. Although not warm, Zoya Kelly is also in my mind because of its so cuddly/wooly feel.

Forest - Also, you know surely that Nars is going to re-release their cult shade Zulu. Although I don't know if the formula of that one will do great with my body chemistry (I wasn't lucky with Purple Rain and gave it away to someone dear to me), I will pick it for sure as I am a huge dark green jelly lover. Awaiting Nars Zulu, you can get Le Chat Dare to Wear Enchanted Forest**, Kinetics Velvet Green**, Nfu-Oh 569**, BB Couture Vampy Varnish. I'll maybe go and wear my old and beloved Yves Rocher "Vert Noir" too. You can also make your own dark green jelly using New York summer amaranth (cause it's a green jelly) and mix it with black creme and transparent polish.

New Shimmer - To end, as it's still sunny around before a grey and morose winter, it's time for me to wear neo shimmers that look so great under the sun, Orly Galaxy Girl, Orly Space Cadet**, Orly It's not Rocket Science**, China Glaze Zombie Zest**, SpaRitual Optical Illusion, Zoya Edyta** or Zoya Julieanne.

So... here is what I'm feeling like wearing this fall and what attract me! I will try to show you some of those in the following weeks, linking to this post when the swatch/reviews are done. I don't own them all unfortunately but hopefully enough of them to illustrate this. Do you feel the same way as I do? What do you feel like wearing this Fall? What is your personal Fall 10 trend?

** shades I own and will be able to show and link to this post

Milani - Dress Maker

2010-09-11T13:16:00.009+02:00

Today I'm showing you a polish you probably known everything about already and you more than surely know it's supposed to be the best dupe for Chanel "Jade". I can't make the comparison as I don't own the elusive/expensive Chanel cult polish but after having checked the comparison on StephsCloset, I convinced myself it was true since she owns them both and she says so.

"Dress Maker" is a soft jade green infused with a discreet green shimmer. While not being properly visible under every light - making of this polish mostly a creme to me- , this discreet shimmer nonetheless brings an undefined vibrancy and I can see why the shade became so popular: it's really, really pretty. I'm not always hot to sport a pale mint/jade green on my hands (think: Essie "Mint Candy Apple") as it does enhance the pink undertones of my skin and unaesthetically push it into the red territory but I have to say this one was surprisingly flattering on me (even if my camera still captured my skin redder than it is). The reason why is that the base is slighly muted/greyed out and jade green inherently contains a little drop yellow which truly make it easy to harmonize to the skin. Finally a pale green easy to wear! I even get a back up of "Dress Maker" which is unusual for me but it's saying how pretty I find the color.

Now the formula: I did 2 coats and found the polish well covering. It applied without any trouble and the drying time was average. As usual, my swatch is shown without top coat and I find it shiny enough. In short, this polish is very good and very pretty and let's say it, it's a real bargain for those who always wanted to get their hands on Jade but didn't want to drop lots of money for it. It's available on Milani** for US/Canada costumers and on Cherry Culture** (drop down the menu, it's here) for all of us who don't live on the American continent.

** I'm not affiliated to Milani or Cherry Culture, I just give the links for your convenience

Nfu-Oh - #554

2010-09-08T21:40:00.023+02:00

When I bought Nfu Oh 554 at FabulousStreet (where the bottle shot is shown as really too blue), I was expecting to receive a dark purple jelly. A bit like the old ink that was used by pupils during the 50's. You know, the ink in the vintage inkwells. What I received was a medium purple creme. Or jelly. I can't really decide. It's in-between so let's call it a semi jelly. To me it looks neither too blue, neither too red (even if I could almost place it on the red side) and beautifully saturated. Compared to it, China Glaze "Grape Pop" looks bluer and really more dusty (if anyone want me to make a comparison post, please just ask - I'll be happy to do it when the sun ever show up). If 554 looked nothing like I expected, I loved it at first sight anyway. As you can see, this is a vibrant shade of purple. What's not to love?

I have nothing to reproach to the color. However, I get some problems with the formula. It's really easy to apply (my swatches are shown without clean up) but this polish is very sheer and at 3 coats, you can still see brush marks on my nails. You also can see bald patches on my pinkie. It would probably need a fourth coat to look better, if not a fifth. If you are patient enough for this, it's perfect but in general, I'm not. No I'm not someone patient. I won't part from it because to my eyes this appears to be the most perfect purple ever and the color is definitely worth the trouble but I wished that for the high Nfu Oh price tag (12,5$ + shipping rate to EU), the quality of the formula was reaching my expectations.

Fyrinnae - Lip Lustre 2

2010-09-04T01:11:00.018+02:00

Here is, as promised so long ago, the second part of my Fyrinnae lip lustre swatches. You can find the first part here. The formula, this is still the same. If you need to know the ingredients and what I think of those lip products, please check out my previous post. The lip lustres can be found here at fyrinnae.com. (I don't receive money from putting this link, I just add it for your convenience). Anyway, go to the swatches! My second row contains 6 shades: Amplifier, Deceptive Innocence, Bare Shoulders, Ice Cream Party, Ryo-Pinko and Romantique.

Amplifier, Deceptive Innocence, Bare Shoulders, Ice Cream Party, Ryo-Pinko, Romantique

Amplifier, Deceptive Innocence, Bare Shoulders

Ice Cream Party, Ryo-Pinko, Romantique

Amplifier

Purple shimmer

Amplifier is a red toned medium purple shimmer. It applies evenly and smoothly. It goes one quite saturated on lips but remains surprisingly wearable for such a cold shade even if it is definitely on the unusual range side.

Deceptive Innocence

Pinkish creme nude

It's nude, opaque and creamy. Very pretty but uneasy to wear for me, at least at full force (my swatches show the color full force). It might be neutral, it goes too pink for my skin (neutral fair beige) and make me look washed out, yellow and sallow. How weird for someone with pink undertones. But it's probably because the color is lighter than my lip skin. Even applied lightly, it doesn't work on me but I totally see it woking on darker skin tones with a glorious dark smokey eye. Applies rather uneven compared to other lip lustre, it's hard for me to have a great result with a thin layer. It's great but not for me.

Bare Shoulders

Light rose shimmer

This very luminous pink brings the light on the lips, enhancing the volume via a reflecting fine shimmer. It makes my lips appear bigger than they are. Well, not technically bigger (as it's not a lip plumper) but enluminated. It's a basic neutral shimmer pink with a little something more. Soft and sexy.

Ice Cream Party

Greyed-out purple shimmer

A very particular shade but surprisingly very flattering. It comes out even on lips. I'm not sure this one could work on anyone as it's very subdued and toned down but if you can sport ashy and greyish tones, this one is worth a try because it's pretty unique. Once again, it looks like a winter shade to me.

Ryo-Pinko

Rose-mauve shimmer

Ryo-Pinko showed itself as pretty different than I thought. It's kind of a winter shade to me. It's a pretty bright but subdued pink reminding me of frozen berries. I see it with frozen greyed blues, grey, black and pale lights. Not for summer but pretty. Also the formula was great.

Romantique

Golden apricot

My absolute favorite lip lustre. Period. It reminds me of my beloved Guerlain summer gloss #20 (strong apricot with gold flakes). This is the same color base. A sheerful summery apricot granted with a stunning gold reflect. It's not a rusty orange in the least so it works on neutral and pink toned skins. It's an extremelly luminous shade and it brings something like a sunset light on the lips. Also really sexy because it enhance the volume of my lips (it's so luminous). It applies evenly. It makes me even more want to live in well, guess. California.

Hope this helps!

Zoya color spoons

2010-09-01T12:00:00.013+02:00

You know as well as me that buying nail polish online is sometimes a lottery and if I had had testers before, this would have prevented me from buying polishes I don't like or don't fit my skintone. When I first read about Zoya spoons, I thought "wait, this is so brilliant, how could no polish brand ever have the idea to come with this so simple idea?". Zoya spoons are little plastic tips with nail polish on a curve side allowing you to check how a color fits again your skin. There are over 300 colors to choose from, on the website. So if you have always hesitated between 2 Zoya shades, there will be a way now to choose the right one. The shipping (too bad it's US only!) is free on all spoons - value of spoon(s) will be added to your account for a future zoya purchase. They are available counting from today, September 1st.

(image and video belong to Zoya)

Lush - Lemony Flutter (Doigts de Fée)

2010-08-29T20:00:00.010+02:00

I might have stopped bitting my nails at the tender age of 9 (I wanted to be like the long nailed ladies, so impatient to become a woman), I have never truly taken care of my cuticles. Well, I mean until I started my blog! I am granted with a dry/dehydrated skin and all my life I've suffered from very dry cuticles with bleeding painful hangnails on every finger. I was using regular hand cream on my hands but was avoiding the wounds because it was stinging. Consequently the cuticles were never truly moisturized and once cured, the skin was cracking again. That was kind of a vicious cycle. Starting a blog was like a kick in the ass. I didn't want to swatch nail polish on unpleasant looking hands and I was wondering what other nail bloggers did to have such perfect cuticles. I learned the benefit of a good moisturizer with adequate products.

I started to use a very good butter recipe my sister made but in April we got in a 4 months long argument and stopped talking each other altogether (we reconciled 5 days ago though!) and in between, I had to find another remedy. My choice went to Lush Lemony Flutter (called in France "doigts de fée" - litterally "fairy fingers") because of the mostly natural recipe.

I bought this in May and started to use it every day ever since. At the beginning I was putting on several times a day even during the day (it penetrates well even if it leaves a slight greasy feel) but now only apply a nice amount just before going to bed (as night is the best time for skin repair). Lemony Flutter doesn't hurt on wounds and allows them to cure quickly. When I wake up on the morning my cuticles are soft and I very rarely experience hang nails anymore (I still do and probably will again when the weather gets cold this winter). The product has a very particular smell (kind of a blend of traditional body cream and lemon essential oil). I know that some hate it but I find it really pleasant, maybe because I associated it with comfort. The product contains lemon essential oil which is excellent for nails in general and it keeps nails really moistured. Applying Lemony Flutter on bare nails at night keeps my nails moisturized. As I already mentioned, keeping nails moisturized is a good way to avoid yellowing (see my anti-yellow nails post here).

It has now been four and a half months that I've been using this cuticle cream and I really love it. I have yet to see how it will work on me during winter when my hands get exposed to cold weather but so far, using it every day really improved my skin condition. I am using a large amount every day (size of a nut) but you can use less of course. A jar lasts me three and a half months which, I must say, is not too bad.

Will I repurchase? Well, I have already and I have a back up jar in my drawer so yes, definitely yes. I don't know the price in other countries but in France, it retails for something around 9,50€. It's not given but as I said, a jar will last you a long while so it's pretty fine for me as it's about 3€ per month. The clean composition is a big plus (note that it contains Methylparaben and Propylparaben though) as I am very inclined to use vegetal/natural products only. Also, last and importantly, nothing at Lush is tested on our little animal friends. A great product, I'm telling you.

Ingredients: Fresh Lemon Infusion (Citrus limonum), Shea Butter (Butyrospermum parkii), Beeswax (Cera alba), Lanolin, Soya Oil (Glycine Soja), Cold Pressed Avocado Oil (Persea gratissima), Cold Pressed Flaxseed Oil (Linum usitatissimum), Mango Butter (Mangifera indica), Hydrogenated Palm Kernel Oil, Castor Oil (Ricinus communis), Perfume, Cold Pressed Wheatgerm Oil (Triticum vulgare), Lemon Oil (Citrus limonum), Lavender Oil (Lavandula hybrida), Tagettes Oil (Tagetes glandulifera), Chamomile Oil (Anthemis nobilis), Sodium Borate, Gardenia Extract (Gardenia jasminoides), *Citral, Geraniol, *Citronellol, *Limonene, *Linalool, Methylparaben, Propylparaben.

Thank you to the adorable Perrie from PerriePie's Nail Polish Adventures for having the kindness to correct my grammar on this article! I so appreciate having a true looking blog entry! :D

Peggy Sage - Rose Boisé [038]

2010-08-28T17:15:00.005+02:00

Today I'm showing you a polish from Peggy Sage's core line: "Rose Boisé" (litterally "woody pink"). Two things I love about Peggy Sage's nail polishes are that their formula has always been so (at least those I've tested so far) on the good side and even if they don't often venture out of the classical shade range, I'll tell again they do their classical shades very well.

"Rose Boisé" is a creme dirty nude pink in the style of OPI Tickle My France-y (same dirty beige-pink feel) but it goes lighter that OPI's. If you own one, I'm not sure you need the other unless you're fond of this type of colors as I am. Actually, "Rose Boisé" could be my mannequin hand polish if that was a drop less pink, a bit more yellow and a tad lighter. The color is very flattering on a light skin tone but I see this one working on dark skinned ladies as well. It's of course, work appropriate but not boring for that much. I wore this one until it chipped (3/4 days) without getting tired of it.

The formula, even on the relatively sheer side (I did 4 coats but 3 could be fine) is excellent and the polish apply with a disconcerting easiness. It also dry is decent fast time considering the number of coats. On nail, the polish slides without any streaks and once again, I'm very pleased with the formula of this nice French brand. This is unfortunately not distributed worldwide, but you can check on their website if those polishes are foundable in your country.

Maybelline - Sweet Clementine

2010-08-27T01:03:00.008+02:00

Orange time again! And few things to say actually. I get this polish from the lovely Stephanie of shortnchic. She sent me an awesome and huge package, I will have to show this! Thank you again, Steph. Anyway, this one was the first I decided to wear because there was an exceptionnal little bit of sun around and when will I wear a summer soft orange if I don't do it now? The other thing is that it seems orange has grown on me lately and I've been really wanting to get this color on my nails even if that's not really me.

"Sweet Clementine" is an orange leaning toward the coral side, very soft yet pretty vitaminic and nice under the sun. Actually, it's pretty close to Peggy Sage "Capucine". It's night over here, I'm too tired to go and search for both bottles and tell how they compare but they're definitely from the same color family, trust me. "Capucine" is far easier to apply though and got a far better formula.

Without being awful, "Sweet Clementine" isn't perfect and I found the formula too thick and gooey. The Maybelline brush is also ridiculously big which doesn't help the application of the polish in any way. Nonetheless, I could manage to make a decent application with no clean-up. So this is not the worst formula I've come across because you can do a good job, but it's for sure a bothering one. "Sweet Clementine" dried in average time but the finish is not shiny and I found it pretty dull. This is nothing a top coat couldn't fix but as you know, I generally wear my polish without top coat so I expect a good shine on its own. Which doesn't happen here. One last thing: it cheaped pretty fastly and became awful looking after just one day of wear. But in general you know, I find Maybelline polishes to be kind of disappointing. I have yet to be amazed by one of their product. So I stay away from the brand. I love the color of this polish and Steph did a right choice for me but I will have hard time reaching for this one whenever I feel like wearing orange. I don't know. Me and Maybelline aren't friends.

I'm alive!

2010-08-24T23:59:00.003+02:00

Hey everyone! I've missed being there! I haven't had any internet connection during a bit more than 8 days and this is why I've been absent from my blog. But I'm alive, well alive and normally everything should be back to normal! Well, let's hope the technical problems are over! I have so many blog posts to check, so many messages to respond.... I have taken a lot of photos and have prepared some posts during my time out of the internet and I should normally post all this starting from tomorrow. So.. how have everyone been??

H&M - Being on the A-list

2010-08-15T00:23:00.004+02:00

I'm back! Long time no see! How are you all? I have so many things to show you, so many polishes, photos, make up stuff but I feel like time is flying and I have like no time to edit all my pictures!

Anyway, today I'm showing you the yellow polish that took my yellow virginity. Right. I was a yellow virgin until some day ago. As you know, I'm more the typical vampy/black/red/acid green/French tone lover. And I'm full of wrong ideas like "I can't wear everything". Which is true but also untrue. I must say I love yellow on me. It's so fresh and it suits my skintone far more better than I feared.

This one is from H&M and it's called "Being on the A-list". It's a straight yellow creme, your typical sunflower yellow. Bright, warm and fresh. It's a perfect color, especially for summer. But the formula was very hard to work with. Both sticky, goopy and with a mysterious attraction for my cuticle gaps. This one was hard to apply and the polish on the brush was as easy to control as a brakeless car in a way down, if you see what I mean. But the polish finally reached its destination (on my nails and on the cuticle gap, ah ah I gave up: you can't fight magnetic shields) and after a major clean up, it finally could look decent. The good side is that it was well opaque in 2 coats and it dried easily. That being said, I did thick coats but I couldn't do otherwise. The polish is so thick. In general, H&M polishes are on the good formula side but for what I've read, yellow polishes are never easy kids. I like H&M polishes. Still.

As you can see, I took the picture against the big sunflower we have in the garden. We feed the tit birds with sunflower seeds and they sewed the flower themselves. We let them grow. Poor sunflower, though. We've had like 5 days of full sun since July 14th and it's mostly raining and grey for one month. That's why the sunflower picture is not in the sun, which sucks of course. Because it's normally summer. But tell me about a rainy summer!...

[layering] - Kelly, paradoxally

2010-08-08T00:03:00.004+02:00

When Jackie S. posted her swatch for Chanel "Paradoxal", she said she wished Chanel could come with a "navy/grey version with bright blue micro-shimmer". I didn't intend to re-create this when I first get the idea to layer one coat of L.A. Colors "Reflections" over Zoya "Kelly" but this is more or less what I obtained. And watching my nails as they were done, I remembered what she said.

"Reflections" is a stunning polish. Seriously. A neutral grey with a blue shimmer. But its major downside is that it is terribly sheer. It'd require 4/5 coats to be fully opaque. Who would have such a patience? I always swore to myself I would layer it over creme grey sometimes but never did it. "Kelly" decided me. The base color of "Reflections" is lighter than Kelly but as it's so sheer, it doesn't really affect Kelly's dark base. It just leave over the dark grey a gorgeous discreet blurple shimmer. In the shade the polish seems blueished and when the sun hit it well, it looks like the pictures of "Paradoxal" I have seen... only on the cold side (we'll only have "Paradoxal" in October here in Europe so I can only refer to swatches I've seen online).

I love those L.A. Colors polishes. They're not extraordinary on their own (because too sheer) but they are awesome for layering (remember my cheap version of Nouvelle Vague?). I love their tiny hidden colored shimmer and I think they are real little cheap gems. Layering is one of my favorite things in the polish thing as so many great surprises are possible. And this one was a great one! Now I'll have to test "Reflections" over my other grey creme and over OPI "You Don't Know Jacques?!". And if it turns out as well as this one, well... maybe will I show it to you! :)

Zoya - Kelly

2010-08-07T00:28:00.006+02:00

From the taupe craze, it seems we are slowly sliding into the extraordinary wide territory of the other shades of grey. Grey can take so many faces. Taupe was just the beginning, I suppose. Zoya has never released one of those now classical and trendy taupe à la OPI YDKJ/OTT. They could have since lots of brands did it and keep on doing it. Instead of jumping in the comfortable taupe wagon, they came this fall with a very elegant grey: Kelly.

I love the color of Kelly. It is a medium to dark grey with very visible purple undertones. Not to the point it becomes a purplish grey, though. No, it's just a plain grey with a subtle drop of purple. It doesn't look industrial though. It reminds me of mohair wool, angora, smooth and cuddly thing. It's deep but it never appear black, even in low lights. It is a strict color but on my nails, I felt it as also surprisingly very feminine and it gave my hands a little self assured thing. I'm generally not too fan of medium flat grey polishes (the basic black 50% + white 50%). If you think Kelly is one of those, I tell it straight: it's not your basic 50/50 grey. This one has a little something more and it is very alluring. Also kind of flattering.

Now the formula. It applies well (you just have to get used to the very small Zoya brush), it's well pigmented and the polish applies evenly. I did 2 coats for full coverage, a third would have been completely superfluous. One thing: it dries lightly darker than in the bottle. As ever with Zoya, the formula is very good. I didn't wear top coat as usual and it's glossy on its own. However, next time I'm wearing it, I will definitely add some top coat. Reason why? On my nails, Kelly suffered abundant scratches. I'm not very kind with my hands at the moment, that's why. It's not any more fragile than any else polish but I find scratches to be very noticeable on this color, curiously. But with a good seal of basecoat, the problem should be totally solved. Everyone usually wear top coat, right? I'm the only one who doesn't, aren't I? Bad. Bad. I deserve a spank, I know.

I wore "Kelly" two entire days until I decided to experiment a layering for the third day. And yes, it turned out really great. I called it "Kelly, paradoxally". Wait, no. I'll keep you hanging on and will show you this tomorrow. Who said I couldn't be a tease?!

[makeup] - Smoke in the Forest

2010-08-05T11:34:00.009+02:00

Long time not posting a make up! Here is one I have done several times in a row and that I adore wearing in general. It's a very smudged smokey eye, the light neutral brown (used to blend, blend, blend everything) goes very far around the eyes making a large halo but since the shades are very soft, it doesn't have a bruised or sick dark circle look at all (especially because the halo is mostly on the external corners of the eyes!). It's quite dramatic but paradoxally very easy to wear for a day time because the brown is soft and blend to the skin. I have a huge preference for blur/smudged eye make up (sharp lines and too much definition are not my thing) and this one is very blur and moody. I love to give a pop of colour to this kind of make up using a strong shimmer indigo blue on the lid but it's equally great with a green. On here, obviously I went for a green, "Boy Toy" by Fyrinnae. It's a very pretty glittery green. Still not the green of my dreams but the multicolored micro glitter (there seem to be gold and turquoise glitter in here) make of it a very interesting and complexe shade. But beware to wear it over an "adhesive" base (on here, it's applied over smudged greasy khôl) otherwise used over an other powder, it won't stick to the lid at all.

I'm also showing you the Biguine eyeshadow I have used for this look. The trio is called "Safari Addict" and it's part of a little line of trios of harmony tint (there might be 6 or 7 in all). "Safari Addict" is composed of a soft red/neutral brown, a soft cold/neutral brown and a medium cold beige tone (almost dupe of MAC "Omega" - only more yellow than "Omega"). The shades of those trios generally have a matte or satin finish. On here, I used the cold brown and the medium beige (the 2 on the right on my arm swatch). Those are well pigmented and extra smooth eyeshadows, very easy to work with, ideal to blend and smudge.

face

BB Cream Missha "Perfect Cover SPF 42++" in shade 21

MAC Moisturecover NW20 (concealer under the eyes)

MAC sheer pressed powder NW15 (on nose and forehead)

MAC "Hand-finish" mineralize blush

eyes

MAC Paint Pot "Soft Ochre" (base)

Lancôme "Le Khôl" (Black) (upper/lower waterline and smudged around the eyes)

Biguine Make-up Ombre à paupière Basics Trio "Safari Addict" (light tone smudged all around the eyes, cold brown in the crease)

Fyrrinae "Boy Toy" eyeshadow (green on upper lid)

MAC "Carbon" (matte black on external corner)

MAC "Blanc Type" (matte ivory on the brow bone)

Mascara 2000 calories in "Rich Black"

MAC "Copperplate" on the eyebrows

lips

MAC "Fresh Brew" lipstick (sheer coffee creme)

[layering] - Peggy Sage "Tulipe Glitter" + Nfu Oh #51

2010-08-03T23:20:00.004+02:00

Quick post! Today I'm showing you a layering I've really loved wearing! But for some unknown reason, I had forgotten to show it to the world. I'm losing my mind, ah ah. On here, I am wearing the very unique Peggy Sage - Tulipe Glitter (3 coats) topped with one coat Nfu-Oh #52. I know that the big Nfu-Oh star is the infamous #51 but my little heart all goes for the #52. The association of purple and blue/green flakes is stunning, especially over dark red polishes. #52 on here darkened the color base of "Tulipe Glitter" making of it something even more vampy and the rest is a carnival vomito of multicolored glitters and flakes. Very cool and distracting. I'll have to wear this again, it's was so cheerful. Oh no, wait. Maybe I'll try to top Tulipe Glitter with #51 instead. Damn, those flakes are so funny, you never know what kind of result they're going to give you. Do you own Nfu-Oh #51 or #52? Over what polish do you love to top it? Whatever happens, they look cool over glitters, seriously. That's totally carnivalesque!

China Glaze - L8T G8T

2010-08-01T17:30:00.008+02:00

Lately, the weather has been excessively grey and rainy in my area and the temperature below average. So went my mood: a bit below average. A summer without sun is not a real summer to. And if it's not sunny in July, there are few chances to see lots of sun during the whole year. And it makes me sad, always sad to live in such a grey area. Every year I make this joke: if I live one more grey summer, I move to L.A. the year after. You'll have to tell me why I still haven't done it. Hmm... because I can't? Anyway, after 8 or 10 of grey weather the sun was back though and guess what I decided to wear to celebrate the return of the sun? You get it, a holo polish. I have yet to find a better way to interact with the sun.

I had the choice between the 12 colors of the OMG collection (the only collection that I own entirely!) and I went for the green, L8T G8T. Lime green is one of my favorite colors (to wear on nails, to wear as clothes, to see around me) so it was almost a predictable choice. To describe it, L8T G8T is a delicate lime green. This polish has the bad tendency to photograph far less yellow and more greyish than it appears in reality but I could capture its true color. So here is this little beauty. In the shade, it looks like a soft pastel lime (as shown in the last picture - depending the stength of the light, it also appears holo indoors) but once the sun hit it, it transform into a magical rainbow of colors. Really beautiful. Someone just has to enlight me and explain me what L8T G8T stand for. Yes, I like under a rock, ah ah.

Now the technical aspects. Holo polishes are famous for being easy chippy babies. That's what I experienced the first time I wore OMG (the silver). It didn't cheap the same day but it nonetheless chipped faster than my regular China Glaze (ChG normally wears like iron on me). Now I wore L8T G8T three days without a chip. Yes. 3 days. You hear me. To respond to your question, no I don't have servants who do my stuff (a cat's life if you prefer). I did the dishes gloveless every day (bad, bad), cleaned up the kitchen gloveless with bleach (bad, bad, bad, bad, bad), washed my hair (good), washed my body (even better), didn't truly paid attention to what I did with my hands (I'm rough like that) and yes, 3 days. Pretty nice. If you want to know that was the bleach episode that killed it. I think i could have worn it one more day if I hadn't ruined it. Is the Nfu-Oh Aqua Base for something in this long lasting story? Probably. I'll have to investigate this with the other polishes of this beautiful collection. Since I wore the Aqua Base, the application was extra easy and smooth. That wouldn't have been the case without as those China Glaze holo are known to apply patchy and pretty badly. Even without this magical base, they are worthy the trouble. But the Aqua base truly makes a difference on holo application, I say that again. I did 3 coats but 2 were sincerely enough. I'll know it for the next time.

I have few more to add. I love this polish. But I don't know if that is my favorite of the collection as I have yet to see myself with 10 more. I love that the holo effect is not sparse or scattered but behave like a laser. It's truly cheerful to watch when the sun hit it and never stop reminding me of insects' eyes. No really, I couldn't have found a better polish to celebrate the return of the sun.