China Glaze Jingle Bells

One of the last from China Glaze's 'Tis The Season is Jingle Bells, a champagne shimmer.  Let's be frank, I'm not a fan of gold items - from jewelry to nail polish, but I'm always willing to try!


I used a base of Seche Natural, one coat of Jingle Bells, and a top of Seche Vite.  I love the one coat application, regardless of the color!  :)

In the sun, this is just a nice shimmer gold.  it does seem a bit neutral against my skin tone.  You can tell that the application was absolutely perfect.

In the shade the color sticks out a little more but again it's a very neutral shade for me.  Nice for a day at the office or possibly a business meeting but it doesn't scream me by any means.

China Glaze [official website] can be found online through several etailers, including my favorite Head2Toe Beauty [official website], Sally's Beauty Supply [official website] as well asTransDesign [official website].

Disclosure: The product[s] in this post was [were] provided to me by the company for consideration.  For more information, please read this post.

NYX Blue Avenue

Back in October, I made a trip to San Antonio and stopped in the local HEB that my friends work at and made a beeline for cosmetics.  They have a much larger selection of nail polish than my HEB, including OPI, Cosmetic Arts, LA Splash and this brand, NYX.  I should have known by the milky appearance that this was meant to be a layering color and not opaque, but frankly I don't know what I was thinking.


Oh yes.  I was thinking FLAKIES!  Suspended in this polish are light green, blue and orange flakies (flake like glitter - much like fish scales).


However, these flakies aren't as defined as say, Sally Hansen Hidden Treasure.


I used a base coat of Seche Natural and 2 coats of NYX Blue Avenue on my first two fingers.  After seeing how sheer it was (and not buildable), I put a coat of CND Blackjack on my other two fingers, then two coats of Blue Avenue.  Everything was topped with Seche Vite.

As you can see in the sun, the flakes are pretty non-existant on my first two nails.  The blue base that you see in the bottle isn't visible either.  You can somewhat see flakes over black.

In the shade you can see the flakes a little better, but frankly I was disappointed.  I would rather have bought a Nfu-Oh at full price and have less coats with more coverage.  Lesson learned.


I purchased my bottle of Blue Avenue for $3.99.  NYX can be found online or in stores.  You can also Like them on Facebook or follow them on Twitter.

China Glaze Anchors Away

Spring 2011 seems to be a muted colors season from what I'm seeing but Anchors Away from China Glaze provides a bit more than some dusted colors... please enjoy the following press release

ALL HANDS ON DECK
China Glaze Introduces 12 New Glitters And Crèmes For Spring 2011


Sail away this spring in 12 nautically-inspired colors from China Glaze. These bold and confident brights are reminiscent of a carefree natural getaway, with soft ethereal hues that inspire leisurely thoughts of sand and sea. Colors in this collection include:


• Life Preserver: Highly pigmented and luxurious poppy crème.
• Hey Sailor: Vibrant crème red.
• Ahoy!: Delightfully intense pink that flashes with reflective glass speck.
• First Mate: Sophisticated and rich navy crème.
• Starboard: Hip and playful green crème.
• Lighthouse: Multi-dimensional, bright yellow glass speck.
• White Cap: Whimsical and sparkling multi-dimensional white.
• Pelican Gray: High shine, cool toned grey crème.
• Sea Spray: Calming pale blue crème.
• Below Deck: A flirty mix of taupe and violet.
• Sunset Sail: Delightful peachy pink high shine crème.
• Knotty: Micro-particle beige shimmer.


This spring, take a relaxing trip to the shore and sail away with China Glaze. Stop and smell the sea breeze!


The China Glaze Anchors Away collection will be available in two 6 piece acetates, a 12 piece display, a 36 piece rack, and as open stock colors.


China Glaze is free of DBP, toluene, and added formaldehyde.


China Glaze nail lacquers are available through salons and professional beauty supply stores nationwide. For more information, visit: www.chinaglaze.com or follow China Glaze on Twitter: http://twitter.com/ChinaGlaze


China Glaze is a division of American International Industries.


About American International Industries
For nearly 40 years, AII has been the leading manufacturer and worldwide distributor of innovative, quality beauty and skin care products for men and women. Our product lines include Ardell, Andrea, Body Drench, Bye Bye Blemish, Checi, China Glaze, Clean + Easy, Clubman/Pinaud, Duo, European Secrets, EzFlow, Fright Night, Gena, GiGi, Gypsy Lash, IBD, Jeris-Lustray, No Tweeze/Micro Tweeze, 'N Rage, Prolinc, RAW, Seche, SuperNail, Surgi-Care, Waterworks, Winning Nails, Woltra, Woody’s, and Youthair. For more information, visit our website: www.aiibeauty.com.

Have you Liked Zoya on Facebook yet?

True to their word, Zoya reached their 20,000 Likes before 2011, so today they will be releasing the code to get your 3 Free Bottles of Zoya Nail Polish (a $21 value).  You do have to pay for shipping which is about $7 so it's well worth it.  The code will be available both on their website and ONLY on their Facebook fan page (just click on "Filters" and choose "Just Zoya Nail Polish and Treatments" so you don't see all the Fan Spam as I call it).


For pictures of all the Zoya Nail Polish I have reviewed, please click here.


Enjoy!


Edit 12:37 CST: Updated to reflect the posting via Zoya that states the code will ONLY be available on their Facebook page and will not show up under their "my promos and codes" section of your Zoya website account.


Edit 2:24 CST:  The code is live!  Go check it out on their Facebook page!

Urban Decay 15th Anniversary 24/7 Eyeliner Set Available!

It's back!  On Cyber Monday, Urban Decay announced that 2011 was their 15th Anniversary of being a company, and were going to be releasing some amazing collection sets to celebrate.  Today, the 24/7 Glide On Eye Pencils were released on Urban Decay's website.  The price isn't cheap at $92 but you are receiving 15 pencils and their "Grind House" Double Barrel Sharpener (a value of $264).  Don't worry about not getting yours right now if you can't fork over the cash - this will be available in Ulta and Sephora come February.  I'm seriously wanting to wait until Sephora has it ONLY because I get the Sephora Reward Points to become a VIB.  Oh you reward programs.  You get me every time!


I don't have the official press release pictures (still working on that), but for now you can visit Temptalia's review on this box set, complete with swatches and product pictures.  Enjoy!

2011 Bloggies

The 2011 Bloggies nominations have started - have you even heard of it before?  I haven't.  ^_^


The only category that really interests me is the "Best Fashion or Beauty Weblog" which was previously named "Best Fashion Weblog".  Last year's winner was Cupcakes and Cashmere, which I have heard of once before in passing.


Now, I don't have any fashion posted on PolishGalore, and no real "beauty" passed nail polish, but there are some amazing blogs I follow that I will be narrowing down to nominate.  Here's my list:


[1] FrmHeadToToe  Nominee: Jen
Now granted Jen is a friend of mine, but I absolutely love her blog and have for some time.  I really think she deserves to win, point blank, but I'm also biased.


[2] Temptalia  Nominee: Christine
This is probably the most comprehensive makeup blog I've seen, constantly posting new collections, looks, and information.  I routinely bring up her blog on my iPhone when shopping for MAC, Urban Decay and a few other favorites.


[3] Scrangie  Nominee: Scrangie
I consider her to be the Holy Grail of nail polish blogs... this is another one that's saved on my iPhone for when I'm shopping in stores for new polish colors and lines.


[4] Vampy Varnish  Nominee: Kelly
Kelly just recently started blogging about makeup as well as nail polish and I've found her posts to be really informative as well as helpful especially when it comes to wear-ability.


[5] All Lacquered Up  Nominee: Michelle
One of the things I love the most about this website is that there are lots of comparison pictures to look at.  That is one of the best kept secrets of makeup - you don't have to spend $18 on a bottle of Channel when you can find a $3 bottle of Hard Candy for the same price.  She also introduced Shellac to me which I'm still dying to try in 2011.


[6] Lacquerized  Nominee:  Michele
One of the most well organized polish blogs out there in my opinion.  Wonderful pictures, excellent articles, well organized and clean looking website - definitely a favorite.


So now I have to narrow it down between these six.  There are many more amazing blogs out there, and more than belong in my list as well.  Make sure you nominate your favorite - we all deserve a chance!

Revlon Grape

Sometimes I just can't help myself and I want to binge buy.  The day I walked into CVS was one of those days. I spied this rack of Revlon products (among their Fire and Ice line) and since I'm a sucker for purple sparkly polish, I snatched this one up.  I believe it was around $5 for this "top speed, one coat" polish that is supposed to be dry in 60 seconds.  Grape is a dark purple with red and blue particles but is officially listed as a pearl.


I used a base of Seche Natural, one coat of Grape and a top of Seche Vite.  The nails were dry to the touch within 60 seconds (before the Seche Vite) but still scratchable/nickable.

In the sun you can barely see the blue and red sparkles.

The shade just washes out this color completely - not one of my favorites anymore.  I hate when polish is so dark it looks black or is just completely washed out without sun.  Still a good color and one coat coverage is always nice but it's going back on the shelf for awhile.


Revlon can be found in several grocery and drug stores - price may vary from $3-5.  Check out their website for more information.  You can also follow them on Twitter or like them on Facebook.

Blogs of Note

HAPPY NEW YEAR! (again)  Today is actually my parents wedding anniversary.  It makes me all warm and fuzzy to know they still love each other.  ^_^  Here's some more...

First today is Cosmetic Cupcake.  Chelle posts a mix of makeup and nail polish with some amazingly cute nail art included.  She has medium nails and features a variety of items since she's located in Australia but visits Hong Kong for family.

Next today is Crystal Polish.  This blog is written by Sarah and Jason who are very in love.  While I'm 99.8% sure that the nail polish is only worn by Sarah, it's very refreshing to see a man's perspective on nail polish - color and finish.  Also, apparently Jason crochets, and I'd a sucker for a scarf.  Just saying.  Crystal has medium nails and even does some water marbling!

Last today is CucumPear's Onyx Phalanx.  Think lots of green and pink.  Owner Amira originally was blogging about makeup but it evolved into a purely nail polish blog with layering, freehand nail art and Konad.  She has medium nails.

Enjoy!

China Glaze Little Drummer Boy

I'm attempting to get back into the swing of things with the New Year and all.  Here is a post from last year that somehow never made its way out of my computer.


Unfortunately, I never got a good bottle picture of China Glaze Little Drummer Boy from the Tis The Season collection, but it's the lone blue in the bunch.  I used a base of Seche Natural, only one coat of Little Drummer Boy and a top coat of Seche Vite.  There was a deep blue shimmer just like in Sephora by OPI Club Scene Queen, but no grey and it wasn't some sheer mess.

As you can see in the sun, I'm back to nubbins... again.  At Christmas, I had a bit of free edge, but then I had a "family issue" and well, just BLAH.  I was pretty ticked, to be honest, because I have RACKS of polish waiting to be swatched and I hate rocking nubbins.

The shade pictures really do this color some justice.  I had debated on hand drawing some snowflakes over this for Christmas, but I'm not very patient and only have one striper brush currently.  Fun times!


I still three more colors from this collection to swatch and much more to come!  I'm hoping to get two posts done a day for at least awhile to get caught up.  There are so many collections coming out this year and if given the opportunity to review them, I want to make sure it's done in a timely manner so you can see what colors you will be lemming.


Have a great New Year!

China Glaze [official website] can be found online through several etailers, including my favorite Head2Toe Beauty [official website], Sally's Beauty Supply [official website] as well asTransDesign [official website].

Disclosure: The product[s] in this post was [were] provided to me by the company for consideration.  For more information, please read this post.

Happy 2011!

Happy 2011 Everyone!