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Showing posts with label OPI. Show all posts
Showing posts with label OPI. Show all posts
Monday, 2 June 2014
Manic.Monday: Check out OPI's Can't Find My Czechbook
As a polishaholic I'm almost ashamed and outraged that I haven't previously dedicated a Manic.Monday post to OPI alone, and I can only blame that almost unforgivable polish faux pas on the amount of beautiful shades that have clearly distracted me. Fact is that OPI is one of my absolute favorite brands because of the amazing range of shades (almost 300 different colors) with cheeky names that always make me smile, the excellent formula and the very reasonable price point. So today I'm hoping to remedy myself by focusing entirely on this gorgeous must have shade which is OPI's Can't Find My Czechbook (£6.93). I have a thing about blue nail polishes, and some day I should probably do a post on my more than 50 different shades of blue. Any shade - be it deep, dark, sinister and inky blue or soft, pastel, delicate baby blue, is a magnet to my all color loving nail polish eye so for me to say that a blue shade is a "favorite" is quite a statement - but this beautiful soft blend between Tiffany blue and sky blue is definitely a color that I would wear all year around.
The formula is lovely and liquidy without being too watery, and all
the OPI shades that I have tried have a very creamy and rich element to
them, regardless of the actual color and you can tell that you're working with a quality polish. OPI brushes are not particularly
wide, but they're of good quality and in combination with the formula you
can easily get a streak free smooth coverage that dries quickly with an opaque depth, even if you decide to only apply one coat, a testament to how good the pigmentation is. As you probably know I always apply two coats of nail polish since I love the solid opacity, and although you can definitely get away with wearing only one coat, personally I think that two coats really show off the silky satin finish and subtle glass-like sheen that you get even before applying a top coat - and that's exactly what you see in the photo. If you were to apply a top coat as well, you would emphasize that beautiful high shine look even more and you might even prolong the wear. On me OPI lasts about 3-4 days before it starts to chip, which for me is a little longer than average but to be honest with you I wouldn't have cared if the wear was even less than that since the color is so pretty, but should you get fed up with the color even earlier, the OPI polishes are easy to remove with an acetone free nail polish remover. I LOVE this gorgeous summery shade and would definitely recommend that you Czech it out.
Monday, 14 October 2013
Manic. Monday: Dutch Caviar
What a wonderful A/W season for nails this is, particularly if you like to play with different effects. It seems like anything goes, we've got different colored glimmers and sparkles which is almost bog standard these days and then the more outlandish; real feathers, foil, ombre, gradient, confetti, sugar crush, velvet, matte and my personal favourite - caviar.
When Ciaté launched their Caviar manicure, it was a look that was completely different from anything else I had ever seen - it was new, fresh, fun and playful. I did think that the original Ciaté sets were quite expensive for what is essentially different colored micro beads which you can pick up in any arts and crafts store or on eBay, but luckily the look was quickly copied by other more affordable brands and you can now easily get lovely color mixes on the high street to create interesting looks. Now, I know that nail caviar isn't to everyone's liking for various reasons and although it of course makes a very striking look to wear it on every nail, I personally prefer to have just one or maybe even two accent nails on each hand with caviar, leaving the others with a plain polish to balance the spectacular look, which is exactly what I'm showing in today's Manic. Monday.
One of my most loved nail polish brands is OPI - they have gorgeous shades, the formula is great and it is purse friendly. The shade I'm wearing in the photo is I don't give a Rotterdam which is a muted Cambridge blue with silvery grey undertones. It's an unusual subdued shade with subtle shimmer that creates almost a 3D effect that creates a look that is sleek and stylish but also severe and cool. The OPI brushes aren't particularly wide, but the formula is creamy, quick drying and gives a lovely and satin like streak free finish. I find this particular shade quite sheer and in the photos I'm wearing 3 coats to get a fairly solid and opaque base.I find that OPI usually lasts 3-4 days before it starts to chip, which in my book is pretty decent. But when it did start to chip after a few days I thought I would add some fun to it by adding some caviar.
The caviar mix I have used in the photo is the Bourjois Toppings 03 Maliblue which is a lovely mix of blue and grey shades; dark, matte prussian blue, vibrant navy blue, cool grey and shimmery silver. The trick to applying caviar is to work on one nail at a time and to first cover your nail with a fairly thick coat of based polish in whatever shade you choose, and then to pour over the beads before the nail polish dries. When you've covered the nail, gently tap or press down the pearls into the polish and perhaps even add some more to ensure that you get a really dense and even spread of beads. I never use a top coat, since I personally think that it ruins the effect, however it is a personal choice and it may last a bit longer if you do use a top coat. What I do instead is that I take a little bit of top coat and just seal the very tip of the nail to make it a little bit more resistant to wear and tear. It dries surprisingly quickly and if you have pressed the beads into the polish they'll set really well, although I would recommend that you take the next 15 mins or so for some well deserved me time. Make yourself a coffee or tea, sit back and read a magazine and just let it dry properly.
You might think that this is a very impractical look and as soon as you do anything the beads will come off. On me this will last approximately 3 days and I still put the manicure through every day things like washing up, cooking, showers, tapping on a keyboard all day long etc. I may need to touch up the beads a little bit by filling in the odd little chip, but in general it lasts about the same as most standard nail polishes - not bad for being such an extravagant look.
I am ridiculously fond of this 3D frivolous and fanciful look and have quite a few caviar mixes to match with different shades. For this particular look I think the caviar takes away the edge of the strictness and cold of the OPI shade and adds something unexpected. I sometimes wear caviar at work to break up the corporate suit look, adding an element of unpredictability and mischievousness - in short a bit of personality!
I love how creative and expressive so many are with their nail art, and the only limitations are our own imagination. Do you experiment with different effect nail polishes, and do you have a favourite?
When Ciaté launched their Caviar manicure, it was a look that was completely different from anything else I had ever seen - it was new, fresh, fun and playful. I did think that the original Ciaté sets were quite expensive for what is essentially different colored micro beads which you can pick up in any arts and crafts store or on eBay, but luckily the look was quickly copied by other more affordable brands and you can now easily get lovely color mixes on the high street to create interesting looks. Now, I know that nail caviar isn't to everyone's liking for various reasons and although it of course makes a very striking look to wear it on every nail, I personally prefer to have just one or maybe even two accent nails on each hand with caviar, leaving the others with a plain polish to balance the spectacular look, which is exactly what I'm showing in today's Manic. Monday.
One of my most loved nail polish brands is OPI - they have gorgeous shades, the formula is great and it is purse friendly. The shade I'm wearing in the photo is I don't give a Rotterdam which is a muted Cambridge blue with silvery grey undertones. It's an unusual subdued shade with subtle shimmer that creates almost a 3D effect that creates a look that is sleek and stylish but also severe and cool. The OPI brushes aren't particularly wide, but the formula is creamy, quick drying and gives a lovely and satin like streak free finish. I find this particular shade quite sheer and in the photos I'm wearing 3 coats to get a fairly solid and opaque base.I find that OPI usually lasts 3-4 days before it starts to chip, which in my book is pretty decent. But when it did start to chip after a few days I thought I would add some fun to it by adding some caviar.
The caviar mix I have used in the photo is the Bourjois Toppings 03 Maliblue which is a lovely mix of blue and grey shades; dark, matte prussian blue, vibrant navy blue, cool grey and shimmery silver. The trick to applying caviar is to work on one nail at a time and to first cover your nail with a fairly thick coat of based polish in whatever shade you choose, and then to pour over the beads before the nail polish dries. When you've covered the nail, gently tap or press down the pearls into the polish and perhaps even add some more to ensure that you get a really dense and even spread of beads. I never use a top coat, since I personally think that it ruins the effect, however it is a personal choice and it may last a bit longer if you do use a top coat. What I do instead is that I take a little bit of top coat and just seal the very tip of the nail to make it a little bit more resistant to wear and tear. It dries surprisingly quickly and if you have pressed the beads into the polish they'll set really well, although I would recommend that you take the next 15 mins or so for some well deserved me time. Make yourself a coffee or tea, sit back and read a magazine and just let it dry properly.
You might think that this is a very impractical look and as soon as you do anything the beads will come off. On me this will last approximately 3 days and I still put the manicure through every day things like washing up, cooking, showers, tapping on a keyboard all day long etc. I may need to touch up the beads a little bit by filling in the odd little chip, but in general it lasts about the same as most standard nail polishes - not bad for being such an extravagant look.
I am ridiculously fond of this 3D frivolous and fanciful look and have quite a few caviar mixes to match with different shades. For this particular look I think the caviar takes away the edge of the strictness and cold of the OPI shade and adds something unexpected. I sometimes wear caviar at work to break up the corporate suit look, adding an element of unpredictability and mischievousness - in short a bit of personality!
I love how creative and expressive so many are with their nail art, and the only limitations are our own imagination. Do you experiment with different effect nail polishes, and do you have a favourite?
Wednesday, 10 July 2013
Nailing it in ombre
I know that we're in the middle of summer, and on top of it all we're enjoying a fantastic heat wave (yeeeaaay FINALLY) - but after having shown off my fingertips in every delectable pastel colour you can imagine, I thought I would mix it up a little.
We've seen ombre for hair and you could almost say that ombre is the new black, and even by The New Black when it comes to ombre nails. I know the adorable 5 colour sets are readily available in the US, however I haven't seen them or anything similar here in the UK.
But since I was feeling a bit creative I rummaged around in my stashes of nail polish and came up with a DIY version, which is very easy to do - just try and get 5 tonal shades in whatever colour you prefer that gives a nice gradient effect. And since life is far too short for only one colour on your nails, wearing ombre gives you an opportunity to go 5 in 1.
Admittedly the colours I've gone for may be more suitable for autumn,
but as much as I adore pastel nails it was time for a change.
Here are the nail polishes used from left to right (using at least 2 layers of each):
We've seen ombre for hair and you could almost say that ombre is the new black, and even by The New Black when it comes to ombre nails. I know the adorable 5 colour sets are readily available in the US, however I haven't seen them or anything similar here in the UK.
But since I was feeling a bit creative I rummaged around in my stashes of nail polish and came up with a DIY version, which is very easy to do - just try and get 5 tonal shades in whatever colour you prefer that gives a nice gradient effect. And since life is far too short for only one colour on your nails, wearing ombre gives you an opportunity to go 5 in 1.
Here are the nail polishes used from left to right (using at least 2 layers of each):
OPI - Suzi says da!
YSL - 21 Taupe Retro
Barry M - 310 Mushroom
Essie - Jazz
OPI - Sweet heart
Let there be Nail creativity!
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