Jessica - Enchante

So, today is my wedding anniversary. 9 beautiful years with the love of my life.  It's also the wedding anniversary of my late grandparents.  It was one of the nicest moments of my life to share our 'first dance' with them as, on that day, they themselves had been married 55 years.

So forgive me for being pathetically romantic today with my manicure.

I've come to the conclusion that Jessica lacquers just do not get enough love.

For a start, every formula I have tried has been superb.  This was two easy coats and it was opaque.

Secondly, the bottles are huge.  As in 14 mls huge.  I like big bottles of lacquer.  I always feel like I'm getting value for money.

And the colours are outstanding.  Truly outstanding.  This is a beautiful fuchsia that is just dazzling on the nail.

What do you guys think?  And, whilst I'm in the mood for romance, tell me your memorable wedding, engagement, first date stories.  Hit me with the sap.

Barry M - Gold

Ok, hands up who is already humming the lyrics of the Spandau Ballet song of the same name in their head?

'You're indestructible, always believe in..... you are GOLD'.

Fibbers. I know you're all cutting dramatic hair flips and pouts in your head.  You can't fool me.

As you all know, I heart Barry M lacquers greatly. But I do not heart this as much as I heart my others.

For a start, I suspect the gold is a little too warm for my skin tone.  Cool toned ladies (or gents), this would look fabulous on you.

Secondly, the formula isn't so great.  It's suffering from a case of 'Am I a sheer or am I not?'  It's definitely too thick to be a sheer, but it takes forever (4 coats in the above swatch) to become opaque and, even then, I can see my natural nail.

So not a total success but these things are relative, given how stupendously good Barry M is normally.

And, just for those of you born after 1980-something, here is what I'm talking about with Spandau Ballet.

Boots 17 - Peacock

This week is a big week. YGF will launch on Thursday but, perhaps more importantly, it's my wedding anniversary on Wednesday!

So I wanted to kick off this week with a BANG, and I certainly think Boots 17's Peacock fits that bill.

This is simply stunning.  The colour is just phenomenal.

The formula though..... not so stunning.  Maybe because it's a fast finish, this will drag pretty easily and quickly.  And it streaks like a drunk at the football.

But I can tolerate all of that for this colour.  It's glorious.

I have a whole lot of English lacquers this week (thanks again to my mother in law, Kath, for her largesse) so, English ladies, sit back and enjoy!

Naily News #35

If you haven't entered this month's competition, click here.  There's still time to enter!

Right on the Nail rocks Essie's Vermillionaire.

Andrea has some STUNNING Borghese swatches.

Konadomania trials her first Barry M.

Totally nail unrelated but I'm craving deep fried dill pickles thanks to Kelly.  Bad Kelly!

Zoya Charla..... Homer Drool

Siobhan totally rocks the China Glaze Vixen Collection.

Do not click here if you're hungry for candy.

Tiffani has the new Cheeky Monkey Spring 2010 Collection lacquers, and they're super cute!

I don't normally promote giveaways, but please check out Susie's.  Only 12 more followers and one lucky person gets to win a STASH of goodies.

 If you have a great nail polish related post, paste a link in the comments.  Share the link love!

And read on to hear about my decadent, albeit poorly photographed, treat.

Golden Rose - #118

This was a little freebie slipped to me by Ange-Marie when she sent my Nfu.Oh order.

I've not heard of the brand, Golden Rose, but I'm lemming more already.

This is a beautiful formula. Two coats and I was done. It dried to a lovely, high shine and, although the holo is subtle, it's definitely there. I promise to take a better photo in sunlight soon. With Boo being sick, it's just not been a priority.

PS. There is actually a proper black lid for this lacquer. It dropped off and I don't know where it is!

Nfu.Oh - #51

I don't want to sound like some teenager but, OMGWTFBBQ.

Here's the deal with Nfu.Oh.  You can't go wrong.  Ever.  These lacquers are sublime, innovative and just...... scrumptious.

I cheated in this swatch and layered it over Illamasqua's Velocity.  It works a treat, albeit my photo is not the best.  If you look closely at the left side of the bottle, you will see green peaking through.  This does actually show on the nail but I couldn't get a good photo of it.

Once again, big thanks to the most beautiful Ange-Marie for procuring these for me.  Love ya, dollface!

OPI - Summer Flutter 2010

I was so excited when I saw OPI's Summer Flutter 2010 Collection.  I immediately snapped up all four without a moment's hesitation.

Did they live up to expectations?  You'll have to click on the jump to find out but, in one word, 'OMGHELLSYEAH'.

City Girl 2000 - #34 + World Cup Manicure for our Socceroos

Today I have another City Girl 2000 for you.

#34 is a sheer gold which went on a whole lot easier than it's #19 cousin. 

The above is three coats.  I suspect if I had added a couple more I just might have gotten it to opaque.  All up a total winner, albeit I suspect it's a tad too warm for my colouring.

Now for my Socceroos manicure....

As you all know, I'm from Australia.  More than that, I'm from Melbourne where soccer's popularity  is... well, let's just say it's somewhere behind Australian Rules Football but more popular than a root canal.  I'm sure that, if we were any good at soccer, like, say Brazil, it would be a whole lot more popular.

But even I, a staunch Collingwood Magpie fan, am getting a little exciting about Australia's upcoming match against Ghana.  So I teamed up this lacquer with yesterday's China Glaze Kiwi Cool-Ada and the results are.... well check it out after the jump.

China Glaze - Kiwi Cool-Ada

When I first opened this package, kindly sent by the good ladies at China Glaze, my first reaction was... errrrr.... okkkkkkk.

I'll be honest when I say I thought this could be one of the ugliest colours ever.  Thankfully, the little ugly duckling in the bottle turns into a swan on the nail.  It's fabulous.

Now, this is a neon so the rules of neon apply here: you're going to need at least three coats to get to opaque AND this dries to a semi-matte finish (think BYS Matte Deep Purple and that's the finish).  I ended up putting a coat of Seche Vite over this just because it looked 'unfinished' without it.

Despite my initial misgivings, and I truly think this does look unattractive in the bottle, on the nail it's an oustanding neon.  Kudos to China Glaze for taking a risk, and banking on their clever fans trusting their judgement, with this lacquer.

A risk well worth taking, don't you think?






The lacquer featured in this review was provided by China Glaze. For more information on YGN's Disclosure Policy, please click here.

Illamasqua - Velocity Take II

Edit: Alex from Illamasqua contacted me, and the Illamasqua launch is actually now happening on 25th June 2010.  

Today is a very special day because it's the day Illamasqua finally launch in Sydney!

In honour of their arrival, I'm dedicating this manicure to Alex Box and her crew.  I'm in Sydney towards the end of next month and the only 'must do' on my list is to visit Illamasqua.  So, if you're in Sydney at the end of July and you happen to  see some sad girl sobbing at the Illamasqua counter, crying 'I just can't believe you're here.  It's a dream come truuuuuuuue', whilst bewildered (and possibly amused) Illamasqua staff wonder when they should call store security, then it's probably me.

I have swatched Velocity previously, but it's a lacquer that I really wanted to take for another spin.

This is a beautiful lacquer.  You can get away with one thick coat of this but I did two.  I love it like I love carrot cake.

I decided to try this with Prism layered over the top.  Oh man, just click on the jump to see awesomesauce of a thousand flavours.

Naily News #34

All You Desire has a lacquer that was a littel ugly duckling (ok not really that ugly) in the bottle but which turned into a beautiful swan.

Looking at Michelyne's swatches is bad for my wallet.

A blue chrome?  I'm in chromatic heaven thanks to Dee.

Ginger once again reaffirms that she truly is the Queen of Purple.

I like Anna Sui lacquers for their bottles alone, but this is an amazing colour to boot!

Elizabeth has an iridescent pink / purple comparison that is to die for.

Stephanie takes a red and transforms it into one fiery manicure.

If you have a nail related post to share, paste a link in the comments.

And read on if you want to hear about the week that was.

Illamasqua - Force + Force with Prism

Force is..... a force to be reckoned. Stop groaning. I know you like my funny.

Man, this is a fabulous blue.  The formula is gorgeous.  Two coats and I was done and I didn't even need a top coat.

I promised you guys a layering experiment with Prism, so click on the jump to see it matched with Force.  Prepare for this manicure to dazzle your brains out.

I'm lost in a sea of fricking awesomesauce.

BYS - Matte Pink + Potential Celebrity Manicure?

Another BYS matte I tried this week was Matte Pink.

This is just lovely.  The formula is wonderful and intuitive and glides on easily.  It took just two coats to get to opaque and, like other BYS mattes, dried to a satin matte finish.

Click on the jump to see what this looks like as a gloss.

PLUS if you're interested in celebrity manicures, this might be a great lacquer to get if you're wanting to be like California Gurls.  Check out what I mean after the jump.

Illamasqua - Prism + Comparison with City Girl 2000 #19

This is one very special bottle of lacquer.

Not just because it's Illamasqua, which automatically makes it super special in my eyes. It's the route, and the time, it took to get to me that makes it special.

This was sent way back in April by the lovely Alex of Illamasqua. It arrived this week. That's two months it took, thanks to the volcanic ash and, for whatever reason, a brief sojourn in Switzerland. Damn lacquer wanted a nice round the world trip before it got to work. ;-)

But, oh, it was so worth the wait.  I couldn't decide which photos I liked, so I've included them all.  Prism-palooza!

Illamasqua seem to have tinkered with their formula a little.  I thought their previous one was good, but this is utter perfection.  Based on this lacquer, I can safely say I have found a lacquer that measures up to Chanel.  Perfection.

This isn't designed to go opaque.  The above swatch is three coats and you can clearly see my nail line.  This is like a CND Effects lacquer in that, although it can be worn by itself, it will transform a lacquer.  I have another Illamasqua coming up later this week where I layer this over the top and the difference is startling.

Of course, as soon as I started applying this, I thought that the City Girl 2000 #19 might be a dupe.  I have lined them up side by side after the jump.

Swatch Watch - Coral Colours **Voting Now Open**

I know my Australian readers are thinking something along the lines of 'WTF?' 'Coral Colours!' My nanna wears Coral Colours'. 'She's finally lost it.  Jacie, that is, not my nanna'.

And you'd be right.  Coral Colours has an unfortunate reputation for being nanna-ish in its colour selection.

However, they have recently started rebranding themselves and the results are on-trend, high quality lacquers that are to die.  The bottles still need work (seriously, a gold handle) but I'm seriously impressed with this brand's re-invention.

So much so that they are this month's Swatch Watch lacquer.

The rules of this competition are the same as always.

1. Pick your favourite Coral Colours lacquer after the jump.

2. Scroll down to the entry form.

2. Select your favourite Coral Colours lacquer from the drop down box.

3. Fill in your name and email address.

4. Click 'Submit Entry'.

5. Do a happy dance because you've just got your entry in.  This is mandatory - YOU MUST DANCE.

6. This competition is open to everyone (so long as your postal service can accept nail polish) and will close on 5pm, Wednesday 30th June 2010, Australian Standard Time.

If you're the lucky winner, you will win the lacquer you voted for PLUS you can choose one other lacquer from the ones swatched.

And now, for the additional prize.  If you are selected as the winner AND you are also a follower of YGN (this is mandatory if you want to win the additional prize - I want to be able to offer followers an additional 'Mwah, I love you lots' prize), you will receive, in addition to the two lacquers of your choice, a bottle of Pewter Polish.

So quit reading, start peeping and vote after the jump! 

BYS - Matte Deep Purple

Whatever happened to the matte finish.  When I started blogging, everyone was matte-fying everything.  And now..... bupkis.

Never let it be said that I'm ever ahead of a trend, so here's another matte lacquer.  This time, it is BYS' Matte Deep Purple.

Now, here's the deal.  I don't normally like creme mattes.  I think, in order for a matte to work, it has to have some depth in it. A shimmer.  A different undertone.  Something.

This doesn't have any of that depth but it still works a treat.  I think it's the finish.  It's a satin matte which makes it not so harsh and is more forgiving of the large block of colour.

Of course, I couldn't do a matte without applying a top coat to see how it came up.  Click on the jump to see the results.

Pewter Polish - #824

I was trawling eBAY searching for some cheap lacquers when I came across this little gem.
 
For the Aussie ladies, if you love Orly's FX Collection, then you will be interested in this lacquer for no other reason than it's a shedload cheaper AND you get the same end look.

Sound too good to be true?

Yah, it is.  The formula on this is problematic - a little gluey.  Not unworkably so but you need patience and time.  And the brush is terrible.  I gave up with it and ended up using a Pro-Wide.

BUT, the colour and finish (a little rough but nothing Seche Vite can't fix) can't be argued with.  For under $5, this is a bargain.

And, it will feature as part of this month's Swatch Watch, kicking off on Wednesday.

May Giveaway - We Have a Winner

Thanks to everyone who entered the May Giveaway!

Unfortunately, there can be only one winner, and that winner is......... Valerie Frank.

Congratulations Valerie!  You win three packs of Nailene Nails PLUS the much covetted BYS Crackle Set.

For those of you disappointed at having not won this giveaway, the June Swatch Watch kicks off this coming week, so stay tuned, vote for your favourite and be in the running to win!

Naily News #33

If you are after a lavender comparison, Nihrida has you covered.

Siobhan has, quite possibly, the CUTEST manicure in the history of manicures.

Diana stuns and amazes with a blaze of petals.

Kris catches me in her net.  I received this OPI in the post this week and I can't wait to try it out.

Oh man, this is a sweeeeeet manicure.

Tiffani reviews Diamond Cosmetics' Summer 2010 Collection and it's gorgeous.

Elizabeth has a lovely burgundy comparison.  Now I feel like drinking wine.

Lisa has been shellacked!

If you have a great nail related post to share, paste a link in the comments.  Share the link love!

And click to see why Chuffy is on a building site.

Jessica - Eyes Wide Open + CG200 Layering Experiment

**For those of you waiting to hear about the winner of the May Giveaway, be patient just a day more!  It's taken me forever to go through all followers, validate all tweets and blog links etc.  I'm nearly there!!**

Jessica's Eyes Wide Open is from the Daydream Collection, released earlier this year.

I was so prepared to be meh about this lacquer, but this is like a shot of coffee direct to the heart.

As you can see, this is more a tangerine than a straight orange, which makes it infinitely wearable.  Normally, I find oranges are just a smidge too warm for my skin tone, but this baby is just right.

The formula on this is divine.  So smooth and creamy.  It needed two coats to get to opaque and dried to the high shine you see.

But wait!  There's more!  Remember the City Girl 2000 lacquer I trialled earlier in the week?  After the jump, I've layered it over Eyes Wide Open.  It's like a different lacquer.

Eyeko - Disco Polish

I don't know if Eyeko are even selling Disco Polish anymore but, hot damn, they should be.

This is one of the best glitter polishes I've come across.  Two coats and it's done.  And, seriously, isn't that one of the nicest glitters you've seen!

This does dry to a rough finish so you will need Seche Vite to smooth it out.  Oh, and it's an absolute pain in the a** to remove but, then, aren't all dense glitters?

For under $5, this is a worthy investment if you can still find it.

Inglot - #207

I had high hopes for Inglot #207.  In the bottle, it looked like it might be a gold version of OPI's Mad Hatter.

Err, no.  This is most definitely not a lacquer that will ever become opaque on its own.  But, as a layering lacquer, it's a knockout.

I layered one coat of this over Bad Boy and, seriously, I'm channelling a disco loving Cleopatra with this.  I think this is a unique gold glitter in that, while the dominant glitter is gold, there are other colours in there.

So while I'm disappointed that this didn't end up the way I had originally envisaged, I'm pleased with the overall look.  I'm obsessed with layering at the moment and this certainly hits the spot.