Perfectly Polished Tips 214 - Essie Dive Bar & China Glaze Rodeo Fanatic Comparison

Finally the comparison swatches I did a few weeks ago will be posted! I mislabeled a photo and of course I never write things down so I forgot what was what. I need to get better with that. It takes me 9,000 years to upload and edit photos. I really should upgrade from photo bucket.

First up I have Essie Dive Bar and China Glaze Rodeo Fanatic. Both polishes are a gorgeous, shimmery teal. Each has this amazing purple shimmer but it doesn't show on the nail. I think I took a million pictures trying to see if it was possible to capture it. Nope, you can only see it in the bottle.

Dive Bar's base is more blackened than Rodeo Fanatic. They are by no means dupes but similar enough to me that I probably don't need to own both. I like the formula on both polishes, as of late I have been gravitating towards Essie. I'm not sure why, both companies have been putting out some neat colors. I think I prefer Essie's formula and brush overall though.

Rodeo Fanatic on index & ring, Dive Bar on middle & pinkie 

You can see the purple shimmer! Why won't it transfer to the nail?

I'm not sure if Rodeo Fanatic is still available, it was released sometime ago. I saw Dive Bar at Target yesterday so I know that one is current.

Happy Weekend! :)

Perfectly Polished Tips 202 - NOTD Zoya Tru + Clarins 230

In my Zoya True post I wrote about how Tru reminded me a bit of Clarins 230 and how I thought the two polishes would look great layered. Instead of tossing the idea around and never doing it, I made the combo happen. This is the first manicure I have done since Christmas Eve! I usually don't go that long with out polished nails but I haven't had time to sit and polish. Thank god for Sesame Street! It kept my sweet little girl occupied for a few. Although when she finally did come in to see what I was doing she asked for a pedi. She's sporting Tru on her baby toes.

Clarins 230 was highly sought after, not sure if it still is. The company stopped making it some years ago and then apparently the pigments used in the formula became very hard to come by. I know many people have emailed Clarins asking them to release the polish again but so far nothing. I do think though that other companies are listening and have released some polishes that may fill the void. I was lucky enough to get 230 from a friend a couple of years ago. I didn't have to eat ramen for weeks to afford it either, which is always a plus.

This is only the second or maybe third time I've used 230. I don't know why I do this but if I know something is discontinued or reformulated I ration it and use it very sparingly. Really this makes no sense. After acquiring 3 bottles of another long gone favorite I realized I was probably insane or going to drive myself insane and I gifted 1 away. (Oddly enough, I haven't worn that polish in a long time either) We can't win them all.

On to the photos - One coat of Tru topped with one coat of 230:

Here is Tru on her own

topped with 230

Gold Shimmer

Red/Pink Shimmer

Here is the green shimmer. It took me forever to get the right lighting for the green/blue shimmer to show through!

My nails are super nubs right now, they were long but I lost a chunk of my thumb when I was buckling my kid into his car seat. Instead of being responsible and grabbing the glass file I keep in my purse I bit it off. Then because it was so much shorter than the rest I bit those off too. By the time I pulled out my file it was too late. I had to file most of them to the quick. 

I also have a bit of shrinkage, I used a different top coat because Poshe was MIA. I used NYC Grand Central Station. Worked just as well as Poshe but didn't play nice. 

Don't forget to enter my Zoya Fleck Effects Giveaway! It ends tomorrow at midnight!

Perfectly Polished Tips 156 - Zoya Dare

Thank you all for the comments on my last post! I'm not sleeping yet but she's so worth it!

Finally Zoya's Dare collection, this was for Fall 2009. I think this was one of my favorite collections this year. I have been on a purple, blurple, blue, teal, and green kick as of late. I am a total creme whore so this collection was right up my alley. Even though Ibiza and Envy had subtle shimmer I still loved them. Ibiza is a shade of blue that I absolutely adore and I have a weak spot for polishes that look like this. I have several in my collection and love them all. I have said it a million times before that I love Zoya's formula and I honestly think it might be my favorite brand of polish. There are other companies I like for their color choices but I think Zoya is doing a great job at branching out. I would love to see a teal in an upcoming collection and maybe some dusty/muted shades as well.

Vanessa - lovely red creme

Ciara - plum creme


Pinta - inky violet creme (my favorite from the collex!)


Demi - grape creme


Envy - forest green w/ subtle shimmer


Ibiza - shimmery royal blue

The Dare collection is currently available on Zoya.com. Zoya did have a small price increase back in October, they now retail for $7. Thanks Art of Beauty for allowing me to try these out.

I am trying to get back into the swing of blogging and hope to at least get a few posts set up to auto post. The holidays are a busy time for everyone. This is my last semester of school though (for now anyways) so I hope that once the new year is here I will be able to get back to blogging full time.

Perfectly Polished Tips 131 - BB Couture Spring Preview

I'm calling this a preview because I have not swatched two of the colors yet. I am getting there! BB Couture for Nails has come out with three unique shades for spring. Two glitter polishes, including a green and a deep vampy purple.

Sea of Cortez is a bright blue base infused with rainbow glitter.

Frosty Meadow has a base very similar to Color Club Wild Child and is also infused with rainbow glitter.

Midnight Desire is a blackened purple with shimmer. This color also fits my purple kick, and even though it's blackened it is still visibly purple in all lights. Please excuse the chip on my pointer finger, I began typing too soon and my nails weren't completely dry.

You can find these beauties on OverallBeauty.com. I will have swatches of Sea of Cortez and Frosty Meadow up in the next couple of days.

Perfectly Polished Tips 129 - Zoya Twist

The Twist collection is made up of 6 bright and cherry colors for spring. When I saw that this collection included a blue and a gray I was overly excited. I have been on the hunt for a cheap and easy to get gray polish, although Harley isn't a creme it still (temporarily) satisfies my craving. I did try to franken a gray creme but the formulas must not of liked one another because I got tons of bubbles each time I used it. Anyways back to Twist, I think I can honestly say I love each color in this set, which doesn't happen often. They all applied like a dream and 2 coats of polish was plenty, except for Cassie, I used three coats because it was a little sheer. I think this collection includes a color that will work with every skin tone.

Harley is a pale grey shimmer. This photo was taken in the sun, the rest were taken in artifical light.

Malia is a light purple creme, I love this polish...it fits in with my purple kick perfectly.

Cassie is more pink in real life, with goregous gold shimmer.

Barbie is a bit pinker and less peach in real life, it also has the beautiful shimmer that I love Zoya for.

Moxie is a raspberry creme and kind of the odd one out, my first thought was why didn't they do a mint green but after trying it out this is a perfect juicy berry shade.

Last but not least Jo. A wonderful powder blue with silver shimmer.

The Twist collection is up for sale now on Zoya.com. Zoya is also doing a polish exchange, I am not 100% sure when it ends, but I believe it is still going on right now. You can send them unloved polishes, empties, even minis and they will send you full size Zoya polishes. You have to pay shipping and I believe it is $3 per polish. You can go here for more details.

Perfectly Polished Tips 126 - Carolyn New York Swatches

I posted photos of Carolyn New York's Holiday collection a couple of weeks ago, and now I have a few more colors to share. I really love CNY polishes, I probably went on and on about it in my last post, but seriously everything about them is amazing. If you get the chance to try them, please do. I think they are on sale for $5.99 at the moment but I'm not 100% sure on how long it's going to last.

Brownsville - Melted chocolate on my finger tips


Howard Beach - this is a gorgeous, shimmery purple but unfortunately it was really hard to photograph. Winter here has been horrible, and I haven't had good sunlight in forever. The photo above is pretty true to life, it's a blackened purple with amazing shimmer. It is one of those polishes that look black indoors but if you are lucky enough to catch a glimpse of it in the sun you will be stunned.

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Howard Beach w/ flash in artificial lighting

Howard Beach w/ flash in artificial lighting. It is not as blue as it appears here.

Hillside - a deep eggplant creme. It's a very clean and classy color.

Street Fair - I somehow mislabeled the photo and for some silly reason I don't have the original photo on my PC. So please excuse the typo! This is a sheer milky pink, the photo is 3 coats over 2 coats of Essie's Ridge Filler. It's a nice clean neutral color and would probably be good for french manicures.

Perfectly Polished Tips 125 - Essie Winter 2008

For this winter Essie released a collection full of rich, bold, and beautiful colors. Usually I am not drawn to Essie's collections because they normally contain boring reds and pinks, which I have a ton of as it is. However as soon as I laid eyes on pictures of this collection I knew that I would love it. The polishes applied wonderfully and are opaque in two coats, even Shifting Power; however I found that three coats made the shimmer in the polishes pop. I've worn Sexy Divide and Damsel in A Dress, I didn't have great luck with Sexy Divide and it chipped in 2 days. That could have been due to a number of things though. Damsel wore like iron for a week. As most of you know the base coat and top coat play a huge role in how long your manicure will last. Your body's chemistry probably effects that as well.

Shifting Power - sizzling molten gold
Another gold I love but probably won't wear, the brush marks are minimal.

Bold and Beautiful - rich, ruby garnet
Lovely red creme, I actually really like this red.

Sexy Divide - electric violet temptation
This is my favorite from the collection, it's highly pigmented and has a lovely sparkle.

Rock Star Skinny - glamorous crimson red
This is kinda brown on me, with silver shimmer. I didn't really find it to be red at all actually.

It's Genius - violet quartz shimmer
This was another favorite, it has amazing gold glitter. It may be similar to China Glaze's Cow Girl Up but I think the base color might be slightly different.

Damsel in a Dress - oh so deep currant
As with the others this color has a gorgeous shimmer and really fits well with the rest of the collection.

Normally I'm sure that I would complain about all the purple shades included in this collection but I'm going through a purple phase right now and cannot get enough. I think Essie did an awesome job with this collection and the colors are perfect for any time really. I saw some swatches of the Spring Essie collection on Scrangie's blog and that blue is to die for. I cannot wait to get it.

Perfectly Polished Tips 118 - China Glaze Swatches

Inner Beauty is a sheer milky pink. The picture is two coats and as you can see it's a bit streaky. I don't normally wear colors like this. A ridge filling base coat would make this polish look a million times better. This is a great color for a french manicure or if you are going for that clean look.

Blushing is another sheer color, this is more beige than pink. Again a ridge filling base coat is needed for these types of colors.

This polish was sent to me unlabeled. I've gotten a few suggestions of it possibly being Summer Rain or Rio but I'm not 100%. It's a bit brighter in real life. This picture is two coats and I have a visible polish line, so another coat would probably fix that.

For Audrey is pretty much a dead on dupe for Tiffany's blue boxes. I love this color but only wear it on my toes. Swatching it was the first time I had ever put it on my finger nails. I'm not sure if I would ever do it again. It applies nicely and is opaque in two coats.

Long kiss is a deep red with very subtle gold shimmer. It's an awesome holiday color.

As far as I know all of these colors are current and can be purchased where ever China Glaze is found.

Perfectly Polished Tips 117 - China Glaze Operation Color

I'm kinda late to the party with this collection. It's still fall though! China Glaze released Operation Color for fall 2008. I personally felt like these colors would have been more appropriate for a spring collection but I really like them. As I've mentioned before I love almost every polish with a creme finish. Combine that with hues of blues and purples and I'm hooked. I didn't have any application with these polishes and even though my pictures show two coats of color I have a visible polish line, so in the future I would use three coats of color.

Secret Peri-wink-le is a pastel periwinkle creme. The color shown in the photo is pretty true to life.

Agent Lavender is a delicate lilac creme. I hate how my camera likes to assume anything light colored is white. The color is more intense and less blue. Every since I wore Zoya Miley I fell in love with all lavender and lilac colors. They are so clean and lady like.

Pink Underground is a pepto bismal-y pink with subtle pink shimmer. A year ago I would have been all over a color like this now not so much. Believe it or not though I don't have anything similar in my stash.

Here is Pink Underground with flash to show the subtle shimmer.

Revolution is a tomato red creme. I had to alter it a bit to actually make it look like the polish. The picture is pretty close, it's a bit brighter in real life. This red applied very nicely but I just don't do red as much as I used too.

This collection has two more colors as well; Code Orange, and Golden Opportunity. I don't do yellow or orange so I don't have those to show you. I know a lot of the other blogs have posted swatches though so you should be able to find them easily if you're curious!

Perfectly Polished Tips 116 - Piggy Polish Part 2

Here is the second half of my Piggy Polish swatches.

Sunshine on Snowflakes is holographic glitter in a clear base. I probably should have layered this over another color. My nails are so yellow and not in any shape to be photographed naked. This polish reminds me a lot of China Glaze Fairy Dust but I think the glitter pieces are larger.

Purple HEYS is a fuchsia creme and a bit more purple in real life. It applied wonderfully and dries shiny. It's similar to Zoya Audrina but slightly less pastel.

Pirates & Giggles is a sheer pink with pink shimmer. The above picture is three coats of polish. I would prefer to layer it over another polish but that's just me.

Pirates & Giggles with flash.

Pinkerbelle is a bubble gum pink creme. It has no hints of coral like the picture might suggest. It wasn't chalky at all though which is always good.

Like I mentioned in my last Piggy Polish post their polishes seem to look better with three coats, all of these swatches are three coats except for Sunshine on Snowflakes which is only two.