Franken- "Aurora"

Aurora is the effort
Of the Celestial Face
Unconsciousness of Perfectness
To simulate, to Us.
---Emily Dickinson "Aurora is the effort"




I frankened this with L.A. Colors "Classic White" and L.A. Colors "Classic Pink" plus some Jazz "18K Gold" and some Sally Hansen "White Diamond." I like it, it has a very odd, but pretty, finish in my opinion. It looks fluid and milky, yet also metallic. It looks like the gold rays of dawn breaking, hence why I named it "Aurora." It was opaque in 3 coats and didn't have many issues formulawise. I like it, and decided it's a keeper. Oh, I dug around and it looks very similar to Chanel "Gold Lame." Fun!

Report card:

Color= A (I realllllllly like it)
Formula= A- (it's pretty good I think, maybe a smidge gummy)
Brush= n/a (this is a L.A. Colors bottle, came in a mini mani 2 pack)
Price= B+ (I figured this up to have cost me about $2.25, so not bad)

Overall= A-

OPI- Rising Star

The ugly mess you thought you were is fading fast
Now something's spoken through it's virtues
The night of black is rolling back at long last
The wheel of fate turns to your fortune
---Wishbone Ash "New Rising Star"




I knew I wouldn't like this, so I was meh with the swatching, sorry. I just don't like glitters that much. I like the red one, but the rest, bleh. Not a fan personally. They are very pretty and blingy though, just not my style.

Color is a super-shiny, bright foily glitter with a golden base. Application was decent, considering it was a mini and the brush sucked. Dried quickly as well.

Report card:

Color= B+ (it's interesting, I'll give it that, and pretty, if you are into glitters)
Formula= A (this was rather nice, considering)
Brush= A (well, rating for a regular OPI brush, not this one, which was a mini and sucked totally)
Price= D- (OPI are 7.50 to 8 bucks, which to me is too expensive for a polish I am not in love with)

Overall= B

Savvy (Femme Couture) - Hazelnut

Under the hazelnut moon
I know the end is coming soon...
---song lyrics, "Hazelnut Moon" by Joel Willoughby




This is a nice polish. I think it isn't really "hazelnut" but more copper or bronze. It's a very pretty color and I think flattering for most people. But, honestly, it was expensive, especially since I have LA Colors' Topaz, which I feel is comparable enough in color, and maybe even superior in formula, and definitely WAY superior in price. Not to say this one is bad or anything, it's just that I like the Topaz better, and they are so similar, I feel they are kinda superfluous. Oh well.

Report card:

Color= B- (average I guess, and loses points since there are cheaper alternatives)
Formula= B+ (basically average, maybe a smidge better)
Brush= B (average)
Price= C ($4.29 at Sally Beauty- not too bad, but I think for their limited color selection, and small bottles, there are better investments)

Overall= B-

Sally Hansen- Golden Cinnabar

Who is the girl who lives in my dreams?
Seduced by the kisses of Cinnabar Sweet
---Mercury Rising "Seduced By The Kisses of Cinnabar"




This is a flamboyantly chromatic polish, one that my camera and photography skills are unable to capture. It has a variety of flashes, depending on the light, from golden to greenish to pink to a ruddy salmon-color. In the bottle, it looks as if it will contain darker flashes, so I had surmised this might be a fallish type shade, but nay not so. I definitely consider this too poppy and perky and is much more fitting for spring or summer.

The formula was ok, especially considering it was an el cheapo Dollar Tree find. It felt a little thick on my nails and remained slightly tacky and prone to fingerprints for the entire twenty four hours that I wore it. I wasn't as in love with it as I hoped to be and was eager to try something different, so I changed it. All in all, it's an ok polish, but unless you just really like duochromes and flashy pinks, I wouldn't bother I guess. I prefer other duochromes much more, like Nina Ultra Molten Copper. The formula is just much nicer and the flashes are more fluid.

Report card:
Color= C (Meh...I was surprised, since from the bottle it looks to be such a unique color, but I think it's so different that it must be an acquired taste)
Formula= C (I have had much better, even for just 50 cents, which is what I paid for it)
Brush= C (kinda doing that cheapie flaying about thing, not cool)
Price=A+ (woot, just 50 cents, and I certainly don't feel like I want my money back or anything, so it's all good)

Overall= C+

Jazz - 18K Gold

Nature's first green is gold,
Her hardest hue to hold.
Her early leaf's a flower;
But only so an hour.
Then leaf subsides to leaf.
So Eden sank to grief,
So dawn goes down to day.
Nothing gold can stay.
---Robert Frost "Nothing Gold Can Stay"



I found this at Fred's for $2. I had been looking around for months, years even, for a color similar to one I had gotten with a pedicure like, 2 years ago. I only know that it was OPI. I thought it was something like Harvest or Cornicopia, but my internet-delving has proven fruitless. It was a truly vibrant golden color with shimmer, not glitter, and it had a slightly greenish base, maybe chromatic, I can't remember. But this looked fairly similar, and for 2 bucks, I wanted to give it a go.

I REALLY like this polish. The formula was nice, the brush is ok, and the color is pretty neat. It doesn't quite fit what I was aiming for however, it's a bit too vibrant for the color I was trying to get. Plus, I think if I was going to wear a gold-toned polish, I'd certainly reach for China Glaze Classic Camel first. But, it's nice enough, especially for just 2 dollars.

Report card time!
Color= B- (too much on the greenish end of the spectrum)
Formula= B (exactly average, although it gets very tacky/gummy with more than 2 coats)
Brush= B (once again, average)
Price= A- (just $2! and they had a nice selection, but mostly traditional colors)

Overall= B

L.A. Colors- Topaz

"I do not love you as if you were salt-rose, or topaz,
or the arrow of carnations the fire shoots off.
I love you as certain dark things are to be loved,
in secret, between the shadow and the soul."
-Pablo Neruda "XVII"

---



I found this for a buck, yes, a BUCK, at one of my favorite stores, Dollar General. What a great investment! It's got shine, long-lasting power, quick-dry time, lovely color, easy application, etc etc. They have an assortment of colors available, so I think I will try those out sometime too, but I want to swatch my current reds first, so I don't double up.

As I applied this for the first coat, it was very sheer, and I was somewhat disappointed, I was afraid it would stay that way. On the plus side, I decided it would be a nice "lazy manicure" with just one coat, to add some simple glitz. When I applied the second coat, I was surprised at how opaque it became. I still had some nail line showing though, so I added a third for good measure. Normally I am 2 coats and that is it, but since this had a great drying time, I was ok with another coat. In certain lights, there still were some angles that showed the nail line, but eh, I thought it looked great anyway.

It is a gorgeous color, pretty spot on for a topaz tone, with a fine array of gold, bronze, and silver shimmer. Additionally, the metallic sheen made it resemble rose gold to me. I LOVE rose gold, so I really enjoyed this effect. In addition to the nice color, the quality of the formula was excellent. It applied so easily, the brush was not hard to use, and it lasted forever. After 3 days it was still as if I had just applied it. My nails grow fast, so the new growth was too visible and I was ready for a new polish anyway, but I am certain it would have lasted for days and days more.

The report card for this color:
Color= A (I love the color personally, but I realize it might not be unique per se, but I do think it would be flattering for most people, so it's a solid A)
Formula= A+ (I've never had better, honestly)
Brush= B (solidly average)
Price= A+ (I think without being clearance, $1 is pretty much the best you can hope for with a polish)

Overall= A-

China Glaze- Classic Camel

"Gold! gold! gold! gold!
Bright and yellow, hard and cold!
~Thomas Hood"

(Here's my swatch. I know I have cuticles and such and it isn't perfect, but it's the best I can do, and as far as the cuticles go, I just learned about those in Anatomy and Physiology, and they are more important than you think, so I let mine do their thing.)



I was very intrigued with this color, which I found in the clearance bin at Sally Beauty, which only just recently opened up in my town. We otherwise have few options for polish, without traveling 45 minutes to over an hour.

What first struck me about this color is that it looked matte, even in the bottle, which I found peculiar. I also noticed it has very fine glitter, which, if my eyes are correct, contains some silver and even a few faintly-lavender flecks. I knew I had no other color like it, and it was 1.99 I believe, so how could I say no? Even if it was a bust, I figured I could play around with it if I ever got a stamp kit or the guts to try marbling.

Anyway, it's basically a golden-mustardy-honey tone with very faint amounts of glitter. I would call it simply "matte" so whether it's a creme or a jelly or a gravy, I can't tell you. But its finish was very matte on my nails with no frosty/metallic sheen, and no chromatic effect. That's basically the 3 types of nail polish in my lexicon- matte, metallic, and chromatic.

The formula is nice. It went on smoothly and easily. The brush was good, maybe even better than average, for application ease, and the smell wasn't abnormally vaporous. I was impressed with the drying time, although a little annoyed at the initial translucence. I am not one to put on more than 2 coats (and that includes top and/or basecoats!), so I hoped it would work with just two. I still did have a faintly detectable nail line after the second coat, but only in certain angles and light sources, so I was not concerned.

I wore it three days, including school with hard wear-and-tear from schoolish activities. By the end of the third day, it was still perfect with no tip-wear. I received several compliments on it, and I personally felt like it was flattering. There were a few times in certain lights that I thought it had a greenish tone that wasn't flattering, and I'm not sure it will be flattering on all skin-tones, but for me, overall, I really loved it. I do feel like it's more a fall color, or a color for a "fancy" occasion, so it probably isn't something I will wear year-round. However, it will most definitely be getting heavy wear this fall and winter!

So the report card overall is:

Color=A* (*with my skin-tone, but it probably isn't for everyone)
Formula= A+ (I wish all polish was with a similar formula)
Brush= B (I've had better, but I'd say it's average)
Price= C- (I'm going to take into account its full price, not what I paid for clearance. Full price is 4.99 and for me, that's a bit rich for nail polish. But, I've seen worse, and I'd gladly pay it for a color I love)

Overall=B