CHANEL Fall 2011: 525 Quartz, 529 Graphite, 531 Peridot

CHANEL's seasonal nail colour releases are always highly anticipated by nail-a-holics around the globe. Its because of the chic and unique shades they come up with every season and the smooth quality that only CHANEL can deliver. As the cliché goes, its always imitated, but never duplicated. You may find some dupes for popular shades, but you won't get the same quality for sure.

525 Quartz

Quartz looks like a pearly taupe with multi-colored shimmer and its the most sophisticated shade out of the 3. I find it really chic and understated, I'm surprised why a lot of bloggers choose to skip this while getting the other 2 shades. Probably because it's not limited edition and will be added to the permanent line of nail colours. FYI, this already sold out in our local counters. No word (as of writing) on when it is going to be restocked.

529 Graphite

Graphite is a silver-grey polish with silver and gold shimmer which has a greenish undertone in some angles and lighting. It looks really cool on short and square shaped nails. Perfect for those who dress up for the season. Graphite will surely match a lot of your "Fall" outfits. This shade is limited edition.

blurred photo to show the greenish duo chrome effect.

531 Peridot

Peridot is a gold/green (with a hint of blue) duo chrome, this the most popular shade out of the 3. This is limited edition.

I find all three shades flattering against my skin, and I'm happy I got them since they are all very wearable and fashionable for the upcoming fall season.

Do you like CHANEL's fall collection this year? I also purchased Illusion D'Ombre in Emerveille, swatch and review to follow. :)

Happy hump day!

♡,

G

CHANEL Summer 2011: 557 Morning Rose NOTD

A warm pink with gold glitter, Morning Rose is a flattering shade to sport especially if you need a pick me up color which is not over the top (like Mimosa). The golden sparkles add dimension to this lovely, not so bright pink.

Application is a breeze for this one, its not streaky and it goes on smoothly. I applied 3 thin coats to achieve the color on this NOTD. This is a limited edition color for summer and retails for Php1,350 (approx. USD31) at Rustan's. 

Happy Monday lovelies!

♡,

G

CHANEL Summer 2011: 577 Mimosa NOTD

Sunshine on the nails, thats what it is! 

A bright yellow with very fine shimmer...

having deja vu? looks like OPI's "Need Sunglasses?" right? but I must tell Mimosa leans more towards the cool side.

I needed 3 coats for this NOTD. Application is quite difficult, its a very streaky polish! but I discovered that its easier to apply in a warm environment (turned off AC) rather than in an air-conditioned room. I sweat buckets, but achieved better results. *whew!* :D

Mimosa is a limited edition shade and retails for Php1,350 (approx. USD31) at Rustan's.

Happy Monday!

♡,

G

NARS Tainted Love Set: Review and Swatches

A heaven sent trio for cool pink lovers, "Tainted Love" is by far the nicest value set I've seen from NARS. 

Released in time for Valentines 2011, it contains the new Angelika Multiple (exclusive to the set), Angelika lip gloss and the notoriously hot Schiap nail lacquer.

The Angelika Multiple (face, eyes, lips, body) Tint

This Angelika multiple is just a wee bit smaller compared to a regular sized tube. It contains 13g of product whereas a regular one has 14g.

swatch:

cotton candy pink with silver shimmer

The Angelika Multiple is long wearing (just like Turks & Caicos), highly pigmented and the shimmer does not fall out and travel all over my face. However, it should be applied with a very light hand as it can make you look clownish if you overdo it.

Angelika Lip Gloss

again, a cotton candy pink with silver shimmer. Consistency is a bit thick and sticky, but overall still comfortable to wear. Worn alone, it will enhance your lips and make it smooth and plump, adding a pristine shine. But I like it better when worn over vivid pink lipsticks. The effect is just so pretty! I usually get 4-5 hours of wear with this lip gloss.

swatch:

Schiap Nail Lacquer is a creamy fuschia shade.

NOTD:

This is the first time I'm trying NARS nail lacquers and I have to say consistency is really good, the brush is great, it makes the polish glide on smoothly. Definitely not streaky. You can get away with a single coat as its highly pigmented but on this NOTD I applied 2 coats to make it fully opaque. Schiap reminds me of CHANEL Pulsion, not an exact dupe because the latter looks creamier, and Schiap has more blue undertones to it, but similar.

This set retails for Php3,350 (appox. USD78) at local NARS counters. US price I believe is $59 (damyoo value added tax!) I would recommend it if you like cool pinks, you're new to the brand and would like to try their products at a value price, everything is in full size so you get your money's worth. Get it while you can, I don't think you'll regret it.

Happy Monday!

♡,

G

ps. I apologize for being an evil enabler! :P

CHANEL 307 Orange Fizz and Majolica Majorca OR213: Orangey Twins!

A pop of color is pure eye candy for summer! Orange is one of my favorite colors, its fun and cheery, but it's a tricky color to wear. However, if you find the perfect shade to match your skin tone, you'll be glad with the results!

I have a few orange nail lacquers, but I find these two most flattering. Coincidentally, I found them to be really similar! 

can you tell which is which?

CHANEL 307 Orange Fizz on index and middle finger, Majolica Majorca OR213 on ring finger and pinky.

Orange Fizz is described as a "coral", but as you can see it is creamy orange with just a hint of coral. I like it because its a bright, fun color without being over the top.  Fun yet still sophisticated (typical CHANEL). I needed 3 coats to get an opaque, solid color. This retails for Php1,450 (approx. USD 31)

on the other hand, Majolica Majorca's OR213 is an orange-peach nail polish, it looks creamier than Orange Fizz and applies more streaky as you can see on my ring finger nail. I also put 3 coats on, but I already can do with 2. ;) This retails for Php225 (approx. USD 5)

both are very wearable, they're creamy and easy to apply, but CHANEL has better consistency in my opinion. If you don't like the thought of spending too much for a seasonal and trendy shade, I'd say go for Majolica Majorca's OR213 (if you want to try orange nail color), although the bottle is smaller in size, the price difference is HUGE!

 Do you like bright colored nails? Let me know what you think!

♡,

G

Sunshine after the rain... OPI Need Sunglasses? NOTD

Hello dear lovelies! Remember me? :D Sorry for that long and unannounced hiatus, as I've said before, March is a busy month for me. But now I'm back and I have another nail post for you in a fun and vibrant color... with all the things that are happening around the world right now, I think it would be nice to spread joy to everyone we can connect with. *Can I get an amen?*

OPI Need Sunglasses? from the OPI Brights collection.

Its a sunshine-y, mustard-y yellow that flatters my warm skin tone. woot! It has tiny specks of shimmer to add a bit of dimension to the nails. Application is very streaky, it took me 4 thin coats to get the opacity shown in the photos.

tip: it will look fabulous worn with neutrals, khaki, army-chic and safari-themed/colored clothes. Try it! :)

I believe its already sold out, but just in case anyone is wondering, I bought mine at Rustan's Shangri-la for Php395.

Thank you for visiting!

♡,

G

China Glaze Tree Hugger + Konad NOTD

When I paint my nails, I usually have no idea what to do and what color to choose, so I just grab the ones I haven't worn yet.

I picked up OPI Green-wich village and painted my nails... then thought it looked kinda dull so I topped it off with CG Tree Hugger and I loved the result! This NOTD makes me feel lucky! ^_~

Here are the nail polish I used:

OPI Natural Nail Base Coat, OPI Green-wich Village, China Glaze Tree Hugger, Konad Special Nail Polish in White and Seche Vite Fast Dry Top Coat

also tried my free fauxnad plate from bornprettystore and my Konad stamper set

I don't know if its just me but its so hard to pick up the image! it took me countless tries before the image stuck to the rubber. KONAD FAIL. I gave up on my right hand after an hour of trying really hard, it drove me crazy! >.<

on another note, I want to thank all of you who left comments on my last tag post, appreciated my handwriting and found it 'cute', OMG. All my life I have been frustrated and envied my friends who have the perfect cursive or block type of handwriting. Hahaha! Thank you lovelies for turning my frustration into joy. BIG bearhugs to all of you!

♡,

G

Happy Hearts Day NOTD

Hello lovelies! Its Monday again... and its Valentine's day! I hope everyone feels the love today, with or without a date. The important thing is that we are all blessed with a heart who can feel this warm and fuzzy feeling called LOVE.

OK before I get all mushy-gooey on you here's my NOTD for the occasion:

left hand

right hand (sorry its a bit blurry! ->shaky left hand :P)

HEARTS galore! Products used: OPI Natural Nail Base Coat, OPI Strawberry Margarita (2 coats), Essie Shop Till I Drop (1 coat), assorted heart nail stickers and Seche Vite fast dry top coat. The heart nail decals were given to me by sweet Eki. Thanks love! :)

Have fun celebrating Valentine's Day! 

Mahal ko kayo*,

G

*i love you all

Matching Lips & Nails? Esprique Precious BE280 + Heart-y NOTD

I was browsing my iPhoto and came across some pics I was supposed to blog about but never got around to posting. So today I'm sharing swatches of my Beauty de Kose, ESPRIQUE PRECIOUS Dress On Glossy Rouge in BE 280, a lip gloss I purchased a long time ago, and my (unintended) matching NOTD! haha! thought it was too cute not to share. 

got this from gooddealer.com for USD 25.83 + S&H

the flat paddle applicator has 2 sides: a fuzzy and a flat side

the fuzzy side is convenient to use and being flat makes it easier to apply color on the lips, I think the flat side is meant for thinner application of the gloss. (Please correct me if I'm wrong.)

swatch:

The consistency and color reminds me of Canmake Nudy Glow lip gloss. Its a moderately pigmented gloss in a soft beige-coral-pink shade with very fine shimmers, neutral enough when worn to pair with a lot of colors like green, blue, brown, peach, beige... It feels a bit sticky, but that can always be fixed with blotting. :) I also find this gloss moisturizing, which is great! I'm going to wear this a lot this S/S season, paired with some Lunasol palettes I got recently.

NOTD:

Essie Shop till I drop, 2 coats + Arezia (Sasa brand) heart glitter polish ~which reminds me of Nicole by OPI x Justin Bieber Step 2 The Beat Of My Heart. (please note that this photo was taken last year.)

products used:

Essie Shop Till I Drop, Arezia heart glitter polish

close up of the heart glitters

Its quite challenging taking those glitter hearts out of the bottle I tell you.

But its worth it. :)

Thanks for dropping by and an early happy Valentine's greeting to all of you!

♡,

G