beauty : contrasting nails

Nail polish has come a long way from just being one color - crackle nail polish, decals, Minx ... so it idn't surprise me at all when I began seeing friends painting their ring fingers a different color from the rest.  The overall effect is subtle - like wearing a ring on that finger, it stands out - but depending on the color choices you make, can be bold as well.

I personally like the subtlety.  I decided to try this today with my Essie "Demure Vixen", a mauve-beige-violet, and Urban Outfitter's "After Hours", a multi-colored pure glitter polish.  Staying within color families is my favorite way to do this trend for now - for example, orange with copper or gold.  The "After Hours" has just enough violet in it to look relevant, but still pops.  However, I have seen girls do this with all neon shades and it looks just as cool!

review : butter london in "jaffa"

"Jaffa" is a hot coral shade leaning more towards orange than red.  It has an opaque consistency without shimmer.  As one of my trendy color obsessions at the moment, I couldn't resist picking this one up.

 The image on the left is the most color-accurate.

Brand: butter London
Product: 3 Free Nail Lacquer
Shade: "Jaffa"
Review: LOVE IT.  I will admit that I was a little worried after the first coat - two coats is definitely necessary.  One coat yields streaks and slight transparency and uneven tone, but two is absolutely opaque and the color is just brilliant.  Very easy application; the color is perfectly accurate to what you see in the bottle.  Wonderful shine.  I think this would yet again be a very flattering color on all skin tones - corals look wonderful on everyone, and on my pale skin the neon really glows.  On chocolate brown skin I think this would be gorgeous.  If this is a little bright for your tastes, think of this color as a summer alternative to red - a little lighter, a little daring, but still wearable.
Price: $18,00 (again, a little steep, but if you love this color then I say go for it)
Wear: I will let you know!  I will be using a topcoat on this one (American Apparel clear).

Would you wear this neon coral shade?

review : butter london in "all hail the queen"

I have been obsessed with this shade ever since I saw it on another beauty blog - but didn't want to risk ordering it online.  I was in ULTA today just looking (no intention of buying anything, I swear) and they had a brand new butter London shelf and I almost died - I didn't know you could find these in Cincinnati!  So I picked up two shades - I'll be posting the second one once I paint my nails again.

"All Hail the Queen", originally "All Hail McQueen" (why the name change?  McQueen deserves this color) is a warm nude with a subtly rosy base and some of the most beautiful glitteriness I've ever seen (why it hasn't been off my mind since I saw it first).  I couldn't believe it actually looked like that, so when I saw it in person today it was a done deal.

 Do you SEE that glitter?

Brand: butter London
Product: 3 Free Nail Lacquer
Shade: "All Hail the Queen"
Review: Overall I am really, really happy with this.  I've always had a "product crush" (is that what you would call it?) on butter London - not only is "butter" a sensational name for a nail polish brand but the packaging is just beautiful and simple to me.  The brush was nice on this - I prefer wider brushes (OPI's old brush) but this one worked very well.  The color comes out just like it looks in the bottle - one coat is a little sheer; I used two and the coverage is pretty good.  Drying time was normal.  I also believe this to be a ridiculously flattering shade; I have very pale skin and on me this is a nude that works beautifully.  On tanner girls I think the effect will be equally great, and on dark-skinned girls the rosiness will really pop.  So, I highly recommend this product!
Price: $18,00 (a little steep for nail polish, but I'll get a lot of wear out of this particular shade)
Wear: pretty decent; lasted about 3 days for me with minor chips - however this was the polish alone, I did not use a topcoat, so that I could test the actual polish strength.  I probably would have expected a little longer out of an $18,00 bottle but with no protection, it did pretty well in my opinion.

Anyone else like butter London?

beauty : neon pink lips

Hot pink lips at Diane von Furstenberg and Fendi, respectively.  I am absolutely obsessed.

beauty : ombre highlights

Everyone needs an NYC makeover when traveling to New York for the first time!  So what better opportunity to finally get those highlights I've wanted?  I've had my mind set on ombre highlights for a long time now (about two years) but never took the plunge.  I had talked to a stylist a while back who said she had always wanted to do them on someone (we both appreciated the grown out non-tiger look so many people dislike somehow - c'mon, do you think those stripes look good?).  But this summer would be a great time to finally get it done - summer is perfect for hair highlights, and New York stylists know how to do them.

Since I prefer natural looks, I'll probably end up with something more like a happy medium between the right and left sides of Jessica's head - just a few pieces here and there at the ends.  But I'm very excited about this!  I'll do my thorough research on salons before diving in but I think two years of being "on the fence" means I can go ahead and finally say I want these.

beauty : john galliano spring 2011 rtw

John Galliano always does something interesting, and this time it's a mix of strange and beautiful - metallic hair. The models had their hair sprayed in gold or silver, and the effect is just so interesting to me - it looks harsh and not soft, almost like the hair was sculpted on - but the color is just magnificent.

(I threw in the neon afro just for fun)

Their hair almost looks crunchy - like it is actually made of little gold fibers rather than sprayed hair. Reminds me of those costume hair sprays you can get with the glitter in it. In fact, that fourth image actually has little LEDs woven into the silver hair. Brings a whole new appeal to "going gray". I love it. The girls look like gilded statues come to life. Totally unwearable for the real world, imagine putting your shirt on after you get ready in the morning and ending up with a giant streak of gold paint around the neck. But, the effect is nice.

beauty : lavender-gray nails

One of my favorite blogs to read is Temptalia's makeup blog. There is a photograph for everything, which is why I like it. You can't write about a lip color and then not show us. And one trend she has been highlighting particularly well in the beauty department is the new take on nude nails - a fusion of gray and purple. Gray nails have been on our radar for a while now - it's been going on for the past few seasons, from dove gray shades to dark charcoals. But now there is a new spin to it.

By itself, it really is a beautiful color. It's not as pink as mauve, and not simply a warm gray, but like a slightly violet-tinted nude warm beige gray. Now that I've made it really complicated I'll just show some pictures.

Estee Lauder "Surreal Violet", photos from Temptalia - my favorite take on this trend. Perfect marriage of an overly Eastery color (lilac) and a warm neutral (gray). The effect still works for the nude nail trend, yet tons more feminine.


Essie "Merino Cool", photos from Temptalia.


Pop-up: my absolute favorite polish for this Spring, NARS "Pokerface". However, this is too bright for me. I usually stick to nothing more than a pale pale pink nude nail (red every so often). A more gray version may be how I ease into this one. Photos from Temptalia.

Before this trend hit beauty, it of course came from the runway. "Greige" (gray-beige) has been a prominent color feature of the past year. When it met violet, everyone fell in love.

Elie Saab Spring 2010 couture show


Chanel Spring 2010 RTW debuted a mushroom-violet polish.

So why is this color so nice for nails? It is actually extremely wearable. It also mixes well with any skin tone - the iciness of the lavender is showcased against cooler toned pale skin, olive skin tones are complemented perfectly by the warmth, and darker skin tones allow both colors to pop fantastically. It is also a wonderful fall or winter shade that transitions well into spring.

Some other good polish suggestions for this trend (besides the ones above) are Essie "Demure Vixen", China Glaze "Channelesque", MAC "Cool Reserve", and Sephora by OPI "Metro Chic". I just ordered "Demure Vixen" - the trend sucked me in and hey, I just finished a tough quarter.

beauty : the topknot

One trend that has become seemingly obvious for both the runway and the street (because it is so easy) is the infamous topknot - simply a rounded bun, placed right on top of the head, at a location where it's just a little too high to be mistaken for a messy college student bun and instead one realizes it was done very much on purpose.

Very voluminous topknots at Jenni Kayne Sprint 09 RTW


At ADAM Spring 11 RTW. Why are topknots so great? They are the perfect non-style that meets "adorable" with "sophisticated".


More topknot buns at Rebecca Taylor Spring 11 RTW

Now this is an easy one to take into your own hands. It's effortless, can be messy or sleek, and once it starts falling apart, looks even better.

The higher, the better!