... Sweet Color - Diamond Lavender ...

Sweet Color - Diamond Lavender

This came last week and it's my prize from the Konad Addict 1 year anniversary giveaway. I was so excited to receive this as I don't have any Sweet Color polishes in my collection and also as this was the first ever giveaway I've won!!! You could probably hear me squealing with excitement when I picked this up from the post office.

Firstly - how gorgeous is the bottle. I love the shiny design of the gold top and the beautiful purple polish just looks fantastic.

This one is Diamond Lavender which is a beautiful purple glitter with larger holographic hex pieces in it. Pretty! Loving it when the holo pieces grab the sunlight! The glitter is lovely and thick and builds up nicely and quickly. I found it dried relatively quickly aswell which is a plus as there is nothing worse than smudging glitter polish as it didn't dry properly.

This is 3 coats of polish but to be honest if you use a nude as a base you could get away with using 2 as I only went 3 as I still had a bit of a visible white line going on.

Being a glitter as you would expect this does not dry smooth. If you aren't a fan of the bumpy feel then some top coat will sort that out for you. I've just used Sally Hansen Insta-dri on this and it's been fine.

Removal is frankly a bitch - you will need to foil this and foil it good. On the plus side though that means that this will be a good no chip polish as it's impossible to budge.

Indoors

Outside - click to see all the lovely red and blue reflections off the holo pieces

** Final Verdict **
I actually really like this polish and I had numerous comments on it in the short time I wore it. It's bright and seriously catches the sunlight to make you smile. It goes on easily and comes off the opposite when it's time to change polishes.

In a side note - I really need to trim my nails. For some reason the middle one is nowhere near the length of the others. Looking at past photos it's been going on for a bit but it's only started to annoy me today - grrrr. Back down in length we go.

... Blue Monday ... Essie - Smooth Sailing

Essie - Smooth Sailing

Welcome to a new week!! Nail mail week!! Like everyone else I like getting mail that isn't bills or depressing things like that. I've had some great parcels recently that I haven't had time to wear yet due to going crazy with purple holos ... so lets get swatching! :)  This beauty was sent to me from the lovely Debby at Maybe you're the crazy one [check her out!!]

This is my very first Essie so I'm rather excited! Essie is available in Australia from Myer but at a price. My local store has a small range priced between $19.95 to $23.00 [ouch!!] so it's a bit too steep for my budget.

Smooth Sailing is a fantastic blue that has a teal and purple shimmer throughout. The polish looks pretty in the bottle but even more exciting on the nail. I think I'm in love!!

Application was totally 100% easy. No lumpy bits or streaks here. This swatch is 2 coats which dried smooth and glossy. Also I found it really quick drying - woohoo! Didn't need any quick dry at all.

These photos look slightly more blue than it actually is and really they don't do this polish justice as it's so gorgeous. I've been constantly stopping typing just to relook at my nails!

Indoors

Pretty in the sun!

** Final Verdict **
I really hope all Essie polishes are as easy to use and lovely to look at as this one. This one is so pretty it's gone straight into my favourites drawer to see another day soon and I'm so lucky to have some lovely people out there who spoil me by finding these beauties!!

... 100 follower giveaway ... WE HAVE A WINNER!!!!

Firstly I just want to thank everyone for entering my first giveaway! Words can't explain how excited I was to finally be able to hold one and I really would love to thank everyone who entered. Also I would like to extend a special welcome to the newbies who have started following me in the past fortnight and I really hope you are enjoying what you are reading and decide to stick around!!


There could only be one winner ... and that is *insert drumroll here*

Bambaki83

Congratulations!!!!! *throws confetti into the air*

Now hopefully todays post will appear shortly - I'm not great with scheduling things so cross your fingers!!

... nyc polish ...

Ooh ... it's a rare double post day. I saw this while in Woolworths this week for some reason at the end of the chocolate isle of all places. No not the toilet paper [although that is always an essential item!] but the box of NYC polishes. Oh dear - I can see 1 or 2 of them permanently escaping into my shopping trolley on a weekly basis.

Now I know that Ulta3 and NYC look the same in the bottles and I always thought they had the same names of colours ... obviously not. I haven't heard of any of these in this bin but some shades definitely look familiar. So Aussie chicks ... is this a new range or the old stuff with new names???? Google is letting me down on answers.

I did find a list of all the colours is available here at Crush Cosmetics though. I'll swatch the ones I've picked up this week in the near future.

... Purple Holo Week ... Nubar - Treasure with Spectraflair

I'm finishing off purple holo week with a requested swatch via email of Nubar Treasure with Spectraflair on top. I was asked if putting spectraflair on top made it more holo ... well yes ... but it also made it more grey aswell which unfortunately is the downfall of using it. You really need a strong, bright and bold colour to start with so that the grey isn't noticeable.

Indoors no sun ... see looking more grey than pretty purple

Blingy in the sun ... looking more purple here.

So I hope that answers that. It was nice in the sun but honestly I'd rather wear the original. Indoors it just looks grey and flat and yick!

So I hope you enjoyed this week as much as I have. I definitely have a lot more unblogged about holographic polishes so now that the weather seems to be warming up and the sun is out more regularly I'll definitely do another holo week for you soon.

Tomorrow I'm firstly announcing the winner of my giveaway [hoorah!!!] and starting a new week of "Nail Mail" as I've had some great parcels lately and need to give them a thorough going over!!

... Purple Holo Week ... Chi Chi - Shopaholic ...

Chi Chi - Shopaholic

Purchased from Target - $5.00 AUD

Yes yes yes - I can hear you. This is a regular nice purple polish but not a holo ... but ... this is my favourite purple to add a spectraflair top coat too. Ah!

By itself it's another fantastic Chi Chi mini polish. Bright and shiny happy purple with a slight shimmer throughout. This is 2 coats with no streaks or unhappy marks.

I would assume by now 99.9% of the nail world would have heard about Spectraflair and the fun you can have with it. Spectraflair by itself is available if you are looking in the right places [you can buy from eBay but it is expensive ... I'll highly recommend stalking Cathy at More Nail Polish for when she gets some in!!] but there are numerous nail chicks who sell as a top coat all ready to rock and roll which is great for impatient people like me who want results now without having to make it! The only downfall with having it mixed with a top coat is if you leave it for too long sitting - it then needs a good 5 minute shake to be super holo again as it all compacts onto the bottom of the bottle.

So here is the same polish again but with 1 thin coat of Spectraflair Top Coat [if you coat it too thick you just end up with grey polish *sad*]. As Elzar from Futurama would say ... BAM!!

Ah holographic goodness!! I love you!! You are welcome anytime at my house!

** Final Verdict **

If you are a holographic lover then Spectraflair is your friend! Makes any polish bling in the sun for you! Fantastic!

===
Also I forgot mention my giveaway is now closed ... I will have a winner for you at the end of holo week!

... Purple Holo Week ... Ozotic 513 vs Glitter Gal Dark Purple ...

Glitter Gal - Dark Purple

Purchased from Glitter Gal Cosmetics - $14.95 AUD

** Note that the version I have is the "Bling" range - the regular price is $11.95 AUD - same polish just a different top **

Right-o. If I was smart I would have swatched Glitter Gal Purple with these polishes instead of doing it a month ago. It seems pointless to reswatch as it wasn't long ago so here is my original post.

So ... I'm interested to see how Ozotic 513 [from yesterday] actually pairs up with Glitter Gal. I've heard them called dupes of each other many times before but Google images didn't want to enlighten me with any swatches of them together.

So here we go ... see if you can work out which is which :) [Clicking will make them slightly bigger

Indoors

Outside

My poor pinky didn't want to play nice - sorry bout that. I'm trying to train it better!!

So ... which is Ozotic 513 and which is Glitter Gal Dark Purple??? 

Honestly I can't tell and if you can then you have better eyesight than me. For the record my middle and pinky are proudly wearing the Ozotic while the other 2 are loving life in Glitter Gal.

If you want to be really picky about it the Glitter Gal is slightly more slick and shiny which is only noticeable inside and the other main difference is that I only used 2 coats of Ozotic and 3 coats of Glitter Gal to get the same results. Apart from that they are the exact same colour with the exact same holo goodness!

** Final Verdict **
End of the day which do you choose ... really it comes down to money and what you want to spend. GlitterGal is the cheapest of the 2 at $11.95 AUD but ... you do only get a tiny 9ml/0.3fl oz bottle for that. The Ozotic is more expensive at $14.95 but you get 16ml/0.5fl oz

Hope that solves all theories about the dupiness! Tomorrow I'll bring you another holo ... promise!

... Purple Holo Week ... Ozotic 513 ...

Firstly ... today is the very last day to signup for my Giveaway! So if you haven't already entered get your butt over there! I can't wait!!! CLICK HERE! Now ... onto the swatches

Ozotic 513

Purchased from piCture pOlish - $14.95 AUD

I know this one has appeared frequently on my Blogs I read list lately but it needs to be included here with all the other purple fantasticness. I don't want it to feel left out of the love.

Ozotic 513 is a dark purple holographic. It's definitely darker than the first 2 purple holos that I've swatched this week. It's a pretty purple by itself. I guess I should point out that this is now a discontinued style bottle - I saw yesterday that Ozotics are going rectangular. Unsure how I feel about that yet but I guess we'll find out as they filter through into my helmer

Application was a breeze - no streaks or unsightly marks here. This is 2 coats of fun fun fun! I haven't used a top coat this time around but I've personally had no issues with the ones I've used on this polish. The holo seems to shine on through!

[indoors]

[out in the sunlight]

I've often been told that this is similar to Glitter Gal Purple ... but how similar? I'll show you tomorrow :) I'm curious too :)

** Final Verdict **
If you want a genuine in your face linear holographic purple polish then put this on your Wishlist. It's well worth it.

... Purple Holo Week ... Nubar - Treasure ...

Nubar - Treasure

Purchased from eBay

Awww - this is my first Nubar and it's a beauty. Well I think so anyway. It's from the Prisms collection and while it's not in your face holographic like some others it's still rather pretty. If you are buying it just for the holo then I'm sure you are going to be disappointed but if you are buying it for a nice purple shiny polish then you'll love it!

It's more of a lilac purple and this is 3 coats which took slightly longer than I would have wished to dry but that is more likely due to me not remembering that "less is more" and using thicker coats. There's no bubbles or streaks and I've tried this using the Nfu-Oh Aqua Base as I had read on other blogs that this helps with the holo.

Indoors

Outdoors in the sun

Seeing the holo arrive - hello!

** Final Verdict **
I think this is a lovely purple holographic but after reading other peoples opinions it seems to be a bit unloved. Just because it doesn't have a super strong holo doesn't mean that it can't be beautiful. I think it's a fantastic purple and it's just hiding a surprise with a soft holo that you don't expect to see.

... Purple Holo Week ... China Glaze - LOL

China Glaze - LOL

Gifted from ReecesPeeces [check out her blog! *hint hint*]

As the sun is set to be out this week I should take advantage of it so I'm going to compare the purple holos I have in my collection to see how similar they are ... or if it's just all in my mind!!

I'm not patient enough to do a stack of swatches in a day and I do like to get some wear out of what's on my fingertips so you'll have to just deal with holo goodness all week!

First up is China Glaze LOL which I'm ever so grateful that Reece told me that I needed and sent over!!! It's awesome. As far as I'm aware if you are desperate for this you'll pretty much have to hit eBay.

So LOL is a fantastic purple full of lovely holographic goodness. I've had zero problems with LOL although I've read of numerous others having issues with cuticle drag. I've had zero bubbles or streaks or other unwantedness. This is 2 coats of LOL with no top coat. I've generally had a good run in the past of being chip free for a few days without a top coat.

[how it looks inside ... I think it's a pretty purple regardless of the holo - I'd wear this! Just minus the dodgy cleanup work ]

[ Fun in the sun! ]

** Final Verdict **
I think it's a great coloured purple, the holographic definitely makes this polish stand out and I've had great runs with it in regards to longlife and chip resistant. How will it stack up against another purple holo? We'll find out tomorrow!

... Blue Monday - Australis Paint the Town Buns of Steel ...

I'm well again!!! HOORAH!!! But my kids aren't :( Bummer but at least that means I can get blogging again in between cuddles and doing the mum thing. I've missed you guys! I'm hoping to get some reading and commenting in this afternoon as I feel out of touch!! I'm also going to do some holo comparisons for you later in the week while the sun is actually out but first ... it's Blue Monday!!!

Australis Paint the Town - Buns of Steel

Purchased from Target - $8.95 AUD

Seriously most of the names in this range made me laugh so hard! This is "Buns of Steel" which is a metallic light blue.

First thing to mention about this is the size of the brush which you can't miss [plus it's plastered in nice big letters on the front] ... I've got a lot of "one stroke" brushes or "mega brushes" but seriously this one would take the cake. It should be renamed "the mother of all brushes" or "OMG it's another PITA brush"

Look at it - it's massive! Surprisingly I didn't find this as annoying as some of the other larger brushes that I have but give me a regular brush any day!

This actually dried super quickly and I wasn't expecting it considering how much polish the larger brush seemed to dump on in one stroke. I had to use 2 coats due to a few bald patches from the brush first time around and unfortunately the brush is it's real downfall as I found it so hard to get a great finish as no matter what I did I kept getting bad streaks from the brush.

Whoops - sorry about the bottle mess!

** Final Verdict **

Ultimately it's a nice bright light blue metallic. It's really a lovely colour and honestly it's a shame about the brush. I totally get the gimmick to get people to buy polishes with bigger brushes to save time etc but really ... with a smaller brush it would look a hell of a lot nicer even if it did take you an extra 30 seconds all up.

... Orly - Chocolate Martini stamping ...

Hi all. I'm still feeling poorly but on the mend. Here is some stamping on Orly Chocolate Martini that I put up yesterday. I actually wasn't impressed with how this turned out when I did it but I had a lot of comments that I will definitely try this Konad plate again on a plain base and also the copper/black combo reminds me of Tigers so I'll have to do something with that in the future.

Konad Plate - m83

Stamping Polish - Rimmel 60 second 800 Black out

Thanks for all the comments and everything while I've been unwell - it's really been appreciated to know that people out there care and that I'm missed.

... Orly - Chocolate Martini ...

Howdy readers. I'm still not well so there will be another few days of randoms coming your way. I'm praying I'm well by the weekend as I've got a big one planned but until then I'm trying to rest up [well as much as you can with 2 active kiddies] and unless I can pull my finger out and decide what to wear for said occasion I'll be resorting to the never fail flakies for my nails ... especially as I've just had to file them down short again.

Orly - Chocolate Martini

Purchased from Carrig Chemists - $7.95 AUD

I'll start off by saying - I was so so so so excited to see bottles of Orly in the shops near me. Even if they were only the mini bottles. Now I'm sure any overseas readers are currently having a coronary at the thought of paying $8 for a mini Orly. Luckily this gem found it's way into the $2 bargain bin ... fantastic.

I wouldn't describe this colour as "Chocolate" ... maybe a caramel ... mmmm caramel. But in all honesty it's a copper colour and it's bright and definitely got a shimmer too it. This is 2 coats of fun and it applied quickly and easily, no lumps or bumps and it dried quickly. The downside was that I started to get tip wear on this before 24 hours - bummer as it's such a pretty colour.

[Ewwww - hand of wrinkles!!]

** Final Verdict **

It's a happy and bright colour that is easy to apply with no hiccups. I do want to retry in the future to see if the tip wear was a one off or if it's constant. I ended up doing some Konading on this colour and had a lot of comments on it but I'll leave that for tomorrow as I'm not sure I'll be back on my feet properly by then.

... Hello Kitty Nail Cocktail ...

I'm actually really crook at the moment and not feeling well at all. I've been on and off since Sunday and let's face it - I haven't even had the energy to paint my nails since the weekend *waves her nakedness at the screen.

I'm just pulling a few random photos off of the memory card for your entertainment over the next days until I'm back on my feet. Hopefully I'll be able to catch up with reading you all today a bit more as I've missed it and am snuggled up in bed with the laptop. Apologies in advance for any mad ravings or extreme randomness.

A lovely friend who lives in Hong Kong sent me a month or so ago! Awww :) I think Hello Kitty is cute but I'm not obsessive about it or anything. Anyway I was tempted to see how this worked out as it came in 2 parts. One is the base and one is a glitter mixture to go over top half of the nail.

The base is really a nude ... but the glitter has intrigued me and I've been meaning to retry with another base *makes mental note to do so in the future*

Judging by the length of my nails this was some time ago that I swatched this as they are nowhere near that long at the moment and I'm needing to file them right back again shortly due to 2 fingers on my right hand not playing nice and peeling :( Bah!

** Final Verdict **

It's definitely nothing fancy but I like it simply because of the story behind it and the friend that sent it! It's like having a part of her wherever I go. I'm sure if you are a Hello Kitty fan though that you do need this - the bottles are seriously cute. I do need to reuse the glitter though and see what it's like on a darker colour though!

... Chemistry 241 ...

Chemistry 241

Purchased from Essential Distribution - $4.70 AUD

Here's another fab polish from Chemistry. I really need to get my butt down to the warehouse and get some more gems. This is 241 which is a lovely green duochrome that turns to a fantastic brown. I've actually been quite taken with this one and worn it for the past 2 days. It's pretty without being totally in your face.

As with all the other Chemistry polishes I've reviewed this one is fast drying and has no lumps or bumps. It does however have slight streaking if you coat on too thick but I didn't find it overly annoying or anything [and I'm generally pretty picky!] It's also pretty chip resistant without a top coat!

So here are some swatches - I'm actually trying out a different camera so hopefully they come out ok.

Looking bright green

 

Starting to turn brown

Hello brown *waves*

** Final Verdict **

I'm a fan of this one and it's going into my "wear again" pile - I like the green. I like the colour shift to brown. It's just a nice subtle polish - score!

... Friday Favourites - Nail Mail ...

Really quick post today as my husband is home and so I'm doing housework instead of having fun painting nails *sad*

Todays Friday Favourite is Nail Mail! 'Cos I'm like most people and I love getting any mail that isn't bills!! These are things that came my way this week [including the 3 polishes I brought today]

[there was another pretty cat bottle but I can't find where I put it down - boo-urns!]

I'm most excited about getting my hands on my first Deborah Lippmann [Bad Romance] and that Cate Ruby [I'm such a pink girl!] but they are all welcome at my place and I'm accepting them all with loving arms into a place into my helmer [with the exception of kitty who keeps getting her tail caught cos she's too tall *sobs* ]

Oh and 3 Chi Chis that I picked up from Target while I was out today - Any Aussies in the house who like Chi Chi seriously get your butt down to Target. They are having a 25% off Chi Chi sale at the moment but for some reason I got more than that off ... the minis were only $3.75 and the full size bottle was $5.90 [which is like half price! Bargain!] I seriously say check it out!! If you are passing! Well worth it.

... 100 follower giveaway - CLOSED...

NOW CLOSED!!!

I woke up this morning to a surprise!! 100 followers!!! *does the happy dance*

I can't believe that little ol' me is loved so much - thank you so much! I still consider myself a newbie but I'm learning so much

And you know what that means ... IT'S GIVEAWAY TIME!!!

I'd love to be one of those gals who can send a box including a warehouse of goodies but let's face it - it's getting harder and harder to ship internationally [especially to the USA] so I've pulled out a mixture of things and included random goodies for you :)

One lucky winner will be receiving an Aussie pack with ....

Glitter Gal Polish-  Fuchsia [in the pretty bling bottle!]

Ulta3 Polish - Twilight Fever [this is the Chanel Paradoxal dupe!]

Chi Chi Polish - Get Down and Boogie

Australis Eye Shadow - Earth

Australis Lip Gloss - Raspberry Splash

3x Nail Art Brushes

Nail Stickers

Dotting Tool

Australian clip on koala :) 

TimTam - mmmmmm chocolate!!!! Nom nom nom

*Fine Print fun*

This giveaway is open to all readers of Shatter me Claire
[new followers welcome!]

This giveaway is OPEN INTERNATIONALLY!

Entries close on 25 AUGUST 2011
[I'll accept entries until everywhere in the world is past this day!]

There will be 1 winner picked by random.org

I shouldn't have to say this but just incase - all products are brand new and untried.

Also all items were purchased by me with my own $$

Multiple entries or multiple accounts will be excluded - please play fair!

Any questions?? Please leave a comment on this post or hit the email button and I'll get back to you

* International participants please read!! *

Please be aware that sometimes parcels get sent back [especially when sending to the USA] and I'm only prepared to send this out once and if it comes back to me then I won't be able to resend but I'm more than happy to eat your chocolate!! Nom nom nom!!

* Entries*

You get one entry for providing your GFC and email

Bonus entry if you add this giveaway to your blog!

Hoping the form works! I'm not that skilled with Google Docs! *fingers crossed*

... Cate Ruby - Mulberry ...

Cate Ruby - Mulberry

Purchased from Cate Ruby - $14.95 AUD

I'm seriously so excited to swatch these. I discovered Cate Ruby simply by accident - I was doing some googling Australian polishes to see what else I need to try and there appeared in all their glory screaming "Buy Me"!!!! So I did! How can you resist that gorgeous bottle *loves* 

Also these were packaged so cute! Best packaging I've had in ages! Definitely beats the standard bubblewrap and tape! So pretty!!

This is "Mulberry" from the Commando Cate range. This is a vibrant dark purple and seriously has some nice swirly polish designs going on from the light and dark purple mixing ... pretty! So let's put it to the test - it applies nicely, there was no streaks or bubbles and definitely no bad smells [hurrah! I swear my house still smells like that BYS polish from the other day]

Also that gorgeous diamonte band actually comes off so you can wear it ... ooooh! It looks pretty stretchy incase you have larger fingers than moi.

They are available in selected salons mainly in the Brisbane area or you can do what I did and order online. I have no idea on if they ship overseas or not [you might have to ask!] - I've got another shade in a pink that I'll review another day for you all.

Their Facebook page currently has a promo on at the moment to name their new brilliant yellow polish - get on it! I love seeing people I know win stuff!!

I got another Konad plate yesterday so stamping we shall go - flowers always make everything better! This is from the m82 plate and the stamp was using Face of Australia Molten Metallics in White Gold

** Final Verdict **
I wasn't disappointed by this - lovely bottle, beautiful wrapping, fantastic customer service from Tracey at Cate Ruby who was in my inbox straight away and dispatched these straight away to me. Fantastic colour aswell. If you are like me and are a sucker for a cute bottle then head on over and pick one up!!

Kink Cosmetics - Candy

Kink Cosmetics - Candy

Purchased from Coles Supermarkets - $8.00 AUD

Okies ... I'm trying Kink Cosmetics again! Mainly as they sell these as buy 2 - get 1 free and I have 2 left that I haven't swatched yet after last time.

This one is "Candy" which really is a definitely a pretty pink and reminds me of that darker pink fairy floss - nom nom nom. Actually I was pleasantly surprised with this polish. This is 1 coat [oh yes - it's a one coater] with no base. It was quick drying and smooth with no unslightly bumps, bubbles or streaks. It's also not a smelly polish - gotta love that.

I've stamped it with Konad m3 using Rimmel 60 second 800 Black Out. Pretty stars :)

*Final Verdict*
This is going straight into my pile that I'll use again. I love the colour, I love how easy this was to use with a single coat and I love that I was surprised at how great this one actually was!

... Blue Monday - Chi Chi Get Down and Boogie

Chi Chi - Get Down and Boogie

Purchased from Gloss Cosmetics - $5.00 AUD

It's another fantastic Chi Chi mini bottle today. This one is "Get Down and Boogie" which really is a bright metallic blue. So grab your dancing shoes and lets get going!

This a gorgeous fun colour. I've used 2 coats - no need for a nude or black base with this one. It's streak free and has no bubbles or unsightly bits. It also dries fast ... and shiny! I don't seem to have any blues quite like this in my small collection but I would like to see how it compares to Nfu.Oh 51 over black.

** Final Verdict **

It's fun and bright and is a dream to apply. I'll be wearing again!