ESSIE "CROCADILLY" Niuton Chavez Felix

It has been a while since I posted, sorry for that, but I have been a little tied up at work. But hey, here I am, still kicking. 

I am currently wearing a very nice shade from ESSIE. This is actually the first time I give ESSIE a try and I have to say, I absolutely love this color.

I like to wear deep greens this time of year. When I first saw this shade on the shelf of my local Walgreen’s I thought it was a dark metallic grey. It is from ESSIE's Snakeskin magnetic collection.
This is the kind of polish that has metal on it so you can put a magnet to it. The name is “Crocadilly” and like the name suggests, it is a dark crockadile green with a metallic overtone.

I have to say, I like it very much. This has to be my favorite olive green to date. The fact that this is has metal in it actually serves it better because the consistency of the polish is so much nicer, it kind of glides smoothly when you apply it. I really didn’t care to put the magnet effect over the polish, which it is like a snakeskin or crocodile skin effect, but without the effect, it looks metallic.  I really picked it for the color from the bottle, not for the effect, and let me tell you, when I finished applying it.... WOW!

I like it so much that it has been almost a month since I first tried it on and I have done my nails twice now with the same color, which is very rare for me. 

I love greens because I can wear them with mustard colors, blacks, khaki, greens, browns, etc., perfect for the fall/winter season.

I really don’t know if it is the metal formula, but the only thing I noticed and I did not like about this polish is that it chipped a bit after just 6 days. I usually prep my nails and polish lasts on me for at least 10 to 12 days without chipping, but for whatever reason, this polish chipped way before, never the less, I give it 4 out of 5 bottles as a rating. If you like magnet polishes, you are going to love this, If you like dark green’s you are going to love this too. If you ask me, this is a must for any avid nail polish addict's collection. Until next time!

Happy Thanks Giving and Happy Polishing!

Morgan Taylor Nail Polish

Over the last few weeks I have been trying on a new brand of nail polish brand named Morgan Taylor.

They are a new company as far as I know. Have not heard of them before until now. They market as professional grade nail polish. For what I understand, the professional meaning is that they have secure and reliable brushes as well as trending colors. 

They seem different, from the bottle to the brush. As nail polishers know, we are always looking for more variety. There can never be so much colors. We always want more, we always want  something different. 

I tried three of the newest colors they have. “Going Native”, “Varsity Jacket Blues” and “Stop, Shop & Roll”, the last one being my favorite.

Polish consistency is pretty good, the brush seems pretty good also. For being marketed as professional grade, they seem to fit the bill nicely.

I tried them all with three coats. Of course every time before I applied the polish, I buffed the nail bed, applied primer and base coat. After three coats I topped it of with Seche Vite top coat. I just love the shiny finish.

I just loved how “Varsity Jacket Blues” stood out. It seemed electric. Not quite neon, but bright enough to get your attention. Love it on my toes. Never got tired of it. It has just the right amount of brightness for me, not to distracting, but enough to enjoy it and know it is there.

“Going Native” is a sea green color. It was nice, the kind that you can wear with black, brown or green clothing. But not something I would go out of the way to get though. It applied very well and even seemed like gel polish. No streaks  or lines left from the brush. I am not knocking it, but I would not repeat it.

Now when I tried “Stop, Shop & Roll” I had the most compliments I have had with any nail polish I have worn to date. 

Depending on the light source It is a green june bug or jewel rhinoceros beetle color. It also looks like a peacock feather green/blue. 

I have to say it is AMAZING. The closest comparison I have to this color attention getting wise is CHANEL “Peridot” of Missha HGR01, but still, to me, Morgan Taylor’s is even more stunning. This is definitely a keeper for me, if you like bright pearl greens you will love it. 

With summer in full swing now, I have been experimenting with lighter colors. I am leaning toward light blues, light greens, and even some bright blues, though not as bright as neon, but still brighter that I am used to. 

I have to say, the feeling I get wearing these colors is  EMPOWERING. I really don’t know why, but that is the way it makes me feel. So go ahead, wear some nail polish and experience the power. Happy Polishing!

Minty Fresh Creme Color Niuton Chavez Felix

Hello my fellow polishers! With Spring in full Swing, I got inspired to do the minty theme. 

I rarely go for bright colored polishes, but lately I just got bored with the dark jewel toned or metallics and have been diving in to more creme based lighter tones. Why limit ourselves? Last month I did a very nice blue from L.A. Colors called “Aquatic” and this time I dove into a bit brighter tone, although not neon like. I was at my local Walmart and I found this color in a big display full of all kinds of colors. They were just $2 so I picked four tones, a nice dark blue, a nice lavender, a pretty purple and this minty color. I just could not resist.

The only drawback is that these bottles of paint do not have names to the colors, which is something I really like to have fun with. I have a strong suspicion that these nail polishes are from O.P.I. and are just rebranded to sell in bulk because the bottle is suspiciously similar to O.P.I.’s, and the consistency of the polish as well as the brush are eerie similar. This particular color also looks very much like OPI “Gargantuan Grape”. 

This minty green branded “Premium” Nail Lacquer looks very nice, although it is a bright color, somehow it does not “jump at you”, it’s a subtle bright tone. 

It goes very well with white, black, brown and jeans, as with multi colored spring/summer shirts.

I think it can be worn elegantly if you “dress it up” with a nice silk scarf and a nice white spring jacket. All in all, I think it was a steal.

If you see these “Premium” branded nail polishes at your local Walmart, do not hesitate to get some, they are definitely a steal. Hope you get some and happy polishing!

Nail Designs for men? You Bet!

I have been wanting to get some nail art done for some time now, the only thing that stopped me from doing it is the fact that most nail art designs I saw, were not appealing to me. 

I like subtle yet elegant designs. Something with meaning that at the same time will capture attention but won’t be a distraction. Something that would express my style and personality, and not something that I would just have done just for the sake of following a trend.  

If you are a guy and are new to nail polish or are exploring the idea of painting your nails, think of it this way, If you were contemplating getting a tattoo, would you just pick any design? Of course not!. 

I get that a nail polish design is not permanent, but still, having it done just because I could, was just not me. I like things with meaning. 

Liking symbols and their meanings, one of the most influential symbols I love is the “fleur de lis”, so I got inspired for blue and gold from a picture I saw that let me to other blue/gold combinations, like a neck tie and a Rolex watch, like I said, capture attention yet not distracting. 

I also like medieval themes, I like medieval clothing, the fabrics and designs with embroidery. Being Easter time, I decided to have this design done to be in sync with the carnival festivities around the globe. 

I used three different nail polish colors to achieve this. Orly “Lux”, L.A. Colors “Blue Lagoon” and OPI “Alpine Snow”. I wanted something that looked modern, medieval, carnival, kind of a harlequin design and elegant at the same time.

I first applied all the colors on their respective nail and went thru all the drills, you know, file, buffer, prime, base, color and top coat and waited till next day. 

To achieve the design, I used some strips with adhesive to form the diamond design and I painted inside each diamond with the respective colors, Orly “lux” and L.A. colors “blue lagoon”. I let it dry and removed the strips, revealing the white under it. I then applied two layers of top coat to seal it and enjoy it for at least two to three weeks. Remember, decision is the power that you have over anyone and is what determines our destiny. I have worn this for the past two weeks and have gotten only compliments. The feeling you get when you look at your painted nails and nail design is pretty difficult to describe, I would just encourage you to try it. Forget about what people think, forget about what people might say, believe me, It is a pretty awesome feeling. Don't miss on it!

ORLY - LIQUID VINYL

I am anxiously waiting for the fourth season of my favorite TV series. One of the things I like about Game of Thrones is the contrast that exist between the different kingdoms.

From the desolate ice wall near Winterfell, to Kings Landing or Qarth’s grandeur to the darkness of Harrenhal. With a few exceptions, Game of Thrones is as dark a TV show as they come. Crude, Rude and to the bones. And as always, the books are better. 

This is the first time I have worn pure black nail polish. I chose Orly’s “Liquid Vinyl” because I wanted to somehow look a bit dark without having to look like a rock star or an emo, I thought I could achieve this by wearing very glossy instead of matte. This was to pay homage to my favorite TV show and the black three eyed crows. This polish wears more like a rubber cat suit, goes on very nicely, with a creamy wet finish. As always, I topped it of with Seché-VIte Top Coat. Looks very edgy.

I paired it with my Game of Thrones sandals and love the look. Two coats will do to cover well but three are much better. I seldom wear cream colors, but this black is a cream that I can wear many times over.

Orly polishes are professional grade, they apply very well. This nail polish, based not on color but on consistency, brush, and finish deserves a 5 bottle rating.

Love the finish,  It should work great as a base for nail art or to combine with other top coats with sparkles or shimmer as well as for stamping, the kind of must have for all occasions. Until next time, Happy Polishing!

ORLY - Sea Gurl

Hi you all! It has been a long time since my last post. Sorry for the delay, no excuses here. Just been putting it off for other stuff. January came and went by and I did not upload my start of the year polish. I will make it up by doing it this month and posting twice, and since I already had the photographs from last month, here they are.

I got the inspiration for this color from fashion magazines. I saw that metallics are trending, specially silvers, golds and coppery colors in shoes (I got a couple of metallic sandals I am dying to wear once the weather permits by the way), bags and accessories are also trending silver and gold metallic, so I had a good pretext to use a color I was given as a present over the Christmas holidays. 

This is ORLY - Sea Gurl. It is a very interesting color. It looks kind of metallic silver, but it is actually a greenish grey that has silver shimmer on it. I thought it would be a great color to wear in January, kind of wintery grey.

This is one color shade that does not vary much from light source to light source. It looks exactly the same when the sun is hitting it directly, or if you are looking at it under ambient or fluorescent lighting. 

It is very much like any cream color when it comes to color consistency under different lightning conditions, but the difference with this color, is the silver shimmer they added to it. 

It goes on very smoothly, Orly polishes are professional grade, not very thin to be a shimmery polish. As always I went with 3 coats for a good 2 week chip-less application.

I give this Orly color a 5 bottle rating, I think this neutral, kind of metallic look and shimmery color is great not just for winter, but for any time of the year. 

It can look edgy with a leather jacket and you can dress it up with a tuxedo, or dress it down with an untucked sleeves rolled up dress shirt. A very good color to have on any collection, you will not be disapointed.

Until the next post, happy polishing!

OPI - At your Quebec Night & Call

Fall is here and I have been yearning for some olive greens and some browns to go with the season. I love camouflage pants, and I also like military themes. 

Not a weekend goes by where I am not wearing camo pants, when it’s fall, I wear them with sandals, when it’s winter I wear them with boots, either way, I love the tones of the olive green, brown and black that the green camo has, that way I can paint my nails black or brown shades, but my favorite color has to be olive green.  

I had been looking for an olive green for some time now but did not find any color that blew me away, until now. 

Doing some research for this, I stumbled upon OPI - At your Quebec Night & Call, I only have one word to describe this olive green, WOW! This is an old hard to find color, 2011 if I am not mistaken, luckily I found it on ebay. Since it’s a discontinued color, prices tend to go up sometimes if there is demand for it, and for what I can see, there is demand. Amazon had it as high as $20, I payed $6 for mine but average price was $13. 

This is an olive green base that has a golden shimmer to it.

When direct sunlight hit’s it, you can perceive it more as a metallic golden color with green shimmer, It never looses its olive green tone, but the golden undertones really make it shine outside. When under artificial lighting conditions, the color tends to look more olive not so much metallic but the golden shimmer evens the color. 

OPI - At your quebec night & call is a keeper. I have other polishes with dark green tones but this olive green is just fabulous. Application went on really smooth, three coats did it for me. If you apply it well, it does not even steak. Of course I did a base coat first and topped it of with Seche-Vite for durability and shine. OPI makes wonderful formulas, If I had to rate this polish, I would definitely give it 5 bottles. 

If you like olive greens, this should definitely be in your collection.

Happy Polishing!

CHANEL 583 "TABOO"

Before I begin, I would like to thank all the visitors who chime in with their comments. I have been receiving positive comments about the blog and that certainly motivates, but more than anything, what drives me to keep it up, is the fact that I can see the traffic and how it originates via the blog's analytics. Last Month I posted a small poll widget on the blog to see how many visitors were men. No surprise here, at least as far as the people who cared to put their two cents worth, 95% of visitors are male, just 5% are female. Of course those numbers will change, but the majority of visitors who voted, showed me that they wanted to interact. This blog has seen more than 10,000 visitors since it was created, and that is also a growing trend, so I see there is interest on the subject. Last but not least, the question’s and comments as well as the emails I receive show me this is not just a growing trend, it seems many men have been painting their toes for a very long time, they just don’t show them, so If I can put my two cents worth to help men shatter their fear and show their emotions and expressions thru nail polish, I will keep at it.

Purple, the color of royalty. There is something empowering about wearing this color. Since I am a Professional Photographer I see color a bit differently than most people. With my left side of the brain I see color as the reflection of light on different surfaces. Black is the absence of light, while white is the combination of all primary colors. It is my right side of the brain, that makes me feel the emotion that color brings out in me. It makes it even more enjoyable to appreciate colors when you understand and feel them at the same time. CHANEL does a fantastic job at combining different colors to create emotion when looking at their nail polishes.

With “Taboo” they have created, at least in my personal view, a very EMOTIONAL color. This to me is a POWERFUL shade. The base is a magenta and blue combination that turns out a beautiful deep cosmic violet shade. The kind you see on the Hubble telescope galaxy pictures. To top it all, they added bright red and blue sparkles that shimmer beautifully when the sun hits them, reinforcing even more the cosmic premise. I look at my nails and imagine small galaxies on each nail.

Under ambient lighting, it takes on a deeper purple, more absent of color, even though it looks nice enough, you will appreciate this more outside than indoors. This is by far, the best shade of purple I have tried, it is elegant, mysterious, edgy and classy at the same time. If you are a spiritual person, you will absolutely love this shade, it will help open awareness.

As with the other CHANEL colors I have tried, the formula is perfect, two coats will do, and it goes on smoothy. I love purple nail polish because it goes with just about everything, from blue jeans, to white pants, and it goes very nicely with  brown, gold, silver or black sandals. This is a keeper for me, I am sure it will be for you too. 

CHANEL - 667 - Bel Argus Limited Edition Summer 2013

Continuing with the CHANEL Sumer 2013 Series, this is Bel Argus, a Cobalt Blue that reminds me of a midnight starry summer night sky. There is something about CHANEL nail polish that is different from all the other brands. Aside from the price, which is very steep for nail polish, there is also the exclusivity factor, but it is really “unique” in some way.

Application is buttery, color goes on nicely and though it may seem very thin at first, it really goes on solid with just two coats. This is a relatively fast drying polish. I have worn my fair share of blues over time, but this one has to be by far, until now, the best of them, definitely a keeper for me. 

Like all dark blue’s, you can dress it up or dress it down. Since I “dressed down” the other blue’s I have worn on past postings, this time  I opted to “dress it up” a bit by wearing this polish with silver gladiator sandals and white trousers, a perfect outfit for summer that really make my toes in blue stand out. 

A particular thing I have noticed about CHANEL’s Summer 2013 line is the way they effectively catch the suns rays to “light the color up” when outside, as you can very well see from the pictures. 

When indoors under ambient lighting conditions during the day, the color seems a bit deeper, but still blue, no color change on this one.

When putting it directly under a fluorescent lamp, the color seems a bit more metallic, but I wouldn’t consider this a metallic color.  It is a very nice blue that really comes to life outdoors. 

Over time I have noticed that some nail polish colors are meant to be worn outdoors and other colors are meant to be worn indoor’s under fluorescent lighting conditions. I am personally not very fond of pictures of swatches under the lamp because even though it looks nice, unless you are always indoors and/or carrying a lamp with you, it can be deceiving. If you are a person who spends more time outdoors than indoors, than this color is for you. You will absolutely love how the sun makes this color come to life. 

Chanel Azure (657) Collectors Limited Edition

I was at a local department store last weekend and I walked by the Chanel counter where I saw this shiny bottle of paint that I liked so much I had a double take. When I turned my head slightly upward, I saw this big add for Chanel Nail Polish Summer 2013 colors. I had never seen a color such as this on nail polish, kind of green, kind of blue, the kind of greenish-blue that reminded me of the shallow seas of the Caribbean, like in Cancun or the Bahamas. This polish reflects the sun with a sparkling beauty that you have to see to believe. This is not exactly a holographic polish.  I had never splurged before on nail polish, but I caved in on this one. This is great quality polish, and at $27 a pop, it should be. Although it goes on thin at the first coat, two coats is enough for good overall cover. As always, I apply three coats. Of course, I prepped the nails before that with a good buff on the nail bed, primer and a base coat.

Topped it off with Seche Vite to give me a good two weeks of unchipped wear. Even though this is not a holographic color, I can perceive different shades under different lighting conditions. One thing that amazes me about this polish is the fact that unlike holographic colors, when in low light settings, it is more visible. I am not very much for bright colors, don’t typically like bright orange, yellows or bright greens, but this color seems electric, literally. When typing on my computer with just the light of the monitor hitting my nails, they seem like a blue metalic that seems “lit up”. When looking at them under direct sunlight, they look definitely green, but a greenish hue with sparkling shimmer al over. Sunlight make them more greenish, ambient light and/or fluorescent lighting make them look more blueish.

The less the light, the more metallic they look, kind of like an electric blue. A very nice surprise for me. Highly recommended if you like metallic and bright colors. This is definitely not your “low key” color, it screams at you, but in a very nice way.

If I have to give this Polish a rating, I will give it 5 bottles. It is like having 3 nail colors in one bottle. If you wear this to a night club, I can assure you, it will be the talk of the night. If you wear it to the beach, it will be a nice summer beach color. 

Happy Polishing!