Review & Swatches - OPI Serena Williams Glam Slam! England: Part 2

Hey guys!

Today I have the other Glam Slam! England duo from the OPI and Serena Williams collaboration. I reviewed the first duo which included Grape...Set...Match and Servin' Up Sparkle here so be sure to check that post out as well.



Keep reading for the swatches and review!



Your Royal Shine-ness (sparkly silver foil)
Of the reviews that I have read on this set, many have said that this is a standard silver foil and I would have to respectfully disagree with that statement. This shade is a bit different than your standard silver foil in that it's a bit darker and dirtier looking than your average silver foil. In these photos, without anything to compare it to, it probably does look like a standard silver foil. However, I did a comparison using 6 other silvers from my collection and this one is definitely a little different (you'll be seeing that comparison in an upcoming post).
The formula of this was really lovely and it was opaque in 2 coats.


Servin' Up Sparkle (clear base with different sized silver and holographic glitter throughout)
Because this glitter top coat is included in both of the Glam Slam! England sets, I'm basically going to repeat what I had to say about this shade from my review of the other Glam Slam! England duo.
The inclusion of this shade in both sets was a bit of a disappointment for me since I think it would have been smarter/better to have different shades in each set. I also found that the bottle looks a little deceiving because at first glance, it seems like the glitter is going to be much denser than it actually turned out to be.
However, this is rather pretty and adds a nice effect over both of the other shades included in the duos. It does give Your Royal Shine-ness a bumpy looking texture but this could easily be smoothed over with a layer of top coat. This is primarily meant to be used as a layering polish but I did swatch it alone (3 coats) in case someone wishes to wear it that way.
The formula was what you would expect from a clear based glitter - a little thick but not difficult to work with. However, if you're going to be doing 2 or more coats of this, I would recommend waiting in between coats so that you don't push all of the glitter pieces to the tip of the nail.


Your Royal Shine-ness (alone), Servin' Up Sparkle (alone), Servin' Up Sparkle (2 coats over Your Royal Shine-ness)


Servin' Up Sparkle (2 coats over Your Royal Shine-ness), Servin' Up Sparkle (alone), Your Royal Shine-ness (alone)


Servin' Up Sparkle (2 coats over Your Royal Shine-ness), Servin' Up Sparkle (alone), Your Royal Shine-ness (alone)

Overall, I do like this set, but it's not the most unique thing that I have seen from OPI. The colours are pretty and the formula is great, I just don't see this set as a must-have.

My main problem is that Servin' Up Sparkle is included in both of the Glam Slam! England sets. A lot of us polish freaks will want both of the different shades in the sets, but who wants 2 of the glitter top coat? I think OPI definitely could have come up with a different coloured glitter top coat to put in one of the sets. I obviously got them both regardless of the repeat of Servin' Up Sparkle, but I really only did that so that I could provide you guys with swatches of both sets.

The OPI Serena Williams Glam Slam! duos are available now in professional salons. I got the sets for $13.25 each but the pricing is really going to depend on where you live and where you manage to find your set. Generally though, the price will fall in range of $10-20.

What do you guys think about this Glam Slam! set? Which set do you prefer?

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Swatch Comparison - OPI Grape...Set...Match vs. OPI Ink

Hey guys!

First off, I have some exciting news - the Canada Post strike is over! (For anyone who wasn't aware, Canada Post had been on strike for roughly 3 weeks until the workers were legislated back on Sunday evening.)
I've got a bunch of packages on the way to me (including my very own business cards which I am VERY excited about) so you'll be seeing a bunch of new products from me over the next couple of weeks. :)

Anyways, onto the point of this post. In my recent review of one of the new OPI Serena Williams Glam Slam! England duos, I mentioned how Grape...Set...Match reminded me of a lighter version of OPI Ink, so today I dug OPI Ink out of my stash and did a comparison of these two shades for you.



Keep reading to see how these shades compare!



OPI Ink, OPI Grape...Set...Match


OPI Ink, OPI Grape...Set...Match


OPI Ink


OPI Grape...Set...Match


OPI Ink, OPI Grape...Set...Match


OPI Grape...Set...Match, OPI Ink

As you can see, the shades are similar in that they have the same pink and blue glitter within their respective bases. However, the difference is that Grape...Set...Match is a brighter, more red-based colour while OPI Ink is a deeper, violet shade. I find that the deep base of OPI Ink kind of makes the glitter sink farther into the polish than it should (I hope that makes sense), while the brighter base of Grape...Set...Match allows the glitter to really shine.

The formula of both of these was excellent and flowed really nicely. I only needed 2 coats for each of the shades to get the opacity that you see above.

In the end, these are definitely not dupes, but they have their similarities. Most people might not see the need in having both shades, but fellow polish fiends would most likely want to have both in their stash.

I'm pretty sure that OPI Ink is a permanent shade but if I'm wrong on that, you can still find it on eBay for retail price. OPI Grape...Set...Match is limited edition and is only available in one of the two OPI Serena Williams Glam Slam! England duos.

What do you guys think? Which shade do you prefer?

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Swatch Comparison - OPI Grape...Set...Match vs. OPI Ink

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Review & Swatches - OPI Serena Williams Glam Slam! England: Part 1

Hey guys!

I have been seriously stalking my local beauty supply store waiting for 3 new collections by OPI: the Blue-Hued Shatters, the Nice Stems Collection, and the 2 new Glam Slam! England sets. Finally they got these Glam Slam! England sets in yesterday but I'm still going to have to continue stalking them until I get my hands on the other new collections as well.

Besides that, I'm stalking a different supply store that carries China Glaze because I'm also on the hunt for the Crackle Metals. It's exhausting waiting for new collections to get here, haha!

Anyways, today I'll be showing you 1 of the 2 sets of the Glam Slam! England duos. Both of these sets include glittery/shimmery shades instead of the crackles which we have seen in the other 3 Glam Slam! sets so far.



Keep reading for the swatches and review!



Grape...Set...Match (deep red-based purple with purple and blue micro-glitter)
The shade immediately reminded me of a lighter version of OPI Ink, which is an absolutely gorgeous shade, but it can come off a little dark - especially in the warmer months, so I think Grape...Set...Match is the perfect substitute. (I'll try to get a comparison of the 2 shades up for your guys asap.)
The micro-glitter in this is really saturated throughout so it comes off as a duochrome finish that flashes both blue and purple. It's really stunning and when you add Servin' Up Sparkle, I think you get something really special. The formula was really good and it only required 2 coats for the opacity you'll see below.


Servin' Up Sparkle (clear base with different sized silver and holographic glitter throughout)
This glitter top coat is included in both of the Glam Slam! England sets which was a bit of a disappointment for me since I think it would have been smarter/better to have different shades in each set. I also found that the bottle looks a little deceiving because at first glance, it seems like the glitter is going to be much denser than it actually turned out to be.
However, this is rather pretty and adds a nice effect over the other shades, Grape...Set...Match in particular. This is primarily meant to be used as a layering polish but I did swatch it alone (3 coats) in case someone wishes to wear it that way. The formula was what you would expect from a clear based glitter - a little thick but not difficult to work with. However, if you're going to be doing 2 or more coats of this, I would recommend waiting in between coats so that you don't push all of the glitter pieces to the tip of the nail.


Grape...Set...Match (alone), Servin' Up Sparkle (alone), Servin' Up Sparkle (2 coats over Grape...Set...Match)


Servin' Up Sparkle (2 coats over Grape...Set...Match), Servin' Up Sparkle (alone), Grape...Set...Match (alone)

Overall, I like this set a lot. I think that Grape...Set...Match is the star here as it can be worn on its own or with Servin' Up Sparkle on top, and it looks great either way. In fact, I think a really pretty mani would be to paint Grape...Set...Match on all nails and add Servin' Up Sparkle to just the ring finger to have an accent nail of super glittery holo goodness. I wouldn't personally wear Servin' Up Sparkle on its own but I think it'll look great over just about any shade, so it's worth having.

My main problem is that Servin' Up Sparkle is included in both of the Glam Slam! England sets. A lot of us polish freaks will want both of the different shades in the sets, but who wants 2 of the glitter top coat? I think OPI definitely could have come up with a different coloured glitter top coat to put in one of the sets. I myself got them both regardless of the repeat of Servin' Up Sparkle, but I really only did that so that I could provide you guys with swatches of both sets.

The OPI Serena Williams Glam Slam! duos are available now in professional salons. I got the sets for $13.25 each but the pricing is really going to depend on where you live and where you manage to find your set. Generally though, the price will fall in range of $10-20.

What do you guys think about this Glam Slam! set?

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Review & Swatches - OPI Serena Williams Glam Slam! England: Part 1

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Swatch Spam - Deborah Lippmann: Part 1

Hey guys!

Sorry that I haven't been able to post for the past couple of days! My internet went down Thursday morning and we just got it back a few hours ago. I managed to keep up-to-date on Facebook on my phone but I wasn't able to blog at all. I did take a bunch of photos though so I have a couple of posts ready to go. :)

Lately there have been A LOT of hits on the few swatch posts I have for Lippmann polishes, so I thought that you guys might like it if I did swatches of all the Deborah Lippmann polishes that I own.
Now, I only own 10 altogether but I've only swatched 3 of them for you so there'll be 7 Lippmann polishes in this post and the soon-to-come Part 2 post that you haven't seen from me before.

Enjoy!



Keep reading to see the swatches!



Happy Birthday, Today was a Fairytale, Bad Romance, Boom Boom Pow, Across the Universe


Happy Birthday (mutil-colour, multi-sized, multi-shaped glitter suspended in a clear base)
My swatch comparison post of this polish and 2 of its supposed dupes has been one of my most popular posts all month so most of you already know what I have to say about this polish. However, here's a link to that post in case you missed it.


Today was a Fairytale (sheer silver base with large and small silvery-blue glitter)
This shade was released for Holiday 2010 and it has a special ingredient called "Virgin Diamond Powder". I'm not sure what that really is, all I know is that this polish is gorgeous and unlike any other silver glitters I have in my collection. There's a depth to it so that it's not just your average glitter. This would most likely be used for layering but I also think it looks super pretty on its own - maybe only for an accent nail though since I wouldn't want to waste this.


Bad Romance (small and large magenta glitter packed in a black jelly base)
This shade was released for Fall 2010 along with Across the Universe and although I think this one took a backseat to Across the Universe, this is still an amazing polish. Just look at the swatches. Need I say more?


Boom Boom Pow (clear base with small and large gold glitter pieces as well as some smaller gold micro-glitter)
This was the other shade that was released for Holiday 2010 along with Today was a Fairytale and this one also has a special ingredient - 24 carat gold. I think the 24 carat gold is probably those smaller pieces of what looks like micro-glitter but they really stand out and make this shade super shiny and mesmerizing. This would most likely be best used as a layering polish but I also like the look of it on its own. However, like Today was a Fairytale, I probably would only use this on an accent nail because I would be afraid to use it all up.


Across the Universe (glitter party of small blue glitter and blue/teal hexagonal glitter suspended in a deep blue jelly base)
I've talked about this one a number of times, most recently in my Top 10 Polishes post so I'm not going to go into any detail here because you can just go back and see all of the awesome things I have said about it before.


Happy Birthday, Today was a Fairytale, Bad Romance, Boom Boom Pow, Across the Universe


Happy Birthday, Today was a Fairytale, Bad Romance


Bad Romance, Boom Boom Pow, Across the Universe


Across the Universe, Boom Boom Pow, Bad Romance, Today was a Fairytale, Happy Birthday


Across the Universe, Boom Boom Pow, Bad Romance


Bad Romance, Today was a Fairytale, Happy Birthday


Stay tuned for Part 2 of my Lippmann Swatch Spam!

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Review & Swatches - Hard Candy Glossaholic Lipglosses

Hey guys!

Two makeup posts in a row?! I'm on a roll, haha.

A while back I showed you a packaging comparison of the Hard Candy Glossaholic lipglosses vs. the MAC Wonder Woman lipglasses and I promised in that post that I would eventually do a review/swatch post of the Hard Candy glosses on their own, so here it is.

These glosses are very special and if you're a polish gal like myself, you'll be excited to know that these have flakies in them! VERY cool.





Keep reading for more photos, the review, and swatches!





Vanilla (clear base with purple and orange flakies)
Apparently this gloss, along with Coffee (below) are "infused with mood altering elixir" and this one is supposed to give you a "relaxing" feeling. This to me is absolute hokum and I didn't feel any change in mood when I wore this, but maybe I'm just too much of a cynic. :P


Fairy


Fairy (light pink base with pink and silver glitter and gold flakies)


Fireball


Fireball (deep raspberry base with gold and orange flakies)
This one definitely looks intimidating in the tube but as you'll see in the swatch below, it's not as pigmented as it looks, which was a pleasant surprise to me because it suits me much better this way.


Coffee


Coffee (clear base with orange, green, and gold flakies)
This is Sally Hansen Hidden Treasure in lipgloss form. Enough said.


Tipsy


Tipsy (medium pink base with pink and silver glitter and gold flakies)


Vanilla, Fairy, Fireball, Coffee, Tipsy

Overall, I really like these glosses. They're not too pigmented which I actually like because they're easier to layer that way and since I'm so fair skinned, darker, more pigmented colours can be intimidating on me. They're not sticky at all and have a more slippery feel when on the lips. They're also fairly long lasting - especially the flakies which tend to stick around for up to 8 hours. But most importantly, the little flakies make them super special and it's what I love the most about these.

The only problem I have with them is that their scent is very synthetic and I would even go so far as to say that the scent is overpowering with the Vanilla and Coffee glosses (which are already two scents that I don't care for). However, the scent quickly fades away after application so it's something I'm willing to deal with for a few minutes in order to have these pretty flakies on my lips.

Hard Candy Glossaholic Lipglosses can be bought at Wal-Mart and retail for about $5-6 each, depending on where you live. I think there's a couple of other shades available as well, but I only picked up these five.

What do you guys think about these glosses? Have you tried any? Any favourites?

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Review & Photos - Maybelline One by One Volum' Express Mascara

Hey guys!

Today I have a makeup related post for you, which have been severely lacking on my blog recently. A little while ago I ran out of my Benefit BADgal Lash Mascara, which I've been in serious love with ever since I tried a sample of it that came with the Her Name Was Glowla set.

In the review I said that I wasn't very impressed with it but after I ran out of my L'Oreal Voluminous Mascara, I figured that I may as well use up the rest of the sample of BADgal Lash, and I was quickly eating my own words after I tried it again.

I went out soon after and bought a full size version and used that all up as well. After I emptied that tube, I didn't really have the money to spend another $28 on a mascara so I decided it was time to try something new from the drugstore, and I picked up this one by Maybelline for my experiment.



According to the package:

"Exclusive lash catcher brush catches, coats and de-clumps every single lash for our most refined volume from root-to-tip. Instant clump-free volume."

Does it live up to its claims? Keep reading to find out!





(Maybelline One by One Volum' Express Mascara)


(Maybelline One by One Volum' Express Mascara)


(Bare lashes)


(Maybelline One by One Volum' Express Mascara on only the top lashes)


(Maybelline One by One Volum' Express Mascara on both top and bottom lashes)

I found this to be much more of a lengthening mascara than a volumizing one. As you can see from my photos, it does a decent job of separating and lengthening but it's definitely lacking in the volume department, which is where it claims to excel. The formula really didn't clump at all, even though I spent a lot of time playing around with the product and trying to get it to work as well as it said it would, so the no-clumping claim is one that the product lives up to.

The wand is very bendy which is something that you either love or hate when it comes to a mascara. I'm in the hate it group - I prefer my mascara brushes to be on the stiffer side so that I have the most control possible.

Because the brush is on the smaller side, this does well for the coating the bottom lashes with product, which can sometimes be a pain, so I do like this mascara for that purpose.

The tube does a good job of removing excess product from the brush as you're pulling it out so that's a definite plus.

Overall, I think this mascara does a good job of lengthening and separating the lashes but it doesn't really add as much fullness as the product description would suggest. I've continued to use this product for the above purposes but I've been adding a coat of another mascara (CoverGirl LashBlast) to add fullness. When these are paired together, I get the results that I would have liked to have seen with this one alone.

Maybelline One by One Volum' Express Mascara can be bought at drugstores and retails for approximately $7-8, depending on where you live.

P.S. I didn't watermark the photos of my eyes because frankly, if someone wants to take those, they can go ahead. :P

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