Nail Files - Chanel Spring 2011 - Black Pearl

Holidays are over...and back to blogging....  Yes, took a little longer than I anticipated but more on that in a minute...

I finally got to the mall on Friday to do the round of Christmas returns and exchanges.  Yes, it took me *that* long.  More on that in a minute....

And I had seen the pics online, but as I rounded the corner at Nordstrom and passed by the Chanel counter I came to a dead stop.  Spring nail polish.  Black Pearl.  I know you've been waiting for me...  I'm not going through my ridiculous visit-it-each-week saga that I had with their Paradoxal.  So I bought it.  And the spring Jersey Rose Rouge Coco lipstick.  I needed the pick-me-up.  More on that in a minute... (are you getting this?)

Quick note on Jersey Rose - ok, maybe I was a little inspired by my newfound lust for Jersey Mike's subs (#2 & #5, where have you been all my life?  I'll take it Miek's way, no onions, with a glaze of mayo on the bread, mmmmmm).  It's a beautiful lip color for Spring - but really for any day - a very pretty light but warm pink.  

But onto the nail polish because that's I'm loving that even more....

How to describe it?  Black Pearl is a dark gray/green/black/teal metallic.  It's gorgeous.  I've said before that I'm not a fan of blue-ish greens and they don't work on me.  This one is dark enough that the slight teal tone doesn't faze me one bit.  But it is also very clearly *not* black, unlike some of my many dark polishes.  It is the exact color of my car, actually.  Maybe that's why I bonded with it so heavily.  I think this is a perfect color for now inwinter...but it will be great in spring to offset all the soft floaty colors & fabrics.  It will also just rock with navy, my personal fave for spring. 

And I must fish for compliments...isn't that a great manicure?  That's even without the morning shower cuticle scrub, which just isn't happening right now (more on that in less than a minute).  I'm going to pat myself on the back for this one.

And why?

Well...back to all that "more on that in a minute" stuff...I think it's a darned impressive mani, when my right hand looks like this:
 

That's right, friends...this is what we call a "short arm" cast.  This is what you get when you are 39 but think you're still 25 and can move heavy furniture down steps with your husband.  So when the huge & heavy entertainment center starts sliding down the stps at you and you actually don't want it to pin you to the wall, thumbs are secondary to the issue at hand.  ("at hand," ha!)  Don't judge me for the bad puns, right now I need all the entertainment I can get.

So...this is an evulsion fracture, where the ligament popped off the base of the thumb and took a nice little chunk of bone with it.  So, in a cast for 4 weeks and then a splint for 2 and then there's only a 5-10% chance I'll need surgery.  DC/MD-ers- if you need a hand surgeon, I've got a great one!

And yes, I did say "right hand" earlier- it's my right thumb and I'm right-handed.  I should also mention that this happened 3 days before Christmas and I hadn't done any wrapping yet. 

So life is interesting...and frustrating...and entertaining...and a pain in the butt...but always funny.  I really should YouTube the process of getting ready in the morning.  It's a hoot.  I will say the dry cast cover for the shower now ranks is my favorite invention ever. 

So yeah, I needed the pick me up of a pretty lippie, I'm not really able to do the morning-after-main cuticle scrub to clean up my sloppy work, it just took me a while to get to the mall (shoot, I'm still trying to figure out which sweaters fit over the cast), and I've been getting used to typing without use of my right thumb. 

But most of all - I did my own nails...holding the nail polish brush between my index & middle fingers (base + top coat, too, of course).  Then again...that's how I've been doing my mascara, eyebrow pencil, and eyeliner every day. And how I use the long sharp knives to cut.  And so on and so forth.

Not that I'm complaining too much.  It could be so much worse.  So we'll leave it at 'entertaining" for now.

Happy 2011 to all!

Nail Files - Fall 2010 - Chanel Paradoxal...it's about time...

Wow...just wow...that's all I have to say about this color.  It's funny, I had been visiting Chanel Paradoxal at Nordstrom for about 2 months.  Every time I went by the Chanel counter, I'd stop at look at Paradoxal.  You see, I just wasn't sure I needed it, especially when I had Dior's Lemon Balm from last fall.  But a few weeks ago, after realizing that I was doing this *every* time I walked through Nordstrom (in my defense, the Chanel nail polish does face right out to the mail aisle to get to the rest of the mall), I finally sprang for it.  And couldn't wait to get home and put in on my nails.  I love it.   I do.  I love love love love it.  The next day, I called one of my fellow nail junkies to coo about Paradoxal...yes, it's that bad.  And she agreed about the gorgeousness because she borrowed it when we got pedis together a few days later.

Of late, I had stopped buying Chanel polish, because I wasn't loving anything enough to pay the price for it.  I thought Pariculiere was a fab color, but OPI's YDKJ was enough taupe for me.  And I wasn't feeling any of the summer colors.  And I finally realized that much as I like Blue Satin, OPI's Light My Sapphire is a better navy for me - less bright, more gray.  And I heard reports of chipping issues with Jade... And... And... And...  For me to spend that much on a polish it has to be pretty spectacular.

This one is.  To start, Chanel polishes usually show on the nail a bit different than in the bottle - most often, it's that there is less sparkle on the nail than in the bottle.  With Paradoxal, if I had known what it would look like on my nails, I would have gotten it sooner.  In the bottle there is a very bright purple iridescent quality to it.  But on the nail, the color morphs a bit darker, with subtle sheen in the sunlight. 

How would I describe the color?  Hmmmmm.  It's just a gorgeous bit of smoky violet-taupe mysterious goodness.  Application is fantastic.  Even without my fave OPI wide brush, it applies like a dream.  Not too thick, but not too thin.  2 coats really is all you need.  It's funny as I post this, because I just put it on my fingers again last night. 

Closest comparisons with my polish collection, with notes because, as I said, Paradoxal definitely presents as much deeper on the nail than in the bottle.

Sephora OPI Metro Chic:  Paradoxal is definitely deeper/darker.
OPI You Don't Know Jacques: Paradoxal is more purple, less brown/gray.
Dior Lemon Balm:  Paradoxal doesn't have as much shimmer - and it's deeper.

Bottom line - HIGHLY recommend this one, if you've been feeling the urge.  It's still available online at Chanel.com, and my local Nordstrom had several bottles left in the case - so your local store may have it as well.

Nail Files - Some More Pales & The Earth Day Exchange

First of all, I've been meaning to try out the new Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure polish (on sale this week at Target for $6.49, btw).  Per their website, it has all the steps of a professional manicure in the bottle.  Translation for us laymen - you don't need base or top coat.  I tried Pink Slip, a very pretty and clean looking pale pink.  I've heard raves from some about this polish but I just didn't get it.  I used 3 thin coats, and there were still streaks. I would take it off tonight, but I'm just too tired to re-do the nails.

Then again, the streakiness happens a lot with Essie's pale cremes, too, like Ballet Slippers.  (Hmmmm, pink slip and ballet slippers....are we supposed to divine a resemblance????)

Bottom line...like the color, but oh, how I wish I could return it...I don't think I'll even use this on my toes because it's so streaky!  Maybe the mid-tone or dark colors work better.  Would love to hear from those of you who have tried it.

Next up...Chanel Vernis in Trapeze.  From the Holiday 2009 Collection, it's described as a "silver beige".  Now the story on this is that I've shied away from Chanel polish lately.  I just so strongly prefer the OPI formula and brush, and the Chanel polishes don't always stand up to the use that OPI does.   Availability in store is limited since it is, after all, a limited edition shade.  As of now, Nordstrom still has it online.

I saw the Trapeze polish at Bloomingdales at White Flint back in February when snaphappy and I were on a "get the kids out of the house before we lose our minds because of the blizzard" outing.  And I've been pondering it ever since.  So a few weeks ago, when snaphappy and I were again bopping through White Flint (sans bebes this time), I hit the Chanel counter at Bloomies, and sure enough, there were still 3 or 4 bottles sitting there.  It was a sign, and it came home with me. 

And I love it.  Although, I admit to being a bit perplexed about its inclusion in a holiday collection, especially if that collection was inspired by the plumage of exotic birds (not making this up here).  But I will say it would stand out in a sea of vampy manis & pedis over the holiday season...including mine, hehe.

I think it's a great spring color - reminds me of a pale metallic khaki.  Much better than the Sephora OPI Under My Trenchcoat, which was ghastly on me when I tried it last fall.  I also think it would be a perfect summer color...on toes buried in the sand....  Ok, pretty much, it could work year round.  This one is a definite keeper.

So I cleaned out my polish bins yesterday.  And separated out E's polish. Ah I love cleaning out.  It's a good think to do when you can't sleep at 3 am.  And I think I may even send the old polishes into Zoya.  I read about this on my usual sources for important nail news, All Lacquered Up.  The 2010 Zoya Nail Polish Exchange, in honor of Earth Day.  From now until June 30, you can send them a minimum of 6 bottles (no max) and for $3.50 each to cover shipping & processing, they will send you however many colors your request (I think that you are maxed out to the number of polishes you are sending in).  So good for the environment, as you aren't supposed to throw old polish in the trash, and you are trying out Zoya polish for half price.  How cool is that?  btw, USPS will not ship nail polish, but UPS & FedEx will. 

I have not tried Zoya polish before, but I am going to send in a bunch of my old polish and try out a few of their colors.  Will post as I do, of course.  The one bit of important Zoya wisdom that I picked up (from All Lacquered Up, natch) is that you can't use fast-dry top coats with this polish because it affects the wear.  Good to know.

Anything new in the polish world for you all?  Me, I'm waiting for the OPI Shrek Forever collection release. 

Nail Files - New & Old Polishes for Spring

Lots of polish pics to share...cause yeah, I've been behind on this as well.

For starters...let's discuss the OPI Hong Kong collection.  One word - underwhelmed.  Not a single polish enticed me enough to buy...so I ended up with another polish from the France collection (Fall 2008), Eiffel for This Color.  Well...I didn't.  The color is really pretty - and I'm surprised it took me this long to purchase it myself because I have often admired it on others. 

What's the issue?  Coverage - I trust OPI colors to give me complete coverage in 2 coats (except for the sheers, of course).  Like the uber fabulous Suzi Skis the Pyrenees, which I have on tips & toes right now - the coverage on that is amazing.  This one, like many of the Chanel and Essie cremes, I find, was streaky - I didn't feel that 2 coats was really great.  So PASS on this one - try Give Me Moor instead, from the Spain collection this past fall.

The next collection I checked out was the Sephora by OPI Modern Flowers (Spring 10).

The first, a keeper, even though it's not terribly exciting, is Handpicked for Me - light pink lilac with silver shimmer.  I'm sure E is going to want to borrow this one.  It's very pretty.  Great spring color.  Not much more to say than that.

The second...well that one already got returned.  Leaf Him at the Altar - ok, I wanted to keep it based on name alone.  It's described as a metallic vine green.  It's metallic.  And it's green.  But it just didn't do it for me.  For the $ I pay, I wanted it to be a bit more special.  I found it to be something I would conceivably find for $3 at Target.  It just wasn't enough...or right...or whatever.  The magazine pics make it look much more special.  Or maybe I'm just too old...

And then we come to an oldie that I haven't worn in a while...and I'm not sure why I haven't because I was loving it.  Chanel's Kaleidoscope from Fall 2008.  It's this great gold-green-platinum metallic bunch of sparkliness.  Not that I think that's a real word.  But oh, I forgot how much I loved this polish.  This was was definitely worth the Chanel price.

My next polish purchase?  I am dying to see the MAC Liberty of London collection...It's supposed to be out next Friday.  I am so at Nordstrom that morning - they have a polish I'm dying to see - Blue Inda.  More info on it on All Lacquered Up, my fave polish blog.  And the lippies looked quite pretty, too.

Today's Outfit and Mall Outing

First...a little dose of spring for you. Haven't had a chance to pick up pansies to put in pots, but I did grab a hanging basket of violas for next to the garage (we have a detached garage out back). I always love a bit of color here. So nice to see the sweet yellow flowers, especially on a yucky, gray, rainy, chilly day like today. Memo to spring: where did you go?

My mom came up last night to visit and meet Lucy and we went to the mall to run around and have some lunch. I did return the 2 ON striped sweater jackets (and the medium tall is on its way to me, thank you, FFM!). And I didn't buy one more thing. I really and truly wasn't tempted. I checked out the new Chanel Spring polishes, but naw, not that great. I browsed by the shoes at Nordstrom on our way to the Nord Cafe but mostly out of idle and not targeted curiosity. And I wasn't even interested in J Crew because (squeeee) can't wait for our DC JCA outing on Sunday. The desire just wasn't there. I think this is a big step for me.

But it's chilly, gray, rainy, icky - yes, I know I already said that. So what to do...cashmere, please. Pull out the J Crew cashmere long sleeve tee, add trusty Chicos jeans and these cute Clarks Artisan red patent peeptoes (insanely comfy). When we went out, I put on my yellow AT Loft short trench from last spring (need to add that pic sometime), which always totally bumps up the color of an outfit. So yellow coat and red shoes - much more colorful than this pic here. I'm working on the color thing....

Then I need a great necklace. I had to do a close up pic of this one. I love the mix of metals. It's so sparkly. Isn't it fab? Well, of course it is because fab friend Sherry picked it up for me at the jewelry show in NOLA when she was there for Mardi Gras (so pre shopping ban, thank you). I will say that I did think about it before I emailed back a "yes, get it" after she sent the pic. It wasn't immediate.

And here's your Lucy pic for the day. Well, 2 pics actually, because I couldn't choose. I love the one of her looking down because it's so puppy-ish, but the look-at-the-camera pic really shows here eyes - she just look so old there! And the detail in the outside pics is so much better. Funny Lucy story for you all...when my mom got here late last night, we were hanging out in the family room. She was playing with Lucy and said "Where does her brown nose come from, the poodle or the Lab?" Hubby and I both looked at each other and in unison said "The dirt." Well, it made me laugh. I'm still giggling thinking about it...

The Nail Files - Navy Nails

Well, it's springtime, so what does that mean to me, nail wise? Some pretty pales, a few brights, and yes, navy nails. My love of dark vampy colors started about 4 years ago when E accidentally (that time) stomped on my big toe with one of those plastic dress-up heels right below the nail, you know, where the nail forms and can get really messed up? I'll spare you the goriest details, but the bruise grew out under the nail and it was ick, so I said, hmmmm, I need a nail polish that can cover this up. At the time, there weren't that many dark polishes (this was before Chanel's Black Satin). So I headed to Target and came home with a Cover Girl that seemed the best purple-ish/burgudy-ish shade. And I just loved it! It reminded me of back in the Pulp Fiction days of Uma and the original Vamp polish. I had Revlon's knockoff, Vixen, but I totally worked it.

And let me tell you, dark polish matches everything! So a love affair was born. It's so bad that last summer when I went with a pale on my toes a couple of times, I didn't even recognize my feet. It was like looking at someone else's feet where mine should be. My dark shade of choice changes with the season, but Summer 2007, OPI released their NightBrights colleciton, which included Light My Sapphire, and that was it. Navy blue polish? I loved it. Navy is so preppy and dark polish is so goth, it was the perfect marriage for me - which is actually why I love dark polish - because I tend to dress so preppy/conservative anyway, it gives me a little edge.

And then Chanel came out with Blue Satin in Spring 2008. Also loved that. And that's what I have on my toes to welcome spring! This and the OPI one will probably alternate on my toes for many months to come. Which one do I like best? Hard to say. I'll have to test that out. Important note - the darks really do look best on short nails (or at least that's my personal preference).

The 2 pics below illustrate my example of doing your nails before bed. Top pic is right after they were done - total mess, seriously tacky, right?

And here we have, next morning, after a quick excess polish clean up in the shower. Not too shabby, huh?

Now, I flat out admit that I have a nail polish issue. But clearly I have way too many colors (personal stash below). I think it's time to narrow down.

But I will give you my quick primer on my own personal opinion of these polish brands:

• OPI - love the formula, love the new wide brush-makes polish application easier. You Don't Know Jacques from Fall/Winter 2008 was a particular favorite this fall. In general, I find OPI polishes look as good or better on me than in the bottle.
• Sephora by OPI - like the formula, wish they had the same wide brush. Great color selection. Liked Metro Chic a lot this year - but only worked on my pale skin; did not look good on my tanned skin (but I wear SPF 45-70 all summer long, so no lectures please - I am a total sunscreen Nazi, you should see me at the pool with my hat, shades, spray sunscreen bottles)
• Essie - I have so many issues with this brand. Many of their colors look different and worse on my skin than in the bottle. And many colors, especially their cremes need 3 coats to be opaque. I find most of the lights, especially the cremes, to be streaky. That being said, my 2 faves are Nude Beach and Risky Business (my dupe for J Crew's Essie shade - Mini Shorts)
• Chanel - These colors are so gorgeous. They always look sparklier in the bottle than they do on. But that sparkle is what gives them such amazing depth. Delice is a summer fave, but looks awful on my skin right now. Still would love Rouge Noir (the original Vamp shade)
• NARS - ok. not the best lasting. not sure why I still have these.
• China Glaze - have 2 colors - Wagon Trail (dark olive-y with gold, total fall and St Patrick's favorite) and Princess Grace. Really like these.

The others are assorted odds and ends. One pile is my daughter's mini-stash. She's only allowed to use my top coat if she uses good polish (BTW, I am the one doing the nails; she picks the color). Some of the glittery junk she got from somewhere once messed up a whole bottle of my Seche Vite top coat.

Speaking of cutting down on colors... I used Chanel's Antilope on my tips last night. Have to say, it's very close to OPI's Sand in My Suit and I think I really like OPI's version better. If any of the DC JCA's want this bottle, let me know and I'll bring it to the event this Sunday to pass off.

And by the way, this post (as well as counting out 50 polishes) has made me realize that much as I want to order the Chanel Rouge Noir polish, especially today when I got the email from them with the free shipping code (0309TIPS), I really, really, really don't need it.

I will probably change out and go with the navy for my fingers for the weekend. I think they would really work with the JC cerise Lili. Hmmmm...

Shopping Ban Update and True Confessions (I'm Smitten, finally)

How was the Lenten shopping ban been going? Really, really well. I have to thank this amazing online community. It has been so wonderful to have this level of support, while knowing that I would make myself accountable. It has been 3 1/2 weeks. And it has truly been illuminating. I think for me, shopping was equating to gluttony at times.

So this Lenten ban has extended that to a look at gluttony and its place in my life. I can tell you that I have actually lost 8 pounds over the last few weeks because I have finally put my relationship with food in its proper place. I inherited half of a kick-ass metabolism so my weight usual habits. I am one of those people who are much less in shape than they appear to be and I am trying to change that.

I have started exercising regularly. More free time when you aren't shopping or plotting how you are going to shop. And I feel so much better about myself. Not much exercise this week with the new puppy, except for PT, but considering the mostly self-inflicted lack of sleep at the beginning of the week, I am proud that I lost 2 pounds this week, got my puppy walking, and didn't descend into a vortex of bad eating.

Have I been perfect? Heck no! So here are my confessions, but I thing my indiscretions have been small and offset by additional clothes-related in-flow.

First of all, I finally caved and purchased Rescue Beauty Lounge's Smitten. By the way, their packaging is fantastic. I have been wanting the perfect pink. Medium pink, not to coral/orange, not too brown, with just a touch of lavender (since that works on my weird yellow-y skin tone), and this is it. Per RBL's description:

Angora, princess phones, Molly Ringwald movies. This is the light lilac pink that would have won Andrew McCarthy's heart.

Ok, I was always more a Judd Nelson girl, but whatever. Coming of age with the Brat Pack, how can I resist? So that was more than I usually spend, unless I buying Chanel, but it is worth it. (about $25, including S&H) But don't you love it? It screams spring to me, and I can't wait to wear it in the summer, too.

Old Navy purchases on F&F sale - 30% off, plus tax and S&H allocated to each item.

• The Old Navy Sweater Coat (#632592, orig. $39.50, curr $23.99 online), Gigi and Sparrow& Sparkle both did great reviews, check them out if you haven't already. I have wanted this since before my shopping ban and looked for it on my Mardi Gras shopping outing, but my ON did not have it. I ordered both the M and L just to be sure of fit (same shipping anyway, did you hear that J Crew?). Will return at least 1 of them. Allocated out, $20.18 each.


• 3 camis. I live in ON's shelf bra camis (because they are long enough in regular - you can see in the online pic next to the "basic camis" - shelf bra ones are longer). These are one of my year-round staples, along with their tanks. I need a fresh stock of white ones every 3-6 months. In the summer, they usually replace bras (ok, so there are some advantages to a lack of curves). I ordered 2 in white, and 1 in pink pony (as opposed to a pink goat, I suppose). I always need white and I don't have a pink right now. Allocated out, $7.57 for each. These I can actually excuse as necessities.

To balance this out, I got a $35 check from the consignment shop for stuff from last summer. I have $20 of returns at Nordstrom Rack (some ill-advised tights). Let's do the math (I was a math major, you know)

($20 for the sweater) + ($25 for the polish) < ($55 in clothing income)

Ok, I'm good. Plus I did purchase on a Sunday. So well within my rules.

So what did I resist? And where did I almost fail?

1. Latest J Crew 20% off, especially when I realized the navy chiffon ruffle cardi was there in my size, waiting. Still have designs on this one at some future point in time, possibly.


2. Bobbi Brown 20% sale this week. Oh, I was close, so close. I had a cart and everything filled Thursday night. Then I remembered that I had just come back from puppy class ($160), had a vet visit the previous day ($200-ish, thanks to all the shots), spent about $150 at the store on dog stuff. So a lot in 1 week. That made me stop. I don't need that much right now. What I have can get me through - at least until they release their new blush sticks, at which point I will take a look. But cautiously.
   
3. But what really, really, really almost did me in - Chanel's email announcing their Deja Vu collection - "you loved it then, now love it again". Discontinued favorites can be found again. I thought, oh that's nice, no way they actually have their Rouge Noir Le Vernis Nail Colour. (For you polish neophytes, this is actually the original shade of Chanel's Vamp - as in Pulp Fiction, Uma Thurman, total fabulosity. The Vamp sold today is a different shade. And I am a huge fan of dark polish, ever since a tragic accident with my big toe and E's plastic high heel dress up shoes 4 1/2 years ago. And I love how it offsets my usual classic, preppy clothes with a teeny bit of edge.) Oh yes, they did. For $23, plus S&H of course, Rouge Noir could be all mine. And I was like, arghhhh, I just bought a new polish, and it wasn't cheap. So here I sit coveting the Rouge Noir polish. Knowing I shouldn't buy it. But it's still there, tempting me. This actually could be my undoing.

Right now the only thing keeping me honest is the DC JCA gathering next Sunday, 3/29. I said in the beginning, if I'm really good, then I can shop. If not, no way. So I am trying, trying so hard. But that Rouge Noir and its luscious vampiness is calling me. (this is my call for reinforcement, ladies) Fortunately, that puppy is keeping me pretty busy. Plus I still have 2 tops from Pre-Lent shopping that I haven't worn - yes, both are summer tops, 1 sleeveless, 1 tunic, but still...

Ok, staying strong, staying strong. See you all at DC JCA nest Sunday!