New Address

Hi everyone,

Thank you all for reading my blog.  I'm very excited to tell you that it has now moved to castinails.blogspot.com.  See you there!

Best,
Tina

Plum Attraction, Indeed

This blog has moved to http://www.castinails.blogspot.com/.  Check it out for more posts, more photos, more polish!

Wow.  Today I wore Revlon Plum Attraction, a gorgeous lit-from-within purple with a very noticeable shimmer.  When you look closely, the shimmer is actually blue and pink, making it look like a glowing orchid.  Very complex for a drugstore polish!  It's absolutely stunning, I got a lot of compliments on it.  If you're looking for a jewel-tone purple, this is your shade.

Revlon Plum Attraction, two coats with flash

Revlon Plum Attraction, two coats with flash

Revlon Plum Attraction, two coats direct sunlight

Revlon Plum Attraction, two coats direct sunlight

Isn't it gorgeous?!  My one reservation is that application is a little tricky.  I find Revlon's brush to be too skinny, I usually have to re-dip for each nail.  This polish also tends to go on too thickly, and then I have issues with bubbling.  For this manicure though I made sure to keep the coats thin, then sealed it with a coat of seche vite.  Problem solved!

This blog has moved to http://www.castinails.blogspot.com/.  Check it out for more posts, more photos, more polish!

Birthday Vixen

This blog has moved to http://www.castinails.blogspot.com/.  Check it out for more posts, more photos, more polish!

Today is a very special post dedicated to my good friend, miss Fabulista, in honor of her birthday!  For this manicure I started with Revlon Vixen, the quintessential vampy maroon creme.  This bottle is over 5 years old and the application and dry time was still great.  I used two coats and one coat of seche vite on top.  The pictures are actually after two days, you can see that it holds up really well with no chips and minimal tip wear.

Revlon Vixen, two coats indoors with flash

Revlon Vixen, two coats indoors with flash

Revlon Vixen, two coats indoors, shade

And now for the Birthday Festivities!  I added one coat of Deborah Lippmann Happy Birthday to my ring fingers to avoid glitter overkill.  HB looks GREAT on darker polishes, I love how this turned out.

Revlon Vixen with one coat Deborah Lippmann Happy Birthday on ring finger

Revlon Vixen with one coat Deborah Lippmann Happy Birthday on ring finger

Happy Birthday, Fabulista!  I hope this makes you as happy as the time we walked through Banff singing the McDonalds Filet-o-Fish commercial.  (And happier than we felt after actually eating it.)

This blog has moved to http://www.castinails.blogspot.com/.  Check it out for more posts, more photos, more polish!

Jade is the new Starbucks

This blog has moved to http://www.castinails.blogspot.com/.  Check it out for more posts, more photos, more polish!

I think everyone agrees that Jade Is The New Black from the OPI Hong Kong Collection Spring 2010 is a new classic.  Not only does it flatter most skin tones, but it also applies beautifully and dries with a spectacular glossy finish.  Two coats, no top coat, I love it.  Sophisticated, fun, it's the perfect dusty jade creme.  It totally reminds me of old Chinese jewelry.

OPI Jade Is The New Black, two coats, indirect sunlight

OPI Jade Is The New Black, two coats, indirect sunlight

Being the huge caffeine fiend I am, less than two hours into wearing this polish I realized that it is almost exactly the same shade as Starbucks green.

These reusable cold cups are great, btw.

The perfect pairing.

Even though I love Starbucks, I'm not sure if this similarity makes me want to wear JITNB more or less...

This blog has moved to http://www.castinails.blogspot.com/.  Check it out for more posts, more photos, more polish!

GaGa is in the House

This blog has moved to http://www.castinails.blogspot.com/.  Check it out for more posts, more photos, more polish!

Happy Halloween!!!  From the first time I saw it, I knew for this day I HAD to wear Deborah Lippmann Bad Romance on my nails.  First, the combination of black and purple is spoooooky.  Second, this is the polish she created for Lady GaGa, whom I have had aspirations to dress up as since, oh I don't know, March.

Bad Romance is a black base with two sizes of purple glitter: small regular glitter and big hexagonal glitter.  The black base is sheer so I needed three coats for complete opacity.  When the polish dries, it has an uneven texture that reminds me of purple boils on a witch's skin.  It's a look that's growing on me, but I added a coat of seche vite to smooth things over.

Deborah Lippmann Bad Romance, three coats, direct sunlight

Deborah Lippmann Bad Romance, three coats, shade

Look at how pretty the bottle looks!

Deborah Lippmann Bad Romance, three coats, shade

Deborah Lippmann Bad Romance, three coats indoors with flash

And because this post wouldn't be complete without a picture of my costume, here is me being Lady GaGa.

I'm ready for my close-up

The nails were the perfect touch, don't you think?!

This blog has moved to http://www.castinails.blogspot.com/.  Check it out for more posts, more photos, more polish!

China Glaze Frosty

This blog has moved to http://www.castinails.blogspot.com/.  Check it out for more posts, more photos, more polish!

In honor of Houston's first below 65 degree morning I decided to wear Frosty from the China Glaze Holiday 2010  collection.  Let me say that if CG was trying to capture the sheen of snowy landscapes in midday, this was a total success!  Frosty is a shimmery white with a hint of teal and lavender sparkle when the light hits it.  One coat was very sheer and could be a nice look if you like that type of thing, but after 3 coats the result was an elegant shimmery pearl that I absolutely love.

China Glaze Frosty, three coats, shade

China Glaze Frosty, three coats, sunlight

China Glaze Frosty, three coats, shade

As an addendum to my post on Mrs. Claus, which was on its way to becoming one of my all-time favorite polishes, I have to add that it chipped horribly on me, even with Orly Bonder as a base and Seche Vite on top!  I have to say I was quite disappointed.  Has anyone else had wear problems with this collection?

This blog has moved to http://www.castinails.blogspot.com/.  Check it out for more posts, more photos, more polish!

Blackberry Chutney

This blog has moved to http://www.castinails.blogspot.com/.  Check it out for more posts, more photos, more polish!

Here are pictures of a manicure I did while I was in San Antonio last weekend (yes, the infamous "halloween nails.")  It's OPI Blackberry Chutney, which I got as a sample from ULTA along with Bogota Blackberry and Brisbane Bronze.  Blackberry Chutney is a dark, almost black, purple that looks like a creme but has a slight purple shimmer.  

OPI Blackberry Chutney, two coats indirect sunlight no flash

OPI Blackberry Chutney, two coats indirect sunlight, no flash

I liked wearing it, but I think I would prefer it if it had more of a shimmer or were totally creme.  To me it doesn't seem that unique.  That being said, I wore it with my Jessica McClintock navy blue recital gown and it was the perfect compliment.  I wouldn't buy the big bottle, but I would definitely get something like it.  Any good suggestions?

This blog has moved to http://www.castinails.blogspot.com/.  Check it out for more posts, more photos, more polish!