Kiko - 374 Cioccolato Amaro Perlato

ENG: bought on sale for only € 1,50 past Summer! ;D / ITA: preso in super saldo a €1,50 quest'estate! ;D

KIKO - 374 PEARLY CHOCOLATE NOIR / CIOCCOLATO AMARO PERLATO

ENG: this nail polish has an almost black base with an elegant dark brown shimmer that's evident only under bright lights. Formula is great: it's one coater, application is very precise thanks to the wide brush and the well balanced density of the product, it's auto leveling, quite glossy even without a top coat, dries fast and has a long duration. I can't find any lack.

ITA: è uno smalto quasi nero che svela la sua base marrone scuro soltanto sotto luci intense grazie ad un elegantissimo shimmer. La formula è fantastica: può tranquillamente bastare una sola passata, l'applicazione è precisissima grazie al pennello piatto e alla giusta densità dello smalto, è autolivellante, è piuttosto glossy anche senza top coat, asciuga veloce, ed ha una durata ottima. Non ci trovo difetti manco a sforzarmi.

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Labels: brown, kiko, shimmer

Comments: 13 comments

Holothon: Mi-Ny - Holographic Touch - Brown

ENG: I've only a few minutes to write this post, so I'm going to go straight to the point, sorry: this is another holo polish borrowed from my cousin Barbara of Nail Polish Crazy blog, and go to the bottom of this post to find my friend's links! And have a good Holiday, all of you, even if you stay at home! ;P

ITA: ho pochissimi minuti per scrivere il post, quindi riduco all'osso, scusatemi! Ecco un altro smalto prestatomi da mia cugina Barbara del blog Nail Polish Crazy, e in fondo al post trovate i link alle proposte delle mie amiche! E buon Ferragosto a tutti, anche a chi resta a casa perchè non c'ha moneta per le ferie! ;D

MI-NY - HOLOGRAPHIC TOUCH - BROWN

ENG: this nail polish seems more antique pink than brown, but who cares at all? It's a holo so holo that... Really... A crazy linear effect, crazy! It's that kind of holo polish that needs a smoothing base, and you'll have to apply it fastly, and that isn't long lasting, but, again, WHO CARES? I think it worths any second that lasts on my nails. Even better than Laylas and Nfu.Ohs, from my point of view. Amazing!

ITA: che dire di questo smalto? Non ha molto di "brown", a dire il vero, sembra più un pallidissimo rosa antico, ma mettiamoci anche un enorme CHISSENEFREGA visto che il suo effetto olografico ha una pUtenza devaShtante a tratti alluSCinante (ieri notte in tv c'era Attila FlaGGello d'Iddio, sì! XD). No, sul serio, è un holo linear pauroso! E' del tipo che necessita di base levigante, che va messo velocemente, e che dura poco, ma sticazzi, vale ogni secondo in cui resta sulle vostre unghie. Per me, anche meglio dei Layla!

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Labels: brown, holo, holographic, mi-ny, twin post: holothon

Comments: 15 comments

Holothon: OPI - My Private Jet (3rd version)

ENG: second "date" with the Holothon saga! This polish was one of my first lemmings ever: I liked so much the idea of a dark cold brown holo, that I felt instantly attracted from it. Then I received this polish as an extra in a swap, but, sadly, mine isn't the first "actual holo" version; not the second version with blue reflection, neither; but this is the third one, aka the "holo glitter" version. You can see a comparison of all variants HERE. My illusion has slumped. ç_ç Go to the bottom of this post for my friends's links! ;D

ITA: eccoci al secondo appuntamento con la Holothon! Questo smalto l'ho bramato a lungo: l'idea di un marrone scuro freddo olografico mi elettrizzava. Poi l'ho ricevuto come extra in uno scambio, ma, purtroppo, il mio non è la prima olograficissima versione; non è neanche la seconda variante, ovvero quella con il riflesso bluastro; la mia è la terza versione, cioè quella con i glitter olografici. Potete vedere un confronto di tutte e tre QUI. Mi ero illusa. ç_ç Andate in fondo a questo post per i link delle mie amicicette! ;D

OPI - MY PRIVATE JET (3RD VERSION: HOLO GLITTERS)

ENG: I have to admit that I'm not so happy about it... First of all: the holo microglitters are not so micro, and, to be honest, they are not so holo, neither... I did pics in its better look, but most of times this nail polish is just a nice dark cold brown with dull silver glitters. Nice, but just... Nice.

ITA: devo ammettere che non sono felicissima di questo smalto... Prima cosa, i microglitter olografici non sono affatto micro, e, ad essere onesti, non sono manco tanto olografici... Le foto che ho fatto cercano di mostrarlo al suo meglio, ma la maggior parte delle volte questo smalto è solo un carino marrone freddo scuro  con glitter argento spenti. Carino. Ma solo... Ehm... Carino.

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Labels: brown, glitter, holo, holographic, opi, twin post: holothon

Comments: 18 comments

Holothon: Glitter Gal - Belgian Chocolate

ENG: another twinsie saga with my polish buddies: the duochrome one is ended and it's  time for a new project, this time it's dedicated to holographic nail polishes, for a holo summer full of reflection!
I'm goint to start with a beautiful Australian shade from Glitter Gal: it was in my wishlist since the first time I've seen it on another blog, and I was waiting for a brown holo since ever. I'd have preferred a colder brown, but this one is still gorgeous! I bought it from a French webstore called Atouts Charme.
If you scroll at the bottom of this post, you'll find links to my friends's swatches! :D

ITA: ancora un'altra iniziativa con le mie instancabili (loro, mica io!) smaltamiche! Finita la saga dei duochrome (a cui io ho partecipato un po' a singhiozzo, a dire il vero...), si riparte con quella degli olografici!
Come primo post comincio con uno smalto australiano della Glitter Gal: era nella mia wishlist dalla prima volta in cui l'ho visto su un blog, e aspettavo un holo marrone da secoli. Puntavo ad un marrone più freddo, ma anche questo è meraviglioso, non gli si può dire niente! L'ho preso dal sito francese Atouts Charme.
Per i links degli swatches delle mie amicice, andate in fondo a questo post! ;D

ENG: and a short video / ITA: e anche un breve video

GLITTER GAL - BELGIAN CHOCOLATE

ENG: I've swatched this nail polish a couple of months ago, but I remember very well my disappointment about the formula. Pigmentation is poor: you need of 3 coats for a full coverage and a deepness of color like pics above. Application is not a dream, neither: strokes can drag away the color of the previous coat, leaving empty areas. I had to do 2 tiny coats to define the edges, then I waited for a complete dry, and just then I applied the final coat, paying attention to not push the brush too much. You also need of a generous amount of top coat to avoid loss of glossiness. By the way, the final result is so beautiful that I forgive it!

ITA: ho swatchato questo smalto ormai un paio di mesi fa, ma ricordo molto bene la delusione per la sua formulazione. La pigmentazione è un po' scarsina: è più sheer di quanto pensassi e bisogna arrivare anche a tre mani di colore per avere una coprenza perfetta e un colore intenso come nelle foto qui sopra. Anche la stesura non è il massimo, perchè spennellando lascia aree vuote da trascinamento del colore dello strato precedente: ho risolto facendo due strati sottilissimi per dare la forma e poi, dopo aver aspettato che fosse completamente asciutto, ho dato una terza mano abbondante ma con delicatezza, senza premere il pennellino sull'unghia. Ci è anche voluto un generoso strato di top coat per non farlo opacizzare dopo qualche ora. Vabbeh, alla fine il risultato è così bello che gli perdono tutto, dai!

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Labels: brown, glitter gal, holo, holographic, red, twin post: holothon, video

Comments: 18 comments

L'Oreal - So Chic Fox + Barielle - Aura Angora + Essence - Happy + scotch tape

ENG: this scotch tape manicure in patchwork design was made in the past February 2013. Sorry for the low quality of the pic, but I was having a flu those days and I didn't care about lights and other stuff. :P

ITA: foto di una scotch tape manicure del tipo patchwork fatta ancora a febbraio 2013. Scusate la qualità un po' scarsina della foto, ma ero influenzata e non è che mi sia impegnata granchè. :P

L'OREAL - VERSAILLES - 114 SO CHIC FOX

ENG: this is the darkest shade used for the nail art in the pic. It's actually a lot darker than the color in the bottle: it's not an ochra, but definitely a very yellowish brown. A real soak poop shade. Beautiful! *_*

ITA: nella nail art qui sopra questo è lo smalto più scuro. In bottiglia non sembra, ma effettivamente, una volta steso, non è un ocra, ma decisamente un marrone molto giallastro. Color cacca molla. Bellissimo! *_*

BARIELLE - STYLE IN ARGYLE - 5099 AURA ANGORA

ENG: this one is the medium shade in the patchwork manicure above. It's an intense puke color that I simply love! You can see some kind of color changing in the bottom of the bottle, but it remains just in bottle: on nails the color is the original shade with no problems at all.

ITA: questo invece è il colore intermedio nella patchwork manicure della foto, un intenso color vomitino che io adoro! In boccetta tende a scolorire verso il mattone sul fondo della bottiglietta, ma assicuro che poi, steso, non subisce nessunissimo cambio cromatico del genere. 

ESSENCE - SNOW WHITE - 04 HAPPY

ENG: last, but not least, the lightest color in the scotch tape manicure is a rich ochra, very nice! It comes from an old Essence limited edition. I really like it, and it's a pity you can't find it anymore on stores.

ITA: ultimo, ma non ultimo, il colore più chiaro della scotch tape manicure è un bel giallone ocra intenso! Viene da una collezione limitata Essence che non si trova più. Peccato, perchè mi è piaciuto un sacco.

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Labels: barielle, brown, creme, essence, l'oreal, scotch tape, yellow

Comments: 12 comments

Nail Art: Fall Patchwork Manicure with scotch tape

ENG: just a very quick post for a scotch tape mani that was made months and months ago. Since colors are olive, brown, sage, taupe, etc, I think it's perfect to post it right now, in the middle of the Autumn. This time I won't add technical details for any single nail polish I've used, just because... I absolutely don't remember which ones I've used! Moreover, if you were interested in replaicing a technique like this, there's a very well done tutorial made by Chloe in this post. Enjoy it! ;D

ITA:  un post veloce quest'oggi, per una manicure fatta mesi e mesi fa con la tecnica dello scotch. Visto che i colori usati sono oliva, marrone, salvia, taupe, eccetera, penso sia perfetto da postare adesso, in pieno autunno. Questa volta non aggiungerò descrizioni tecniche di ogni singolo smalto, semplicemente perchè... Assolutamente non mi ricordo quali ho usato! Inoltre, se foste interessati a replicare questa tecnica anche voi, trovate un bellissimo tutorial fatto da Chloe in questo post. Godetevelo! ;D

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Labels: brown, creme, green, scotch tape

Comments: 10 comments

Kiko - 399 Silky Taupe

ENG: Kiko has recently released the Lavish Oriental collection and I wasn't interested in these nail polishes in the first time, because they were nothing really new for a polish addicted used to holos, so I passed. For a while. Then my friends talked very well about the beige one... I must to admit that they were totally right. This polish is something special and it's different from other taupe holos.

ITA: Kiko di recente ha messo in vendita la collezione Lavish Oriental e non ero interessata a nessuno  di loro all'inizio, perchè non erano niente di così originale per una smalto-dipendente abituata ad ogni ben di holo, così nada. Per un po'. Poi le mie amiche continuavano a parlare così bene di questo... E devo ammettere che avevano ragione. E' davvero speciale e diverso da ogni altro holo taupe che io abbia visto.

KIKO - LAVISH ORIENTAL LIMITED EDITION - 399 SILKY TAUPE

ENG: I have only compliments for this polish, and a few of them are also very rare for a holo. For example there's no need of a smoothing base and the duration is longer than a lot of polishes with more durable finishes. It's also quite opaque and 2 coats are enough, just... Be decise when you brush your nails, to avoid holes. The color is hard to describe: it's a taupe, but it's a very light and cold taupe, almost silver in the sunlight, but full of beautiful beige and gold reflection most of times. The holo effect is linear and quite intense. 

ITA: ho solo complimenti per questo smalto, e alcuni di questi sono anche piuttosto rari per un olografico. Per esempio non è indispensabile una base levigante sotto, e la durata è migliore di molti smalti con un finish solitamente più durevole. E' anche piuttosto coprente e 2 passate sono sufficienti, solo... Siate decise quando spennellate il colore sulle unghie, per evitare buchi nell'applicazione. Il colore è difficile da descrivere: è un taupe, ma così chiaro e freddo che, sotto la piena luce solare sembra quasi argento. Il resto del tempo ha delle bellissime riflessioni beige e dorate, con un effetto olografico lineare molto intenso.

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Labels: brown, holographic, kiko

Comments: 7 comments

OPI - DS Illuminate

OPI is one of those brands that are not so clear about their cruelty-free policy. OPI is, but Coty, that owns the brand, isn't, so a part of money you give to OPI goes to Coty, too. For this reason I don't buy OPI  polishes anymore, but I'll accept swaps of used bottles. No money for Coty, yes polish for me. :)

● OPI - DS ILLUMINATE
This polish is simply amazing. I thought it was cute every time I saw the swatches, but nothing so special, then, I could try it from a friend of mine who owns it, and I instantly fell in love with it. It's beautiful. Just beautiful.  It's beige/brown based with tons of holo microglitters and a slight duochrome effect that goes on green, but I've seen this reflection just few times on nails, under a very brighten sunlight. Formula is also spectacular: application is flawless and the brush glides smoothly and precise. Longevity on nails is wonderful, again. Sorry, I have nothing bad to say about this shade, absolutely nothing!

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Labels: brown, holographic, opi

Comments: 7 comments

Tony Moly - GT03 Mars + Tony Moly - GT04 Neptune + Tony Moly - GT05 Jupiter

Since the first time I've seen this collection on Steffels blog I fell in love with these polishes with no hope of redemption... I've searched them on eBay and found from the HSC Imports. The decision of buying them  took a couple of months, because they are not so cheap, (but the eBayer offers free shipping!), so I waited for a better (=wealthier) time. Eventually I've chosen 3 of 5 from this collection, the most uniques: the green/gold, the bronze and the blue/purple. My cousin bought the blue/purple more the grey with multicolor glitters, so I had the chance to see it, too.

TONY MOLY - GALAXY COLLECTION
A quick review summary for these polishes. First of all, they are opaque, and this is a good point for a massive glitter polish: you'll need of 2 coats for total coverage and "a bit" of patience for the complete drying. Secondly, they are very rough on the surface when dry, so you'll have to add a generous ammount of glossy and thick top coat. Duration was good on my nails, but they peel off after a warm bath, that's not so bad if you want to avoid 20 minutes of imprecations at the removing moment. And the smell is horrible! :P
Conclusions: they need for more attentions than usual polishes, especially you'll have to use some tricks during the application to enhance their beauty, plus a careful "maintenance", but they are so damned cute and complex that I still think they worth these efforts. But I'm totally in love with them, so maybe my point of view isn't very objective. ^__^;

ON MEDIUM FINGER:
● TONY MOLY - GT03 - MARS
The bronzey one! It's a mix of small round glitters in copper, plus smaller round orange/red and gold (maybe few blue, too?) glitters, into a dark base that should be a burgundy or a brown jelly.

ON INDEX AND PINKIE FINGERS:
● TONY MOLY - GT04 - NEPTUNE
The green polish!  It's a polish made with many medium hex glitters in a bright and very sparkling green grass, and tons of small gold microglitters into a dark forest green jelly base.

ON THUMB AND RING FINGERS:
● TONY MOLY - GT05 - JUPITER
The blurple one! It's made with few medium hex duochrome glitters that go from turquoise to green, then many small hex glitters in purple, plus orange microglitters in a dark jelly base.

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Labels: brown, glitter, green, purple, tony moly

Comments: 8 comments

Catrice - Yes, You Tan! + stickers

As always Catrice Limited Editions are a lottery for me, because the mall where I find this brand is pretty far from my place, and I usually find everything of permanent collection, but the LEs... They come late and with a small amount of items, so I need to ask to buy them for me to my friends who live in other areas of Italy, sometimes. This polish is one of them, and the only one I was in love with from the Bohemia Limited Edition. Daniela, sorry for disturbing you again! ç__ç

Indoor


Outdoor (just to see all the reflections into the shimmer!)

● CATRICE - BOHEMIA LE - 02 YES, YOU TAN!

This polish deserves an applause! All together, now!!! *clapclapclap* Seriously... I like colors that look like.. Ehr... THAT brown thing, you know... But, when I wore YYT I was sincerely suprised from its amazing quality: it's extremely easy to work with, because of its brush and the formula. Really, a very good product. The color isn't just a common yellowish brown, but it has a subtle golden shimmer in the bottle that's much more evident on nails and richer of reflections than what I thought.

Then, two weeks later, I've seen the Dior display with the last limited edition, Le Rouge Or. My eyes were catched from a nail polish called Exquis. I didn't know if I had hallucinations or whatever, but the Dior one seemed VERY close to the Catrice shade to me, so I've swatched the Exquis on a piece of scotch tape and I've checked the differences when I got home. Yes, they are VERY close to each other, but the Catrice one has even a better formula!!! I think you won't need of both. In my case, my Catrice is enough, and no regrets! ;)

● STICKERS

I don't know the brand of these decals: a friend of mine gave this gift to me but I know she bought them from Mary Nail Shop. Thank you Tammy! *^__^*

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Labels: brown, catrice, decals, shimmer

Comments: 7 comments

[b]basic - Desierto Seco

Another [b]basic post! This one, shame on me, is quite impossible to find, so I think reviewing this polish makes me a bitch... I'll accept it, but I have to, sorry! ;P
First of all, a small introductory overview of this brand (again, but I have a lot of new followers, so I think it's better saying it one more time): [b]basic is the official makeup line of Schlecker drugstores. You can find this chain of stores in Germany, Austria, Italy, Luxembourg, France, Spain, Portugal, Poland and Czech Republic. These makeups are veeeeery cheap for European standards and, for this reason, they are a lot underrated, maybe because they seem cheap in a bad way? I don't know, but is a fact [b]basic is inexplicably unknown, even in the polish blogger circuit. Why? They are so cheap (0,99 euro cents for 5 ml and 1,29 euro cents for 8 ml), and the color range is small but interesting and the quality is more than acceptable sometimes, and amazing some other times.
I'm going to keep on reviewing all my [b]basic polishes, and my next giveaway will have only [b]basic products as price to promote this brand, since I think it's wonderful, especially for European polishers that have to spend a lot of money more than American ladies to buy their pressssciouses. ç__ç
Sorry for long blabbing today ;P

● [B] BASIC - LE SEVILLA - 01 DESIERTO SECO
I love browns and this one is not an exception for me. I already own several bronzed browns, but this shade is something different from the others. It's a color with a grey tone when it's in the shade or undirect light, like a rock of the desert; but it brings out its yellowish face under the sun or direct artificial light, with an embarassing amount of antique gold, olive green and dark red micro-sparkle parts.
Application is very good (but don't be shy with number of coats: be brave and the polish will award you! è_é/), but duration a bit less. 

If you want to see another review for this beautiful polish, click here to read the post. Alice, owner of Mai senza smalto blog, also wrote about this polish. My photos are with the yellow tone, and her pics are with the grey one, so you'll see all faces of this amazing product!

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Labels: basic, brown, shimmer

Comments: 9 comments

Essence - 45 Date with the Night

Headache again. Dizziness again. Actually I don't want to write so much, so... Pics!

● ESSENCE - COLOUR & GO - 45 - DATE WITH THE NIGHT

I'm not very satisfied about this polish. I saw the bottle: a cold brown with silver and red shimmer, and I thought "Wow! Mine!", but actually is a frosty one that shows off any application imperfections. It isn't ugly or low quality, just... Oooh man! Don't look at me with that face: we'll find a good match for you, too, don't worry.

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Labels: brown, essence, frost

Comments: 3 comments

Barielle - Tight Knit + water decals

This comes from a Makeupalley swap. The package came to me few weeks ago. I'm trying all polishes I received but  I'm not a pro, so I'll take my time (that usually is a lot of time XD). The color is beautiful for my taste, but a bit plain so I've added a water decal and made some glitter dots with matching colors on my middle finger.

● BARIELLE - TIGHT KNIT

I can't say in English a name for this color: it's brown, but reddish, and still very dark antique pink... Really, I don't know... It's a creme but the formula is not so easy to work as I expected, but I received the package in a very hot warm week, maybe the quality was a bit gone away to other places along the path... By the way, with a bit of patience and some top coat, the result is shiny and smooth and beautiful. I like so much this autumnal color, and I don't care at all if it's august right now. :P

● WATER DECAL

This is the very first time I've tried a water decal, and I'm in love with them: they can have many details and they are so tiny... I hope to buy more of them in the future. I bought this decal from a british eBayer: dowryqueen. They have stickers and other nail stuff, and you can find a lot of peculiar designs.

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Labels: barielle, brown, creme, decals, dots, red

Comments: 4 comments

Catrice - In the Bronx

I wasn't sure about buying this polish... It looked sheer and streaky... But I bought it anyway. What a luck! More coats and it's amazing!

Bulblight



Outdoor



Indoor

● CATRICE - 460 - IN THE BRONX

First coat is a hell: sheer, streaky, a color like poo... No way! The second one fixes a lot, the third one shows a wonderful polish, so different under various lights, so classy, brightening but still discreet. Indoor seems almost a mteallc, in the sunlight you can see gold and red glitter shine. I advice this shade, absolutely! And very long loasting, too.

EDIT: after speaking with some friends of mine (who didn't notice any problem about application of this polish), we think my bottle was damaged by the hottest week of the year: I received this polish by mail during those days, so it's pretty probably the formula has suffered from that crazy heat.

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Labels: brown, catrice, metallic

Comments: 0 comments