OPI Charmed by a Snake

Please excuse my fingers; they are so dry and chapped right now! I know they're not looking very pretty, especially that middle finger.


Now that we got that out of the way, I present Charmed by a Snake. I picked it up last winter, and even though it's from a summer collection. I love the sunny bronze gold base and the gold shimmer. It applies great and is opaque in three coats. You could probably get away with two, but three coats is just a habit.

I love to wear this when I go to the beach. Something about the sand and the sun makes it look amazing. Charmed by a Snake is from OPI India Collection in the spring/summer of 2008.

OPI Don't Socra-Tease Me!

This was my first OPI, given to me by my grandmother. She had bought it for herself, but she said it was too "wild" for her. My grandmother has beautiful beyond beautiful nails that are perfectly shaped and strong. She says it's because of all the vitamins she takes.

ANYWAY, Don't Socra-Tease Me! is a fun spring color. Pink-ish coral with a ("wild") orange tinge to it in the right light. I love it as a pedicure polish. Below is four coats and you can still see my nail line, which is frustrating. It can also leave obvious brushstrokes on the nail. Like I said, I use this one for my toes. Don't Socra-Tease Me! is from the OPI Greek Isles Collection in spring or summer of 2004.

China Glaze Flying Dragon

Remember back in the day when Barney the Dinosaur was actually purple? I mean, so purple he was almost blue? Nowadays he's practically magenta. A pink dino? I think not. ANYWAY.

Flying Dragon is like a compromise of the old-school-90s-Barney-purple and the current-day-rosy-hue-Barney. It meets somewhere in the middle. Applies nicely in three thin coats and dries very quickly. It does leave you with a grainy texture on the nails (the result of neon+glitter) but throw a topcoat on and you're all set.
Flying Dragon with a topcoat: Flying Dragon is from the China Glaze INK Collection from summer 2008.

More Halloween nails...

Ehhh...I tried. Haha, if it isn't obvious by now, I'm not an expert nail artist. But I'm working on it. 1. OPI In My Back Pocket, OPI Baby It's "Coal" Outside tip, China Glaze Matte Magic topcoat
2. China Glaze Awaken, Orly Liquid Vinyl spider, cotton ball fluff web
3. Orly Liquid Vinyl, China Glaze Orange Marmalade tip

I saw the spider idea in an old American Girl magazine when I was about ten...It was slightly cuter on paper than on my nail and my spider looks more like a tick, but it was fun trying.

Just some Halloween nails...

This was my sort of lame attempt at nail art for Halloween...I love water marbling, but I didn't have tape with me to protect my skin and I'm running out of polish remover, so getting every last bit of paint off my fingers was pretty difficult...so I'm sorry if it looks a little sloppy. I put a matte topcoat over the first finger and then accidentally smudged it, so you can kind of see my fingerprint there. 1. OPI In My Back Pocket base, marbled with OPI In My Back Pocket and Orly Liquid Vinyl, with China Glaze Matte Magic topcoat
2. OPI Alpine Snow base, marbled with OPI Alpine Snow, OPI In My Back Pocket, and Orly Vinyl
3. OPI Alpine Snow base, marbled with OPI In My Back Pocket and Orly Liquid Vinyl

OPI Russian Navy Suede

I'm really impressed with the OPI Suede Collection. I haven't actually tried any of the polishes from the Matte Collection, but they didn't look very appealing. From what I've read, the Suedes make up for the disappointment of the Mattes.The formula is great and not streaky at all. It dries very quickly and coats evenly. Being a matte-ish polish it doesn't last very long, but it'll stay for a few days if you take care. 1. OPI Russian Navy Suede with China Glaze Matte Magic topcoat
2. OPI Russian Navy Suede
3. OPI Russian Navy Suede with Orly Won't Chip topcoat

It also looks gorgeous with a topcoat over it which, of course, takes away from the satin-y finish but adds nice shine and depth.

1. Russian Navy

2. Russian Navy Suede with Orly Won't Chip topcoat

3. Russian Navy Suede

4. Russian Navy with China Glaze Matte Magic topcoat

And for comparison's sake, the original Russian Navy next to the suede version.

OPI Russian Navy

One of my first OPIs was Russian Navy...I love this color. It's a deep blue with a greenish base and red and purple shimmer. Gorgeous! The polish goes on great; it can be a little sticky if the coats aren't thin enough, though. But two coats will make it opaque and it wears great. The only issue is that it is a nightmare to remove, even with acetone. It gets stuck in the cuticles and nail beds, and stains the skin on my fingers. But it's definitely one of my favorite polishes for fall and winter. OPI Russian Navy is from the Russian Collection of Fall 2007.

My Stash

Without further ado, I present my stash. It may not be as impressive as some of the blogging ladies around here, but it's a work in progress! It's weird; if somebody asked me what my favorite nail polish color was, I wouldn't be able to choose, but looking at it now I have a bunch of blues and purples. Hmm.

I never really organize these well. Mi cuñada has attempted to organize them by color many times, but I never really stick to it. Note the one China Glaze mingling with the OPIs. And as an added bonus, you get a nice shot of my impossibly pale leg. I hope you guys are having a fabulous weekend!

Essie Escapades

It's pretty late and I'm exhausted, but I can't sleep. I apologize for the shoddy paint job; my fine motor skills aren't anything to envy here. Anyway, Essie Escapades (that's fun to say) is a red polish with what seems to be orange undertones...it's not pure red, but it wouldn't be considered coral, either. Typical Essie: good application, drys in a reasonable amount of time, lasts for a while. I did two coats, but you could just barely get by with one if you dare.I love wearing this color in the summer...it's a great pedicure shade, too. My only issue with Essie is the brushes. I really don't like painting with such a small brush. I would prefer a wider, flatter one, like OPI's. Either way, I love the color and the formula, so what can you do? Escapades is from the Summer 2008 collection.

PS, my nails are starting to grow back from my little incident earlier. I've been popping a Biotin every day though, which I have used in the past, in the hopes that it will make my nails healthier.