NOTD: OPI I Don’t Give a Rotterdam!

This color is a gorgeous greyed cool periwinkle with fine silver, pink, and lavender glitter. This is such an unusual color, I really love it. The glitter also runs pretty densely through the polish, which is surprising considering the pigment is rather sparse and it is a glitter, not a shimmer. It is very sheer, so it takes three coats to build it up, but it dries extraordinarily fast so that doesn’t really cause any problems. The formula is also rather brittle in a way (possibly from the density of shimmer?), which can lead to a shorter wear time. A good topcoat (like the fabulous NYC Grand Central Station) will take care of that. Honestly the quality of the polish isn’t stellar but the color is, and you can certainly work with it. It’s certainly worth it!

Product Smackdown: Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure (Commander in Chic) vs. Essie Merino Cool

I love taupe colors for fall in all capacities- eyes, nails, and sometimes even lips! Nearly every single nail polish manufacturer on the planet has got a version out there. Here I have two very similar colors of taupe polish from two respected brands- Essie and Sally Hansen. Let’s see which one wins!!

Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure in 370 Commander in Chic: $6.59 (0.5 fl oz/14.7 mL)   at Target

Essie Nail Lacquer in 76 Merino Cool: $7.79 (0.46 fl oz/13.5 mL) at Target

http://www.target.com/p/sally-hansen-complete-salon-manicure-commander-in-chic/-/A-13332358

http://www.target.com/p/essie-nail-color-merino-cool/-/A-13249632?ref=tgt_adv_XSG10001&AFID=Google_PLA_df&LNM=%7C13249632&CPNG=Health+Beauty&kpid=13249632&LID=PA&ci_src=17588969&ci_sku=13249632&gclid=CIvJoOb0kboCFZE7Mgod-ScApg

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

	Sally Hansen	Essie
Features (as found on brand websites)	Base coat, strengthener, growth treatment, salon-inspired color, top coat, chip-resistance and a gel finish all in 1 bottleVita Care technology for advanced 10 day wear, more shine and nourishing care 1st place	Outstanding durability, a chip-resistant formula          2nd place
Price	1st place	2nd place
Color (for me personally)	Mid-tone purple-based taupe (lighter than Essie)1st place	Dark-mid-tone purple-based taupe (darker than Sally Hansen)2nd place
Wear time (until first chip appears)	After 4-5 days, only minor tip wear , no base or top coat 1st place	After 2-3 days, no base or topcoat   2nd place
Application	Brush slightly larger, product less prone to gloopiness1st place	Good brush, product prone to gloopiness2nd place
Dry Time	1st place	2nd place
Ingredients	DBP, Toluene, and Formaldehyde freeContains parabens 2nd place	DBP, Toluene, and Formaldehyde free1st place
OVERALL RANK	1st place	2nd place

Overall, there is no disputing it: Commander in Chic outperformed Merino Cool in virtually every category. Honestly, the wear time for me was the most impressive; for me most things wear 2-3 days before starting to chip, like the Essie shade. For me to get that much wear out of it was absolutely mind blowing for me. The Complete Salon Manicure looks like an amazing formula, I think I will be picking up some more colors from the line in the future!

NOTD: Essie Merino Cool

Essie Merino Cool is a mid-tone purple cream with grey and taupe undertones.I really love this color, I’ve really gotten into more subdued creams, I think they really fit well into the winter and fall seasons. I love how this is such an interesting and relatively dark color, but the grey undertones keep it relatively quiet. This makes is a fairly wearable color, perfect for the more cautious nail polish wearer, and this would also suit so many skintones. The formulation could be better in terms of wear, but with a good base coat and/or top coat you’ll be fine. The pigmentation is excellent, though. I think this will be a staple color for many more A/W seasons to come!

Have a fabulous Friday!

Lilla xx

NOTD: Wet n Wild Gray’s Anatomy

I just picked up this color recently and I just adore it! It is a gorgeous duochrome, it goes between a silver-green and a lilac. It was also very inexpensive! I don’t know that it was particularly fast-drying, but it wasn’t slower than normal either. Overall a very interesting and unique color, and cheap too!

Hope you are having a fabulous Friday!

Lilla xx

NOTD: OPI Eiffel for this Color

This is a really nice dark purple, and I think this is a great alternative to black. You do need 3 coats to get it fully opaque, but it is a really nice color! I will really enjoy wearing this in the fall as well.

Hope you are having a great Friday!

Lilla xx