NYX Cosmetics’ Chrome Eyeshadow collection

I think NYX learned something about marketing with this collection: put stuff in larger containers, and people will be happier. The Pearl Mania loose shadows come in tiny vials that are about half the size of the Chrome jars, but they contain almost the same amount of product. And, yes,...

Zoya’s Uptown collection

I held off getting many colors from this collection because they looked like a bunch of reds…and with Zoya’s huge color range, I wasn’t interested in reds. My mistake!! Tess, one of my earliest Zoya purchases, is one of my favorite polishes from this company. I broke...

China Glaze’s Admire

A nice enough deeper metallic pink with good coverage, but really really shows the brushstrokes. I do have a “back-up” bottle of this because it works well for nail stamping. Most etailers still have many of the Romantique colors in stock, even now (mid-2011.)

OPI’s Glacier Bay Blues

When I saw the picture online, it looked like a brighter azure-navy shimmer. When I got the bottle, I thought, “Oh, yay, another purple-navy duochrome? Like Designer Series Magical or Lunar Eclipse? Nice enough, but I've already got two of those. I don't need another, not even if it's a...

Zoya’s Mia

A perfect early-spring nude pink. Vaguely similar to Amanda, but a bit pinker and covers faster. (And since we here in Seattle are effectively just getting our spring, even though it's officially summer…it's fitting to post this mani today.)

BareMinerals’ buxom Leslie

BareMinerals’ t.t.y.l. blush

Very, very sheer color that's right on the borderline of being barely too orange for my coloring…if it shows up. I tend to use a lighter hand - and a softer brush - for applying blushes than most. But this color almost wouldn't show up if I applied it...

NYX Cosmetics’ Turquoise Pearl

There's a lot of product in these little tiny vials… Softer when applied dry, with a pretty minimal pearl finish. That really shows up best when foiled. The blue color also looks much more like what's in the vial when it's applied wet than dry. I haven't quite decided yet...

BareMinerals’ Pussycat Eyes kit

This one was on Ebay, in quantity, when I was just getting started with BE. I don’t recall Catwoman being available for individual purchase, though both Meow and Pussycat have been (though now, neither are.) Catwoman is a gorgeous color, and if you ever see this kit or that...

OPI’s South Beach collection

My first polish from this collection was Sand in my Suit. I was looking for a good neutral shade, and picked this from an etailer’s lineup. Then I added Done Out in Deco, Miami Beet, and Overexposed in South Beach. While there are a few other attractive shades in...