OPI Lucertainly Look Marvelous

Hey fellow polish fanatics, I discovered a really cool color the other day in my wife's polish collection. Now I realize that those are 'fightin' words' to many of you who cringe at the thought of your spouse rooting through your coveted collection of nail polishes! In my case, my wife and I have a mutual understanding that we can borrow each other's polishes, as long as we treat them as our own (don't spill them, leave the bottle top all gooey or let them dry out). As it turns out, I am not particularly interested in wearing many of the colors she has, and the same applies to she of mine, so it works pretty well for us.

This color caught my eye the day she bought it. It's from the OPI Swiss Collection released last fall. It is pretty glittery and full of really cool texture when closeup, but from a distance it looks a lot like a really intriguing 'black chrome'. That is why I really like it!

And, it changes it's look depending on the lighting you see it in (which is true of many polishes that have depth or shimmer to them), another reason why I like it so much.

Here is 'Lucerne' in overcast daylight. It looks kind of gray and grainy here - different than many others.

Under a flash (or sunlight, but we haven't seen any of that around here for a number of days) it looks more black and chromy. I think this is probably the way I like to see it the most!

This closeup shows the grainy texture to it. Those are actually silvery specs that really catch the light.

And here is a good picture of it with some indirect daylight.

Let me know what you think, especially if you have already tried it!

Jake

Hey fellow polish fanatics - I'm back! Yeah, it's been a while since I posted anything new - it's winter here and I haven't been polishing up a storm like usual.

But, the good news is that I have some awesome new colors for you to drool over (and buy)! These are the latest from BB Couture and the theme this time is 'the old west'. Six for guys and six for gals, though I found I especially liked a few from the gal collection too!

My favorites are listed first (since I swatched those as soon as I opened the box). I will post these in sets because I am doing them when there is good daylight (not every day around here lately...) so you can really see the truer colors.

We'll start off this roundup with "Posse", a very pleasant deeper olive with just a hint of gold in it. I used the word 'pleasant' because this is a very comfortable color for anyone - not too bright or 'loud' and a really earthy and natural-looking shade. You could wear this one any time of year and the more I wore it, the more I liked it.

Indoors, under artificial light, the olive hue is quite evident.

Outside, in overcast light, the color is a bit more subdued, and very 'pleasant'.

Here is a closeup so you can see the incredible micro-shimmer and texture.

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My next choice is "Wrangler", a slightly washed-out blue that looks pretty close to the color of denim or blue jeans. Notice how much the color of this one changes from outside vs inside. The color appears a bit bolder in my indoor picture than it actually is. I tried to mess with the light settings in my camera in an attempt to get it closer, but this is about the best I could manage. One coat coverage and with a very smooth subtle shimmery look.

Outside, in overcast light.

But very different indoors under artifical light (it's actually lighter than this looks).
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"Outlaw" is an intriguing shade of, well, I guess you could call it purple, but it has so many other colors in it that it entirly depends on the light you are viewing it in. This one is packed with lots of micro-shimmer in a rainbow of colors; reds, greens, golds and blues. Depending on the angle and light, it changes to various hues of all of these. My pics just don't do it justice. Very cool color!!

Outlaw - Indoors

Outdoors (overcast)

Outdoors (sun)

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Okay, if you are getting tired of seeing basic black on nails everywhere (like I am), here's a great alternative: "Pistol Packing Mama" is really a very dark warm brown with brown micro-shimmer hidden in it. The finish is super glassy and smooth and it covers in one coat. I didn't even use a topcoat for these pictures. I really like this one because it's not so stark as true black would be, it is a richer color that looks better than black IMHO.

Indoors, you can just see a little of the micro shimmer - and compare the color to my black sandal.

Outdoors in the sun it really 'shines'.

This closeup shows you how incredible the brown shimmer comes out. Subtle, but it sure adds depth to the polish!

Wow - BBC has proven once again that even though there are probably a zillion colors of nail polish available, there is still room for more variety and unique shades.

And kudos to BB Couture for keeping us guys in mind too. Yeah, maybe men don't need special nail polish, but just the fact that BBC acknowledges that men can wear it too is pretty cool in my opinion. And some of these so-called 'guy' colors look pretty sweet on you gals too!!!

Okay now, back to my 'polish lab' to swatch the next exciting batch for you all to enjoy!

Jake

Happy Halloween! : )

For those of you who get into it, here's a little Halloween spirit for ya!

BOO!

OPI Cuckoo For This Color!

Yeah, I'd say the name fits this one for sure!
I don't know how OPI keeps coming up with these crazy names, but I sure like some of the new colors they've come out with recently.

This one is from the Swiss collection.


I really like the way it seems to shift colors when it is seen in different kinds of light.


I think it looks very chic and classy for toes and would look good on a girl with some dark dressy heels.
...oh, and for a guy - it's an incredible color too!

Have an awesome - and colorful - day!!! :)

Autumn

Hello my fine followers :)


Here's a cool autumn color I came across while doing a little 'cleaning' through my collection.
I remember liking it when I first got it, and I guess I still do like it!

It's from Creative Nail Design,
called "Cedar".

...in indirect light


...and in sun
















Happy Fall everyone!!! I hope you are enjoying all the brilliant colors :)

Jake (aka Toepaintguy)

Black? ...or Black?

Wow it seems like forever since I last posted. Well, I guess I am like a lot of you, just very busy trying to make it all work in this trying economy.
But, there is always time for some fun,right?

Okay now readers, your color seleciton advice is greatly appreciated here. I have two black polishes that I like a lot, but I need some help from you in deciding which one to wear for Halloween.


On the left is Zoya Raven, a rich true-black with just a hint of shimmer hidden in it.
On the right is Man Glaze Death Tar, an incredible matte black with a ton of multi-colored flecks imbedded in it (seen here with a glossy overcoat).


With a good coat of Seche Vite, they can both look like glass, and you all know how good a glossy black can look! In fact, I am inclined to say that black may be the best unisex color of nail polish there is. It looks equally classy and great on women and men.


Okay, here they are close-up so you can really see how they look.

First, Zoya Raven:
















And here is the Man Glaze:

















Please let me know in the comments below which one you like best. If you want even better pics, check here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/toepaintguy/

Either one would work, but with your input, I will be confident I'm looking my best for the cause!
Hey, it's great to be back! I missed all of you!!! : )

Jake

NEW "Lovers" Paired Collection is out!

This is sooooo cool! BB Couture just introduced a new collection of nail polishes that are being paired in duos - one for the girl and one for the guy - together! They are complimentary colors that look great together and are designed to help promote couples to wear them proudly. Talk about a stroke of genius... and fresh thinking!

Okay, on with the reviews!

First, a bit of disclaimer...I had to swatch all twelve of these myself because my girl had just gotten a very nice pedicure with artwork and was not too excited to remove it right away. Guess I can't blame her, but it would have been cool to show you the gal colors on a female foot.
And, my camera simply does not capture the colors as they really are. Trust me though, these are beautiful colors that are much better than you see below.

The first pair is called "Pocahontas and John Smith". Pocahontas is a very classy mauve creme with just a hint of micro glitter (that's hard to see in this picture). Subtle, but perfect because it does not look like any other 'creme' you will find elsewhere.

John Smith compliments this color nicely as a more neutral gray/beige creme that is clean and refreshingly simple.

Carla and Michael may not be famous to you, but they definitely are in love! And this rich pair of colors says they are very deeply in it together. Carla is a spectacular rich purple with hints of copper and red shimmer in it. If you like purple, Wow, this is one of the most vivid purples Ihave seen! The picture is a bit dark, but look closely at the big toe to see the detail.

And then there is Michael, no slouch in the color department either. The cool thing about this color is that it's not just another deep blue, but it has just the right amount of subtle purple shimmer - enough that you may not be sure what color it is. What is certain though, is that it looks really great on a guy - next to Carla of course!

Cleopatra is one of those "to die for" intense aquamarines that you just can't find - until now! It has a subtle sky blue shimmer to it as well that makes this one so intriguing. A perfect beach color!

Paired with Cleopatra is Anthony, a rich deep blue with subtle aqua shimmer. Not as bold as Cleo, but it looks entirely appropriate for her guy in-tow.

Okay, eveyone's heard of Bonnie and Clyde. And GREEN is their color, of course! Bonnie is a festive bright true green with lots of green glitter. She'd definitely be a 'hit' at your next bank robbery!

And heeeeeerrrrreee'sss Clyde! Basically the same true green as Bonnie, but without the glitter.

I guess I should have posted this couple first, since they really did get this whole thing started... Eve is a svelte Olive with gold and green glitter, topped with a subtle rose hue. I can only imagine what Adam might have thought if she was wearing this color in the garden!

And my favortie of the colleciton, Adam. This was a surpriser for me. I didn't think it looked that attractive in the bottle, but on the nail, it is probably the best 'guy' color I think I have come across. It's earthy, kind of an olive/army green, but it has the slightest hint of micro shimmer in it to make it interesting. and it has that same rosy hue to it as Eve. What a pair!!! Gals, this is a great starter color for your guy because it will just look so natural on him.

And now, one of the most cherished couples of all time, Romeo and Juliet. Juliet is a very pretty rose/mauve creme that just looks softly feminie.

Romeo is slightly bolder than Juliet, but they go together so well, they really do look like a couple in love. This one is a brown/mauve with very subtle hints of shimmer to make it interesting. What an awesome fall color too!

Wow, it was really fun to try all these colors and I thank the fantastic folks at BB Couture for all the hard work in creating these wonderfully complimentary colors and coming up with the idea to package them together. BB Couture has been instrumental in promoting the use of nail polish by men, and I think that even though there probably is no exclusion on any of these colors, it's a fresh and welcome effort to encourage guys to get into this that I think is pretty darned cool of them.

Now I really appreciate all the work many of you do too when you swatch the latest colors, photograph them and them publish the pics with your awesome reviews. It takes more than I initally expected, and my results are not near as nice as many of yours. Oh well, practice shold help...

I hope that many who read this are inspired to try a pair or two of these colors along with your SO. I know many guys won't get near the stuff, but since guys wearing polish is growing in popularity (at least my pedicurist says so), it will just be a matter of time before he joins you!

Thanks for reading - and following my blog! : )