Archive for July, 2009
CND Colour, Effects and Henna?
 Happy Monday Fanatics! After another fun but tiring weekend away, this time with my Michigan/Cedar Point friends, I have some fun nail pics to show you.We drove up for German Park, a festival that takes place at the German Park Recreation Club the last weekend of June, July & August. It’s a lot of German food, beer and music in a very off the beaten path type location. We went and staked out a couple picnic tables for a day drunken stupidity, good food and card games. Thank goodness we had our preggers DD to cart our tipsy butts back.
While I was there I snuck out to meet up with one of my fave fellow bloggers, Christine from 15 Minute Beauty Fanatic, which meant an early morning mani was in order. I’ve been carrying around a couple of the new CND Colour & Effects polishes since becoming obsessed with a certain color combo so that’s what I went with. Check it out after the jump! |
As I mentioned in my Cosmoprof Recap, CND totally revamped their line with the introduction of Colour & Effects. They’re releasing 50 Colours in a range from the whitest white to the blackest black with primary, secondary and metallics thrown in to provide a well rounded palette of shades. In addition, the 15 Effects allow you to transform the Colours with sheer pearls, shimmers and glitters to layer over top. It’s similar in concept to the brand Nailtini only the polish quality is like 100 times better.
Let’s talk about the polish. The new CND formula is 3-free AND free of the dry time issue that plagued CND polishes in the past. I’ve tested it now using a few different top coats and those old denting problems are gone. They also have a new ergonomic bottle with a rubberized cap and a NEW BRUSH!!
The brush is flat but not too wide. It’s about a 1/3 the width of my pinkie nail which means I can fan it out without hitting skin but the actual bristles are what make it unique. They are very thin but triangular in shape. I’m not sure why that makes a difference but application is AH-MAZING!! Seriously you guys, I’m so in like with this polish I want to send it a note to ask if we can be BFFs.
So when we got the chance to play with the new Colours & Effects at the Cosmoprof launch, the combination I loved most was layering Sapphire Sparkle, a smooth, bright blue glittah, over Inkwell, a blue-black creme. There’s something about the glitter in this one that makes it look purple-ish depending on the light. I took way too many pictures but I’m sure you won’t complain over that.
 Now you may have noticed the mention of Henna in the title. Well one of the people we met at German Park is a henna artist. Julie of |
I’ve never worn henna before so I was fascinated to hear her talk about how there are different types of henna paste and how you should avoid toxic “black henna.” How she mixes her own and scents it with lavender (it smelled so fab!).
As she started drawing the design on my hands, she did warn that copious amounts of German beer may effect the results. Considering that I have a hard time drawing a stick figure when playing Hangman, I think she did a pretty wicked job, no?
 My friend Jewels also got in on the henna action with an even more detailed design. We passed out shortly after so the henna got plenty of drying time on our skin. Julie told us that the design would continue to darken and then fade as our skin exfoliates but I didn’t realize how intense it would look. |
Here we are today, approximately 36 hours after she applied the design and I’m totally loving it. I’m told it can last anywhere up to nine days with proper care and moisturizing so unless you work in a relaxed environment, like I do, you may want to consider a less conspicuous placement should you delve into henna art. Since I’m way too much of a baby to ever get a tattoo, this is a perfect alternative.
What do you all think? Are you liking my CND combo? Are you a fan of henna?
The CND Colour & Effects line will launch in the Fall at salons and spas in the US. Colours will retail for $9, Effects for $11.
Fanatics in the Ypsilanti/Ann Arbor area can contact Julie regarding henna body art at ArborHenna.com.
COSMOPROF Day 2 Recap
 Fanatics, Vegas can really suck the life out of you. I returned on Tuesday and slept for almost the next 24 hours after. I woke long enough for the boyfriend to drag me to dinner and that was about it. So now that I’m recouped and somewhat back on track, here are the highlights from Day 2 at Cosmoprof.
I’m sure my fellow China Glaze fans will be uber-excited by what I have to show you. Lots of great goodies are on the way from one of my fave brands. Let’s take a lookie loo, shall we? |
We started our day attending an education class for brands on how to retail their products online. Beth Mayall, Editor In Chief of TotalBeauty.com, was speaking on the tools brands can use to gain online exposure including blogs, like ALU.
Next stop was the Entity Beauty booth. I’ve seen Entity’s products on TransDesign.com but I haven’t tried them before. I couldn’t help but be drawn to their sleek bottles and fun colors. So far they only have the two color collections and a set of french mani colors but if these do well, they may release more in the future. Any Entity fans in the house??
Of course, my trip wouldn’t be complete without a stop at the AII Beauty booth, parent company of China Glaze. I met up with my pal Anne to check out what’s coming next from the fanatic fave.
Created for the Japanese market, China Glaze is releasing a set of 50 glitters/chromes in mini sized bottles here in the US. There are sparklers in a range of shades and glitter sizes. There’s a pink glitter that reminds me of Good Witch? on crack. ***Edited to add: Apparently the minis won’t be available here, the glitters will be full size in the US.***
Instead of jumping on the matte bandwagon, which is sure to burn out, China Glaze is launching a set of Fall metallics called Khrome. Think, Romantiques in shades more appropriate for the season. Though I’m told they are much less streaky than the Romantiques. Yay for that!!
Folloing Khrome comes the return of Emerald Sparkle for Holiday. This time it’s being packaged with a new gold glass flecked polish, 5 Golden Rings, in addition to Tinsel and Ruby Pumps from last year’s Sleigh Ride collection.
Dark Secrets is this year’s Winter collection and I’m so drooling over the purple, teal and gray. I can’t WAIT to try them out.
And as my Twitter followers know… the Wizard of Ooh Ahz collection is making a triumphant return. A long, long time ago I sent swatches of my original WOOA polishes to China Glaze to help them recreate the collection. It was originally slated to release this year but was pushed back to Spring 2010. It’s been so hard keeping my yap shut on this one. I know news of it leaked a bit on MUA but nothing had been publicly confirmed until now. So those of you who have been lemming Dorothy Who?, Good Witch?, C-c-courage, Cowardly Lyin’ and The Tan Man, your wait will soon be over. Can you even contain your excitement??
Now I wish I could show you pictures of what Essie and OPI have cooked up but they keep their polishes under lock and key away from spying eyes and cameras. With so many manufacturers in one place, all competeing for our attention, is it any wonder?
We finished our day at the show with a lovely relaxing dinner at Zeffirino in the Venetian. Being that my red eye flight home was already delayed and time was on my side, we decided to indulge ourselves. We had a gorgeous view from our table of the Canal Shoppes and gondolas below as we dined on delicious fish (all of us went the fish route) and yummy wine. We even witnessed a couple getting engaged on a gondola. How sweet!
And what dinner is complete without a decadent dessert? We all tried something different so we could share. Mine was the pyramid shaped confection. It was a cappuccino creme covered in a creme brulee-esque toasted chocolate shell with raspberry sauce. Perfection! Though the pear filled, caramel covered creme and cannoli were delicious as well.
It’s a shame drama with my plane’s auxillary power had to ruin the night but it didn’t wreck my trip. I had an absolute blast with my fellow blogger Phyllis and the ladies from Total Beauty. It was great getting to see some of my blogging pals and my fave nail brands. I’m already counting down to Cosmoprof 2010!
btw, Phyllis has some pics of the CND Colour & Effects polishes she brought home on her blog. Check them out!
Sally Hansen HD Hi-Defintion Giveaway
Hi Fanatics! I’m back from Vegas with a fantastic giveaway. I know I said this would go live on Monday but traveling and scheduled posting issues got in the way. So let’s get this party started.
I told you all about the amazing sweepstakes Sally Hansen is hosting on their own site (click here) to promote the HD Hi-Definition line launch. As if that’s not enough, Sally Hansen is sponsoring a giveaway just for ALU Fanatics. FIVE (5) lucky readers will WIN a full set of the HD Hi-Definition polishes.
What do you need to do to win? We’re going to do this one two ways. TWO (2) Winners will win by completing the form below and THREE (3) will win via Twitter.
I’m SUCH a Twitter fanatic and I’m on a mission to get everyone I know to jump on the bandwagon so for the Twitter portion of this giveaway I’m asking you to JOIN Twitter, FOLLOW All Lacquered Up (so I can contact you) and TWEET this message: I want to win @AllLacqueredUp’s Sally Hansen HD Hi-Definition Giveaway.
Giveaway is open to US Residents only and ends on August 7th, 2009 at 11:55pm. Winners will be chosen at random and contacted via email or Twitter.
Chanel Intermezzo and Gondola Le Vernis for Fall 2009
As a city built on water, Venice was a source of great intrigue for Gabrielle Chanel. She saw it as simultaneously dramatic and fragile – qualities she herself possessed. With the imagination of the CHANEL Makeup Studio, Venice comes to life in a palette reflective of the city’s shimmering facades and mosaics, and the sparkling aquatic colours of its lagoons.
As seen in the runway looks created by Peter Philips, Global Creative Director of CHANEL Makeup, at the 2009/10 Cruise Collection show, held on the beaches of Venice, Italy, rich sienna and deep rose tones, and dusky greys and greens combine for a modern look that can be softened for day or emboldened come evening.
Ahh Venice. How I long to go back. I spent three amazing days there with the Boyfriend back in 2002. We stayed in a gorgeous guest house, Palazzo Bembo, right on the canal near the Rialto Bridge. We spent our days wandering the maze of streets shopping, sightseeing and discovering the amazing food and wine of the region. This season Chanel aims to transport us to Venice with their fall colleciton inspired by the colors of this magical city. For nails they introduce Intermezzo, a white pearl, and Gondola, a stunning maroon shimmer. Let’s take a look.
Gondola is a rich burgundy sparkler. It is packed with gold and red micro-shimmer that catch the light adding a bit of jazz to what could be just another berry red. In typical Chanel fashion it’s a chic shimmer not a blingy glitter polish. It applied in two even coats and dried to a glossy, smooth finish.
Intermezzo is an icy white with an opalescent shimmer that gives off a pinkish sheen in the light. I’m not gonna lie, I’m not really a fan of the formula. It applies pretty streaky, requiring three coats and even then my smile line shows through.
The Chanel Fall collection Le Vernis lacquers retail for $23/ea and are available now on Chanel.com and at Chanel counters nationwide.
What do we think Fanatics? Are we loving these or what? Anyone planning to indulge?
COSMOPROF Day 1 Recap
 Day 1 of CosmoProf is over and I’m exhilarated, tired, giddy and dying to share the deets on everything I saw. I’ll be going in depth on some of the amazing things I came across when I get home but I wanted to update you all with a quick recap of the goodies I spotted on the show floor.
If you’re not familiar with CosmoProf it’s an annual salon trade show with exhibitors showing off their products in hopes of getting distribution. Because they are unveiling some of their latest and greatest products, press (including bloggers) are invited to cover the event. Now some of the brands are revealing collections that will release next Spring/Summer so to avoid being copied I’m only able to photograph fall/winter/holiday launches. But I can tell you, there are some EXCITING colors on the horizon. Check out my Day 1 redux, after the jump! |
My first stop was the Discover Beauty section of CosmoProf. It’s an area with new, emerging brands looking for US distributorship. When I saw Nails Inc. listed on the show map, I made an immediate beeline to their booth. Fanatics, let’s hope, hope, hope that they get picked up by someone like Sephora or ULTA or some other online/chain store. We NEED Nails Inc. in our lifestyle like ASAP. The color line is amazing, the packaging is so so chic AND they have a 45 Second Top Coat that has me in utter disbelief. They were giving a sneak peek at their holiday blinged out polishes and I MUST have one in my collection come December. The perfect stocking stuffer, no?
Within the Discover Beauty section, Total Beauty manned the Beauty Blogger Central booth. As a guest of Total Beauty I was invited to vote for the best of the Discover Beauty section. I voted for Nails Inc., natch. Granted there are a lot of unique new brands represented but Nails Inc. stole my polish loving heart.
On display in the Blogger Central booth is Total Beauty’s Top 10 rated products of the brands exhibiting at the show. I’m DYING to try the magical Morroccan Oil I’ve heard so much about.
One booth that made me stop in my tracks was KleanColor. Their display of colorful Nail Lacquers drew me right in. And I was beyond flattered that the rep for the brand actually reads ALU. Now I just need to track down where I can order the polishes from. If anyone has a KleanColor hookup, give me a shout!
One look at these bottles and you’ll understand why I was drawn in to Np2′s booth. Talk about a unique shape! And the color range is uber-chic. There are some vampy greens, blues and purples that I can’t wait to get my hands on. According to the rep for the brand, the formula is will knock Essie & OPI out of the water. They’re hoping to launch in Sephora soon so keep your eyes peeled.
As I wandered aimlessly trying to figure out the long winding ailes of booths, I came upon Essie, THE ESSIE! It’s like spotting a rock star. I also ran across Suzi of OPI, Jessica Vartoughian of Jessica and celebrity hairstylist Ken Paves, creator of HairDo. He’s so adorable and pocket sized!
I had to stop by the Color Club/Art Club booth to check out Wild At Heart. That purple and teal green will be MINE!
Next up, the SpaRitual/Orly booth. There are some incredible colors coming down the pike from both brands including two luscious greens for Spring (can’t wait!). First let’s talk SpaRitual. They too are releasing a matte collection called Mind Body Spirit only they formulated a base coat to apply underneath and extend wear. The rep I spoke with was wearing the purple, Spirit and it’s totally gorg. There is also a Fall colllection that I’m bringing home with me to show you.
Out now for fall, the Orly Once Upon A Time collection comes with adorable fairy tale themed charms on the bottles. Enchanted Forest, Pixie Dust and Mirror Mirror are immediate faves.
For holiday they will introduce Femme Fatale and collection of festive reds.
For Spring/Summer 2010 there is a candy colored collection with matching mini lipglosses, a colorful vivid floral inspired collection called Bloom that includes the green I mentioned.
Finally, the true highlight of my day was attending the CND Colour & Effects launch party. CND’s own Jan Arnold greeted us warmly, wearing yet another killer ensemble. That woman has such amazing style I can’t even stand it. She remembered meeting me backstage at the Barbie show during fashion week and it totally made my day.
I have so much more to show you and say about this amazing revamp of the CND line but I’ll just give you a quick rundown. Basically, CND has completely changed their game. Being that they are all about customization at fashion week, creating custom blends for designers all over the world, they have now brought that concept to all of us.
The Colour consists of 50 perfect cremes in a range of shades that will satisfy any addict. There are true primary and secondary shades, sheers, neutrals, pinks, reds, vampies, etc.
The Effects are 15 opalescent pearls, shimmers and glitters that you can layer over the Colour shades to customize your color. They may look similar in the bottle but once you start to play, you really see the difference.
Jan invited us to play at the colour bar and can you guess where I plopped myself down? In front of the “me” colors of course. I went to town swatching different Colours and testing them under the Effects. I was in heaven!
Being the kind, generous woman she is, Jan invited everyone to take home their favorite Colour & Effects combos but when she saw my bag with just a few bottles (I didn’t want to be greedy) she sent me back for more saying, “You’re All Lacquered Up, that’s not nearly enough!”
Oh and I didn’t even get to the bottles. They redesigned the shape of the bottles to be more ergonomic with a soft rubberized cap. And the BRUSH, wow on the brush. It’s now flat but THIN flat, very pinky nail friendly, and the bristles are triangular and clear, a first in the industry. I actually did a little playing back in my room and they apply phenomenally! I can’t wait to show you.
Well that’s pretty much Day 1. We finished the night with a cocktail party at The Mix in The Hotel and dinner at Strip Steak in the Mandalay Bay. The food was so spectacular I regret not taking pics for the fellow foodies out there. Next time, I promise!
Also, I’m attending the show with Phyllis from Makeup For Life so be sure to visit her blog to see the products that she discovered.
Lisa N.
Ms Meatballhead
Birdie
Spa pediccure chairs
