Archive for the 'Big 3 Free' Category
 September was Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month but Priti continues to support Nancy’s List, an organization that provides resources to cancer patients all year long. They have committed to donate funds through sales of their teal ribbon colored polish, Tulip Tree Teal.
I’m always a sucker for a great teal creme but add in a charitable cause and I’m hooked. I spoke with the founder of Priti, Kim D’Amato, backstage during Fashion Week and I love that she’s as committed to creating a toxic-free, organic line as she is to including fashion forward colors. She custom blended an amazing green for eco-friendly fashion line Bodkin which you can catch glimpses of in Ecouterre’s photo recap of the show.
Check out Tulip Tree Teal and see how it stood up to my 5 Day Wear Test after the jump! |
Click here to view more pictures and read the rest of this story.
I get a lot of questions and comments regarding the tools and treatment products I use to keep my nails healthy and in tip top shape. Since my routine changes as I test new products, I’ve launched, The Arsenal, to share with you the items that are “must haves” in my nail kit.
For as long as I can remember, Seche Vite and Poshe have been staples in my top coat collection. When it comes to quick dry, they are the gold standard BUT (and that’s a very big “but”) the major complaint has always been the thick, tricky-to-apply consistency that only gets thicker as you work your way down the bottle. Sure that’s what Seche Restore is for but what if there was a product that worked just as well without that issue? Fanatics, I’ve found it! Olan Labs Quick & Slick.
My uber-fab eyebrow waxer recommended this top coat to me a while back and I bought a bottle on the spot but let it sit in my to-be-tried box for way too long. I finally cracked it open a couple months ago when I was short on time, low on Seche Vite and not in the mood to add Seche Restore. Well color me impressed!
Quick & Slick is 3-Free, non-yellowing and quick drying. It leaves a high gloss shine and the thin, self-leveling formula applies like a dream I’m about halfway through my bottle and there’s not a sign of those telltale strings from thickening when I pull out the brush. In my opinion it’s pretty comparable to Lippmann Addicted to Speed except it’s less than HALF the price!
You can purchase Quick & Slick directly from the OlanLabs.com website for $7.95. There’s even a trial size for $2.95. I’m sure if you search online you’ll find other e-tailers but I purchased mine at John Robert’s Spa in Mayfield Heights. p.s. if you’re in Cleveland and looking for a waxer/esthetician see my girl Abby. She’s phenom!
Have any of you tried Quick & Slick before? What do you think of it?
The ALU Archives focuses on older, beloved shades from the All Lacquered Up stash.
I can’t believe that in the two and a half years I’ve been writing ALU that I’ve NEVER mentioned Icing polishes! If you’re unfamiliar, Icing is a chain of accessory stores owned by Claire’s. I honestly never shopped there until some MUA nail board girls discovered their line of nail polish. They have a wide range of colors and come out with limited edition seasonal collections quite often. AND they’re pretty cheap. You can usually find them on some kind of sale.
Unfortunately, since we moved a couple years ago I haven’t had immediate access to an Icing so it’s been a while since I added to my stash. Obviously I’m not up on the latest colors but I have a couple of my faves to show you. Check them out!
According to my bottles Icing polishes are 3-Free (including Formaldehyde Resin) but I would check the labels before buying, just to be sure. The formula is on the thinner side so even dark colors usually take three coats for even coverage but it flows smoothly on the nail and dries glossy.
Money Talks is a blackened forest green shimmer with silver micro-glitter floating throughout. It was packaged in a set a couple holidays back so I’m not sure if it’s still able to be found.
I Married Blue was an open stock color I picked up during one of their sales. It’s definitely in the burple family more than navy. It has a pearl/shimmer that looks a bit magenta in the bottle that I attribute to its slight purple leaning.
I realize the bottles look VERY similar to China Glaze and I know people have wondered if they’re by the same company but I think the similarities stop at the bottle shape. Icing polishes are produced in Illinois while China Glaze is based in California.
You can only find Icing polishes at their stores and this bottle size retails for $3.50 but there’s usually some kind of deal going on. You find an Icing near you using their store locator.
Where are my Icing lovers? What are your favorite shades? Seen anything new and fun that I should make the trip out east for?
 Who’s ready to see the second half of the Shades by Barielle All Lacquered Up Collection? If you’re looking for more color than the neutral palette I showed in Part 1 (Falling Star being the exception) then these colors are for you!
With these polishes we’re getting into richer, more opulent tones filled with glitters, shimmers and pearls (oh my!). Check out what Elle and I came up with, after the jump! |
I commented briefly on the formula in the shade descriptions yesterday as each polish applies a bit differently. With these darker hues, all the polishes are perfectly pigmented two-coaters. There is no unevenness in the consistency, they are all smooth like buttah!
Pin Up was inspired by the gorgeous tomato red lip MAC’s Gregory Arlt created for the Twinkle presentation using Lady Danger lipstick. He gave the models an updated retro look, reminiscent of the classic Pin Up girl (hence the name) or modern day Dita Von Teese. It’s a lip shade that’s just CRYING for a matching nail. We added a hint of gold fleck to add warmth and character.
Lava Rock is a semi-sheer black with red pearl that looks like a blackened plum in natural light and burns deep dark ember-y red in the sun.
You know I’m a girl that loves a good brown. One that isn’t too red or too “special dark” and Make It A Latte is just that. It’s a mid-tone cocoa with a glint of golden reflect.
What do you get when you combine the best parts of Chanel Nuit de Russie and China Glaze Blk-Bila-Bong? Blackened Bleu! It’s got all the bling of BBB with the uber-pigmentation of NdR. Packed within its semi-sheer black base is a massive amount sapphire glitter to create a polish that’s smooth, glossy and high on glam.
Since the collection spans the Fall and Winter months, it wouldn’t be complete without a fab holiday red. Enter Glammed Out Garnet, a deep wine sparkler that packs the same glitzy punch as Blackened Bleu.
I told you there would be a green and this one is a gem. Polished Princess is vivid mossy green shimmer. We wanted to go to the golden side of green with a vibrant, bold hue and I’m just so in love, love, love with it. Now I can see you reaching for your keyboard, ready to ask and no, this is NOT a Zoya Irene dupe. This is much brighter and more yellow based.
The Shades by Barielle All Lacquered Up collection goes on sale in August on Barielle.com. For those of you that have asked, I don’t have international release info yet but I will post anything I hear.
The polishes retail for $8/ea but take advantage of their Buy Two Get One Free deal to stock up on your favorite Shades. Oh and if you sign up for email updates, you’ll get a discount code for your order.
So now that you’ll seen the entire ALU collection, what do you think? Which ones are must haves? If you missed the first half view it HERE!
 The wait is over Fanatics. I can finally show you the All Lacquered Up collection from Barielle. In case you missed the original announcement, this collection is a collaboration between myself and Celebrity Manicurist Elle, Creative Director for the Shades by Barielle line.
We pooled our color inspirations straight from the runway and came up with a palette of shades that are fashion forward yet accessible. They are all very chic and wearable. Check out the first half of the collection after the jump! |
Collaborating with a nail trendsetter like Elle was such a thrill. With her years of experience working in editorial and alongside more celebrities than you can count, she really has her finger on the pulse of the beauty and fashion world. One trend we noticed was lot of muted, neutral tones with random pops of color, like Falling Star (below). Based on many phone convos about shades and perusing runway images, Elle custom mixed samples of our collection for the chemists to reproduce.
Now I know some of you commented that you were expecting all kinds of craziness from me and though this is the All Lacquered Up collection it’s not like I had license to do whatever I wanted. Shades by Barielle is about bringing fashionable shades to the masses so while there is a lot of me in this collection, it’s as much about being on trend and incorporating Elle’s color concepts. It’s a collection I am proud to attach the ALU name to and I hope you’ll love it as much as I do.
Slate of Affairs – when I was backstage at Reem Acra with Jamie from The Beauty of Life, I just about drooled at the site of her luxe designs. I wanted to dive in to the rack of dresses head first. It was her sandwashed steel blue gown that inspired this shade. A stunning slate blue grey, the polish has a subtle hint of pearl that adds a bit of light blue flash depending on the light. The formula on this one is somewhat jellyish and thick so I used three coats to get it perfect.
Get Mauve-ing is based on another Reem Acra dress. While I’m not typically one for mauve hues, I was so drawn to the gown’s shade that I felt it just needed to be in this collection. This one is a richly pigmented creme and applies evenly in two coats.
Grey tones like U-Concrete-Me were popping up on just about every runway. Undoubtedly a sign of our somber economic times, grey is still very much “in” for nails come fall. U-Concrete-Me is a two-coat, dolphin grey creme.
Putt-E On Me fits in with the neutral/grey concept only this warmer, muddier shade will please those of you that feel that grey washes them out. This mid-tone mushroom-y hue is another two-coat creme.
Out-Grey-Geous is the answer to what comes between $OPI Run With It and OPI Brand New Skates. A grey with gold fleck is just what I’ve been looking for but the $OPI was too putty-ish and BNS was too charcoal. Out-Grey-Geous is just perfect; a medium grey shimmer with gold micro-glitter.
They say you save the best for last and Falling Star definitely fits the bill. Remember that bright pop of color I mentioned? It’s like the primary colored dresses at Chris Benz but with a twist. I had thought of adding gold micro-glitter but it was Elle who felt copper particles would make it truly unique and she was dead on. They look like fiery stars falling from the sky. Application with this one is a bit tricky. The thick jelly like consistency makes this one a three coater for me.
The All Lacquered Up collection from Shades by Barielle will launch in August on Barielle.com. The polishes retail for $8/ea and, as always, Buy Two get One Free.
So what do you think Fanatics? How’d we do? Make sure you check out Part 2 where you’ll get to see, can you guess, a GREEN!
September was Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month but Priti continues to support Nancy’s List, an organization that provides resources to cancer patients all year long. They have committed to donate funds through sales of their teal ribbon colored polish, Tulip Tree Teal.
