Nicole by OPI Shades To Crave Collection Holiday 2010

Nicole's Holiday / Winter collection this year is really, really good. I never used to pay much attention to Nicole but lately they're making such amazing polishes that I can't ignore them! Now only if they would do something about that horrible bottle...




Call Me Classy. Only two colors in this collection that don't wow me and this is one of them. Not that it's bad, it's just very common. It's a very cool toned red or perhaps a very dark pink with some violet shimmer.




Fell From The Tree. Dude. Are you seeing this? Rich awesome amazing leafy green metallic! Not a foil, not really a frost, but a really nice metallic green shimmer. Very happy about this one!



Glitz and Glisten. Sheer fuchsia-purple glitter in a clear base. Very small delicate particles, not big chunky ones. This is three coats and there's a little visible nail line still. This is actually really similar to Nubar Petunia Sparkle, which was also gorgeous.





Grant My Wish. ...And stop making these wretched frosty granny mauves! This is a very frosty, silvery, shiny mauve pink. Moving on...




Midnight Snowfall. This is a confusing color. When I first wore it, it was night time and I saw it under artificial light and it was clearly purple. It was the most amazing vibrant blue-toned purple! But then when I saw it in the daylight it was totally blue. I'm not sure what color this actually is. Blue? Purple? Who knows. It's hot either way.



Mis-Magenta Me? I don't get this name. Is it 'Miss Me'? Where does the 'magenta' part come from? Mis-magenta? Anyway. This is a really pretty pink foil. I suppose I could call it magenta. Deep pink on a silver foil base.




Pitch-Black Glimmer. Amazing. I'm in awe of this one. You don't see many black glitters these days... I can't think of more than one or two current shades with black glitter. And for a color that is known for looking dull as glitter, this sure sparkles. It's great layered but I like it best alone. It's not pure black, though. It's larger black particles with some smaller, finer silver and holographic particles. Though I'm not sure if they're fully holo or just opal-iridescent, they're so small and subtle it's hard to tell.



Sensational Scarlet. Sensational is right. It's über-glitter. Red-pink tinted base, reddish glitter, iridescent glitter, all different sizes. This is a lot like Massini (now known as Studio M) Slamming Red but not as sparkly and iridescent. Same texture, too, like oatmeal.



Such A Go-Glitter. Medium sized round vibrant blue glitter and tiny silver and holo glitter in a clear base. This is a sheer glitter, great for layering, but can also be worn alone. This is three coats and you can see that it's still pretty sheer. Four coats would have been better, I think.



The Grape Debate. Very nice soft plum purple creme. Less blue toned in real life, as always. Actually looks purple on the nail, unlike the Ulta one I bought that looks like this but turns near-black on the nail.



Tip Of The Iceberg. Sheer silver glitter in a clear base. Nothing particularly noteworthy about this one. It's nice, but it's not unique. Good for layering. Nice and sparkly and shiny.



Twist Of Fate. Super dense gold plate glitter. Wow, I was not expecting it to look like this! I thought it would be another sheer layering glitter, but it isn't! It's really bold. Gives the most amazing gold-plated look on your nails. Really rich shade of gold too, it looks a lot better in real life.


This collection is a little glitter-rich, and glitters are nice for layering over other colors, so I want to show how they look layered:

One coat each over one coat of Illamsqua Boosh, with topcoat.
Left to right
Pitch Black Glimmer
Such A Go-Glitter
Twist Of Fate
Glitz and Glisten

One coat over one coat of Rescue Beauty Lounge Underwear, with topcoat.
Left to right
Glitz and Glisten
Twist of Fate
Such A Go-Glitter
Pitch Black Glimmer

And here's how a couple of them look over shades from the collection:

Glitz and Glisten over Mis-Magenta Me?


Twist Of Fate over Fell From The Tree.

The formula on these was varied but good. The non-glitters were smooth and pigmented. The glitters were good except for Sensational Scarlet which is super thick and if you're not into that sort of thing you may need to thin it before use. I did three coats of all just for my own sanity, some didn't need all three, some did. Drying time was nice and fast.


Overall, awesome collection. I flipped out when I saw it. It has black glitter!!!! What more could I ask for from a holiday collection? Seriously, who does black for holiday? That scores major points with me. Great glitters, great 'other' shades, only one real dud (the gross frosty mauve).

I've been seeing Nicole at more and more places lately- Meijer, Target, Ulta, Wal-Mart... So it's becoming easier to find. I think this collection may be Target exclusive since that's the only place I've seen it. I could be wrong! But so far, only Target seems to have this in stock.

(These were sent to me for review.)

It's not a joke-The Nicole by OPI One Less Lonely Girl Collection inspired by Justin Bieber

This just in from OPI- do not adjust your screens- you are really seeing this :O I'm keeping an open mind and I have to admit- the colors look REALLY good.

Multi-Platinum Selling Singing Sensation

Justin Bieber Hearts Nicole by OPI!

Nicole by OPI Hits a High Note with

The One Less Lonely Girl Collection

Inspired by Justin Bieber

Justin Bieber fans, rejoice! Nicole by OPI has joined forces with the 16 year-old multi-platinum selling singing sensation to introduce The One Less Lonely Girl Collection. Inspired by the superstar’s hit songs and larger-than-life persona, the collection will launch with six new Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquer shades available exclusively at Walmart for Holiday 2010. Subsequently, Nicole by OPI will unveil eight more Nail Lacquer shades for The One Less Lonely Girl Collection, available beginning in January 2011 at Walmart and in February 2011 at select Target, Sears, Ulta and other retail locations.

“We are thrilled to team up with such a widely beloved singer who has made major waves in pop culture,” says Suzi Weiss-Fischmann, Nicole by OPI’s Vice President & Artistic Director. “The colors in the collection are modeled after the upbeat and emotive nature of Justin’s songs, as well as his own unrivaled energy.”

The first six new Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquers in The One Less Lonely Girl Collection include:

One Less Lonely Glitter

This pale purple is a total keeper.

Prized Possession Purple

This vibrant grape demands a shelf of its own.

Give Me the First Dance

Take a number! Everyone wants this sexy silver.

Me + Blue
A metallic deep blue that’s just perfect for you.

OMB!

You have to see this metallic red to be-lieb it!

Step 2 the Beat of My Heart

Take the lead with this heart-filled hue.

Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquers and Nail Treatments contain no DBP, Toluene, or Formaldehyde. The first six Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquers in The One Less Lonely Girl Collection will be available beginning in December 2010 at WalMart, with a subsequent launch in January 2011 at Walmart and in February 2011 at select Target, Sears, Ulta and other retail locations.

For more information, visit nicolebyopi.com.

Nicole by OPI Gossip Girl Collection 2010

First, let's set things straight. I don't do Gossip Girl. I've never seen an episode, don't know the name of a single character or actor in the show, nor do I care to. That said, if there's some sort of inside joke in one of the names of these polishes or it somehow relates to something in the show, I'm oblivious to it! So I can't comment on that aspect. But, I can comment on the gorgeous colors...

Party in the Penthouse. Gorgeous medium blue foil. It doesn't have the typical foil polish texture, but it does have a glimmering metallic foil finish. The texture actually reminds me more of something like Zoya Kotori- bright metallic particles in a sheer blackened base. Same with Too Rich For You. This was pretty sheer for me so I used three coats. Looks great at three coats, very sparkly.

Too Rich For You. A dark smoky blue shimmer with green tones. Looks like it has a lot of duochrome in the bottle but isn't really duochrome once it's on the nail. Again, similar to Zoya Kotori with the sheer smoky black base and the bright shimmery particles. This one was also sheer and I did use three coats to get rid of the visible nail line. The end result is quite beautiful, don't you think?

And now on to the best part... the glitter shades!


Scandal, Secrets and Sparkle. I think that's in the right order... all I remember is it was three S words! This is a medium-sized silver glitter in a sheer silver shimmer base. Very much like Zoya Luna or China Glaze The Ten Man. The base of this isn't so much colored as it is filled with little shimmer particles, so it gives a milky look that shimmers when sunlight hits it. Very sheer, probably best for layering. If you want a less-sheer version of this color to wear alone, Zoya Luna is your best bet. However, Luna is too opaque for layering, so if you're looking for a layering glitter, Scandal, Secrets and Sparkle is the better option.


Nicole...Spotted! I saved the best for last. Man, do I ever love this polish. It's a sheer aqua gel-like base with super tiny golden-green iridescent sparkles (micro-micro glitter?) and small sized pastel iridescent/opal glitter- mainly colors of pale yellow, green, blue and orange. This is just so much prettier than other polishes of this type.... I know I have a few, the first one that comes to mind is Sinful Nail Junkie. Nicole...Spotted! is so much more sparkly and lively, it never falls flat. I layered it over tons of things and it looks good over pretty much everything. Here's a couple layering combinations:


Nicole...Spotted! over OPI Unripened. Here's what it looks like over a black based shade. Smooth, sparkly, mesmerizing, adds a slight blue tint, too!

Nicole....Spotted! over Party in the Penthouse. Looks good over a foil, too. Looks... oceanic? Looks like blue ocean water with colorful rocks below the surface.


And my favorite combination so far... Nicole...Spotted! over Too Rich For You. You might want to enlarge these pictures to really enjoy the delicate golden sparkle in this. It's so bright and awesome. I'm obsessed with it now.

For thoroughness sake, here's Scandal, Secrets and Sparkle layered:

Scandal, Secrets and Sparkle over Too Rich For You. See how indoors it looks cloudy and in sunlight it looks sparkly? That's the little particles of white-silver shimmer in the base. Very odd look, it changes so much from indoors to outdoors.


The formula on these wasn't the best. The two dark shades, Too Rich For You and Party in the Penthouse, were rather sheer and a little watery and needed three coats to be totally opaque. I'm used to a thicker, more opaque polish formula now and these were a little bit of a surprise! The glitter shades were perfectly normal, though. Not thin, not too thick or glue-like either, nice and smooth. They are also sheer, I did three coats in these pictures and one coat for layering. Drying time is great. The glitters aren't super lumpy but they do benefit from thick topcoat as most glitters do... they look amazing under that shiny glassy layer of Seche Vite....

Overall, not a bad set... But I'm most enthusiastic about Nicole...Spotted! I can't even see the other colors... I only have eyes for Spotted. It's fantastic. Looks good alone, over black, over blue, over creme, over shimmer... It just looks good, period! (And then exclamation point?)

If you're looking for these, I saw them on clearance at Target just this week! They also have huge cardboard displays of them at Meijer, but they're full price there.

(These were sent to me for review.)