Other Gel (SOG) Swatches

May 23, 2013

Couture High Maintenance & Glam Squad 0

by Andrea • Other Gel (SOG) Swatches • Tags: , , , , ,

It’s been a busy week. My daughter’s HS prom is this weekend, and I have a friend coming in town and a wedding to attend on Sunday so I won’t have much time for swatching. I will be doing a French manicure for my daughter and I have some nail art planned to match the dress I’m wearing to the wedding, so you can expect some pictures of those next week.

In the meantime, I have a couple of Couture Gel Nail Polish swatches to share with you.  Couture is a DIY brand meant for at-home use.  I found that their starter kit is available on Amazon.com at a discount, though I don’t see the individual colors sold there.

These colors are from the Couture Spring 2013 collection.  Application and soak-off were a breeze. The shimmery silver one is called High Maintenance. I wore this for a few days and loved it. It goes with everything and has just the right amount of sparkle for me.

Couture Gel Polish - High Maintenance

Couture Gel Polish - High Maintenance

The color below is Glam Squad. This one is the perfect combination of purple and pink. It looks pink next to purples, and purple next to pinks. I really like the uniqueness of the color. My lightbox washed the color out of these photos a bit, and it looks a little more pink than it actually was. I snapped a quick pic of this in regular lighting to try to capture the color a little better.

Couture Gel Polish - Glam Squad

Couture Gel Polish - Glam Squad

Couture Gel Polish - Glam Squad

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May 7, 2013

Couture Tres Chic & Color Blocked Nail Art 4

by Andrea • Nail Art, Other Gel (SOG) Swatches • Tags: , , ,

press sample
I never thought I would wear yellow nail polish, but in the past month or so I have tried a few shades of yellow and the one I have to show you today is my favorite of all so far.  This is Tres Chic from Couture… a buttery yellow with a creme finish. I wore this for a day or so before deciding to add some nail art to it.  I did some color blocking with nail art striping tape, and made a short video to demonstrate the technique (below).  The colors used for the accents are Couture High Maintenance, Million $ Tweet, Teal the Show and Glam Squad.  I love how this turned out and can’t wait to use these Couture colors again.

Chickettes.com Color Blocking Nail Art

Couture Gel Polish - Tres Chic

Couture Gel Polish - Tres Chic

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April 4, 2013

Indigo Illumination Gel Polish #5 – Duochrome 6

by Andrea • Other Gel (SOG) Swatches • Tags: , , , ,

affiliate links purchased by me
I just purchased five duochrome gel polishes from the Indigo Illumination line. OMG! These things are freaking fantastic – the duochrome effects are to die for. They’re so hard to capture in pictures, so I had to take a short video to show you how the colors change based on the lighting. I just moved my light back and forth above my hand and you can see how dramatic the color change is.

This is #5 (Saturn), and it shifts from teal blue to a deep purple. This gel polish is NOT the soak off variety… it has to be filed off if you apply it by itself. If you use this polish I highly recommend wearing undies under it (use a soak off polish underneath). I applied Saturn over top of two coats of Gelish My Favorite Accessory.

These were purchased directly from Indigo as part of a large group order.  Shipping to the states is rather high, so it’s helpful if you have other people to go in on an order with you.

Update:  These polishes do not cure with some LED lamps, UV is the way to go.

Chickettes.com - Indigo Illumination Gel Polish #5 Saturn - Duochrome
Chickettes.com - Indigo Illumination Gel Polish #5 Saturn - Duochrome
Chickettes.com - Indigo Illumination Gel Polish #5 Saturn - Duochrome

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March 23, 2013

Orly Gel FX Shade Shifter Color Changing Polish 8

by Andrea • Other Gel (SOG) Swatches, Videos • Tags: , , , ,

affiliate links purchased by me
Can’t… stop… staring… at… my… nails!  Wait until you see this.  Orly Gel FX Shade Shifter is a color changing gel polish that goes from clear to black based on the temperature of your hands.  You apply two coats over top of any base color and it goes clear to show the color underneath when your hands are warm, and is black when your hands are cold.  In my pics below, you can see that there are also some transitional stages.  I am so in love with this, and hope they make some other colors available other than just clear-to-black.  The base color seen in this demo is Tiki Tiki Laranga from Gelish.  I found Shade Shifter on eBay and Amazon.com.

I made a quick video to show you how this works.

Orly Gel FX Shade Shifter

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February 19, 2013

LacQit One-Step Gel Polish Review and Swatches 6

by Andrea • Other Gel (SOG) Swatches • Tags: , , , ,

I have an exciting new product to share with my fellow SOG (soak off gel) polish fans… LacQit one-step gel polish.  This polish is different from any other SOG product I have tried to-date in that it only requires two coats of color (NO base coat or top coat) and after curing in an LED light for 30 seconds it’s completely dry to the touch.  You can pull your hand out of the light and run it through your hair without getting a single strand stuck… it doesn’t have any tackiness or require wiping.  This product is great for people that don’t have a lot of time to spend on their nails, but still want the long-lasting effects of gel polish.

LacQit starer kit contents

Guess what… The Nail Scene provided me with two LacQit starter kits!  One for me… and one for you!  This kit is a $59.95 CAD value and contains a pro LED lamp, a full-size bottle of LacQit polish, a bottle of cuticle oil, a timer, two nail buffers and a nail file.  Click here for the GIVEAWAY details!

Now… onto the review!  My first observation about this kit is that it would be really great for traveling and I can guarantee that I will be taking this with me on my two scheduled vacations this year.  The LED light is small enough to fit in your luggage or carry-on and is very lightweight.  Since LacQit doesn’t require a base coat or top coat, there are less items to pack and worry about.  And the application time is lightning fast because you only have to apply two coats of color and cure for 30 seconds for the first coat, and 60 seconds for the second.

The nail buffers had just the right amount of grit… they weren’t too rough and didn’t damage my nails.  I actually like these buffers better than any others that I currently own.  And the cuticle oil is also very soothing and I like the brush application.

The LacQit polish was very easy to apply, and it really is completely dry after just 30 seconds of curing and there isn’t any tackiness to wipe off.  The polish is shiny, although not quite the high gloss shine that you would normally get with a gel top coat.  The polish also doesn’t look or feel as thick as other SOGs.  A lot of times when I wear gel polish people ask me if my nails are fake because they look a bit thick and bulky.  My nails look much more natural with LacQit.  The polish provides a decent amount of strength, but not as much as it would with a top coat.  You could add additional layers for more strength.

LacQit requires less time to soak off than other SOGs and you can also use regular nail polish remover rather than pure acetone if you prefer!  LacQit recommends soaking for 10 minutes, but it was soaking off in less time than that for me using the foil removal technique – on average about 7-10 minutes.  Another time saver!  One other quick thing to note is that LacQit will also cure with a UV light if you already have one, but it takes 3 minutes to cure this way.

As for durability, LacQit is supposed to last for two weeks without chipping or peeling.  I polished my right hand with Poof! You’re Purple and have had it on for 8 days now.  The tips are just barely showing some wear and the finish is a little duller, however to be fair I did play with acetone while swatching my left hand several times this past weekend so that could play a part.  Here are quick pics of my right hand (the ugly hand!)… and these were very hard to take since I’m right-handed!

LacQit Durability Test

The Nail Scene also provided me with a nice selection colors to try and I swatched all of their new spring colors to share with you!

Run for the Pink is a rich shade of pink with a creamy finish.

LacQit Run for the Pink

LacQit Run for the Pink

Mauve Over is a lovely shade of lilac purple.  A great spring color.

LacQit Mauve Over Swatch

LacQit Mauve Over Swatch

Mint in a Minute is a gorgeous minty green.  Mint is very popular right now… loving it.

LacQit Mint in a Minute Swatch

LacQit Mint in a Minute Swatch

Road Trip with Rosie is a shimmery, dark pink.  I really like the finish of this one.

LacQit Road Trip with Rosie Swatch

LacQit Road Trip with Rosie Swatch

Ragtop Red is a very classic, bright red!  This one will get their attention!

LacQit Ragtop Red Swatch

LacQit Ragtop Red Swatch

And speaking of attention getters… how about this NEON pink!  This is Hit the Beach… a very suiting name (pun intended).

LacQit Hit the Beach swatch

LacQit Hit the Beach swatch

Cosmo to Go is the color that came with my kit, and also the color that is included in the giveaway kit.  This is a soft, creamy pink and it a little lighter than Run for the Pink.

LacQit Cosmo To Go Swatch

LacQit Cosmo To Go Swatch

I still have a few other colors to try, but my nails needed a bit of a break.  :)   Just to show you, I swatched these ones on a color wheel.  From left to right, these are Quick Latte, Pop the Cork, Poof! You’re Purple, and Wine N Dine.

And if you’re still reading and want to learn more about LacQit and see how easy it is to use, check out this video.

* Products were provided for review. Opinions are my own.

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September 13, 2012

IBD Soak Off Gel Polish – Meteorite Swatch 4

by Andrea • Other Gel (SOG) Swatches • Tags: , , , ,

IBD is the next brand of gel polish that I’m trying out.  This color is called Meteorite.  So far I have no complaints about this polish – the application went smoothly and I don’t see any wear on the tips yet after having it on for 2 days like I did with Daisy.  The color is a little darker and a less sparkly than I anticipated, but it’s nice.

IBD Meteorite Soak Off Gel Polish SwatchIBD Meteorite Soak Off Gel Polish Swatch

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September 9, 2012

Daisy Gel Soak Off Polish Review 2

by Andrea • Other Gel (SOG) Swatches • Tags: , , , , , ,

As you probably know by now, I’m a Gelish freak… love, love, love it.  But the gel polish habit does take a toll on the finances after a while, so I decided it’s time to try out some of the cheaper alternatives that are available.  I purchased two Daisy gel polishes, and two of the IBD brand.  Today I tried out Daisy for the first time.  These bottles cost $6 at Amazon.com, plus $3 in shipping each… so a total of $9 per bottle, compared to the average $13 that I normally pay for Gelish.

A friend told me that she tried a dark red Daisy gel polish and was very disappointed with it.  She said it had a strong nail polish smell and that it was very thin and took several coats to achieve the desired color.  I did not have either of those issues with my Daisy gel polish.  In fact I found it to be a little thicker than normal and was able to get full coverage with just two coats because they did go on so thick.  The brush seemed a little wider which made it harder to get into the curve of the nail by the cuticle.  I used my Gelish base and top coat which worked out well, and I cured each layer for 2 minutes as I normally do with Gelish.  I didn’t have any issues with the polish curing.

All in all my Daisy experience was very positive. The two colors that I chose were Magenta Shimmer and Chocolate Truffles, and I think they are both gorgeous.  Chocolate Truffles is not at all what I expected it would be, but I love it.  It’s not silver, but not gold either… somewhere in the middle.  What do you think?

Update 9/11:  Just two days into this manicure and I already have a lot of wear showing on the tips of my nails that have the Magenta Shimmer color.  It’s the type of wear that you would experience with a regular lacquer, not typically of gel polish.  I’m very disappointed about this.  The Chocolate Truffles seems to be holding up ok, but it’s on my ring fingers which aren’t used as much.  I polished my mom’s nails with this color yesterday, so we’ll see how her manicure holds up.

Chickettes: Daisy Gel Polish - Magenta Shimmer & Chocolate TrufflesChickettes: Daisy Gel Polish - Magenta Shimmer & Chocolate Truffles

And here is a shot in direct sunlight:

Chickettes: Daisy Gel Polish - Magenta Shimmer & Chocolate Truffles

And of course as the day went on I couldn’t leave my nails alone, so I added some argyle patterns inspired by Kelsie’s Nail Files.

Chickettes.com: Argyle Nail Design

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