NOTD: Estee Lauder Smashed

When I chose this polish to put on tonight, I couldn't believe I hadn't featured it as an NOTD before. Released as part of the Metal Mania collection in 2012, Smashed is a vibrant red-purple jelly with magenta, purple and blue flecks. They're not fine enough to be a straight shimmer, but they are very small, and irregularly shaped.

I bought Smashed along with Tempestuous—the first full-size Estee Lauder polishes I'd laid my hands on. In recent years, EL's nail color selection has gotten much more interesting as more women get adventurous with nail polish, even EL's traditionally more mature, conservative customer. Smashed still falls on the "safe" side and would be work appropriate in all but the most straitlaced workplaces, but it's still a beautiful polish.

The formula was very good—an easy-to-control jelly. The brush is short, on the stiff side and somewhat flat, but not wide like an OPI ProWide. All in all it was very easy to apply.

Also, it must be said, the Estee Lauder nail lacquer bottles are a thing of beauty. The polish is contained in a spherical void within a glass cube. Yes, you're only getting 0.3 ounces, but the bottle has a nice heft and it certainly connotes luxury as is appropriate for the brand.

The good news is that Smashed is still available. The somewhat less good news is that it's $20.

More nails...

Sorry for the continued hiatus! My nails are in much MUCH better shape now, but the light here is still totally crummy and I've been too busy to get my OttLite out very much. Here are a couple of quick iPhone shots...some are a little blurry but you'll get the general idea, I hope.

First here's a picture of one of my Helmer drawers. I had to reorganize recently as I um...outgrew a couple of my brand-specific drawers. This is Essie, Zoya and Misa.

Here's the Jessica Disco Diva set - the special base coat and the silver holographic polish, which is stunning.

Jessica Disco Diva

Sometimes I get overwhelmed by the choices I have in my nail polish collection (boo hoo hoo, right) that I go to an old favorite. OPI Big Apple Red is one of those favorites and it's a great polish, too.

OPI Big Apple Red

Recently I wore Zoya Sarah which I ordered because...my name is Sarah.

Zoya Sarah

Not long ago I saw a picture of OPI You're A Doll (from the 2008 Holiday in Toyland collection) and I was seized with the desire to have it. It's discontinued, but readily available on eBay for about retail (I got mine for $7.50 with free shipping).

OPI You're A Doll

It's a really strange polish - kind of a sheerish mauve-y gray shimmer with flecks of reddish microglitter. This is three coats and in certain lights I can still see my nail line, but in most lights it's opaque. It's an interesting twist on a neutral and certainly very work-friendly with just a little bit of interest to keep you from being bored.

I have a lot of new stuff to share - Layla holos, new a-Englands, the Chanel Gold Fingers Las Vegas exclusive...so let's hope the days start getting longer and the light gets better!

Recent NOTDs

Hi there!

Well I've had quite a long break, mostly because this winter has been exceptionally unkind to my cuticles. I even had a couple of fingers splitting and cracking with the dryness, and of course they looked absolutely hideous. I've posted pictures here where my cuticles weren't the best, especially in my camera's macro view, but there was no way I would have posted pictures of my nails in that condition. It was downright unappetizing, folks.

I turned to the wisdom of nail world for a solution. Word has it that Lanisoh lanolin is a sure fix for dry and painful cuticles, and it's absolutely true. I've been using a little bit each night before bed and sometimes during the day as well, and the improvement is remarkable. My hands still get dry right after a shower (hot water is not a friend to dry skin) and during the day, but I've had no more splitting and cracking. I just moisturize as usual and everything's much better.

If you want to use Lanisoh, there's no special trick to it, but be warned it is extremely thick and greasy until it is absorbed, so you won't want to handle anything for a while.

I thought I'd share some NOTD photos that I snapped with my iPhone over the last couple of weeks. They're not spectacular but they will mostly spare you from Cuticle Apocalypse 2012.

Laura Mercier Twilight

I bought this on impulse after Janice described it as an amped-up Paradoxal/Perplex. You can't see the subtleties in this Instagram photo, but it's much more lively than Paradoxal (I don't own Perplex), but it still has that smokiness.

OPI Fly

This is OPI Fly from the Nicki Minaj collection. It's greener in real life - again Instagram isn't spectacular for catching color accuracy. Formula on this was wonderful and I really enjoyed wearing it.

Essie School of Hard Rocks

I love colors like this lately...slightly dusty blues and greens...dark but not too dark. This was almost a one-coat wonder. Also contrary to what this picture might have you believe, I have not recently been jaundiced.

Revlon Whimsical over 10 Professional Pinky Promise

This was a huge favorite of mine; I hated taking it off. I had been half-heartedly looking for Revlon Whimsical but never saw it in any of the displays with the re-named Perplex and Facets of Fuchsia, so I kind of forgot about it until it turned up in a regular display at Rite Aid. Plus it was on sale for $3, so I caved. I LOVE IT, especially over Pinky Promise, which I'm now wishing I had a backup or even several backups of. It's the perfect perfect perfect pink sheer. So this is two coats of Pinky Promise alternated with two coats of Whimsical and topped with Seche Vite. I love it, it looked like a gel manicure.

Chanel Blue Rebel

Finally, my current NOTD. This is one of those colors I mentioned above, a dark dusty blue that's dark enough to be vampy but not so dark you can't tell it's blue. This is from the Les Jeans de Chanel collection, which I ended up really liking in spite of the furor that it's not unique enough to be special. Chanel knocked it out of the park with the formula on this and Blue Boy, though I can't speak to Coco Blue as I haven't used it yet.

Anyway, thanks for your patience with my sporadic "attendance"...with the help of Lanisoh I hope to be back in full action soon!