Orly Foil FX Collection Redux

Earlier this year, I posted about Orly's new Foil FX Collection.  Orly's PR firm had sent me Luxe to swatch and review.  I fell in love with the collection, and the look of Luxe, so I decided to pick up the 2 remaining colors, Rage and Shine as soon as they were available at e-tailers. 

Here are the swatches...

Rage - Rose Gold.  My favorite of the bunch.  I knew I would love this one as soon as I saw it on Vampy Varnish.  It works with my skin tone and is the least "blingy" of the 3 colors, though that's not to say it's not completely shiny.

Shine - Silver. My second favorite.  This is a gorgeous true silver. 

Luxe - Gold.  My least favorite.  I like it, but it just doesn't work with my skintone.  It's a very bright warm gold.

All 3 are 2 coats and I had no application issues with any of them.

Orly had stated in their press release that this collection was to mimic the look of Minx.  They are beautiful foils, but while they can pass for Minx in a pinch, they don't really capture the look of being coated in gold/silver foil of Minx. 

If you love foils, I would seriously consider picking these up.  They are ~$3 at e-tailers.  Sally's may have these, but I haven't been there in so long, I can't say for certain.

Luxe was sent to me for review

Argh! TD raises prices on Essie

Remember last year when H2T raised the price on Essie to $8 and we were all scared that the other etailers would follow?  Well, TransDesign has finally followed suit.  It took them several months, but as of today, the price on Essie is now $8.  VNS still has them for $4, but you have to email them to send you an invoice if you want a color from a collection older than Winter 09/10 (they've recently changed their site so you can now purchase OPI and Essie without having to be a pro).  You can also get them from Amazon and eBay sellers for discounted prices.

I know it was speculated that Essie was putting pressure on the etailers to raise their prices.  Makes sense from a business standpoint when you consider that Essie.com has an online store as well, and I'm sure the etailers were cutting into their sales.  But from a NP addict enthusiast collector standpoint, this really sucks.  It's kinda turning me off Essies and if it weren't for the new Resort collection looking like a thousand kinds of awesome, I'd be ready to say I was taking a break from buying Essies.  Hopefully, the other outlets won't be raising their prices until after the Resort collection releases.

What this has ensured is that I really have no need to purchase from TD in the future.  True, they carry Misa, but aside from that, I can see all my business being directed at VNS from now on.

SpaRitual's "Believe" Sweepstakes

While I was in FL, I got an email from SpaRitual's PR rep asking if either myself or my readers would be interested in entering their sweepstakes promoting their spring collection.  I'm not much for web videos.  My laptop doesn't have a webcam and I'm not savvy when it comes to creating and editing vids, anyway, so while I'm probably going to pass... I think it's an awesome contest for anyone interested.
Click here to go to the press release and the imbedded video and here to go to the rules and regs. 

You could possibly win $500 in SpaRitual products!