I was rushing past the new Revlon display for the holidays, and Mistletoe Top Speed Nail Enamel (#350) reached out and grabbed me. Normally, I pay little attention to the latest drugstore makeup at CVS. I do, however, pay attention to dark greens. I love dark green in clothing, on cars and houses - everywhere. Recently, I purchased a Dooney & Bourke Black Watch plaid handbag - just because it was so pretty. I didn't need it, but I wanted it.The same was true for Mistletoe (in the neighborhood of $6.00 - you can save with coupons on the display), one of eight nail enamels on the holiday display. I read that it's part of the Spice It Up Collection, although there was no way of knowing that from the display. The deep dark green, almost a graphite shade, looked pretty in the bottle. I held it up to the light to ensure it had some green in it. It was so dark, I wasn't sure it deserved the name Mistletoe (some green connotation there, right?).
I am still not sure that Mistletoe is green. In certain light, it's a shimmering graphite or deep charcoal. In other light, there's a clear green shimmer in it. Whatever shade it is, and I believe I see dark green in it, it comes complete with major shine.You can't judge a nail enamel from my application. I've admitted I'm a total klutz when it comes to applying polish. I applied two coats of Mistletoe to a color wheel to take swatch photos outdoors.
Mistletoe looks and feels a little grainy to me. It certainly doesn't feel as smooth as the Dior nail lacquers I bought recently. There is quite a difference in price, though! However, from any distance other than extremely close up, Mistletoe shows me an elegant nail. The color is dramatic, and the shade pleases me.
Mistletoe is not a shade I could live in for a five-day stretch, so does it matter that the formula and finish might not be best in class? Not for me. I invested little and have a color I like. If I get tired of it, I can give it away to a friend.
What do you think? Would you buy Mistletoe? Would it matter to you that it's not Dior or Chanel?
Photos by Best Things in Beauty
Hi Charlestongirl! I'm not very keen on fancy nail colors, I prefer them red, pink or transparent...So I wouldn't buy this one because of that reason and not because it's not Dior, Chanel or Lancôme...: here we have several "little" brands which are often as good or even better than the famous ones!
ReplyDeleteBut I love dark green when it's not on my nails:-)
(I've been silent because of a problem in my right eye which kept me away from the screen, but now it's on the mend, thank God!)
Love the new Armani lipsticks, the one you swatched is a must!
Hi Clarisse! I hope your eye is OK now. That's a scary problem to have.
ReplyDeleteI love those "fancy" nail colors on others, so I'm trying to get used to seeing them on myself. My problem is application. I still have to get a pro to do it, and that limits how often I can wear a pretty nail color.
Have fun with Armani - no matter what the collection is called in Europe. :)
Hell lovely ladies,
ReplyDeleteI buy several nail polishes and don't usually care about the brand as long as they do their job. Revlon is not bad at all and the price is enticing. I haven't figured this one out yet, I'll give it a try when it is released in Italy. Ever tried Mavala? Some of them are really good, others a lot less depending on the colour. I don't got for darks very often but I couldn't resist Dior's blue this season and grabbed one. I find they don't stain the nails, whereas some chaeper brands sometimes do when the colour is either very dark or very bright red.
Hope you're well and happy. I'm getting used to the cold and over a cold! Rnny noses galore over here!
Speak soon.
Rachel
I'll buy nail polish at any price point! I have lots of Chanel, but I have lots of drugstore polish too. I even have a couple from the dollar store.
ReplyDeleteHi Rachel!
ReplyDeleteI need to do a little research! I don't know Mavala. :)
I'm no nails expert, but doesn't a base coat keep the polish from staining your nails?
Glad to hear it, Ava, because I know you are a nails connoisseur!
ReplyDeleteHi,
ReplyDeleteI don't usually use a base coat, to be really honest. But I do make the effort for reds. I still find some polishes make them sort of yellow looking. I tend to use red for a day or tow and them simply remove it. A wondeful top coat I would suggest is Mavala. As good as, or better than, Chanel's and a lot cheper.
Mavala is a Swiss company. They make all sorts of treatments for nails. Really good. The polishes are small bottles and lots of colours. I think you can take a look at the site. No idea if they sell in the USA too.
:-)
Rachel
Thanks, Rachel! I'll go check it out.
ReplyDeleteI think there are great base coats that should always be used to keep the color off your nails. Maybe one of our nail gurus can help with a brand suggestion.
You are definitley right. I get a bit lazy though as I like changing polish so often. I resist about 3 days then feel I need a change. I'll be glad for any suggestions on base coats. It might tempt me into being constant in using it.
ReplyDeleteHave a nice day! I'll be ready for my evening meal soon.
Bye!
I like Deborah Lippman Rehydrating Basecoat and butter London ridge-filling basecoat. I haven't tried the basecoat that Chanel currently sells - they reformulated a couple of years ago and I'm just now finishing up a bottle of the old. The old formula was excellent and one bottle lasted a couple of years without getting too thick to use. I wouldn't hesitate to try the new formula.
ReplyDeleteThough no one asked, a top coat is critical too. I use Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat. It’s expensive at $8 a bottle, but well, well worth it in my opinion. Few, if any, dry faster. It does tend to get thick, but Seche Vite makes a thinner specifically to address this, and you can use it in other nail polishes.
By the way, Sephora’s web site crashed!
Thanks for your advice. My problem is that we get none of those brands in Italy! It's very annoying.
ReplyDeleteI could go for Chanel but I would rather spend my money on something more visible, like nice polish or other showy items! :-)
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ReplyDeleteAnonymous, Zuneta.com, based in the UK, sells Seche Vite and butter London. They ship internationally.
ReplyDeleteThanks Ava, that's interesting.
ReplyDelete