What? A new post? FINALLY!

It has been another crazy period around here!  Job is keeping me busier than I would like in the evenings so I haven't had much time to do my nails...though somehow I keep acquiring polish...not sure how that is happening.... And on top of that my computer has a virus (which I'm currently trying to get rid of) so everything takes an insane amount of time and frustration!
Anyway, thanks to a "small" winter storm here in the midwest, I don't have to work today! So for the first time in weeks I retreated to my hideout for some swatching.
More than a year ago, I came across this post by The Polished Perfectionist and fell in love with a england She Walks in Beauty and promptly ordered it.  I have worn it a couple of times but I don't think I ever posted pics here.  This week I was cruising the makeup aisles at Walmart and came across Maybelline Gilded Rose  and immediately  picked it up thinking it looked very close to a dupe.
Swatched today over Zoya Neely and if there is a difference, it is very slight.
a england is on the index and pinky fingers, Maybelline on the middle two.

List of where to buy a england  polish based on country can be found here on their website, Maybelline can be found at most drug stores and mass retailers.  

Zoya Natty Swatch and Comparison

A few short months ago (ok, almost a year really) I had never heard of Zoya nail polish...Oh how much I missed!  I feel like I am constantly raving about one of their polishes, but seriously, if you haven't you need to try it!  I got my BOGO order in the mail the other day and several of the shades I picked are from the Designer and Diva collection.  Zoya describes Natty as "a smoky steel blue with an opaque creamy finish".  I would say that is a pretty good description of exactly what Natty is....though it almost falls into the navy blue category.  So close in fact, that I really thought when I pulled it out of the box "oh no, this is a dupe of Essie Bobbing for Baubles"...but it isn't.  Natty is a bit lighter and leans more gray (hence the "steel blue".  I did a quick swatch of both on a nail wheel so you can see for yourself.

Zoya Jana Review and Comparison

I have said it before and I will say it again, I LOVE ZOYA!  Their cream finish polish has the best formula in my opinion.  Zoya describes Jana as "a medium nude putty creme with grey, mauve, and purple tones".  It is a beautiful shade that applied like a dream.

Zoya Jana

Then one of my muggle friends said it looked like a Wet N Wild polish that she had.  I knew immediately which one she meant so of course I had to check when I got home.  I removed the Zoya from my index and ring finger and applied the WnW (Wet Cement).  There is a very slight difference in the two but not much.  Muggles likely wouldn't be able to tell the difference.  That said, the formula and the brush (WnW brush is TERRIBLE) is better with the Zoya.

Index and Ring finger: WnW Wet Cement
Middle and Pinky Zoya Jana

 Then I was putting these two away and came across my bottle of essence Walk of Fame and thought it looked rather similar as well.  By that time I had already redone my nails so I swatched the three of them on a nail wheel.  Mind you it is like 2am by the time I get that done and the lighting in my little room isn't great but I think you get the drift here.  To my eyes the essence is slightly more brown (though not as dark as it looks here), the Zoya is a tad more purple and the WnW is a bit more gray.  All in all, three very similar but different shades.

Can you see the difference?  Do you own any of these?  Would you purchase the others if you do?

Julep Nails

So a few days ago I posted about my Julep Maven box for this month and promised some swatches, today I have two for you. :) First up is Charlotte, a gorgeous dusky lavender cream. This one is amazingly smooth and easy to apply, one coat pictured here. That is one of the things I am loving about Julep's polishes is that they tend to be great with just one coat.

Next I layered Melissa over the top of it. Melissa is described by Juelp as "sheer opalescent shimmer adds a soft glow when used alone and a high-fashion holographic effect when used over another color." Intriguing to say the least. I was going to show it alone but couldn't get the pics to come out very well.

Notice anything about this pic? Well, there are two different colors shown here, can you tell the difference? On my index and ring finger is Julep's Melissa, like I mentioned above, one coat. On my middle and pinkie finger is two coats of Pure Ice Mint Dream. Now, I do love Julep polish but... I can barely (if at all) tell a difference here! But, where I can notice a difference is in my bank account. Julep retails for $14 for 8mL, Pure Ice can be found at Wal-Mart, Walgreen's and other drug stores and typically retails for under $2 for 15mL. A bit easier to swallow for me anyway. :)

What do you think?