Happy New Year! My Top 11 of 2011

2011 has been a pretty good year for nail polish!

Hype that disappointed, hype that didn't disappoint and surprise sleepers that knocked it out of the park...yep, it's been a pretty big year in the world of nail polish. Is it me, or is it even more popular now than in previous years? Maybe the economy is forcing more people to do their own nails? More companies getting into the swing of social media? Competition?

Well regardless, we nail polish lovers have reaped the benefits.

I thought I'd end the year with my Top 11 Picks of 2011. I was able to get away with only 11 because some of the polishes I got just this year that I adore so much weren't actually released this year.  I'll recap a few of those at the end of the post.

Let's get started! In no particular order, here are my top 11 releases of 2011.

Zoya Petra

a-England Lady of the Lake

I might have included Tristam in this list if it had arrived in time. It's on back order. *pout*


Cult Nails In A Trance 

Orly Sapphire Silk

Dior Camel

Zoya Yara

China Glaze Westside Warrior

Zoya Neeka

Butter London Wallis

Dior Exquis

  Those are my Top 11! There were many more awesome releases, of course. Lots of them I see on others and they look FAB. These are just the ones I picked for me. As you can see by the list, I'm pretty partial to greens. ♥

                       ************************************************************

HONORABLE MENTIONS: 



Dior Apparat

Revlon Foxy

Butter London Dosh

Revlon Ignite

Chanel Graphite

China Glaze Concrete Catwalk

HITS No Olimpo Apolo

                                        ************************

And now for those favorites I got this year but weren't really released this year...

Zoya Zsa Zsa

Orly Plum Noir

Chanel Dragon

Orly Royal Navy

Chanel Khaki Collection (Vert Rose, Vert Brun and Vert Rose)

(sorry in advance for the blurry Khaki Vert pic - but you have to admit, I'm getting better!)

China Glaze Wagon Trail

Wow, lots of cremes in there! Well, that about does it for 2011! I haven't decided which polish I'll wear for New Year's Eve yet. Mainly because I haven't decided what dress I'm wearing. =)

Stay safe and remember, Don't Drink and Drive!

Many many ♥♥♥ from me, Murphy and Twinkie.  All the best for 2012!

Twinks

Murph

Dior Forget-Me-Not and Waterlily - Spring 2012 - Pic Heavy!

I finally received my Dior Forget-Me-Not and Waterlily polishes from the Garden Party Spring 2012 Collection!

Of course I had to swatch them immediately. I've been really afraid the "scented" polishes would give me a headache or make me nauseated like all of the other scented polishes I've tried. We will see. I've had Forget-Me-Not on for a few hours now and aside from the fact that they stink (which is subjective, I suppose) so far no headache or nausea. *crossing fingers* BTW, it smells to me like old Rose Milk. Remember Rose Milk??? If you do, you might be as old as I am! LOL! (Norma Zimmer anyone?)

First up, bottle shots!

Aren't they pretty? ♥

I tried out Forget-Me-Not first...it's a gorgeous light to medium pastel lilac purple, slightly smoky, creme finish that covers in one coat! I prefer two to even things out, but the formula was great and not too thick or too thin. I did have a few stray hairs on the brush I had to trim off, but that was no biggie.

Ready set GO!

Dior Forget-Me-Not

Dior Forget-Me-Not

Dior Forget-Me-Not

Dior Forget-Me-Not

Dior Forget-Me-Not, shade

Dior Forget-Me-Not

It's my favorite of the two, partly because of the formula and partly because it just goes better with my skin tone. And of all the purples I have, I had nothing like it!

Below is a shot of about 2/3rds of my purples and none are close enough to do a real comparison.

Next up is Waterlily. It's a soft, mint green with a great shimmer. It's already been compared to Chanel Jade and after my swatches I will do a full comparison with Milani Dress Maker, which is really a great dupe of Chanel Jade. Sorry I no longer have Jade to compare. I had it and thought it was wrong for my skin tone (which it probably is) and sent it on to a new home. What WAS I thinking???  Ugh.  Live and learn.

Dior Waterlily

Dior Waterlily

Dior Waterlily

Dior Waterlily, shade

Dior Waterlily, shade

Dior Waterlily

Dior Waterlily

ZOMGosh, she's a looker! The only issue I had was the formula is a little too thick. It's a one coater if you're very careful, but I did two, of course. It is somewhat self-leveling, but not quite enough to make up for the thickness. Be very careful when applying and it should be okay. Just a little more effort, that's all. Compared to Milani Dress Maker, though, the formula is great. =)

So, wanna see how she compares to Milani Dress Maker? Let me just say first that Dress Maker is a minimum of three coats because it's very thin and not as opaque or saturated as Waterlily.  Photos below show Waterlily with two coats and Dress Maker with either 3 or 4 coats, I can't remember.

Of course when I was finished, I re-applied Forget-Me-Not. ♥

What do you think? Will you be getting these? Or if you have them already, do you like them?