I know I said I was only going to get Petrol from Butter London's Holiday 2013 offerings, but this polish was just too pretty to pass up.

2 coats

Butter London Bluecoat is a royal blue with blue-green shimmer. It is such a stunning color! The real star is the formula, though. It applied like a dream and was very pigmented. Also, no staining at all with this one, and I wore it for a couple days without a base coat. The only downside to this polish is it's only available in a duo with a less than desirable glitter topcoat. Hopefully Butter London will offer Bluecoat on its own someday.





Butter London Double Take retails for $24 and is available at Ulta

Petrol is the only polish that even remotely piqued my interest from Butter London's Holiday 2013 offerings. Usually they come out with some real winners, but half the collection is repromotes. Anyway, onto what I think is the star of the collection.

3 coats, 2 coasts over 1 coat Illamasqua Boosh on pinky

Butter London Petrol is purple/blue duo. It is promoted as an overcoat, but it actually looks better on its own. Considering it only takes 3 coats for opacity, that's pretty great news. Over black, it loses that squishy look and some depth of color. I will try other combos soon, as I think it has potential to make some shades look awesome.



The formula was just okay. It applied pretty streaky, and I had some dragging at the cuticle. I needed two coats over the black because the first coat was too streaky to leave it that way. I prefer for my layering polishes to apply perfectly in one coat.



Petrol reminds me of Sally Hansen Grape Going, but I no longer have that to compare the two. Might be worth looking into if you're looking for a cheaper alternative.





Butter London Petrol retails for $15 and is available at Ulta.

2 coats

Nails Inc Baker Street is a fabulous cobalt creme. The color is so saturated and vibrant, which is why I think so many people love it. It also doesn't hurt that the formula is near perfection. Two coats that went on with no fuss.

2 coats w/ Butter London Lovely Jubbly

Nails Inc. Baker Street retails for $9.50 and is available at Sephora.

3 coats

Butter London Fiver is light mint creme. It's by far my favorite from the Spring 2013 collection. Application wasn't perfect, but it was manageable. The formula was on the thin side, and it took three coats to get a smooth finish.



I wore Fiver for a full week and added a gradient when I started getting tipwear. I used Nails Inc. Royal Botanical Gardens.

We're back with the Winter Edition of the Beauty Envy Bag! We've handpicked several of our beauty favorites that will help you make it through this winter season with some new goodies. The bag consists of all full-sized products to help meet your beauty needs. For those of you who may be new to our blogs, here's a quick introduction.

Lakeisha is a nail polish blogger from Florida. She is obsessed with polish, fashion, and merging the two together. She is the blogger behind Refined and Polished.

Latoya is a beauty blogger from the East Coast of Canada. While she loves all things girly, she's also a closet gamer and is a die-hard Walking Dead fan. She is the blogger behind Beauty Obsessed.

Leticia is a beauty blogger from the Pacific Northwest. She is a dog lover, sci fi nerd, handbag collector, and makeup junkie. She is the blogger behind Cosmetics Aficionado.

Lola is a Midwest blogger with a passion for polish, science, and music. She is the blogger behind Burb Beauty.

The Winter Edition of the Beauty Envy Bag contains:

• L'Occitane Hand Indulgence Hand Cream Set (Reviewed by Lola)


• Benefit's High Flyin' Glosses Collection (Reviewed by Latoya)


• Tarina Tarantino Emerald Pretty Eyeshadow Palette (Reviewed by Leticia)


• Butter LONDON Two Fingered Salute & Scallywag (Reviewed by Lakeisha)

Please feel free to click the links above to learn more about each product. Accompanying all of the items is a purple metallic beauty bag from Sephora and additional samples will be included as well.

Here is what you need to know to enter in the Rafflecopter widget below:

• Must leave a blog comment (just one blog, doesn't have to be all four) letting us know your favorite winter beauty product.


• Additional entries for following each blog on social media networks (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram)


• Open internationally


• Must be 18+


• Giveaway closes on Monday January, 28 at 11:59 EST

Good luck dolls!!!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I included Essie Bikini So Teeny in the comp as a reference point for the other two.

Essie Bikini So Teeny, Butter London Sprog, Essie Lapis of Luxury

While the shades are similar, Sprog is more pigmented and brighter than Lapis of Luxury. Lapis has almost a dusty quality in comparison to Sprog. In terms of finish, Lapis of Luxury is a crelly, while Sprog is a true creme.



If I had to choose, I'd pick Lapis over Sprog, but I don't mind owning both.



I believe Essie Lapis of Luxury is core now, so it should be readily available.

Butter London Sprog is exclusive to Ulta and butterlondon.com.

2 coats

Butter London Shag is a warm bronze metallic. This is the only color from the collection that screams Autumn to me - definitely reminds me of fallen leaves. Shag has such a beautiful finish and dries quite shiny.



Shag's formula is great. I had no application issues.



I don't have a comparison for this simply because this is not a color I typically wear or even like. I'm pleasantly surprised with how much I like Shag, though. I hope this doesn't open the flood gate with bronzey shades for me!



Have you picked anything up from Butter London's Autumn/Winter 2012 collection yet? If not, do you plan to?



Butter London Shag retails for $14 and is available at butterlondon.com and Ulta.

Butter London has holos! As in holo that actually shows up without squinting (I'm looking at you AHtQ). Their Autumn/Winter 2012 collection includes Dodgy Barnett, a typical silver holo and Trustafrian, a light green holo.

3 coats, sunlight

flash

Butter London Dodgy Barnett is a silver grey holo. I would call this subtly linear/borderline scattered as I never really saw a distinct flame while in the sun. In terms of strength, I would put this slightly above Color Club's current, non-dud holos (not the Halo Hues!). Indoors, Dodgy Barnett looks like a shimmery light grey. It doesn't fall flat like some of the stronger holos.



The formula is pretty good. Nice consistency, but I experienced a bit of cuticle drag. I dealt with this by just waiting a moment longer in between coats. Dodgy Barnett dried fairly quickly with a nice shine.



I managed to find a dead on dupe for Dodgy Barnett, but it's unfortunately not that easy to obtain.

2 coats China Glaze OMG, 3 coats Butter London Dodgy Barnett, 3 coats Catherine Arley 676

China Glaze OMG is there simply for reference. I wanted to show how much grey Dodgy Barnett has compared to a silver holo. Catherine Arley 676 is the same as Dodgy Barnett in terms of holo strength, opacity, and color.



This comparison probably won't be useful unless you already own 676. If you don't and really like Dodgy Barnett, I would advise you to go ahead and get it. Ordering Catherine Arleys is not very cost efficient unless you want several of them.



Butter London Dodgy Barnett retails for $14 and is available at butterlondon.com and Ulta.

I saw a swatch of Butter London Gobsmacked in last month's issue of InStyle and knew it had to be mine. My weeks of lusting did not go in vain. Gobsmacked is a stunner!

3 coats

with flash

Butter London Gobsmacked is a deep charcoal grey glitter. It has a ton of depth - totally reminds me of asphalt. Gobsmacked dries matte with some texture. These pictures were taken with no topcoat but before the polish was completely dry. It was smooth and quite shiny with one coat of Seche Vite.



The formula is typical of dense microglitters: a bit thick but manageable if you use thin coats and wait a minute before applying the next coat. I've also found that adding a few drops of thinner usually takes care of the problem, but that was unnecessary with Gobsmacked. Also, Gobsmacked dried quite quickly.



Moving onto the comparison, the closest polish I found in my stash to compare is Milani Silver Dazzle.

3 coats Butter London Gobsmacked (g), 2 coats Milani Silver Dazzle (sd)

with flash

Silver Dazzle and Gobsmacked are not dupes.The key difference is Silver Dazzle's warmer, lighter color. Gobsmacked almost looks blue in comparison. Silver Dazzle is also more textured.  I had to use two coats of Seche Vite to smooth it out. Above, they are shown without topcoat.



While I don't consider these dupes (they look obviously different, even at arm's length), Silver Dazzle may be close enough for some. The price point of the Milani is definitely more desirable, but I think it will just come down to personal preference. I think I'll keep both for now.



Which do you prefer?



Milani Silver Dazzle retails for $5 and is available at most drugstores.

Butter London Gobsmacked retails for $14 and is available at butterlondon.com.

While shopping Butter London's Autumn/Winter 2012 collection, I had a feeling I'd seen Lovely Jubbly before. I couldn't make the connection, so I bought it anyway. Of course, it clicked as soon as I got home:

Sally Hansen Rockstar Pink, Butter London Lovely Jubbly

2 coats Rockstar Pink, 3 coats Lovely Jubbly

I'm usually super nitpicky about what I call a dupe, and I have no problem calling Sally Hansen Rockstar Pink a dupe for Butter London Lovely Jubbly. Or is it the other way around since Lovely Jubbly is newer? The only difference is that Rockstar Pink is slightly more dense than Lovely Jubbly. There is really no need to own both of these, though.

1 coat Sally Hansen Rockstar Pink, 1 coat Butter London Lovely Jubbly over 2 coats  Nails Inc. Baker Street

I wanted to try to show the slight difference in the opacity of these glitters. I do prefer the look of Lovely Jubbly layered, but again, it would be ridiculous to suggest owning both of these.



The formulas we comparable. I had no issues applying either one, and the consistencies were not too thick or thin. I prefer the SHXW brushes to Butter London's.



I would suggest skipping Lovely Jubbly (unless you collect BL) and going for the much more cost efficient Rockstar Pink.

My BL stash is the first I've purged, and I wanted to share that with you. I went from 52 to 38! Here's what's left:

1st row: Pink Ribbon, Tea with the Queen, Tart with a Heart, All Hail McQueen, All Hail the Queen (they're different, I swear), The Full Monty, Wallis, Toff, Queen Vic  2nd row: Bumster, Bossy Boots, Dosh, Blagger, Lillibet's Jubilee, Knackered, Muggins, No More Waity Katie, Marrow, The Black Knight  3rd row: Lady Muck, Victoriana, Artful Dodger, Slapper, Henley Regatta, Thames, British Racing Green, Bluey, Royal Navy, Mariner

Recently, I spent a day with one of my very good friend's daughters, who love getting their nails painted. Naturally, I put them to work reviewing a few polish collections for my blog. :)

Ava, 8; Hope, 6

Aren't they precious? First up, Ava shares what she thinks about the Butter London Spring/Summer 2012 collection.

2 coats

Slapper is a bright, vibrant teal creme that I found impossible to photograph properly. Imagine it has a touch more green. The application was a breeze. It was also very pigmented; her nails barely needed a second coat.



Ava says: "I don't like it. It looks like grass. Yeah, it looks green. I don't like green. Nope."



Well okay then!

2 coats

Bossy Pants is a light mint green creme. My personal favorite from the collection. The formula is a great consistency - not to thick or thin.



Ava says: "It's too light, but it's a beautiful color. It reminds me of thin mints*."



*Aren't thin mints dark brown? Haha

3 coats

Trout Pout is a salmon pink creme. I had some application issues with this one. I found the formula to be quite thick and streaky. A bit of thinner would most likely be the solution.



Ava says: "It's beautiful. It goes great with my 'tin tone' and I love it!"



I totally agree. :)

3 coats

Disco Biscuit is a hot pink jelly with iridescent microglitter. The application was nice and smooth.




Ava says: "It's my favorite color! It reminds me of a flower."

3 coats

Knackered is a purple/grey/green duo (like Wicked Game) with holo microglitter. The formula is on the thin side, but it's not at all runny. It applied very smoothly.



Ava says: "It looks so sprinkly. It kinda looks like grey. This one is my favorite of them all."





Overall, this is a pretty great collection. I think there is a great balance of brights and pastels and glitter. Butter London managed to include several different finishes and shades in just five polishes. That's quite impressive.



If you haven't already, you can pick these up at Ulta stores and online or butterlondon.com or Sephora.com (new!). They are $14 retail.

Hello, readers! Long time now post. I've been ridiculously busy with life - you all know how it goes. I have tons to catch up on, including my 600 follower giveaway. Please bear with me while I play catch up and post things you may have already seen a million times by now! I'll try to throw in some current things as well. If you have any swatch/review requests, please feel free to contact me!



Onto the review...



I picked up a bunch of AA's new shades recently, and since I've been on an indefinite neutral phase, Dance was the first one I tried.

2 coats

Dance is a pale nude with a touch of pink. It's pretty neutral, not leaning too cool or too warm. It's squishy and sheer - probably could have used a third coat. The formula is nice and smooth, not too thick or runny. I had no issues with the application. I thought it might look very similar to Deborah Lippmann's Naked, but it is slightly paler and pinker.

1 coat over 2 coats of Dance, with flash

1 coat over 2 coats of Dance, natural lighting

Tart with a Heart is such a fun polish! It has gold, silver, and holo microglitter as well as round holo glitter all suspended in a clear base. It is on the thick side, but that doesn't hinder the application much. I love that it's dense enough to just do one coat for layering. I bet it could be opaque on its own in three.

This has been out since Spring, but I guess they are officially releasing it with the Autumn/Winter collection. This is great for those who missed out on it the first time around!








No More Waity Katie is an interesting polish. It's a sheer smoky grey with bright lavender glitter. I layered a coat of NMWK over Misa Office Polish-tics because I just didn't care for the swatches I'd seen of NMWK on its own. Here's Office Polish-tics by itself in case you're wondering:






Yep, it's that pigmented and awesome in just one coat. Many of my favorite one-coaters are by Misa. I love this shade so much! It's one of the few polishes I've worn several times.





In other news, today is my birthday! It does't really count because 23 is a nothing age, but I'm going to treat myself to a couple Lippmanns, I think. :)

2 coats, 1 coat of CND Gold Sparkle on top

Artful Dodger is a slightly dusty blue with a touch of green. As gorgeous as it is on its own (sorry I don't have a pic of it!), I needed some shimmer in my life after a full weekend of Naked. I love what CND's Gold Sparkle does for this. So pretty!



Artful Dodger is available at butterlondon.com (though I recommend getting it from a b&m Ulta or beauty.com), and CND Gold Sparkle is available at several etailers.

2 coats

This is my absolute favorite Butter London, so of course I had to include it in my swatch week. Marrow is a reddish purple with a fine silver shimmer. The application and pigmentation are flawless! The wear on this is great as well. I wore it for 3 days with no tip wear (wrapped tips) or chipping.