Hello Nailphiles!

Today, i’m bringing you the OPI Spring/Summer 2014 Brazil Collection. I’ve been super excited to try out this collection since it was announced in January. Sadly, my self-imposed no-buy pushed this purchase off a few months… but it was worth the wait! It does help that I came across the HBBeautyBar site, they seem to ALWAYS have 15% their polishes – MUCH more convenient than being a slave to ULTA’s news letter or EBay to find the polishes you want when on a budget.

First, the polishes.

Each swatch was done with one coat of OPI Natural Base Coat, 2 coats of polish, and 1 coat of OPI Top Coat. Please excuse the patch peeking out from under the polish on my index finger, we had another emergency surgery this week after a fight with the weed wacker

Disclaimer: I only purchased 10 of the 12 Brazil polishes. Missing Polishes: OPI Scores A Goal and Next Stop…The Bikini Zone. I was just not impressed with these polishes and didn’t see them getting used in my polish future.

I Just Can’t Cop-Acabana – I am TOTALLY in love with this yellow creme polish. It reminds me of banana LaffyTaffy (My Favorite!). This polish is a little streaky on the first coat, but evens out just fine after the second

– I am TOTALLY in love with this yellow creme polish. It reminds me of banana LaffyTaffy (My Favorite!). This polish is a little streaky on the first coat, but evens out just fine after the second Where Did Suzi’s Man-Go? – This is a lovely mango/tangerine creme. I’m not normally an orange girl, but this was a nice surprise.

Toucan Do It If You Try and Live. Love. Carnival. are both nice coral colors – but in my opinion, these polishes too similar to be in the same collection… but then again i’m not a big fan of coral colors – they don’t play nice with my uber-pale complexion. Toucan is more of an orangy coral while Carnival is more red.

and are both nice coral colors – but in my opinion, these polishes too similar to be in the same collection… but then again i’m not a big fan of coral colors – they don’t play nice with my uber-pale complexion. Toucan is more of an orangy coral while Carnival is more red. Kiss Me I’m Brazilian – this is a great pink creme polish, and I love it! the photo above makes it look a little brighter than it is. I can’t wait to use this polish more.

– this is a great pink creme polish, and I love it! the photo above makes it look a little brighter than it is. I can’t wait to use this polish more. Red Hot Rio – this red creme had an almost jelly formula that required 2 coats to be fully opaque.

Amazon… Amazoff – this is another star in the Brazil Collection – a fun teal. Many have noted this polish had a bit of shimmer to it, but I really didn’t notice any. Also, this has a tendency to stain your nails, so make sure to pair this with a good base coat

– this is another star in the Brazil Collection – a fun teal. Many have noted this polish had a bit of shimmer to it, but I really didn’t notice any. Also, this has a tendency to stain your nails, so make sure to pair this with a good base coat I Sau Paulo Over There – this is an interesting dark taupe color, and I cant wait to try this in a gradient with the two polishes below.

– this is an interesting dark taupe color, and I cant wait to try this in a gradient with the two polishes below. Taupe-less Beach – this is a lighter taupe creme

– this is a lighter taupe creme Don’t Bossa Nova Me Around – this is a lovely nude/taupe creme. The first coat was a bit streaky, but evened out after a second coat

Overall, the Brazil collection was great to play with. Initially, I wasn’t sure how I felt about the darker polishes of the collection – I just didn’t see a need for them in a spring/summer collection. However, I really liked the two lighter taupe colors, and see myself using these in the future. I still don’t feel like I missed much with Scores a Goal or Bikini Zone – I have several dark and dusty reds, and this just wasn’t unique enough for me to splurge on. Although I love a good duochrome, I just wasn’t impressed with the early swatches of Bikini Zone.

And now, for the nail art! For this mani, I paired up I Just Can’t Cop-Acabana, Where Did Suzi’s Man-Go, Toucan Do It If You TryLive. Love. Carnival, Kiss Me I’m Brazilian and Red Hot Rio to recreate the bright and fun Marimekko Albatrossi fabric :

At first, I had fallen in love with the classic Marimekko flower print, but after a quick search through Google and Pinterest, I came across the Albatrossi fabric and decided this was it! I believe the image i used above was from a Marimekko beach towel, which seemed fitting for my first mani of the summer. I started with 2 coats of I Just Can’t Cop-Acabana, and used dotting tools and nail art brushes to create the squigglys from the Albatrossi pattern using Where Did Suzi’s Man-Go, Toucan Do It If You TryLive. Love. Carnival, Kiss Me I’m Brazilian and Red Hot Rio. This was a really fun mani, and a great shift to the bright and fun colors of summer!

Sadly, my late schedule this month is making it very difficult to finish manis and prep new posts before bedtime, so I will most likely be down to one post a week until my schedule changes again. Next weekend I will be featuring China Glaze’s 2014 collection – Off Shore. See you all then!