Wednesday, January 27, 2010

NOTD - UD "Meltdown" vs. ELF "Royal Purple" + Your thoughts on...

I mentioned in my recent post of swatches from my Urban Decay Apocalyptic nail kit that the shade "Meltdown" looked just like ELF's nail polish in "Royal purple." At the time, I thought this was pretty accurate, but I should have noted that I hadn't looked at the bottle of ELF since last year :P So Here is a better comparison.


The ELF Royal Purple is, well, purple. But it has a sliiight red undertone in real life.
The UD Meltdown is more of a true purple, and a bit darker.
(sorry it looks a bit blue-violet in the pictures, but it is purple in real life)

Meltdown is not as sheer as Gunmetal was, but I still did 2 coats anyway.
The ELF polish needs about 2-3 coats. It is thinner than Meltdown.
Both dry quickly to a high-shine finish!

In real life, the color difference is not as noticeable as in these pictures.
At a glance, they all look the same shiny purple!
You can only tell the difference if you look closely.


All in all, I think these are both equally gorgeous shades. ELF is not exactly a dupe like I previously thought, but it is still pretty! Just goes to show that even for $1, you can get great quality nail polish in awesome colors!

PS - When the hell did I get 297 followers?! Thank you all so much! :D

Which leads me to these questions:

What makes you follow a blog?
Or do you follow everyone?
What makes you want to keep reading?
What totally turns you off?


I would have to say that I will usually follow most people who follow my blog, as long as they don't ASK me to follow them. Does anyone else find that kind of... pushy?

I've heard a few stories of bloggers losing some of their followers, just because they didn't follow them back. I don't think that's very nice. No one should feel obligated to follow anyone else. But, if your blog is fascinating to me, I'd still follow anyway.

I like beauty blogs that have long, detailed, thorough, honest reviews, and lots of pictures. I like pictures. Lots of pictures. Swatches, FOTDS, EOTDS, NOTDS, you name it. Or just lots of pictures of the blogger. I like staring at hot girls while I surf the net. Now I sound like a stalker. Haha.

I also like bewbs (Alienman!). Now I sound even worse lol. I also like the occasional lengthy personal post, that lets readers know that the person behind the blog is, well, a real person! It's always nice to be able to identify on a certian level with other bloggers. That's why I like reading/doing tags. This is usually what makes me want to continue following/reading a blog -- if I can relate to the blogger, or I enjoy what they write about/the way they write about it and their "personality".

In all honesty, I tend to not read SUPER LONG SUPER PERSONAL posts (unless I "know" the blogger :P) because I feel like I'm reading something that's not my business. What are your thoughts?




22 comments :

  1. I follow blogs with the pretty bitches...LOL JK! I think as long as they have interesting posts, and I relate on some level I just go ahead and follow, seeing from their posts you can tell if you can somewhat relate to that person so I like to follow people that I would think I would get along with and would take interest in reading, also the informative blogs are always a plus (: but thats just how I've been since I began blogging which really isn't long ago hehe

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  2. Very lovely colours! They're pretty similar, but they look nice in their own way :)

    I follow blogs that entertain me and have interestingness lurking within them! I also loove lots of pictures. I'm not one to read meter long paragraphs, but if it's interesting or something I can relate to, then I'll dive right into it!

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  3. I say "AMEN" to everything you just said! LOL

    One, I hate people who say "I'm following you, now follow me"
    It's like WTF? Uh, no!
    I don't like being told what to do, annoys me *rolls eyes*
    People should be following other people because they like their blogs or something catches their attention, but to some I think it's used as a popularity contest & then they begin to expect to be followed

    oOo and I love pictures too! :D I'm very visual & so I like em! But I'm not one of those bloggers who just looks only at the pictures, I read too. But I especially love when HOT girls camera whore! ;) LOL I like seeing pretty faces and nice bodies. haha

    && I also like it when people let us into their lives. Not to be stalkerish, but I don't want to just look at someone's face, reviews, & fashions without knowing a little about them. Then they just seem to robotic to me I'll lose interest, especially after a billion reviews. Idk, maybe because I'm not a "beauty blogger" and so I get bored.

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  4. What makes you follow a blog?
    I think you're a great down to earth beautiful person who I can stalk! ;b LOL jk! I just totally love your blog. There's a little bit of everything here :) oh and I love how you openly will talk about being in love with boobs and hot girls!! ^__^ I was telling Raymond about my latest post and he was like "uhh.. do I have to worry about you?" haha

    Or do you follow everyone?
    Nope, not at all. Compared to a lot of other people, I actually don't follow very many blogs

    What makes you want to keep reading?
    Well I've been follwing you for so long now that I want to know how you're doing. I love to hear about Happy (& Muffin :( ) and how you and your hubby are doing. And I love seeing how school & Tanimoto Dharma Designs is coming along. Gosh, I sound like a straight up stalker now. XD && I love all of your reviews and NOTD, FOTH, EOTD, ect.

    What totally turns you off?
    Ugly people and guys with bad teeth! haha Just Kidding! I don't know. Nothing about your blog turns me off. You're too prety <3

    Okay well cheers to Blogger's longest post ever. I feel like I've been typing nonstop. && Just to say it for like the hundredth time, I'm not a stalker

    Have a Happy Thursday! :)

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  5. Stuff that interests me makes me follow a blog...i read the whole previous stuff and decide if it's interesting, i love tips and tutes...

    I was trying to pick which shade of purple i liked better...but it was too hard...I'd prolly get both if i could...(ie. no UD and Elf in au...not that i know of!)

    ^^

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  6. Both are super pretty purples! The ELF Is a bit brighter.

    Congrats on almost 300 followers! I tend to follow blogs bcuz I like the personality that shows in the posts. Haha BEWBIES!! That doesn't hurt either! LOL Now I'm a pervert huh?! Alienman is my Twinstar, so I understand you loving her too! LOL!

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  7. I love your blog because your topics are interesting and your layout is nice and neat and easy to navigate around!

    Turns offs for me are people who have music players on their profiles, I open a lot of windows at the same time so the music starts to just... sound like noise and I end up putting my entire PC on mute lol.

    I am IN LOVE with ELF's Royal Purple! I love how its purple but blue-ish too.

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  8. Why does that ELF nail polish look so much shinier than UD?

    As for your question about followers, I've lost some followers before because I didn't follow them back, LOL. I follow people when their updates are interesting and relevant to me, and if that person sounds real. The worst thing ever is if a blogger is completely fake behind their blog persona. Another turnoff are bloggers who just post rants on their blogs. Occasional ones are fine, I sometimes rant too, but I've read blogs that are mainly rants and it makes me wonder if I should be reading their thoughts at all. I love pictures too!! But not too many because I end up just looking at the pictures without reading the content. I'm guilty of the too many pictures thing though, especially when I'm describing my travels XD

    But one thing is for sure, you definitely deserve all 298 followers, and more =)

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  9. hola senioritaaa! :) both those shades are lovely but i'd have to say i love the urban decay one better! darker is better for this kinda weather! hehe! :)

    in re: to your blogger questions:

    What makes you follow a blog?
    - if they have followed me
    - if i'm geniunely interested in their blog

    Or do you follow everyone?
    - nah... even if they've followed me first and their blog is "blah"... i will think twice.

    What makes you want to keep reading?
    - to me a good blogger will post with proper writing/grammar/format and im not some English crazy person or anything but you know those posts that have run on sentences with a bunch of (..............) (;P ;P :) =P ;]) ... i think you get the point. haha!
    - i will also keep reading if the posts are just the right length... not TOO long because more likely than not, i'll lose interest.
    - blog with photos! (interesting photos)
    - i know there are a lot of beauty blogs but i am more attracted to the ones that have a mixture of their personal life in there. like you, i want to know they are human. haha!
    - or if i've gotten to know that person and their personality, i will still keep reading even if they havn't got the best writing style! :)

    What totally turns you off?
    - like you, people who ask you to follow their blog. it's not always about numbers!!!

    <3 you ect! :)

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  10. I think I like the urban decay one better. the color seems more rich.

    yea i can't stand it when people leave comments like

    lovely blog... check out mine!

    it makes me not want to check out theirs. but really if someone leaves a comment on my blog I usually comment back and check out their blog anyways. I follow people that I think are interesting and blog often. I don't care if they don't follow me back... maybe they're not into celebrities, right? and vice versa.

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  11. Oh thanks for showing us the comparison pictures of these two nail polishes. They're both so pretty and I agree you can get quality beauty items for less as well.

    Congratulations on all your followers!

    I follow blogs because I like the pictures they post, the reviews they write, if they haul a lot (LOL), personality, looks, fashion etc.

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  12. I love the blogs that do all the things you listed. I DON'T like blogs that only use stuff like NARS and Illamasqua and whatever in every single post... normal people can't afford that shit! I like ones that mix it up with designer, drugstore, and indie makeup.

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  13. I want the nail polish color! so pretty!!!! :)

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  14. I follow a blog when I see lovely pictures and I usually prefer that the blogger puts a picture of themselves on? Because it's always nice to imagine who's talking. I see some bloggers that always blur out their own faces and I'm just slightly put off. ): I understand security but I think that's a tend too unnecessary and it makes me think that they're too self-centered.

    I also REALLY like the fact that you put some personal things in your blog posts! I realize that people are, well, curious creatures and we like to know the interesting (or...not interesting too I guess?) things going on in people's life. & I think you balance the real life/makeup, skin care advices and reviews very well in your blog posts! <3

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  15. helllooooo! Does the ELF chip easily? I had a black, and it chipped in a day :\

    What makes you follow a blog?
    - interesting content-- and definitely a sense of humor. I'm a visual person, so I love photos.

    What makes you want to keep reading?
    - anything that's interesting. most of the girls I've met on blog are truly exceptional and fun

    What totally turns you off?
    - When people post stupid comments like... "nice blog, check mine out"

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  16. OMG. Those are both such goooooorgeous purples! O_O... I think I need both of them now.

    And hehehe. I do not follow all the people who follow me. I kind of used to do that, but honestly dude, this is my hobby and my happy-free-fun time. If reading your blog is going to be a chore, I am not going to follow. If I have nothing to say in response to a post, I'm not going to force myself to comment. This is for fun only, not an obligation (which is what I feel about blogging as well so I don't really feel bad for not posting or whatever. Everyone has a life, ykwim?) I do check out all my new followers occasionally, but a lot of the time they don't have blogs anyway!

    I like PICTURES! Lots of PICTURES! HIGH QUALITY PICTURES. I love eye candy and I like well written, well thought out posts. I don't like people who just think this or think that or only write one or two sentences with no supporting evidence (I'm such a nerd lol). Humor is a HUGE plus too. There are very few people I know who are good at writing funny, but they are just gems. =)

    I really dislike auto-play music, but I make an exception for some blogs and I usually surf with my computer on silent anyway. But it really pisses me off when I'm trying to play my own music on my computer. T_T;

    I also absolutely freaking DETEST people who cannot spell or capitalize correctly, don't use proper grammar, italicize and bold random words indiscriminantly. Maybe my inner grammar nazi but this kind of childish netspeak just drives me insane. Also, asking me to check out your blog. MULTIPLE TIMES. YES I FUCKING SAW YOU THE FIRST TIME. YOU AREN'T INTERESTING ENOUGH. NOW GET A LIFE PLS.

    I am maybe a bit cranky right now... lol. But seriously, we all chose to be here. And we all have every right to chose to follow or not follow anyone we like. I'm not gonna sweat it if someone follows my blog just because they thought I might follow them back. And honestly, most of my followers don't read or comment and I'm still getting followers on my blogspot that's closed, so I'm not gonna sweat a stupid number. That's really not what Google Friend Connect is for, lol.

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  17. Interesting post..

    i like how u asked why people follow..

    let's see..

    I have to agree with you on several points there.

    -I love hot girls as well. hahaha..teehee
    -I love to see lots of pictures...it must be a girl thing
    -A little about the bloggers personal life is always good.
    -Someone with a sense of humor. Who is real
    -often updating is a bonus

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  18. What makes you follow a blog?

    That the blogger is writing about something I'm interested in, basically. Most of the blogs I follow are about fashion, beauty, and culture.

    What makes you want to keep reading?

    That I keep seeing posts I'm interested in. Usually I stop following a blog when I realize I'm not really that interested in what's being written about.

    What totally turns you off?

    Hm. I usually won't follow a blog if the posts are composed entirely of pictures, or blogs that just consist of someone posting pictures of what they wear everyday or something like that (though there are exceptions to these rules). Pictures make things interesting, but I don't want to wade through too many of them. On the other hand, walls of text can be pretty discouraging, unless the person has something really interesting to say. It depends, though I think a balance between the two is best.

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  19. For a dollar, it's a close enough dupe! LOL :)

    What do I look for in a blogger.. I usually follow people that have lots of pictures too and have in depth text! LOL, I like to read but I know people skim through my posts but I think they are lengthy sometimes though o_O IDK but I don't really mind, I understand that sometimes you really don't wanna read through a bunch of jibberish ^_^

    I will usually unfollow blogs too because I don't enjoy reading their posts anymore? IDK, it's like the blogger lost interests in blogging so yeahhh..

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  20. I probably sound like a dork here, but I didn't realise that ELF had such a gorgeous purple in its nail polish collection! Duh! Anyway, I love both the purples that you have. Purples are so my thing! :)

    About following blogs, oh, I don't like it when people ASK me to follow their blogs. It sounds too desperate and, as you said, pushy. It just doesn't feel right! I usually just cringe when I read that.

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  21. I follow mostly beauty blogs that gives good reviews but don't sound like a typical beauty magazine all commercial like :P I like blogs like yours that gives a hint of a personality behind each products as it gives a better perspective on what I'm getting :D

    Apart from that, friends blogs. Don't think I would follow a personal blog cuz its just creepy lol! Ok unless they are somewhat famous bloggers already irl like Xiaxue and the likes.

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  22. i follow blogs with nice layouts... too much of IN YO FACE/blinking backgrounds/too much going on in general is blehhh.
    i also like hot girls, smart girls anddd crafty girls... hence why i followed you when i started blogging last year ;)

    ohh anddd i like reading about/looking at food too lol.

    in general, just because someone's following me... doesnt mean ill follow back. although when i see people comment on my posts, i generally check their blog out anddd leave a comment in their recent posts (if any). anddd if they sound interesting, i follow back :)

    ive encountered a couple bloggers here that follow just so the other person will follow them back. i know of this one blogger who followed me for a couple days... then unfollowed me after cuz i didnt follow her =_=

    oh andd theres also those "spammers"... the type of bloggers who comment THE SAME copy&paste comment in EVERYONE's posts... i dont mind those (since some people really dont have time to write out a well thought out comment buut still want the blogger to know that they read the post) buuut there was this one time where the blogger's post she commented in was talking about a death in the family... then she comments "your blog is cute". i thought that was horrible!

    anyway... k ill stop typing lol
    have a good weekend hottie!!

    <3

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If you have any questions, comments, or feedback, feel free to drop me a line and I'll get back to you asap :)