polish fixation

Black Flames

2013-04-11T09:00:00.000-04:00

Another stamping post today! This time it's with a plate from my MASH plate collection, Mash-48 to be exact. I wanted something edgy and chose a fiery looking design, which I stamped in black over a bright red "canvas", mostly cause I didn't want it to directly look like flames, even though the design is very flame-like.

I am pleased with the result:

It's not a perfect stamping job but I still like it!

Here is what the plate looks like:

Do you like this design? What design was your most recent stamping manicure?

Geometric stamping with GALS plates

2013-04-09T09:00:00.000-04:00

Good morning everyone! Today I have a stamping manicure featuring one of the GALS Stamping plates. I am still having fun getting though trying the plates in both the Princess and Fairy sets, I love my experiences with both so far!

This was done with plate GA-35, which looks like this:

Overall I really like this image plate and can't wait to use the others in this Gals Fairy Set, as well as the plates in the new Gals Princess Set!

Gals Cosmetics are partnered with Cheeky Beauty, which you can follow here on facebook.

What do you think of this manicure? Do you like new stamping plates?

Splatter NOTD!

2013-04-04T09:00:00.000-04:00

Hey guys! Still working on getting back into the swing of things here!

In the meantime, please enjoy this splatter manicure I did recently! I love the color combo and how it came out!

Splatter still has to be one of my favorite forms of nail art! What do you think of this look? Do you love splatters?

Barielle Sweet Treats Collection!

2013-03-28T09:00:00.000-04:00

Hi everyone!

I know it's been quite a while since I last posted, and I apologize for that. I was caught up in a whirlwind of wedding planning!

and now...I'm Married!

Married!

So now that the wedding has come and gone, I can try to get my focus back onto my blog!

Today I will be sharing swatches of the Sweet Treats collection by Barielle. I was excited when the rep from Barielle sent these to me to review because the colors looked so fun and I knew they'd be perfect for spring and summer!

Banana Drop

Banana Drop is a light yellow creme. I needed three coats for the opacity pictured. Not my favorite of the collection but it is a fun color if you enjoy yellows, they just don't compliment my skin tone very nicely.

Blue Cotton Candy

Blue Cotton Candy is an amazing teal shimmer! I got so many compliments when I wore this one. It really only needed one coat but I used 2 out of habit. The formula is just amazing, as with almost all Barielle polishes I have tried. Love it!

Green Apple Chew

Green Apple Chew is BRIGHT! Perfect 1-coat formula (but 2 are pictured), and this is just a fun and bright color!

Lilac Jelly Bean

Lilac Jelly Bean is a soft lilac creme. Two coats and it was good to go. Barielle polishes apply so evenly and nicely for me, the formula really is addicting! I think this would be a great underwear polish for many pretty glitter toppers!

Orange Parfait

Orange Parfait is a creamy coral orange. Two coat formula, applied just as nicely as all the rest of the collection. Perfect spring coral!

I am, once again, pleased with Barielle's latest offerings!

What do you think?

Useful Links:
Barielle Website/shop
Barielle on Facebook
Barielle on Twitter

*polishes provided for review consideration

Zoya Spring 2013 - Lovely Collection

2013-01-15T09:00:00.000-05:00

Today I have Zoya's gorgeous new spring collection to share with you! It's called the Lovely Collection and it consists of 3 shimmers and 3 cremes that are perfect shades to transition into spring!

I'll start out with the shimmers:

Julie

Julie is a "full-coverage, soft wisteria purple metallic". This is my favorite of the shimmers for sure. I love the softness of it and the fact that it had awesome coverage in 2 coats, most pastel shimmers need way more than that to be this opaque. Love it!


Piaf

Piaf is "a full-coverage, fresh forsythia yellow metallic". Not a huge fan of this one on me, the shade isn't that great for my skin tone, but the formula and coverage were spot on, only 2 coats were needed for the pictured look.

GieGie

GieGie is "a full-coverage, blushing cherry blossom pink metallic". This is another winner for me! I am not usually into soft pinks, but I loved the formula and coverage, and I think it actually looks really nice with my skin tone. I can't wait to try stamping some pretty spring designs over this one.

So there you have the Shimmers, now for the Cremes!

Blu

Blu is "a full-coverage, soft and delicate pale baby blue with a glossy creme finish". Love love love shades like this one! They are the perfect canvas for nail art, or just worn on their own for a fresh and soft spring look. The formula was perfect!

Jacqueline

Jacqueline is "a full-coverage, perfect magnolia nude cream". I don't think I would personally wear this one on its own cause I am not much into nude cremes but I would definitely use this under a huge array of glitters or as a stamping canvas! The formula was spot-on just like the rest have been.

Neely

Neely is "a full coverage earliest spring green in a glossy creme finish". This is definitely my favorite of the cremes and actually my favorite of the entire Lovely Collection! I cannot get enough of shades like this even though I probably have 100+ similar ones in my collection. There is always room for more, especially one as great as this one!

Overall this is yet another collection full of WIN from Zoya! I can't wait for some nice weather and flowers, this collection totally gets me in the spring spirit!

What do you think of these colors? Do you love them as much as I do?

Zoya nail polish can be found online at their website, http://zoya.com

You can also become a Fan on facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/ZoyaNailPolish

Barielle: New York Style Collection

2013-01-02T09:00:00.000-05:00

It is officially the new year! Hope everyone starts 2013 off well!

I have yet another Barielle collection to share today, called New York Style! I have to say that I was super excited when I saw there was a NY themed collection, as I am originally from NYC and lived there for the first 26 years of my life, and I still go there monthly to visit family and friends, so it's always special to me when there are polishes with names based on NY places and landmarks.

Big Apple Red

I can't say anything about Big Apple Red except that you must buy it. It is a staple color for any polish collection and the finish, formula, and shade of this is amazing. I only needed one coat for this picture...ONE people! Go buy it.

Central Park

Another staple color, Central Park. A nice creamy jade. Only one coat also for this one. It's great!

Fifth Avenue Botique

Fifth Avenue Boutique is a coral/pink color that is really creamy and pretty. Very bright and cheery feeling, I used 2 coats.

Greenwich Village At Dawn

Greenwich Village At Dawn reminds me of Alli's Lace Coverup, from the Fashion collection, but this one is not a straight up cream, it has a subtle shimmer which is really pretty when you catch it in certain lighting, it was super hard to capture, but you can see it in the picture.

Soho At Night

Soho At Night is definitely one of my favorites of this collection. I loved the "crelly" (Creamy jelly-like) formula, and it was super smooth to apply. If you love purple, grab this one for sure!

Another great collection from Barielle! No complaints here!

Their nail shades retail for $8.00, and are usually Buy one get one half off! Their 5-packs are $25, which is a great deal!

What do you think of this collection?

Useful Links:
Barielle Website/shop
Barielle on Facebook
Barielle on Twitter

*polishes provided for review consideration

Glimmer by Erica: Winter Collection!

2012-12-31T09:00:00.000-05:00

Hey all! Last day of the year! Hope you all have great plans to bring in 2013!

Today I have 5 shades from the Glimmer by Erica winter collection to share with you!

Ho Ho Ho

Ho Ho Ho "gold holographic micro glitter, red holographic hex glitter, white hex glitter, and black hex glitter, all in a clear base. These colors are what come to mind when I think about Santa Claus, and the child-like wonder we all experienced as children at Christmas time".

I layered this one over a medium gray. I love the look of this, even out of the holiday season I think it would look great over a variety of colors.

Boxes & Bows

Boxes & Bows "has a multitude of square and hex glitters with some holographic and some iridescent glitters, all in a clear base. It was inspired by all the piles of pretty wrapping paper, bows, and boxes left over after Christmas morning"

Love the look of this one too, it's so festive and very glitter-packed for easy application!

Angel Topper

Angel Topper "has silver holographic micro glitter, iridescent micro glitter, iridescent square glitter, and iridescent hex glitter, all in a clear base. It is the Angel that tops our Christmas tree"

This one I layered over a teal shimmer, and I adore the outcome! It's such a pretty topper, I don't think there's a color this wouldn't look stunning over!

Snow Day

Snow Day "is a mix of silver holographic micro glitter, iridescent micro glitter, iridescent square glitter, silver hex glitter, and white hex glitter, all in a clear base."

I know it appears that there are colored glitters in this polish, but these are purely the way the light plays with the silver and iridescent glitters that are packed into this generous polish. I chose to layer over a light grey, and enjoyed the outcome.

Winter Wonderland

Winter Wonderland "is a mix of different colored blue hexes, silver holographic micro glitter, iridescent square glitter and iridescent micro glitters, all in a clear base".

I am totally swooning over this glitter! Just as in Snow Day, the iridescent glitters appear colored (yellow and blue in this case), but those are not actually yellow glitters. I love this one too!

Just like the last set I checked out by Glimmer by Erica, these did not disappoint me at all! The formula on them all was great to work with, no curling or bleeding glitters, and really unique and thoughtful combinations!

Each Full size (15mL) polish costs $10.00, which I know is on the higher end of the indie-cost spectrum, but I believe the quality of these is well worth the money!

Shop Glimmer by Erica on Etsy

Follow Glimmer by Erica on Facebook

Which one of these do you love the most? Have you tried any of her polishes yet?

*polishes provided for review consideration

Barielle: Runway Fever Collection

2012-12-28T09:00:00.000-05:00

Hey everyone!! Happy Friday!!!

Today I have swatches of one of Barielle's more recent collections, Runway Fever. It's a collection of five "Fashionably Fabulous Hues".

Erica's Pencil Skirt

Had to start off with Erica's Pencil Skirt since it has my name (though alternately spelled, as I am Erika...with a K!). I love vampy blood red shades as this one, especially with the great Barielle formula, I feel this is a must-have if you love this sort of shade. 2 Coats, but almost stuck with one.

Alli's Lace Coverup

Alli's Lace Coverup is the sort of color I don't typically like, or I don't like to like...if that makes sense... But I love the way it looks on me, and think I could actually wear this. I usually don't like lighter shades of pink, and kind of stay away from them, but I can't deny when something just looks good. And the formula was perfect. 2 Coats.

One Shade of Grey

One Shade of Grey, oh how I love thee. I am obsessed with greys these days, as many of you know, so this one was right up my alley and did not disappoint at all. 2 coats.

Jordana's Skinny Jeans

Ahhh blue...Jordana's Skinny Jeans is a gorgeous shimmery blue metallic! I so love colors like this one. Only needed 1 coat.

Rusted Vintage Boots

Lastly, we have Rusted Vintage Boots. This color isn't really my personal cup of tea, but that is only do to with the color, not the polish itself. The formula was just as good as the others, 2 coats. If you like these sort of rusty colors, you will love this one.

Barielle really doesn't disappoint with their polishes. I love this collection just like the others I have tried out.

Their nail shades retail for $8.00, and are usually Buy one get one half off! Their 5-packs are $25, which is a great deal!

What do you think of this collection?

Useful Links:
Barielle Website/shop
Barielle on Facebook
Barielle on Twitter

*polishes provided for review consideration

Christmas Trees with GALS stamping plates!

2012-12-26T09:00:00.000-05:00

Good morning everyone! Hope anyone who celebrates had a wonderful holiday with their loved ones.

Today I have another really cute manicure to share with you, featuring trees from Gals Fairy Set stamping plate collection (Plate GA27)!

I stamped over Soo #s185 with red and green polish, to be a bit festive.

I enjoyed this plate and it was etched very nicely!

Here is a look at the GALS Image plate I used:

Snowmen with GALS Fairy Set Stamping Plates

2012-12-24T09:00:00.000-05:00

Holy cow! I cannot believe it is Christmas Eve already! I seriously cannot believe time is flying so fast, I know I say that all the time but I really mean it! haha.

Anyhow, today I have a really cute winter manicure to share with you, featuring snowmen from Gals Fairy Set stamping plate collection (Plate GA33)!

Isn't that snowman design so cute?? I love it! The colors used on the stamped fingers are Barielle Rio's Rockin' Bands and Konad special stamping polish, White. The other fingers are F4 Polish Icy Plum, topped with Kiko 231. I don't know why some of the glitters show up blue and other colors, I think that is just the way the camera decided iridescent glitter should look. I topped it all off with Out the Door Northern Lights, for a little added sparkle.

Here is a look at the GALS Image plate I used:

Gals Image plate GA33

Born Pretty Store: Flocking Powder Review + Tutorial

2012-12-21T09:00:00.000-05:00

Hey everyone!

Today I have a semi-tutorial to share with you which I did while I was reviewing an item I received from Born Pretty Store. The item is Fun Flocking Powder and it comes in a variety of 14 colors. The color I am using in this post is Gray.

Flocking powder is a soft substance that can be used for many different types of art. So at some point people decided to try sticking it on wet nail polish to give the nails a "fuzzy" soft look.

I personally never understood the allure of this nail look, and would probably have not ever tried it if not for Born Pretty Store.

So here I will show you the steps I took in applying the flocking powder to my nails.

First I will show you how it looks in the finished result in case you aren't interested in the tutorial:

If you are interested in seeing how to get this look, keep reading.

Step 1: 1 coat of similar colored polish (similar color to the flocking powder). Mine is Nubar Marble Tower. Don't worry about the bald spots, as more polish and then the powder will be covering it up.

Step 2: One nail at a time, paint second coat of polish

Step 3: Apply flocking powder generously over wet polish and pat down carefully. Do this over a plate or mat because it is messy!

Step 4: Continue steps 2 and 3 until all your nails are done and look fuzzy like this.

Overall, the flocking powder from Born Pretty Store is very easy to use and is a great value, for only $5.80 you get a large amount which will last you many manicures.

I personally do not like this look and probably will not repeat it again, but other people I have shown this too absolutely love it! So it is definitely a personal preference type of thing.

I wore it for a whole day when I had work, and it surprisingly holds up rather well. Some of the powder does come off a little but not too much. I did have a problem with lint getting stuck to my nails, and I was kind of afraid to get them wet, though it didn't seem to pose a problem, it did dry back to fuzzy.

So if you like this look, definitely visit Born Pretty Store and check out the Flocking Powder item to see what colors you like the best to try out!

Readers of my blog, enjoy a 10% discount on your purchases by using the following coupon!

What do you think of "fuzzy" nail looks? Have you tried it yourself?

*some products in this post provided for review consideration

Mentality Polish: Precious Holo Collection

2012-12-19T09:00:00.000-05:00

Good morning everyone!

In case you are wondering, yes you read the title correctly! Mentality Polish has done it AGAIN, and came out with another amazing set of holo polishes! The Precious Holo Collection!

"This collection features five jewel-toned inspired colors, with an accent sparkle and holographic effect to make your fingertips shine"

As usual, the Mentality formula is top notch and all the colors in this collection were the same formula-wise. Two coats for full coverage, easy to apply without any issues.

Seduce

Seduce is a radiant blue holographic polish with dark red accent flecks. This shade of blue is incredibly gorgeous! Couple that with the sparkle and holographic shine and it's just stunning.

Flirt

Flirt is a soft red holographic polish with red accent flecks. I love the pigmentation of these polishes, the color is really rich! I also love that they don't go on streaky or leave bald spots like a lot of holo polishes do.

Entice

Entice is a warm brown holographic polish with bronze accent flecks. I had quite a bit of trouble photographing this one, I assure you the holo is there! It just wouldn't not show up on my camera, but in person, it was clearly just as holo as the rest of the colors are. I don't personally prefer this color for me, but that is because I don't care for how browns look on me in general, it's very pretty if you love browns though!

Tease

Tease is a delicate purple holographic polish with bright blue accent flecks. This is definitely one of my favorites of this collection! I love the color of this one, the blue accents really pop out and make this very unique!

Charm

Charm is a deep green holographic polish with bright gold accent flecks. I saved for last what I think is the most unique polish in the whole collection. Very rare to find a green holo polish in this shade of green. More often I see lime-green/light green, or very very dark green. I love this shade cause of how unique to my collection it is!

Overall I think Mentality out-does themselves every time they come out with a new collection! Their products are just stunning, and super high on the quality scale! Definitely recommend trying some of their products out if you still haven't gotten around to it!

The polishes in the Precious Collection retail for $7.75 per 15mL full size bottle, this price includes shipping!

You can purchase these polishes from their webshop here: Mentality Nail Polish

To stay up to date with what's new with Mentality Nail polish, please follow them on facebook.

What do you think of the Precious Collection? Which color is your favorite?

*polishes provided for review consideration

Barielle Carnival Fiesta Collection!

2012-12-17T09:00:00.000-05:00

Good morning everyone!

Today I have swatches of Barielle's newest collection, Carnival Fiesta. It's a collection of five very festive and fun shimmery colors.

Rio's Rockin' Bands

Rio's Rockin' Bands is an amazing metallic purple! Pictured is just one single coat. This one can apply a little brush-strokey if you aren't careful, but an easy hand fixes that and it's simply gorgeous!

Holiday Madness

Holiday Madness is a gold-toned green metallic. It is super shiny and festive! Pictured is two coats.

Jillian's Jammin'

Jillian's Jammin' is a bright blue glass fleck finished polish, with hints of purple flash, which was pretty much impossible to capture on camera for me. I think next time I wear this I might layer it over a darker color to try and get the purple to pop out, as this is a bit sheer on its own and I needed 3 coats. It's really pretty though, so layering will be worth it!

Lindsay's Dancin'

Lindsay's Dancin' is a metallic cherry red one-coater! Loving the shine on this one.

Wanna Samba?

Wanna Samba? is a duochrome shimmery metallic grey/purple toned polish. I don't usually like polishes like this one, but I am finding myself really loving this one! I didn't even want to take it off when I was swatching it for photos! Two coats is pictured.

Overall I really enjoy this newest offering from Barielle! Their formula is top-notch and they offer a wide variety of colors to choose from. Plus, they are always holding great sales and promotions!

Their nail shades retail for $8.00, and are usually Buy one get one half off! Their 5-packs are $25, which is a great deal!

What do you think of this collection?

Useful Links:
Barielle Website/shop
Barielle on Facebook
Barielle on Twitter

*polishes provided for review consideration

BB Couture: Ladies In Polish Collection

2012-12-14T09:00:00.000-05:00

Good morning!

Today I have the BB Couture Winter LIP (Ladies In Polish) Collection to share with you guys! I am excited to be able to bring you these swatches, as I have gotten asked about them by a few people after having posted the MIP Collection back in October.

The Ladies version of this set has names of similar nature to the men's, which I think are great, but aren't for everyone!

The polishes themselves all have the same two-coat great fomula, and are all packed with scattered holographic glitter! They are all so pretty, so let's get to the pictures!

Manipulative Martian

Manipulative Martian is grape purple with holographic glitter. I absolutely love this one and think it's perfect! One of my favorites of this collection.

Galactic Stranger

Galactic Stranger is a really interesting color! It's like a burgundy sort of purple/red color, and the holographic glitter really pops out!

Naughty Navigator

Naughty Navigator is a charcoal gray with holo glitter. Of course I have to love this one because it's gray and I am pretty obsessed with any sort of gray polish lately, so this one is another win for me.

Physical Evidence

Physical Evidence is a bright cherry red with holographic glitter. Who can resist a classic red with the added bonus of holo? Not me!

Sexual Space

Sexual Space is a fun and bright magenta with holographic glitter. You know a pink is a good one when I like it! I think I am slowly losing my pink-hatred as more and more really pretty pinks find their way into my stash!

Stargazed Stripper

Stargazed Stripper is a light jade green with holographic glitter. It leans toward grey from my point of view but in some lights it looks more greener, and others more gray...so I am unsure what color this actually is supposed to be. Either way, I really like it!

This collection is all full of WIN, in my opinion! I can't think of anything I didn't like about it, except that there aren't more colors!

If you would like to find out more about BB Couture, use any of the following links:

BB Couture Website: http://bbnailpolish.com/
BB Couture on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/BB-Couture-Nail-Polish

What do you think of the LIP Collection? Which is your favorite of the colors?

*products provided for review consideration

Snow Flurries & Snow Flakes!

2012-12-12T09:00:00.000-05:00

It's that time of year again! The time when I get obsessed with manicures that have snowflakes on them! I can't help it, they are my favorite type of seasonal mani over any other season all year round!

So today, I have my very first snowflake mani of the season to share with you! Plus a swatch of the indie that inspired it.

I absolutely love how this came out! The image is from Stamping plate D07. I mixed the stamping polish color myself because I couldn't find the perfect blue I had in mind to match the glitter particles.

The base is an amazing indie polish called "Snow Flurries" by Lacquer Lust. Here is what it looks like by itself:

Lacquer Lust - Snow Flurries

Pictured is just 2 thin coats! The formula was phenomenal! It had barely any drying time and it was super easy to apply. I definitely want to buy more polishes from this brand when her store re-opens!

What is your favorite type of seasonal manicure?

Indie Spotlight: Polished Components

2012-12-10T09:00:00.000-05:00

Hey everyone! Happy Monday!

Today I have another great indie brand to share with you!

Polished Components makes a wide variety of hand-mixed polishes and takes great care in making sure that every bottle is tested and checked for the proper color and quality before it is shipped to the buyers.

The newest collection is The Underwear line, of which I have three shades to share with you! All of the polishes in this collection are named for various styles of underwear, and "The whole line is designed to be beautiful on its own and yet fit perfectly under a glitter as its underwear."!

I thought that was a very fun idea for a collection.

Granny Panties

Granny Panties is " light blue with tons of pale blue shimmer and flecks" This color seriously glows right off my nails! It has a hint of a frosty look to it, but not strong enough to bother me (as I personally don't care much for frost finishes). I really think this is a stunning shade, and the formula was super easy to work with. The consistency is a tad thicker than many polishes I have worked with but it wasn't goopy or thick in a bad way, it just let me apply it to the right places without running into my cuticle or anywhere I didn't want it to go. It was neat and perfect without any cleanup.

Thong

Thong is "pink with a tons of micro shimmer and flecks". Same formula I explained above for Granny Panties, this was super easy to apply as well, and the finish is amazingly shiny. This is also a super pretty shade of pink!

Crotchless

I saved my favorite for last this time, Crotchless! "Charcoal grayish black has tons of personality. It is packed with shimmers and flecks of red, bue, and purple." I adore the colored shimmers in this polish! You can see it in the photo peeking out in reds, blues, and purples. When I saw it in the bottle I was afraid I wouldn't be able to capture it for the photos, but it's totally visible on the nail, and gorgeous!

Full Underwear line by Polished Components

Finally, Ashley was kind enough to include a swatch wheel of the entire collection so that you could see what they all look like! The order is as follows: Granny Panties, G-String, Thong, Booty Shorts, Bikini, Crotchless, and Control Top.

These polishes retail for $8.00 each per 15mL size bottle.

Polished Components Store

Polished Components Facebook page

What do you think of these polishes? Do you have a favorite among them?

*products provided for review consideration

Sea Lore: Wintry Friends Collection

2012-12-07T09:00:00.000-05:00

Good morning! Happy Friday everyone!

Today I have a new collection to share with you from the indie creator Sea Lore. This is a winter collection called "Wintry Friends".

Most of the polishes in this collection can be worn stand-alone but I chose to layer all five of them over other colors anyway so that I could just use 1 coat of the glitter. They all have the same formula, which was easy to work with, with only a small amount of glitter dabbing needed, which is the case with most glitter polishes if you are trying to get placement in specific spots on your nail.

Beluga Blizzard

For a change, I wanted to start with my absolute favorite of the collection, Beluga Blizzard. This polish is "Pearl white iridescent shimmering base with various shades of snow white glitter". I layered it over a soft gray, and simply adore how it turned out!

Arctic Otter

Arctic Otter is a "Dark brown shimmering base with beige squares and tiny champagne glitter." I layered it over a coffee colored creme polish. Not my personal favorite as I don't tend toward brown polishes, but I think the effect is pretty, and I do like the use of the square glitters.

Snowy Seal

Snowy Seal is "Silver shimmering base with gunmetal and crystal hexes as well as silver and white glitter." I layered this over a medium gray creme. I love the gunmetal hexes in this one, and the silver shimmer is really pretty!

Wintry Whale

Wintry Whale is "Dark blue shimmering base with several shades of blue glitter and baby blue squares." I layered this over a bright blue polish. This reminds me of a blue version of Arctic Otter, and I really like the squares in this one too. The finished look kind of reminds me of icy water.

Glacial Grayling

Last but not least, Glacial Grayling, which is "Blue grey base with iridescent rainbow squares and holographic micro glitter." I layered this over a black gunmetal colored polish. I think the iridescent glitters in this one make it unique and stunning.

Overall I think this collection is really nice, and has a little something for everyone. My personal favorite, as stated above, is Beluga Blizzard and I think it's the most versatile of the bunch, but the others are great as well!

Sea Lore Polishes are available at http://www.sealore.net/store/ and retail for $5.50 per 7.5mL bottle and $10.00 per 15mL bottle.

Useful Links:
Sea Lore Polish Storefront

Sea Lore Facebook

Sea Lore Instagram

What do you think of this collection? Which polish is your favorite?

*products provided for review consideration

Mentality Polish: The Brilliant Collection

2012-12-05T09:00:00.000-05:00

Happy Wednesday everyone!

Today I have another set from Mentality Nail Polish to share with you! It's called the Brilliant Collection. This set "features sparkling colors burning with linear holographic reflections. Finish is semi-gloss to satin with a lightly textured surface. Holographic reflection provides an exciting sparkle indoors, but can be a bit blinding when stared at outdoors."

I was super excited about this set, as I had seen some promo pictures and I think I even had to wipe a little drool off my keyboard! haha

Just to not be repetitive later, ALL of these polishes have the same amazing formula. I got complete coverage in just two coats. Also definitely worth pointing out, I didn't need any special bases to make this polish apply nicely.

They all went on cleanly with no streaking or balding at all. I waited for the first coat to be mostly dry, as I typically do, applied the second coat, and it was pure perfection. So you don't have to worry about the issues that are typically associated with holo polishes!

Fervor

Fervor is "a sparkling light purple holographic polish". I have to admit, this was the polish from this collection that I was most excited about from the previews I saw. It totally did not disappoint either! Love this!

Euphoria

Euphoria is "a sparkling light gold holographic polish". I wasn't sure if I was going to enjoy this one or not, since I don't have a great relationship with many gold polishes. However, I was pleased with how this looked on me, and think it's quite stunning.

Rapture

Rapture is "a sparkling coppery red holographic polish". I have to say, this is probably the most unique polish in the Brilliant Collection. In the bottle it is very intriguing, but on the nail...it just comes to life! I love how the reds and coppers play together with the holo in this shade. It truly is brilliant.

Elation

Elation is "a sparkling bright light blue holographic polish". This is another shade I was excited to see in person, as I am a super huge blue polish fan. This is a perfect shade of blue for me, and the holo really looks amazing with this color (though honestly holo + any color = win, haha). I think this photo really captures the great shine finish of the polish as well, which is gorgeous!

All in all, the Brilliant Collection goes 4/4 in my book...they are all winners!

The Brilliant Collection retails for $8.75 each per full size bottle, which includes shipping!

One last swatch for you, which isn't part of the Brilliant Collection, but is also holo...so it's relevant.

It is simply called "Holo" and it is the first item in the Mentality Top Coat Collection. The Holo top coat is described as follows:

"Turn your favorite nail polish into a rainbow with a coat of Holo, from Mentality. This top coat has been formulated to provide the best single coat holographic results with minimal silvering of the base color."

I always wanted a super bright "barbie" pink holo polish but have yet to find one I like yet, so I decided to try this top coat over a super bright pink to see how it would come out:

Holo, over bright pink

Pretty great, huh? This is just 1 thin coat applied over the base color. This is one of the best holo top coats I've tried, and at only $6.75 for a full size bottle, it's an amazing deal! I think every polish lover should own a bottle of this to transform all their polishes into holo gorgeousness!

You can purchase these polishes from their webshop here: Mentality Nail Polish

To stay up to date with what's new with Mentality Nail polish, please follow them on facebook.

How did you like this dose of Holo goodness? Which color is your favorite?

*polishes provided for review consideration

Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Beta & Something

2012-12-03T09:00:00.000-05:00

Good morning polish lovers! Hope you all had a great weekend!

Today I am sharing a couple of swatches from Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics (OCC).

I've owned these polishes for ages and only recently got around to trying some of them out! I am sorry I waited so long because the formulas and colors were amazing!

Something

Something is a dusty pastel blue. The formula was so smooth and super easy to apply! I am totally loving this!

Beta

Beta is a super amazingly bright orange neon polish. It is also very opaque, and almost covered in one coat, but I used two to even it out completely. It dries semi-matte. I love love love it!

I have a few more OCC polishes that I got at the same time as these that I absolutely can't wait to try out soon now that I have realized these are amazing in color and formula!

If you'd like to get some of your own, check out their website at at http://www.occmakeup.com/ !

Have you tried any OCC polishes?

Different Dimension: Mean Girls Polishes

2012-11-30T09:00:00.000-05:00

Hey everyone!

Last week I shared an indie spotlight on the Esty shop Different Dimension. Today I have another set of swatches to share with you. These will be the four "Mean Girls" themed polishes that are offered in the shop.

I was super excited to see that there were polishes themed after this amazingly fun movie that I've loved since the moment I saw it in the theater so many years ago that I now feel sufficiently OLD.

Boo, You Whore!

I layered Boo, You Whore! over a slate blue cream polish. I adore this particular look!! I love the mix of glitters in this blue jelly base. So pretty! Plus, the name (of course) is awesome!

Social Suicide

Social Suicide is a black and white glitter mix, a bit different from the normal takes on it, as it doesn't not contain bar glitters and it has an abundance of very small black and white glitters. I really like this one a lot, though I think I'd like it more if there was a slightly smaller concentration of the tiny glitters.

That Is So Fetch!

That Is So Fetch! is s predominantly purple glitter topper with also some iridescent glitters in the mix. The glitters are in various shapes and sizes and are absolutely gorgeous. I really love how it looks layered over the blue/mint polish in the above picture, but it would really look great over a wide variety of colors.

On Wednesday's We Wear Pink

A polish collection based on "Mean Girls" would not be complete without a pink-wednesday polish! On Wednesday's We Wear Pink is is sheer pink creme base with glitters of different shades of pinks/reds etc in various shapes and sizes. I love this polish, which I chose to layer over a similar pink creme, though could probably be built up in a few coats.

Overall I love this collection and think the colors and names were perfect nods to the movie which they were based upon. Love it!

The polishes retail for $8.50 per full sized bottle, but for a limited time (5 days still remaining!) my readers are being offered a generous 20% discount on purchases made using the discount coupon code "FIXATION20" at checkout!

Different Dimension Etsy Storefront

Different Dimension on Facebook

What do you think of these polishes? Do you like the movie Mean Girls as much as I do?

*polishes provided for review consideration

Indie Spotlight: Sonnetarium!

2012-11-28T09:00:00.000-05:00

Good morning everyone! It's Wednesday...you've made it halfway through the week! I seriously can't believe it's the last Wednesday of November. Time has got to slow down already, it's flying by way too fast!

Anyhow, today I have some gorgeous polishes to share with you by the Indie shop Sonnetarium.

Sonnetarium lacquers are 5-free and never contain ingredients that are tested on animals.

Samurai Princess

Samurai Princess is Sonnetarium's take on the ever-popular black and white "connect the dot" style polish. This formula was phenomenal! These pictures show just 1 coat over the colored base. It's jam-packed with glitter and the clear base is neither too thick or too thin. Love it!

Snowfall

Snowfall is a stunning glitter topper that contains white hexes in various sizes and smaller iridescent glitter. I applied a single coat over an off-white polish and seriously love this look! It's so delicate and pretty.

Peppermint Kiss

From the Winter 2012 Collection, Peppermint Kiss is a light pink crelly with various white, red, and green hexes. I layered two coats this over an off-white polish base, though possibly could have worn it alone if I wanted to do about 3-4 coats. I think this is a very fun polish for the holidays!

Eight Nights

Also from the Winter 2012 Collection, Eight Nights is a royal blue jelly with small silver and white hex glitters. I chose to wear this alone in two coats. It is super festive and beautiful for winter or any time of the year!

Hong Bao

Hong Bao is a red jelly polish with gold and black glitter, shimmer, flakes etc. I actually layered this over a dark cherry colored polish because it screamed fall colors to me. It would look much different over a light base but I was just enamored with this particular look so it's how I chose to wear it. I adore this combination and got countless compliments on it!

All in all I am totally impressed with all of these Sonnetarium offerings and definitely need more of Michelle's creations in my life!

These are seriously high quality lacquers, and I would recommend them whole-heartedly.

The polish standard size bottle is 9mL and sells for $6.00. They have recently started offering full 15mL bottles in some of the more popular shades as well, for $8.50 per bottle. I personally love the look and feel of the 9mL bottles, they are so cute!

Sonnetarium Webshop

Sonnetarium on Facebook

Have you tried any Sonnetarium polishes? Which one is your favorite?

*products provided for review consideration

Various Duri Shades

2012-11-26T09:00:00.000-05:00

Happy Monday everyone! Hope you all had a fantastic weekend!

To start the week off, I wanted to share with you some swatches of a few of my Duri brand polishes. I really love this brand and don't see it being talked about very often. I think they are underestimated or underappreciated because I love so many of their polishes!

Night Before Christmas

Night Before Christmas is amazing in both color and formula! It goes on super smoothly and I only needed 2 coats for the picture above. It is super shiny and amazing!

Luxury Time

Luxury Time is a super shiny metallic red/orange. Two easy coats needed for the above look. Super love!

Dirty Dancing

Dirty Dancing is so vampy and perfect! I thought I would need more than two coats because the 1st coat was a little sheer and streaky but when I put on the second coat all was fixed! I love that shimmer that pops out of the black cherry red.

These are only a handful of the Duri polishes I currently own. I plan to share more of them in the future! If you don't own any, you should definitely try to get your hands on some!

Do you own any Duri polishes? Are there any other brands you think are under-appreciated or under-estimated?

Indie Spotlight: Different Dimension!

2012-11-21T09:00:00.000-05:00

Hey everyone!

I hope everyone's week has been great! We are halfway to the weekend, though most of my readers in the USA are probably preparing to start their weekends early for turkey day! I am headed home to NYC for Thanksgiving with my family down there, hope you all have great fun and enjoy the holiday however you may be spending it! And everyone else, enjoy the rest of your weeks as well!

Today I am spotlighting indie polish brand Different Dimension! Ever since I heard the name of this brand I was intrigued cause I thought the name was cool. Then I saw the polishes offered in the shop and knew there were great things happening there!

Today I have an assortment of 5 polishes to share with you, and I will have a part 2 post in the upcoming weeks with 4 other shades. I didn't want to overwhelm you with 9 in one post, plus I am just so busy these days with holiday and wedding planning that my swatch time is limited.

So anyhow, I'll stop rambling and show you all some pretties!

Gumdrops

Gumdrops is a fun white-based glitter polish. There are teal, pink, purple and iridescent glitter throughout this beauty. I think this is such a cute look, and I only needed 3 thin coats for the pictured look, though I could have done 2 thicker ones, but I was afraid it would look too "gloppy" if I used thick coats. This could alternatively be layered over a light base to use less coats, but I like the dimension it gets by wearing it alone.

Blame it on the Pain

Blame it on the Pain is a shimmery navy polish with hints of blue and purple flecks. This is opaque in two coats and very easy to apply. I love the finish of this polish, it truly is stunning to look at! I also like when indie makers create a wearable polish that doesn't involve glitter, not because I dislike glitter (duh, lol), but because it makes the shop more well-rounded in my opinion...offering something for the people who don't care for glitter toppers...(again, just an opinion and not saying there is anything wrong with the sellers who don't offer such polishes.)

...more

...more is a polish that has "pink, white and red hearts, pink, white and red matte hex glitters and a sparkling white glitter." Most of you already know that I am not usually a fan of shape glitters. That being said, I don't hate this one, which is saying a lot for me.

This was decidedly harder to work with than the previous two polishes, but it wasn't as hard as some other similar ones I have tried. It takes a little work to get the different colored hearts out, and I also had trouble picking a base color that didn't clash and yet showed all the different sorts of glitter at play in this mix. In the end I chose this soft white, although it does allow the white hearts to hide...but everything else looks great against this backdrop. This would be great for anniversary or valentines nails. If you enjoy shaped glitters, I think this is a good choice.

Rainbows and Butterflies

Rainbows and Butterflies is a "pearly white jelly base and is packed literally with a ton of rainbow holographic glitters! There are also pink holographic butterflies added"

This is my first time using a polish with butterfly shaped glitters in it. They actually look cute to me, the shape hater, haha! I layered it over a light pink shimmer. I see VNL in these pics but in person there was not any visible...so blame the camera! You can tell how shiny these glitter particles are by the way the light shines on them. This might be my favorite shape glitter yet, though if I had my way the base would be slightly less pearly, but it's still very nice, and it was easy to work with.

Un-teal We Meet Again

Un-teal We Meet Again is a glitter topper with different sizes of blue and teal glitters. It is very densely packed, I only needed one coat for the picture above, which is layered over a pastel teal cream. This is a very standard, but very pretty glitter polish, with a good formula and loads of glitter.

Overall, Different Dimension polishes offer a little something for everyone. There is currently a great holiday collection listed in her shop with many great color choices!

The polishes retail for $8.50 per full sized bottle, but for a limited time (2 weeks starting today) my readers are being offered a generous 20% discount on purchases made using the discount coupon code "FIXATION20" at checkout!

Different Dimension Etsy Storefront

Different Dimension on Facebook

What do you think of these polishes? Which polish(es) will you purchase with your 20% off coupon?

*polishes provided for review consideration

Give-Away w. Nails Adored - the winners!

2012-11-19T10:00:00.000-05:00

The time has finally come—our 8 winners have been chosen! We are so excited for these ladies—there are some really awesome prizes headed their way!
Here are the lucky girls:

All prizes have already been claimed (YAY!!!), so we will be mailing prizes out shortly!
We are definitely hoping to be able to have such an awesome give away for you again!
Thank you all for your participation!

Indie Spotlight: Mack Gives Back!

2012-11-19T09:00:00.000-05:00

Happy Monday everyone! Hope you had a wonderful weekend!

I had a pretty busy and eventful weekend. We went to Connecticut to our wedding venue to plan out our wedding timeline, menu, cake, etc. I can't even believe that it's only four months away! One week from today will be a year since I was proposed to! Time really does fly!

ANYhow, on to today's business, which is sharing swatches of some polishes from the Mack Gives Back Princess Collection!

All five of these had the same formula, but with varied glitter mixes/colors. They were pretty simple to apply, and I usually needed two coats for the swatches I am presenting.

Jasmine

Jasmine, layered over a light green shimmer. I love this look, and think that this color combination really captures the essence of princess Jasmine! So pretty!

Rapunzel

Rapunzel is a really pretty mixture of mostly purple and fuchsia glitters. I love the mix of square glitter with the smaller round glitters in this one. Layered over a lavender cream.

Tiana

Tiana, this mix has shades of green glitters and silver small bar glitters. I layered it over a light yellow-green cream polish and think it goes really well! I usually dislike these small bar glitters but I think in this case they work really nicely!

Belle

Belle is layered over a gold metallic polish. Sorry about all the glare on the metallic, it was really blinding and hard to capture without that shine! I love the colors in this mix and think that it a great tribute to Belle. Next time I might try it over a cream instead of a metallic.

Cinderella

Cinderella...LOVE! I saved my absolute favorite of the bunch for last! I simply adore this glitter! It's so elegant with those mirror-like silver square glitters and super blingy bright blue smaller ones! I layered this over a light grey creme and already want to repeat this combo ASAP!

Overall the Mack Gives Back shop has some wonderful polishes to offer! Pricing is $4.00 per mini bottle and $9 per full size bottle. She also offers sets of pre-painted press-ons for $12 per set, and takes Custom polish orders for $12 as well!

Etsy Shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/MackGivesBack
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MackGivesBack

What do you think of these?

*polishes provided for review consideration