GOT Polish Challenge: Neon with Neener Neener Nails Shades Needed!

This week’s GOT Polish challenge theme is neon.  I thought I would love this theme, but then as I was going through my nail polish I realized I don’t really have that many true neons in my collection.  The first one I chose only looked neon in the bottle, not on the nail, so I had to find time to do another mani, and this one hasn’t worked out too well, either. 😥

I used Neener Neener Nails Shades Needed! for this theme, since it is a very bright yellow jelly base with various sizes of iridescent glitter in it.  I used this once before when I first got it a little over a year ago, and at the time I couldn’t decide if I hated it or if I really hated it. 😀  But I decided to keep it and give it another try, and I’m definitely convinced now that it is not for me.  The jelly base of this one has a tendency to be very gloopy, and the glitter just adds to the mess factor of the look.  I used three coats because the base is so sheer, but there is definitely still a VNL.  I don’t want to be overly critical, so I’ll suffice it to say that this one is just not my cup of tea.  And I mean it this time. 😛

So…what do you think?  I do love bright colors, but the texture of this one is just not for me.  Into the “give it away” pile it goes!

I purchased Shades Needed! from the Neener Neener Nails Etsy shop for $5.50.  I can’t tell if this brand is still around, honestly.  The Etsy shop doesn’t seem to exist anymore, at least.

GOT Polish Challenge: Tropical with Pretty and Polished Rainbow Sparkle

This week’s Golden Oldie Thursday challenge theme is tropical!  I wasn’t quite sure what to do with this one, but then I thought that an oceanic blue would be a good tropical inspiration.  I chose Pretty and Polished Rainbow Sparkle.

Rainbow Sparkle has a medium blue jelly base that is a touch darker than a true cornflower blue shade.  In this base are tiny holographic glitters, medium-sized blue, pink, and green hex glitters, and large green hex glitters.  The glitter in this has definitely faded since I purchased it two years ago; the pink glitter was much darker when I bought it, and now it is really barely pink at all.  That being said, I still think it is an absolutely beautiful polish, so I won’t quarrel too much about that.

The photos show three coats of Rainbow Sparkle over a glitter base.  I used my normal top coat as well.

Isn’t that blue just stunning?!  It really does remind me of a beautiful ocean.

I purchased this mini polish from the Pretty and Polished Etsy shop for $4.75 a little over two years ago.  It doesn’t look like they offer this color anymore, probably because of the bleeding glitter.

GOT Polish Challenge: Pastel with Jindie Nails Swoon

Well, we’ve made it to spring (sort of) which also means we’ve made it to the second quarter of the Golden Oldie Thursday Challenge!  The theme for this week is pastel nails.  How perfect for the season!  I decided to use Jindie Nails Swoon for this week’s challenge.  This is the first polish I ever bought from Jindie Nails, and I hadn’t used it since I got it two and a half years ago, so I thought it would be a perfect choice for the challenge.

Swoon has a pale blue crelly base with large neon yellow, blue, and pink matte hexes, medium-sized blue metallic circle glitters, and tiny blue glitter.  The base color is quite translucent on the first coat, but it builds pretty well.  I ended up using four coats for the photos, but I probably could have gotten away with three.  I really wanted it to last because I knew I wouldn’t be able to photograph it right away, so I added the extra coat hoping it would turn into polish armor.

The application of this polish was not terribly difficult.  I did have to fish for glitter a little bit, but the size of the large matte hexes makes it so that not so many are needed for full effect.  Even though I bought this a while ago, the application and dry time did not seem to be affected at all with time.  I used a glitter base coat and two coats of top coat for the photos.

I didn’t have time to take the photos until a couple of days after I did this mani, so my nails are not pristine in the photos, unfortunately.  My job is extremely hard on my nails, and my index fingers and thumbs tend to take the brunt of it, so you’ll notice that my index finger had some nicks in it and missing glitter by the time I was able to take the photos.  Oh, well.  I’m learning to make do since I no longer really have free time.  As long as I’m enjoying myself, I’m not going to worry about whether things are perfect.  Join me in that!  It feels great. 🙂  Now for the photos.

What do you think?  I’ve learned by now that I tend not to prefer very large glitters in polishes.  But it was nice to try one that I hadn’t used in a while!

If you’re curious about what the next several weeks of the GOT Polish challenge have in store, check out the schedule!

I purchased this mini polish from the Jindie Nails Etsy shop for $4.75.  They have since moved their online shop, and a reformulated version of this polish is still available there.

GOT Polish Challenge: Yellow/Peach with Scofflaw Nail Varnish Insert Lemon Pun Here

This week’s theme for the Golden Oldie Thursday Challenge (details about the challenge can be found in my original blog post about it) is yellow/peach!  I don’t have many yellow polishes, and most of the ones I do have aren’t really that old, but I did find one in my collection that I purchased almost exactly one year ago.  And she’s a beauty!  This week’s challenge will feature Scofflaw Nail Varnish in Insert Lemon Pun Here.

Insert Lemon Pun Here has a bright, shimmery yellow base.  In that base are medium-sized green hex glitter as well as small green, orange, and gold glitter.  The combination is gorgeous and so eye-catching.  This was the first Scofflaw Nail Varnish I ever purchased, and I remember that it was one of the only colors still available in their online shop when I was looking, but I’m not sure why.  It is such a beautiful and unique polish!

The application for this one was easy peasy.  It dried quickly between coats, and the glitter was evenly distributed in the polish as it applied.  I used 3 medium coats for the photos over a glitter base.  I also used my regular top coat for the photos.

Don’t you just love this polish?!  I really couldn’t get enough of it.  I got so many compliments on it while I was wearing it, too.  I tend not to buy yellow polishes because I assume they won’t work well with my very pink coloring, but every time I wear one I love it.  I’m going to have to rethink my attitude toward yellow.  It’s been so good to me. 🙂

I purchased this polish from the Scofflaw Nail Varnish Etsy shop for $8.50.  They have since moved to a new online shop.

GOT Polish Challenge: Skittle with Black and Red Glitters

Today’s Golden Oldie Thursday Challenge theme (details of the challenge can be found in my original blog post about it) is a skittle mani!  I liked this theme because it allowed me to choose more than one of my older polishes to use again.  I decided to try a few of my old glitters to see if they still suit my fancy.

I used four polishes in this skittle mani to transition it from black on one side to red on the other.  The polishes used are NYX Girls Frizzy Spots, a black jelly base with small and medium-sized silver holographic glitter; Naild’It Unique Polish in Girls Gone Wild in Camo, a multi-colored glitter mix of matte and shiny with red, pink, green, silver, brown, yellow, orange and black in a clear base; Naild’It Unique Polish in Strawberry Whine, a multi-colored matte glitter mix in tones of red, pink, white, green and a hint of purple in a sheer red jelly base; and China Glaze Dynasty, which has a tomato red base with lots of small holographic glitter.  I applied all of these over a glitter base and used a fast-dry top coat for the photos.

Do you ever wear skittle manis?  I don’t often wear a different polish on each nail, but I do sometimes, especially when I’m testing out polishes in a destash.

I purchased all of these polishes from different online stores.  If you’d like to know where I got a particular one, just let me know and I’ll try to figure out where I bought it.

 

GOT Polish Challenge: Orange with Rainbow Honey Hoof Wrassle

Today’s Golden Oldie Thursday Challenge (details about the challenge can be found on my original blog post about it) theme is orange!  I just love the color orange, so I was looking forward to going through my orange polishes this week.  I decided to do a mani with an orange glitter that I purchased a couple of years ago, Hoof Wrassle from Rainbow Honey’s Equestria Collection.

Hoof Wrassle has a rich burnt orange base.  It’s the tone of orange I associate with autumn, and it could remind one of turning leaves.  Added to this is plenty of glitter; there are large golden-orange hexes, bright orange squares, and smaller gold, orange, and what appear to be red holo glitters.  There may be some others as well, but these are the prominent ones in my eyes.  The mixture of the deep orange base with all of the bright flashes of different tones of orange glitter reminds me of a painting of a field of orange flowers.  I’ve enjoyed looking at its nuances on my nails today.

In spite of the large amount of glitter in this one, it was not difficult to apply.  There was no sinking glitter to speak of, and it came out of the bottle easily.  It also didn’t drag or stick to the brush as glitter can do.  Rather, it applied in two easy coats without incident, drying quickly in between coats.  I used a glitter base and a fast dry top coat for the photos.

It really is a unique and pretty polish to which the photos aren’t quite doing proper justice.  I think adding the shinies to this earthy orange base makes for a nice contrast.

I purchased Hoof Wrassle from Rainbow Honey a couple of years ago.  It looks like it is not currently available.

Swatch and Review: Shleee Polish Mary Jane Holland

I’ve been dying to try out Shleee Polish since I first heard about the brand a couple of months ago.  I just couldn’t resist anymore and bought a couple of polishes from this brand last week.  I don’t know why I waited so long!  They are all gorgeous, and I couldn’t wait to try them.  Of course I chose a green one, Mary Jane Holland, to try first.  This color is from the Shleee Polish Lady Gaga inspired collection.

Mary Jane Holland has a bright, grassy green base that has a prominent yellow gold shimmer.  Added to this is just enough linear holographic sparkle to mesmerize you.  I love all shades of green, but this is one of my favorites.  It’s not a shade that you see every day, especially in nail polish colors, so I’m just loving getting to look at it all day.  It’s truly gorgeous.  I really can’t say enough good things about it.

The application for this one was easy.  The consistency was perfect for me; I didn’t find it too thick or too thin.  It dried quickly and the opacity was quite good even after just one coat.  I used two coats for the photos.  I used an aqua base with this one, and I did not use top coat.

Now…the photos.  I took so many.  I really, really love this polish, so I went a little overboard.  It was so hard to narrow them down, but I did.

Are you drooling yet? 🙂  I am so in love with this polish!  I can’t get enough.  The others that I purchased are equally amazing.  Shleee Polish is definitely my new favorite polish brand.  I want them all!

I purchased Mary Jane Holland from the Shleee Polish online shop for $11.00.  It was worth every penny!

Swatch and Review: Glittering Elements Burning Desire

It was a bright, sunny day today, which means I got to try out a new holo!  Yay for me.  I just recently ordered a couple of polishes from an Australian indie brand I hadn’t tried before, Glittering Elements, so I was eager to try one today.  I chose the shade Burning Desire.

Burning Desire is such a beautiful and complex color.  It has a cool-toned medium pink base, and added to that are what appear to be golden and darker pink sparkles.  It also has a tightly scattered holographic flash.  In the sunlight, all of this combines to form a sparkle bomb on my nails.  It really is so gorgeously flashy.

The application for this polish was a dream.  It was the perfect consistency, and it didn’t flood or streak at all.  If applied in thicker coats, it really could be a one-coat polish; most of my nails were fully opaque at one coat (once I realized that it might be possible).  I used two coats for the photos.  I used an aqua base for this mani, and I did not use top coat.

Isn’t it just gorgeous?  Let me tell you, it looks even better in person.  This is definitely one of my new favorites!

I purchased Burning Desire from the Glittering Elements online shop for around $11.50 USD.

Swatch and Review: Enchanted Polish January 2014

I definitely had a “Get On My Nails” moment when I got my latest Enchanted Polishes, and I was so lucky that the sun was actually out the day after I received them.  Since the weather has been very cold and wintery of late, I decided to try the shade January 2014.

January 2014 has a shimmery blackened teal base with linear holographic sparkle.  This is a decidedly blue-leaning teal, and in some lights it was almost making me question whether it was navy.  Whatever you want to call it, this color is gorgeous and a perfect winter shade.

January 2014 was not difficult to apply for a holographic polish.  It was a touch on the thick side, which could be remedied with a few drops of thinner if the consistency doesn’t suit you.  The advantage of its consistency is that it works as a one-coat polish.  Since I used a very thin coat on the first couple of nails I painted, I ended up using two coats to even everything out, but I was able to achieve full, opaque coverage at one coat once it occurred to me to try (I can be slow sometimes).  I used an aqua base with this to ensure even application, and I did not use top coat for the photos.

How much do you love this shade?  This was sold as one of her “Mystery” polishes, and it just made me so happy when I saw it.  I’ve been wanting a holographic polish in a deep teal for a few months now, so I’m just thrilled with it!

I purchased this polish from the Enchanted Polish online shop for $16.00.

Swatch and Review: Model City Polish Ghost Stories

I took advantage of the sunny morning we had a couple of days ago to use one of my untried holo polishes.  I got Ghost Stories from Model City Polish as a Christmas present, and I’m thrilled that the weather was finally nice enough for me to give it a try.

Ghost Stories has a charcoal gray base and a TON of holo pigment.  This gives it a bright tightly-scattered holo finish in the sunlight.  The holographic effect is also visible in artificial light, it is just not as vivid.  This one really sings in the sunlight.

Like other polishes with loads of holo pigment, this one was a bit tricky in terms of application.  I used my standard base coat, and there was some balding with the first coats.  Applying each coat with as few brush strokes as possible mitigates this effect.  I ended up using four coats of Ghost Stories to even out any patchiness.  The final effect was a little uneven when examined up close, but in a way that no one but you will ever notice.  The dry time was quick, though, so this mani didn’t take long to do even with four coats of polish.  So the photos are four coats of Ghost Stories over base coat, with no top coat.

The holo effect of this one in the sun is pretty spectacular, isn’t it?  I’m glad it was sunny for a while so I could give it a try.

This polish was given to me as a gift; it can be purchased from the Model City Polish online shop for $8.50.