Friday, March 31, 2017

Spring 2017 Seasonal Indie Box: Swatches and Review

Provided for Review
Hey guys and gals, for today I have a new collaboration box to share. This is the third Seasonal Indie Box, featuring permanent contributors Anchor & Heart Lacquer, Colores de Carol, and Turtle Tootsie Polishes, with special guest Heather's Hues in this time. 

The Spring Seasonal Indie Box will be available starting April 2nd through April 9th in Turtle Tootsie Polishes' shop. Pricing will be $35 plus shipping which is a great price considering the box includes four full sized polishes. 

Anchor & Heart Lacquer Sunshine & Pansies 
Three coats
Mellow gold toned yellow crelly with green shimmer, gold and silver micro-shreds, and larger glitter in violet, magenta, gold and silver.
My lighting brightens this just a bit, in person it's slightly duskier, definitely more a "mellow yellow". I like the subtle contrast from the various colored shimmer and glitter. It's not quite opaque in two coats, three coats worked out better for me.



Colores de Carol Jade Vine
Two coats
Turquoise linear holographic with gold and holo flakes and fine neon green glitter
Such a refreshing shade of turquoise green! The added flakes and holo will make it sparkle in the sun. Application was easy, I needed just two coats for coverage. 




Heather's Hues Hydrangea
Two coats
Lavender pastel with periwinkle shimmer and purple and indigo micro-flakes
I love purple hydrangeas and seeing them among the spring time blooms always makes me happy. This inspired polish is a lovely interpretation, though it is thicker in formula than I prefer, likely due to its pastel nature. Thinner coats worked best, I applied two here for coverage. A drop or two of nail polish thinner would likely help with that if you prefer thinner style formula. 




Turtle Tootsie Polishes Carnation 
Three coats
Bubble gum pink scattered holo with flashes purple with pink micro-flakes and iridescent rainbow flakes
Soft pinks are made for spring sets, amIright? The flash of purple adds some subtle loveliness, as do the various flakes. No issues with application, though with the first coat, it will look somewhat sheer, three coats though be opaque. 




LINKS!

Anchor & Heart Lacquer
Shop * Facebook * Instagram

Colores de Carol
Shop * Facebook * Instagram

Heather's Hues
Shop * Facebook * Instagram

Turtle Tootsie Polishes


*The products in this post were sent to me for unbiased review*

Thursday, March 30, 2017

Cupcake Polish Candy Land Collection: Swatches and Review

Provided for Review
Hey guys, for today I have a new set from Cupcake Polish. This six polish set is the Candy Land Collection, inspired and themed by the classic board game Candy Land

Formula Notes:
Each of these six polishes is a full coverage micro-glitter in a colored jelly/crelly base. Application wise, they applied well. They have a slightly thicker formula but not overly so and all but one was opaque in two coats. Because these polishes are glitter heavy, I recommend using a peel-off base coat if you want easy removal and applying a double layer of topcoat for a smooth, glassy finish.

The colors themselves are bright and saturated and just as playful as the game board itself. I have memories playing Candy Land with my brother (getting to the castle was like, YESSSS) and loved seeing this inspired collection from Cupcake. I think the entire collection is pretty and cohesive enough that it would be worth buying as set but if I had to pick and choose, my favorites are Lord Licorice and Princess Lolly (that yellow!).

The Candy Land Collection will launch Sunday, April 2nd at 2 pm CST in Cupcake Polish's shop. Each polish will retail for $13.

Cupcake Polish Jolly
Two coats
Bright purple base with holo micro-glitter




Cupcake Polish Lord Licorice
Two coats
Strawberry red base with holo micro-glitter




Cupcake Polish Mr. Mint
Two coats
Hot pink base with holo micro-glitter




Cupcake Polish Plumpy
Three coats
Grass green base with holo micro-glitter




Cupcake Polish Princess Lolly
Two coats
Bold yellow base with holo micro-glitter




Cupcake Polish Queen Frostline
Two coats
Denim blue base with holo micro-glitter





LINKS!

Cupcake Polish
Shop * Facebook * Instagram


*The products in this post were sent to me for unbiased review*

Wednesday, March 29, 2017

Polished for Days To the Moon and Back Collection: Swatches and Review

Provided for Review
Hellllo! For today, I have Polished for Days' upcoming To the Moon and Back Collection. This six piece set is inspired by the Moonchild Glow palette from Anastasia Beverly Hills and you can see how the beautiful highlighter colors translated to this dreamy collection.

The To the Moon and Back Collection will launch Friday March 31st in Polished for Days' shop at 11 am PST. All polishes will be offered at a discounted rate ($1 off each polish) for the first 72 hours of sale. 

Polished for Days Alcmene
Two coats
Medium grey base with holo flakes and orange/violet shimmer
Alcmene is Latin for "Might of the moon".
The shimmer in this is a bit more prominent in person, you will see glints of it in the light. Formula is nice and creamy, two coats for coverage. 



Polished for Days Atlas
Two coats 
Periwinkle holographic with holo flakes and copper shimmer
Atlas is the tiny smooth-surfaced moon of Saturn.
YES. Periwinkle perfection, that's what this is. This has a slightly thicker formula compared to Alcmene but still nice and easy to apply, again two coats for coverage.




Polished for Days Chan
Two coats 
Sheer violet base with purple/blue/gold/pink ultra chrome and sterling silver flakes and copper shimmer
Chan is Sanskrit for "Moon".
I absolutely love how the copper shimmer appears in this, especially as a contrast against the sheer violet base. Applies oh so easily, with two coats needed for full opacity. 




Polished for Days Hala
Two coats 
Silver holographic flake base with fuchsia/gold/copper ultra chrome flakes and pink shimmer
Hala is Arabic for "Moon halo".
Hala is the first of a few silver holos with ultra chrome flakes, this one is the warmer version, with it's warm toned flake combination. Application is great, I was expecting to need at least three coats for opacity but I got away with two. You will see some hint of visible nail line beneath but not enough that I felt the need for more coverage. 




Polished for Days Kamaria
Two coats 
Silver holographic flake base with gold/copper/green ultra chrome flakes and green/rose shimmer
Kamaria is Swahili for "Beauty of the moon".
Here is the the green/gold dominant version, and though I would normally prefer the warmer colors of Hala but the flashes of green and gold from Kamaria really appealed to me. Same formula notes as Hala. 




Polished for Days Mahina 
Two coats 
Silver holographic flake base with navy/purple/teal ultra chrome flakes and blue/purple shimmer
Mahina is Hawaiian for "Moonlight".
Silvered blue tones going on here and like every polish in the set, you get that wonderful moon-glow inspired look. Application was easy (broken record here) and bonus, only two coats needed for opacity.  





LINKS!

Polished for Days


*The products in this post were sent to me for unbiased review*

Tuesday, March 28, 2017

Introducing Polish Pickup - April 2017: Swatches and Review

Provided for Review
Hey all! I have a few new polishes today from various brands, all created for a brand new shop. The Polish Pickup is a new monthly shop that you to submit theme ideas, vote on your favorite theme and then selectively purchase polishes from an awesome roster of brands. There will be multiple makers involved in the creation process, all following the monthly voted theme and the beauty of this set up is that you can purchase what you want, you don't have to buy an entire themed box just for the one/two/three polishes you really wanted. Intrigued? I hope so!

I am just touching the surface of the shop's concept, to learn more, you can visit the shop's FAQ and About pages and I definitely recommend joining the Polish Pickup Facebook Group to join in on the fun. 

April's theme is "Famous Works of Art" with 18 brands involved. You will only have to visit one shop to purchase (The Polish Pickup Shop) and the pre-order purchase window will be the first Friday of the month, this time it will be April 7th - 10th, with one shipping fee and polishes shipping 2-3 weeks out. 

*I am including the art inspiration photos provided from each maker below the polishes' description*

Contrary Polish Femmes au Puits
Three coats
Deep lilac crelly with matte micro-glitter in shades of orange, gold, blue, red, pink and green
Inspired by:
Paul Signac -  Femmes au puits
I love that maker Carrie went with a pointillism painting as her inspiration and the result is truly unique and so very pretty. It applies easily with three thinner style coats needed for opacity. It does dry to a textured finish, with the thinner base and the multitude of glitter so I recommend applying a double layer of topcoat.









Girly Bits Cosmetics Glass Scale Dragon
Two coats
Aquatic blue scattered holographic with blue and silver holo, bronze, red, blue and violet flakes, and blue and  violet shimmer
Inspired by
The mosaic dragon sculpture by Gaudi at Park Guell in Barcelona, Spain.
This will glimmer and sparkle in the sun, just as I would imagine the dragon sculpture would too. Lots of detailing going on with the holo/shimmer/flakes but like the mosaic design, it flows well and doesn't feel fussy, just complex. The formula is thicker but flows well and goes on easily with two coats needed for coverage. 





Lollipop Posse Lacquer Good Morning, Lollipop!
Two coats
Seafoam green creme with various types and sizes of red/pink shimmer
Inspired by
Frederick Carl Frieseke - In the Doorway (Good Morning) 
Lightly and lovely! The seafoam green is a very fresh looking green, which is how I feel when I view the painting. The delicate pink shimmer picks up from the dress, I love how that plays into the interpretation. The application was without issues, slightly thicker in formula and opaque in two coats. 

 





LINKS!

Polish Pickup
Shop * Facebook * Instagram

Contrary Polish

Girly Bits

Lollipop Posse Lacquer


*The products in this post were sent to me for unbiased review*