Coffee Love

I do love me some coffee (decaf)!  So of course I would love Layla Coffee Love.  Brown and holo, what a combo!  I've really only seen a few brown holos so I think it makes this particular polish quite special and slightly more easily attainable than the others I'm thinking of.  And while I do have many brown polishes, I've only recently started to actually embrace the color as one of my favorites for nail polish.  It's so natural and easy to wear, and it really flatters my skin tone.  So there you have it…I've jumped on the I Heart Brown Polish band wagon! 
Chocolate Love is a brown linear holo.  It really reminds me of melty chocolate.  I found the formula to be a bit on the thin and watery side so I had to use 3 coats for full coverage.  Fortunately with all that layering I had no problems with pooling, dragging or streaking.  What I found interesting about this holo was that it dried dull so it needed a topcoat to bring out that holo rainbow effect.  I used 1 layer of topcoat and no base coat for this polish.  It was an overcast day so all the photos below were taken indoors with no special lighting.  Actually we use low energy lighting so even less bright than a regular bulb but CL still had an amazing holo effect.
So what do you think of Coffee Love?  Do you love brown polish or hate it?  And just for fun…what's your favorite coffee drink?  Mine is Starbucks Peppermint White Mocha, non-fat, decaf.  You can purchase Coffee Love and other beautiful Layla's at the following etailers: Ninja Polish and Harlow & Co.

Vermelho Surreal

Sorry for the lack of posts…I haven't done much polish changing in the last few days because I cut a finger on my swatching/picture hand just above a cuticle.  Then I cut under the nail into the meaty part of another finger on my camera holding hand.  With all the cuts I haven't wanted to deal with acetone…owie!  So here is a post that I had lined up for just such an occasion.  
Jade Vermelho Surreal.  Red.  Linear.  Holo.  Do I really need to say more?  No, but I will.  First throw out whatever you know about holos and their touch and go formulas and application.  VS is not one of those finicky holos.  The formula is wonderful - smooth, pigmented well, no dragging, streaking or pooling.  VS went on like butter.  I used 2 coats for full coverage and I skipped the top coat because I wasn't certain if it would lessen the holo effect (some brands loose their holoiness with topcoat, others have no change).  I am so very impressed with the quality of this brand and the strength of the holo effect!  I am looking forward to trying more soon!
I won this polish from a contest hosted by Leah Ann at Llarowe.  You can purchase Jade Vermelho Surreal and all the other gorgeous Jade holos on the Llarowe website for $7.

Shimmer Polish Sonia

I received some new Shimmer Polishes to swatch and review and all 3 are so gorgeous!  These are definitely some additions you will want to put on your wish list for Christmas (or heck - just go buy them yourself right now)!  Since I like to focus on one polish at a time, I will continue on that route and start with Sonia.
When I first opened the bubble wrap and saw Sonia in person I thought of words like feminine, lady-like, demure, delicate.  Sonia is very much a girly combination of glitter.  On the Shimmer Polish blog Sonia is described as lavender and gold.  But she's so much more!  I see pink, turquoise, gold and light purple glitter.  There is also a gold holo shimmer that really adds a special touch to the delicateness of Sonia.  Application of Sonia was great, lots of glitter with each brush dip and it spread easily.  I saw no curling glitter and had no clumping.  I have on 2 coats of Sonia layered over Sinful Colors Vacation Time, a rosy-nude.
Shimmer polish is on vacation until after 11/26, so after that you can shop for Sonia and other beautiful polishes in the Shimmer Polish etsy store.  Be sure to follow the Shimmer Polish blog and the facebook page to keep up to date on new releases and specials.  Shimmer Polish is also available at Overall Beauty.  

*this polish was provided for my honest opinion and review

El Cap + My Stardust Melody

I have an absolutely heavenly combination to share with you today.  I love it - I love is so much that when I when to change my mani I put it on AGAIN!  It's all the qualities that I love in polish: glowy, ethereal, glitter, holo, sparkle, iridescent.  
I started with Elevation Polish El Cap.  El Cap is a gorgeous blue-purple (blurple) with red shimmer.  It's slightly sheer, but builds up nicely.  I was honestly shocked that I fell so hard for this color.  It's so not me.  But it was so gorgeous I just couldn't resist it!  I used 2 coats for full coverage.  In the pictures you will see a little sheerness on the nail tips, but in real life it wasn't noticeable.  I have never wanted a backup bottle of anything before, and El Cap is the first one that makes me feel like I need a second bottle.   
I then used a new polish, made just for me, by Gina at Red Dog Designs, My Stardust Melody.  It's fabulous and I absolutely adore it!  I am looking forward to trying it over silver next (and think it will be soon since I'm obsessed with this glitter combination). MSM is made up of light silvery-sage green, white and lavender hexs.  There are also some iridescent, color changing squares.  And if that isn't enough to blow your mind there is also some holo micro glitter for that extra bling effect.  My pictures just don't capture the bling very well - trust, my nails were super sparkly and flashy!  But not in an over the top way, in a just perfect amount of bling kind of way.  I used 2 coats of MSM and got a good amount of glitter out without digging.  MSM applied well with no application issues.  The nice this is that I didn't need to use Gelous - the glitter lay flat and smooth enough that 2 layers of topcoat was perfect for smooth and glossy coverage.
You can keep up with Elevation Polish on the blog and store.  You can receive Red Dog Design updates by following the facebook page and store.  

Bury the Hatchetfish + Kiko 322

I recently saw a post for the new collection by Hare, The Illuminated Life.  I had to wipe drool from my mouth with the back of my sleeve.  True story.  I knew I needed them, but I hadn't tried the brand before so picked 2 of the 4 to start with.  A few days passed and the Hares popped into my head again.  I thought to myself, hmmm, I wonder when that opening was scheduled for and checked the store, all polishes were there but out of stock.  Bummer.  Then I saw a post from a friend saying 4 minutes until the Hare restock!  WHAT!?  I scurried back over to that site and waited…waited…waited…and it was live!  And I got the 2 I wanted.  Another true story.  Nut now, well let's just say now I'm angry with myself for not just buying the entire set.  All 4 polishes from the Luminous Life set: Bury the Hatchetfish, Electric Flame, Atolla, and Medusa Luminosa are packed full of a gorgeous glowing purple iridescent glitter.  I think this has become my absolute favorite type of glitter polish.

So here are my pictures of Bury the Hatchetfish.  Please excuse the tip wear…I did my nails at night and must have been doing dishes in my sleep.  I started with 2 layers of Kiko 322, a gorgeous mushroom taupe that applied like a dream.  322 was so smooth and creamy.  Everything you want in a stellar creme polish.

  I layered 2 coats of BtH on top.  BtH is a very sheer polish and I think it would take 3 or 4 coats to build up on it's own.  It's a very unique polish - a brown base with purple, blue, fuchsia and iridescent glitters.  Plenty of glitter came out with each dip of the brush and it applied to the nail well.  It was on the smelly side but I didn't mind so much since it applied well and is a really beautiful polish.  It was a topcoat eater though - I used 2 coats to get a smooth to the touch finish.  

You can purchase Kiko from their website.  Hare Polish is available on esty and Llarowe.  And be sure to follow the Hare Polish blog and facebook page for swatches and new products!

Sprout

Last weekend I co-hosted a baby shower for my dear friend Millessa.  When the party planning brainstorming began we had ideas all over the place.  But what we knew was that Millessa called the baby Sprout, Sprout is a he, and the party was going to be pumpkin themed.  With those details I went to Gina at Red Dog Designs and we started chatting about a polish as a favor.  What Gina came up with was absolutely perfect!  
Sprout is a light blue polish with green shimmer, flecks and holo microglitter that is so lovely and soft it reminds me of a baby's blanket.  I used 3 coats of Sprout to get full opaqueness.  Sprout applies with a crelly-ish (creme-jelly) formula, but after the 3 coats it was quite creamy.  I had no application issues with Sprout.  I wore Sprout to the shower and received many compliments on how pretty it was!  And the favors came out so sweet!  Gina created adorable labels and my co-hostesses and I presented the bottles wrapped in tulle with a shower tag attached to each.  It was the perfect little parting gift.  
If you are interested in a custom I'd highly recommend Red Dog Designs!  Fast production and shipping and high quality product from a creator who really listens to what you want!  You can contact Gina at the Red Dog Designs Facebook Page if you are interested in a special, custom made nail polish.

BB Couture Hangover Blues

I have a new to me brand to share today.  It's by no means a new brand, but I haven't had the pleasure of using any of BB Couture For Nails polishes yet.  What I like most about the brand is that they release 2 sets with each collection - one set for women, one set for men.  Fun concept.   Of course you are not limited to buying from only one set or the other.  I'm not sure if this is true for every collection they put out but I have seen it with several collections recently.

Now on to the polish!  Hangover Blues is a dusty Tiffany blue (my opinion).  It has a very subtle shimmer that flashes silver, blue and pink sparkles.  I think the subtlety is very lovely and makes the blue stand out if you were to compare it to other similar blues.  The formula is described as 4-in-1: base coat, top coat, nail strengthener and color in one bottle.  But since I have OCD issues with my application routine I used a base and top coat (it just wouldn't feel right to skip those steps).  I figured an additional topcoat layer would make the polish even more glossy!  I used 2 coats of HB and 1 layer of topcoat.  The polish went on smooth and even, no dragging or bald spots.  I really found this polish lovely and look forward to trying out more from the brand!  

If you are interested in trying out BB Couture For Nails, you can purchase a wide range of their polish at Overall Beauty.  Follow Overall Beauty on Facebook for updates on incoming stock and new product availability.  

*this polish was provided for my honest opinion and review