China Glaze Gothic Lolita + Lynnderella Sugared Violet

My purple fascination continues with a very pretty combo.  I saw this China Glaze in my beauty supply store well before Christmas, but I was on a no buy in December.  So I looked at it longingly, lovingly, knowing it would be mine in the very near future.  Lo and behold I broke the no buy a few days after Christmas and China Glaze Gothic Lolita was one that made a new home in my helmer.  I don't know why I had never noticed Gothic Lolita before, the collection was from the Spring 2012.  For the last couple months I have been gung ho for purple, blue, periwinkle, lavender, cornflower, etc, etc.  But I digress, Gothic Lolita is a very beautiful grape-y purple with a red shimmer.  And it applied very well, nice a creamy.  There were no application problems and it was opaque in 2 coats.  

I then layered Lynnderella Sugared Violet over Gothic Lolita.  Sugared Violet is from the new Groundhog Day collection.  Here is Lynn's description of Sugared Violet, it "has assorted lavender, periwinkle and white glitters in a purple-sparkled clear base.  Lavender and white hearts with violet microglitter and pinpoint blue iridescence are scattered in the mix."  I definitely got alot of shards, so if you don't like those glitters this won't be for you.  But I think it's very pretty and unique.  I did have a hard time getting any hearts out, but I also didn't try the upside down method.   I really liked the iridescent glitters, they really made the mani sparkle in the sunlight.  I finished this off with a layer of topcoat and my nails were smooth to the touch.

You can purchase Lynnderellas on ebay.  There is also Love Lynnderella on Facebook and the Lynnderella blog.

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a-England She Walks In Beauty

I feel that I rarely show one polish at a time anymore so here is a post highlighting a gorgeous polish, a-England She Walks In Beauty.  SWIB is from the Heavenly Quotes collection.  Here is Adina's description for SWIB: An intricate and complex mix of large and small rose-colored hexagonal glitter in a shimmering pale golden base that colour-shifts with lights and movement.  IIt's an absolutely stunning color!  I love how it looked different in the sunlight, the shade and indoors.  There was a foily-metallic finish to SWIB in direct light, but in indirect light the rose colored glitters really became the star of the show!  I used 3 coats of SWIB for full coverage and 1 layer of topcoat, though still had some texture on my nails.  I would suggest you use 2 layers of topcoat, or a layer of Gelous for completely smooth nails.  
Once the Royal Mail issues are figured out you will be able to purchase a-England directly from their website.  You can also purchase a-England from Ninja Polish, Overall Beauty, Llarowe and Mei Mei's Signatures.  You can follow a-England on Facebook as well.  
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Shimmer Polish Sarah + Zoya Akyra

I love blue, teal, turquoise, and all those shades in between.  This combo is easily one of my favorites to date!  It reminded me of a shimmery mermaid tale.  

I started with 3 coats of Zoya Akyra, a teal, leaning more green shimmery based polish.  It was a very thin and watery formula.  But it is a pretty color.  It made great undies for Shimmer Polish Sarah.  Sarah is described as tropical green and blue.  I'd elaborate and say Sarah is full of turquoise, royal blue, green, gold and purple.   It was a great formula that spread easily on the nail.  As with all the other Shimmer's I have used, loads of glitter came out with each brush dip and I had no issues with clumping.       Sarah was so stunningly glittery and shimmery...a truly beautiful polish!  I felt like a mermaid on land!

You can follow Shimmer Polish on Facebook and the Shimmer Polish Blog.  You can purchase Sarah and other sparkly creations from the Shimmer Polish Etsy store.

Please give me a follow me on Facebook!

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*the Shimmer Polish was provided for my honest opinion and review

Essie She's Picture Perfect + Red Dog Designs I Love Paris

I'm sure you are aware, but Red Dog Designs has become one of my favorite indie brands.  The polishes Gina creates are consistently complex and gorgeous.  If you haven't checked this brand out I highly suggest you do so ASAP! 
This post shows off I Love Paris and it is nothing short of spectacular.  I've seen it worn over several colors already, but I chose Essie She's Picture Perfect, a light lilac purple with beautiful pinky-purple shimmer that really glows.  I used 2 coats of SPP and it was a very nice formula to work with.  I then used 2 coats of I Love Paris.  ILP has a lovely blend of satin hearts, multi colored hexs, holo shimmer and iridescent color changing hexs (gasp, my FAVORITE!!).  This polish was actually inspired by French macarons.  Macarons are a high priority topic in one of the nail polish groups I am in and this was a homage to that.  Anyways, ILP was a wonderful formula.  No application issues, no fishing for glitter.  All the glitters lay nice and flat on my nails.  I then used a layer of topcoat for a smooth and shiny mani. 
Red Dog Designs info: Facebook, Big Cartel.
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Super Bowl XLVII…Go 49ers!!

Super Bowl Sunday!  Quite the big hub-bub here in the Bay Area!  The news has been covering the 49ers and New Orleans, the hosting city, since Friday.  All I can say is that I am so jealous of all the fans in New Orleans right now.  Celebrating the Super Bowl and getting to hang out in The Big Easy, talk about a party!!  My manicured fingers are crossed that the 49ers WIN!!  Go Niners!
Used: OPI Smitten With Mittens, Alpine Snow, Glitzerland.  Striping and dotting tools.  

Shimmer Polish Wendy + Dollish Polish Looking For My Mr. Big

Before I even start I need to say that Wendy is my favorite Shimmer Polish.  I'm going backwards today and will start with Wendy instead of the undies.  Wendy is so gorgeous and girly and pretty!  I literally stared at my nails for hours on end.  And why wouldn't I?  Wendy is a glitter bomb packed full of some of my favorite colors; copper, purple and turquoise.  The copper glitters almost have an iridescent, color changing quality to them.  I love it, it's a perfect mix of color.   I used 2 coats of Wendy and had great coverage.  Just like all the Shimmer's before her, Wendy had a great formula.  I layered Wendy over 2 coats of Dollish Polish Looking For My Mr. Big.  LFMMB is a light lavender purple with a subtle holo.  It applied a bit sheer with the first coat but built up nicely with the second.  I loved this pairing…and as you will see it sent me into a purple spiral for some upcoming posts!  I used 1 layer of topcoat to finish this mani.

You can follow Shimmer Polish on Facebook and the Shimmer Polish Blog.  You can purchase Wendy and other sparkly creations from the Shimmer Polish Etsy store.

Please give me a follow me on Facebook and Instagram!

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*the Shimmer Polish was provided for my honest opinion and review