Smitten Polish Glass Elevator

Pale milky aqua base with micro light blue glitter and small iridescent aqua hexes. This was my Christmas manicure; my first Indie polish! Since this country is tropical, I figured I could at least have a white Christmas on my nails (:

I found the formula good. The base is sheer enough to let the glitter show, yet is opaque in three coats (please ignore the spot I missed on my pinky). There’s enough iridescent glitter to go around, no fishing required. I do love the overall icy feel this polish has; it’s a great introduction to the world of Indie brands.

I bought this polish from Shoppe Eclecticco. They carry a good range of Indie brands from Emily de Molly to Rainbow Honey. They also have some commercial brands like Layla and Nfu Oh. And the best part is that they ship internationally so anyone can buy from them.

Polish peels:
• NailTek Foundation II (1 coat)
• Smitten Polish Glass Elevator (3 coats)
• American Classics Gelous (1 coat)
• Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat (1 coat)

Innisfree 103 Autumn Leaves

Collection: Poem (2012 Summer)

Blessed Christmas!

Reddish brown/ orangey gold duochrome foil. The foil particles also have a strong pink flash that’s hard to capture. This is a gorgeous autumn shade but I think it’s a great shade for Christmas too. It’s much prettier in real life though.

I don’t know if all Innisfree polishes have a scent, but this one smells like orange chocolates to me. Some of you might not like the scent – I didn’t initially but my nose is a little sensitive. I found the formula easy to work with after I added some thinner. I do prefer polishes with a thinner consistency because I tend to do medium to thick coats.

I hope you enjoy your Christmas festivities! Feliz Navidad, próspero año y felicidad!

Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.
Luke 2:11 (NIV)

Polish peels:
• NailTek Foundation II (1 coat)
• Innisfree 103 Autumn Leaves (3 coats)
• Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat (1 coat)

China Glaze Glitter All the Way

Collection: Holiday Joy (2012 Winter)

Small gold, purple, red and slightly larger green hexagonal glitter in a clear base. I love the colors in this; it’s like having a Mardi Gras party on my nails! It might not be the typical Christmas color scheme but I think it works just as well. Also, I love the name! Jingle bells, jingle bells, glitter all the way~~!

The glitter itself spreads pretty well but it clumped a bit when I applied a thick coat. My advice is to apply a thin first coat without worrying about the coverage. The second and third coat will cover almost everything up, it doesn’t matter if you miss some spots – no one will notice. I didn’t even notice there was a bald spot on my index nail before I saw the pictures on my computer!

Polish peels:
• PVA Glue (1 coat)
• China Glaze Glitter All the Way (3 coats)
• American Classics Gelous (1 coat)
• Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat (1 coat)
• Ettude House Help My Finger Matte Top Coat (1 coat)

Michelle M32

Periwinkle blue cream. I used this polish a year ago for my birthday manicure but the color seems to have changed. I’m not sure how accurate the photos were but my memory tells me it used to be purpler. I tried going down to Beadstreet to compare but I couldn’t find this shade so I think it’s discontinued.

Color change or not, I do love this hue. Like the other Beadstreet creams I have, this is thick but evens out well. It bubbled a little on me because of the thickness so I would recommend thin coats.

Polish peels:
• Michelle Base (1 coat)
• Michelle M32 (2 coats)
• Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat (1 coat)

Polish Days: Bling

Collection: All Night Stars (2003 Winter)

We all know that the yearend festivities are usually showy and sparkly. But this month’s topic was also chosen because Hannah, the amazing lady who organizes the Polish Days, has gotten engaged recently! Her new ring (and fiancé) inspired her to call us to go blingtastic!

Just a year ago, I hardly had any glitter polishes. Estessimo TiNS The Neptune was probably the first full out glitter I bought. Since I had not tried it yet, I figured this would be a good time.

Innisfree 108 Aquarius

Collection: Star Sign (2012 Summer)

Clear base with multi-shaped glitter. At first glance, the glitter appears to be purple with a sprinkling of green. But when you take a closer look, there’s also a bit of pink, blue, silver, gold and red. It’s basically a purple version of Libra (108).

I didn’t like the how crowded my nails looked the previous time, so I loaded the brush with less glitter this round. That’s why the glitter looks sparser here even though both bottles have the same formula – which is rather thick.

I’m sorry I haven’t been posting in the last few weeks; my hands went really dry all of a sudden. The skin around my fingers (and thumbs) started flaking and peeling so I decided to take a short break.

Polish peels:
• Nature Republic PP402 (2 coats)
• Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat (1 coat)
• Innisfree 108 Aquarius (1 coat)
• American Classics Gelous (1 coat)
• Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat (1 coat)