Today's mani: Stars and stripes

Happy Independence Day to my fellow Americans! I hope you get to relax and enjoy some fireworks, BBQ, or whatever floats your boat! We went into Boston for a few hours to walk around and get some burgers.

I did a quick mani to celebrate the occasion. I started with a base of KBShimmer Pimp My Pride, added stars to my middle finger with China Glaze Hanging in the Balance and a vinyl from the For the Love of Polish Box, and painted some flag stripes on my ring finger with Nailtini Bloody Mary and Sinful Colors Snow Me White. Simple!

April's Gimme That Polish!

Happy Friday everyone! Today I've got my top five lemmings from my Pinterest board for April! As usual, click the links to visit the original swatchers' posts.

1. Dollish Polish - I Gave Her My Heart, She Gave Me a Pen

This one's a little more girly than my usual favorites, but I'm a huge sucker for a good full-coverage microglitter. I think it's the little flashes of purple that really make it. (Dollish Polish shop | swatch by Accio Lacquer)

2. Renaissance Cosmetics - Petals & Things

This is one of the few ultrachrome flakie toppers that I've really been taken with, I think because it has an overall softer and more elegant feel than most. (Renaissance Cosmetics shop | swatch by Wondrously Polished)

3. KBShimmer - Shell Shock

As we know, KBShimmer is a glitter crelly powerhouse, and every collection has new fabulous color combos that I MUST HAVE. This one manages to be both soft and summery at the same time. (KBShimmer shop | swatch by The Lacquerologist)

4. A England - Captive Goddess

I'll be honest, I couldn't really pick a favorite from the Rossetti's Goddess collection, so this is really just a stand-in for all of them. A England does this kind of metallic holo SO WELL. (A England shop | swatch by Marine Loves Polish)

5. Reverie Nail Lacquer - Lily Pads

Just like I love KBShimmer's glitter crellies, I've really been admiring Reverie's glitter jellies, although I don't own any (yet). She's great at mixing a bunch of different colors that still work together! (Reverie Nail Lacquer shop | swatch by The Mercurial Magpie)


Honorable mention: China Glaze - Treble Maker

Quick swatch: KBShimmer Funky Cold Patina

The product in this post was purchased by me. All opinions are my own.

Hey guys! Just a quick pic of what I'm wearing right now--KBShimmer Funky Cold Patina. It's no surprise that I LOVE this color! Even though there's a lot of blue in the polish, it still feels very cheerful and springlike to me.

KBShimmer Funky Cold Patina. Two coats with Out the Door topcoat.

Swatch: KBShimmer Mauve On Over

The product in this post was purchased by me. All opinions are my own.

Happy Hump Day! Recently I grabbed a few glitter crellies from KBShimmer when they were having a sale. KBShimmer does crellies like no other brand, in my opinion--perfect color combos and glitter density! Mauve On Over is no exception. It's a pale warm purple base with dark blue, turquoise and red-orange glitter (some holographic).

KBShimmer Mauve On Over. Three coats with Out the Door topcoat.

Doesn't this have the most amazing speckled-egg-like appearance? I didn't mind needing three coats; since the base is pretty sheer, there is a lot of depth from the lower layers of glitter. Some dabbing was required to get the biggest glitter in place, but as you can see, I got very even glitter coverage. The formula was thin but not too runny.

And of course, it looks great matte too!

KBShimmer Mauve On Over. Three coats with Revlon matte topcoat.

This polish was a winter release, but I think it's totally perfect for spring! It's available here for $8.75!

The product in this post was purchased by me. All opinions are my own.

February's Gimme That Polish!

Yes, I realize February has been over for several days now...I guess I inadvertently took a little blogging break! I have an excuse though...over the weekend I found out I got accepted into a Master's program, so I'll be going back to school (again) next fall! Woohoo!!

Anyway, here are my top five lemmings from my Pinterest board last month. As always, click the links to visit the original bloggers' posts!

1. KBShimmer Funky Cold Patina

KBShimmer really hit it out of the park with glitter crellies in their spring collection, and this one's my favorite. Mostly because of that gorgeous aqua base! (KBShimmer shop | swatch by The Nail Polish Challenge)

2.  Glam Polish Leilani (Heavenly Flower)

I couldn't NOT pick this one because a) it's a delicious shade of purple and b) look at those flakies pop! A terrific mix of textures here. (Glam Polish shop | swatch by Lacquerstyle)

3. Spell Polish Friendly Omens

Another lovely crelly! I think the grey base prevents this one from looking too carnival-esque, and the opacity looks perfect. (Spell Polish shop | swatch by Very Emily)

4. Dance Legend Bereginya

I am constantly in awe over Dance Legend's stuff. I love the delicate, natural base color of this one--it makes me think of jade. (Dance Legend shop | swatch by Very Emily)

5. CrowsToes The Terminal Engagement

I suppose this polish isn't super original, but there's something about dark colors with super strong shimmer that just calls to me... (CrowsToes site | swatch by Pointless Cafe)


Honorable Mention: Lacquer Lust Ultraviolet

Swatch: KBShimmer Snow Much Fun

The product in this post was given to me as a gift. All opinions are my own.

Hey guys! Right now we're slowly being buried under a mountain of snow thanks to Winter Storm Juno. All the public transportation in the Boston area is shut down, and my husband's work was canceled. It reminds me of when I was a kid and used to hope for a snow day every time snow was forecast. I would wake up early and watch the news to see if my school was on the list (this was before you could just check on the Internet). Of course, now that I work at home, it's not quite as exciting anymore! :-D

I thought a perfect way to "celebrate" the blizzard would be to try out one of my latest acquisitions, KBShimmer Snow Much Fun. This is a light blue (slightly aqua-leaning) jelly with lots of white and blue glitter, including snowflake glitter, plus silver holo microglitter.

KBShimmer Snow Much Fun. Three coats with Out the Door topcoat.

This polish is absolutely gorgeous, perfect for a snow queen! I had a couple minor issues with the formula. First, it was very sheer, even at three coats. Second, I definitely had to fish a little to get the snowflake glitters. But it applied very smoothly, like all KBShimmers I've tried!

I hope my fellow New Englanders are staying safe and warm today! Here are a couple shots I took of the snow:

My five favorite swatches of 2014!

Hi guys and gals! As promised, I'm going to show you some of my favorite posts from last year. Today I narrowed it down to my top five swatched polishes, which was pretty hard, believe me! Are we surprised that they're all purple or teal??

In no particular order (each title is linked to my original post):

1. Glam Polish Leapfrog

2. KBShimmer Sugar Plum Faerie

3. Glitter Daze Poised

4. Zoya Neeka

5. Indigo Bananas We Are the Music Makers

Which of these is your favorite?

Tomorrow I'll be back with my favorite nail art from 2014!

October's Gimme That Polish!

Hi all! Sorry for the radio silence the past few days--my in-laws were visiting for the weekend, then yesterday was Mr. ALIQUID's birthday! Being the boring people we are, we celebrated by getting Chinese food and visiting a new grocery store that just opened here. Thrilling!

Anyway, here finally are my top five lemmings from my Pinterest wishlist for October! Lots of beautiful fall and winter shades here. As usual, go visit the original reviews for more photos!

1. Lilypad Lacquer - Envy Me

As I think I've mentioned before, holos with contrasting shimmer are my new favorite thing, and I absolutely love the jewel tone green and purple together here. Lilypad is one of those brands I keep seeing everywhere and want to try every single one of! This polish is exclusive to Hypnotic Polish, a Netherlands-based stockist. (swatch by Very Emily)

2. KBShimmer - Mauve On Over

OK, glitter crellies are my other favorite thing, especially when the color combo is unexpected. This is from KBShimmer's new winter collection, but it doesn't really read winter to me. What do you think? (KBShimmer shop | swatch by The Nail Polish Challenge)

3. Delush Polish - Misty Day

Ahhh, look how much depth this one has! I love the pops of color among all the green. This one reminds me of an enchanted forest. (Delush Polish shop | swatch by The Nail Polish Challenge)

4. Indigo Bananas - Gods & Monsters

In my opinion, Andrea of Indigo Bananas is the queen of multichrome polishes (and one of my polish muses in general). This one is a prime example. She uses the old-school flakies with a super intense color shift, and it just looks like the epitome of fall to me. Droooool. (Indigo Bananas shop | swatch by Polish Hound)

5. A England - Virgin Queen

It feels like a while since we've seen a new A England collection, and this newest one is stunning as always. They do the best scattered holos! The blend of silver and gold here is just uber-classy. (A England shop | swatch by Marine Loves Polish)


Honorable mention: Powder Perfect - The Stars Are Shining Brightly

I'll be back tomorrow with my favorite manis from October!

August Gimme That Polish!

Happy Labor Day! Hope my fellow Americans have a relaxing day planned! I'm going to be mixing nail polish all day. :-D

Today I've got my top five polishes from my Pinterest wishlist board for August. It's a mix of summery and autumnal shades, since fall is indeed creeping up on us! Make sure to go visit the original bloggers' posts for more details!

1. Dance Legend - Moorland

OK, you really have to click on the image so you can see the full glory of this polish! It has these tiny black flecks that give it an amazing smoky look! I always know a polish is well done when I start thinking about how I might be able to reproduce the effect! (Dance Legend store | swatch by Nail Polish Wars)

2. I Love Nail Polish - Black Orchid

I actually had a really hard time picking my favorite polish from the ILNP fall collection, but this deep winey/plummy holo kept calling to me! I'm such a sucker for vampy polishes! (ILNP store | swatch by ChrissyAI)

3. Dollish Polish - So Long and Thanks for All the Fish

Not only is this polish a tribute to an amazing book series (and an amazing author...RIP Douglas Adams!), but I absolutely love the glitter mix, especially those little pops of green! (Dollish Polish store | swatch by Accio Lacquer)

4. Lavish Polish - Short Shorts

This one is making me think of candy! I love the purple, of course, and I think those teal glitters really round out this polish in a perfect way. (Lavish Polish store | swatch by Lacquer: The Best Medicine)

5. KBShimmer - A Raisin to Live

OK, first off, I'm usually pretty sick of puns in nail polish names, but this one amused me! Love the deep vampy jelly with the pops of holo glitter! (KBShimmer store | swatch by The Mercurial Magpie)


Honorable mention goes to: OPI DS Titanium

June's Gimme That Polish!

One day I'll manage to do my Gimme That Polish post before the month is actually over! At any rate, here are my five favorite polishes of the ones I pinned to my wishlist last month. Check out the original blogger reviews and let me know your biggest lemmings in the comments!

1. Indigo Bananas Acid Ocean

Andrea of Indigo Bananas continues to be amazing with her new collection of jelly flakies. I love the way those toxic green flakies pop out of the murky blue base...it reminds me of a bioluminescent sea creature! (Indigo Bananas shop | swatch by The Mercurial Magpie)

2. KBShimmer Look High and Holo

I had to have at least one jelly glitterbomb this month! This one is super colorful and perfect for summer. Plus, come on, holo glitter! Yes please! (KBShimmer shop | swatch by Nail Polish Wars)

3. Glam Polish Rivendell

OK, not only is this a Lord of the Rings-themed polish AND a teal polish, but just look at those flecks! Flakes and flecks are probably my #1 favorite "thing to put in nail polish", so I'm all over this one. (Glam Polish shop | swatch by Accio Lacquer)

4. Powder Perfect Deceptively Sweet

This one's uncharacteristically girly for me, but I love the muted lilac base color, and the gold shimmer makes it special but still restrained. You definitely need to check out the full-size pics to appreciate this polish! (Powder Perfect shop | swatch by The Nail Polish Project)

5. Northern Star Polish Electric Lime

Mmm, this shade of green really hits the spot for me. The combo of the green with the various colors of glitter makes me think of tropical fruit! An awesome polish for summer. (Northern Star shop | swatch by The Mercurial Magpie)

The Neverending Pile Challenge: KBShimmer Sugar Plum Faerie

The product in this post was purchased by me. All opinions are my own.

Good morning kiddies! I'm super excited because today's Neverending Pile Challenge prompt is my favorite color, PURPLE!! I had a bunch of fun untried purples to choose from; in the end I went for KBShimmer Sugar Plum Faerie. This color isn't showing up on their site, so I'm guessing it's been discontinued. That means I'm gonna be hoarding this bottle like crazy!

KBShimmer Sugar Plum Faerie. Three coats with Out the Door topcoat.

Sugar Plum Faerie is a red-toned purple jelly with various sizes of pink, purple and green glitter. This is, of course, right up my alley! It was thin for a jelly and very easy to apply, with only a little dabbing needed to keep the larger glitters in place. I used three coats for even coverage.

The girl I tutor likes to look at my nails, and I'm betting on some compliments with this mani! (Her final Latin exam is this week, so wish her luck!)


Total untrieds tried: 61 + chevron decals + 3 stamping plates