Top Shelf Lacquer: You Had Me At Merlot

Top Shelf Lacquer: You Had Me At Merlot
A deep wine shimmery red jelly base that has a shift from reddish pink to orange

"You Had Me At Merlot" is from the Polish Pickup from June 2020.

The formula of "You Had Me At Merlot" is on the thick side and I had to make an effort to apply it close to the cuticles without actually getting it on the cuticles. I managed though and the polish covered in two coats. The drying time was good.

I made a bunch of orange "stripes" in the bottom corner of each nail and then I made some black dots on that.

This is the end result, including a layer of topcoat. The photo is taken under a lamp.

Top Shelf Lacquer: You Had Me At Merlot

The shimmer in this polish is super pretty.

 

Top Shelf Lacquer: You Had Me At Merlot

 

Here's "You Had me At Merlot" alone; two coats and a layer of topcoat. This photo is taken in the sun.

 

Top Shelf Lacquer: You Had Me At Merlot

 

And here are the polishes I used today.

 

"You Had Me At Merlot" is super pretty, I like it a lot. It was limited edition and is no longer available.

Number of coats: 2
Drying time: Good
Finish: Jelly with colour shifting shimmer
Overall impression: Really nice colour. I couldn't get it to flash orange though.
Buy again: Yes

Anny: Blue Hypnosis

Anny: Blue Hypnosis
Bright cobalt blue base with fine purple and blue glitter, textured

"Blue Hypnosis" is from Anny's collection of textured polishes, "Desert Glam". The collection came out in 2013 pretty much when textured polishes got popular the first time around.

The formula is really good and easy to work with. I used two coats for full opacity and the drying time is good. The polish dried up into a nice texture, not too gritty. 

I made a lavender brush stroke down the side of the nails with El Corazón's stamping polish "Orchid". Then I dapped a bit of pink glitter by the base of each nail and a bit of white/silver glitter on top of that. The pink glitter is Essie's "Sparkles Between Us", and the white/silver is Moyra's "998 Elise".

I topped it with topcoat and my nails were done. Here they are: 

Anny: Blue Hypnosis

I really like this!  

Anny: Blue Hypnosis

This is "Blue Hypnosis" alone, two coats and no topcoat. Look how fine the grittiness looks.  

Anny: Blue Hypnosis

Here are the things I used today.   

"Blue Hypnosis" is really pretty and I like both the formula and the effect. I always wear topcoat but I wouldn't have minded to wear this alone without topcoat.

Number of coats: 2
Drying time: Good
Finish: Texture with shimmer and glitter
Overall impression: Really nice colour and formula.
Buy again: Yes

China Glaze: Tongue & Chic

China Glaze: Tongue & Chic
Emerald green with shimmer

"Tongue & Chic" is from China Glaze's Fall collection 2013 "Autumn Nights". I'm not quite sure how long I've actually had it, but I don't remember buying it when it had just come out. But never mind - today's the day it's going to shine on my nails.

The formula is really good and so is the coverage. This is a one coater, but I used two because I like that. The drying time was good.

I made it into a foil manicure with golden and purple foil.

Here's the result, including a layer of topcoat.

China Glaze: Tongue & Chic

I think this is really pretty.

China Glaze: Tongue & Chic

 

Here's "Tongue & Chic" alone, two coats and a layer of topcoat.

 

China Glaze: Tongue & Chic

Here are the things I used today.

"Tongue & Chic" is a really pretty green with a great formula and coverage. I like it a lot!

Number of coats: 2, but one is enough
Drying time: Good
Finish: Shimmer
Overall impression: Awesome formula and coverage, pretty colour and effect
Buy again: Yes

Pretty Pots: Hurricane Blurpe 2.0

Pretty Pots: Hurricane Blurpe 2.0
Clear base with blue and purple glitter

I have absolutely no idea about how old this polish is, but it's definitely old. There aren't many pictures of it out there unfortunately, but it's a really pretty glitter.

I am sure you can make it opaque in maybe three coats on its own, but I decided to help it a little bit by applying a layer of purple polish as underwear, mostly to make sure that I didn't get any bald patches.

So, it's one coat of Golden Rose's #202 from the Matte Satin-collection. Then two layers of "Hurricane Blurple 2.0". The drying time was good.

The stamping designs are from "BP-L 006".

I think it turned out quite awesome.

 

Pretty Pots: Hurricane Blurpe 2.0

 

I love the mix of colours and designs here.

 

Pretty Pots: Hurricane Blurpe 2.0

 

Here's two coats of "Hurricane Blurple 2.0" on top of one layer of Golden Rose #202.

 

Pretty Pots: Hurricane Blurpe 2.0

 

Here are all the things I used for my nails today.

 

"Hurricane Blurple 2.0" may be an oldie but it's still really pretty.

 

Number of coats: 2 over a coloured base
Drying time: Good
Finish: Glitter in a clear base
Overall impression: Very pretty glitter
Buy again: Yes

Maybelline Color Show: Urban Turquoise

Maybelline Color Show: Urban Turquoise
Dark turquoise créme

The formula of  "Urban Turquoise" is good and the polish is super easy to work with. I used two coats for full opacity. The drying time was good.

I made dots in a design I've made many times before. I used a white, a yellow and an orange stamping polish for the dots, all from El Corazón. I topped it with Orly's holo glitter topper "Shine On Crazy Diamond".

Here's the final result:

 Maybelline Color Show: Urban Turquoise

I think this is super pretty.

 Maybelline Color Show: Urban Turquoise

Here's "Urban Turquoise" alone; two coats and no topcoat.

 

 Maybelline Color Show: Urban Turquoise

Here are all the polishes I used today.

What can I say? I love dots and this design is one of my favourite dotty designs.

Number of coats: 2
Drying time: Good
Finish: Créme
Overall impression: Good formula, nice colour.
Buy again: Yes

Polish Addict: Sugar Plum Fairy

Walking down Memory Lane with Polish Addict: Sugar Plum Fairy
Lavender crelly with a mix of pink, teal, orange, lavender, plum, and yellow glitters in a variety of shapes, finishes and sizes.

Lots of nail polish makers in the indie world have popped up and lots of nail polish makers have vanished after a short period of time.

I blogged about "Sugar Plum Fairy" by Polish Addict in February 2014. I have got three different polishes from this brand and all three of them are crellies with glitter. I have always really liked glitter in and on my nail polish. I am generally not a fan of crellies though.

But anyway, back to today's nails. The formula is still good and easy to work with. The colour seems to have faded a bit over the years so I decided to apply three coats to make my nails look pretty. The drying time is good.

The stamp is from Moyou London's stamping plate "Princess Collection-14". I stamped with a dark purple stamping polish from Born Pretty Store. I topped it all with the holo glitter topper "Northern Lights" from Out The Door".

Here's my final result including topcoat:

Polish Addict: Sugar Plum Fairy

I have always liked to stamp over glitter because it gives a nice effect.

Polish Addict: Sugar Plum Fairy

Here's "Sugar Plum Fairy" alone; three coats and a layer of topcoat. It dries up a bit bumpy because of all the glitter bits.

 

Polish Addict: Sugar Plum Fairy

Here are the things I used today.

 

"Sugar Plum Fairy" is a nice polish with a good formula. I like the amount of glitter in it and the colour mix is sweet. It has faded a bit over the years but the lavender is still nice looking.

                           

Number of coats: 3
Drying time: Good
Finish: Crelly with glitter
Overall impression: Nice formula and effect
Buy again: Not quite sure

Moyra Metal: #303

Moyra Metal: #303
Lavender metallic

Today's polish is from one of my holidays to Hungary. It's a lovely lavender metallic.

The formula is on the thick side but really easy to work with nonetheless. I used two coats for my nails, but one would have been enough.

The two pink stripes are stamped on. They are from the stamping plate "Nicole Diary-L04". I stamped with a gorgeous pink stamping polish from Colour Alike called "We Can Boogie". The hearts are little nail stickers; I can't remeber if I bought them from eBay or from Aliexpress. They are both great places to buy nail decorations from. The shipping time is really slow but the prices are really good.

This is the final result:

 

Moyra Metal: #303

I like this a lot.

Moyra Metal: #303

Here's Moyra's Metal #303 alone; two coats and no topcoat. I think it's gorgeous.

Moyra Metal: #303

And here is the stuff I used for my nails today.

 

I really like Moyra polishes. They are both good and cheap and they come with some cool colours and finishes.

Number of coats: 2, but 1 would have been enough
Drying time: Good
Finish: Metallic
Overall impression: Thick formula, great coverage, cool colour and effect
Buy again: Yes

Kiko Glitter Metal: #004 Orchid Violet

Kiko Glitter Metal: #004 Orchid Violet
Magenta jelly base with magenta and purple metallic shimmer

#004 Orchid Violet from Kiko's "Glitter Metal" collection work as a "real polish" but today I'm wearing it as a topper.

I layered it over Essie's "Jamaica Me Crazy", which is a lovely deep magenta shimmery polish. It was my second Essie polish and I think I bought it in 2012! I used two coats of "Jamaica Me Crazy" as my base. On top of that I applied a layer of Kiko's #004 Orchid Violet. It was super easy to work with and the shimmer spread out easily and evenly without much effort. The drying time was good.

I made a stamping gradient on top of it all. The design is from one of my favourite stamping plates of all times - it must be, since it's the one I've used the most times. I stamped with a white and a blue stamping polish from El Corazón: "White" and "Blue Neon".

Here's the final result including a layer of topcoat.

Essie "Jamaica Me Crazy" and Kiko Glitter Metal #004 "Orchid Violet"

I love the look of this!

 

Essie "Jamaica Me Crazy" and Kiko Glitter Metal #004 "Orchid Violet"

Here's what I stamped over: Two coats of Essie "Jamaica Me Crazy" and one coat of Kiko Glitter Metal #004 "Orchid Violet".

 

Essie "Jamaica Me Crazy" and Kiko Glitter Metal #004 "Orchid Violet"

And this is "Jamaica Me Crazy" - a lovely, gorgeous shimmery magenta. I really like this polish!

 

Essie: Jamaica Me Crazy

Here is all the stuff I used today.

 

I absolutely love wearing this manicure. I think it's lovely!

Number of coats: 1 over a coloured base
Drying time: Good
Finish: Metallic shimmer
Overall impression: Ooh, this is beautiful!
Buy again: Yes

Colors by Llarowe: Sparkles Are A Girl's Best Friend

Colors by Llarowe: Sparkles Are A Girl's Best Friend
Berry/pink linear holo with sparks

"Sparkles Are A Girl's Best Friend" is an oldie, but also a goodie. It's completely new to my nails, since I haven't worn this before.

The formula is like a crelly but it behaves really nicely for a crelly. I used two easy coats to make my nails look great and the drying time was good.

I honestly didn't want to cover any of this prettiness up - so I wore it without adding anything to it.

Here it is, two coats and a layer of topcoat, the photo is taken with flash to show off the holo flames.

 Colors by Llarowe: Sparkles Are A Girl's Best Friend

Isn't it just a pretty colour with some really gorgeous flames?

 Colors by Llarowe: Sparkles Are A Girl's Best Friend

This photo is taken in daylight, no sun. I love this colour.

 Colors by Llarowe: Sparkles Are A Girl's Best Friend

Isn't this just gorgeous? I love colours like this one.

Number of coats: 2
Drying time: Good
Finish: Linear holo with sparks
Overall impression: Ooh, this is just gorgeous. I love the colour and all the rainbows!
Buy again: I would

Chaos and Crocodiles: Essence Of Nostalgia

Chaos and Crocodiles: Essence Of Nostalgia
Bright purple base with purple shimmer, red/green shifting iridescent glitter, holographic micro-glitter, and holographic pigment

Essence of Nostalgia is from the Winter 2016 Snowbound Collection. It's a really lovely purple with the sweetest red/green glitter and holo pigment.

The formula is really good and so easy to work with. It took two coats to achieve full opacity. The drying time was good.

I decided to apply a bit of green/purple glitter to the base of my nails. The glitter is CrowsToes' "Dragon in Drag".

Here's the final result including a layer of topcoat. The photo is taken in the sun.

 Chaos and Crocodiles: Essence Of Nostalgia

This photo is taken under a lamp. Look at how beautiful that purple is.

 

 Chaos and Crocodiles: Essence Of Nostalgia

And here's "Essence Of Nostalgia" on its own; this is two coats and no topcoat just yet.

 

 Chaos and Crocodiles: Essence Of Nostalgia

Here are the two polishes together.

 

Chaos & Crocodiles: Essence Of Nostalgia & CrowsToes: Dragon In Drag

I really like both these polishes

Number of coats: 2
Drying time: Good
Finish: Holo/shimmer/glitter
Overall impression: Great colour, really cool effect, good formula
Buy again: Yes

Essence Show Your Feet: Oceana

Essence Show Your Feet: Oceana
Darkened teal blue packed with shimmer

"Oceana" is from Essence's relatively old collection of "Show Your Feet" polishes. I don't know what the difference between nail polish for toenails and fingernails is - I've always used the same polishes for both fingers and toes. But Essence seems to think that they needed to make a special collection of polishes for toenails. That doesn't stop me from wearing this polish on my fingernails! It's a gorgeous deep teal blue packed with shimmer.

The writing on the back of the polish also says that it has "great coverage with just one coat". There's no way that this is a one coater, but it covers beautifully in just two easy coats. The drying time is good.

The floral decorations on my nails are water decals.

Look at how pretty it turned out.

 Essence Show Your Feet: Oceana

I think the shimmer in "Oceana" is gorgeous.

 

 Essence Show Your Feet: Oceana

Here's "Oceana" alone, two coats and no topcoat.

 

 Essence Show Your Feet: Oceana

This is a beautiful shimmery polish. I'd wear it on both hands and feet :D 

 

Number of coats: 2
Drying time: Good
Finish: Shimmer
Overall impression: Very beautiful shimmer, great formula
Buy again: Yes

Moyra: Vamp #18

Moyra: Vamp #18
Purple metallic shimmer

It isn't exactly a secret that I love polishes with some sort of effect. Shimmers are great, so are metallics - and metallic shimmers are amazing. Moyra's #18 from their Vamp polish is such an amazing polish.

The formula is also perfect and I used two easy coats for my manicure today. The drying time was good.

The stamp is from the stamping plate "Mezerdoo35". I used two stamping polishes for the stamping gradient, namely El Corazón's "White" and "Pink Neon".

This is the final result photographed under my lamp.

 Moyra: Vamp #18

Here it is in daylight. Look at that shimmering effect!!

 

 Moyra: Vamp #18

And this is Moyra Vamp #18 alone; two coats and no topcoat.

 

 Moyra: Vamp #18

Here are the things I used today.

 

I absolutely love this polish, it's perfect!

Number of coats: 2
Drying time: Good
Finish: Metallic shimmer
Overall impression: Wow, this is great. Great formula, coverage, colour and effect.
Buy again: Yes