recent frankens

I have not been wearing or making polish much lately but I did create a few random frankens the other day.

Aurore, a dusty blue creme with pink microshimmer

Olallieberry, named from memories of pie and pancake syrup in Pescadero, a violet creme with purple and silver glitter as well as blue microshimmer

Pond Scum, my favorite, a murky dusty teal with all colors of iridescent glitter and shimmer

Toad Skin, a greyed-out army green with golden microshimmer

Xmas Wreath, because I love deep greens and feel a teensy festive.  I might buy a polish if it were pine-scented haha.

as always I list my frankens on my Etsy shop

recent swatches

hi all!  i've been neglecting my blog lately since i have very little free time but i thought i'd share some recent polishes i've been enjoying!

Bourjois "Jaune Trendy" is a fantastic goldenrod-mustard yellow creme.  i was lucky to have this CP'ed for me by a European nailphile friend!  shown is 3 coats (it needs 2 plus a 3rd for streaks)

China Glaze "Zombie Zest" from the Halloween 2010 collection, a murky green foil.  possibly my favourite polish of all time.  shown is 3 coats.

Color Club "Best Dressed List" from the Spring 2010 Rebel Debutante collection.  a fleshy dark beige that was actually fairly flattering, to my surprise

Savvy "Sparkling Lavender" is a light blue shimmer with pink iridescence and holographic microglitter.  i think it's special!  apparently it's an older polish and i don't know much about it; i received it in a swap.

Sinful "Neptune" from the Spring 2011 Cast Away collection.  it's a cornflower blue shimmer, very pretty but not flattering on me (like most blues)

Zoya "Tanzy" from the Summer 2011 Sunshine Collection.  i got this in a Zoya promo after missing China Glaze "Orange Marmalade" (which i sold).  it's very pretty golden orange foil and slightly more opaque than "Orange Marmalade", but i don't see myself wearing it often

that's all for now...until next time, take care blog world!

Ruby Kisses HD "Bold and the Beautiful" + Finger Paints "Twisted"

since my purple manicure was wearing so well i decided to throw on some Finger Paints "Twisted".  we all know how awesome flakies look over dark polishes.
"Twisted" is now the only flakie polish i own and i am monogamous with it.  once upon a time i had more than one, but when i met "Twisted", i realized that it really met all my needs for a flakie polish.  it contains so many vibrant colours in one single polish.  sure there might be manicures when an all-red or all-blue flakie would look better, but ultimately i wouldn't trade one of those single colour polishes for "Twisted".  ultimately "Twisted" and i have a happy and healthy relationship :)

Jessica Custom Nail Color "Victorian Crush"

finally, my perfect olive creme!  i've had a crush on "Victorian Crush" since i saw it in a fellow NBer's stash.  it's from the Fall 2010 Muse collection.  i feel like it's the perfect obnoxious midpoint between Rescue Beauty Lounge "No More War" (too yellow/gross) and China Glaze "Westside Warrior" (too blue/tame).  this polish has a great formula and barely needs a second coat.  to top it off, i got it in a generous swap with a wonderful NBer.  i wish i could buy Jessica polishes ANYWHERE near me, but i've never seen them.

Wet n' Wild Spoiled "Are Mermaids Real?"

i can't say no to a gold-drenched purple polish.  my local CVS finally got a full display of these new Spoiled polishes by Wet n' Wild.  like everyone else, i noticed that most are dupes of Sinful polishes (oddly...).  This one, however, is closer to duping Nubar "Iced Licorice".  it's a bit of a cooler purple than the Nubar but just as pretty if not moreso since the cooler purple is more of a contrast with the warm gold foily shimmer.  the brushes on these Spoiled polishes SUCK in my opinion...they are too big and have stray hairs.  the formula on this polish wasn't terrible though...needs at least 2 coats which is the same as the Nubar version.  much cheaper at $1.99 though!

Ruby Kisses HD "Bold and the Beautiful"

my mom watched "The Bold and the Beautiful" for about a decade since she became pregnant with me.  that's not why i bought this polish though--look at this gorgeous violet!  this is what i wanted OPI "Sapphire In the Snow" to be, but SItS is warmer, muddier, and creme finish whereas Ruby Kisses HD "Bold and the Beautiful" is a vibrant, cooler, nearly-1-coater jelly with fantastic glossiness.  it doesn't look black under low light either!  it is a bit smelly and i don't think it's B3F.  i don't own any other polishes by this brand but i tend to see it at urban fashion stores next to Kleancolor polishes.

don't you just love this?

Nicole by OPI "Back to Reality...TV"

this Nicole by OPI is a CVS Exclusive from the Kardashian collection.  i think the Kardashian stuff is gross and i don't want to support them, but this was a very pretty and unique polish that i hadn't heard anything about yet. it's a muted lavender creme, almost slate, with pink microshimmer.  unfortunately it needs 3 coats to be opaque.  the new Nicole by OPI brushes are nice--they are flat and wide but not as big as the OPI Pro-Wide.  i wish the ends were a little rounded because the brush tends to make a rectangle shape on the nail!
i'm unsure if i'm keeping this one since the base is so close to China Glaze "No Name Yet" and the polish also resembles Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear "Mystic Lilac".  plus sheerness sucks!

Savina "Emerald"

i've bought this polish under different brand names probably five times.  it's an evergreen that tries to be warm but fails.  i'm such a sucker for deep green shimmers.  it's still pretty, albeit a bit sheer.  needs a bit more than 2 coats.  the Savina formula isn't great, a little watery.

Revlon "Zealous"

i am drawn to these lemon-lime shades over and over and they never flatter me.  Revlon "Zealous" is a light chartreuse-leaning yellow with pretty shimmer.  being a yellow, it looks best with 3 coats.  this would look awesome on someone with cooler and/or tanner skin than me.  it's a great Spring shade.

Rimmel Play Fast "Night Life"

this was one of the earlier polishes i got, and it's discontinued now.  it's similar to China Glaze "Ingrid", but a bit lighter and more taupey.  it's a pretty near-neutral, good in 2 coats, pretty flattering.