China Glaze Cowgirl Up

China Glaze Cowgirl Up

I wanted something a bit vampy but not a creme so I picked Cowgirl Up from one of my favorite collections ever - Rodeo Diva. This glows and is very shiny. I love it!

Rainbow Polish Monarch

Rainbow Polish Monarch

I mentioned Monarch in my Yo-Duh post and realized I never posted a photo of the polish. I really like Monarch. It works over dark or light colors and it's very well mixed. The larger orange and yellow glitter has this jelly quality to it so it has a reflective look without the shimmer. It's very interesting. 

I bought Monarch from Rainbow Polish on Etsy. 

Hit Polish Precious Metal

Hit Polish Precious Metal

I found Hit Polish on Etsy one night browsing for bath goodies. Bath stuff is another strong interest of mine so Etsy is a two level evil. I browsed through the polish and was pretty amazed at the large selection of glitter polishes that is offered. I decided to order a few and I am very, very pleased. The polishes I purchased have a wonderful formula - not too thin and just thick enough to get very good coverage with one coat. I also like the fact that she offers the opportunity to purchase a mini in a full size. I like the idea of mini bottles but I really prefer to have a full size. I have no idea why but I do! 

I went with Precious Metal to wear first. It's a wonderful and well thought out mix of warm metallic shades including copper and bronze. I do have a slight weakness for copper and you don't always find a non-pink based copper glitter. It also has a fine mix of micro holo glitter. It's sparkly and pretty and metallic. I'm pleased and I'm actually eyeing a few other shades even though I haven't worn the others I have bought. Opps!

I am wearing one coat of Precious Metal over SpaRitual Mind. If you have been craving a warm based metal based glitter I highly recommend this one! 

Butter London Two Fingered Salute

Butter London Two Fingered Salute

Two Fingered Salute is another Nordstrom exclusive (which is where I bought mine) and it makes up for the slight disappointment I had with Stag Do. I really love this polish. It's a soft green with a hint of blue and pink copper shimmer. When I think of patina this is what pops into my head. This is what I wanted Rescue Beauty Lounge Halcyon to be but wasn't. I can't think of anything that I have in my stash that is even close. This is one of the more unique commercial polishes to be released this year. I really just love it! 

Butter London Stag Do

Butter London Stag Do

Stag Do is exclusive to Nordstrom and I have no idea if it will be available else where. In the bottle it's this amazing murky green/teal with awesome shimmer. On the nail it is a dark slate blue teal creme with a tiny, tiny, tiny hint of shimmer. Basically this polish is a big fat liar! It looks nothing like the bottle on the nail. I don't totally regret buying it but I will say that if you have any creme polishes in this shade and a few shimmer toppers you can easily pass on this. 

Bottle. See that shimmer? Gorgeous. 

Don't be fooled though because here it is on the nail. A dark slate teal blue creme. LIAR! It does have a beautiful creamy formula but I wanted that amazing shimmer to be more visible. To be fair the description online does say slight shimmer. Still. Hmph. 

A Topcoat (That Works!) For Nail Foils

A Topcoat (That Works!) For Nail Foils

I love nail foils. They're fun and easy and can be really eye catching. The only problem is that they are delicate and not many topcoats work with them. Actually, it's rare to find a topcoat that works with them so I wear them without one and get maybe a few hours wear before my manicure is destroyed. I found a solution that has been working for me - water based glossy clear varnish. 

This one to be exact. You can find this brand online here or on Amazon here but there are a few other brands that make a water based varnish. I went with this brand because it is non-toxic and US made. Please, please, please make sure that it is water based and that it is glossy. No need for matte here. I bought mine at a craft shop for about $7 and the bottle is huge. It's easily removed with acetone and if you get any on your skin it will wash off with soap and water. 

I filled an empty polish bottle about 70% full and added water to thin it a bit more. It's already thin but I wanted it a little bit thinner. Here is a bottle shot. I would say a 4 to 1 ratio of varnish and water is what I used. Use water to thin and only water. 

Here is Silver Crush over a silver foil polish. The little rough spots that you see are spots that I missed when smoothing the foil. I always miss spots so I make sure to match my base with the foil so it's not obvious in reality. I applied one thin coat of varnish and let it dry. It dries to the touch in about 10 minutes and it is completely dry (for me) in 20 minutes. When it is completely dry you can apply regular topcoat. It needs to be completely dry before applying normal topcoat. I have worn foils without adding topcoat over the varnish and have gotten great wear so I think the regular topcoat is optional. 

These photos were taken after wearing this for a day and a half. 

Here is what it looks like when I use topcoat without the varnish. Yuck! 

Here is a close up of the same foil with a coat of varnish over it. Shiny and really smooth! 

If you use acrylic paints for nail art this may be something to check out to preserve your creations without smearing. This also works for really adhering stones on the nail and keeping them from catching on things. The best one? It works extremely well at smoothing glitters that eat topcoat! Woo! It's really, really handy to have around! 

I hope you found this helpful! 

CrowsToes Bone Daddy

CrowsToes Bone Daddy

Another new color from CrowsToes. Bone Daddy has a grey jelly base with multi-shaped white glitter with violet opalescent glitter. So cool! I am wearing this over two coats of OPI My Pointe Exactly. 

CrowsToes Hell Hath No Fury

CrowsToes Hell Hath No Fury

I'm biased when it comes to CrowsToes because not only is it one of my favorite indie brands it's one of my favorite brands overall. I feel the same devotion for CrowsToes that some folks feel for Lynnderella and Chanel. Lots of love for CrowsToes from me!

Hell Hath No Fury is a new color and is packed with red and orange glitter with little opalescent violet glitter pieces and a shimmery base. Stunning! I find the thicker formula to be more to my taste as opposed to a thinner base. It really helps to get good glitter coverage with one coat. I am wearing one coat over Color Club In the Limelight. 

You can see photos of all of the new colors at Canvas Nails. Hell Hath no Fury looks so good over coral! You can purchase CrowsToes at Overall Beauty and Llarowe. 

Bottle shot. You can see the violet glitter here really well. Unfortunately, the glitter didn't show in the photos but it shows really well in reality. Even in lowlight/shade this polish sparkles. 

On the nail. 

Picture Polish Pshiit

Picture Polish Pshiit

I'm not really sure how to pronounce the name of this polish. I believe it is a sound but my mind translates the word into "shit". Awful but true. Pshiit is a teal/blue/green shimmer with subtle little flakes. I love the base color but the flakes are very subtle and really only show in bright light. In lower light the flakes look, to my eye, like little imperfections in the polish application. The formula is a bit on the thin side but application was very easy. I'm very lukewarm about the polish as a whole which is weird because it is a beautiful polish. I think I was hoping that the flake aspect would have been more obvious. 

I bought this at Picture Polish. 

Here you can see the green undertones much better.