Throwback! Essie: Lollipop

Throwback! Today I am taking you back in time a few years to show you one of my favorite polish purchases from the beginning of my nail polish obsession. This is the perfect candy apple red and I took it out in honor of the beginning of Fair Season here in Connecticut, because it reminds me of those oh-so-sweet treats. This is Essie's Lollipop and there simply isn't another red as perfect as she is. I am sure you've seen this color a million times before but I had to dust her off and show her some love because she's really pure perfection in my eyes. 

Lollipop is a sheer, jelly, candy apply red with no shimmer. The shine on this polish is magnificent. I used three coats for the opacity shown and, while it is a jelly finish, it does get fairly opaque. I am a huge fan of the way this one just pops! 

  

Do you love this one as much as I do? What's your favorite candy apple red?

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OPI: You're Such a Budapest

Good morning everyone! Today I have a really pretty spring color to share with you from the OPI Euro Centrale collection. This item was provided to me for consideration by OPI's PR. (Disclosure Policy). 

This is You're Such a Budapest which is a lilac jelly color. I love the color but the formula needs work. It's extremely sheer, as you can see from the swatches. I used two coats for the photos shown below but you absolutely need three or more for this one to look great.  Don't get me wrong, I love jellies, but this one was not so easy to apply because it's quite milky. You can see the balding in the photos below.

 

See what I mean? I do LOVE the color though so I will make this work! What do you think of this one?

Disclosure: This product was provided by PR for review purposes. All reviews are 100% honest and done at my discretion. For more information please see my Disclosure Policy. 

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Hillbilly Love Lacquer (Etsy)

Happy Monday everyone! I hope you all have a great week. We're finally going to be seeing the sun stick around a bit longer, spring is on the horizon!

Today I want to show you some polishes from the Etsy shop Hillbilly Love Lacquer. The owner, Alisa, is from Tennessee and she's come up with some hilarious creative names for her down home lacquers. You're sure to crack a smile browsing through her shop. All of the polishes are 3-free and sell for $8.50.

The formula on all three of these was different than what I am used to. It's almost gel like (not gel polish like Shellac, but just gel like in texture). I have never experienced a texture like these. Very interesting.  I don't love it but I don't hate it. It's in the middle for me. I applied all three with no real issues so it's all good.

The bottles are really nice looking with professional looking labels featuring the color name and company logo. 

First up I have Buckshot (see, told you the names were adorable). This is a blue/grey shimmer with copper glitter. I used two coats for the opacity shown, I think you'd be better off with three.

  

Next up is Hick-Tastic  LOL. This is a light pink with pink, white and holographic glitter. The glitter in this one is really fun!  I used two coats for the opacity shown. The base is sort of a shimmery jelly so I am not sure more coats would  necessarily equal more opacity. 

And last but not least is Bluegrass  which is a teal jelly with teal, navy and holographic glitter.  This one is really pretty. Two coats are pictured, I think it's fine with two but three migh be preferable. 

  

Overall, I think this shop has some really unique and cute lacquers, and the names are just hilarious and creative. I don't think any other companies have come up with a similar concept so kudos for originality. If you're looking for something fun, or for a gift to give your redneck friend, this company can provide just that. (LOL). 

Have you tried anything from this Etsy shop? Are you interested in trying any of the colors?

Disclosure: This product was provided by PR for review purposes. All reviews are 100% honest and done at my discretion. For more information please see my Disclosure Policy. 

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GG Couture Nail Lacquer

Good morning polish lovers. I hope you're all having a wonderful week! Today I have some indie polish to show you made by the lovely Gabrielle of GG Couture Nail Lacquer. Here's a little information about the company:

GGCouture Nail Lacquer, is a hand made, 5 free polish. There is no formaldehyde, formaldehyde resin, camphor, toluene, or DBP. The base is high quality and long lasting. They are colored with mineral colorants, and all glitter used are solvent resistant and not glass. GGCouture Nail Lacquer has the option to be scented with 1 of 2 essential oils: plumeria and crisp apple rose. After the formula is finished, the bottles are dressed up, complete with a bow and rhinestone. Made in California.

I ship worldwide, and package accordingly, to withstand normal abuse that shipping brings. (This entails nail polishes being wrapped in tissue paper, followed by bubble wrap, backed in a bubble mailer, and folded for added padding).

No sample or small bottles offered, as I feel it takes away from the charm of my polish. (Can't do rhinestones and bows on a mini bottle!)

Full size (15ml) is $8.

Store: ggcouturenaillacquer.etsy.comEmail: ggcouture@me.com.

IG, Vine, Tumblr: ggouture

Facebook: GG Couture Nail Lacquer. 

My polishes arrived packaged as described. I received two colors, I am Yours and Body Electric. Let's take a look at  I am Yours first:

I am Yours is an emerald/teal jelly.  Mine appears to have some flecks of black in it, and while I am not sure this is an intentional addition, I quite like the look of it that way. The formula  as mentioned above, is a jelly so it's very sheer but can be built up for a more opaque look. I used two coats for the photos.  Application was lovely on this. It was so smooth and just simply glided on the nail.  I am sure that has a lot to do with the mineral colorants. Removal was a piece of cake, no staining at all.

Next up is Body Electric which is a bronze-y brown with a silver micro-shimmer. This one is quite frosty and while I can see brush strokes I can't help but say I am in love with it. There's something about it, when you see it in person the micro-shimmer will win you over. It's stunning. This is a great fall/winter color. 

As I mentioned, I do see some minor brushstrokes but nothing atrocious and they don't bother me at all. In fact, this went on just as smoothly as I am Yours and I really enjoyed the application. These really do just glide right on. This was fully opaque with just two coats.

Both of these polishes were scented in the Apple Rose scent. I found the scent to be pleasant but not perfume-y  Just slightly more bearable than traditional nail polish. Don't go sniffing these, it's just designed to make application more pleasant, and it did. 

Overall these are great indie offerings available on Etsy for $8 each.  Go check them out! Have you tried anything from GG Couture? I would love to hear your thoughts? If you haven't tried the brand yet, which colors attract you the most?

Disclosure: This product was provided by PR for review purposes. All reviews are 100% honest and done at my discretion. For more information please see my Disclosure Policy. 

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Truimph: Turquoise Jewel and Lollipop

Hi everyone! Today I have two polishes to show you from a brand new line of lacquers by Everything Bridal and More. They have just created and are in the process of launching a new line of polishes called Triumph. They sent me two to try out.

First up is Turquoise Jewel (Matte) which is a true turquoise color with tons of pearly micro-shimmer throughout.  It does have a true matte finish but my photos are showing it a bit glosy because I added a top coat. I am not too into mattes, for some reason the feeling of that dry polish surface freaks me out LOL. So I added the top coat and think it makes this one gorgeous. But if you do like matte polishes I assure you this does dry to a true matte finish with no glossiness whatsoever.

I used two coats which gave me full opacity. The formula was typical of a matte polish in that it dried super fast. I had no issues with balding or streaking on this at all.

Sorry for the typo in the first photo. I am too lazy to edit it LOL. My bad!

Next up is Lollipop which is an orange jelly color. It's a well balanced orange in that it's not too red and not too yellow. It's a true jelly finish and requires more than two coats if you want it to be opaque. I love a good jelly, VNL and all, and this one is quite nice. It's got that squishy glass like finish too it. I love the shine on a proper jelly and this one delivers.

Like with any jelly polish you will see your nail line if your nails are semi long. This one isn't to noticeable  maybe on the middle finger, but I only did two coats for the photos.

This last photo is a bit blurry. Sorry!

Overall these are two solid polishes. I have no idea how much they will retail for but I do know they are being put out by Everything Bridal and More. They're good quality and I would like to see the price point/color selection etc.  I will keep my eyes peeled for that information and pass it on when I get it. 

Disclosure: This product was provided by PR for review purposes. All reviews are 100% honest and done at my discretion. For more information please see my Disclosure Policy. 

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Pomegranate Nail Lacquer: Curator & Cardigan

Hi everyone! Sorry I have been MIA lately but my camera BROKE :( so I haven't been able to take good photos. The ones below were taken with my old camera, the one I had when I first started the blog. They're okay photos but not as good as the camera that broke. I think I was too hard on it in Bermuda and it's just destroyed. It's only about 1.5 years old too. Oh well. I did go out and get a new camera which I am excited for. It's a Canon Rebel T3. I didn't go with the T3i because it was sooooo expensive and this will be my first D- SLR so there will be a learning curve. Please give me a little while to work with it and learn how to use it. I expect once I get the hang of it I will have great quality photos but we will see.

Today I have two gorgeous polishes to show you from Pomegranate Nail Lacquer. I have loved everything I have tried from this brand and these two beauties are no exception. 

First up is Curator. This is a rich black with tons of gold and silver glitter. This color is GORGEOUS. I got so many compliments while wearing this one. I love the mixture of gold and silver in this, it makes it a pretty unique polish in my book. 

The formula was awesome. It went on smoothly and the glitter was evenly disbursed on application. Sometimes glitter, especially large particle glitter, is difficult to get onto the nail, no so with this one. This polish is PACKED with glitter.  

Removal was EASY! I was shocked at this. I was DREADING removing this one. I didn't even have to use the foil method, I did not have to soak my nails. I just removed like I normally do with a basic cotton pad and some acetone. This glitter came right off. Color me amazed. 

Next up is Cardigan  which is not even close to the color it photographs. I am so upset I was not able to capture the true color of this polish because it's absolutely stunning. It's much deeper, darker and jewel toned than it appears in my photos. It is NOT a light teal it's a rich dark teal. I am so bummed that this didn't photograph properly because the color in real life is stunning. 

This polish, in real life, is a true dark teal jelly. It's super shiny and squishy looking in person. I used three coats and got pretty much full opacity but you can still tell it's that fun jelly finish. 

I really love this one and wish you could see the amazing color. If my new camera gets the color better I will repost. Trust me on this though, it's stunning. If you love jellies you'll love this one!

  

So what do you think of these gorgeous colors? Have you tried anything from Pomegranate? I highly recommend checking them out. They have some really unique and fun colors and they're pretty affordable at $9 a bottle. Everything I have tried from them has be top notch quality and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend the brand to anyone. 

Disclosure: This product was provided by PR for review purposes. All reviews are 100% honest and done at my discretion. For more information please see my Disclosure Policy. 

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NYX: Moonwalk

Happy Friday readers! I hope you're all in for a fun weekend. Tomorrow, my sister is taking me to see The Fray in  concert. We've seen them live once before and they were super great! I am excited for the show tomorrow. It's her early birthday present to me. What are your plans for the weekend?

Today I am wearing NYX Advanced Salon Formula in Moonwalk. Moonwalk is a black/gray jelly base with silver and holographic glitter and hex glitter.  It's really pretty when the light hits it, the glitter reflects a rainbow of colors.

I used three coats for the opacity shown and it may have benefited from either a forth coat or a bottom coat of just plain black. The formula was pretty sheer but thick, which sounds like a contradiction but it's true! Unlike some polishes with hex glitter this glitter went on well and in abundance. 

So far the polishes I have tried from the NYX Advanced Salon Formula line have been just okay. Each have been sheer and I find them to have an odd goopy texture that doesn't really dry quickly enough for me, even with Seche Vite. I love the Lippman-esque bottle shape though and they have an really fantastic color selection. I will continue to use them but I am not sold that they are the best. You certainly cannot skip top coat with these (never do anyway but it's a claim they make)

So what do you think of this one? Love it or hate it? Have you tried this line of polish? What are your thoughts.

Have a wonderful weekend! Thanks for reading!

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