Author Archives: Stacie Wacie

HPB Presents First-Ever Indie Brand!

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Hello reader! Today’s post is a special post. This is the Hobby Polish Bloggers link-up for the month of February! Every month this Facebook group does a themed mani, and February’s theme is all about our first indie brands. The first indie brand I ever bought from, as well as my first-ever etsy order, was from Pretty & Polished, so I decided to try some products from them I hadn’t used yet. This is Me, Myself, and Cacti at three coats, with one coat each of Seche Vite top coat and the Pretty & Polished Wax on Wax effect top coat.

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Way back in June 2013, after reading about indie polishes on Reddit and talking to other nail enthusiasts about them, I took the plunge and ordered some of my own. I was drawn to Pretty & Polished for their thermals, but I loved their chunky glitters and crellies. I bought two polishes that day, one of which was a thermal, and it kind of changed my life. It took my nail polish addiction to an incredible high. I placed orders with three other makers that same day.

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I had other P&Ps I’d bought first and hadn’t tried, but I really just wanted to use this one. I have always loved the look of this polish, because it’s not like anything else I own: the green jelly is rich but still transparent, and the glitters add just enough to break it up and make it interesting. Unfortunately, the glitter was a bit hard to get out; I only got one or two pieces on some nails, but I’m still happy with the look.

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In the sunlight, it looks about the same. The nail line is a bit more visible, but that’s about it. These photos were taken in direct sunlight outdoors.

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I also decided that this would be the day I tried out the Wax on Wax effect top coat. I bought these two products together and have never used them until today. I like the way it looks over the jelly; there’s still some shine, but it’s subdued. It’s like a satin finish, but more to the glossy side than the matte side. It really does look like I dipped them in molten candle wax. I don’t actually know how often I’ll use this in the future, since I really loved the jelly shine, but it’ll be fun to try out again.

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Me, Myself, and Cacti has been discontinued, but the Wax on Wax effect top coat and other Pretty & Polished polishes are available at their etsy shop.

I bought this polish myself.

 

Manicure Monday: Glitter Secret

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Happy Monday! This week I did some time-intensive nail art — by my standards at least — and I love it. For this look, I used Butter London’s West End Wonderland with American Apparel’s Moon. I wish I did nail art like this every week!

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The idea for this mani was to have a negative-space mani with a secret glow-in-the-dark effect. I loved the idea of just having a fun polish paired with “naked” nails, and then having the “negative” parts of the design glow. Obviously, if you look closely, you can tell they’re not totally naked, because Moon has this grainy look in it, but that’s only if you look up close. From a perfectly reasonable distance you wouldn’t be able to tell at all.

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This is one of the more intricate designs I’ve ever done, because I rarely do anything with more than two steps. First, I put down a coat of Moon. Next, I did a gradient with Moon and West End Wonderland. I left my thumb and pinky with just the initial gradient. When that was dry, I put strips of striping tape over the gradient in a criss-cross pattern, then sponged West End Wonderland over the entire nail. I finished with Seche Vite top coat. On the accent nail, the one with the studs, I used two coats of Moon and skipped right to the all-over sponging of West End Wonderland. I think it turned out pretty well!

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The only thing I would do differently — I do plan to do this again — is to use a polish with greater contast. It’s a little hard to see the negative space because it’s so similar to the glitter polish. I may also consider just using striping tape for greater contrast in the dark, because I did fail to take that into account. You can see in the glow photos where the lines are, but I think it would be cooler if the contrast was higher.

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Moon has an amazingly strong glow. If you look closely, you can see the titles of the books on my bookshelf.

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Moon has been discontinued by American Apparel. West End Wonderland and other Butter London polishes are available at sephora and Ulta. I got mine in a swap, lucky me! I don’t know where the studs came from.

One of these polishes were purchased by myself. The other was received in a trade.

Swatch Sunday: Octopus Party Nail Lacquer’s Universal Loner

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Happy Sunday! It’s Valentine’s Day, so it’s a great day to wear red! This beauty is Octopus Party Nail Lacquer‘s Universal Loner. The name is kind of appropriate, too, isn’t it? I can’t tell. I’m wearing three coats of Universal Loner with one coat of Seche Vite top coat.

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Universal Loner is a true red creme polish; it’s meant to be equally balanced between warm and cool. Like a lot of red cremes, the tone changes in lighting; my outdoor photos leaned more warm, and my indoor photos were cooler. The product consistency is very nice; the polish is a bit sheer on the first coat, but works up to full opacity on the second. It dries quickly and with a glossy finish; I used top coat for extra shine and protection.

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This polish was one of the four indie creme offerings in the inaugural Creme a la Mode box. I love this box because some awesome makers — some of my favorites, even — realized that cremes are an overlooked but necessary part of a great indie manicure. Cremes are common in any polish addict’s kit, but it weirds me out sometimes when I’m still using polishes that might not be five-free or cruelty free or what have you. I know these brands and I know their reputations for quality products, and it puts my mind at ease knowing there’s nothing in this polish that’s going to harm me or be ethically questionable. I have a dozen red cremes, but I trust this one.

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Here’s the outdoor shots, where it looks way more tomato than cherry. I still love it. The shine kills me. It’s my favorite thing.

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And because it’s Valentine’s Day, I used it as a base for a quick-and-dirty Valentine’s mani. The glitter here is Lynnderella‘s Love the Nail Mail. Nail polish is totally my valentine this year.

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Universal Loner is out of stock; other Octopus Party Nail Lacquers are available in their etsy shop.

I bought this polish myself.

Swatch Saturday: Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer’s You Just Want to Mate?!

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Happy Saturday! Here comes this week’s swatch; it’s Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer‘s You Just Want to Mate?!; I’m wearing three coats with one coat of Seche Vite top coat.

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You Just Want to Mate?! is a red polish with red and gold shimmers. Application was easy; it was nearly opaque on the first coat, achieving full opacity in two coats. Product consistency is just right; it’s not too thick or thin, it just goes on. The shimmer is strong, and strongest where the light touches it. It dries quickly and with a semi-glossy finish. I added top coat for extra shine.

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I’ve talked at length before about how BEGL shimmer polishes are the best ones they do. This is an aboslutely great example of that. Shimmer is already a beautiful addition to a creme, but BEGL takes a step further and adds it in such a way that it adds complexity and and depth. This is a pretty simple combo; the red shimmers add monochromatic sparkle, but the gold adds warmth and a little something extra. I’ve also talked at length about how much I love red polish, so it’s safe to say this is a winner in my book.

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Outdoors, the shimmer is incredible, but the sunlight overwhelmed it while I was trying to photograph it.

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Manicure Monday: Neon Satisfaction

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Manicure Monday is here again! I kind of can’t believe how fun my manicure is today. It’s adorable and obnoxious, but I think it’s a great combo, if I may say so. For this look, I used American Apparel’s Neon Violet with Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer‘s Self-Satisfied, along with Seche Vite top coat and Ciaté’s Mattenificent matte top coat.

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So I’ve swatched a bunch of American Apparel neon polishes, and I have to say, they’re some of the best I’ve ever used. They have great coverage and they don’t require a white base for their neon-ness. The only downside is that they’re not always 3-free; this one contains formaldehyde. It’s a great polish, though. I love the color, brightness, and product formula. When I picked this for Manicure Monday, I knew I needed something equally as fun and bright to balance it out.

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Self-Satisfied is one of my most-used glitter toppers. I’ve used it in three different manicures now and it’s about half-empty. It looks fantastic over everything, though I love it best over bright colors, especially orange. I love to pair complementary colors, so I knew this would be best for the Neon Violet. Not all of the colors in the glitter work well over the base; it’s hard to see the red hearts and dark pink hexes, but I still like the match. I really love the way this turned out.

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The only real downer to this manicure is the matte top coat. I’ve used Ciaté’s Mattenificent matte coat a couple times now, and I don’t know if it’s user error or not, but it kind of sucks. I mean, it does a great job being matte; look at how velvety the color is. What’s not cool, though, is how it splits. It makes these lines like crackle polish. Also, for some unknown reason, it created these white marks on my nails. Look at my pinky nail. Where did those come from? There was no white polish used in this manicure, so why there are there white spots? I actually had white brush strokes on my thumb. Here’s the kicker: the super glue I used to secure the studs left a bit of shine, so I put down another coat of Mattenificent; the white spots and lines went away. Seriously? They didn’t all go away, obviously, but the unsightly white brush strokes on my thumb are gone, as well as some other marks on other fingers. I am just so confused. At least the mani looks fine, that’s what counts! Here are some outdoor photos, taken in direct sunlight:

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American Apparel doesn’t seem to sell nail polish anymore, at least not on their website, because I couldn’t find it there. Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer has discontinued Self-Satisfied; other BEGL polishes are available in their shop. Ciaté is available at Sephora. My bow charm is from Claire’s, and I forget where my studs are from. Sorry.

I bought these polishes myself.

Swatch Sunday: Nina Ultra Pro’s Solar Flare

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Hello reader! It’s still Sunday somewhere, so let’s a have a look at this Sunday’s swatch! This is Nina Ultra Pro’s Solar Flare; I’m wearing one coat of Solar Flare over a base of China Glaze’s White on White and with a coat of Seche Vite top coat.

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Solar Flare is a highlighter yellow neon polish. It’s one of those translucent neons; even at three coats, it never achieved full opacity, so a white base is imperative with this polish. Because it’s so translucent, one must take care to avoid streaks when applying; because it never becomes opaque, streaks and imperfections are never covered. Product consistency is thin yet manageable. It dried quickly and with a matte finish. I used top coat for shine and protection.

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Blogger’s note: Let me preface this by saying that since this is an older bottle, I may have an older formula. Newer bottles may have a newer, improved formula. However, since this is what I have, this is what I’ll review. I’ll just go ahead and say it: this is not my favorite neon. It was just really tricky to work with, and I’m not really happy with the result I got, even when being really careful and meticulous. Even over the white base, I still see streaks, though I didn’t notice them until after I was working through the photos. A second coat over a white base might have done some good. Even though the potential is there for a super neon look — this was way brighter in person, believe me — there are just so many better neons out there, neons that do reach opacity and do not require a white base, this polish is rendered obsolete.

For informational purposes, I’ve included photos without the white base. Here’s three coats of Solar Flare alone and without top coat. I’m not really a fan of this look; it really needs the white to pop and to cover the visible nail line. However, I won’t deny the potential for a neon jelly sandwich.

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Solar Flare and other Nina Ultra Pro polishes are sold at Sally Beauty Supply.

I bought these polishes myself.

Swatch Saturday: Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer’s I’m Doctor Martha Jones, Who the Hell Are You?

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Happy Saturday, reader! This week’s Swatch Saturday finds us beginning a new (new for me at least) Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer collection called It Got Away From Me, Yeah…, which is all about Doctor Who. What was once planned as a small collection ultimately grew into a huge collection that was released in three phases throughout 2014; one based on the lady companions, one on the male companions, and one based on the Doctors themselves, which was also a collaboration with Monster Polish. (If you remember the Monster Polish swatch I did a couple of weeks ago, that polish is part of this collection as well.) To call it collection might be too light. It’s very aptly named.

Anyway, the first polish from this first phase is I’m Doctor Martha Jones, Who the Hell Are You?; I’m wearing three coats with one coat of Seche Vite top coat.

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I’m Doctor Martha Jones, Who the Hell Are You? is a magenta jelly polish with flakies that shift from gold to green to blue. Application was very easy; though the polish is loaded with these flakies, they’re very fine and don’t impact the polish consistency at all. The consistency is pretty middle-of-the-road; it has a bit of stuff in it, but it is, after all, a jelly. Because it’s a jelly, the flakies from previous coats shine through the final coat, and because it’s a jelly, a slight bit of visible nail line does come through. The polish dries with a matte finish; I used top coat for shine and protection.

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So on this blog, especially when reviewing a polish, I try not to get hyperbolic or silly in my writing; I’m very much a fan of the just-the-facts-ma’am review. I’m going to throw that completely out the window for this review, because HOLY CRAP LOOK AT IT. I have never enjoyed photographing a polish this much, because it just could not take a bad photo. In every position, from every angle, in every lighting condition, it just looks flawlessly gorgeous and gorgeously flawless.And the flakie shift, HOLY CRAP. This is easily the best part. It goes from gold to green pretty easily; the blue is harder to get but is the prettiest. There is nothing I don’t like about this. I hate that I have to take it off so I can swatch other stuff. I did not expect to like this so much.

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In direct sunlight, it’s a bit brighter and pinker, but is still freakin’ beautiful.

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I’m Doctor Martha Jones, Who the Hell Are You? has been discontinued by Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer. Other BEGL polishes are sold in their online shop.

I bought this polish myself.

Manicure Monday: Pink Spring Mystery

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Welcome back, reader! Happy Monday! Today’s manicure was done with a chunky springtime glitter and a mystery polish. Spring is springing in Florida, and I get closer with every pastel polish I wear. For this look, I used Model City Polish‘s Breath of Spring and a Sally Hansen mystery pink, as well as a coat of Seche vite top coat.

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Next to knowing that the mystery polish is from Sally Hansen, I know absolutely nothing about it. This is one of my older polishes, a leftover from when I had a terrible habit of peeling the labels off of things. I really did a number on this one; I’ve stripped it of anything identifiable. I also remember buying this polish to match a pair of glasses I was wearing at the time. Despite everything, I actually really like this polish, and it’s a shame I can’t tell you anything about it, because I almost want to recommend it. The product consistency is on the thin side, and it took three coats to reach full opacity, and it took ages to dry… Maybe I don’t want to recommend it after all. It had the most gorgeous shine after it dried, though. I feel like that’s not very common. Though it was fiddly to apply, it didn’t need top coat at all, and I was really impressed. It’s kind of a shame I covered so much of it up.

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Breath of Spring kind of took over this mani. I wanted just a small but concentrated bit of glitter at the base of each nail, but because of the variety of shapes and colors of glitter, it looked uneven, and by the time I got the look I wanted, it took up half the nail. I think it’s still a cool look; the glitter comes in bright but seasonal colors, and there’s just a hint of holographic goodness in the base. It’s a beautiful topper that would look fantastic over anything. I really enjoy this combination.

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Breath of Spring has been discontinued by Model City; other Model City Polishes can be found in theiretsy shop. Sally Hansen, and maybe even this polish, can be found in stores nationwide.

I bought these polishes myself.

Swatch Sunday: Nicole by OPI’s Love Your Life

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Happy Sunday, reader! My swatch today is of a polish I’ve had for a long time. This was 2009 or so, long before indie polish came into my life. I had ten dollars to burn and I was at Ulta. I found a polish with heart glitter in it and the rest is history. This is Love Your Life from Nicole by OPI; I’m wearing one brushed coat over OPI’s Don’t Bossa Nova Me Around (taupe), Ciaté’s Sugar Plum (lavender), and Sally Hansen’s Kelp Yourself (green), as well as one coat of Seche Vite top coat.

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Love Your Life is a clear-based glitter topper with matte pastel pink heart glitters and a mix of fine iridescent hex glitters. Application was okay; the base is thick — unsure of whether this is due to formula or to age — and the bigger glitters tended to sink and had to be fished after. The iridescent glitters distribute well, at least. The hearts are a bit difficult to control with the brush; I kind of just brushed them on and left them where they landed. Though the product consistency was thick, it dried quickly, and with a glossy finish. I added top coat for protection and shine.

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You probably already have some fun dainty pink heart glitter polishes already from an indie, and if you do, you don’t need this polish. If you don’t, though, I do recommend it. It’s pretty simple, it’s just hearts and iridescent glitter, but I think it works. It’s annoying that the hearts are a little hard to get out, but it’s actually a good thing because you can control how many you want. You can make a mani as wild or as demure as you like. It also goes well over most colors, because it’s so light and pink. I actually really like it over these pastel cremes; when I swatch, I like to use some constrasting colors to make the swatch visually appealing, as well as show it some colors it might not normally be used over. I had to go for pastels this time, though, because it’s got that perfect Valentine’s candy vibe.

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Love Your Life and other Nicole by OPI polishes are available at Ulta and other stores nationwide.

I bought this polish myself.

Swatch Saturday: Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer’s ‘Murica

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Welcome back to Swatch Saturday, reader! My swatch today is a real oldie, but a fun polish nevertheless. This polish, ‘Murica, was a patriotic polish released alongside another polish called Glory. Unfortunately, I missed out on Glory, but here’s Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer‘s ‘Murica. This is three coats of ‘Murica with one coat of Seche Vite top coat.

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‘Murica is a clear-based deep blue microglitter polish with red and blue star glitters and red shimmers. Application was easy, though while the base was clear, it took me many coats to achieve full opacity. The first coat went on almost like a glitter topper; the coverage was very thin and lots of bare nail was still visible. Of course, coverage built with each additional coat, so it ended up not being a huge problem. It was actually kind of interesting to find out, since I learned it could be worn as a fine glitter topper pretty easily. The polish took some time to dry since I put it on a bit thick, and it dried with a fine gritty texture. I added top coat for shine and smoothness.

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The glitter is super shiny, so there’s a lot of issues with focus and glare in these photos. I don’t think I did it a whole lot of justice. You’ll just have to take my word for it that this polish is beautiful. Even though it looks like it’s all one color, there’s so much going on in it; there’s enough variety in the glitter for the polish to have lots of dimension and depth. It’s not just blue, there’s cobalt blue, ocean blue, and navy blue, as well as the red glitters adding contrast. It’s a really cool look. I did mention that there are star glitters, but none of them made it into any of my photos; there were some, but they were covered by the final coat of polish. I like this polish because its inspiration are only obvious if one knows it. Otherwise, it’s a barely patriotic but totally wearable glitter. It’s beautifully done.

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‘Murica has been discontinued by Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer. Other BEGLs are available from their online shop.

I bought this polish myself.