Category Archives: Swatch Sunday

Swatch Sunday: Baroness X’s Sakura Skies

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Hey reader! I’m so excited about today’s swatch. This is the first of my Indie Shop Atlanta purchases to make it to the blog, and it’s from a new-to-me brand. It also just came out and I don’t usually wear things so soon after release. This is Sakura Skies from Baroness X, one of the collaboration polishes in the most recent installment of The Color Box. I’m wearing three coats with one coat of Seche Vive top coat.

Sakura Skies is a cornflower blue polish with flakies that shift from bright pink to gold. Application was easy; product consistency is a little thick due to all the flakies in the polish, but it wasn’t an issue. The flakies’ default setting is pink, and that’s the color I see on the nail most often; the gold pops up when directly facing the light source. The polish dries with a matte finish; I used top coat for shine.

If you’re unfamiliar with The Color Box, the box comes with five polishes that are all the same color family, which in this case is blue. Each polish is a collaboration between the polish maker and a blogger. The Sakura Skies concept came from xoxo, Jen. Jen and Baroness X made a great team, this is definitely my favorite polish in the box.

Outdoors, this polish is something else. The following photos were taken outside in direct sunlight. The shift is a little harder to get — it totally depends on the time of day — but it looks fantastic regardless.

Unfortunately, I just missed the pre-order cutoff for this box. The Color Box is a quarterly event; join the Facebook group to learn more about the box and to be able to vote on the color of future boxes. Watch the Baroness X website for overpour bottles of Sakura Skies and other products.

I bought this polish myself.

Swatch Sunday: Digital Nails’s Non-Corporeal Babysitter

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Hello, reader! Today’s swatch is all about Non-Corporeal Babysitter from Digital Nails. I’m wearing three coats with one coat of Seche Vive.

Digital Nails's Non-Corporeal Babysitter

Digital Nails's Non-Corporeal Babysitter

Digital Nails's Non-Corporeal Babysitter

Non-Corporeal Babysitter is a pink-tinted glitter topper with hot pink and white matte hexes and blue iridescent glitters. Even though it’s a topper, I chose to wear it alone at three coats because I wanted to see how opaque it would get. My bottle is old (from 2013!) and the product consistency is pretty thick; I know it’s meant to be thick since it’s loaded with glitter, but age may also be a factor. Long story short, I should have thinned it, because it was super thick at three coats and a little bit unmanageable. The polish tries quickly, though, and with a glossy finish. Top coat is necessary for smoothness because the glitter leaves texture.

Digital Nails's Non-Corporeal Babysitter

Digital Nails's Non-Corporeal Babysitter

I realize that by wearing it alone instead of layered over undies that I’m kind of doing it a disservice. I know it’s probably not meant to be worn this way, but I really just wanted to see what it looked like. Generally, I like the look. It’s a little messy, but I love the pink, I love the sheer quantity of glitter, and in general, it’s just fun. In the future, I think I’ll use it over a pink base.

Digital Nails's Non-Corporeal Babysitter

Digital Nails's Non-Corporeal Babysitter

For once, I think I prefer a polish in the studio rather than in the sunlight. Direct sunlight washed out a lot of the iridescent glitters, which are the best glitters in the polish. The bright-pinkness got washed out, too.

Digital Nails's Non-Corporeal Babysitter

Digital Nails's Non-Corporeal Babysitter

Digital Nails's Non-Corporeal Babysitter

Digital Nails's Non-Corporeal Babysitter

Digital Nails's Non-Corporeal Babysitter

Non-Corporeal Babysitter isn’t in stock, but other Digital Nails polishes are availabe in their etsy shop.

I bought this polish myself.

Swatch Sunday: Different Dimension’s Da Ba Dee

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Hello, reader! Welcome back to Swatch Sunday! I love today’s polish. It was one of my first-ever indies, and one of my first Different Dimension polishes (the other was Orion Nebula). Huge round glitters are still cool, right? This is Da Ba Dee; I’m wearing three coats with one coat of Seche Vive.

Da Ba Dee is a blue jelly with a variety of silver and blue holo glitters, the most prominent of which are the big round ones. Application was easy; the product consistency is on the thick side due to the glitter, but it still brushed on well. The larger glitters came out evenly; I didn’t have to fish around for them much. The drying time was a little slow, but I suppose that’s due to the thickness. I used top coat to speed up the drying time, as well as add extra shine and smoothness.

I love this polish. There’s so much in it. There’s not a lot of variety in the glitter, but that means there’s nothing unnecessary in it, too. It’s blue and silver and that’s all it needs to be. The blue jelly is deep, but not so deep it obscures the darker colors. This polish is a winner.

The jelly looks lighter in the sunlight, and you can see every bit of glitter. The following photos were taken in direct sunlight outdoors.

Da Ba Dee isn’t in stock on the Different Dimension website, but there you can find other beauties.

I bought this polish myself.

Swatch Sunday: Del Sol’s Spike

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Hello, reader! Do you guys like solar polishes? I’m a ’90s kid, and I’m an easy sell for anything that changes color. I bought a few Del Sol polishes when I was on vacation a few years ago because I could not resist. I blame mood rings. This is Spike; I’m wearing three coats of Spike with one coat of Seche Vive top coat.

Spike is a frosty mint green polish that turns a cool mauve when exposed to direct sunlight. Application was good; the product consistency was on the thin side, but was still easy to apply. The first coat was sheer and I needed all three to achieve full opacity. Because it’s so frosty, brush-strokes are pretty apparent. It takes a while to effect the color change, probably a good five minutes or so. The polish dries with a glossy finish; I used top coat for extra shine and protection.

How fun is this polish! Honestly, I’d hoped the purple it changed to in the sun would have been a bit brighter; it’s a little too on the SFW side for me. The green it starts out as is very pretty; sometimes it seems more silver than green, but it’s always icy and shimmery and cool (pun?) to look at.

One thing you’ll notice is that this post has a ton of photos, and I apologize. I wanted to show the polish in both states, and to treat both states as two different polishes. They really could be; if I didn’t know it was a solar polish, I’d assume they were. The following set of photos were taken in direct sunlight.

Like I said, I wish the purple was brighter and/or darker. It’s a pretty unique shade as-is, but I just wanted more from it, especially when you see its actual color compared to the label.

One thing I wish I’d been able to capture was the polish in transition. As I mentioned, the change took some time to occur, and my camera takes such high-quality video that my computer can’t handle editing it. Also my phone camera doesn’t work. I think I got a decent shot of the bottle hovering between colors.

I don’t see Spike listed on Del Sol’s site, but other polishes are available there as well as in their stores.

I bought this polish myself.

Swatch Sunday: Deborah Lippmann’s She Bop

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It’s Swatch Sunday! My polish today is a sweet candy pink creme, She Bop from Deborah Lippmann. It’s adorable! I’m wearing three coats with one coat of Seche Vive top coat.

She Bop is, like I mentioned eariler, a pink creme polish. Application was good; the product consistency was easy to work with, and though the first couple coats seemed a bit thin, the third evened it out. The polish dries very glossy; I used top coat for extra shine and protection.

I have to say, this is the cutest pink polish I’ve worn in a while. I’ve had it on for a couple days now, and I keep looking at it and being pleased with it. It’s a very ladylike shade, very classic. It’s also one hundred percent appropriate for Valentine’s Day, if you’re into that. I’m a little sad about taking it off.

She Bop and other Deborah Lippmann polishes are sold in high-end stores; this one is from Sephora.

I bought this polish myself.

Swatch Sunday: Crayola’s Orange

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Hello! Tonight’s swatch was delayed due to Super Bowl shenanigans. This week I’m bringing you a scented polish from a fruit rainbow themed Crayola collection. I picked this up a few years ago from a Rite-Aid while I was travelling in Philadelphia. This is Orange; I’m wearing three coats without top coat.

Orange is an orange polish with gold shimmer that is also scented with orange. It smells like orange soda. The scent didn’t last long, of course, not past a few hand washes. Application was good; the product consistency was good and was easy to use. However, it took a pretty long time to dry. I nicked one and brushed over it, and nicked it again about five minutes later. A few hours after application, when these photos were taken, they were still soft enough to be imprinted with fabric textures.

Even though I wish I’d not cared about the scent and used top coat, I rather like this polish. This particular orange reminds me of one I wore as a teen. The color is bright, the shimmer is strong, and the scent is just a fun bonus. I’m really disappointed that it got imprinted, but that’ll teach me to skip the quick-dry top coat again.

In the sun, the shimmer is crazy. I love how strong it is! It’s an unexpected treat for a polish that isn’t intended to do more than smell. These photos were taken in direct sunlight outdoors.

I bought this scented Crayola set at Rite-Aid, but you can probably find them anywhere; for instance, a quick search indicates they’re available on walmart.com.

I bought this polish myself.

Swatch Sunday: Cover Girl’s Pinky Winky

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Hello, reader! For this week’s Swatch Saturday, I’m wearing another labelless vintage polish. This time, the shade label is there, but the brand label is missing. I’m pretty confident this is a Cover Girl polish, though. I’m also pretty sure this polish comes from around 2005. This is Pinky Winky; I used three coats with one coat of Dream Polish‘s Gem Glam top coat in the Melon Baller scent.

Pinky Winky is a frosty pale pink polish. Application was good, but I did have some issues with the product consistency. Of course, that’s to be expected with ten year old polish, and it’s my own fault for not thinning it out first. The polish went on well, but was thick and took quite some time to dry, even with quick-dry top coat; you can see some dings in the polish in the photos. I don’t know if this isn’t also the reason the tips show so much wear, but it could be. The polish dried with a glossy finish, but I used top coat for extra shine.

I quite like this polish, even though it’s a weird look for me. It’s probably not as weird as I think it is. It’s just so pale, so dainty. It’s pretty but I don’t feel like it suits me. It’s nearly the same color as my skin. I always wanted the perfect mannequin polish, the one that makes my nails seamless from my hands, but now I’m not sure I like. Be careful what you wish for, I suppose. I’d probably like it more if my nails were longer.

The following photos were taken in direct sunlight. The shimmer is very pretty out here, but the sun does overpower it a bit. It’s still pretty.

This polish is likely discontinued; Cover Girl polishes are sold nationwide.

I bought this polish myself.

Swatch Sunday: Color Club’s Poptastic

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Swatch Sunday! I hope you like neons, because I got the neons. It’s just what I needed this weekend. This is Color Club’s Poptastic; I’m wearing three coats with one coat of Dream Polish‘s Gem Glam in the Melon Baller scent. No white undies were used.

Homemade label; the bottles came without them and I had to make my own.

Poptastic is a neon pink creme. Application was good; the product consistency was a little thin, but I got good coverage with multiple coats. I had no issues at all with drying times. The polish dries with a glossy finish.

I’ve been wearing a lot of bright pinks lately, and it’s been so much fun. Neons just feel so good to wear, like I’m always thinking summer thoughts every time I look at my nails. I’ve had a ton of fun wearing this. It even looks good on my tiny pinky nail! Also, thanks to everyone who sent healing vibes, they totally helped. Also, bacitracin. It doesn’t look so bad now, and it stopped hurting.

Poptastic and other Color Club polishes are available on their website.

I bought this polish myself.

Swatch Sunday: Claire’s Mystery Pink (Hot Stuff)

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Swatch Sunday is back! Today’s polish is an oldie, one of the first I ever bought as an adult. This polish, whose shade label came off years ago, was purchased in 2007 or ’08 and saw a lot of use in those days. I’m wearing it at three coats with one coat of Dream Polish‘s Gem Glam top coat in the Melon Baller scent.

This mystery pink, as you can see, is a neon pink creme. I can’t speak much for its formula, product consistency, or application, since it is old and I thinned it out prior to this use. It was pretty thick and goopy before that. Coverage was okay; it took three coats to even out the opacity. It dries with a matte finish; I used top coat for shine.

Even though I love this polish, I do admit it’s not the most high-quality polish. You know how some polishes just feel thick, like the pigment never really blends into the polish base, and it’s like you’re just brushing wet pigment onto your nail? That’s what this feels like, like the ingredients just didn’t fully incorporate. I wish I’d taken a photo of it without the top coat, because the top coat disguises the poor quality. It dries matte, but not in the chic way, but the cheap way. Like I said, I really like this polish and I hate to call it poor quality, but I’ve used way better polishes. Also, as I mentioned, this is a nearly ten year old bottle of polish, and I don’t intend to judge all Claire’s polish by this one. If you’re still preteen enough to shop at Claire’s — and I know you are — don’t let this one dissuade you from trying others.

Claire’s polish is sold at Claire’s.

Update: Melanie of Polish is the Key to My Heart recognized this shade as Hot Stuff! Thanks for the tip, Melanie!

I bought this polish myself.

Swatch Sunday: Ciaté’s Chinchilla

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Swatch Sunday is here again! Today’s polish is Ciaté’s Chinchilla. It’s the cutest blue I’ve used in a while. I’m wearing three coats with one coat of Seche Vite.

Chinchilla is a dusty blue creme. My bottle had some separation, and I had some difficulty getting it back together; when I shake the bottle, I don’t hear the agitator balls, which makes me think there aren’t any in there. I had to add my own. Good thing I had them just laying around, right? Once I got it back together, though, the product consistency was good. My first coat of Chinchilla was streaky, as you might imagine, but it evened out by the second. It dried quickly and with a glossy finish. I used top coat for extra shine and protection.

These tiny bottles are a pain to pose with.

I really like this shade, and I feel like it’s a unique one in my collection. It’s the perfect dusty blue; every blue I have is bright or deep and there aren’t many in between. It would be a great base for nail art; in fact, I think I got this in a Ciaté set that came with caviar beads or dried flowers or something.

Chinchilla looks like it’s discontinued by Ciaté; other Ciaté polishes are available on their website and at Sephora.

I bought this polish myself.