Tag Archives: swatch

Swatch Saturday: Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer Prototype DW 13.4

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Welcome back to Swatch Saturday! Today I’m sharing with you a Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer prototype. I said last week that I’m getting back into the Doctor Who collection, and while this is true, I’m just wearing things in the order that I bought and received them, so the order is going to be a little mixed up. This prototype was purchased during an annual BEGL depression awareness fundraiser. This is Prototype DW 13.4; I’m wearing three coats with one coat of Seche Vite top coat.

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Prototype DW 13.4 is a white creme with a pink-to-gold shifting shimmer. Application was good; it’s sometimes hard to get complete coverage with a white creme until the third coat, and this one was no exception. I had streaks and bald spots until the very last coat I applied. Also, the white was a bit thick and completely overpowered the shimmer. You can see the shimmer in the bottle, but it gets completely covered up by the creme, making it look like a plain white creme. On the plus side, it dries quickly and has a really nice glossy finish.

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So I like this polish, even though it didn’t really work as intended; I guess this is why it didn’t make it past the prototype stage. This has actually happened to me before with other white cremes with shimmer, indie and mass-market polishes alike. It’s always a shame, but it’s not like a white creme isn’t a good thing to have on hand. Get it, on hand, because nails. This polish will still get lots of love from me.

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I took a couple of photos outside in direct sun; the shimmer was really strong in the bottle in the sun, so I thought that if it was going to show up on my nails, this would be the time. It didn’t.

You gotta look really hard.

You gotta look really hard.

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There is only one bottle of DW 13.4 out there and I have it. Other BEGL polishes are available from their online shop.

I bought this polish myself.

Swatch Sunday: Reverie Nail Lacquer’s Secret Garden

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Hope you’re having a good Sunday, reader! Today’s swatch is from a new-to-me brand, Reverie Nail Lacquer! I bought this polish because I’d seen Reverie around the nail polish internet, and being so smitten with the sheer amount of glitter in their polishes, I had to try one. This is Secret Garden; I’m wearing three coats of Secret Garden with one coat of Seche Vite top coat.

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Secret Garden is a deep green jelly with, according to the maker, a “pastel rainbow of glitters”. Application is good; though the jelly is dense with glitter, it’s very easy to brush on and apply; you get a great amount of glitter on the brush, but it’s never clumpy. I could have stopped at two coats, or even just wear one coat over a deep green creme like Zoya’s Envy. Three coats was total overkill. Surprisingly, the glitter lies flat on the nail and very little texture is felt with top coat. The polish dried quickly and with a glossy-glitter finish.

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So I am astonished by how much glitter they packed into this bottle. It’s really incredible! There’s no dabbing or sponging to do here, you just brush it on and you get all the glitter you could ever want. I am so impressed by the formula. The intensity of the jelly color, the huge variety — as well as quanitity — of glitters, and the ability to apply it without issue, it’s basically my ideal polish. It may be the best glitter jelly I’ve ever worn.

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In the sunlight, you can see the layers of jelly and glitter interacting with each other. I mentioned wearing this over a creme earlier, and though you could do that, I don’t think I would. Seeing the layers of glitter is just so nice. There is nothing I dislike about this look.

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Secret Garden is out of stock; other Reverie Nail Lacquers are available from the Reverie etsy shop.

I bought this polish myself.

Swatch Saturday: Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer’s Oy, Stupid Face

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Happy Saturday! Last week, we finished up Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer‘s What Wouldn’t I Do collection, and we’re entering the second phase of the enormous Doctor Who collection! Good times! This week’s polish is Oy, Stupid Face; I’m wearing three coats with one coat of Seche Vite.

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Oy, Stupid Face is a bright pink crelly with flakies. Application was good; while most of the flakies were fine particles that laid flat on the nail, the larger ones were very coarse and did sometimes stick up. You can see this in some of the photos, and it’s my only real complaint with this polish. The crelly has really nice opacity, and really only needed two coats. It dries quickly and with a satin finish.

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Even though the pointy flakies were kind of annoying, they absolutely glow in this polish, and I’m glad they’re there. The fine sparkles are beautiful as well, but the bigger ones have this deep iridescence that shines up through the layers. It’s crazy gorgeous.

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The iridescence is especially evident in the sunshine. The finer flakies look best out here as well. These photos were taken in direct sunlight.

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The color looks a bit off in this one. My camera really struggles with bright pinks and oranges in the sunlight.

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Oy, Stupid Face has been discontinued by BEGL; other Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquers are available in their online shop.

I bought this polish myself.

Swatch Sunday: Island Girl’s Mahalo Color

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Happy Sunday! I promised an Island Girl polish swatch, so here it is! Mahalo Color was the first one I grabbed off the rack, so it’s the first one I’m going to swatch. Here is three coats of Mahalo Color with one coat of Seche Vite.

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Mahalo Color is a neon pink creme polish. Application was all right; the polish was difficult to control at times. It would leave streaks in the color if you went over a wet place a second time, and it didn’t self-level, leaving some ridges in the color if my application wasn’t 100% smooth. Luckily, my top coat evened a lot of these problems out. The polish dries quickly and with a matte finish.

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I don’t feel like this is very high quality polish. If I didn’t use top coat, I would have absolutely hated the way this polish looks. The matte finish wasn’t a good matte finish, and the unlevelled color made it look like latex paint. It was sad. I mean, I guess I shouldn’t be disappointed, since the polish is more of a souvenir curiosity than anything else. It gives my hands a good tan, which was something I actually didn’t get in Hawaii.

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Something that really bothers me about this polish is that it’s not the same color in my nails as it is in the bottle. On my nails, it looks more red than pink. I mean, it’s still bright and neon and awesome, but it’s not the color I wanted. I decided to try Mahalo Color over a white base to see what happened. I expected it would be a little truer to the bottle color, but it’s not. It’s more or less the same, maybe a touch redder with the white base than without. Again, it’s a souvenir. I’ve got other neon pinks I like better.

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Island Girl is available at ABC Stores in Hawaii and Las Vegas, as well as their website.

I bought this polish myself.

Swatch Saturday: Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer’s I Wished For You, Too

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Swatch Saturday is here again! It’s the first one for almost a month. My swatch today is Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer‘s I Wished For You, Too, the last polish in the Practical Magic Halloween collection. After this polish, we move onto the next phase of the BEGL Doctor Who collection! I’m wearing three coats of I Wished For You, Too with one coat of Seche Vite top coat.

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I Wished For You, Too is a deep purple with orange and green shimmers. Application was very good; the color is deep and well-pigmented from the first coat, and the shimmers are very well distributed. There was only some slight streaking on the first coat, and was completely opaque by the second. The polish dries quickly and with a satin finish.

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Like the others in this collection, I Wished For You, Too is subtly Halloweeny. This polish may be the most subtle of them all. The base is vampy and dark; the purple looks navy in some lighting conditions, and the shimmers just whisper Halloween. You’d never know this was a holiday polish if you encountered it in, say, June. I’ve mentioned this in every post in this series, but every time, it’s true: BEGL makes the best holiday polishes because they do not resemble holiday polishes.

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The following photos were taken in direct sunlight! This is where the purple is its purplest, and the shimmers stand out the best.

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I Wished For You, Too has been discontinued by Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer; other BEGL polishes are available in their online shop.

I bought this polish myself.

Swatch Sunday: Rainbow Honey’s Sakura Matsuri

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Happy Sunday! It’s been a great weekend so far! My swatch this Sunday is Sakura Matsuri from Rainbow Honey; I’m wearing one coat of Sakura Matsuri over Essie’s Mint Candy Apple (blue), Ciaté’s Candy Floss (pink), and OPI’s Dutch Tulips (red), as well as a coat of Seche Vite top coat.

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Sakura Matsuri is a clear-based glitter topper with pink matte, red metallic, iridescents in blue and green, and pink and white flower-shaped glitters. Application was okay; it was sometimes hard to get the flower glitters, and when I did, I’d get tons of them, as well as a lot of lacquer on the brush. It was difficult to apply to the smaller nails, and took quite some time to dry. The glitter still had a bit of texture when dried, so I used top coat.

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This is my first Rainbow Honey polish, and I think it’s adorable. I think it’s pretty unique as far as toppers go, since the flowers are the main focus of the concept, and quite a literal execution with the flower glitters. The polish is fairly monochromatic; the glitters all stay within very light shades of pink. The red accent glitters add sparkle, and the iridescent glitters add dimension. The flower glitters are always the focus of the look, and the other glitters don’t detract from it.

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In the sun, you can see how the colors vary, and you can see the definition of the glitters best. You can also see how the glitter smudged the red polish. I actually didn’t notice this until I was processing these photos.

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The Rainbow Honey online shop is currently on hiatus, and I’m unsure whether Sakura Matsuri is still for sale.

I bought this polish myself.

Swatch Saturday: Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer’s Belladonna

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Happy Saturday! My Saturday swatch this week is Belldonna from Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer. This polish was a limited edition gift-with-purchase that was only available if you bought the whole What Wouldn’t I Do collection as a set. I’m wearing Belladonna over China Glaze’s Pelican Gray, Ciaté’s Electronica (pink), and Essie’s I’m Addicted (blue) and with one coat of Seche Vite top coat.

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Belladonna is a clear-based glitter topper; the colors are primarily white and black with noen blue, green, pink, and yellow. Shapes include stars, flowers, bows, squares, and diamonds. Application was good; it was a bit tricky to spread the glitter evenly, because there’s just so much of it. While this means you can get too much glitter, it’s not very hard to get the bigger shapes. The product consistency was smooth and easy to manipulate with the brush. The polish dries quickly and with a bit of texture. I used top coat for smoothness.

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I like Belladonna. I like the toppers that are largely white glitters with some color scattered in. The white means it can be worn over pretty much anything, and the small bits of color ensure you get a fun look. This does feel a bit like a take on the black and white glitter fad from a few years ago, but the range of added shapes and colors keep it fresh and current.

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These photos were taken in direct sunlight. There’s no shimmer in this base, so there’s nothing that really comes to life in the sunshine. I took a ton of macros, though,  so you can really see the variety of glitters.

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Belladonna, unfortunately, was an LE from 2014 and is no longer in production. Other Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquers can be found in their online shop.

I bought this polish myself.

Swatch Sunday: Prevail’s City of Dreams

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Happy Sunday, and welcome back! My Sunday polish this week is a souvenir from my last vacation. This is City of Dreams from Prevail; I’m wearing three coats with one coat of Seche Vite top coat.

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City of Dreams is a coral creme polish. Application was good, though the product consistency was a little thin. After two coats, some nails were still a little streaky and needed a third coat. The polish dries quickly, though, and with a smooth and glossy finish. I used top coat for extra protection.

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So while the polish itself isn’t special, the sentiment is. A couple years ago, I was in New York, and I was buying polish everywhere. I got a few bottles from the Macy’s on Herald Square and the Times Square Sephora; this particular bottle is from a Penn Station Duane Reade. I don’t know why I remember this, but I do. I ran in to get a new powder compact and just grabbed whatever interesting things I saw on my way to the register. This polish was one of them! I got some GOSH polishes at the same time. And I didn’t miss my train!

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I like this polish, and I liked the formula enough that I’d buy it again if it ever turned up in Florida. I admit that I don’t know much about this brand, and that’s kind of the whole reason I bought it, I just wanted things I wouldn’t normally find where I live. While I wouldn’t go out of my way to grab another bottle of Prevail, I’d totally get a few more if I had the opportunity. In the meantime, Sinful Colors is good enough for me.

Prevail, given that I’ve never seen it anywhere else, may be a Duane Reade exclusive brand. Check Duane Reades in New York to buy them.

I bought this polish myself.

Swatch Saturday: Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer’s Amas Veritas Spell

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Happy Saturday! This week we’re looking at another selection from Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer‘s 2014 What Wouldn’t I Do? collection. This is Amas Veritas Spell; I’m wearing three coats with one coat of Seche Vite top coat.

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Amas Veritas Spell is an emerald jelly with green-to-blue shifting iridescent glitters. Application with this polish was very easy; the first coat of this polish had great color and coverage, and it just got better with additional coats. Indoors, the jelly seems dark enough to be opaque; though the glitter does shine nicely through, it’s a bit muted. The full jelly depth is visible outdoors in full sun; see photos. The shift occurs in any lighting conditions, through brighter ones return a better shift. The polish dries quickly and with a smooth satin finish; I used top coat for shine and to emphasize the glitter.

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I think I have to say this polish is my favorite from the collection. It doesn’t look like much in the bottle, but on the nail, it’s unexpectedly stunning. The jelly, though translucent, is still deep and rich. The glitter sparkles beautifully, and the color shift is bonus, really. There’s so much dimension and depth and sparkle, it’s kind of hard to take it all in and really appreciate it. My camera struggled a bit with that, as you can see. I don’t feel like I did this polish justice at all.

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In the sunlight, you can really see the jelly depth and glitter definition a bit better. I think the shift occurs better in sunlight, but it looks great nevertheless.

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dat glare

dat glare

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Amas Veritas Spell is currently discontinued by Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer; other BEGL polishes are available in their online shop.

I bought this polish myself.

Swatch Sunday: Pretty & Polished’s Pretty Chameleon

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It’s another Swatch Sunday! I get to show you a thermal this week and I’m super excited. Pretty Chameleon from Pretty & Polished has been on the blog before, but never on its own. I’m wearing three coats of Pretty Chameleon with one coat of Seche Vite top coat.

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Pretty Chameleon is a pink thermal polish with fine pink and blue glitters. Application was good; the product formula was very easy to work with, and I achieved full opacity in two coats. The colors change with the temperature of the polish; the pink is deep when cold and pale when warm. The glitters, though sparse, get lost in the creme; most of it just looks like blue dots with very little sparkle. It dries quickly and with a satin finish; I used top coat for extra shine.

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Pretty Chameleon is one of the first indie polishes I ever bought — the eleventh, to be exact, and my second thermal — and it’s always been a polish I’ve loved. Thermals were new to me back then, and being pink made it all the better. I think the color difference was a big stronger when I first got it, but that tends to happen with thermals as they age. I’m surprised this one still changes at all, given it’s three years old. Also, because it’s hot in the house as well as outside, it was difficult to keep the cool effect long enough to get photos of it. As soon as I pulled it out of the ice water, it warmed right back up again.

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These photos were taken in direct sunlight outdoors. I used pool water to effect the temperature change. It heated back up almost immediately.

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Pretty Chameleon is out of stock; check Pretty & Polished’s website and etsy shop for other polishes.

I bought this polish myself.