On hold

I have decided to put my blog on hold this year.
Lots of things are happening in my life that are important and take up more time and energy, which I can no longer can dedicate to my blog.
This does not mean that I will stop collecting polish and painting my nails.

Thanks everyone for supporting me through the last 4 years.

Lots of Love
Lisa

Pop Culture Cosmetics Christmas Polishes

This year Pop Culture Cosmetics is the Indie brand I chose my Christmas polishes from.  I preordered these and they arrived a few weeks ago.

Pop Culture Cosmetics Magical Christmas  (over Black) - Sunshine

Pop Culture Cosmetics Magical Christmas (over Black) - Shade

Magical Christmas is red Mickey Mouse ear glitter, with green and red circle glitter and smaller red and green hex glitter in a clear base.  This is two dabbed coats over a black cream.

Pop Culture Cosmetics Sugarplum Fairy - Sunshine

Pop Culture Cosmetics Sugarplum Fairy - Shade

Sugarplum Fairy is a pink and purple glitter with white snowflakes. pink stars and various pink and purple glitters in a pink micro-shimmer base.  This is three coats.  I had to go fishing for the snowflakes in this one as they had sunk to the bottom of the bottle.

Pop Culture Cosmetics Winter Wonderland (over Black) - Sunshine

Pop Culture Cosmetics Winter Wonderland (over Black) - Shade

This is two coats of Winter Wonderland over a black creme. This one has snowmen glitter and snowflake glitter, with large white circle glitter iridescent glitter in a clear base.  Again I had to go fishing for the snowmen, but they weren't too hard to pull out of the bottle because of their size.

Lots of Love

Lisa

Ciate Mini Mani Month Days 11-15

Still continuing on with the Ciate Mini Mani Month swatches. All swatches are 3 coats, no top coat.

Day 11: Pepperminty

Ciate Pepperminty - Sunshine

Ciate Pepperminty - Shade 

Day 12: Metallic Gold (Caviar pearls)

 Metallic Gold (Caviar pearls) over Pepperminty - Sunshine

Day 13: Encore!

Ciate Encore! - Sunshine

Ciate Encore! - Shade

Day 14: Ivory Queen

Ciate Ivory Queen - Sunshine

Ciate Ivory Queen - Shade

Day 15: Twinkle Toes (loose glitter)

Ciate Twinkle Toes (loose Glitter) over Ivory Queen - Sunshine

Lots of Love

Lisa

Ciate Mini Mani Month Days 5-10

We finally have internet at home again, although we are trying to change companies and I doubt this will last long.  So without further a due here is the next 6 days of the Ciate Mini Mani Calendar.

All swatches below are three coats with no top coat.

Day 5: Hoopla

Ciate Hoopla - Sunshine

Ciate Hoopla - Shade

Day 6: Sugar Plum

Ciate Sugar Plum - Sunshine

Ciate Sugar Plum - Shade

Day 7: Main Stage 

Ciate Main Stage - Sunshine

Ciate Main Stage - Shade

Day 8:  Midnight in Manhattan (Caviar Pearls)

Ciate Midnight in Manhattan (Caviar Pearls) 

over Main Stage - Sunshine

Day 9: Candy Floss

Ciate Candy Floss - Sunshine

Ciate Candy Floss - Shade

Day 10: Pillow Fight

Ciate Pillow Fight - Sunshine

Ciate Pillow Fight - Shade

Lots of Love

Lisa

Formula X for Sephora - The Celestials

These polishes look super pretty in the bottle, and in the store I had no idea that they were textured polishes - which I am not a fan of - So because they looked pretty I bought three of them.

All swatches are two coats without a topcoat, and then the same polish with a coat of Gelous and another coat of Seche Vite.  All three of these polishes look a lot more complex in the bottle with different coloured shimmer, however on the nail they fall flat and the prettiness in the bottle does not translate onto the nail.

Formula X for Sephora Vortex - Sunshine (no topcoat)

Formula X for Sephora Vortex - Shade (no topcoat)

Formula X for Sephora Vortex - White Light (no topcoat)

 

Formula X for Sephora Vortex - Sunshine (with topcoat)

Formula X for Sephora Vortex - Shade (with topcoat)

Formula X for Sephora Celestial - Sunshine (no topcoat)

Formula X for Sephora Celestial - Shade (no topcoat)

 

Formula X for Sephora Celestial - White Light (no topcoat)

Formula X for Sephora Celestial - Sunshine (with topcoat)

Formula X for Sephora Celestial - Shade (with topcoat)

Formula X for Sephora Nova - Sunshine (no topcoat)

 

Formula X for Sephora Nova - Shade (no topcoat)

 

Formula X for Sephora Nova - White light (no topcoat)

 

Formula X for Sephora Nova - Sunshine (with topcoat)

Formula X for Sephora Nova - Shade (with topcoat)

Lots of Love
Lisa

Butter London Double Take (the red version)

Butter London released a bunch of sets for Christmas this year. Two of these sets were the Double Take sets. One is Blue and the other Red, both with matching flakie topcoats.  I found these sets at Macy's while I was on Holiday in Hawaii for US$24 (when they sold Butter London in New Zealand we paid NZ$30 (US$24) a polish!)

Butter London Rebel Fox - Sunshine

Butter London Rebel Fox - Shade

Rebel Fox is a burgundy shimmer that looks a lot darker and browner in the bottle.  There is also very visible gold shimmer in the bottle that doesn't translate onto the nail.  This is three coats, and it has quite a thin consistency.  I think it could have almost used another coat, once you get it in the sun it appears a bit patchy, and I wasn't happy with it.

Butter London Brass Monkey over Rebel Fox - Sunshine

Butter London Brass Monkey over Rebel Fox - Shade

This is two coats of Brass Monkey over Rebel Fox.  It is red/orange iridescent flakies in a clear base.  This one had a better consistency but I think it could have had more flakies in it so that only one coat is needed.

Lots of Love
Lisa

Deborah Lippmann Lilac Wine and Lacquerhead Polish As Girly As It Gets

Deborah Lippmann started selling polishes in Sephora a few months ago, and released 4 Exclusive polishes when they launched.  Lilac Wine is one of the four Sephora exclusive polishes.

Deborah Lippmann Lilac Wine - Sunshine

Deborah Lippmann Lilac Wine - Shade

This is three coats.  These photos make it look brighter than it is in real life. It is a pale purple lilac. It is not overly blue or pink toned, just a perfect lilac colour.  It has a great formula and was a great creme polish. 

As a comparison, this is more pink and less blue toned than OPI You're Such a Budapest.

Lacquerhead Polish As Girly As It Gets

 over Deborah Lippmann Lilac Wine - Sunshine

Lacquerhead Polish As Girly As It Gets

 over Deborah Lippmann Lilac Wine - Shade

As Girly As It Gets is a slightly tinted blue base full of pastel shaped glitter. It contains light blue butterflies, lilac, pink and light blue stars, light blue hearts and light blue and green shards with small lilac squares and light blue hex glitter.  I used one dabbed coat, where i went fishing for the shaped glitter here. The base is quite thick, so it was not the easiest to apply with an even spread of shaped glitter.

Lacquerhead Polishes are available here and come with cute little bows ties around the bottle necks.

Lots of Love
Lisa

Spoiler: Ciate Mini Mani Month Days 1-4

When I was in Hawaii in October the Christmas Advent calendar from Ciate was already available. I picked up two from Sephora. One for me and one for the other Lisa as a Christmas present. Here is the link to it online.

I am not the biggest Ciate fan, in fact these are the first polishes I have owned from them, after the Caviar/blogger/lawyer/drama nastiness from a few years ago. But lets be honest this is an advent calendar with nail polishes in it! Best advent calendar ever!

Here are Days 1-4 swatched.

Day 1: Snow Globe

Ciate Snow Globe (over Black) - Sunshine

Ciate Snow Globe (over Black) - Shade

Day 2: Boudoir

Ciate Boudoir - Sunshine

Ciate Boudoir - Shade

Day 3: Amazing Gracie

Ciate Amazing Gracie - Sunshine

Ciate Amazing Gracie - Shade

Day 4: Silver Caviar Metallic Pearls

Ciate Amazing Gracie with silver metallic pearls - Sunshine

Ciate Amazing Gracie with silver metallic pearl - Shade

I'm off to finish making Christmas Mince pies.

Lots of Love
Lisa