Julie G Gumdrops Collection

Today I've got swatches of the Julie G Gumdrops collection- a set of six gorgeous sugar-texture (or "liquid sand" texture) polishes. I've got a skittles manicure that shows off the first five shades. Thumb to pinkie, these are: Blueberry Fizz (pale blue with bigger silver-y shimmer particles), Hot Cinnamon (intense, vibrant red with subtle gold glitter), Rock Candy (teal with different sizes of sparkly glitter particles), Crushed Candy (grape-y purple with silver glitter accents in different sizes), Tangerine Dream (bright citrus orange packed with golden sparkle). 

I've also got swatches of the final shade, Sugar Rush (a vibrant red-orange with tiny gold glitter):

I ordered this whole set as part of the pre-order for $20 from the Jesse's Girl Cosmetics website, and I can't say enough in terms of quality for the price- these are all gorgeous, and I'm not sure my skittles swatches quite do them justice. My favourites are Hot Cinnamon, Rock Candy, and Crushed Candy. I highly recommend these if you're into the textured look- they're inexpensive and really fantastic!

Do you have any plans to pick up some of the Julie G Gumdrops polishes? And while I'm asking, what do you think of my new nail shape? I recently filed them into more of a rounded/almond shape, and have been loving them! 

SpaRitual Aurum

SpaRitual Aurum: now, who couldn't find it in their heart to love a gold as outrageously luminous as this one? It positively glows. Pure liquid awesome. 

And can you tell that I'm still posting manicures from the holidays? I just thought Aurum was a perfect match to this shiny metallic gold bow. 

Cirque: Cape Liz, Vaudeville, Hellebore

So, this year for Valentine's Day I received what was pretty much the best Valentine's Day present ever from my significant other: a whole whack of lacquer-y amazingness in the form of Cirque's delightful polishes. Was there ever a purer expression of true love? Well, from a lacquerhead's perspective, anyways. 

 The pretties, left to right: Cape Liz, Galinda, Vaudeville, Hellebore, French Roast, XX, Cypress

Today I have a few of these beauties to show to you- first up is Cape Liz, a stormy light grey-blue with small flakey shimmer particles in it. Gorgeous, and a little demure. This reminds me of a bluer version of Illamasqua's Raindrops- it has a similar shimmer running through it.

Vaudeville: ridiculously pretty soft purpley-pink with strong golden/green shimmer running through it. I love this colour combination, and the shimmer makes this polish something special.

Vaudeville, with it's pink/purple base and greenish shimmer, also seemed like a natural companion to Hellebore, which is a mixture of predominantly green glitter with subtle purple accents. I applied Hellebore as a gradient over Vaudeville.

So far, all of the Cirque polishes I've tried have been excellent in terms of formula; I can't wait to try the rest of them! I'm especially pleased with how the Vaudeville/Hellebore manicure worked out- it's a perfect springtime combination... if only spring would actually show up around here. Which brings me to my next topic, regarding the weather in my neck of the woods. I apparently inhabit some kind of wintery hell dimension, because so far April has looked much like this:

Is it too much to ask for temperatures above freezing? And for further illustration as to the amount of snowfall we've had this past month, check these out:

 Trees be like: "what is this, quicksand?!"

 ...he's trying to run away from the memory of this winter.

What about you, dear reader? Has spring time arrived in your world? 

Rescue Beauty Lounge Aqua Lily with Pirate Polish Lovandula

After my disappointment with Rescue Beauty Lounge's Piu Mosso, I'm happy to report that Aqua Lily rather makes up for it. It's a gorgeous turquoise blue with lovely purple/pink shimmer. The formula was quite dense, covering easily in two coats. I found this shade to be really flattering on me, and I'm definitely happy I was able to snag this when it was re-released last fall. 

Aqua Lily was also the perfect base for Pirate Polish's Lovandula (a lovely lavender glitter from the Valentine's Day collection); I love the contrast between the pink and lavender glitters and the vibrant turquoise of Aqua Lily.

What do you think of Rescue Beauty Lounge's Aqua Lily? Does it make a good base for Lovandula? There are still a couple bottles on sale in the Pirate Polish Etsy store, if Lovandula is catching your eye!

A-England Dorian Gray and Lush Lacquer Lite Brite

Here's a look at a combination I did back in January: A-England's Dorian Gray with Lush Lacquer's Lite Brite layered overtop. First up, here are a couple pictures of Dorian Gray by itself:

Dorian Gray is a charcoal metallic grey, opaque in two coats. It has a somewhat pearly finish, and at first I thought it might show a few frosty brushstrokes, but after drying it looked pretty smooth. Overtop I layered Lush Lacquer's Lite Brite, an extremely punchy and vibrant glitter topcoat; I can spot big magenta metallic glitters, small turquoise squares, various orange, blue, and purple glitters, along with some tiny silver speckles. Overall, it's a really fun and high impact layering glitter. Highly recommend.

As I mentioned, I originally wore this manicure earlier in the year, and at the time I happened to be visiting Banff and Lake Louise. While sight-seeing around the Chateau Lake Louise, we were lucky enough to have a look at some amazing ice sculptures that had been carved as part of an ice-scupting competition. There were so many incredible and intricate sculptures- here's a look at one (with a pretty stunning backdrop, to boot).

Glitter Gal - Light As A Feather

I can't help but feel that my swatches don't quite do this one justice; this is Glitter Gal's Light As A Feather, a stunning white linear holographic. I haven't come across anything quite like this, and I remember when this first came out it was pretty unique. Now, with more and more indie makers creating fabulous polishes and exploring new combinations, it might not be as exceptionally unique as it once was, but it's still a fantastic lacquer. Behold:

I really love how light and ethereal this looks. It looked even more flawless in person- delicate and probably subdued enough to be work appropriate, but made special by the addition of holographic glow. Yep, this polish has definitely earned its coveted "awesome" tag.

What do you think of this gorgeous white holo?

Enchanted Polish Starbright Sparkles and NOPI One Less Lonely Glitter

Tonight I've got two different layering combinations shown over Zoya Bela, a pale pinky-peach jelly, to share with you. The first layering combo features Enchanted Polish's Starbright Sparkles. Starbright Sparkles features a sheer silvery holographic base containing a multitude of different coloured hexagonal glitters. This polish is definitely best layered because of the sheer base, and I think the holographic nature of this would be best displayed over a darker colour- I'll definitely be trying that next time. 

The second combination I have to show you is Nicole by OPI's One Less Lonely Glitter. This one is a delicate and pretty mixture of fine metallic pale purple glitter. What you see below is one coat over Zoya Bela.

If you recall, "One Less Lonely Glitter" is from the NOPI Justin Bieber collection which came out a couple years ago. Yes, a truly gag-worthy inspiration for a nail polish collection. Almost as bad as the Kardashian collections...

...but the truth is, while this lacquer is pretty enough, the reason I picked it up was so I had a reason to post this video. I hope you get a laugh out of it! 

Maybelline Cocktail Dress

Tonight I've got a quick post to share with you- this is Maybelline Cocktail Dress, a fine black glitter with bigger red hexagonal glitter mixed in. The formula was just okay- I think this took three coats to achieve opacity. 

It actually reminds me a little bit of one of the OPI Mariah Carey Liquid Sands, "Stay The Night". The red glitter in the OPI is smaller and more of a magenta-pink, and of course the OPI also has the textured element to it, but they are somewhat similar in overall effect.

What do you think of Maybelline's Cocktail Dress? Does the name annoy anyone else? It makes me think that this is a lacquer with an identity crisis: "I'm not a nail varnish... I'm a dress! A REAL dress!" Alrighty, then, little delusional polish. It's kinda cute when you think of it that way, I suppose.

OPI - The Man With The Golden Gun

Tonight I've got OPI's The Man With The Golden Gun topcoat to share with you- while I couldn't justify shelling out the cash for this myself, I was pretty thrilled to find it in my stocking at Christmas. The gold flakes aren't very dense in this- what you see below is one coat over Zoya Marley. This is a pretty Easter look, but next time I think I'll try this over a darker colour (although I think I'll wait for a semi-special occasion... I can't help but think plastering gold leaf on your nails requires a special event- I guess grocery shopping doesn't quite count). 

I kind of think this is worth it based on the shiny golden bottle alone- it's like a trophy! Definitely the ideal gift for a nail fanatic. Did you buy into the gold flake topcoat trend this past season?