Pirate Polish The Witching Hour over American Apparel Coney Island

This is a layering combo I've been dying to try out, and I'm glad I finally did! I love how this glitter combination looks over a stark pastel pink; it really stands out (especially the shredded metallic glitter!). I think I like it even better than the insta-galaxy nails manicure featuring The Witching Hour over OPI's Every Month Is Oktoberfest. 

What do you think of this combination? Isn't it magical? ;)

The Witching Hour is part of the Pirate Polish Halloween Collection and can be purchased via the Pirate Polish Etsy store (I do ship internationally, as well!). You can also check Pirate Polish out on Facebook.

Revlon Moon Candy - Galactic

I was pretty excited about the Revlon Moon Candy (such a fun name!) duos when they first came out, and immediately picked up "Galactic", a very dark navy paired with bright blue-green flakes. The packaging is really interesting: a slim glass cylinder which unscrews on each side to reveal a brush for each shade. It was rather unwieldy, though, and tended to tip over while painting. Despite that, I still like it... it's like a little magic wand. 

This is two coats of the base colour all by itself; it's a very dark, mostly black looking navy blue. 

The flakey glitter side of the polish is really something special- huge blue/green glitter shards. I really love how this looks layered over the deep navy shade. It's gorgeous, although the formula was an absolute pain. It was hard to get the flakes out (mainly because the base was very thick and gel-like), and you really have to dab them on otherwise they won't spread out nicely on the nail. Despite that, the end effect if quite stunning:

You'll also want to load up on topcoat in order to smooth those giant flakies out. They feel really jagged without topcoat, and you'll need at least 2-3 coats of Seche Vite to make it manageable. Even with all the hassle, I still say this manicure was worth it! I couldn't stop staring at my nails when I wore this.

What do you think of Revlon's "Moon Candy" collection? Did you pick any of the colours up? 

Maybelline Color Show Fall 2012

Today I've got three polishes from the Maybelline Color Show Fall collection to show to you! All required about two-three coats for opacity. Price-wise, these are pretty reasonable at $4 to $5 dollars, and some of the shades are fairly unique. 

Left to Right: Auburn Ablaze, Metal Icon, Downtown Brown 

First up I have Downtown Brown; I think this is the most unique of the bunch. It's a chocolate brown base with very strong blue-green shimmer running through it. I haven't seen anything quite like this, and it reminds me of MAC Blue-Brown pigment (or MAC Club eyeshadow, which I've heard others mention in regard to its similarity to this polish).

Whether indoors or outdoors, the teal shimmer is very apparent on the nail. No hidden shimmer here!

Metal Icon is a taupey-silver foil that is very much the kind of shade I typically gravitate towards. I quite like this one, although it had the sheerest formula out of these three- definitely a three-coater.

Auburn Ablaze is a cool brown shade that leans auburn. It has a red shimmer running through it, but it's  quite subtle. I actually wish this leaned more red than brown, but in most lights it looks like a brown/mahogany shade. What you see here is two coats, but it could have used a third to eliminate the sheer patches.

What do you think these new Maybelline Color Show lacquers? Do any of these shades appeal to you?

Oh My Gosh Baby Blue + CrowsToes Bunny Slope

I've become a huge fan of the Oh My Gosh polishes; they're cheap (albeit smaller than a full size polish) and great quality. Definitely a good way to get a few good staples in your collection- they are all creme polishes in mostly straightforward colours, but from what I've seen, the formula is outstanding. Today I have Oh My Gosh Baby Blue to show you: probably the only baby blue creme you'll ever need. This was perfect in two coats, and application was a breeze. 

How soft and perfect is this? I love it!

I thought Baby Blue would make a great base for CrowsToes Bunny Slope, a silver/white glitter topcoat. I recall seeing Jennifer from Little J's Nail Corner do a manicure using a pale pink as a base for this, and I thought a pale blue might be similarly pretty. I think I was right!

Soft and snowy looking, like fresh powder. Bunny Slope is an appropriate name for this!

What do you think of this combination? Have you tried any of the Oh My Gosh polishes, or any lacquers from CrowsToes?

If you want to see other Gosh polish swatches, click here- I highly recommend both Baby Blue as well as Cobalt Blue, which is a real stunner. I've seen Gosh products at Shopper's Drug Mart in Canada, but I'm not sure where they can be purchased internationally. I ordered my bottle of CrowsToes Bunny Slope from Llarowe. At the time of posting, Bunny Slope is currently in stock- grab it quick if you've been lemming it!

Pirate Polish The Witching Hour (layered over OPI Every Month Is Oktoberfest)

I decided to layer The Witching Hour (from the Pirate Polish Halloween Collection) overtop of my OPI Every Month Is Oktoberfest manicure from the other day- how wicked does this look in the sun? I love how that shimmer comes out and plays with the glitter topcoat. 

In the shade:

And I couldn't resist putting a mattifying topcoat overtop of The Witching Hour; I love how it makes the glitter stand out (please ignore the tip wear this is showing at this point!).

What do you think of this combination? I'm pretty thrilled with it! Unfortunately, I can't say I'm thrilled with the weather forecast for tonight- possible chance of snow (and temperatures are already venturing into the sub zero area). Ugh. So not ready for Canadian winter.

As always, Pirate Polish is available in my Etsy store. The Witching Hour is part of the 5-piece Halloween Collection I released recently, and if you're interested in checking out swatches from the full collection, you can see them here!

OPI Every Month Is Oktoberfest

If you get only one lacquer from the OPI Germany collection... it should probably be this one. Feast your eyes on OPI Every Month Is Oktoberfest:

How perfectly gorgeous is this? Vampy, shimmery, glowy, purple perfection. The formula was fantastic: easy to control, levelled out nicely, and good to go after two coats.

In natural light the warm velvety purple shimmer really lights up, and under artificial light the shimmer can sometimes take on an almost golden hue, as seen below.

In the shade, the shimmer is less visible, but still there. It appears to be a deep purple, but not black (which I love). Mmm, glossy purple perfection!

What do you think of OPI Every Month Is Oktoberfest? I'm so very glad I decided to pick this one up- it's really something special! 

Pirate Polish Unforgivable Curses Trio (New Collection!)

Just in time for October: a trio of sinister and vampy lacquers. All feature black bases packed with jewel-toned flakey shimmer and a dash of ultrafine metallic glitter. This trio is inspired by the Three Unforgivable Curses (drawing inspiration from Harry Potter). 

Left to Right: Avada Kedavra, Cruciatus, Imperius 

Swatched side by side on a swatch wheel (all lacquers are opaque by themselves in two coats):

 

Left to Right: Avada Kedavra, Imperius, Cruciatus

First up we have Avada Kedavra, a lacquer that contains greenish gold shimmer that flares in the deep black lacquer base. A deadly -and fittingly serpentine- combination! 

Imperius is an insidious mixture of glinting silver and blue shimmer particles in a black-as-night base.

Cruciatus: malevolent flashes of red and violet shimmer in a blackened base.

The entire Unforgivable Curses Trio is now available in the Pirate Polish Etsy store (individually for $10, or as a set for $27). You can also find Pirate Polish on Facebook, if you're interested in keeping up to date on new releases!

What do you think of my new trio of shades? Is it something you might be interested in sporting this Fall and Winter?

Top to Bottom: Imperius, Avada Kedavra, Cruciatus. Thumb nail is Cruciatus.