Essence I'm so very - swatch

I was so excited last week when I saw that the new Essence polishes arrived over here! I got only two colors at first, because I didn't know how they would turn out. Now that I've tried one, I think I'll have to go back and get all of them! Today I'm showing you Essence I'm so very.

I'm so very is a rusty dark orange color, and originally I only picked this one because I thought it would be a nice color for fall. I'm not usually so keen on any shade of orange, but I'm warming up to them very quickly. This shade really helps with that :D  I was so surprised by how much I loved it when I put it on. It came out a little darker than I had anticipated, and ended up looking more like a red with a rusty touch to it on me. I was always a very blue-based red kind of girl, so this just blew my mind! 

Apart from the great color, the formula is fantastic! It's smooth an extremely self leveling, not runny at all without being thick and the opacity is amazing. I used two coats here to eliminate any traces of visible nail line, but if that doesn't bother you or you have shorter nails, you can definitely get away with only one coat! I can't say anything about the drying time, because I always use fast rying top coat (inm Out the Door in this case).

I really like the new bottle design, and don't mind paying a couple of cents more for 8ml of product vs. 5ml in the old bottle. The new, wider brush also seems a little stiffer than what I'm used to, but it's nothing that really takes away from the great polish. Another nice thing about the bottle is that you feel it "click" once you closed it completely. I find additions like that really thought- and helpful. The only worry I have is how much product I'll be able to get out of it once I run low. The neck is pretty long, so I imagine a lot of polish can get lost that way. 

I took a couple more pics because I love this color so much :)

What do you think about the new Essence range? I only picke up cremes this time, so I'll probably get something with glitter or shimmer in it soon. Is there any polish you think I absolutely need to have? Thanks for stopping by!

Catrice Steel my Soul - swatch and finish comparison

I'm so happy to report that the some of the new fall colors by Catrice and the new Essence polishes finally arrived in my corner of the world! I never realized how lucky I was in Germany with unlimited and quick access to great drugstore polishes. 

One of the things I was most excited about is a new finish by Catrice - Brushed Metal Effect. I decided to give Steel my Soul a try.

Catrice Steel my Soul is a taupe-y lavender with gold microglitter in it. The Brushed Metal Effect finish is not glossy but not really matte either - it looks and feels a bit rough, like teflon maybe? 

I really wanted to see how this works and ended up rather disappointed. The formula on this polish is bad. I had less problems when first applying A Crewed Interest by Essie, if that gives you an indication. 

It's thick and gloopy and runny at the same time. It's also patchy, but any more than two coats would've made my nails look puffy. It takes longer to dry than a matte (as you can see by the bumps and scratches above) and because I didn't topcoat this mani, I had tipwear within a couple of hours (again, see above). I don't find the color flattering on me either, but that's personal preference.

I read before that some people like these polishes more in their glossy form, so I tried saving it by applying inm Out the Door top coat. While I was at it, I also put Essie Matte about You on one of my fingers.

From left to right, you see the original polish, then mattified an glossy. Somehow the roughness of the original finish brings out the glitter more, while it almost disappears in the mattified version. You can also notice the texture next to the matte nail.. The glossy one is my favorite, though. The color is still not exactly flattering on me, but it goes more towards the wear-it-anyway-direction. 

All in all, I don't think I'll be getting much use out of this polish, but I never know. I gave away a lot of bottles when I moved to Spain last year, and am seriously kicking myself now for not keeping some of them.  The formula definitely leaves something to be desired, though.

What finish do you like most with this polish? 

I hope this little review and comparison was interesting/helpful to some of you, thanks for stopping by!

China Glaze Surfin' for Boys

China Glaze Surfin' for Boys was part of this years summer neons collection. It's a bright orange with a slight coral tinge to it, maybe because if the pale lilac shimmer in it. This is basically the color of the safety vest you keep in your car. Also, traffic cones and reflective biking equipment come to mind. What I mean to say is, this color screams for attention. 

The formula was great. It leveled itself beautifully, was a bit sheer on the first coat but dried fast so you could add a second one right after you're done with your second hand, and left you with a satiny finish. I prefer it shiny, so this is two coats in the sun plus top coat.

And here we have the same thing indoors under artificial lighting. What keeps me from wearing it more often, is the settling shimmer.

This is after a little more than 10 min solid shaking. You can still see the shimmer accumulated in the bottom of the bottle. As this is about as patient as I ever get, I just painted my nails at that point anyway. 

Vigorous shaking before every application no matter how I store it is sort of annoying, but I'm glad I have this color for those days when I need a really bright pick-me-up.

NYC Sidewalkers & Kiko Steel Grey Gradient (Grey-dient?)

Grey is one of those colors that always works, in my opinion. It can make a statement without being harsh, it can look sophisticated and cozy at the same time, it's interesting on it's own and also makes a great backdrop for other colors to pop. 

Sadly, grey is a minority in my stash. Overpowered by all different shades of red and behind blue, green and even yellow, there was one lonely bottle of grey polish in my drawers. Until I brought home Steel Grey by Kiko. The two came together and formed a magnificent manicure, ready to take over the world.. I mean, my nails.

Here is a swatch of my base color, NYC Sidewalkers:

It's a light to medium grey, that might have lean a little blue in some lighting or next to some colors.  The formula was flawfree, if I'd had a steadier hand that day, I might have gotten away with only one coat. But since I'm a shaky mess and also a creature of habit - this is two coats plus topcoat under artificial light. 

Then I got out Kiko Steel Grey and sponged it about half way up my nail. I also added a little flower from the Koad m50 plate on my ring finger. It was hiding most of the time, but I liked when I got a glimpse of it.

I really like the gradient from rich rainbow sparkles to a calm cream, and also that Steel Grey is darker than Sidewalkers. It made the whole mani more interesting when I wasn't out in the sun. Now I might have to do this with all the Kiko holos, can't wait for a nude holo gradient!

*** In other news, my cuticles have a hard time getting used to swatching an switching polish often and clean ups with pure acetone. Until now I've used whatever kind of cream I had on hand (haha!) to use on my hands, but I think I have to invest in a real heavy duty hand cream. Just know that I'm aware of the sad state of my cuticles and on looking to find a solution.

Yes Love #44

Yes Love is a chinese brand I found at the spanish equivalent of dollar stores. These stores are magical, let me tell you. They have all the things from kitchen equipment over hardware to craft supplies, and of course nail polish. Shelves are often stacked with three tiers of different formulas and colors, all made in China and none of them free of the Big-3. 

The formula is nothing short of amazing. Like the perfect fuchsia jelly that she is, she sits where you put her, shows no sign of streaks, and layers from sheer goodness to deeply opaque in just three coats. This is two coats in the sun with a coat of inm Out the Door on top.

Yes Love polishes come in bottles of all shapes, this one obviously inspired by Deborah Lippmann. The rose gold colored cap is beautiful and adds a kitschy twist, but is a real fingerprint magnet. 

I think this is a really versatile polish and I can't wait to try a glitter sandwich with it!

Catrice Dirty Berry

I saw Dirty Berry numerous times in the store and it just did nothing for me. I thought the name was funny (there has got to be some sort of innuendo in there, right?), but a weird murky purple with silver shimmer? It didn't impress me at all under the mall lights. 

One night I happened upon a swatch of a purple scattered holo by Catrice and wondered how I'd never heard of this before. It's relatively hard to find any brand that even does holos here, especially in a drugstore. Yeah, it was this polish right there. The one that got a little giggle whenever I looked at the name, before I placed it back on the shelf. 

Needless to say, I had to go back and get it. So here we are:

Dirty Berry needs two coats for full opacity and the formula is great. It's neither thick nor runny and levels itself nicely. I do have to admit that the holo is kind of shy in this one. Bright sunlight is going to give you the best sparkles. 

These pictures are taken in direct sunlight. I love how deep this color looks and think it would work well in a galaxy mani, or paired with a nice grey for a more cozy look. 

On another note, the drugstore I like to go to is sporadically worried about people opening the packaging of cosmetics, especially the polish bottles. They then put their "little" barcode sticker on the bottle, and since those are not sticky enough (they are), wrap the whole thing in a bunch of clear tape. This is what I have to deal with after the epic fight of freeing my polish, not to mention the consequences of using my nails as tools.

I smothered this glue strip in acetone an it's still there, happily collecting dust and making my fingers sticky when I touch the bottle. How do I get rid of it?

Kiko Lavish Oriental Collection Nail Polishes

I recently picked up the four holografic polishes of the Lavish Oriental Collection by Kiko. From left to right we have: 400 Steel Grey, 401 Peacock Green, 399 Silk Taupe and 402 Jewel Pink.

The first color I swatched was 399 Silk Taupe:

It's a cool, light nude. When it wasn't firing rainbows, it was actually so cool and matte that it almost looked silver. This is two coats without topcoat. I had been wearing it for about a day when I took the picture, so there's a little chip on my pinky and also on my thumb (not shown). 

The second color ist 400 Steel Grey. The best holo of all of them, in my opinion. It didn't take much to make it sparkle in gorgeous, linear rainbows. In the shadow this looked like a matte graphite polish. Two coats without topcoat.

401 Peacock Green is a turquoise. It is quite linear, not as strong as Steel Grey, but such an interesting color even without the holo. This is two coat without topcoat.

The last of the bunch is 402 Jewel Pink. A brilliant raspberry color, this really catches fire in the sun. I love how it brings out the warm colors of the  holo rainbows. Again, two coats without topcoat.

These are my first linear holos, so I have nothing to compare them to. I read about holos before and how they need a base, are a pain to apply, chip super fast, etc. 

I have to say I'm pleasantly surprised. I don't own any basecoats, so obviously, I applied them all on my bare nails. They went on like normal polish, the only difference being that they dried a lot faster. As soon as I was done with all 10 fingers, the first one was dry again. I just went over again with the second coat and any streakiness that was there disappeared. 

The formula was on the thin side, and they leveled themselves despite the quick drying time.

They did chip usually within a day, but since I swatched them, I also wore them with Essie Good to Go on top, and that definitely helped a lot. It didn't dull the holo either, which is what I was most scared of when I got them. 

I really love these polishes and I hope Kiko manages to make them permanent and maybe add a few colors. 

These are available as part of the Lavish Oriental Collection right now, I paid 4,90€ each.