KBShimmer No Whine Left and Clearly on Top Quick Dry Topcoat Swatches and Review

Hi all! That title was a mouthful. (That's what she said) (Yes, I set myself up for a joke. I get lonely)

A while back, KBShimmer debuted a new quick dry topcoat they developed to avoid the common problem with Seche Vite, the dreaded shrinkage. It's also meant to smooth over glitters so you no longer have a bumpy surface without having to add multiple coats of top coat. In the images they shared on their facebook page, they showed the top coat over No Whine Left (which was a huge lemming for me) so as soon as the top coat was available I snapped it up and No Whine Left came home with me too. So today I'm sharing a mini review of the top coat and swatches of No Whine Left

First, let's start with the swatches. No Whine Left is a really unique color combo, it has a plummy base with bright blue and pink glitters in various sizes. It applied easily and it was opaque in two coats with no clumping or gooping.

After painting my nails, I topped all my nails with Gelous + another top coat except one nail that had two coats of the KBShimmer top coat. How did the KBShimmer fare against the glitter taming powers of Gelous?

It's exactly the same! Unfortunately, two coats of top coat or Gelous + top coat weren't enough to completely smooth No Whine Left, which was unexpected since it didn't look like it was going to be a hungry glitter but there you have it. The KBShimmer also dries super quick. I'm still collecting new top coats for part 3 of the top coat comparisons but I can tell you it's close to Seche Vite and no shrinkage at all. The only thing I still have to see is if turns all goopy like Seche at the halfway mark. Rest assured, I'll let you know if anything turns sour but as of now, me + KBShimmer top coat = <3.

You can find KBShimmer polishes and their top coat on their site here. For international buyers, you can buy through Harlow & Co, though I believe they still don't have the top coat available.

Have a great weekend loves!

ABC Challenge 'H' - Orly High on Hope

Well 'ello there! Forgetting the fact that I suck and missed a post on Monday....

I had something really awesome planned for today. I promise, it was gonna be so boss, you guys. But then I ran out of time and realized one of my new polishes had a name starting with H and this polish is so complex and awesome that I decided just swatches would be good enough. Especially since I had such a hard time picking the pictures for this post, they were all pretty. And that's not a compliment on me, but the polish.

So which is this new and awesome polish (as if you hadn't read the post title)? Orly High on Hope from their spring 2013 collection! This polish is just... nghh (yes, I'm using guttural sounds to describe a polish). It has a slate blue-gray-greenish base with a chunky multichrome shimmer, almost glass flecky but finer than a glass fleck, the overall appearance on the nail is a shimmer. Formula was a little thick but not difficult at all, two coats is all you need for perfect opacity.

At very extreme angles and in low lighting, you can even see a little green shimmer a la Fantasy Fire or Clarins 230. In regular lighting and from afar it looks dark but the pink shimmer is still noticeable though not overpowering like it is in pictures. Still such a great polish in my eyes that I couldn't bring myself to add anything over it.

Also, this is the haul I made last night at Sally's. With coupons, sales and discounts all I paid out of pocket was $12.27!! My jaw dropped at the cash register when the girl said it was just $12. Spring polishes are my weakness :(.

That's it from me today, have a great day!!

White Owl Lacquers Heightened Emotions Collection - Swatches and Review

Hi all! ITS FREAKING FRIDAY. I'm excited about today :D.

Today I have for you the Heightened Emotions collection for Valentine's Day from White Owl Lacquers! While the first collection was inspired by Harry Potter, this is inspired by The Vampire Diaries, of which I know nothing except they inspired some pretty cool polishes. If you missed my first swatches of the brand, do the clicky here.

First up is Come To Me, a milky white jelly base with different shaped matte blue glitter, some iridescent squares and pink ROUND glitter. Application was very straightforward, only the round glitters wanted to move around but if you let each coat dry that won't be a problem. I'm showing 3 coats.

Now, there was an issue with bleeding glitter in some of the bottles so my swatches have the blue-tinged base instead of the milky white base. I actually really like the bluer base as well as the white one but if you received a faulty bottle please contact Mara and she'll take care of it.

Next up is Never Let Me Go, the pinker sister to Come To Me. This is also a milky white jelly base but with MORE round glitter and the iridescent squares. Application was a breeze as well and I used 3 coats.

And finally, A Little Danger. This is a clear based glitter topper featuring ROUND glitters and iridescent glitter. Yes, more roundies! <3. This is the only one that was a little tricky because a lot of the round glitter seemed to have settled at the bottom but turning the bottle upside down for a few minutes before applying took care of it. I've done one 'dabbed on' coat over China Glaze Def Defying.

What do you think of these? I'm especially in love with Come To Me, those bright blue matte glitters are all kinds of pretty. Also, ROUND GLITTER. I need all the round glitter in the world.

You can find White Owl Lacquers on their store here and you should like them on Facebook for important information and special offers (sometimes free shipping with minimum purchase or discounts with a special code!). Mara's also on Twitter and Instagram, yesterday she shared pictures of the new bottles and they are adorable!

Have a great day lovelies!

Disclosure: White Owl Lacquers provided to me for review. All opinions are my own. For more information please refer to my Disclosure Policy* 

ABC Challenge 'G' - Pop Beauty Grass (and Glitter!)

Hi all!

First off, I'll admit I don't like these pictures. I was literally sweating a fever out when I took these and they just don't look as good as I'd like. This cold (or whatever it is) has kicked my ass so hard that on Monday I was bedridden all day because my body ached so much I could barely move so I feel I couldn't do this awesome mani justice. 

Now for polish! I started with two coats of Pop Beauty 'Grass' (of which I don't have pictures alone because they turned out horribly), then added one coat of 'Algae Bloom', a beautiful franken by Mimi from Makeup Withdrawal! I was so excited to get some of her frankens as a bday present, I've long admired them from afar. Grass is a neon green and the perfect base for Algae Bloom's radioactive green base but it looked a little too neon for me so I added one coat of Zoya Frida to deepen the color.

Like I said, this mani was so much better in real life and could have looked better in pictures but I just wasn't up to it :\.

Unfortunately, Mimi has no plans as of yet to sell any of her pretties because she's like Gollum and wants to hoard them. I have a few more frankens that I'd like to share with you and I hope you don't hate me because they're not readily available.

Have a great day lovelies!

White Owl Lacquers Swatches & Review

Hi all!

I am pretty excited to be able to share this brand with you today. White Owl Lacquers is a newish indie brand by Mara of Mara in Polishland! Today I'll be showing 3 of the 6 polishes from the "After All This Time" collection which was inspired by Harry Potter! I flippin' love the Harry Potter movies and books and I completely geeked out with these.

First up is Pumpkin Pasties, inspired by the candies sold on the Hogwarts Express. I don't know about you, but that cart full 'o candies always made me jealous. Application was effortless, the jelly base built up nicely, didn't thicken up during use and I didn't have to fish for glitters. 3 coats by itself.

Next up is Dwelling on Dreams, inspired by the scene in the first book/movie with the mirror of Erised. Very heartbreaking moment for Harry but it gave us an awesome polish. I've shown two coats over Orly Snowcone though you could wear it on its own at three coats.  This is one of my favorites! Formula was great again, no thickening or glooping and the glitters spread easily.

Last but not least, is Kittens and Teacups which was inspired by Professor Umbridge. I hated her so hard, like I legit cheered when she was done as headmaster. This is definitely meant as a delicate polish and not a glitterbomb. I've done 3 thicker coats by itself on most nails but my pinky needed a 4th for some reason. Application was fairly easy, no thickening during use but I did have to be careful while polishing because you could easily swipe off the glitters while polishing.

Sidenote: I have no idea why my ring finger nail is flaring out at the tips like that, I haven't changed my routing or filed it differently and it's downright depressing to see it like that :(.

Any favorites from the ones I've posted here or any other White Owl polishes you've liked? I have my eye on Basilisk Venom and Phoenix Tears as well as the spring collection that's coming soon! 

You can find White Owl Lacquers on their store here and you should like them on Facebook for important information and special offers (sometimes free shipping with minimum purchase or discounts with a special code).

Have a great day lovelies!

Disclosure: White Owl Lacquers provided to me for review. All opinions are my own. For more information please refer to my Disclosure Policy*