LynBDesigns: T.A.R.D.I.S., Snog Box, & Space Gandalf

We've had Sherlock and Dr. Seuss polishes, but to finish up my set of reviews of LynBDesigns, I've saved the best for last... Doctor Who!!  

Read on for lots more photos, a full review, and a healthy dose of fangirling!

Tough As Nails Lacquer: Come and See Collection

Hi all!  I know I've been slacking on posting lately, I'm just so swamped with finishing up high school and rehearsals for our year-end shows, as well as a steadily-growing pile of polishes to swatch.  I do have a post for you today though, with four beautiful polishes from the Tough As Nails Lacquer "Come and See" collection!  

This collection is inspired by the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, how cool is that?? This post is pretty picture-heavy, so I'll put the full review and lots of photos after the jump!  :)

Darling Diva Polish: Back In Black Collection

I know that Tuesday's post is hard to follow, but I wanted to thank you all so much for the overwhelmingly positive reactions.  I was honestly kind of afraid that you would all think I was some weirdo, and I'm glad it turned out that most of you are all weirdos with me!  :P

On to today's post, I've got the Darling Diva Polish Back In Black Collection to show you!  This collection consists of six polishes all in black jelly bases: three with chunkier glitter, and three with colour-shifting microglitter.  

More photos and full review after the jump!  :)

Cadillacquer: Do You See What I See?

A while ago I was contacted by the lovely Madeleine from Cadillacquer, asking if I'd like to swatch and review her first collection.  Despite being naturally slightly apprehensive about the quality of newer less-established brands,  I couldn't resist her pretty polishes and said yes.  Boy, am I ever glad I did; these polishes were all such a pleasant surprise!  

Read on after the jump for more on all nine polishes!  :)

Aphrodite Lacquers: Romes & Jules Collection

Today's post is a long-overdue review of four polishes from Aphrodite Lacquers' Romes & Jules Collection for spring!  All of the formulas were the same, so I'll address that at the end of the post. You can see my swatches of previous Aphrodite Lacquers collections by following these links, but make sure you come back and take a look at these!  Romance Novel, Outta This World, Friday Night Glitter Bomb, Printemps A Paris, and Birthday collections. 

Now, on to the stars of today's post!  First up is my favourite of the four, Montagues.  This stunner is a "black jelly polish filled with pink, green, blue, and purple hex and circle glitters."

Although it can be built up to opacity alone, I chose to layer two coats of Montagues over A England Jane Eyre for a more opaque look and faster drying time.  You're seeing one coat of Seche Vite, but I added another later for a completely smooth finish.  

Circle glitters are kind of my new favourite thing and I always love me a good vampy colour, so when Rebecca asked me if there were any specific polishes I wanted to swatch, I, of course, chose this one.  It doesn't disappoint!  

Violent Delights is a "milky white jelly polish, packed with white glitters of various sizes and all the different pink and purple glitters from this collection, and holo microglitters scattered throughout."  

As with all four of the polishes in this post, Violent Delights can be built up to near-opacity alone, but I layered this one in two coats over OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls.  This glitter was a little lumpy, so I topped it with two coats of LaCC 2013 top coat for a nice smooth shine.  

I really like the milky white base with white glitters and other colours peeking through.  The scattered red glitters make me think this one was very appropriately named!  

Next up is my second favourite of the polishes here; Two Star Crossed Lovers is a "milky light purple polish, lots of different purple and holo glitters, with a hidden purplish-pinkish shimmer." 

"From forth the fatal loins of these two foes

A pair of star-cross'd lovers take their life;

Whose misadventured piteous overthrows

Do with their death bury their parents' strife."

Yea, just felt like throwing that excerpt from the prologue in there.  I layered two coats of Two Star Crossed Lovers (which I keep thinking should be 'Two Star-Cross'd Lovers', because I'm weird) over LaCC 1972, a lilac creme which made the perfect base.  One coat of LaCC 2013 top coat here. 

I really love the mix of glitters in this one, it's such a delicate and pretty polish!  This polish makes me want spring to come, it snowed here the other day!  Grrr...

Last for today is Inauspicious Stars, a "milky white jelly polish, with white glitters of various sizes, and pastel pink/purple/blue glitters, and holo microglitters scattered throughout."  

I layered two coats of Inauspicious Stars over OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls, and topped with two coats of LaCC 2013 top coat for a smooth finish. 

Whites don't usually look good on my skin tone (especially in pictures) but I'll make an exception for this one because it's so pretty!!  Another lovely delicate polish perfect for spring! 

Formulas on all these polishes were alright to work with; no major problems but they did require a little extra manipulating with the brush to get an even spread of glitter.  A couple of them were slightly lumpy, but nothing a good layer or two of top coat can't fix!!  

You can find Aphrodite Lacquers on Etsy, and keep up to date on Facebook.  All of these polishes are currently in stock except for Montagues, but you can still pick up it's white-based counterpart Capulets!  

How are you liking the look of this spring collection?  I really like Montagues and Two Star Crossed Lovers, but which polishes are your favourites?  :)

Disclaimer: Products in this post were provided for review and my honest opinion.  

piCture pOlish by Llarowe: Starry Night

I've got a very exciting polish to show you today, it's a new piCture pOlish collaboration shade with Llarowe!  Starry Night is described as a charcoal jelly scattered holo with multi-coloured sparks; take a look!  :)

piCture pOlish Starry Night by Llarowe, direct lighting

This is two coats of Starry Night.  The formula on this was absolutely perfect, it dried quickly and to a super shiny finish all by itself, photos are without top coat!  

piCture pOlish Starry Night by Llarowe, direct lighting

piCture pOlish Starry Night by Llarowe, direct lighting

The previous photos were in direct lighting to show how much this polish truly "sparks"!  The next three photos are in my lightbox, so you can better see the fine details of the polish.  I can't decide which photos I like better of this one!

piCture pOlish Starry Night by Llarowe, lightbox

piCture pOlish Starry Night by Llarowe, lightbox

piCture pOlish Starry Night by Llarowe, lightbox

And, just because I figured at least some of you would be curious, here's a close-up comparison of Starry Night and Zoya Storm.  The piCture pOlish shade looks more like micro-shards in a very dark grey (almost black) jelly base, while the Zoya polish is all uniform holographic micro-glitters in a true black crelly base.  Both polishes are shown in two coats in direct lighting,  and Storm is top coated while Starry Night is not.

Click to enlarge if you feel so inclined.

From piCture pOlish: "Starry Night will be available in the US via Llarowe only (so no other stockists in Canada or the USA will have it) as it is a Llarowe exclusive!  USA price is $14.50 and it will be available at piCture pOlish on-line for AUD$12.00.  At this stage it will not be available via our other Network members however it may be available shortly!"

What do you think of this new collaboration shade?  Great application, edgy look, and a perfect finish; I personally love it!!  :)

Disclaimer: The products in this post were sent to me for review. 

Chirality Nail Polish: Cereal Killers

I didn't have a very good morning yesterday, but once I came home to a new episode of Castle, lunch with my awesome grandpa, and some nail mail from Chirality Nail Polish, my mood was much improved.  If you like my Facebook page, you might have read that I did a ton of swatching yesterday.  I managed to get all four of the Chirality polishes done, as well as a few others.  This is probably my quickest turnaround time ever, I was just so intrigued by these polishes! 

Swatches and review after the jump!  :)

Indie January: KBShimmer Oh Splat!

Day 16 of Indie January; I've made it past the half-way point!  Today's polish is KBShimmer Oh Splat!, a super fun mix of multicoloured hex glitters in a white jelly base.  Take a look!

For these photos I've used three easily-applied coats of Oh Splat!, and topped with two coats of Seche Vite for a smooth finish.  Two coats applied carefully would have been enough for opaqueness in person, but I added one more coat to account for  my super-visible nail line and the camera. 

I think that this is a really cute and fun mix of glitter, and is a great way to wear rainbow glitter if you're not a fan of the super-blingy look.  I'm wearing this right now, and it's a nice refreshing change from all the dark colours I've been wearing lately.  To me it looks like rainbow bits birthday cake, and I kind of want to eat it... Tehehe :)

You can find KBShimmer on the KBShimmer website and Etsy store; they're also available internationally through Harlow & Co. and you can like the Facebook page for updates!  :)

I'll definitely be pulling this one out again in the spring, though the weather here isn't looking up any time soon.  How do you like this polish?  Are you a fan of rainbow glitters in jelly bases?  Leave a comment! :)

Disclaimer: The products in this post were sent to me for review. 

Indie January: Hare Polish Bury The Hatchetfish

It's Day 14 of Indie January, and I hope you're all having a good start to your week!  Today's polish is yet another brand I'd never before tried, Hare Polish.  Bury The Hatchetfish is from the Fall 2012 Illuminated Life Collection, and is a light taupe jelly base with iridescent blue glass flecks and hexes. 

Here is two coats of Bury The Hatchetfish over one coat of Essie Merino Cool.  It can reach opacity by itself in three coats, but since it's kind of goopy, three coats got quite thick on the nail.  It also dries bumpy because the base sinks as it dries, so this is with three coats of Seche Vite.  

My camera doesn't like iridescent polishes, but I certainly do!  The jelly base of Bury The Hatchetfish matched perfectly with Merino Cool, and I always love those grey/purple/taupe/mauve colours, whatever you call them, haha! :P  This polish really glowed; it's such a unique combination and it works so well!

The Hare Polish Etsy shop isn't currently stocked, but they're available through Llarowe!  Follow the blog, and like the Facebook page for updates!    

Have you been able to get your hands on any Hare Polishes?  What do you think of this polish?  Do you like the unusual combination of taupe and iridescent glitters?  :)


Disclaimer: The products in this post were sent to me for review. 

Indie January: CrowsToes A Christmas Crow

Day 6 of indie January brings the first CrowsToes polish of this month.  A Christmas Crow is a blackened-brown jelly base sprinkled with stunning orange/yellow/green colour-shifting microglitter. 

Shown here is three coats; it's a little thick to apply, but workable.  I've used two coats of Seche Vite for a completely smooth finish. 

Where do I start with this...? OMNOMNOMNOM!!  It's not often that I want to eat up a polish (I hear it's not good for my health) but... this one. Just. GAH.  The darkened jelly base is so vampy and rich and decadent, while the colour-shifting microglitter simply glows!

Gotta love a polish from a Christmas collection that is so wearable year-round! (Yes, I do occasionally wear dark colours in the spring and summer.)

CrowsToes A Christmas Crow is currently in stock on Llarowe, and follow The Polished Crow's blog. 

Also, I saw Les Misérables yesterday and didn't cry... Do I have a cold heart or what?  :P

Once again, lovely to see an indie polish that's not a total glitterbomb (as CrowsToes polishes usually are.)  Are you as in-love with this polish as I am?  Colour-shifting glitter FTW?  :D

Disclaimer: The products in this post were sent to me for review. 

Aphrodite Lacquers: Birthday Collection

Yet again, Aphrodite Lacquers has put out a collection that stands out from the crowd.  We had spring colours in the fall, and now we've got a collection of gorgeous jellies and glitters to celebrate her winter birthday!  I'm constantly impressed by Rebecca, the creative mind behind Aphrodite Lacquers, (Exhibits A, B, C, and D) and this collection is certainly no exception!

It's My Party is a hot pink jelly with silver micro shimmer.  I thought the end of photographing neons came with the turn of the season, apparently not!  I used this polish as undies in a post last week, see it topped with a black & white glitter here!

I'm honestly not really one for bright pinks (or bright colours at all), though I did enjoy wearing this topped with the black & white glitter.  It was certainly an attention-grabber in December!  

The formula on this was easy to work with, though I still had a little bit of VNL with 4 thin coats.  It dried to a slightly satiny finish, so swatches are 4 thin coats with one coat of Seche Vite.  Photo below is the most colour-accurate. 

Never Too Old  is described as a black matte polish with silver and fuschia shimmer, though the gorgeous shimmer looks more silver/blue/purple to me. 

I think that this is a very versatile polish, the shimmer is so pretty and makes it much more interesting than a plain black creme!  Wouldn't this be lovely as a base for galaxy nails? 

I love the satin finish of this polish, the matte black with a hint of shimmer looks so classy!  Photos are without top coat to show the natural finish of the polish, though the shimmer comes out even more with a glossy top coat.

I used three coats on all fingers except the index, for which I used two.  It appeared fully opaque in two coats, though I'd recommend a third to add depth to the finish.  The photo below shows the difference in direct lighting between two and three coats.  (L-R: 3 coats, 3 coats, 2 coats.)

Saving the best for last, this is Wrapping, Ribbons, Bows. It is a purple jelly polish packed with tiny glowing purple glitters.  When I tell people my favourite colour is purple, THIS is what I'm talking about!  

So much depth and richness to this polish!!  It became one of my all-time favourite purple polishes before I had even painted on a second coat.  Simply stunning!

If memory serves, this is three thin coats (I did so much swatching over the weekend, I really should start taking notes!)  Formula was easy like the others, but one coat of Seche Vite left it a little grainy (as in the photos).  Just barely. Probably wouldn't bother most people, but I'd use two coats of top coat for a perfect glass-smooth finish. 

You can find Aphrodite Lacquers always fully-stocked on Etsy, and keep up to date on Facebook.  To see my previous posts on Aphrodite Lacquers, click here. 

Overall, another absolutely amazing collection from Aphrodite Lacquers!  Which polish is your favourite?   Will you be picking up any of the polishes from the Birthday Collection?  

Disclaimer: The products in this post were sent to me for review and my honest opinion. 

KBShimmer Winter Collection

Happy Monday! (That's the two cups of coffee speaking.)  If you're not a caffeinated as I am, I hope I can brighten your morning with this gorgeous glittery post featuring fove polishes from the KBShimmer Winter Collection!  Let's get right to it! 

Hex Appeal was inspired by New Year's Eve in Times Square, and is a "navy jelly base with magenta, silver and blue hex glitters. Tiny micro bar glitters add a bit of pop."

Hex Appeal covered perfectly in two thicker coats.  Application required a bit of work; I first applied it normally to spread the jelly base, and then dabbed around to evenly disperse the glitters.  Two coats of Seche Vite for a smooth, glossy finish. 

I'm sure you'll agree that the extra effort in application is SO worth the end result though.  Isn't this a stunner?  Definitely one of my favourites from the collection! *drool* 

Next up, Candy Cane Crush is "is loaded with red and white hex glitters in many different sizes. This polish is scented with vanilla peppermint, for a classic sweet mint scent."

I layered one thick dabbed coat of Candy Cane Crush over two coats of China Glaze Holly-Day.  This one is a hungry glitter, even with two coats of Seche Vite it was pretty bumpy. 

I absolutely love the vanilla peppermint scent, I wish every polish smelled like this!  It's not overpowering at all (unless you hold it up to your nose and inhale like my sister did when I told her it was scented) and I could still smell it the day after applying two coats of top coat!  This is a very versatile polish: over green for Christmas, pink for Valentine's Day, blue for 4th of July, and red or white for Canada Day!

For We Three Blings "we started out with a micro iridescent gold and then added faux gold flakes. To finish this polish off, we then added several sizes of golo holo glitter." 

I layered one easy coat of We Three Blings over three coats of Essie Macks, and topped with one coat of Seche Vite.  You can see the gold holo on my blurred index and middle fingers. 

This gold top coat is stunning, and applied like a dream!  I had such a hard time deciding what to layer this over; on my high-tech plastic bag tester swatches it looked gorgeous over everything, especially all the rich jewel-toned shades!  The combination of faux gold flakes and gold holo is so beautiful! 

Cocoa Nut is "a chocolate brown polish loaded with berry colored glitters in several shades of pink. Micro gold adds a hint of shimmer and shine." 

This polish goes on beautifully, I honestly forgot that I was applying a glitter polish!  Two coats covers perfectly.  The polish is left with a slightly grainy finish even after two coats of Seche Vite, but I had multiple people tell me "Whoa that's so cool, it's textured!"  Why yes, it is cool, isn't it?  ;)

Cocoa Nut flashes some other colours too, which you can see in the bottle shot above.  It's such a flattering shade of brown.  In fact, this post is a little late because I didn't want to take it off and wore it for two whole days!  Another favourite in this collection! 

All Decked Out is "a forest green Christmas Tree inspired base loaded with a mix of colored hexes in various sizes, gold holo hexes and a scattering of gold holo stars, as we know all Christmas trees need to be topped with a star!"

This one applied like Hex Appeal, a little dabbing was required to spread the glitters evenly.  Two coats of Seche Vite smooths it out perfectly.  The stars were hard to get, but I went fishing to satiate my desire to have a star on every nail... hehe!  :)

I absolutely love All Decked Out, yet another favourite in the collection.  The forest green jelly base is beautiful and gives the polish so much depth!  I got so many compliments on this one (sometimes after shoving my hands at their faces... like an insane person..."Look! I have Christmas trees on my nails!!")  Yea, this polish got me pretty excited.  It's just so Christmas-y!  :)

Now I'm in a super Christmas-y mood, I've been writing this post while listening to Christmas music for the first time this year!  :)  (Click here for my favourite Christmas song. You know you want to.)

You can buy KBShimmer polishes on their website here, Etsy shop here, and on Harlow & Co if you're not in the US.  Like the KBShimmer Facebook page to keep up-to-date with new releases and sales! 

No Castle Mani Monday post today because there's no new episode until the Christmas episode next Monday, but I hope this post made up for it!  Overall, I'm extremely impressed with this whole collection.  There's something for everybody in there, and you can bet I'll be reaching for them a lot this Christmas season (and some of them year-round!) 

Do you have a favourite in this collection?  Did you order any of them when they were released last Friday?  Comments are early Christmas presents!  :)  

*edit: Voting for the Nail Polish Canada Holiday Nail Art Challenge is open until Wednesday.  Click here and vote for your favourite (or mine, up to you) ;) *

Disclaimer: The products in this post were provided to me for review and my honest opinion.