Femme Fatale Cosmetics April 2015 COTM Vermillion Vagabond - Swatches & Review

I can't believe how quickly the end of April has come.  Seriously, where is this year going?  Anyway I can't let the month go by without posting this month's colour of the month by Femme Fatale can I?  No. No I can't.  So without further ado, let's get into it.

Vermillion Vagabond is a bright red with pink tones, linear holo and golden microglitters.  It's such a pretty and sparkly polish.  The formula was really easy to use and only needed to coats to be opaque.  

Picture taken in light box

Picture taken in light box with flash

Apologies for the flash picture but this polish is just too pretty not to show off the holo goodness.  Melbourne has not been giving me holo friendly days lately which has been causing me some frustration.  So what do you think of this COTM polish?  I can't wait to see what Sophie comes up with for next month.  Luckily there isn't too much of a wait now.

Iridescent Nails by Trenae B Thermals - Swatches & Review

PRESS SAMPLE

I am back with the second lot of swatches I have from Iridescent Nails.  This time it's with three thermals.  I was a little surprised by these.  Normally thermals in the bottles are in their cold state but these all appear to be in their hot state.  So the real surprise for me was what colour they would change into.  I also fount with these that they didn't have the usual "cold" transition at the tips of my nails like other thermal polishes do.  I did need to use ice water for my swatches, so apologies in advance for the water on some of the pictures.

Bluewinkle is a really pretty light blue shimmer that transitions into a darker periwinkle blue.  This polish has the best formula of the three that I tried.  It was easy to use and even though it appeared really sheer on the first coat it did build up nicely in three coats.

Picture taken in warm state

Picture taken during transition

Picture taken in cold state

Pink Whisper is a light pink thermal that transitions to a darker pink when cold.  This polish I found was quite sheer.  Even after four coats I could still see a slight VNL.  The formula itself was easy to work with.

Picture taken in warm state

Picture taken during transition

Picture taken in cold state

Pompeii has a greyish black based with scattered holo.  When cold, this polish transitions into black.  I didn't find that there was a drastic difference between the shift in the colours like I did with the other two.  Formula wise, I found this one to be surprisingly sheer.  I needed four coats for full coverage and found that I could see VNL in certain lights.

Picture taken in warm state

Picture taken during transition

Picture taken in cold state

These polishes are definitely unique to my collection.  Even though the polishes were quite sheer the formulas were easy enough to work with.  My favorite from these three is definitely Bluewinkle. 

These thermals along with other polishes are available for purchase from Iridescent Nails.

Iridescent Nails By Trenae B Changing Seasons Collection - Swatches & Review

PRESS SAMPLE

Recently I was contacted by Trenae from Iridescent Nails asking if I would like to swatch some polishes for her.  Of course I said yes.  I always love trying out new products and brands.  I was kindly sent the new Changing Seasons Collection along with some thermals which I will be reviewing next week.  I am not entirely sure how many polishes are in this collection in total but I have four creme like polishes (I say creme like because they have a semi jelly like finish too them).

Along with the polishes I was also sent the Make Me Shine Top Coat to try.  The top coat is great.  It dries reasonably quick (although not as quick as Seche Vite) and it gives a really shiny finish.  I use this top for all of my swatches below.

Bonita is a purple jelly like creme polish.  This one applies a little patchy an required three coats to be opaque.  It also dries super glossy as well.

Grey Skies is a blue toned grey polish.  This was actually the first one that I tried and fell in love.  The formula is easy to use and was opaque in two coats.

Merlot is a vampy red.  This one does apply a little patch so careful application is needed.  I used two coats for my swatch.

Midnight Navy is a dark navy blue which is actually slightly lighter than it appears in my picture.  Again the formula of this one was super easy to use and only required two coats to be opaque.

Overall, I think this is a great collection and has nice dark colours for the cooler the weather.  My favorite is definitely Grey Skies.  It is completely different from anything that I own.

This collection is being released tonight at 8pm and can be purchased from Iridescent Nails.

Flakie Friday - NfuOh 51

For today's Flakie Friday I thought I should break out one of my favorite flakie polishes, NfuOh 51.  Surprisingly I have only actually worn it once which was probably nearly two years ago now.  There are pictures of the first time I wore it on Instagram (warning you will need to do a lot of scrolling if you want to see those pics).  I am sure you are wondering why would I not wear this polish if it is one of my favorites?  I could ramble on about new polishes and untrieds but I think most of you can relate.  Even though I personally haven't worn it, I have actually painted a couple of people's nails with it so it doesn't just sit unloved.

I decided to wear NfuOh 51 over OPI Tomorrow Never Dies.  This combination is just stunning.  I absolutely love all the colour shifting that can be seen with this combination.  Unfortunately, the weather wasn't giving my much good lighting to really show of this polish properly.  It is going on my "to swatch again later" pile.  

Now I actually forget to mattify this mani before I got tip wear (I have spend a good proportion of the day cleaning).  How exciting for me.  So what is your favorite flakie polish? 

What's Indie Box March 2015: Disney Princesses - Swatches & Review

Today I am excited to share with you swatches and review of March's What's Indie Box.  I have had these polishes sitting on my polish stand for ages but out of respect for those who still hadn't received them I held off swatching them (which of course meant that the sun disappeared when I had a chance to swatch them until now).

For those of you who may not know, What's Indie Box is an Australian based monthly subscription box which features five Australian indie brands.  Each month the box contains an exclusive polish from Peita's Polish, Glam Polish, Lilypad Lacquer and then two guest indie brands (March's guest brands were Shades Of Phoenix and Gloss N Sparkle).  Each month the theme also changes.  March's polishes were all inspired by Disney Princesses which naturally meant I had to order the box for my Disney Princess obsessed daughter.

Glam Polish Ariel

Ariel is obviously inspired Ariel - The Little Mermaid.  She is the perfect colour of Ariel's mermaid tail and has a nice glittery and holo effect that I expect of from a Princess.  When I asked Liv who she thought it was she originally said Princess Jasmine which I guess is right because they are similar colours.  Formula wise it is great.  It's easy to use and only needs two coats for full coverage.

Picture taken in lightbox

Picture taken in direct sunlight

Gloss N Sparkle Minutes Before Midnight

Minutes Before Midnight is inspired by Cinderella.  I absolutely love this one.  I think it is the perfect polish to represent this Princess.  It's a beautiful light blue with a subtle holo glow to it.  Even Liv knew exactly who it was so definite win there.  Formula wise it goes on a little sheer but builds up in three coats.

Picture take in lightbox

Picture taken in direct sunlight

Lilypad Lacquer Free Spirit

Free Spirit is inspired by Pocahontas.  I think this is a good interpretation of her. A nice nude tone with gold flakes and fine blue glitters.  Liv didn't know who it was inspired by but then she doesn't really know who Pocahontas actually is.  The formula is fantastic.  It's nearly a one coater.  I used two for my swatch.

Picture taken in lightbox

Picture taken in direct sunlight

Picture taken in lightbox

Peita' Polish Once Upon A Dream

Once Upon A Dream is inpired by Aurora (Sleeping Beauty).  Liv guessed immediately who this polish was inspired and absolutely loved the little bow that came with the polish.  The polish is filled with different pinks and gold micro glitters.  I am a huge fan of Peita's micro glitter toppers.  They are so versatile and easy to use.  I used two coats over OPI Pink Friday.  

Picture taken in lightbox

Picture taken in direct sunlight

Shades Of Phoenix Tangled Knots

Tangle Knots is inspired by Rapunzel.  I was a little thrown by how dark this polish is.  I haven't actually seen the movie Tangled yet so I assume that it is a bit of a darker movie which would explain that darkness of the polish.  The polish itself is gorgeous.  It has a dark purple jelly base and is filled with fine gold glitter, mixed coloured hexes and shards of glitter.  The formula is great and is opaque in two coats.

Picture taken outside in shade

Picture taken in direct sunlight

I did enjoy this box.  The formulas were great to work with and the colours were good.  I don't tend to buy the What's Indie Boxes because I like knowing what polishes I am getting and for the price I am not sure it is always worth the gamble.  But that is just me.  If you love surprises than this is a great box.

The What's Indie Box is available each month from Peita's Polish.  To keep up to date when the boxes are available and what each month's theme is be sure to follow their facebook page.

Essie Autumn 2015 Collection - Comparisons

I'm back with some more swatch comparisons.  This time with the Essie Autumn 2015 collection.  Now this is probably going to be one of the smallest comparison posts I have ever done as this collection is only small (I only have five out of the six polishes) and two of the polish I have nothing remotely even close to in my collection.

Essie Fall In Line vs Revlon Spanish Moss

Definitely no dupes for these two.  I thought that they would be a lot closer but nope.  Formula wise they are both good but Essie wins hands down as it only needs one coat where Revlon needs to coats.

Essie Style Cartel vs China Glaze One Track Mind

Now these two are exceptionally close in colour but they aren't dupes.  China Glaze is slightly lighter in colour.  Do you need both?  Probably not.  Formula wise they are both great and easy to use.  China Glaze only needs one coat (although I did two for my swatch to see if the extra coat would deepen the colour more) and Essie needs two.  The China Glaze is more pigmented so does make more of a mess when you remove it so you do need to be careful.

Essie Take It Outside vs OPI Taupe-less Beach

Definitely no dupes with these two.  Take It Outside actually looks grey in comparison to Taupe-less Beach.  Both have great formulas and need two coats for full coverage.

So no dupes with this collection either which makes me happy.  I like when new polishes are actually new and not the same as something that you already own (which can be rather tricky when you have a big collection like I do). 

Flakie Friday - Zoya Opal & Zoya Chloe

I realized the other day that I have never posted a single Zoya polish on my blog.  Zoya is one of those brands that I love to use but seem to "forget" that I have (don't even ask me how I forget because there really is no answer for it).  So I decided that I would kill a few of birds with the one stone here.  I am introducing Zoya to my blog, breaking out some untried polishes of mine and doing another Flakie Friday.  If that is not a great way on combining things then I don't know what is.

I actually own three flakie polishes from Zoya and had a tough time deciding which one to use first.  So I used two (the third one over my base colour looked like Opal).  I started with two coats of Zoya Suri and then sponged on one coat of Opal and then sponged two coats of Chloe.

And of course we have the matte version.  I really do love mattifying manis.

I really like laying different flakies over each other.  It gives such a cool effect.  I'll have to go digging through my drawers and find some other layering magic.  Sooooo many flakies and so little time. 

Gradient Nail Art Tutorial

The most requested thing that I get asked on Instagram is how I do my gradients.  I have also been demanded (I say demanded because there are no manners and it's not even asked) to do a video.  As much as I love to take on requests and suggestions it's not always possible.  I don't have the time or the right equipment (or knowledge for that matter) to do videos for Instagram.  Now that I have my blog I figured it was the best time to go into details on how I do my gradients.  But be warned, this may become a very lengthy post.

When I first started doing gradients I use to paint the polish on the sponge and then dab it onto the nail and repeat this process until I was happy with the colour.  I found that when I did it this way I would end up with sponge bits on my nail and the polishes never blended as well as I would like.  I then discovered The Nailasaurus' tutorials on how to gradients and have followed it ever since.  I do however do mine slightly differently than Sammy does.

Things you will need:
* A sponge (I use make up wedges for my gradients)
* Baking paper or plastic bag
* Tooth picks
* Something to help with clean up (I use Emily  de Molly's Clean Up Crew - you can see my review for it here)
* And polishes of your choice.  I will be using China Glaze's Spring In My Step, Feel The Breeze and Float On.

Step by step instructions:

1. Paint your base colour and when dry added top coat.  I would say 99% of the time I use a white base for my gradients as I find it gives the best result rather than using the lightest colours.  I used OPI Alpine Snow and Seche Vite.

2.  Apply clean up aid.  I am using Emily de Molly's Clean Up Crew (shown in it's dried form).

3.  Apply one coat of each polish that you will be using onto your sponge and in the order you wish your gradient to be in.

4.  Apply one coat of each polish onto the baking paper in the same order you have put on the sponge.  Your lines of polish should be a similar width to the ones on your sponge.

5.  With a toothpick, slightly mixed each colour together.  I do this in small circles.

6.  Place the sponge into the polish on the baking paper, ensuring that the colours line up (eg. the purple on baking paper is going onto the purple on the sponge).  Now sponge the polish onto the nail.  I personally roll the sponge across the nail (similar to how you roll the stamper over your nail when stamping).  I usually do these a couple of times while moving the sponge slightly up and down the nail (so roll the polish on, position the sponge so it is slightly lower on the nail and roll the sponge across the nail again).  I do one coat on each nail first (I do one hand at a time).

7.  Repeat the above process until you are happy with the colour.  I used two coats.

8.  Remove your clean up aid and clean up any polish on you skin and cuticle area.  Apply top coat and you are done.

Helpful tip:

Most creme polishes can be used in a gradient, however some are better than others.  Look for ones that look close to opaque when painted onto the baking paper.  They will give a better colour payoff and will blend better.

So there you have it.  That's how I do my gradients using creme polishes.  I don't tend to do gradients using shimmery polishes because they are harder to clean up.  And I do glitter gradients differently do this as well.  I hope that you have found this tutorial helpful.  Let me know if there are any more tutorials you would like me to do.