October 2019 Favourites

Holy crap!  These month's are just going by faster and faster and there is zero chance of it slowing down.  I have to seriously start narrowing down my favourites for the end of the year.  I think that this year may be the hardest year to narrow down the favourites and I have used a lot less stuff too.  Eek!  But luckily for me I have been good at doing monthly favourites so that should help me out.  Let's talk about what I have been loving this month.

Nail Art

I haven't done a heap of nail art again this month which is kinda sad.  I just haven't had the nail time like I once had.  But I did manage a few and these are the ones that I loved wearing this month.
      

Stamping Plates

Again, I haven't done much nail art so I haven't played with any new stamping plates.
        

Mainstream Polishes

If you saw my blog post or follow me on Instagram then you will know that my obsession this month is the new OPI x Converse Neons By OPI Collection.  The colours are amazing and I wished that we got all six of the polishes in Australia but the four we did get are awesome!
          

OPI x Converse Neons By OPI Collection

Indie Polishes

Emily de Molly Halloween 2019 Trio

We all know that I love EdM polishes.  They are always in my favourites and probably always will be.  The Halloween trio this year is awesome!  The orange isn't necessarily one I will grab for all year around (and won't make it to my end of year favourites) but for Halloween it is awesome.
     

Grace-full Nail Polish Show Me The Money (Polish Pick Up October 2019)

Flakies and aurora shimmer steal my heart every single time and I am ok with that.  I mean how can you not love Show Me The Money?  It is even better in person.

 And that is a wrap of October!  See you all in November for lots of exciting new things.

Grace-full Nail Polish Mother Goose (Polish Pick Up November 2019) - Swatches & Review

PRESS SAMPLE

We are now only a few days away from all the polishes from next month's Polish Pick Up being released.  Super exciting!  Have you got your wish list ready?  I have one last polish to share from you from Grace-full Nail Polish.  I have also swatched Hit The Bottle's To Thine Own Elf Be True yesterday in case you are needing something else to add to your wishlist.  Oh and add Emily de Molly The Real Deal - that baby is own my list....actually don't add it.  I don't want to miss out.  You can definitely add Mother Goose to your list and I'll show you why...

Mother Goose is a thermal a grey (cold)/pink mauve (warm) with pink, blue, purple and chameleon flakes.  The formula is great and easy to use.  It applies evenly and switches between the colours easily.  I definitely prefer this polish when it is in the cold state than the warm, but it is nice in the warm state too.  For my swatch I used three coats, however you can stop at two coats.  It's just a little see through at the tips in the warm state for me.

Picture taken in light box (cold)

Picture taken in light box (cold)

Picture taken in light box (transitioning/warm)

Picture taken in direct sunlight (warm)

Picture taken in direct sunlight

Mother Goose will be available via the Polish Pick Up from November 1st until November 4th.  This polish is capped at 100 bottles US and 10 bottles UK so get in quick!

Hit The Bottle To Thine Own Elf Be True (Polish Pick Up November 2019) - Swatches & Review

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As odd as it feels for me to be talking about November before October is finished it needs to be done as it is Polish Pick Up time this weekend.  This month I have two polishes to share with you (I will be purchasing the Emily de Molly shade because it looks amazing so will have that on my blog at some point in the future).  Today I have the polish from Hit The Bottle to share with you and tomorrow I will be sharing the Grace-full Nail Polish shade.

To Thine Own Elf Be True is a pale apple green stamping polish that can also be worn as a regular polish (you can't go wrong with a 2 in 1 polish).  I think that this is a great colour.  It stamps beautifully and is opaque in one coat when wearing it alone.  The formula is on the thick side but it is a breeze to work with.

Picture taken in light box

Picture taken in light box

To Thine Own Elf Be True will be available via the Polish Pick Up from Friday 1st November until Monday 4th November.  This polish is capped to 200 US and 15 UK.

101 Untrieds (Polishes 52 - 57) - Swatches & Review

Once upon a time I started a Google Spreadsheet with a list of all of my polishes that I own.  I needed it for insurance purposes and it was quite helpful for me to see what I had.  Anyway, at some point it got forgotten about and wasn't updated for such a long time.  Now I have no clue what I have and don't so I have started the fun task of doing a new stash list.  After collecting polishes for nearly ten years you can imagine how many polishes I have in my collection, which means doing the stash list takes forever!  It is a great chance for me to really stop and look at what I actually have in my collection.  I have rediscovered quite a few favourites and also a few "what was I thinking" polishes in the mix, and plenty of untrieds.  I'm still on track (I think) to complete my 101 untrieds by the end of the year so brace yourself for quite a few untrieds posts....like today.

China Glaze Purple Panic is a vibrant fuchsia.  This one is clearly not the neon version (which I own and have loved to death - seriously there is not much left in the bottle.  This is my back up bottle which clearly is nothing like the original - I hate that China Glaze do that).  Anyway, I do really like the colour of this one (even though it's not the original neon - I'm still annoyed about it even after all these years lol) and the formula is pretty good.  It applies easily and evenly and dries quick.  For my swatch I used three coats.

Picture taken in light box

China Glaze White Cap is described as a sheer white base with gold flecks.  I'm really not sure how white the base is.  In the bottle is looks white yes but on the nails that base looks clear.  I definitely wouldn't wear this polish by itself but I really like it as a topper.  It's so pretty and sparkly.  For my swatch I used one coat over China Glaze Purple Panic.

Picture taken in light box

 Picture taken in light box

Femme Fatale Cosmetics Burning Dusk is a purple linear holo with a blue shimmer/sheen.  It's actually so nice to put on a good Femme Fatale polish.  It's polishes like this that makes me remember why I fell in love with the brand all those years ago.  Back when this was released (maybe 2013?) this was quite a unique shade.  The formula is fantastic and applies evenly.  I used two coats for my swatch.

Picture taken in light box

Picture taken in light box

Picture taken in direct sunlight

Picture taken in direct sunlight

Illamasqua Prismatic has a blue base with a pink shimmer throughout.  This polish is gorgeous!  I love the colour and the shimmer, but it is a little to sheer for my personal taste.  I think next time I may try it over a base colour.  For my swatch I used three coats.

Picture taken in light box

Pretty Serious Cosmetics Rae's Rainbow is a blue jelly with blue shimmer and rainbow glitters.  This polish was released as a charity polish back in 2014.  I don't think I have ever really liked this polish but purchased it because it raised money for a good cause.  Or perhaps I am wrong and did like the idea of it once upon a time.  Who knows.  I don't really care for it now though.  It's sheer and just meh.  For my swatch I used three thick coats and no top coat (the polish is still wet in my pictures).

Picture taken in light box

Picture taken in light box

Zoya Dree is described as a light dusty drab olive green with yellow tones and a touch of grey.  This definitely isn't my usual type of colour but it's awesome for nail art.  The formula is fantastic and is opaque in two coats.

Picture taken in light box

That brings us to the end of this round of untrieds of mine.  I feel like today's post was definitely a good mix of things.  Now let's see what else I can rediscover in my drawers.... only 44 more polishes to go until I reach my goal.

What I've Been Wearing On My Nails (Random Manis) - Part 3

I haven't really been purchasing my new stuff recently - which is both a good thing and a bad thing.  It's good because it is really giving me a good chance to play with some of the polishes that I already own (and OMG I do have some amazing polishes in my collection that I have kinda forgotten about) and there is the added bonus of saving some money.  The big downside to not buying a lot of new stuff is that is leaves me with less things to blog about.  But never fear.  I have been wearing some more random manis that I haven't shared anywhere before so I thought I'd pop them into a post altogether.

I really can't recall when I wore this mani but I sense that it was quite some time ago.  I do love it though!  The colours are so pretty together.  For this mani I used Color Club Like A Boss, Girl Gang, I'm Outta Here, Take A Chill Pill, Get It Girl and First Class Sass.

This mani was inspired by something I saw on Pinterest.  There was no watermark so I don't know who's mani it was.  I also decided to switch it up and use neon pink instead of a pastel one.  Polishes used are Color Club Modern Pink, Emily de Molly Bright Retreat and Color Club On The List (over China Glaze I Sea Ponies).

This mani is one that I wore last week.  I was wearing China Glaze I Sea The Point and thought it would look awesome with a chevron image over it so that is exactly what I did.  Image is from Uberchic Got Chevron stamping plate.  I am still obsessed with this plate.

Now I didn't actually realize before now that I actually had another chevron mani.  This one is definitely a lot older than the previous mani and it's also a different image so I thought it was ok to have them both in the same post.  I do love chevron images!  For this mani I used Emily de Molly Pale Horse and stamped using Uberchic Got Chevron 02 stamping plate.

I really do go through phases when it comes to doing nail art.  A lot of the time I wear plain nails (mainly because I am lazy and don't want to have to do nail art on both hands) but then sometimes plain swatches just don't do it for me.  Does anyone else get like that?  Or is that just me?

101 Untrieds (Polishes 47 - 51) - Swatches & Review

I'm back with another untrieds post.  I am determined to get through some more of these untrieds of mine.  But it really is a bit of an odd thing to sit down in front of my polish drawers and try and remember if I have used a polish or not.  In a lot of cases I either don't remember or I have used them only in nail art (I think).  So while I say these are untried polishes they may not actually be.  It's more they aren't swatched on my blog so I'm counting them as untried.  Let's take a look at some oldies that I have dug out of my drawers this week.

China Glaze Boundary Of Memories is a clear base packed with black, gold and amber microglitters.  This polish was released as part of the Giver Collection back in 2014.  Such a good collection.  I grabbed most of the polishes and have worn most of them (yay for me and actually using some of my polishes).  This polish is such a great glitter and perfect for this time of year.  I think it would look great in some Halloween nail art.  I found the formula a little on the thick side but it was easy to work with.  For my swatch I used two coats.

Picture taken in light box

Picture taken in light box

China Glaze I Sea The Point is a vibrant medium blue creme and was released back in 2014 as part of the Off Shore Collection.  I was really wanting a bright polish and this one stood out to me (from my 'untrieds').  This one I definitely have worn before but I'm pretty sure I've only ever done nail art with it.  I love the colour of this one!  The formula is good and is easy enough to work with but I did find that it kinda pulled a little in spots.  For my swatch I used two coats.

Picture taken in light box

OPI Grape...Set...Match is a gorgeous purple with red/pink and blue shimmer.  This was released as a duo with Servin' Up Sparkle back in 2011 (I think).  I thought that I had Servin' Up Sparkle but apparently I don't.  Anyway, I love this polish!  It's absolutely gorgeous and shifty.  It's much better in person.  The formula is a little sheer and patchy which is disappointing but it is easy enough to work with.  For my swatch I used three coats.

Picture taken in light box

Picture taken outdoors in shade

Picture taken outdoors in shade

OPI Which Is Witch? is a clear base with silver holographic glitters in bars and hexes.  This polish was released back in 2013 as part of the Oz The Great And Powerful Collection.  Now because I didn't own Servin' Up Sparkle and I know I haven't used this polish before I thought it was the perfect time to use it.  I love this topper!  It's super sparkly and just stunning.  I know a lot of people don't like bar glitters but I do.  The formula is easy to use and has a great glitter to base ratio.  I used one coat over OPI Grape...Set...Match.

Picture taken in light box

Picture Polish Borealis is a multichrome glitter that shifts between electric blue, royal purple, magenta and bronze.  This was a limited release polish back in 2014 and I am soooooo happy that I managed to get my hands on it.  I know quite a few people missed out (and threw hissy fits about it).  Eek!  But for some unknown reason I never actually used it until now and OMG!  I am in love!  The colours and shifts are glorious and the formula is fantastic.  I used two coats over black but honestly you only need one.  This polish is a million times better and more shifty in person.  I just couldn't photograph it to save myself.

Picture taken in light box

Picture taken in light box

Picture taken in light box

Picture taken outdoors in overcast lighting

Picture taken outdoors in overcast lighting

Picture taken outdoors in shade

Picture taken outdoors in overcast lighting

I know I have said this before but I am seriously shocked with myself at how many polishes I have left untried.  There are some seriously gorgeous polishes in my drawers that have gone unloved for far too long.  But that is changing....slowly.

Have you got many untried polishes in your collection?

OPI x Converse Neons By OPI Collection - Nail Art

Last week I shared my swatches and review of the new OPI x Converse Neons By OPI Collection (you can find that blog post here if you are interested).  I am obsessed with the colours in this collection which then sparked some nail art ideas.  I thought why not share them all in a blog post.  These are just the manis I have done so far but you can bet you will be seeing these colours pop up time and time again because I do love them!

This mani you may have already seen on Instagram but as we all know things can be hard to find on IG after some time (I have 3,000 posts on IG already - so who knows how many I will have in a year or two.  Anyway, when you have a collection of polishes made in collaboration with Converse you just have to use them to do Converse nail art.  My freehand definitely needs a lot of work.  I am out of practice.

My go to style of mani is to randomly sponge polishes on which is exactly what I did for this next mani.  This aren't the greatest polishes for sponging unfortunately.  I don't think they are quite opaque enough so leave a patchy look.  But this can also work in your favour depending on what look you are going for.  I stamped using Hit The Bottle's Snowed In and Lina Nail Art Supplies Make Your Mark 02.

Dry brush manis are sooooo easy to do yet it's one of those techniques that I forget about.  I'm so glad that I didn't forget this time.  This is hands down one of my favourite manis.  The polishes are perfect for this type of mani.  Love, love, love.

When you don't want to take off your current mani, what do you do?  Stamp over it of course!  I am sure it's moments like this that the negative space images where born.  Image is from Uberchic Beauty Nice & Negative.

I'm not sure what else I can say about this OPI collection.  I love the colours both by themselves and in nail art.  You definitely will be seeing these on my nails time and time again.