Monday, October 31, 2011

A girl can never have too many holos - BK #02

While deciding which polish to try from my untried stash, I always have a tendency to pick holo. After all, it is almost a crime to leave a holo out, right?

BK#02 - two coats with base and top coat

Today I am wearing BK #02 (yep, another Asian brand that fails to name their polishes properly), a berry, pinkish red linear holo that looks spectacular even under dim lights. The formula is perfect, and you could get away with just one coat if you wish (I did two out of habit). I am usually not a reddish polish girl, but I have to say BK#02 is definitely a keeper!

A blurry shot to show its holo awesomeness!

I don't have much else to say about this beauty, so I will leave you to drool over the photos, enjoy!

Friday, October 28, 2011

Finger Paints - Raspberry Taffeta

Raspberry Taffeta - two coats with top coat

Just a quick post today. Rasberry Taffeta is from Finger Paints Fashionista Collection Fall 2011. It is a lovely red wine purple that is very appropriate for the Fall season. This color also compliments my skin tone very well, making my hands appear lighter than they are.


However there is one major downfall of to Rasberry Taffeta, and that is horrible staining after removal. You dear about staining with blue or green polishes, but purple? Now I can't wait to see how badly To-Teally Chic (a blue teal polish from the same collection) would stain...

That is it folks, I wish you a happy weekend, until next time!

Monday, October 24, 2011

Catherine Arley #673 + Stamping



Hello ladies! This is my first time trying to stamp a full nail pattern, and I must admit I definitely need more practice! I have trouble transferring the whole pattern to my bigger nails (namely thumbs and middle fingers), but other than that I quite like this abstract pattern from fauxard plate m36. I used Essence special silver stamping polish here.

Catherine Arley #673 - two coats with base and top coat
My base color is Catherine Arley #673. After eight months, my Catherine Arley order from Belgium have finally arrived! It is a bit annoying that these polishes have no names, but #673 is a lovely grape purple scattered holo. I like how the holo effect is soft, and yet it is still noticeable even under dim lights. It is almost worth the wait! I have no problem with the formula, and with two easy coats I get full opacity.

So pretty!
I have yet to try the other Catherine Arley holos, so watch this space for more swatches very soon!

Saturday, October 22, 2011

A Special Night Out - Glitter Gal Lizard Belly & OPI Servin' Up Sparkle

My friends and I will be visiting the HK Disneyland for the first time tonight! I have been to Disney in LA and Tokyo before, but tonight will be different, because the park will be filled with Halloween decorations everywhere!

Glitter Gal Lizard Belly with OPI Servin' Up Sparkle
To match the special night out, I decided to add a bit of bling bling to my mani by free-handing OPI Servin' Up Sparkle to the tips of my nails. This is a very easy way to glam up your nails, the only trick is to make sure each nail has its share of large hexagon glitters!


Here is Glitter Gal Lizard Belly on its own. I don't know if this is indeed the color of a lizard belly, but it is a gorgeous dark green linear holo! I would also say the base is almost jelly-like, making this polish even more spectacular!

Lizard Belly - two coats with top coat
Check out the holo-awesomeness!
The formula of Lizard Belly is a bit on the thick side, but it is still manageable with a careful application. I am never a green polish person, but Lizard Belly will definitely remain in my stash!

Thursday, October 20, 2011

Arituam Purple Holo + Essence It's Purplicious

I got my friend to get me couple of Arituam polishes from Seoul after reading from another blogger that they make holo polishes! Korean polishes have been quite popular in the polish world lately, and I am glad I have jumped onto the bandwagon, because they are indeed good quality and relatively cheap!

Aritaum Purple Holo (two coats) + Essence It's Purplicious (one coat)

Here I am wearing Arituam purple lilac holo layered with Essence It's Purplicious special effect topper. I am normally not a glitter person, but I like how the layering makes this mani more fun! It's Purplicious is a purple clear base polish packed with tiny purple glitters and large purple square pieces. One coat is enough for layering as you don't want to drown out the base color.

Arituam Purple Holo

Arituam purple holo is also lovely on its own. It has a faint holo effect that could only been seen under bright lights. It reminds me a lot of Catrice Dirty Berry (one of my favorite polishes). The formula is perfect, and it applies like a dream!

Can you see the subtle holo effect here?

I have another pink holo from Arituam that I will be showing you soon! Have you tried Arituam polishes before? Do you prefer it on its own or with the layering polish?

Monday, October 17, 2011

THE color of this Fall - Chanel Blue Boy

Hello girls, today I have you a very special polish, Chanel Blue Boy from the Les Jeans Limited Collection.

Chanel Blue Boy - two coats with top coat
At $25 USD a pop, I choose my Chanel polishes carefully, and I would usually just go for the limited edition and truly special ones (although this one is a gift from the bf :)). Blue Boy has caught my attention ever since I saw the promo, and never have I thought I would love it so much on my nails!

*swoon* the formula is perfect too!
Blue Boy is a dusky blue creme with a strong teal base, and it compliments my skin tone perfectly. The color is very trendy, and yet still subtle enough for a day-to-day wear. It really does remind me of my pair of old jeans too! What more can I say, Blue Boy has jumped right up to my top ten polish list!


I can see myself wearing Blue Boy a lot in the next couple of months, do you like it as much as I do?

Saturday, October 15, 2011

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner!

Firstly apologies for the delay, I have been caught up with other things in the past week, but finally the result is in for my 100 Followers Giveaway!
Just a recap of what are up for grabs
Thank you to all who has entered my giveaway, there are a total of 192 participants and 397entries, and the winner of this giveaway is:



Congratulations to Jennafroggy! I have already emailed her, and if she does not get back to me in the next 48 hours, I will draw a new winner.

Many thanks again for your support, have a lovely weekend!

Thursday, October 13, 2011

Zoya Yara

Zoya Yara - two coats with top coat
So I am taking a tiny break from holo and am going to show you Zoya Yara, a polish from Zoya Smoke & Mirrors Fall Collection (my favorite Fall Collection this year)

Yara is olive green packed with gold flecks, and it reminds me of yellow fallen leaves amongst a forest of green. I am not usually a green polish person, but Yara is definitely a keeper!


As usual, formula is perfect, and with two easy coats I get full coverage. Have I told you Zoya has become my favorite brand with this collection? They have done an awesome job and I can't wait for their next great collection (admittedly, I am a bit disappointed with their Winter Collection, but that's because I am not a glittery person)!

Monday, October 10, 2011

Have you heard of NNS polish?

In the next few weeks, I will be showing you some of the holos I bought online from a China website. Unfortunately it will be next to impossible to order them again, since it took some massive effort and three months for my nail mail to arrive (I won't bore you with the story), and I have yet to see these holos being sold anywhere else!

NNS NH150 - two coats with top coat
Today I have for you NNS NH150. Despite the boring name (or lack of), this polish is a winner. A brownish, mauve purple packed with gorgeous holographic shimmers, subtle rainbow effect shines through this very unique shade. I really can't think of any polish out there this is quite like this, and I absolutely love the holo shimmery effect!
This is how a bottle of NNS looks like

I have no trouble with the formula, and I get complete opacity with two easy coats. Top coat does not dull the holo effect either, so even more reason to love about this brand!


I have four more NNS in my stash waiting to be swatched, so watch this space! Have you ever seen/heard of NNS before? Can you think of any dupes?

Friday, October 7, 2011

Awesome Holo Sauce! BSJ Burple Holo #13 & comparison to OPI DS Glamour

After impatiently waiting for three months, my OPI DS Glamour has finally arrived! Along it I also received a BSJ #13 blue holo, and since they look quite similar in the bottles, I decided to do a quick comparison for you guys.

Notice how similar the BSJ bottle design is to OPI? 
A quick introduction to BSJ polishes. It is the same as BK holos (i.e. the numbering is the same), and I believe they are made in China. China is infamously known for making fakes for everything possible, but I am not going to complain if they could make more awesome holos like BSJ/BK!

OPI DS Glamour vs BSJ #13 Holo, both two coats with no top coat
As you can see from the above swatch, they look quite similar. If you look more closely though, DS Glamour is a true dark blue holo, whilst BSJ has a stronger purple base, making it more of a burple holo. Both polishes are very strong linear holos, as you can see in the following photo:

The difference between the two polishes is minimal in this photo
I am absolutely blown away by the pretty rainbows shining through by both polishes! There are not too many dark blue linear holos out in the polish world, so I am delighted to own these two rare polishes!

I then decided to change my mani to BSJ #13 so I could show off a bit more of its beauty. The formula is a bliss, and I get complete opacity with two easy coats. The dry time is lightening fast too!

I think I have done enough babbling, so I will let the photos speak for themselves. Enjoy!




Estessimo Tins - 405 Heavenly Pink Sapphire

I love trying new polish brands, especially if they are holos! Estessimo Tins is a Japanese polish brand, and is famous for making awesome glitter polishes. I managed to find #405 - Heavenly Pink Sapphire from a local small cosmetic shop, which I am quite excited about, considering I hardly see brand sold anywhere else!

Estessimo Tins - 405 Heavenly Pink Sapphire - 2 coats with top coat
Heavenly Pink Sapphire is a light pink, scattered chunky holo. Its holographic effect is similar to China Glaze Keleidoscopes, and because the holo particles are quite large, you could sometimes see a faint linear holo effect too.


The application of this polish is okay, although you could still see some VNL (visible nail line) after 2 coats (I suspect it will be opaque at 3 coats). Heavenly Pink Sapphire is a very sweet and pretty polish, without going over the top.

a close look at the Estessimo Tins bottle

Have you come across Estessimo Tins before? Which one is your favorite?

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

A lemming killed - A England Lady Of The Lake

A England Lady Of The Lake - 2 coats with top coat
I admit, I am a sucker for all things purple and holo when it comes to polish, so of course Lady Of The Lake from A England became one of my biggest lemmings when I saw it.

I received LotL via a MUA swap, and could not wait to try it on! This is my first time trying A England, but I have heard many good things about this brand amongst nail bloggers, and I am not disappointed.

The holo is not showing up in my swatch, but I promise you it is there!
A dark, classy purple loaded with silver shimmer and tiny holographic particles, you could see the prismatic effect under bright light, even if it is very subtle. Nevertheless, LotL is gorgeous polish and I think it compliments my skin tone well. The wear time is very long lasting too; I have been wearing LotL for three days with no chip wear or tip wear (keep in mind I am pretty rough with my hands), and the application was a breeze with two easy coats.

I would definitely be getting more A England in the near future (Tristam is another huge lemming of mine), especially with the free international shipping now being offered from A England's website!

Monday, October 3, 2011

Not quite my kind of polish - Kleancolor Holochrome

Kleancolor Holochrome - 2 coats with top coat

Hello my dear readers! Today I have for you Kleancolor Holochrome, a periwinkle jelly base loaded with scattered holographic glitters. I must say i am somewhat disappointed with this polish. Not only does it dry to a gritty finish, it also makes me feel like I am too old for this polish because of its 'kiddish-like' glittery effect. Or perhaps it just doesn't suit me, because I thought Holochrome looks really pretty on other people's swatches, ah well, I guess I will put this up for swap.


Feeling a bit slack today, so I'll finish off here, until next time :)

Don't foget to enter my giveaway, only 4 more days to go!