... Silver Holo Comparisons ...

I've got a bit of a different post today. I was involved in a conversation regarding basecoats for holographic polishes and which is best.  I've only got 2 out of the many that are out there but hey - gotta start somewhere!

So here is NfuOh Aqua Base and the LA Colors Hardener/Strengthener that I was lucky enough to receive in a swap recently and that I've heard it been raved about being awesome under holos.

I've dug out my stash of silver holos to compare it against as I'm sure all polishes have different formulas to compare. Hopefully this way we'll be able to see some difference!

To play with today I have NfuOh 61,  China Glaze OMG, Glitter Gal Silver, Ozotic 509 and my latest beauty Make Up Store Greta. If you click to make this photo larger you'll notice the Ozotic and Glitter Gal are more prone to holo without direct sunlight shining on the bottles. Oooh pretty!

All photos are of 3 coats of each colour with no colour underneath. Just the bases. I'll start with the Aqua Base ... and apologise for the gross thumb if it appears in any shots [I got into a fight with the garden!]

And cos I'm silly and didn't photo those silver polishes in the correct order here we go again so you know
Thumb - Glitter Gal, then left to right Ozotic, NfuOh, Make Up Store, China Glaze

Indoors under artificial light

Outdoors in natural sunlight

Now for the LA Colors Hardener/Strengthener. Again the order of polishes are Thumb - Glitter Gal, then left to right Ozotic, NfuOh, Make Up Store, China Glaze

Outdoors in natural sunlight

** Final Verdict **

You can see for yourself in the photos if you decide there is any difference between bases. Up close - honestly I didn't notice any difference on the polishes except with NfuOh using the LA Colors base which got a bit of a powdery look and feel to it.

In regards to the actual polishes the Ozotic and Glitter Gal show up the holo fantastically even in little light but they are super sheer compared to the other 3. They are also 100% smooth when applied which the other 3 don't seem to have.

The NfuOh and Make Up Store polishes are definitely more silver than the other 3 and under sunlight show the holo in all it's glory but both polishes are frankly a pain in the butt to work with regardless of which of these 2 bases you choose. They both show bald spots, they both don't like having too much or too little polish on your brush and they both like to make life difficult. The results are definitely worth it but the effort required means that I definitely won't be using it frequently. They also don't like to be super holo unless you are out in full sun.

And the China Glaze just sits right between these 2 groups. It's not sheer and not picky but it's definitely lovable in it's own right.

Hopefully tomorrow the sun will be out again and I'll give you the same polishes with a regular base coat so you can see if these base coats make any difference whatsoever.

... OPI - I Lily Love you ...

OPI - I Lily Love You

Gifted from Jen

I can't believe I hadn't got around to photographing this beauty yet. I've worn it a few times but always forgotten to capture it until after it's chipped - whoops.

This is 2 coats of I Lily Love You over OPI Lincoln Park at Midnight. I Lily Love You is a gorgeous super pale pink jelly polish that includes lots of glitter and mica flakies. And man ... there is a lot of colour appearing on those glitter/flakie pieces!! Red, Gold, Blue, Purple, Green, Orange - really it's just a fantastic collage of colour all coming together.

I found it easy to apply. Being a nearly clear polish it is extremely easy to layer these glitter and flakie pieces. It also dries quick and without streaks - bonus!!

** Final Verdict **
I'm such a flakies girl! I think they are beautiful and combined with the sparkle filled glitter it's sure to bring a smile to your face. It's an easy layering polish that is extremely pretty and brings something special to the party.

... No Nails today - just a bit of some housekeeping! ...

Hiya guys

Just a bit of a quick ramble post for you today. Firstly I've hit 200 followers which is extremely exciting! Thank you everyone for reading my rants and raves.

Secondly - I've been asked lately about how to get on my blogroll. Well it's simple really - if you are one of my readers I'll gladly include you! I try to add automatically if I see your GFC if it has a blog connected but I miss heaps so please let me know. I often check there before my dashboard if I'm short of time to read.

I'll leave you with a pretty daylilly pic from my garden. They have been loving this burst of summer weather and have all decided to bloom.

... OPI - DS Classic ...

OPI - DS Classic

Gifted from Jamie

 I recently came into possession of a few OPI DS polishes - and they are so lovely. The first one I've tried is DS Classic which really is a classic neutral polish ... but with extra holo goodness!

It's a beautiful warm brown with a scattered holographic surprise and the colour is just gorgeous. This is 3 coats and I found it dried quick and without any unsightly bits. It also dries super smooth - hoorah!

Neutral Indoors

Scattered bling outside

** Final Verdict **

When I go back to work this is going to be a favourite polish. Seriously. It is just so cool and neutral inside but it's so beautiful in the sun when you least expect it.

... Chemistry 515 ...

Chemistry 515

Available from Essential Beauty / Essential Distribution - $12.35 AUD

The weather has been really warming up here so I've been trying to take advantage of the sunlight and pull out the holos!

This is Chemistry 515 and for those not in the know - this is the exact same as Ozotic 515 but just cheaper.  Chemistry polishes come out of this funky little warehouse [and I mean little] but there is like a whole WALL of this series. Unfortunately being a warehouse it is often hit and miss to what they have in stock.

Chemistry 515 is a linear blue holo and it's extremely pretty [find me a linear that isn't!]. As with all the Chemistry line it dries fast and it's not a tricky polish to work with at all - bonus. I actually really like this colour blue ... it's not light and it's not dark ... just a nice vibrant blue.

Inside looking pretty.

Pretty holo - clickity for more to drool over

** Final Verdict **

This is a gorgeous polish with a fantastic holo. If you are in Australia then check out the Chemistry brand of polishes - and if you are in Adelaide get your butt to the warehouse pronto!! They are extremely nice and you are guaranteed to walk out with a stack of goodies!

... Butter London - West End Wonderland

Butter London - West End Wonderland

Gifted from Alexandra RC [check out her blog! *hint hint*] 

Hi guys - miss me?? I've had a few camera issues lately plus my internet speed dropped to dial up speeds which made it next to impossible to view anything never mind upload things. The sad thing is I remember the day when I upgraded from 33k dialup to 56k ... it was like Christmas! Sadly I'd long forgotten what it was like to have time to make a cup of coffee before the page loads.

Anyway onto this beauty which is my first [and only!] Butter London in my collection and she is gorgeous!! This is West End Wonderland which is a beautiful glitter and honestly reminds me of the Australian beach especially the beach at Christmas time ... there is something about it to me that makes my mind think Christmas! It's fantastic gold shades with a hint of red and white.

This is 3 coats of West End Wonderland without a base colour. I found it dried quickly and was easy to work with.

For a glitter it isn't totally gritty by itself and that took me by surprise. I won't say it dries 100% smooth but it's smoother than majority of my glitters and as always a topcoat will sort that out for you if it's an issue.

Blurry for sparkly colours that my camera didn't want to pic up otherwise!

** Final Verdict **

Love love love - I can see myself wearing this a lot over the summer. It's not in your face blingy but it's still happy and full of sparkle. Definitely give this one a go.

... No Nails today - just the Giveaway WINNER ....

Ooooh ... exciting!!!! My prediction for Halloween was correct - a big fat ZERO trick or treaters! Their loss - I had a nice packet of chocolates waiting ... oh well. Into my tummy they'll go!

So the pumpkin cost giveaway - thank you everyone who entered! I wanted to do something outside the box for a giveaway and I want to thank everyone for being so accepting of something different.

Here in Australia, pumpkins are sold generally via the kilo so here is the weight and price per kilo shot.

So $3.98 x 6.215kg = $24.74 [or $24.75 rounded up as Aussies have 5c as their lowest coin value]

And the winner is ......

Vicki.Lowe with her guess of $25 even

Congratulations!!!

As promised the prize is 3 of my favourite polishes - Inglot 202, Chi Chi Moondust [the rare blue one! Woo!] and Glitter Gal Suede. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!

Oh ... and the pumpkin? Well it turned into this - RAWR! We found it was even more impressive if you dump a whole lot of sparklers in and sparks shoot out the mouth! The kids had fun with it anyway and that's the main thing.