China Glaze Immortal Swatches
Quick post this morning to make up for forgetting last night- I should have today’s normal post up this evening!
China Glaze Immmortal is from last year’s Halloween 2012 Wicked Collection. Though no longer available in stores, you can still nab this one on blog sales and sometimes some online stores.
Immortal is a really pretty concrete grey polish filled with blue and pink shimmer. I love grey polishes- don’t ask me why, it’s a very random favorite since I don’t otherwise enjoy grey- so last year I knew I had to grab this one!
My only issue with this polish was it’s application- which wasn’t terrible, I used 3 coats for coverage- but it’s opaque enough that it should have been 2 coats. But even though I let the first coat dry a reasonable amount, I still had random bald patches after the second.
Overall I really love Immortal, and most of the Wicked collection in general. Make a Spectacle and Cast a Spell are my other 2 favorites- this year’s Halloween collection just didn’t excite me as much 😉
Above the Curve: Fallen Angel vs. Fallen Angel 2.0
I didn’t quite finish my photos for my next giveaway teaser post, so I thought I would do a quick post comparing Above the Curve’s original Fallen Angel (still available!) and Fallen Angel 2.0 as promised!
I’ve posted about Fallen Angel before- I really adore this polish. It has some pretty good usage on the bottle now- which is saying something, because anymore it’s rare for me to wear a polish more than once! I try to force myself to try different things, but sometimes some are so gorgeous you keep going back to them 🙂
Fallen Angel is a beautiful grey-black holo filled with a blue/purple shimmer. The blue flash is very noticeable- especially in the sunlight. It also helps keep it looking super gorgeous inside, where the holo effect isn’t as obvious.
The formula is pretty standard for ATC polishes- which is to say, awesome. I used 2 coats and topcoat for my pictures, but you get pretty decent coverage with 1 coat.
A few months ago Shawn and Angel announced 2 new additions to their popular Angel line of polishes- Fallen Angel 2.0 and Risen Angel 2.0! I showed Risen Angel 2.0 a few days ago- much like that one, Fallen Angel 2.0 most noticeable new feature is the very obvious linear holographic effect.
Fallen Angel 2.0 is exactly the same as Fallen Angel, but with more ‘oomph’. The holo effect is a lot stronger- I feel like Fallen Angel’s holo is a bit more scattered (though I wouldn’t call it a scattered holo either), and 2.0 is much more linear. The base is still the same color, and there’s still the beautiful blue shimmer.
*swoons*
Whenever I wear either of these, I sit at just stare at my nails all day and find excuses to go outside 🙂 Which is saying something because I really don’t like the outdoors- or the heat- or nature. (I like looking at nature- from inside.) Like Fallen Angel, Fallen Angel 2.0 had great coverage and application. These photos are 2 coats plus topcoat.
And here’s a side by side comparison picture!
If I’m being 100% honest- I actually prefer the original Fallen Angel. That isn’t to say 2.0 isn’t worth buying (it is!), but I think the original is just really beautiful. The more scattered holo made the color look a bit more charcoal colored (and I love grey), and the stronger holo of 2.0 hides the gorgeous blue shimmer a bit.
You can find Above the Curve polishes in their Big Cartel store, their Etsy store, and also at Overall Beauty. You can also follow the ATC Facebook page for news and updates. Right now BOTH of these beauties are on sale for only $7 (though 2.0 is sold out at the moment)!!! And as always, $1 from every bottle is donated to Shriner’s Hospitals for Children!
For further information on what Above the Curve is supporting, please visit these websites to learn more: http://www.shrinershq.org/ and http://www.scoliosis.org/.
Contrary Polish: Gift Wrap and Anniversary Monster (custom)
Good morning everyone! Three posts in a row? This must be a new recent record for me 🙂 I told you all having the kids in school now would help me get back on track! *knocks on wood*
In keeping with this week’s trend of showing off giveaway polishes, today I bring you Contrary Polish!
Contrary Polish is one of my favorite indie brands. Since around fall I’ve been really drawn to non-glitter bomb polishes (with a few exceptions of course!), and Contrary Polish is one of the best at amazing shimmers. I own a good chunk of her creations (you can check my stash list, though it’s not up to date- I also have the new colors and a few more older ones), so if there’s any you’ve been wanting to see- let me know in the comments and I’ll try and post them next week if I have them!
A few months ago I contacted Carrie about creating a custom polish, and I LOVE what she came up with! We decided to name it ‘Anniversary Monster’ in celebration of my 1 year blogging anniversary (which was in June, but I’m slow) 🙂 A second bottle of Anniversary Monster will be a prize in my upcoming giveaway!
Along with Anniversary Monster, I decided to swatch Gift Wrap, which was created to celebrate Contrary Polish’s one year anniversary! It seems fitting 🙂
First up, I’ll show off Gift Wrap!
Gift Wrap is a beautiful dark purple polish filled with very noticeable blue green shimmer. Application was good, I used 2 coats plus topcoat for the photos. Gift Wrap dries to a semi-matte finish without topcoat- also pretty, but I prefer shiny 🙂
When I first bought this polish I thought it might look a bit of RBL Scrangie (one of my favorites), but in person it didn’t. The colors are a bit different, but the major difference is the shimmer. Gift Wrap’s is much more noticeable, and it’s also more of a scattered, larger particle shimmer rather than a smooth shimmer (does that make any sense? I can’t figure out a better way to describe it!). This alone makes it appear completely different. If you like that color combination you will adore Gift Wrap!
Agh, the sparkle. This polish was so gorgeous and stunning outside in the sun- though it was beautiful indoors as well!
And now for Anniversary Monster!
When Carrie asked what I would like for my polish, I just gave her a list of colors I loved and let her have free reign. I said that I love pink (of course!), grey, tiffany blue, green and purple- so whatever she thought would look great and use some of those colors would be awesome.
What I got was this beautiful blue-grey polish filled with bright pink shimmer. The base is almost green-leaning in some lights, and a bit blue in others. Definitely something unique, and very ‘me’, and it even seems to fit the ‘Anniversary Monster’ name perfectly!
Again the application was great- I used 2 coats and topcoat for these photos. Like Gift Wrap, Anniversary Monster dries to a bit of a satin finish without topcoat.
So what do you think? I love it! If you’d like to try and win a bottle, be sure to be watching my blog- I’m hoping to start the giveaway early next week!
Be sure to follow Contrary Polish on Facebook to stay up to date on new releases and information!
You can purchase Contrary Polish from the Contrary Polish website (via email on Fridays) for mini sizes and certain full sizes, and also through a number of international stockists: Llarowe, Femme Fatale Cosmetics, Shoppe Eclecticco and Norway Nails. Bottles are $5 for mini sizes and $10 for full size via Contrary Polish’s website, and full size prices vary for international stockists.
Above the Curve: Galactic Party, Party Polish Pink, Darling Diana, and Risen Angel 2.0 Swatch and Review
*Press Sample*
Hey guys! I have a lot of beautiful Above the Curve polishes to show you today!
If you didn’t already know- $1 from every single bottle of Above the Curve polish purchased is donated to Shriner’s Hospitals! Their mission with Above the Curve is to raise awareness for Shriner’s Hospitals, and for scoliosis. Even when they’re on sale- they still donate $1 from each bottle! Just another thing that makes ATC so awesome.
First up is Galactic Party!
Galactic Party is a beautiful dark blackened purple/maroon holographic polish. Application was wonderful, as I always expect from Above the Curve polishes- the pictures show 2 coats with topcoat.
Next is Party Polish Pink- one of my new favorites!
Party Polish Pink is a bright reddish pink holographic polish filled with small holographic pink glitter. Application was wonderful, pictures show 2 coats plus topcoat.
Next is a fun polish called Darling Diana! I don’t believe ATC will be producing this- Angel showed me a picture to get my opinion because she didn’t think she liked it. When I mentioned that I loved it, she decided to send me it with my package!
Darling Diana is a grey polish filled with pink, yellow, blue and white glitters, some blue iridescent glitters and neon green stars. Application was good- I opted to thin this a little (I now have 2 bottles- and one will be part of the giveaway along with other ATC customs!), so it took 3 coats instead of the original 2 for opacity.
The last polish for today is Risen Angel 2.0!
I actually bought this polish and swatched it a month or so ago, so my nails are a little different in these photos. Risen Angel 2.0 is a beautiful dark plum linear holographic polish. I used 2 coats for these photos with no topcoat.
I don’t own the original Risen Angel to compare to, but the 2.0 Angels are a LOT more holographic! I’ll have a Fallen Angel vs. Fallen Angel 2.0 comparison post in a few days.
Just look at that holo!
You can find Above the Curve polishes in their Big Cartel store, their Etsy store, and also at Overall Beauty. You can also follow the ATC Facebook page for news and updates. Polishes range from $7 to $9 (for holos- though sometimes you can get them for $7 on sale!)- and don’t forget, $1 from every bottle is donated to Shriner’s Hospitals for Children!
For further information on what Above the Curve is supporting, please visit these websites to learn more: http://www.shrinershq.org/ and http://www.scoliosis.org/.
*Some products in this post were provided for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.*
Polish Monster 