Kunimitsu Nail Potions Lucky Goldfish

If there is one thing that I can appreciate above all others when purchasing from an indie maker, it is phenomenal formula. Seriously - it can be as sexy as Joseph Gordon-Levitt in a tailored suit, but if the formula sucks I'm not going to deal with it. Kunimitsu Nail Potions has so far had formula so good that I'm always making odd noises and muttering about buttery goodness. This polish of hers is no exception! Lucky Goldfish is a hurr-iffic cerulean blue jelly with tiny orange hexes and orange microfine glitters. It reminds me of the goldfish that my sister got from a pet store and how it seriously lived longer than it probably should have. Defied all laws of nature, that fish. 

This is two coats of Lucky Goldfish. I already mentioned the glorious glorious 3-free formula. It took two thicker coats to obliterate my VNL, as is the glory of a jelly formula. If I used thinner coats, I'd probably need three. It's not lumpy and it only needs one layer of top coat. Also - look how awesomely distributed that glitter is on my nail. Awesome. AWESOME. 

I had some slight bubbling, which I'm mildly obsessive about. It's totally fine, and it's probably because I got them out of the mail and immediately went to shaking and examining the bottles. And then the true ruler of the house played with them. Here is a pretty shot of the formula.

Please forgive my stupid pinkie nail. He's stupid. I'm also not sure if he used to be a she. I don't really care about the gender of my pinkie nail, it drives me nuts regardless. 

And time to get my matte on.

As usual, this is totally awesome. It's gorgeous and deep and like looking into a pond full of fish. But only orange fish and there are a lot of them. 

As usual, a thumb shot.

And this is Ecco. The true ruler of the apartment.

Okay people, this is the end. If you're looking to get to the Kunimitsu Nail Potions Etsy shop, that was the link you needed to click. She also has a Facebook that you should go like, because she has some awesome stuff up there too. PLEASE TAKE MORE OF MY MONEY. 

What do you guys think of microglitter jellies? Awesome? Or are you a chunky-glitter-a-holic?

Jindie Nails Live Out Loud

Hi awesome people! I hear Google Reader is going away, but I'm not super techy - maybe there is some way to use bloglovin' or something of the sort. I recommend following on Facebook. I put collages on there. Either way - this brings me to TODAY! I have something awesome! It's another crelly! Because I love them! It's Jindie Nails Live Out Loud. It was the other Jindie Nails lemming I got a couple months ago that I finally got around to using. It's a lovely creamy milky white with turquoise, magenta, and green circle glitters. There is also a horde of tiny glitters singing an overwhelming back up number. Ready for pictures?

This is two coats of Live Out Loud. I'm surprised it only took two coats to get opacity - I have pretty prominent VNL! The consistency of the polish was a little bit thin, but I'd prefer it thinner to thick so I don't have to struggle with thinner. It didn't really matter anyway, because the circles were nice and suspended. I didn't have to struggle to get them on the nail and they didn't clump and were easy to spread to where I wanted them. 

Here is a awesome close up. It's like cupcake frosting on my nails. 

So then logically my next step is to put some matte top coat on, because jellies and crellies must be matted on principle alone. It also helps when they end up looking as awesome as this one.

Sooooooo soft. Like buttercream icing with sprinkles! 

Woooo! So pretty. Beyond cupcakes, sprinkles, sugar, and other things I love that look like this, what are y'alls thoughts? 

I bought this lovely lady for my own personal use from the JindieNails website but they are also available at Llarowe and other authorized dealers.

I also highly recommend that you like her on Facebook!

Lucky 13 Lacquer The Hero of Canton, the Man They Call Jayne

ALERT ALERT! My love of glitter toppers on strong linear holographic polishes marches on, all the way to Canton! Which brings me to one of the most awesome glitter toppers I own, and one with one of the longest names I have ever seen on a mini bottle: Lucky 13 Lacquer - The Hero of Canton, the Man They Call Jayne. This polish is a mix of various sizes of matte red, orange, and marigold hex glitters in a clear base - just like Jayne's epic hat that rocked the Firefly Geeksosphere.  I layered one layer of Hero of Canton over Color Club Cosmic Fate. Lucky 13 Lacquer is a 3-free and cruelty free (come on, her boss is her cat!) maker that rocks some great customer service -  she worked with me to get her entire Battle of Serenity collection..... and then some. Anyway - here are some pictures!

Bottle shot! The formula was pretty fantastic on this polish - you can either spread or dab it. I am totally a spreader. It was easy to manipulate and get even coverage on my baby nubbins and Madame Janky Pinkie. One coat gave some great glitter coverage. I was thinking about trying two, but I really wanted the holo to shine through. 

Here is an amazing close up shot. Look at all of those awesome little glitters! And that glitter payout! It makes me wonder how many coats to opacity. Unfortunately, cheapie cheap me bought a mini. I'm thinking this is an upgrade-r. 

I know I'm automatically biased because I love the show that Hero of Canton was based off of. If you like it and want to own it, check out Lucky 13 Lacquer on her website. Full sizes (15 mL) are $8.50 and shorties (10 mL) are $6. It is also highly recommended that you go like her on Facebook. Seriously, she's got a Harry Potter collection up too. 

What nerdiness would you want her to make next? 

Emerald & Ash Swarley Snot

Whew! It's been such a crazy few weeks since I got my Emerald & Ash order! Somedays I feel like Jon Snow (I KNOW NOTHING) and the other few I feel like Chekov (that's right, I enjoy Star Trek). Either way - all work/job/life/obligations/feed the cat aside, I have finally gotten around to showing you one of my new favorite things: Emerald & Ash Swarley Snot. I have a mild obsession with microglitter, especially ones that are bright and fantastic and versatile. Swarley Snot is essentially all that I love from microglitter - the matte neons and the sparklies and a clear base for easy layering. Also it is named after her doggy. Another thing I love. 

Here is an awesome bottle shot. It's about a kajillion baby glitters in a clear base. It's got some awesome bright greens (necessary for boogers) and corals and blues and holos and iridescent bits and white and burgundy and I really can't count any more. It's one of the best and most versatile mixes. I had a hard time picking undies. In the end, I used Butter London Cream Tea. It's really pretty, but the formula was a bit runny to me. Moving along now to the important topic of the night - the actual polish. I used two coats of Swarley Snot to get some awesome glitter payout. I could have stopped after one, but really - MOOOOOOAAAAR GLITTERRRRSSSSSSS. 

Did I mention it's 3 and cruelty free? Because that's important. 

It's like a party on my nails! I SHOULD USE MORE COATS! NO STOP! STOP NOW! Also - janky pinkie has reappeared. The jerk decided to break on me two days ago, to this pitiful measly length. So I had to obliterate the rest of my nails. My poor nubs. 

The formula on this polish was amazing - thick and full of glitters without dragging off the temperamental undies I had on. It was pretty dang even without struggle - something I hate about microglitter polishes. I got up to the cuticles and the edges without a naked tip look. 

DAMN YOU JANKY PINKY. I should have cropped you out. 

There is tons of sparkle in this polish. It is totally perfect for summer accents, or for crazypants excessive glitter manicures. 

Emerald & Ash has Swarley Snot for sale on their website as well as their Etsy for an exceptionally reasonable $6.50. It's for a super adorable 11 mL bottle. Of course - it's absolutely necessary to like them on Facebook in order to get awesome updates for new polishes. I know I'm waiting for them. Mmmmm. Polish. 

If you guys had a polish named after your pet - what would it be? Mine would probably be Ecco Hair and be various sizes of hair glitter. Then I would spill it all over my couch and carpet, where she sheds everywhere. 

My Style of Polish Purchasing

The indie-polish market is anything if not saturated. I don't have a problem with it in the slightest - but I can say that it leads to a lot of questions posted online or asked directly: How do you decide what indie polishes to buy? Especially when you can sneeze and get boogerfy at least five makers within snot-shot? 

(Snot)

I can say that I usually don't actively seek indie polishes, I tend to stumble on them. I find new polishes in a couple of ways - Reddit, blogs, browsing Etsy, recommendations from my friends, and even polishes that are made by some of them. Either way, I tend to be very picky-choosy when it comes to spending my money.

(UT took all my money and my soul)

If the polish is a new brand for me, I try to find as many blogs as I can to determine the quality of the formula. The various blogs also give me a chance to check out additional swatches. Finding more swatches is my biggest recommendation for people who are looking to buy a polish. Swatch pictures on an Etsy site can be awesomely accurate - but they're on someone else's nails, with someone else's application style, and someone else's skin tone. Not to mention the difference that lighting can make on a swatch! 

(This is a pretty serious difference)

Once I come to the conclusion that I want a polish based on cross referencing swatches and reviews from bloggers, I start to evaluate price. If this is a brand new maker, I try to wait for a sale. Also, I'm poor and I like sales. Unless something is limited edition and I've been lemming it (i.e. Scofflaw Love Letter to Kurt Vonnegut) I try really hard to not pay full price. However, sometimes the quality of an established or familiar maker allows me to throw caution to the wind, and I go full monty and buy a bunch of stuff. Familiar makers to me include: Lucky 13 Lacquer, Digital Nails, Hare Polish, Scofflaw, Emerald & Ash...... pretty much anything that I've tried before and cried from the workable gorgeous formula and unique colorations. 

Anyway, this is how I usually come to a conclusion. How about you guys?

A Study in Polish - Misty Mountains

It isn't a secret - I'm a pretty huge nerd. I also like to overlap my geeky subsections, which means that I have a hankering for nerdy themed polishes. I'm a sucker for anything Harry Potter, Tolkien, Battlestar Galactica, Firefly, Dungeons & Dragons - you name it. So when Accio Lacquer posted about A Study in Polish and her various glorious lacquers, I had to stalk them out. I waited and waited until OF COURSE she had a sale. I managed to get two polishes I had been lemming: Misty Mountains and Mind Palace. Misty Mountains is based on The Hobbit and may have elicited various wide eyed stares and giggles from my D&D campaign and coworkers. It's a beautiful dark teal-charcoal grey jelly with oodles of turquoise glitters - micro, hex, and holo! Did I mention there was shimmer? Because yeah, there is that lovely blue shimmer too.

Here is a pretty bottle shot. I'd like to say that the formula is pretty boss. I used two coats for opacity and then threw a layer of Seche Vite on top. It was the perfect consistency - thick enough for opacity, but didn't bubble at all when I did a gloopy nail. SUCCESS! 

I did my best to vary the lighting in these swatches - it's hard to determine what a polish REALLY looks like sometimes. At first, I thought this was a super teal polish. Then I put it on and thought that it was reaaaaally grey. It seriously varies on the lighting and probably skin tone. 

More direct sunlight. It makes me look like a lobster. 

Natural lighting, but more shaded.

Ottlamp! I love Ottlamp. 

Different angle.

AAAAAAAAND SUPER CLOSE!

In conclusion, this polish was entirely worth lemming. I highly suggest that you too add it to your wishlist. It's 3-free, superbly formulated, and it gives me the nostalgia. Right now, Misty Mountains is sold out on the A Study in Polish Big Cartel, but to find out what awesome sales she runs, the restocks she has, and to best figure out how to obtain this polish - go follow her on Facebook.

Cirque Tibetan Nights

HI READER! GUESS WHO HAD COFFEE TODAY?! MEEEEEEEEEEEEEE. I have a serious case of the coffee-shakes, which reminds me of graduate school and nostalgia. It does make using a matte top coat difficult though. Sads. Moving along now - I have a manicure dedicated to my grandmother and a really awesome polish I snagged when they went on sale. Today, it is Cirque Tibetan Nights. Remember when they had that 40% off sale? You wanna know who jumped on that ship with a full knapsack full o' graduation monies? That's right- ME. BAM! Tibetan Nights is a gorgeous gorgeous deep cerulean cobalt freaking awesome jelly with itsy bitsy glitters of all varieties - including the tiniest bar glitters that remind me of itty bitty silver hairs. Imagine a unicorn's five o' clock shadow. Seriously, this polish looks like constellations in a bottle.

Seriously - I was seeing stars. Application wise, this was a thinner formula. I love thinner formulas, I think they're easier for me to control. Not sure why. I'd recommend 2-3 coats for opacity, certainly 3 for optimal depthy goodness. In my swatches, you see two coats. 

I used a Vivid Lacquer stamping plate and China Glaze Four Leaf Clover to add the hummingbird on my ring finger. It transferred well, which was impressive considering that tiny beak. 

Matte-astical! Look at that gorgeous gorgeous depth. I used Digital Nails Matte-matical! on top to make it all delicious and deep. 

I will say that while this polish was totally gorgeous and worth the price I paid, it did stain an eensie bit. Just enough to tint out the natural yellow of my nails. :P

If you feel like you need this polish, go buy it for $13 here at Cirque's website. Also - here is the Facebook that you can like in order to get updates and piiiiiiictures!

BUGSTRAVAGANZA!

Tonight I hung out with Raphaelle (Digital Nails). We got a bit ridiculous, and it escalated from there. 

Digital Nails Wights of their Eyes

This polish was provided to me for the purpose of a review - all of the opinions are probably ridiculous, but also my own and based on my experience with the product.

Hello dear readers - I apologize for my absence. My grandmother passed away and I was mildly consumed by attending the service and spending time with my family. I highly recommend that any readers in the St. Louis area go to the Butterfly House in the Missouri Botanical Gardens! Moving along - this means that I am totally backlogged! I have a polish to show you that is currently out of stock for the time being, but is a serious labor of love, blisters and tears. This polish is Digital Nails Wights of Their Eyes. Why is this? Because I was there when Raphaelle mixed it. And it was arduous - but the glow lasts roughly 6 hours, so totally worth it. So first, I'll tease you will a bottleshot in the daylight.

It's a 3-free icy blue tinted polish (not made for opacity, more so to remind the user that P.S. it glows blue) with some amazing blue - pink color shifting particles. It's not a Digital Nails polish if it doesn't have color shift. I used it over OPI Vant to Bite My Neck? because I wanted to see how it would shift over dark colors. Answer? Gorgeous.

Now - what went into making this polish? The pigment Raphaelle used to make this polish was too large initially - and it would sink and do awful things. Solution? Make it smaller? How? She used a baby-sized mortar and pestle to grind that pigment into little bitty bits. It took forever. And she got blisters. Then there was the shaking. I helped with that part. I'm pretty sure that my arms aren't back to normal and it's been a couple weeks. 

Ready to see what it looks like in the dark?

BLINDING.

Now - due to the freaking AWESOME of this pigment, the formula is certainly thick. Not really TOO big of a deal, because it was still workable. I'd recommend dropping in some thinner if it really bothers you. It's been about two weeks since I used the polish, and I can say that a drop of thinner helped me out. 

Also - it's totally worth it. This polish glows so bright I could find things in my bathroom in the middle of the night without turning the lights on. This also meant that my janky-ass camera had a hard time photographic it, especially in my new bathroom photo lounge. So - this is the best I could do.

PURRRDY. Then it glowed like that ALL NIGHT. Boyfriend was freaked out when he came into bed, and I would periodically wake up and forget my fingers were glowing like those evil-looking deep sea phosphorescent fish. 

Other things that are awesome about this polish? It was inspired by the wights from A Game of Thrones. I don't watch the show, but I am a book-reader and had a small heart attack at the name - Nerdiness + Puns? AWESOME. I need it. Really - she had to talk me out of buying a full-sized bottle, which was great for everyone else.

I highly recommend using two coats of Wights of their Eyes for a solid and glow-tastic manicure. It probably looks awesome over light blues. Sorry that my camera was spazzing out - but here is another picture. 

Now - it's out of stock, so you'll have to go stalk Digital Nails on Facebook before you go buy out all her other products on her Etsy. She also has a polish called Red Wedding. But I won't say anything, I'll just pull a River Song and chant SPOILERS! 

This polish was provided to me for the purpose of a review - all of the opinions are probably ridiculous, but also my own and based on my experience with the product.

Digital Nails Hook 'em Horns

Disclaimer: This polish was provided for me to review. All of the following opinions are mine and possibly completely ridiculous, including lots of !!!! These are completely my own.

Hello, fellow polish "collectors" and "hobbyists." Today has been probably one of the most awesome days EVER! I started my real-person-salary (very small) and I am wearing one of the most amazing polishes. What is this polish, you ask? Digital Nails Hook 'em Horns. Did I mention I went to the University of Texas for graduate school? Because I did. And all I got was a stinkin' sheet of paper. And a job. And finally - a nail polish. When Raphaelle informed me that she was making a burnt orange holo with the same copious amounts (similar to that of my former student loans) of Spectraflair, I promptly lost my brain and freaked out. Mainly because it didn't exist when I graduated. Hook 'em Horns is a polish that gives me the feels because I have a very uncertain relationship with the color orange, just like how I had one with UT when I didn't get in as an undergraduate. Well - SUCK IT BOTH OF YOU! Hook 'em Horns dominates the fear of the color orange on pale people and I dominated graduate school. BAM! I should probably use pictures instead of words. 

Yeah, yeah, I know. Phenomenal. It made my camera whimper in fear. Hook 'em Horns is a burnt orange jelly with stupidly irrational amounts of Spectraflair. Also, yes it is color accurate, a UT Snuggie was utilized in development and then I compared to a sweater of mine. It's a three (thin) coater for opacity but you can throw two coats over undies if you so desire. I'd have a recommendation, but I literally own two orange polishes and they would be undesirable as undies. The ridiculous shine you see comes from the Poshe top coat - only one coat necessary - Hook 'em Horns wasn't hungry at all. The formula on this was RAD. It was  pretty darn self-leveling with even coverage after two coats and super easy for me to control (and I was using a baby brush!). As always - Digital Nails satisfies and then makes me feel like a glutton for wanting more unbelievably gorgeous polish. 

I heard some of the best pictures of polish are taken in cars. I tested this theory. Look at DEM RAINBOWS.

Shade.

SUPER CLOSE

ANOTHER SUPER CLOSE.

Finally, I included a video. Really, even after all of these pictures - there is zero comparison to the gorgeosity of this polish in real life. 

There we have it. Once again, Digital Nails is an enlightening experience in color and craftsmanship. I have yet to be disappointed! Hook 'em Horns will be released in the Digital Nails restock this Friday (June 7th). It runs a reasonable $13. Buy this off her Etsy site. You also need to click that link and you should go like her on Facebook immediately. She'll be able to provide more updates for this lovely polish and other really awesome things.

Disclaimer: This polish was provided for me to review. All of the following opinions are mine and possibly completely ridiculous, including lots of !!!! These are completely my own.

Dandy Nails Bound to Fall

Ladies and Gentlemen, I would like to present to you a lovely birthday gift from a fantastic lady and friend of mine - Dandy Nails Bound to Fall. She discovered that I had yet to try one of these gorgeous, fantastic, glorious polishes, and I had been drooling over Bound to Fall since my grey obsession a few months ago. Here is why I drooled over it: it's a medium grey that looks like granite or some sort of other stone because of the flakies inside and there are iridescent flakies as well and they actually show through and I can SEE THEM. So when she told me she got me that for a present, I was thrilled!

This is three coats of Bound to Fall on top of OPI Nail Envy Matte with a layer of Poshe as a top coat. Is this not GORGEOUS?! The formula wasn't anything to ignore either - no bubbles, lumpiness, and went on smoothly with no hiccups. At the time of these pictures, I'd like to mention I had been wearing it for about two days and I had minimal tip wear - which is pretty impressive. 

Here is a close up. I love how this looks like actually rocks. You see a hint of the iridescent flakies on my middle finger. 

If you get a good flash and shift the fingers, the flakies really liked to pop out. They were gorgeous and subtle  - I'd keep this in my neutral with flair arsenal. 

Not really too picture heavy today, I'm totally exhausted. I have grand plans to matte this baby in the future. Either way - I highly recommend this polish and I plan to add more Dandy Nails to my collection in the future.

If you'd like to add this polish or other Dandy Nails polishes to your stash - check out their etsy by clicking here. You can also obtain their polishes at Ninja Polish, WHO SHIPS INTERNATIONALLY. Finally, be sure to go like Dandy Nails on Facebook!