a-england – Incense Burner

Hello!!

I have a little post today of one of the 4 new a-england polishes. The new collection is called Rosetti's Goddess and every one of the polishes is so very gorgeous! To start with, I have 'Incense Burner'. This is the darkest of the bunch – perfect for the winter weather here in Auckland at the moment.

This is how 'Incense Burner' appears in most lighting conditions. It is such a beautiful red toned brown. I love this sort of blackened brown colour – I think it's so easy to wear and looks good on anyone and everyone. The red undertones gives this a real rich feeling.

Just to be perfectly clear, this shimmer is not always obvious, but at weird angles of light this polish comes alive!! The shimmer in this shifts from red right through to a golden olive green. It is marvellous when you happen to catch sight of it and such a surprise. What a beauty!


As always, this had the formula we have all come to expect and love from a-england. It was very close to needing only 1 coat, but I have done 2 in these photos to ensure I get the full rich opacity of colour.

a-england polishes can be purchased from a lot of places around the world. You can only order direct from them if you are in the UK, but be sure to check out their list of worldwide distributors to find a place close to where you live. You can also follow a-england on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to keep up with the latest news from them.

This product was provided for review. This is my personal, unbiased opinion.

For more information, see my disclosure policy.

Femme Fatale - Twilight Meteorite & Wickerman Embers

Press Sample

Hello!

I have a couple more Femme Fatale polishes to show you on this rainy (summer?) day. This time, I have 'Twilight Meteorite' and 'Wickerman Embers'.

'Twilight Meteorite'

'Twilight Metrorite' is so beautiful. The base colour is a rich purpley plum colour and it is packed full of duo chrome coarse shimmer. I have shown it here on its own on my pinky and middle fingers and it is shown over a coat of black on my index and ring fingers. I like it for different reasons both ways. The black allows the duo chrome shift to become more obvious, but you lose that gorgeous base colour.

'Wickerman Embers'

This is a coat of 'Wickerman Embers' over a burgundy polish (the cold version of Polished by KPT 'Naughty & Nice'). This is a gorgeous glitter polish with all sorts of shimmer in there too that catches the light beautifully (also how great are those little star glitters in there?!). The base is a darkish burgundy colour, much like the colour I put it over. As was the case with Femme Fatal 'Coldwraith', this is so full of glitter that a thin coat gives amazing coverage.


Both of these were very easy to use. 'Twilight Meteorite' is slightly sheer and I am showing you 4 thin coats - as usual though, I have used more than needed as 3 coats was sufficient on my left hand. I only used 2 very thin coats over the black. 'Wickerman Embers' is so full of glitter that I only used 1 coat. The best part is that although it is very packed with glitters, I only needed one thick coat of top coat and it was reasonably smooth.

Femme Fatale polishes are available from their website (these are $10 AUD each) and they are also stockists of a whole lot of other polish brands and also makeup, so go check them out. Femme Fatale polishes are also available from some other places - be sure to check out the list of international stockists. Note - Twilight Meteorite is discontinued, so pick it up quick while it is still in stock.

You can keep up to date with Femme Fatale by following them on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

These products were provided for review. This is my personal, unbiased opinion.

For more information, see my disclosure policy.

Have Fun Storming The Castle - Dollish Polish (+ a Gradient)

Hi folks!

I have a little post for you today featuring another of the Dollish Polish Princess Bride polishes. Today, I have 'Have Fun Storming The Castle' to show you...

I love 'Have Fun Storming The Castle', it's quite unique in my fairly extensive indie collection. I like the grey/beige milky base. Can you believe that this is my first polish with large circles in though? I decided to pair this polish with a bit of a gradient to go with the burgundy hexes that are in it. For the gradient I used OPI 'Manicurist of Seville' and 'My Boyfriend Scales Walls' with Lime Crime 'Lavendairy'.


The formula of 'Have Fun Storming The Castle' was easy to work with and this is showing 3 coats over a white base. I don't think you need a base because it actually builds up quite easily. The only issue is that the larger glitter pieces didn't come out too readily. I did have to fish for my one large circle on my index finger. This doesn't bother me, but I know it might bother some people. Overall I love the mix of colours and shapes of glitter.


At the time of writing this, 'Have Fun Storming The Castle' is still in stock on Dolly's Big Cartel shop, so hop over there and grab it for $10.

Monroe - piCture pOlish (& a mini comparison)

Hi!

I hate when I don't post for a whole week! And I am sorry. Trouble is, at the moment I am posting what I wear and I haven't been wearing much so I have nothing spare to post. My exams start on Monday so polish has been staying on me for about 5+ days then I'll go naked for a couple of days and start again from there. Anyway, something that I'm glad I got to wear for as long as possible is piCture pOlish 'Monroe'. 'Monroe' is part of the Opulence collection.

Of all the piCture pOlish shades I've shown you so far, this is absolutely one of my favourites. That is a big call to make because I have really really loved pretty much all of them so far. These two photos show 'Monroe' in direct light (top) and in slightly less direct light (bottom). In bright light the holo particles, that I seem to constantly go on about, really come alive, but in less direct light, the depth of the burgundy is apparent.

'Monroe' is the most beautifully rich red wine colour. So incredibly elegant. I just wanted to get all dressed up while I was wearing this, but alas, I am wrapped up warm in a onesie studying ;) I love how the holo has the red undertone of the polish. It really glows - you can see in this photo on my index finger.

I just thought I'd pop this in here. On my pinky and middle fingers is the original 'Monroe' that piCture pOlish released before this reformulated version. When I heard they were remaking 'Monroe' I knew I had to get the original. It was the first piCture pOlish I ever owned and I love it as much today as the moment I got it. It is very different as you can see. The original version is a bit more red and the holo is totally different and much more subtle. If you have the original, I would definitely recommend getting the new version too. It is as gorgeous, but in a whole different way. For this photo, I have 3 thin coats on my pinky and 4 thin coats on my middle finger. You can see how much redder it is with one less coat.


'Monroe' was, as usual, really nice to apply. This is another one of the slightly more opaque ones and 2 coats gives perfect opacity.

piCture pOlish is available from a whole bunch of places. Make sure you check out the piCture pOlish website, you can order this polish direct from them for $12 AUD or you can have a look at their list of distributors.

This product was provided for review. This is my personal, unbiased opinion.
For more information, see my disclosure policy.

Monroe - Picture Polish & Some Studs

I have my first Picture Polish to show you tonight. I've always wanted to try Picture Polish, but the postage from Australia is a bit steep (even though it's just over the ditch). Well to cut a long story short, I ended up ordering 'Monroe' from Ninja Polish when I heard that it was being discontinued in its current incarnation. Picture Polish are reformulating this beauty. I actually wore this while I was in Wellington and there wasn't a whole lot of sun happening, but luckily the one bit of sun happened to be while I was wearing this, so I managed to snap a few pics. Anyway, onto 'Monroe'...

I am so glad that I snaffled this little beauty up. 'Monroe' is a gorgeous burgundy polish with little scattered holo throughout. I added some studs from Born Pretty Store. I used the 2mm gold square studs and 1.5mm gold round studs. I love using these studs, as they really are so easy to work with (plus you get enough in the pack to last a life-time).

I have popped in this slightly blurred pic so you can get a slightly better idea of the holo. It isn't hugely obvious, but there is absolutely no doubt that it's there. I actually quite like the subtlety of it in this polish to be honest.

'Monroe', in different lighting, deepens quite a lot in colour. It becomes much richer and more burgundy. I love the elegance and sophistication that this darker look brings to the polish, along with the edge that the holo gives it.

'Monroe' was slightly sheerer than I expected, but three coats gave me full opacity. Two was very nearly enough and if you use thicker coats, two might be fine. It has an almost jelly like consistency to it giving it a gorgeous squishy, shiny finish. I absolutely love this polish! I think if this is what all Picture Polish polishes are like, I'm going to have to look at getting some more!

Picture Polish can be purchased online from quite a few places including the Picture Polish website, Llarowe, Harlow & Co and Ninja Polish. Keep an eye out for the new 'Monroe'!

Update: Kiwis, Picture Polish and Ozotics can be purchased now from Gracie Lou :D