Breedlove Hoops

Is it just me, or is everyone obsessed with all things purple? You know, purple is nice, but I don't feel the need to have every single purple polish ever made. To be honest, I'm not terribly obsessive over any color. What I have noticed is that I occasionally gravitate toward certain color groups or finishes. Over the last six months or so I've really been into teal, and similar blues and greens. I'm not sure what drives it, but I don't hate it.

A couple of months back there was a mystery group custom in the Blissed Out Babes Facebook group. I don't do mysteries, but when swatches started to pop up I was super bummed that I didn't pick it up. Lucky for me, I have a super awesome friend who decided that I needed it.

Bobs Teal the End

Let's be honest for a moment. Not everything I create turns out well. Sure it's par for the course, but I want everything I create to be loved on some kind of level. Even if a whole mani sucks, I want to be able to say "man, I did x well." I can't think of a single thing I love about this one. It's like I threw Barny into a blender and added sparkle because it wasn't... interesting(?) enough. Yeah. It's not great, but I vowed to show you just about everything.

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For me, a full coverage jelly plus holo is really a no brainer. When I first got the ILNP press release for the Spring 2016 collection, I knew I needed to get all of the jellies. I swatched Jello Shot a while back, so I figured I was long overdue for a post on Valerie.

Valerie

Have you ever gone to buy a polish and panicked because it's gone? Painted Polish Aurora was that shade for me. The original was discontinued for reasons I can't recall. I was overjoyed when she announced that there would be an Aurora 2.0. I'm not sure what changed between the two versions, but I adore this one!

Aurora 2.0

Conclusion

I've never been a huge fan of metallics, and I know I've told you guys this once or twice. There are times where you just have to break your own rules and just go for it. The 2016 spring metallics from ILNP were one of those instances. At first glance, I thought "hell no!" After seeing several swatches of them I couldn't ignore them any longer. Intrigue got the best of me, and several found their way into my cart. It probably didn't hurt that I had reward points and a coupon hanging around too.

When they arrived I looked at them like "meh" before sticking them in my untried drawer. It was one of those moments when I thought "Dammit Courtney, why did you waste your money on that?!" Then one day I pulled one out randomly because I couldn't make a decision on what to wear. My disinterest turned into enthusiasm when I realized that metallic flakies eliminated all issues that come with standard metallics. You no longer had to deal with streaky brushstrokes or visual nail imperfections because flakies have neither of those issues.

Bulletproof Symphony

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Blogging about nail polish has a lot of upsides, but it occasionally has a downside or two. The biggest downside is that you can't always blog about things before they are discontinued. Unfortunately, that's the case with today's set of swatches. Painted Polish released Sweet & Serene and Pantone Crelly 2016 as part of this year's Mother's Day trio. I picked up two of the three shades when they were released but wasn't able to wear them right away. I decided to share these swatches despite being discontinued because there's always a chance you could find them in a destash one day.

Pantone Crelly 2016

Sweet & Serene

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It's been a couple of weeks since I cut down these crazy long nails, and yet I still can't get used to seeing my old nails. It's almost as though the fingers in my photos don't belong to me. I'm sure that sounds entirely silly, but it's almost like some weird identity crisis. I still have a handful of long nail posts to get through before things are entirely transitioned over.

Today I wanted to do a quick review of ILNP Night Light, and share the stamping I chose to pair it with.

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Oh hey there. I see you decided to stop by and see if I've gotten my act together or not. Surprisingly enough, I do have a Fourth of July mani to share with you guys this year. If you've been with me for a year you might remember this mani from last year. I'm normally quite good about scheduling out blog posts for holiday manis, but last year our air conditioning decided to croak over the holiday weekend. When your house goes from a cool 76 to a balmy 100+, it's difficult to convince yourself to do anything productive.

Today's look features some shades from past Firecracker Lacquer collections. Please keep in mind that these were all provided for an honest review back when the collections released.

I'll Have You Home By 10

Parrot Procession

Sometimes I need a subtle nude, and other times I need something entirely obnoxious and loud. This mani happened back when we were having a ton of rain, and all I wanted was some sunshine. When you live in Oregon, you know that sometimes you have to make your own sun. That's exactly what I did.

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The final @clairestelle8challenge prompt was fairly open-ended. It simply calls for glitter, which could result in just about anything. Since I finished all of my untrieds, I wanted to take this opportunity to revisit some of my most loved shades.

Scofflaw Nail Varnish Love Letter to Bob Ross/Happy Little Tree duo holds a very special place in my heart. I've always enjoyed Bob Ross, and I feel like this duo does a wonderful job representing some of the wonderful colors he used. As a tribute to the show, I felt it would only be suiting to do a nature-themed mani.

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I've done a few beach themed manis in the past, so I wanted toss it up a bit for this @clairestelle8challenge prompt. With the recent release of the Bohemian Polish Washed Out 3.0 collection, I felt as though it was only fitting to use one of those. Just a note for clarity, the Bohemian Polish was given to me for review. It does not change the way I feel about them at all (hence why I keep using them).

Before I settled on a final idea, I tested a couple of neutral sandy colored polishes to see what would water marble the best. I was pleasantly surprised that Bohemian Polish Mojave Morning worked so well. I wasn't sure if it would be a good candidate because of the shimmer, but everything turned out golden.

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Bohemian Polish Washed Out 3.0 vs 2.0- Press sample

I wanted to give you a better idea of what changed between the Washed Out 2.0 and 3.0 collections. They both marble, so the biggest difference is the change in opacity and color. I've taken each color from the 2.0 collection and compared it to the updated 3.0 version. In each photo, you will see the 3.0 version on the index and ring fingers.

Love You

Long Gone

Golden Hair

Terrapin

Birdie Hop

Here I Go

Octopus

I can't even believe I'm typing this, but Cupcake Polish Jingle was my very last untried. I've officially worn every shade I own, and it feels great. I can finally go back and rewear my favorites without feeling bad about unloved polish just sitting around.

Jingle is so pretty that I could wear it on its own, but I wanted to pair it with something equally as bright and lovely. After going through a bunch of punchy pink shades, I decided that Rainbow Honey Watermelon Fizz was the best fit.

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