swatch: zoya charla

since i hated that last mani so much, how about i now post a mani i love:


zoya charla is probably my favorite of this past summer's sparkle collection (although ivanka is a close second). so sparkly and vivid (and a bit more green) irl! i actually haven't worn this since the summer, as in my opinion this color and finish don't go well with the more professional attire and fairly subdued hues i sport during the school year (i know there are others who disagree and wear any nail polish with any outfit, but this is what works for me and my style). but i loved this color when i wore it a few months ago and can't wait for the warmer months (with their accompanying bright colors and bold prints) to roll around again so that i can break this shade out once more! this picture is of three coats.

boy says: "zoya seems to make good nail polish." direct quote, i kid you not.

streetwear moody: swatch picture and review

i was lucky enough to find this vhtf polish in a dusty just last week!


this is often referred to as the "creme" version of moody (sometimes spelled "mmoody"), but this polish isn't actually a pure creme. instead, it features a subtle but still visible shimmer. this shimmer may be a bit difficult to detect in this picture, however, because this polish reacted badly to the seche vite topcoat i applied over it, resulting in lots of small bubbles and other texture issues. apologies! btw, this swatch is of three coats of moody.

the other (and much more common) version of moody that i own isn't opaque, isn't creme-like, and isn't turquoise/teal; instead, it's a very sheer blue shimmer. at first i thought i'd never wear it, but after seeing emalc's pic of this sheer version of moody layered over black, i'm starting to think i should at least give that layered look a chance.

swatch: nails inc. upper street

a very pretty jelly-ish aqua shade:


when i first started to apply upper street, i was concerned that it would need several coats for opacity (and i was feeling lazy that day); luckily, it became even with the addition of a second coat. a comp with chg flyin' high and chg shower together is in the works!

swatch: china glaze flyin' high

a beautiful bright aqua from the recent up & away collection! much more muted in firefox than it is irl:


flyin' high was quite pigmented and applied fairly evenly in 2 coats. the application of this polish was pretty good (although china glaze's brush is too long and skinny for my taste), but i did have an issue with this shade's drying time.

i used my usual bc/tc combination of barielle hydrating ridge filler and poshe for this mani; with these products, i'm usually functional about ten minutes after i finish polishing, as long as i'm careful. i found, however, that flyin' high remained wet much longer than my other manicures typically do. in fact, when i went to grab something out of my makeup bag about half an hour after finishing my mani, i came away with several smudges and deep gouges in my polish. boo! the color is so great, though, that i almost don't care.