Octopus Party and Literary Lacquers: New Years Duo & HPB Presents Nail art

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The OPNL New Year's Collaboration Collection features 4 all new duos! I had the opportunity to review the set that includes OPNL and LitLaq - two fantastic companies - and I couldn't be happier about it!
You can see the other duos by visiting the OPNL facebook page, as Dave will be posting those as the photos are sent to him. The duos are launching 12.26.15 @ 11 AM Central @ www.opnlduos.bigcartel.com

Octopus Party Milk and Honey is a yellow toned neutral with blue interference shimmer. I wore three coats with topcoat in the images below. It's an unusual color and finish for sure - I have nothing like it in my collection and don't recall seeing anything similar before. Formula was fluid and not streaky or draggy at all.





Literary Lacquers Sky of the Sky is a beautifully done holo with gold flakie shimmers throughout. This is also reminiscent of one of Pantone's colors of the year for 2016, but better. :) I wore two coats and topcoat for photos. Formula is consistently excellent as all other LitLaqs.

The literary inspiration comes from a poem by E.E. Cummings called I Carry Your Heart With Me. I had not read it before, but it is definitely emotionally evocative and worth a read. I'm bookmarking it to read again and again, I just love that poem!





I did up some nail art all 'fancy' like with snowflakes - these are from the Vivid Lacquer plate number VL006, a must have for any stamping enthusiast. I stamped with MDU polishes over the duo.




I hope you all enjoyed the review and are able to pick these up if your heart desires! I wish you all a Merry Christmas and I'll see you in the New Year!!

For more awesome nail art - check the Hobby Polish Bloggers Link up!

An InLinkz Link-up

Pink Hibiscus Beauty: Holidays In New England Collection

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The Holidays in New England Collection comes from a brand I haven't tried before called Pink Hibiscus Beauty. I found the color palette attractive and finishes varied, so I think there is something here for everyone! This collection has already launched and is available now at the shop.

Rockefeller in the Snow
White shimmer cream with ultra chameleon chrome flakies and a scattered holographic finish.

3 coats for the photos, I am really digging the ucc flakies done up in a crelly base! Plus, this one has holo (although it is really difficult to pick up holo on camera with such a light color it is more visible to the eye in person)

Nutcrackers in New England
Pale pink shimmer with pink and gold illusion flakies, and a scattered holographic finish

Because there is so much going on this polish and because it's such a light shade, the camera picks up shadows that sometimes look like texture but aren't. The formula was very smooth and shimmery, the holo and flakies are subtle, definitely office appropriate and feminine feeling. I wore two coats with topcoat, formula was smooth.

The Connecticut Vineyards
Deep "merlot" red crelly with holographic micro glitter and a scattered holographic finish.

Such a squishy jelly like finish on this one and the holo sparkle has such depth! It reminded me of blackberry juice as I painted it on and when done looks like a jam! 2 coats and topcoat worn.

The 50 Trees in Exeter
Brown jelly with gold holographic micro glitter, and red and green round glitter.

As the one above, depth and squishy factor ya'll! I think this would be perfect for one of those ugly sweater stamping contests - although it is rather beautiful! 2 coats + gelous + topcoat to smooth.

Boston at Midnight
Navy Blue/Deep purple color shifting polish. This polish has ultra chameleon chrome flakies and a linear holographic finish.

Favorite of the collection! I love the way the flakies flash purple when they catch the light. Pretty awesome polish right here. 2 coats and topcoat.





The formula was was fluid and smooth on each Pink Hibiscus Polish, no issues to report. I liked how squishy the jellies were and how smooth and easy to apply the crelly was. But my favorite shade had to be a holo - Boston at Midnight!

Which are your favorites?

I hope you've enjoyed the review and photos - please let me know by commenting, liking my facebook page or following me on pinterest! Merry Christmas ya'll!

Ever After: Rainbow Connection Trio

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Ever After has created a store exclusive limited edition trio for Rainbow Connection called Back to Basics. The three neutral tones are beautifully done with holo shimmers, flakes and glitters and are available at the RC store.

50 Shades - a mid-to-pale grey linear holographic with silver flecks.

(3 coats used)

Au Naturel - a pale, neutral-toned nude linear holographic with silver flecks.

(2 coats used)

Nudist - a pale, soft ballet pink linear holographic with silver flecks.

(3 coats used)




I enjoyed the beautiful color combinations and their easy to apply formula. Definitely office appropriate shades with added magical sparkles! Which is your favorite?

Octopus Party: Crown of Queen Elizabeth

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Crown of Queen Elizabeth is a pure silver holographic lacquer. A royal treat for your nails, this color exudes the timeless charm of platinum.

The formula was very nice and I think sheer enough that it would also work well as a holo topper. I haven't tried it myself yet, but I may with the next Creme A La Mode box! The polish is opaque in 3 coats as shown in the photos.





This polish and others will be restocked on Sunday Dec 13, at 5pm Central at the Octopus Party Nail Lacquers at their Etsy store.

Indigo Bananas: Call Me Mabel and Little Big Dipper

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Still loving Indigo Bananas, I think they are a new favorite brand. Formula is always really fluid and easy to apply, I enjoy the colors she creates, and Andrea (owner) is very pleasant.

Call Me Mabel is from the Halloween 2015 collection and has a cute little piggy on the name label. Not sure if there's meaning behind that, but I giggled when I saw it. The polish is a beautiful...um morpher? It's very neutral and changes in lighting - I want to call it pink but then I see it lean purple and when I look straight on at it, it seems to be a nude shade. Quite office appropriate too!

I've just checked with Andrea because I noticed a difference in my Call Me Mabel and the swatches in the webshop and this polish is actually a fader!

The good news is, the batch has been pulled and is being reformulated and replaced or refunded to those that have purchased the fading batch. Also - the faders will be clearanced out! So if you love the color of the polish in my swatches, the fader WILL be available in a separate listing under the Banana Peels Category, so watch for that to pop in!





This is what Call Me Mabel reformulated looks like!




Little Big Dipper is a cute name to begin with, but look at that bright blue and sparkly goodness!





Have you tried Indigo Bananas? If not, I think you should! Great formula, fantastic customer service and beautiful colors!
You'll find these two polishes and many other polishes at the Indigo Bananas online store.

Thank you for stopping by and do feel free to leave a note or follow, I enjoy hearing from you!

Ever After: Rachel's Birthday Duo

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Ever After polish maker Rachel's special duo for her big 3-0 on December 29th! I hope it's the best yet!

Mermaid princess: ultramarine deep blue holo with silver and turquoise flake glitter and shimmer

Bright and vibrant just like Rachel's personality. I wore two cots and topcoat, the formula was smooth and easy to apply.

Let's eat cake: purple pastel Crelli with ucc green purple blue flake, glitter And holo

I used three coats as this one was a bit sheer to allow for the UCC flakes and glitter to show through. The formula was smooth and easy to control on the nail, I did no clean up for these photos.





Which is your favorite? These are both available at the Ever After webshop!