Lou It Yourself Some Like It Hutt

Today I have the punnily titled Some Like It Hutt by Lou It Yourself (now Bluebird Lacquer). This was another polish from the Light and Dark Side duos that were released as a collaboration between Lou It Yourself and Native Wars Paints in the lead up to Rogue One! The name, Some Like It Hutt, is a play off the species of the same name. In the Star Wars universe, Hutts are giant slug-like creatures with a penchant for gambling, slavery, and various other criminal activities.

The formula of Some Like It Hutt was great, no issues! It flowed on the nail really well and was very nicely pigmented. The first coat had a few thin spots, but two coats looked good! I think I did a third coat, which was overkill, but it still looks really nice. I think two coats would have been fine. I didn't have any issues with this; it was easy!

I ended up loving this one. It looked very chic on the nail. Even though it's May, the dark grey base was lovely and the shimmer really livened it up! I also appreciate that even with the dark base, the shimmer didn't get lost. I loved wearing this-- I wore it for only a short time so I'll definitely be picking this up again when the weather gets cooler!

Sassy Pants Polish Saber the Moment

Oh man, running late again! I had a very busy weekend solo parenting and it appears summer has finally arrived in Seattle, so I've been exhausted (and hot)! Today I have the last polish from the Nouveau Geek Star Wars themed box (from *last* May)-- Sassy Pants Polish Saber the Moment. The name gives me a give chuckle-- great pun. Saber the Moment is a shimmery sky metal that almost leans a bit metallic, and is based off the color of Anakin and Luke and now Rey's lightsaber.

Sadly, though the color of the polish is pretty, the formula on this was a real bummer. It was a bit on the sheer side (you can see some visible nail line) and dried to matte/satin finish. Because of the shimmer it had a bit of a metallic feel to it and was a titch streaky. And unfortunately, perhaps due to some thicker coats in attempt to make it more opaque, I got a ton of bubbles. UGH. I was really disappointed with how this looked.

While I don't mind the color, the formula was a huge let down here and I really wasn't happy with how the final product ended up looking, especially with the bubbles. It's possibly I didn't fully mix the polish before applying it, as it had definitely separated a bit while it had been sitting in a drawer, so maybe it would be better on a second wear. I don't know. The bubbles really killed it for me, though perhaps mixing it better and applying thinner coats would have helped the opacity and bubbles. So this was kind of let down, though I will try to revisit it in the future in hopes that I can redeem it!

Native Wars Paints Midiclorian Count

Whoops, I'm running a little late with this today! Rounding out the week, today I have Native War Paints Midiclorian Count to share with you! In the Star Wars universe, midiclorians are what allows a person to sense and use the Force. When this concept was introduced back in The Phantom Menace it ticked a lot of fans off. Personally, I don't have any issue with this at all. As a biologist, it makes sense that there might be some biological reason why some people might be more Force-sensitive than others and also explains why the Force is in all living things. But on to our polish! Midiclorian Count is a silvery nude with a strong blue shimmer and holographic sparkle.

It probably doesn't come as a surprise that this starts out a little bit sheer, given the light base color. At first I was a bit worried, but Midiclorian Count builds up nicely. I used three coats here to get the opacity I wanted. But aside from being a bit sheer, I didn't have many issues with this. It is a bit on thick side, but definitely not unworkable.

This is another great one! I love the shimmer and the holo here! This has a lovely ethereal quality to it. The color is deceiving-- I love thought it was more white at first, but definitely has a strong grey tone to it. In any case, I think it's lovely and unusual-- I don't think I have anything quite like this in my extensive collection!

Happy Friday and I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Glam Polish The Power of the Dark Side

Today I have the other, villainous half of the April Glam Polish duo. Inspired by Darth Vader, one of the most famous (infamous?) villains to grace our screens, Darth Vader. Tall and imposing, you definitely don't want to run afoul of him, especially as he goes around Force-choking people who displease him.

The Power of the Dark Side is described as a "black jelly with a mix of iridescent flakies, rainbow holographic microglitter, shifting iridescent glitter and fine holo microglitter." With the jelly formula, this was a little sheer but built up very nicely. I used three coats for the look I wanted but you might be able to get away with two! The flakies and glitters are packed in there so you don't have to worry about any distribution issues. This was easy to work with! 

I am generally not a fan of very vampy "goth" polishes-- it just isn't my natural aesthetic! That said, I do like how colorful the flakies are in the dark base. While this is definitely dark, it's also fun and has a lot of character, which I like. I don't tend to reach for darker polishes a lot, but I really appreciate how the color doesn't get lost here. Definitely one of my favorite dark side based polishes! 

Glam Polish I'd Just As Soon Kiss A WOOKIEE!

Today I have the first of a set that was just released in April. Every month Glam Polish chooses a hero/villain inspiration and makes a duo of polishes based on the pairing. The pair for April was Princess Leia and Darth Vader. Today I have the polish inspired by Leia, I'd Just As Soon Kiss A WOOKIEE, which is described as a "white scattered holo with strong crimson shimmer, ultra holo glitter and fine holo microglitter." Given that Leia's signature color is white, it's certainly no surprise to see it used here.

The formula of I'd Just As Soon Kiss A WOOKIEE was good-- I was a little nervous because you can never be quite sure which way it will go with a white polish! But this was nicely pigmented, if maybe a touch thick. It does want to be a little streaky, but using a light touch really helps. I used three coats but honestly could have gotten away with two because this was so easy to work with! I am really pleased that I didn't have any issues because I feel like a polish like this could be troublesome!

I loved this! Personally, I feel like this is a polish I could wear all the time. There something soft and elegant about this and it just looked really great on my nails! I just wanted to look at my nails all the time. This was a real winner. I think this is the first Glam Polish I've featured on the blog and I'm hoping we see more Star Wars related polishes from this brand in the future!

Alter Ego Rebel Princess

Today's polish, Alter Ego Rebel Princess was another polish from last May's Nouveau Geek box, inspired by our favorite royal rebel, Princess Leia. When I was initially thinking of this polish, I though it was more of a neutral along the lines of yesterday's Darling Diva Rey, but in reality, Rebel Princess is a "a gold-toned tan polish with holographic shimmer and flashes of pink flecks." This is more colorful than a standard beige neutral, the beautiful bronze-like color of this polish works as an elegant neutral with just the right amount of sparkle-- definitely suitable for a proud, elegant, stubborn rebel princess we know and love.

This had a pretty good formula-- a little sheer but flowed on the nail nicely and wasn't too thick or too thin. It also dried super quickly to a semi-matte finish, so I was able to get my whole manicure done in about 20 minutes! Love that! I did use three coats to make sure it had the opacity I wanted, but application was a breeze!

I know I've said it several times before, but sparkly bronze gold polishes are a favorite of mine, so it shouldn't be a surprise that I like this one a lot! It's a nice twist on a neutral with just a little more pizzazz than you would expect. This is probably the standout polish from the Nouveau Geek box in terms of color and application!

Darling Diva Rey

Technically you have seen this polish before, but I want to showcase it all by itself! This will be a bit of a quickie post because I was traveling for Mother's Day and am under the gun! Today I have Darling Diva Rey, which is of course based on the newest Star Wars heroine, Rey (parentage currently and hotly debated within the Star Wars fandom). Like the planet she hails from and the nondescript clothing she wears, Rey is a beige neutral holographic. I think the holographic finish here is a nice touch-- some may see the color as boring or plain, but the sparkle shows her undaunted spark.

The formula on this was smooth and perfect. It is a lighter color, but nicely pigmented and went on smoothly and easily. No issues to report at all! I believe I used three coats here, just to make sure I had the complete coverage I wanted, though it might be possible to use just two.

This is a lovely neutral! I love a neutral with a bit of flair and this delivers! The formula is a great. I love this, just like I love Rey the character.

Happy Monday! I hope you all had a wonderful weekend!

Pahlish Star Wars Trio

Ok, strap yourselves in for a long, picture heavy post! Today I have a trio of Star Wars themed polishes from Pahlish that were released around Thanksgiving back in 2015, right before The Force Awakens was released. These are all jelly based polishes with a combination of glitters and flakies in them! They are based on various locations from the original trilogy!

First up is Two Moon Sunset. I find the name a little confusing because I think the maker actually means the binary sunset we see on Tatooine. That's my story and I'm sticking to it! Two Moon Sunset has a red base with red and platinum flakes, microglitters and shimmer. I used three coats here but I think two would have been fine. The jelly base is a little thick but this goes on very easily and dries quickly.

Next up is Winds of the Cloud City, based on Bespin from The Empire Strikes Back. This one has a blue jelly base with blue and platinum flakes, microglitter, and shimmer. I used three coats here but probably could have gotten away with two.

And lastly we have The Forest Moon, based on the planet Endor from Return of the Jedi. As the name probably suggests, The Forest Moon is a green based polish with platinum and green flakies and green microglitters. I found that this to be a little thicker and I needed three coats to make sure it was even and opaque.

These are just simply gorgeous and even a year and a half later they still have good formula and are easy to use. I love all of them; it's hard to pick a favorite! If I have to choose, The Forest Moon wins by just the smallest of margins because I love the mix of flakies and glitter-- it has the most depth to it! But these are all great and lovely!

Lou It Yourself Bye, Felucia

I was scrambling to find another polish based off a Star Wars planet and remembered I had Lou It Yourself (now Bluebird Lacquer) Bye, Felucia sitting my stash. This was released towards the end of last year in the lead up to the release of Rogue One. The polishes were all Star Wars themed, of course, but not specifically related to Rogue One.

Bye, Felucia is named after a jungle planet we only see briefly in Revenge of the Sith, when Jedi Master Aalya Secura is gunned down by her clone troopers, but we do see the planet Felucia several times through out the Clone Wars series as it was involved in several conflicts through the war. Bye, Felucia is a deep blue with a strong red copper shimmer running through it. This is nicely pigmented and not too thin or too thick-- the first coat went on a little sheer but two coats covered very nice. In fact, I went to apply my typical third coat and decided that it would be overkill. So only two here!

Welp, this ticks all my buttons. Blue? Check. Shimmer? Check! Holographic? Check! So all around we have a winner. The red shimmer lends a slight purple tone to this polish, but overall it still looks blue. The holo sparkle is subtle, but doesn't disappear. So I love this, full stop. Definitely one of my favorite that I've shown you so far!

Darling Diva Cloud City

In line with The Lando System from yesterday, I have another polish inspired by Bespin: Darling Diva Cloud City. Rather than the colors we see in the movie, this polish captures the feeling of a soaring, wide open sky. Cloud City is a medium sky blue holographic that includes pink shimmer and multicolored iridescent flakies.

Cloud City has a jellyish consistency and was a little thick while also being a little on the sheer side. That said, it goes on pretty easily and is pretty forgiving. I did need to use three coats to make it mostly opaque, though there was still some visible nail line even after three coats. If you really dislike anything sheer, you could definitely layer this, but I think it looks very pretty and delicate alone. 

And for good measure, here's an iPhone photo so you can see the flakies, though the lighting is not great:

This is really pretty! I like how the same inspiration can result in two very different looking polishes. This color is so soft and pretty and I love the combination of finishes-- I think they work pretty well together without competing too much. I would say that the flakies kind of disappear in the shimmer and holographic finishes most of the time, but do come out with the right conditions and give this some added dimension. Lovely!

Nerd Lacquer The Lando System

Wow, this is another oldie! Moving on to another planet, Nerd Lacquer The Lando System is inspired by a line of dialogue in The Empire Strikes Back when Han and Leia are trying to discover a safe port to hide from the Empire. The best option is Bespin, run by Han's old friend and conspirator, Lando Calrissian. 

The Lando System is described as a "soft orchid of a Cloud City sunset with rose, copper, and lavender glitter, plus an /insinuation/ of sky blue shimmer." I did turn the bottle upside down a few days before using this to make sure the glitters were suspended evenly, which I think definitely helped, as I didn't have to do a lot of fishing for glitter. This applied pretty well; I didn't have to do too much dabbing or fishing. I used three coats, but feel that two coats would have been fine. I used one layer of top coat, but feel like I should have added another one because it didn't end up being quit as smooth as I wanted.

I'm generally not a huge fan of crelly glitters, but I think the combination here is pretty unique. The shimmer makes a nice contrast, and I also feel like the colors help to make this unique as well. I was happy with the way it applied, especially after all this time. I think this nicely captures the colors of Cloud City as portrayed in the movie!

Shleee Polish Scarif and Destruction of Jedha

I'm starting out the week with a two-fer! Today I have two newer polishes from Shleee Polish, and they are both inspired by new planets from the newest Star Wars movie, Rogue One! First up is Scarif, which is a tropical planet that housed the plans for the Imperial projects, including the Death Star.

Scarif is a light sky blue creme with a gorgeous gold and pink shimmer. I was really pleased with the formula-- it was nicely pigmented and went on very smoothly and easily. I used three coats here, though you might be able to get away with two depending on your polishing style. It was an easy three coats and went on very quickly. I loved how this looked on my nails and I didn't want to take it off!

Next up, we have the Destruction of Jedha, and sorry, the title of the polish is a slight spoiler if you haven't seen the movie. (Which you should, because it's really good.) The planet of Jedha is place of pilgrimage for those who believe in the Force and also a place where the Empire was mining kyber crystals to power the Death Star. As a polish, the Destruction of Jedha is a green based polish that shifts purple and is packed with multicolor flakies! The formula was good-- this went on easily and the flakies were dispersed well throughout the base. I did used my standard three coats, but probably could have gotten away with two.

I really love both of these! The colors are gorgeous and I love that they have different finishes. Scarif definitely recalls the lush, blue waters of the tropics and Destruction of Jedha shifts between many different colors, capturing the frozen desert. It's hard to pick a favorite, though Scarif holds a slight edge because I love a good blue and the shimmer!

Nerd Lacquer Beggar's Canyon

Another oldie, both in terms of the polish and the planet! Nerd Lacquer Beggar's Canyon is several years old at this point (cough, I just realized I bought this back in 2012, yikes!), and the name is a call back to an area of Tatooine where Luke used to practice his speeder and sharpshooting skills when he was growing up. We also get see this location in The Phantom Menace, when Anakin podraces to win his freedom. Kind of a cool callback, if you're into those sorts of things!

 Beggar's Canyon has an antique bronze gold base and has an assortment of gold, orange, and purple glitters in it. The glitter is pretty well dispersed through the polish and I didn't have to do too much fishing, though I did turn this upside down a few days prior to using it just to make sure that wasn't an issue. This covered well but I did use three coats; I suspect that I probably could have gotten away with two.

Sadly, I can tell the glitter in this polish has faded-- the purple glitter (and the orange and gold ones) used to be much more vibrant-- just searching for other swatches via Google will show you how badly this has faded. I guess that's what happens when you just let these polishes sit around for so long before wearing them! I also don't find this shade of gold very flattering with my skin tone, though it might have looked better if I had worn it ages ago when the glitter stood out a little more. That said, I do find the glitter mix interesting and pretty and wish I had worn this a lot sooner instead of waiting. Ah well! Maybe some day this will get remade, but currently it's been discontinued.

Happy Friday and May the Force be with you!

Supernatural Lacquer In a Galaxy Far, Far Away and a May 4th manicure

It's Star Wars Day!! Taking a quick break from our tour of the GFFA for a special Star Wars Day manicure! I used Supernatural Lacquer In A Galaxy Far, Far Away which is another polish from the Nouveau Geek Star Wars box. I would describe this an inky black holographic with a golden shimmer running throughout. I say "inky" because this definitely has a green undertone to it, sort of like the ink you sometimes see in pens.

In A Galaxy Far, Far Away has a good formula-- not too thick or too thin. It is nicely pigmented and flows on smoothly, though a thin first coat is a tad sheer. It builds up very nicely in two coats, though I threw on my typical third coat for good measure. You could definitely just do two, though. It dries quickly and smoothly-- no issues at all!

And I had to do a May 4thmanicure, though honestly it's not much of one this year. There were some Star Wars inspired  vinyls from Toadarrific Vinyls that also came in the Nouveau Geek Star Wars box and I decided to use the Rebel Alliance starbird vinyls for my manicure.

Simple, but it works! This was actually the first time I've used vinyls (what the what?!) but it was super easy! These came off the sheet pretty easily, and were sticky but not so sticky that you couldn't adjust them if you weren't happy with the initial placement. I used tweezers which was definitely the right call, though my placement could still use a little work. I'm happy with the vinyls and how it turned out, though! What do you think?

May the Fourth be with you!

Shleee Polish Jakku

The next stop on our galactic tour is a newer planet we've been introduced to: Jakku, home of heroine Rey and a mysterious Imperial project (though I still need to read Aftermath: Empire's End to get all the details). It's also another desert planet, similar to Tatooine of the original and prequel trilogies, and offers some foreboding but intriguing visuals as we see endless sand dunes and the graveyard of Imperial and Republic starships.

From starwarsscreencaps.com

Jakku is a mix of bronze glitter and gold mica in a clear (maybe slightly tinted?) base. This mix is definitely more opaque going on than Hoth was, and was pretty much opaque in two coats. I did use my usual three, but I think two would have been fine. I can't remember if I needed to use two layers of top coat with this-- I think just one? I should have taken better notes, as per usual. I didn't have any issues with this at all!

Well, I love these golden bronze polishes so it probably comes as no shock that I absolutely love this. Jakku definitely seemed to be denser than Hoth and covered a lot more easily. The color is just so freaking fantastic and I love it! This was shiny and beautiful and it was really hard for me to take this off because I liked it so much. Definitely a winner in my book!

Leesha's Lacquer Planet of Lost Beauty

Next up on our tour through the Star Wars galaxy we have Leesha's Lacquer Planet of Lost Beauty, inspired by the gone (but not forgotten) planet of Alderaan, which was the home of Princess Leia until it was destroyed by the Death Star in the original Star Wars. This polish was part of last year's Nouveau Geek Star Wars box (which of course I had to have) and is a metallic turquoise with blue/green flakies. Unfortunately, my first bottle of this arrived smashed (noooooooo) but I was able to get a replacement, whew!

Planet of Lost Beauty had an ok formula, though was a little on the thick side and the flakies wanted to migrate to the edge of my nail. The turquoise base is metallic in nature and so a little bit more frustrating to work with, and doesn't look quite as smooth as I would like in my photos, though I don't think it was as noticeable in real life. I ended up using three coats here, though I probably could have gotten away with two.

I have mixed feelings about this polish but basically come down feeling a bit meh about this polish overall. I like the inspiration and I think the polish is pretty, but I am less impressed at it's overall appearance and formula. I mean, it's not bad, but I'm also not 100% in love with it. Ah well, it is still pretty!

Shleee Polish Hoth

Hey all! I'm back! Did you miss me? It's honestly been nice having some time off because I've been busy with a new project-- my very own Star Wars podcast! I was invited to co-host a new podcast called Fans of the Force! It's exciting, if a little nerve-wracking-- but I'm having a lot of fun talking everything Star Wars!

Kicking off my second annual Star Wars month, I'm starting with some polishes based off the planets in a Galaxy Far, Far Away! Today I have Hoth by Shleee Polish. If you have never watched the movies (and you should), Hotlh is home of the Rebel Alliance in The Empire Strikes Back is covered with snow and ice. To capture that, Hoth is a mix of light blue and silver microglitter in a clear base.

Because this is microglitter mix in a clear (or slightly tinted) base, it's not incredibly opaque when first applied. I used three coats and the finish product is mostly opaque, but not totally so. The silver microglitter is super reflective, so it's pretty difficult to notice in real life. This polish is a little thick, but not terribly so. It builds up pretty nicely, though you might want to use two layers of top coat, as the glitter tends to eat it and one coat wasn't quite smooth enough for my liking.

This is a beautiful way to capture the icy coldness of the planet Hoth. I do wish it was a bit more opaque, but in all honesty, Hoth was so reflective that you couldn't really tell. While these aren't my favorite type of polishes, this wasn't too bad. I like that Shleee Polish releases Star Wars polishes on a regular basis, and I will have more to show you later!

Short hiatus

Hey all! As you may (or may not) have noticed, things are pretty quiet around here! Not because I don't want to blog, though I admit I am not feeling particularly motivated right now, but because my real life is pretty busy right now (searching for a new job, as well as working on some new, different projects) and so I have frankly been exhausted and uninspired to blog! I'm still painting my nails, but only twice a week these days. And I still love it all, but as we know, it takes time and energy to polish, photograph, write, edit, and post!

SOOOOOOOOO... what does this mean? Well, I going to take a short hiatus for the month of April and recollect and figure out where my priorities are. I do plan on doing another Star Wars inspired month for May (as it is the 40th anniversary of A New Hope!) and I have a bunch of Star Wars related polishes to share so I didn't want to let that opportunity pass me by. I also plan, as of right now, to attempt some nail art, so hopefully that all works out! I'm excited to do it and have already start putting posts together so I'm ahead of the game.

And after that...? I'm not sure. It will depend on how things are going elsewhere. I suspect that it's going to be a pretty busy summer and there is a distinct possibility I may let my blog lie fallow until fall and football season starts up again (Purple Fridays, yay!). I don't really want to quit but it's hard for me to keep up and post in a timely and regular manner, which I don't love. This is a hobby, but shouldn't feel like a chore, which is does sometimes. I can't promise anything because I don't actually know right now.

Look for a slew of Star Wars related posts in May!

KB Shimmer Big Apple of My Eye

And here's another red! Today's polish is KB Shimmer Big Apple of My Eye. This is one of the upcoming limited edition polishes for Polish Con in NYC. These polishes have been available on a weekly basis, so unfortunately this one is no longer available, though if you are going to Polish Con (or know someone who is) you will be able to snag a bottle there! Personally, I think this is a great way to do it, especially because not everyone has the funds to be able to travel to NYC. Big Apple of My Eye is a candy apply red jelly packed silver holographic microglitter, giving it a more scattered holo effect.

Big Apple of My Eye definitely has a more squishy formula, but was super smooth and easy to apply. I used three coats because there is some visible nail line, but you might be able to get away with two if you want! This does dry down with a little of texture, but that was easily taken care of with some top coat! 

This was a fun polish to wear! I actually decided to wear this for International Women's Day on March 8th-- I didn't strike, but did wear red in solidarity for women's rights. And Big Apple of My Eye was perfect for that! I am really happy with this polish-- no, it's not all that unique or different but it's a classic and I love the chunkier holo glitters and the jellyish consistency. I loved wearing this, a lot.

Happy Thursday!

Different Dimension Whatchu Talkin' 'Bout Willis

This week has a mini red theme. Today's polish was an exclusive for the Polish Con held in Chicago last September. I did not attend, but luckily there were a few bottles of this polish, Whatchu Talkin' 'Bout Willis made available after the con and I managed to snatch one up. Of course, it's been sitting in my untrieds pile for months. But I was feeling the need for some red polish recently and decided wearing this was a priority. Whatchu Talkin' 'Bout Willis is described as a "garnet linear holo with added color shifting glitters and copper glitters."

The formula of Whatchu Talkin' 'Bout Willis is good, which I expected. It was nicely pigmented and flowed on the nail easily; not too thick or too thin. Despite the opacity, I ended up using three coats to make sure it was totally opaque on my long nails. But I would suspect most people could get away with two.

This is super pretty! I love the dark maroon color, and the holographic flash was pretty strong. This is a color that looks good, always. I'm sad I waited so long to wear it, but it was definitely worth it. Glad I grabbed this one!

If you happen to like this, it's actually still available at Color 4 Nails site but I wouldn't wait too long because once it disappears I don't think it will be coming back!

Girly Bits Grandma Got Run Over by a John Deere

Technically this is a polish from Christmas (as you can probably tell by the name) and is the other half of the December COTM duo. From the Girly Bits website, Grandma Got Run Over by a John Deere is described as an "interesting shade of green that sits somewhere between dill pickle and pine. I know, strange description. It's an interesting colour. It has a squishy depth to it, with a strong copper shift, and is swimming with the tiniest holographic sparkles." This is spot-on. There's a lot happening in this polish, and all of it is amazing and awesome! The copper shift compliments the other half of this duo and it's a fun twist on a traditional Christmas color (deep green).

Grandma Got Run Over by a John Deere had a good formula; a little thick but in a good way. The first coat was a little sheer due it's jelly-like consistency, but the second coat was almost opaque. I added a third coat for good measure because you know me-- I'm like that! 

My indoor photos didn't capture the green as well, so I snapped some outside shots with my phone:

See.how.pretty!! One of my kids' swim teachers actually complimented me on this! I love that. And she's not wrong, as this polish is really unique and beautiful. Even though green has never been my favorite polish color, I have really fallen in love with shifty green duochromes and this polish definitely falls into that category. It's complicated and gorgeous and I would seriously buy a whole range of polishes like this. 

Happy St Patrick's Day! Any fun plans for the weekend? A friend of mine is visiting from California and we are going to shop and see the Beauty and the Beast remake. I hope it's good!