Strea Cende by Candeo Colors

Ladies and Gentleman, may I present one of the best nude colors I've ever seen.  The first set of photos were taken outside in cloudy weather.  I must say, the color is far more pink in these photos than it actually is in person; the second set of photos is fairly color accurate.


Outside cloudy weather - somewhat pinker than in person

Indoors under fluorescent lighting - closely color accurate

Polish

1 coat CND Stickey (base)

2 coat Strea Cende

1 coat Seche Vite (top)

Description

This polish is a fleshy tan color which happens to be particularly nude looking with my skin tone.  The base is milky and sheer in order to show off the glitter that is contained within. The glitter is comprised of gold and copper and in sunlight flashes a bit holographic to me.  As noted above, I believe the indoor pictures are fairly color accurate.  My picture taking skills have degraded and the outdoor photos show the polish as being more pink than it actually is.

Thoughts

I absolutely love this polish.  This is the second time I've worn it and as we all know, wearing a polish multiple times is a sign of love when one is talking to a polish collector.  The first time this was selected for me (I enjoy having other people pick from a small group of polishes) I was extremely blase about putting it on.  However, once it was on the nail I realized what a perfect nude it is but with none of the boring looks that a cream polish has.  Glitter!  Sparkle!  Holo!  And all while looking nude on my nails.  I love the crap out of this. 

Be forewarned, though, this is a teeny bit goopy.  This is only two coats but I had to work harder than normal in order to keep it from becoming far too thick or it would never have dried in a timely manner.   Also, due to the light color of the base it could be easy to end up with uneven color.  Not quite streaks but not completely even, either.  Lastly, this is sheer and if that is a problem for you, the best recommendation would be to pair it with a nude cream polish as underwear (as a base). 

I am definitely keeping this one handy, it is demure enough to wear to a fairly formal event, in my opinion, but still has a bit of flash and sparkle to keep one happy.  I am also finding it is an excellent cleanser after weeks and weeks of bright, saturated and holo colors.

Availability
As of the time of this writing, Strea Cende can be purchase for $11.00 from Llarowe.com.

Orchid by Candeo Colors

Even though I still adore holographic finishes flashing rainbows on my nails, I have also grown to appreciate the layered look a jelly polish chock full of glitters can afford.  

Polish
1 coat CND Stickey (base)
3 coat Orchid by Candeo Colors
1 coat Seche Vite (top)

Description:  Llarowe, the vendor I picked this up from, describes this as "a beautiful deep purple/magenta shimmery base packed full of large holo hexes and smaller copper hexes in the shimmery base."  I'll be honest, I never noticed the smaller copper hexes and I feel there is an undercurrent of raspberry to the color.  My pictures are in brilliant sunlight and make it appear much more transparent and much lighter than it really is.  For a pretty spot on color accurate representation I suggest checking out this post at Let Them Have Polish.

Thoughts:  This is not as transparent as my pictures would have you believe.  This is definitely a sheer jelly finish and could always benefit from undies of a similar color but I am actually ok with the hint of transparency that comes with this type of polish.  With the multiple layers I have awesome depth to the glitter, I love the way some of them are more hidden at the bottom while others are floating near the surface and glinting fiercely in the light.  The wear is pretty good, this is actually nearly three days of wear and I only have minor tip wear showing. The color is juicy and delicious and makes me think of a sparkly jelly donut.  This is the second time I've worn this polish (any time more than once means I like it quite a bit!) and I can definitely see myself wearing it again.

Availability:  as of the time of this writing this can be purchased for $11.00 from Llarowe.com, a favored vendor among indie nail aficionados and one of my all time favorites.

I may go missing for a few weeks.

This isn't laziness or any of the past reasons that I've stopped posting.  No, this time I am going to be moving and while I most likely will still make time to do my face and nails, there will be less time to work on the pictures and writing.  I still have so much to pack, someone needs to thump me hard in the head for not being further along.  So there you have it.  Soon I'll be in my new place and able to set up my polish station and get a vanity set up for my makeup.  Hopefully then I will become a more consistent poster!  I may drop in and do a post or two before a few weeks are up but I don't really expect it to happen.  But there you have it, I'm just going to be really busy with other things.


Cheers!

Coffee Love lacquer by Layla

I'm getting closer to my dream brown holo but I'm not quite there.  But look at these pics!  It is drool time.

In Sunlight

Outdoors, in shade

Indoors, fluorescent lighting

Bottle shots

MACRO time!  Please click on a picture below for a larger view.

Polish

1 coat Aqua Base by Nfu Oh

2 coat Coffee Love by Layla

Description - According to NinjaPolish, from whom I purchased this polish, this is simply a brown holo.  But really, it's so much more than that!  I definitely feel this is a brown base but I also see this leaning towards a taupe.  But then, I am pretty terrible with defining colors (great for someone who describes them to the public on a blog, eh?) but I do feel the most accurate base pictures are those in the shade.  Perhaps the color is a little deeper but not by much, I think.  Also, while this is a bit cool toned and I am a warm toned kind of person....well, it didn't matter to me in the least.  Mmmm....brown holo.

Thoughts - Well, I've been on the market for a good deep brown holo for some time.  A few months at least.  I own Brown Sparkle by Glitter Gal which is the perfect brown--but it isn't linear.  Boo.  I've purchased a brown holo from Enchanted Polish and will purchase Belgian Chocolate by Glitter Gal soon but until a true dark brown linear holo comes my way, this will sate my hunger.  It's all a Layla has been and should be.  Smooth creamy application over an aqua base.  Saturated pigmentation that rarely calls for more than two coats, mostly no more than one.  A flatish and somewhat wider than normal brush that isn't TOO wide, making application simple and quick, using few brush strokes.  A smooth linear holo finish that is to. die. for.  Sure, it's not an ChG OMG polish but we didn't all have a polish monkey on our backs back then.  Heh!  But truly, even though I say it about most holos, I am in love.  I'd definitely buy this again if I were to use it all up.

Availability - I purchased mine from NinjaPolish for $15.50 + shipping/handling.  I have seen this for sale on Harlow & Co's website and it may be available from other vendors as well.  This is an Italian polish so you can order straight from the manufacturer but you will pay a bit extra for international shipping/handling.

Linky Links - As I have recently been doing, please check out The Holo Queen or Picchi's Nails for their excellent swatches.

Emerald Divine lacquer by Layla

Mmm....back to holo goodness and such a beautiful green holo it is!

In Sunlight

Outdoors, no Sunlight

Indoors, Fluorescent Lighting

Bottle Shot(s)

MACROS!  Please click a pic below for larger view:

Sun

Shade

Polish

1 coat Aqua Base by Nfu Oh

3 coat Emerald Divine by Layla

Description - The vendor I purchased this from describes this as a forest green holo polish.  I don't quite agree with that description; to me, forest green is dark and rich while this is far lighter.  It's still the closest to an emerald green that I have, though.  I feel the sunlit macro photo is the most color accurate and it makes me happy just to look at.

Thoughts - Loooooooooove this!  Even if it doesn't exactly hit my desired shade of green this is the absolute closest I've ever seen and I'm full of joy over that.  Toss in the fact that this is a Layla holo, meaning that the rainbow/spectrum of color is in tight smooth bands and I'm nearly over the moon.  The application of this was dreamy but please note, I used an aqua base to assist in avoiding patchy spots.  This time I also buffed my nails so I don't have any ridges showing up, yay!  The brush on Layla polishes is one of the wider and flatter brushes, the kind I prefer, but it's not so wide it goes off the sides of my nail nor is it so floppy I have difficulty with spreading the polish.  

The pigmentation on this one is spectacular.  While this is three thin coats I could have EASILY gone with two thin coats or even one thicker coat.  It was force of habit that drove me to two coats and curiosity as to how deep the color would become t hat prompted the third.  No top coat as I didn't want to dull the rainbow so it's not as shiny as it could be.  However, even without a fast-dry TC I was able to do all my normal activities within 10 or 15 minutes.  I always wait a few extra minutes just to be safe.  To sum it all up, if you like green and you are a fan of holo polishes, go and buy this where you can find it! 

Availability - I purchased mine from Ninja Polish for $15.50; the site is currently sold out of Emerald Divine but you have the option of signing up for an e-mail notification when they restock.

Linky Links - for further pictures please see Confessions of a Sarcastic Mom and The Holo Queen (one of my favorite blogs, for the record).