ILNP Swatches and Review - Fall Semester, Birefringence (H), Reminisce (H), Atlantis, Electric Carnival

Hello to all of my awesome readers!

Today's post is going to be on the long side (for me). I've got an amazing brand, ILNP (or I Love Nail Polish), to show you. This is one of the brands that got me completely hooked on indie polishes in the first place. When I first discovered their website, I seriously had to keep myself from purchasing every polish they had listed. It's an addiction, I tell ya! In today's post, I'm going to showcase several of their polishes, from a few of the different collections they offer, so you can get an idea of what the brand is all about. Enjoy ;) 

First I want to show everyone what their packaging looks like because I think it's just another reason why I love them so. I don't know what it is about these little black boxes, but they're so sophisticated and awesome to me and it makes me happy every time one arrives.

The first polish I have to show you is from the Fall Collection 2014, called Fall Semester. It's described as "a wonderfully deep and sultry teal holographic nail polish that's beautiful indoors and spectacular in the sunlight." This one has a fantastic formula! Fall Semester, like every other holographic ILNP I own, dries really quickly (a must with a 2 year old running amock). It was perfection in two easy coats, but I added a third for depth (though I honestly don't think it was needed). It's described as a holo, but it's definitely on the more subtle side. So if you prefer a super strong in your face holo, this might not be the one for you, but it is stunning none the less. 

 Natural Light

Shade

Next up is Birefringence (H), my personal favorite. In fact, this polish is easily in my top 3 favorite nail polishes of all time. These pictures don't even do it justice. It is freaking STUNNING in person! If you pick up one polish from ILNP in your entire life, make it this one! ;) I want to stare at my nails all day when I have Birefringence on. Anyways.... Here's ILNP's description: "Birefringence (H) shifts through an array of incredible blues, purples, reds, oranges, yellows, and even subtle greens! On top of that, you'll love the stunningly crisp rainbow sparkle." Like the others, perfect formula. This is 2 coats with top coat. 

 Natural Sunlight

 Shade

Flash (BAM!)

Reminisce (H), which is a holographic ultra chrome similar to Birefringence (H), is next. Same story of a perfect formula: 2 coats, quick drying, gorgeous. ILNP's description: "Reminisce (H) shifts from hues of stunning greens to refreshingly cool blues (you may even catch subtle hints of gold occasionally) depending on the angle of your fingertips and the type of lighting you’re under." Another must have in my book.

 Natural Light

 Flash

Shade

Next up is one of the two Ultra Chrome Flakies I have for you today: Atlantis. This one is described as "magically travels through hues of blue, orange, purple, and red. The colors are so vibrant they almost appear as if they're glowing. A personal favorite!" As a "flakie" polish, this one can be applied either as a topper or directly to the nail. However, to get it completely opaque on it's own will take about 3-4 coats. It took 3 coats for me to get them to the point you see in the photo. It was not difficult to work with AT ALL and the flakes lay perfectly flat on the nail. This is 3 coats with top coat. The Ultra Chrome Flakies don't last quite as long on me as the other polishes from ILNP, but still have a pretty good wear time (especially for a flakie polish). 

Natural Sunlight

Last up is the other Ultra Chrome Flakie, Electric Carnival. This is my other favorite of all the ILNP's I've tried thus far. It's absolutely gorgeous and so unique. It has the exact same formula as Atlantis. It lasts longer if applied over another polish, but still lasts a fair amount of time on it's own. ILNP's description of Electric Carnival: "Electric Carnival is a must have! This Ultra Chrome Flakie nail polish is simply breathtaking! The primary colors of Electric Carnival are red, pink, gold, and green. You without a doubt will catch even more colors in different lighting so be prepared for pleasant surprises! Don't miss out on this one!" - I couldn't agree more ;)

 3 coats - Natural Light

 3 coats - Shade

 1 coat over Reminisce (H) - Shade

1 coat over Reminisce (H) - Natural Light

That's all I have for today but I will definitely be showing you more ILNP's in the future (I've actually got 4 in my "To Swatch" drawer right now), so I hope you enjoyed today's post! ILNP Nail Polish can be purchased through their website and also through their etsy shop for $10 - $12.50 per polish. What do you think of ILNP? Have any favorites? Are you eyeing up the Flakies or the Ultra Chromes?

<3 Chrystal

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Lynnderella Friday - Tanzanite Truth

Ciao Bellas!

It's another Lynderella Friday! Because who doesn't want to end the week on a good note ;) Today I have a GORGEOUS polish from Lynnderella's Talismans and Birthstones collection, Tanzanite Truth. Just like last week's polish, this one is part of the "core collection" so it's easier to get a hold of than some of the Limited Editions. This one is for the month of December and is described as "blue violet, purple and blue glitters in a multi-shimmered clear base." Sounds stunning, right? Onto the photos so you can see for yourselves!

This is one coat of Tanzanite Truth dabbed over Enchanted Polish's Vampire's Suck (a gorgeous deep brown holo that will be up on the blog soon). But honestly, the coverage on this one is so good, you can hardly see the base polish anyways. I had no issues with the formula on this one and had EXCELLENT coverage (as you can see ;) ).

 Natural Sunlight

 Indirect Sunlight/Shade

Flash

For good measure, I also swatched it over Essie's Sand Tropez. You can see that with lighter colors, the base polish comes through much clearer. 

Lynnderella polishes are available through both their Storenvy shop and also through their eBay store, however I believe this specific polish is only listed on Storenvy. It retails for $18. 

So what do you think of this week's Lynnderella? Are there any Lynn's on your wishlist at the moment? I know I've got a few ;)

Have a great weekend!

<3 Chrystal

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KBShimmer Shattered Heart & U Rock My Heart Swatches and Review

Bonjour les filles (et les garcons)!
Today I have two nail polishes from the indie brand, KBShimmer. I love this company! Not just because they have an amazing array of polishes, in many different colors and finishes, but also because they have a fantastic price point. In the world of indie nail polish, it can be hard to find a polish that retails for less than $10, while still maintaining excellent quality and individuality, but KBShimmer certainly does just that. Onto the swatches!

First up is a glitter top coat called U Rock My Heart. It is described by KBShimmer as "Neon pink glitters in hex and star shapes almost glow, while black hearts, hexes, stars and shreds add an edgy look to this top coat.  Layer over almost any color for a fun look." I did one coat dabbed over China Glaze Boho Blues. I did need to do a little fishing for some of the bigger heart glitters but it was still pretty easy to get them. I was happy with the glitter coverage I got even without the heart glitters, but wanted to showcase them in my swatches. Overall this one had a good formula and I'd recommend it for anyone looking for a Heart Glitter topcoat. 

 Natural Sunlight

 Shade

Flash

Next up is Shattered Heart. Similarly to U Rock My Heart, this one also has black heart glitters. But unlike the previous polish it is a Crelly, so it can be worn alone. Shattered Heart is described on the KBShimmer website as "a bright neon pink, this polish is filled with black bars, black hexes in two sizes, and black “shattered” shreds. Black hearts complete this sassy polish." This one took just two coats for the swatches below. It had a great formula with no streaking issues. Shattered Heart does dry matte like most neons so it needed a top coat to get the shine you see in the photos. I did need to hand place the larger glitters to get them evenly applied, but it was pretty easy to do and there were plenty of each glitter type in the bottle that coverage wasn't an issue. This one also had great wear time, 4 days, when most polishes usually chip the next day for me. I really loved this polish and highly recommend it :)

 Shade

KBShimmer is available through several outlets here in the US: their website, their etsy shop, and I believe they may also be available through Amazon now, but don't quote me on that. For the international folks, you can purchase these polishes from Harlow & Co. They retail for $8.75 to $9.75. 

So what do you think? Any KBShimmer polishes on your wishlist?

If you have any questions or comments, feel free to contact me :) I hope everyone is having an excellent week so far and I hope to hear some comments from you!

<3 Chrystal

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Lynnderella Friday (on a Tuesday ;) ) - Love Like

Hola Muchachas(chos)! I am so so so sorry for the delay in posting. I promise this isn't the norm for me. It's been a heck of a few weeks, to say the least. Anyways, from this point on, I intend to post at least twice a week and if I know that there will be a break in posting, I will let you all know ahead of time. So since I missed Lynnderella Friday, I'm going to show you a different beautiful Lynn today! And guess what?! It's part of the core collection, so you can easily get a hold of this one :)

First I have to mention that I had a FANTASTIC customer service experience with this company a few weeks ago. I had ordered a special edition through their ebay store and received my tracking number almost immediately. I had also ordered a couple other polishes within the same few days and noticed that the shipping number on this one and two others was the same. I figured they had just shipped them all together and thought nothing of it. The day of their arrival came and only the two polishes that were ordered at the same time showed up, but not the third that was purchased separately (you still followin' this?). I contacted them through their ebay shop and received an email back within an hour or two from Paul (who is awesome, by the way!). He asked me to keep an eye out for it over the next few days but if I didn't receive it by about the end of the week to let him know. It didn't show so I contacted him and he not only offered to replace my original purchase but also offered me a free polish from the Lynnderella core collection for my inconvenience. I'd say that's a perfect example of going above and beyond for your customers. :)

Today I have Lynnderella's Love Like or as my bottle says, Like Love. This one is described as "assorted neon pink, red, purple and iridescent glitters in a violet-shimmered clear base." This one is jam packed with glitter and it's not hard to get tons of glitter coverage in one coat. With this glitter, and with really any glitter polish, it's best to "dab" it on rather than paint it on like a normal polish. However, I didn't find this one difficult to work with at all. I highly recommend this one if you're like me and love heart glitters! 

 Shade

Natural Sunlight

Don't mind my "dying Easter eggs with a 2 year old" stained thumb. Both photos show one coat dabbed over Orly's Witch's Blue with top coat. I didn't have a problem with the glitters laying flat in this one, but I always use topcoat for the shine either way. If you're interested in purchasing Love Like or any other Lynnderella purchases, they are available through both their ebay shop and through their relatively new storenvy store. So what do you think? Are you a fan of heart glitters like me? Or do you think they should be reserved for only Valentines day alone? :P 

I'm planning to get at least 2 more posts up this week that have been backlogged from my missing week so be on the lookout for those :)

<3 Chrystal

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Superchic Lacquers Restock(!!) and New Website News

Hi loves. I've got some exciting news! Wonder Beauty Products announced on their Facebook page that they will be restocking Superchic Lacquer's Serendipity collection (and possibly the other collections) on Monday, April 6th at 4 PM PST! They also have a new website to purchase these beauties: http://www.superchiclacquer.com/. In case you forgot the neon pastel awesomeness ;) :

So be sure to head over to their website on Monday the 6th at 4 PM PST if you'd like to purchase either of these gorgeous polishes (along with any of their other fantastic products - you honestly can't go wrong). 

<3 Chrystal

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Lynnderella Swatch Friday - She Always Pinks of Blue

Hello loves! So I'm thinking of beginning a series called Lynnderella Swatch Fridays, beginning today. I've got a few lined up, so depending on availability, we'll see how long this series lasts ;). For now, I hope you enjoy these drool worthy polishes for what they are (absolute glitter perfection in a bottle)!

Today I have a polish called She Always Pinks In Blue. This miiiight be one of my all time favorite polishes EVER. It's so beautiful, I honestly can't get over it! It's the perfect mix of blue and pink. This one is described as "Medium cyan and subtle holographic microglitter with matching accents as well as pink and multishimmer in a clear base or what could be a sky blue pink." This is one coat over Elle "Seaside Chic" plus top coat. For your viewing pleasure: 

 Sunlight

Shade

Flash

There you have it! One of my absolute favorites :) She Always Pinks of Blue is one of Lynnderella's Limited Edition polishes. Keep an eye on Lynnderella's ebay store if you're interested in purchasing this one. I've noticed them popping up via auction a few times lately. If you're interested in seeing more Lynnderella nail polishes in the future (or posts similar to this), please be sure to let me know by liking this post/following the blog. Hope you all have a great weekend!

<3 Chrystal

P.S Stay tuned for those ILNP's I promised as well as a few KB Shimmer swatches and review :) 

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