Nails Inc. – Baker Street

Holy crap. Just take a look at this one.

Nails Inc.’s Baker Street. I’ve actually been eyeing this particular polish for months now, but have never quite gotten around to buying it. Thank goodness I haven’t, because one of my best friends just came back from Europe and got this for my birthday! :)

While I was lusting over this colour though, I bought a Sally Hansen Hard as Nails Xtreme Wear polish in Pacific Blue, which looks like Baker Street‘s lighter cousin. It’s not a bad choice for those of you on a budget who want that intense cobalt colour. Fair warning, though - Pacific Blue is probably the most disgusting smelling polish I’ve ever used.

Back to the star of this post, Baker Street (thankfully it smells just like your average polish). Check out that bejeweled cap! How fantastic is that? And the colour, of course – the most beautiful cobalt blue I’ve set my eyes on. It leans the tiniest little bit to the purple side, but I would in no way describe this shade as anything other than pure cobalt blue. Amazing, eye-searingly bright, opaque colour; applied brilliantly in two even coats. LOVE.

Color Club – Magnetic Force

I’ve finally found a magnetic polish that didn’t break the bank and actually works!

It’s Color Club’s Magnetic Force. Doesn’t it mesmerize you? I was very happy with the overall look and the ease of use. I started off with one coat of the polish on all ten fingers without using the magnet, which is located in the removable cap (the polish by itself is a frosty, almost chrome purple-y taupe). I then painted each finger one at a time with a second coat, followed by the magnet (which turned parts of the polish into a flat dark brown). The trick is to hold the magnet steady and as close to the nail as possible without actually touching it, and to use a thin enough layer so that globs of polish won’t be attracted to the magnet.

A few months ago I received two Essence magnetic polishes for my birthday, but the magnetic effect did not work well at all – a combination between the crappy polish and the ineffective magnet. I was about to write off magnetic polishes until I tried this one – so glad the Color Club one works delightfully! Found at Winners for $6.99CAD, it’s also the least expensive magnetic nail polish I’ve seen (other typically go for around $12 a pop).

American Apparel – The Valley

I love American Apparel polishes. They come in all kinds of beautiful colours – plenty of work-appropriate neutrals, but also lots of quirky brights. I’ve tried around seven of them, and all of them have stellar formulas that go on nearly opaque in just one coat. Best of all, the main line consists of all creme finish polishes (my favourite finish)!

American Apparel’s The Valley is a flat light-medium robin egg blue creme, and is no different from the other AA polishes. Gorgeous formula, easy application, exceptional finish and colour. The photo makes it look like it leans slightly turquoise, but I would say it’s a true blue. It’s bright, but not in-your-face obnoxious.

Some people complain that the AA formula is a touch on the thick side, but as long as you’re careful with the brush by removing all of the excess polish, including the polish collecting on the stem of the brush (there is a lot on there), you’ll be fine. A few drops of nail polish thinner should also help.

Illamasqua – Jo’mina

Sorry for the hiatus! Finals season hit and I barely found time to put on a fresh coat of polish, let alone photograph and blog about it. I’m back now to share a polish I bought in celebration of finishing all my undergrad exams!

Illasmaqua’s Jo’mina. This is a colour you have to see in real life to appreciate – I haven’t seen anything like this by another brand. It’s a very bright warm purple creme. It’s nearly neon and has the quality of purple highlighter. In fact, I held up my fingers to a purple highlighter I have and it is the exact same colour. Jo’mina is very opaque (i.e. not at all a jelly, unlike American Apparel’s Neon Violet – review here - full disclosure though, Neon Violet is a completely different colour) and goes on near-flawlessly in one coat. I used two coats, mostly out of habit, and to go over some tiny patchy bits.

I salivate over this. I can’t stop looking at my fingers. I’m constantly surprised by how gosh darn BRIGHT this is. I mean, as bright as it can get for a light-medium purple creme. You need this. Worth the $18CAD, I would say, as this is a colour I see myself going back to time and time again, especially for the warmer months.

On a somewhat unrelated note, who else is peeved that we Vancouverites only get Illamasqua nail varnishes here? I’m waiting with bated breath for the full makeup range to arrive at some point. Fingers crossed!

Essie – California Coral

I’m a huge fan of coral. If I had to choose one colour to wear for the rest of my life, I think this would be it. It’s the perfect mix of orange, pink, and red to make such a happy and summer-y hue. I probably own too many coral polishes for one girl (actually, you could cross out the word “coral” and this sentence would still be valid).

Essie’s California Coral. One of the first corals I’ve owned, and one of my favourites. A lot of other ones tend to be too orange or pink. This one has a nice mix of everything, and it’s not so saturated or dark that it veers into one colour or another. It has kind of a strange formula – a creme-jelly hybrid? If you apply sloppily, the colour can appear patchy and darker in some areas. Best to use one thin coat followed with a thicker one to avoid that.

Chanel – June

Has the weather been treating you well, wherever you are? It’s slowly getting warmer here in Vancouver, and now that spring’s officially arrived, I think it’s time to break out the appropriate colours :)

Chanel’s Le Vernis in June. I’ve been incredibly drawn to these kinds of pale peachy colours ever since using Essie’s A Crewed Interest (review here). This one is more of a pale orange, with the slightest drop of pink in there. Reminds me of a creamsicle! I’ve gotten a tan over my Reading Break, and this colour just serves to make my hands look even more sunkissed. Love.

Application was easy. Not the best, as it is a tiny bit sheer – I needed three coats to even everything out and achieve my desired opacity.

St Patty’s Day Mani: Revlon – Posh

Hope everyone has something fun planned for St Patrick’s Day! If you don’t already have a manicure planned for the occasion (as normal people typically do…bahaha), here’s one to consider!

Revlon’s Posh! A fabulous creamy and bright medium grass green. It doesn’t lean particularly to the yellow or blue side. As a comparison, it’s around the same deepness as OPI’s Jade is the New Black (review here), but considerably less blue-tinged. Not much to say about this, except that the formula was absolutely divine – opaque in one coat (two shown here just to smooth everything out), and the brush was easy to work with. A perfect St Patty’s Day colour if I do say so myself!

Polish for Business Nerds: Essie – A Crewed Interest

I want to be the person who names nail polish for a living. It’s so fun! This one has a BUSINESS PUN in it. As an aspiring accountant, there was no doubt that I would own this.

Essie’s A Crewed Interest, from the Spring 2012 “Navigate Her” collection (ha, get it? Accrued interest?)! It’s a light, saturated peach pastel creme. Let me just get one thing clear: I bought this mostly because of the name. I’m not usually drawn to pastels.

But I do love how the colour looks on me! Gorgeous, and makes my hands look extremely tan. The colour really pops and is incredibly pretty for spring.

I had some formula issues, as it’s rather chalky and streaky – I needed to apply three coats very gingerly. I feel like the extra effort was worth it, though. I mean, the name alone! Yes, I am obviously quite easily amused.

Essie – Lapiz of Luxury

Two midterms and a load of homework later, it’s finally FRIDAY which means…Reading Break starts! A full week of unadulterated slacking off. This one will certainly be memorable because I’m heading to the Bahamas on a cruise! :D I’m thinking this colour will be fitting for the occasion.

Essie’s Lapiz of Luxury! This is from their 2010 Resort collection. I don’t know how else to describe this but a clean, light-medium cornflower blue creme. It reminds me of one of the many shades of blue you find in Caribbean waters. It’s GORGEOUS. I had this on for a full week and didn’t even remove it because I was bored of it. It’s that gorgeous. I also got tons of compliments on the colour from complete strangers!

Application is typical Essie – dreamy creamy ease (why yes, I do appreciate rhyme and assonance, how did you know?). And because I had this on for so long, I can attest to the long wear of this particular polish. A full week and not a chip in sight. The perfect spring colour!

Essie – Velvet Voyeur

Another one of my birthday polishes…yes, it took me 6 months to get around to blogging it. Don’t judge me. And thanks to Alison for this one! :)

Essie’s Velvet Voyeur. I couldn’t ask for more in a vampy polish – this is the ideal mix of deep purple, burgundy, and brown. It applies somewhat streaky in the first coat (as most polishes do, it’s just more obvious with an ultra dark colour), but a second coat fixes everything. It also dries to a gloriously glossy finish, although I did follow with a top coat (out of habit more than anything).

I really don’t have else to say about it. It’s perfect!