ABC Challenge; Z is for Zoya

Hi ladies! As usual, I completely forgot to post this earlier, because I got caught up in catching up with my shows on line! Whoops. Anyway, here is THE FINAL POST!! I can't believe it, I've reached the end and have been able to find a brand for each letter of the alphabet. Horray! I hope you've all enjoyed this challenge and have hopefully been introduced to some brands you were otherwise unaware of.

Now, for the final time in the ABC Challenge, let's get into the swatches!

Jem is a gorgeous deep Purple with Red and Gold duo chrome flakes. I tried to capture the best shot of Jem I could inside my light box and these were the best of the bunch. I applied 2 coats of Jem without a top coat for the photos. 

Twila is a densely packed Blue glitter with Holographic bar glitter. I wanted to see how Twila performed on her own without the aid of underwear and I was impressed, this is 2 coats of Twila on her own, I started with a thinnish layer then added a thick coat on top. I applied a top coat to smooth out the glitter and add a bit of shine.

So there you have it, the final instalment of the ABC Challenge, I'd like to say a quick thank you to Jo from Lacquers of Kasterborous for helping me out by sending a couple of Zoya polishes, since I only had one myself. I'd also like to thank Debbie from The Crumpet for all her help with various letters I was lacking, many of these wouldn't have been possible without her.

What has been your favourite letter out of the challenge and which brands were you able to discover throughout? I'd love to hear from you all. For the final time, all 26 letters of the ABC Challenge can now be found here.

Stay tuned tomorrow to see my new and hopefully regular 'End of the month hauls' where I will show you what I have been buying throughout the month.

ABC Challenge; Y is for Yes Love

Hi ladies! I only have one swatch to show you in this post, the reason being these are probably the worst polishes I have ever used, now I can't say this applies to all polishes from this brand, but the two I bough for this challenge were awful. I found both needed at least 4 coats to even slightly cover up the nail line and the second polish I was swatching for this post didn't even make it to the photo stage, I got so angry at how bad it applied I just took it off.

I found both polishes to contain little lumps and flakes of dried polish, but until today these were unopened, so that blows my mind, unless they were tampered with/used beforehand. They also streaked like nobodies business, it took 4 coats to tame the streaks enough so that a top coat would smooth them out but even then they dried to a really weird texture full of grooves and lumps. I even thought about completely skipping this post completely, but it's the penultimate entry for the ABC Challenge and I've made it this far that I wasn't going to just give up now, so let's get into the swatch of the one polish I have to show you.

#8 is a bright, almost neon Purple with Pink undertones. As I mentioned above, the formula was terrible and I needed 4 coats of #8 to get to a good enough opacity, even then you can still see my Nail line...I applied a top coat to try and smooth out ridges and imperfections.

As you can see, I'm not happy with this polish, and although it only cost me 99p, there's so many alternative cheaper brands out there that aren't even half as bad as this. Unfortunately, I didn't want to splurge on Yves Saint Laurent polishes just for the sake of a challenge. Anyhoo, stay tuned for the final post of the ABC Challenge series coming later this afternoon! As always, you can click here for all previous ABC Challenge posts!

ABC Challenge; X is for XOXO Nails

Hi ladies! It's that time of night in which I show the second instalment of the ABC Challenge for the day. This time I have an indie brand that goes by the name XOXO Nails. This was another brand I stumbled upon by accident whilst looking around for missing letters. I thought I would have to skip X all together, but as you can see, I found one!

I have 2 XOXO Nails polishes to show you this evening, so let's get into them!

Halloween Party is a clear base with various sized and shaped Orange, Purple, Green and Black glitter. This polish instantly reminds me of witches, the colour combination is one often found in children's Halloween costumes, so the name fits perfectly! I applied 2 coats of Halloween Party over OPI - My Boyfriend Scales Walls for the photos above without a top coat.

Fun-fetti is a clear base packed full of large White square glitter as well as smaller White, Pink, Red, Blue, Purple, Pink and Green square glitter. I looove this polish! It literally looks like a party on my nails. I did have to do a lot of manipulating to get the glitter onto the nail evenly and had to fish for the large White squares. This is 2 coats of Fun-fetti over W7 - Black without a top coat.

I can't believe there's only 2 letters to go until I finish the challenge, this month has gone by pretty quickly. As always, click here to see all previous ABC Challenge posts! Which letter has been your favourite out of all the challenge posts?

ABC Challenge; W is for W7

Hi ladies! We're back to regular scheduling with the return of the ABC Challenge. Today I have both W & X to show you, but as always we'll start off with W. I wasn't sure if this post was going to go up today, simply because I've pulled a muscle in my shoulder over the weekend and it hurts to hold a bottle in certain positions and the mass swatching I did yesterday didn't help at all.

For W I have a couple polishes from W7 which were immediately sought after when they were released...Why? Because they're extremely similar to Nails Inc Sprinkles polishes but for 10th the cost! These have been sitting in my Helmer for the best part of 6 months and this is the first time I've broken them out, ridiculous right?!

Mosaic is a milky Turquoise base packed with circular Dark Blue, Yellow and Gold glitter. It really does live up to it's name, right!? I applied 3 coats of Mosaic for the photos above without a top coat.

Lava Flow is a milky White base packed with circular Red & Black glitter. I applied 3 coats of Lava Flow for the photos above.

I was surprised by just how many W brands there were to choose from, well okay not LOADS but there was a good selection. Of course, I couldn't keep these locked up forever, so W7 was a no brainer. What brand would you have chosen to represent W? Look out for X coming later today!

ABC Challenge; V is for Vivo

Hi ladies! Okay, I'll admit....it kinda slipped my mind to get this post written, so it's now 10:30pm and I've finally remembered. This time I want to share V with you, I struggled SO hard trying to think of a brand beginning with V that was accessible, reasonably inexpensive and wouldn't have me pulling teeth until it arrived. I was completely at a loss and almost gave up the search, when I decided to go on a late night trip to our local 24hr Tesco store and was just browsing down the cosmetics isle, when I spotted Vivo Cosmetics!! Which is actually Tesco's own brand of cosmetics, needless to say I grabbed a couple - for £1 nonetheless! There wasn't a huge range of colours, so I just grabbed the two closest to me...shall we see the swatches?

Take Time is a Cyan Blue cream. The formula wasn't too great on either Vivo polishes, I found them to be very streaky and also started to crack as the first coat dried. I ended up having to apply 3 coats for the photos, to even everything out. These are without a top coat.

Looking Glass is a Brown-toned, Deep Plum almost jelly finish creme. I say it's almost a Jelly because it's definitely not as 'squishy' as some jellys, but it's also a lot glossier than some creme finishes. There are still some slight patching visible on the photos, but at this point (after swatching 10+ polishes) I couldn't wait to be out of the 'colder than the artic' room I was in, so I decided it was good enough...Call me a bad blogger if you will. The photos above are 3 coats of Looking Glass without a top coat.


So there you have my REALLY late part 2 of 2 for today's challenge entries. Is it just me that was completely stumped with V polish brands? Remember to check out all previous posts from the ABC Challenge here and stay tuned for W & X on Monday!

ABC Challenge; U is for UP Colors

Hi ladies! This post marks the 21st letter in the alphabet, which means there are only 5 more posts to go until it's complete! I hope you've enjoyed this challenge as much as I have had frantically finding polishes for each letter. You'd never know that 1 week into the challenge I still had about 10 letters to find. But with some perseverance and a little help from some friends along the way, I was able to find everything I needed. Kicking off post 1 of 2 today is UP Colors, shall we take a look?

Beijo na Boca! is a sheer Red/Pink jelly base packed with Green, Red, Orange and Blue flakes. This polish reminds me of Christmas! Pretty. I applied 2 coats of Beijo na Boca over W7 - Black without a top coat.

Banho de mar! is a sheer Aqua jelly base with Green, Blue & Purple flakes, very reminiscent to a combination of Motley & Flecked by Finger Paints. I applied 2 coats of Banho de mar! over W7 - Black without a top coat.

Other than UP Colors, I literally had no clue what other U brands there are, can you think of any off of the top of your heads? Let me know in the comments what you come up with! Stay tuned for part 2 coming later today!

ABC Challenge; T is for The Polish Bar

Hi ladies! I won't ramble on in this entry since I have a million and one things left to do tonight before I have to get to bed, at a reasonably early time, for my first day back at work since we got snowed in.

Costume Party is comprised of small Purple & Black as well as larger Yellow, Teal and Black hexagonal glitter and also the occasional diamond Teal glitter in a clear base. I layered 2 coats of Costume Party over OPI - My Boyfriend Scales Walls without a top coat.

Diamonds & Pearls is a clear base packed with tiny Holographic and Opalescent glitter, medium sized White hexagonal glitter and large White & Opalescent hexagonal glitter. I applied 1 coat of Diamonds & Pearls over W7 - Black without a top coat.

I'd like to thank the infamous Debbie Crumpet again for her kind 'polish rentals' for the sake of this challenge! The Polish Bar is available directly from her Etsy store for $8.50 for 15ml or in mini sets of 2 to 8 for $9 - $36.

That concludes today's ABC Challenge entries! I can't believe we're almost at the end! I better get planning what to do for February! If you have any suggestions, feel free to leave them in the comments section below.

ABC Challenge; S is for Shimmer Polish

Hi ladies! I'm back today with the first of 2 ABC Challenge posts, a little later than I had planned, but better late than never right?! I want to show you one of my favourite indie polish makers of last year, Shimmer Polish. Her creations and the colour combinations Cindy, the creator, uses are amazing. Last year the Indie market was dominated by matte glitters and milky bases, but Shimmer stuck with the metallic, shiny glitters and for that I thank her.

Brooklyn is a mixture of Teal, Purple Gold and Silver glitter in various shapes and sizes in a clear base. I layered 1 coat of Brooklyn over China Glaze - For Audrey without a top coat.

Jennifer is a clear base packed with Blue, Gold, Pink, Green, Copper, Orange, Yellow & every other colour in between in a variety of circular, squared and hexagonal glitter. I layered 1 coat of Jennifer over W7 - Black without a top coat.

Shimmer Polish is available directly from Cindy's Etsy store for $12 for 15ml of product. Shimmer can also be found on line at various retailers such as Overall Beauty! To see more of my Shimmer Polish swatches, click here and for previous posts on the ABC Challenge, here.
Part 2 will be posted later on this evening, for now it's dinner time!

ABC Challenge: R is for Rainbow Honey

Hi ladies! I'm back a little later than expected with the second instalment of the ABC challenge of today, this time featuring Rainbow Honey as my choice of brand for R. This post is another one that I wouldn't have been able to do without the aid of the wonderful Debbie from The Crumpet, so a HUGE thank you to her and if you're the minority that doesn't know who she is, you should definitely go and check out her equally as wonderful blog!

Now for the swatches!

The Element of Magic is a light Purple jelly base packed with various sized Purple and Pink glitter with added Holographic and Iridescent glitter. I layered 1 coat of The Element of Magic over Essie - To Buy Or Not To Buy and added a top coat to smooth the polish over.

The Worst Possible Thing is a clear base packed with various sized and coloured glitter. This is most definitely my favourite out of the two and one I plan on adding to my ever growing wish list. I layered one coat of The Worst Possible Thing over W7 - Black with a top coat to smooth out the glitter and make it super shiny.

Remember you can see all previous ABC Challenge posts by clicking here! I can't believe the Challenge is almost over and that I've been able to find a brand for each letter of the alphabet so far! Of course I had the help from the amazing Debbie Crumpet otherwise I may have given up the search a long time ago.
Stay tuned for Wednesdays posts for S & T!

ABC Challenge: Q is for Q.R.S

Hi ladies! It's Monday, which means it's time for the first of today's ABC Challenge entries. This post very nearly didn't make it into the challenge this afternoon because up until an hour or so ago, I didn't have any brands beginning with Q. I had ordered these at the beginning of the month and was beginning to think that they were never going to arrive even close to when I needed them, but by some miracle, they arrived this morning. Luckily, due to the UK going into lock down due to the snow, I wasn't able to make it into work today which meant I was able to swatch them during daylight AND because I'm so organised, I had forgotten to schedule the post for R explaining why there was no Q entry today....lucky for me I didn't.

Also, you'll see that I pretty much have identical polishes to show you, this is what happens when there are no swatch photos and bad stock photos. Okay, I've rambled more than enough and I'm not even sure it makes sense, I blame it on my completely frazzled brain...so let's just get onto the swatches.

Magic Spell is a clear jelly base packed with tiny Green glitters and added large & medium Holographic hex glitters. There are also Holo stars scattered throughout the polish, but no matter how much I fished for them they just would not load onto the brush. I layered Magic Spell over 1 coat of W7 - Black, but I imagine this can be worn alone with two/three coats.

Dorothy & Oz is again a clear jelly based but instead of Green, it's packed full of tiny Red glitters with large & medium sized holo hexes and holo stars. Again, I applied one coat of Dorothy & Oz over W7 - Black but it can be layered up to be worn alone.

So there you have my entry for Q, I apologise for the scrambled post and poor photos. I was awoken abruptly from a Nightmare this morning and my mind hasn't fully recovered yet. Hopefully I'll get my act together in time for posting R's entry.

ABC Challenge; P is for piCture pOlish

Hi ladies! I'm back with a brand that has been sitting in my stash for the longest time now that I've never gotten around to using, after having them on my blog sale, I decided I didn't actually want to part with them, so off they came.
I won't bore you with a huge into, so let's go!

Monroe is a deep Red jelly with tiny holographic particles scattered throughout, I believe this is the original version of Monroe which has been discontinued and re-formulated. I didn't have too much trouble with the application, it was slightly runnier than usual, but that could have something to do with the jelly formula. I applied 3 coats of Monroe without a top coat.

Mask-A-Rade is a variety of small, circular glitters in a clear base. It's very reminiscent of Mardi Gras in my opinion. I applied 1 coat of Mask-A-Rade over W7 - Black without a top coat for the photos above.

Which brand would have been your choice for P? Do you own any piCture pOlish - if so which ones?

ABC Challenge; O is for OPI

Hi ladies! It's time for O to make an appearance, I was originally wanting to show some Ozotic Holographic polishes, but since the weather is far from sunny, I had to pass that up and settle with OPI instead. It wasn't until I'd swatched them and uploaded I realised they were both from the same collection - OPI Germany, weird. Anyway, let's get into the swatches shall we.

Every Month is Oktoberfest is a deep, almost Black, Purple packed with a Burgundy Red shimmer. When I saw swatches of this over the web, I knew I wanted it. There's something uniquely beautiful about it and I have nothing similar in my collection. I applied 2 coats of Every Month Is Oktoberfest without a top or base coat.

Suzi & The Seven Dussledorfs is a gorgeous Magenta toned Purple with subtle Blue shimmers. This was another one that stood out to me in the collection, I love Purple polishes that have some depth and dimension to them and this one is no exception. I applied 3 coats of Suzi & The Seven Dussledorfs without a base/top coat.

What would your choice have been for O? Are the choices as limited as I think they are? Remember to check out all previous posts in the ABC Challenge by clicking here and stay tuned for the next entry coming later today!