Thursday, October 24, 2013

Indie Polishes - Hit Polish The Dark Crystal Theme Collection

I am enamored with indie nail polish this is no secret.  Just visit the indie lovers thread over at the Make Up Talk forums and you will find me posting constantly.  I first tried Hit Polish because she made a Green Bay Packers glitter polish and I had to have it.  I am so glad I did.  I can not say enough wonderful things about every single experience that I have had with Hit Polish.  The wonderful master behind Hit Polish is Rachel.  While I do not personally know her, I feel like she's a long lost friend.  She's incredibly dedicated to her customers and is really genuine.  Her shipping is ninja like and her interaction with her customers is one of my favorite things about the brand.  I feel like she's making polish just for me and my closest polish loving friends. 

Today I am featuring the Dark Crystal collection that was offered as a mini themed grab back late last month.  I had wanted to review it but since it was a limited edition I didn't want to get anyone excited for something they couldn't have.  This line has been slightly reformulated and is being reintroduced and will be available for purchase very soon.  There will be full sized versions as well.

As always shipping was incredibly fast.  Granted, mine only has to come about 8 hours away but I placed an order on Friday and by Monday afternoon it was sitting in my mailbox!!!  It was wrapped in the signature zebra print baggie with an adorable Dark Crystal sticker adorning the front.  I must confess I tore through the packaging on this one so quickly as I was incredibly eager to see what was inside.  I love mystery bags.  Especially ones themed after movies I adore.   The Dark Crystal does not disappoint.

Aughra's Orrey is a golden jelly packed with tons of golden glitters.  It also has what look like holographic pastel glitters.  In the light it reflects a teal and purple shimmer for a completely unique combination that makes this golden gem stand out.  This is shown with three thin coats but it can easily be layered over other polish.  I didn't have a gold base at all to use.  There appears to be a defect on the middle finger but in fact that is my reflection while taking the photo.  I actually really like it layered over black. 



I'm Skeksis & I Know It is a beautiful glitter polish.  It's packed with blue and silver glitters and even some burgundy circles and smaller scattered purple glitter all in a clear base.  I am wearing one coat over two coats of Essence Grey-T To Be Here. 


The Dark Crystal is the namesake of the bunch and truly lives up to it.  It's a purple polish with holographic glitters, purple shard glitter and gold glitter.  This polish stands out.  I searched my stash to realize I had no purple glitter polishes that were not top coats.  It's unique, rich, and so incredibly dense with sparkle.  In my swatches it appears almost blurple but that is not what this really looks like.  It can be worn alone or layered over something which is what I did here.  This is over one coat of Wet n' Wild Spoiled in 2 Weeks Sober.


I saved my favorite for last.  We Are Again One is a milky white/tan polish crelly with gold and what I would call charcoal colored glitters.  It has a shimmer quality that is extremely subtle but really helps this polish stay that one step above the competition.  This is in the same vein as the recent Hard Candy candy sprinkles line that was relaunched this spring.  What makes We Are Again One different is it's simplicity.  The use of just a few colors keeps this from being just your every day jawbreaker looking nail polish and gives it a sophistication that similar style polishes do not have.  I think the base not being stark white is a smart choice.  The formula is fantastic on it compared to the Hard Candy which get thick and very difficult to use very quickly.



These should be released on October 26th at 3pm with her relaunch.  It appears I'm Skeksis & I Know It won't be being re-released which is unfortunate but I am sure she's going to have something amazing to take it's place.  This collection just touches the tip of the iceberg in terms of what Hit Polish is capable of.  I have, by far, more polish from her than any other indie brand.  The prices are good and she often does sales.  Her service is excellent and shipping is second to none. 



Now stop reading and go get yours!

Monday, October 21, 2013

Indie Polishes - Glitter Daze A Garlic A Day Keeps the Vampires Away

A Garlic A Day Keeps the Vampires Away
Some days you just see a product and think to yourself "I have to have that".  That is what happened when I saw the Halloween 2013 collection from indie polish brand Glitter Daze.  I have been dying to try a thermal nail polish now for as long as I can remember.  I felt like this polish literally jumped off the screen and grabbed me like a zombie in a horror film.  As fate would have it, it was payday and they were being launched during my lunch hour.

I was so eager to have this polish I splurged for the 2 day shipping which was considerably more than the regular by weight option.  So I waited.  I then received my email stating my package was shipping.  Without getting into a whole lot of detail, my package was inadvertently delayed and wouldn't be shipping on the 15th as originally thought but would go out on the 18th instead.  I sent a very angry email to Glitter Daze in protest.  I was met with some amazing customer service.  An explanation was given along with an apology and my shipping was refunded from the express amount to the regular shipping rate.  This was just over $5.00.  I am incredibly pleased with the service I was given by Glitter Daze.  I was made a loyal customer by the gestures that were extended for me.  My biggest complaint in this entire world is lack of human interaction and decency and I was more than shown this courtesy.

On to the polish.  I finally got my package today.  With the anticipation of a child on Christmas I unwrapped the beautiful little bundle nestled in pink tissue paper and cuddled with bubble wrap.  I am sucker for a pretty packaging .

Outdoors in the heat
This polish is amazing.  I buy quite a bit of indie glitter/crelly polishes and this one was top notch.  It went on super smooth.  The formula is a bit thick but that did not work against it.  In two coats it was opaque and perfect.  The glitters don't drag on the second coat and I had no issues with distributing them at all.  When I first saw this polish online with a macro shot of the bottle, it did not do this polish justice.  There are all kinds of glitters packed inside here.  The larger rectangular black ones remind me of the chocolate chips inside Bryers Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream.  There's small red glitters and what look like holographic glitters that give it so much sparkle.  I never would have gotten that from the initial images I saw. 

Being my first thermal I wasn't sure what to expect.  I hope they all act like this.  The transitions are quick and so much fun to look at.  I love seeing how cold one room is compared to the others.  It wasn't just here's the warm color on your nail closest to your skin and your tips are red.  There are in between colors and an when it's kind of cool it almost looks pink and reminds me of Ghiradelli   Peppermint Bark candy.


Bottom line:  You need this polish.



Transitioning from cool to hot

Naturally with a cool drink


Cold (achieved after chopping tomatoes)






Just added:  With a topcoat after a full day of wear.  Still stunning!  Glitter comes out so much better with topcoat.










Seriously doesn't it look like this??