Showing posts with label blue. Show all posts
Showing posts with label blue. Show all posts

The Polish Well: Catching Fire



Hands up those who are excited about the upcoming Hunger Games: Catching Fire movie!! *sticks arms up and jumps around wildly*

Ever since I've read the books last year, I have been completely hooked onto this series and there was no turning back. So when I found out that Catching Fire movie was scheduled for release this 21 November, I jumped right into bed that same evening and re-read the Catching Fire book in one night. Naturally, with the story swimming around in my head, my brain went on turbo mode and before I knew it, I'd already made up my mind to do a mini Catching Fire collection. :P


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the-polish-well-the-wedding-dress1The Wedding Dress. (3 thin coats)
Heavy white silk with a low neckline and tight waist and sleeves that fall from my wrists to the floor. And pearls. Everywhere pearls. Stitched into the dress and in ropes at my throat and forming the crown for the veil.
A sheer white base filled with delicate shimmers and small silvery holo glitters. I nearly tore my hair out in frustration trying to capture this colour accurately. None of my pictures does it any justice. The glitters are more obvious and sparkly in real life. Under the light, it shimmers and glimmers with tiny holo sparkles. I am really happy with how it turned out.
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the-polish-well-roses-and-blood1Roses and Blood. (3 thin coats)
The smell of roses and blood has grown stronger now that only a desk separates us. There's a rose in President Snow's lapel, which at least suggests a source of the flower perfume, but it must be genetically enhanced, because no real rose reeks like that. As for the blood ... I don't know.
A delicate white base lightly tainted with red shimmers and a whiff of tiny bright red glitters. At least that is what I imagine President Snow's scent would be like in a nail polish bottle. Don't worry, I left it unscented.
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the-polish-well-no-nightmares1No Nightmares. (3 coats)
When I open my eyes, it's early afternoon. My head rests on Peeta's arm. I don't remember him coming in last night. I turn, being careful not to disturb him, but he's already awake.
“No nightmares,” he says.
“What?” I ask.
“You didn't have any nightmares last night,” he says.
He's right. For the first time in ages I've slept through the night.
Oh Peeta! You make me melt ♥ No Nightmares is a light blue-grey filled with delicate sprinkles of purple and blue micro-glitter and light shimmers. A beautiful accident for I did not set out to create this colour. For some reason, it gave me a warm, safe and fuzzy feeling - just like what I imagine Katniss would feel on a night like this with Peeta.

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the-polish-well-breaking-out1Breaking Out. 4 thin coats but also opaque on 3 thin coats.
A flash of white runs up the wire, and for just a moment, the dome bursts into a dazzling blue light. I'm thrown backward to the ground, body useless, paralyzed, eyes frozen wide, as feathery bits of matter rain down on me. I can't reach Peeta. I can't even reach my pearl. My eyes strain to capture one last image of beauty to take with me.
Right before the explosions begin, I find a star.
A deep blue jelly filled with silvery shimmers and micro-flakes that glow a a bright blue against the dark base. I tried very very hard to put in a lightning in the bottle but the closest I could get was how I imagine the night sky to look on the day of their break out. My camera freaked out a little from the shimmers buried in the base and I couldn't get a clearer picture of the delicate shimmery effect. You can see it on the swatchstick here. 3 coats are sufficient for opacity but I used four coats in the swatch above for a deeper blue.

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the-polish-well-catching-fire2Catching Fire. 3 thin coats.
I look down, fascinated, as my ensemble slowly comes to life, first with a soft golden light but gradually transforming to the orange-red of burning coal. I look as if I have been coated in glowing embers — no, that I am a glowing ember straight from our fireplace.
A sheer black base filled with glowy red glitters and copper/gold shimmers for that glowing ember look where the glitters catch the light. Not as fiery as a fire but burning within nonetheless.



So, what do you think of this collection? Which one(s) caught your eye?

PRE-ORDER INFO:

As with the other collections, the Catching Fire collection will be made available for pre-orders from tomorrow, 10 November 2013 at 7pm SGT.


  • Colours are available in the following sizes:
    • 12ml - US$10 each
    • 5ml - US4 each
  • Shipping rates are as follows:
    • International:
      • US$6 for the first 12ml / US$3 for the first 5ml
      • US$2 for each subsequent 12ml
      • US$1 for each subsequent 5ml
    • Singapore: Flat rate of US$4
  • This pre-order ends 17 November 2013 at 7pm SGT
  • Form embedded at the end of this post.


If you wish to place an order for the older colours, you may include them in your order list and I will see if I have any available stock for you.

GIVEAWAY:

To celebrate reaching 10k followers on Instagram, I am also holding a giveaway on Instagram! One lucky winner will walk away with a set of minis of this Catching fire collection. Please feel free to hop over to IG to participate in the giveaway :) Rules are available in this post.

May the odds be ever in your favour <3

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Chanel: Taboo


I have some serious backlog here but I didn't have time to do much swatching this weekend :( Instead, I've decided to share a twinsie post that I've done with the lovely Camila (@paintedmimi on IG) a while ago!

And the star of the post? None other than... my very first Chanel - Taboo ♥


To be honest, I wasn't on the hunt for Taboo in particular. Don't get me wrong. It is a gorgeous colour but the price tag always stopped me from getting any Chanels. My resolve wavered when I saw it in Hong Kong and tried it on my friend's nails (mine were painted, of course) and it was love. Thereafter, I hunt for it at every Chanel counter / store I came across. The prices in Hong Kong were still a bit steep at around S$30 so I took a gamble and decided to check it out at Changi Airport instead. The minute I saw that it was S$27, I crumbled, grabbed it in a heartbeat and checked out my purchase before I could stop myself. :P

And I must say, I don't regret it at all! Take a look:

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Taboo. 1 glorious coat.
A beautiful deep blue base packed with red shimmers and a scattering of electric blue sparks for that mysterious sultry look. Most of the time, it looks like a deep velvety purple because of the red shimmers in the blue base. Although there are several vampy shimmers in the market, Taboo manages to set itself apart from the rest. I love how the shimmers changed the overall colour. I also love how the random blue sparkles glow against the dark base. It is simply perfection ♥



I thought Taboo couldn't get any more perfect but boy was I wrong. Application was a dream. The formula was buttery smooth and extremely pigmented - one coat was all it needed. The brush was also easy to control and fans out nicely for easy application. To top it all off, the bottle is an elegant square which makes storage a dream! It certainly doesn't hurt that it has a lovely Chanel logo at the top too ;)

To sum up my first Chanel experience? LOVE.

What do you think of Taboo?
Do you have any high-end polishes? What do you think of them - are they worth the price tag?

Need more picture to ogle at? Don't forget to take a look at Taboo on Camila too!


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The Polish Well: Halloween 2013 - Coraline and more!



Dear broadband, *clears throat to sing* how do I live without you~?
So our internet has been down for the past two days and it is driving us insane. But because I am flying off for a holiday this weekend (whooooohooo), I've decided to tether to my precious mobile broadband for a quickie post tonight to show you none other than... my mini halloween collection based on the movie - Coraline!

Oops! Missing a family shot because it slipped my mind so let's just jump to individual swatches shall we?


Coraline.
A deep blue jelly with a slight green tinge filled with turquoise sparkles and blue-green flecks for the spunky blue nails that Coraline sports. I love the depth of this but be warned - it is a stainer.

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To the Other World.
A mysterious and inviting deep blue with blue and purple sparkles that give it a glow-from-within look. This was inspired by the tunnel to the other world - when the other mother was still playing nice of course. One of the more glowy blues that I have in my collection. I wore this as a full manicure once and received quite a few compliments - even my sister thought it looks good and she rarely compliments my frankens ;)

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Let Me Go!
A mix of gold sparkles in various shades buried in a rich dark chocolate base inspired by the tunnel when Coraline tries to escape. I do love myself some dark browns especially during this time of the year <3

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Evil Witch.
For the other mother of course. A deep green jelly with a mix of green glitters and delicate gold sprinkles. I have been meaning to mix a good green for ages but never really found the right colour mix until recently. Can you tell that dark greens are my weakness?


Hmm... perhaps these are not as halloween-y as I'd hoped it would be. Nonetheless, these colours are very wearable any time of the year and that's always a plus in my books ;)

Interested? Here's the release info:-

  • I will be accepting pre-orders for this collection from Sunday, 13 October, 9am SGT to the following Sunday 20 October, 9am SGT. 
  • Only available in 12ml sizes at US$10 each
  • Limited edition - will not be restocked in the foreseeable future
  • Shipping at US$6 + US$1 for each subsequent (SG - flat rate of US$4)
  • Link to pre-order form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1MZdJZ4_qmM7ywfNjGuU3OVdNH_Oze7TtiDQo9mVtJEQ/viewform (will only be activated during the dates and times stated above)
  • If you have an outstanding pre-order with me, please add a note in the remarks field and I will combine your orders for you. 

Other colours that will be made available:

the-polish-well-wrath-rerelease

Wrath. (re-release)
Finally... after what seemed like ages, I am finally able to recreate this popular shade from my first collection. A vampy blood red jelly filled with red, gold and black glitters of various shapes and sizes. You likey? ;)

the-polish-well-rose

Rose.
A delicate white jelly filled with pink glitters in two shades and a sprinkling of tiny gold sparkles. Inspired by Lee Hi's song of the same name (you need to listen to it - it is hauntingly beautiful). A random bout of inspiration that turned into a shade that I really love.


Yup! That's all from me for now. I need to get myself some rest before my holiday!

What do you think of these colours? Did any catch your eye? :D

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Rescue Beauty Lounge: Più Mosso


A recent comment on Instagram rekindled my love and yearning for some Rescue Beauty Lounge so I dug through my stash for my precious RBL pretties:


To many, RBL is a high-end luxury brand that is known for their line of understated chic and elegance, most notably, their trademark subtle shimmer in many of their polishes. Much as I indulge in sparkly glitters, I still have a soft spot for delicate shimmers and almost inadvertently sport them on my tips on weekdays. Naturally, I could not keep my eyes, and hands, off RBL. I swear I tried my best to be good but I caved in twice to get these beauties - and never regretted my choice.

I was in the mood for some strong dark colours today so I decided to wear Più Mosso this week. Out of curiosity, I took my new camera for a spin and my eyes nearly popped out when I saw the swatch pictures. There was no way I could not blog about it. Take a look:

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Più Mosso. 2 thin coats.
A dusty inky blue that flashes a gorgeous copper when the shimmers catch the light. Più Mosso was inspired by the dark clouds that overtook the sky covering the last ray of sunlight before the storm. Romantic inspiration aside, this literally took my breath away when I stumbled upon swatches of it online. Dusty? Dark? Shimmery? I simply had to have it - it is exactly my cup of tea!

I've worn this a couple of times before this but nothing quite prepared me for what my macro lens captured:

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I died - a hundred times over - when I saw the picture on my screen. Isn't it magical!?!

I am very thankful that Ji brought this shade back so I had a chance to get it after missing the first release. At US$20 per bottle (excluding international shipping), this was by no means an ordinary purchase. But it certainly did not disappoint. Not only is the colour wickedly stunning, application was wonderful as well. The formula was smooth and the brush was thin but fans out nicely for easy application.

If there is one RBL you have to get, I would definitely recommend this.

What do you think of Più Mosso? Have you tried any other RBLs?

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Cirque: Cape Liz & Hellebore


Hello loves!

I apologise for not blogging as often as I would like. Life got in the way again by way of a new camera and polish supplies! I finally caved in and got myself a sexy Olympus E-P5 last Saturday and spent that Sunday fiddling with it. I have yet to switch my camera for blogging though because I still need to get a macro lens / macro converter for my new camera. I spent this weekend in my lab mixing up some new colours with my new batch of supplies and I must say I am loving the supplies so far ^_^ For a glimpse of what I've been up to, you can hop over to my Instagram where I update more regularly ;)

Anyhow, I've dug up two swatches from my old camera to share with you - my very first Cirque polishes!



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Cape Liz. 3 thin coats.
A beautiful light blue-grey with blue and pink shimmer. I super love how delicate it is. Of course, I also love that it does not make me look too washed-out.

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Hellebore. 3 thin coats.
A clear base glitter filled with light green glitters in various sizes complete with a scattering of lavender glitters. Technically a glitter bomb but it looks so very delicate on the nails. Dries gritty but two coats of top coat restored its shine and sparkles.






This is my first experience with Cirque and I must say that I am very impressed. Although it is an indie handmade polish, every inch of its being exudes style and glamour of the highest class - from the quality of the lacquer right down to the packaging. The only gripe that I have is that the polishes are scented. I can't quite pinpoint the scent but it gives me a slight headache because I am rather sensitive to some fragrances (yup, I can only wear certain types of perfume for that reason). That said, not everyone is sensitive to scents so I don't think it is of any issue to most of you.

Cirque is available on their website as well as through their stockists such as Dazzled. They ship internationally so my sincere apologies to your wallets in advance. ;)


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**Products were provided for our honest review. Please see our disclosure policy for more information.**

a-england: Rose Bower, Order of the Garter & Love is Enough


Arggggh! I swear the heat is going to kill me one day. It would be a good day for swatching except that my block of flats is being painted at the moment and I don't exactly fancy doing my thang when the painters are hovering outside my window. *awkward*

Thankfully I have some swatches in my camera so I can still blog away!

If you've caught my last post, you would know that I've received some pretties from Dazzled, a new etailer based in Hong Kong. So today, I will be sharing with you some from one of my favourite brands: a-england!



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Rose Bower. 2 coats (it is a one-coater but I did 2 anyway)
A gorgeous glowy red base with very subtle holo. Rose Bower is one of the new colours in Adina's latest collection, Burne-Jones Dream, inspired by Burne-Jones' paintings depicting scenes from Sleeping Beauty. Whilst the holo effect is the weakest in Rose Bower, the base colour more than makes up for everything. Of course, it doesn't hurt that the holo sparkles compliment the base perfectly.

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Order of the Garter. (3 thin coats)
A sheer deep blue base filled with electric blue glass flecks that shimmer impossibly when they catch the light. I can truly lose myself in the depths within.
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Love is Enough. (3 thin coats)
A sheer blackened base filled with shimmery metallic flecks giving it an overall olive hue with gold accents. Extremely glowy, sophisticated and edgy.







As with all the a-englands, the formula and application on these are perfect so no complaints there. In fact, it is one of the reason why I love a-england so much - painting is not just a process to getting pretty nails, it is an enjoyment by itself.

At the moment, a-england only ships within the UK but you can get your hands on these beauties through various distributors including Dazzled. Starting from yesterday, Dazzled is officially offering worldwide shipping (including countries outside Asia) so all you international ladies can satisfy your needs and lemmings too. On top of that, to celebrate 2,500 likes on Facebook, Dazzled is having a storewide discount of 10% with the code "2500FB". The code is valid until 6 September so don't wait! ;)

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**Products were provided for our honest review. Please see our disclosure policy for more information.**

The Polish Well: BANG!


Happy Sunday everyone!
I can't believe the long weekend (we had 2 days of public holidays on thursday and friday) passed by so quickly. I still don't feel adequately rested! T_T

Anyway, I thought I would share some of my new concoctions on the blog today. It has been quite a while but I've finally finalised a new collection that is based on one of my favourite korean bands - Big Bang! I was introduced to Big Bang by my sister earlier this year and have since been hooked onto quite a number of their songs. The idea of a collection came about way back in March when I had a sudden bout of inspiration and created Hallelujah. Since then, I have mulled over the rest of the colours and I am happy to say that I've finally made some headway. Take a look:

p.s. you can click on the lyrics to enjoy the lovely songs on youtube :)



Fantastic Baby.
A berry red jelly filled with an assortment of glitters - holos, reds, purples, circles, squares, hexes and a sprinkling of shimmer. I had such hard time coming up with a colour for this song. Every ounce of my instinct told me to throw a bunch of silver holo glitters together for the dance number but I wasn't sure if I could come up with a mix that is better than what is already available in the market. In the end, I scoured through the lyrics and settled on "heartbeat" for my colour inspiration. Even then, it took me several tries before I came up with this. Quite happy with the squishy look. :P


Ego.
Red with gold and holo shimmer. Slightly darker than what it looks in this picture. Unfortunately, I didn't manage to capture much of the shimmer in the picture either - it is slightly more visible IRL :(


Love Dust.
A soft greyish-blue mint with subtle holo. This was partly born from my obsession with turquoises and mint and partly from Deborah's (lovevarnish) request for a soft mint holo. I took a look at the bottle after the shaking and mixing and "Haru Haru" immediately came to mind.


Monster.
A sage green with rose flecks and subtle green shimmer. This is not new to the blog and some of you might already know that this was from my feeble attempt at duping Butter London's Two Fingered Salute. I've since gotten my hands on the real deal and they are definitely not dupes. While the base colours are almost, if not exactly, identical, the shimmer and flecks are completely different. Nonetheless, I really like this lab creation and it seems to fit with the song so I've decided to keep it in this collection. :P


Lies.
A deep teal with a mix of aqua blue and green shimmer. Another song that gave me a difficult time but I am glad I finally had an eureka moment.


Bad Boy.
A deep blue with a mix of copper, blue and purple shimmer. This was another song that was very challenging to put in a bottle. In the end, I went with the colours of a beautiful sunrise that I happened to catch. I think this one needs a bit more shimmer for the colours to pop.


Tonight.
A deep plum jelly with gold, royal blue and purple shimmer-flecks. This was an accidental mix that came about because I was curious what I would get if I mixed all my shimmers together. I didn't go further than these three colours when I fell in love and abandoned my initial quest. I will toy with that again in future - though I suspect it may not look fantastic.


Hallelujah.
A mix of holo silver, gunmetal and lavendar glitters and with a smattering of purple shimmer falling within the depths of the black jelly. My very first colour of the collection and one which I still love.


Blue.
A slate grey with blue, green and silver shimmer. Inspired by the very first Big Bang song that I fell for. My sister had been playing Big Bang songs for ages but this was the very first that caught my attention. Unlikely most other korean songs that my sister played, this was unusually mellow and emotional. Till now, it is still one of my favourite songs by Big Bang so there was no way I could leave this song out. 


Phew. That was quite a whole lot of polishes, wasn't it? 
Now that you've seen them, which one(s) caught your eye?

As you might have noticed, I have temporarily placed my shop on hiatus and I am no longer taking any orders at the moment. Although I've enjoyed creating these new colours, I have yet to firm up any plans for my store so these polishes (together with the other colours) are not available for sale at the moment. I will post an update once I have a plan. 

So why am I showing these new colours to you, you ask? 
Well... apart from the fact that I couldn't wait to show you my creations, I've also decided to throw a small giveaway to celebrate my birthday this week! ^_^

The prize? The entire unreleased BANG! collection (minis) for one lucky winner!

The giveaway is open on this blog (details in the rafflecopter widget) and on Instagram (details on my IG post). All entries will be collated for the draw so you need not enter twice - duplicate entries will be deleted before the draw.
The usual rules apply so fire away!
Giveaway closes in a week's time on 18 August 2013 at 12am, SGT. Good luck!

Giveaway has ended


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