Holo, Is It Me You're Looking For?

Well hello to you! I've got a quick one for you today - I'm in hospital at the moment, but I got some day leave today so I did my nails (of course!) and had a play with some polishes that arrived while I've been away. I HAD to share this one!! It's a polish from the China Glaze 'Holographic' collection, called Infra Red. It's my first proper 'holo' and I could NOT stop staring at this absolutely stunning polish!

Even though it's called Infra Red, it's definitely more of a dark pink, don'tcha think?

Look at that rainbow shimmer!! This is what sets 'holo' polishes apart - that breathtaking, ever-stare-worthy flashing rainbow on your tips. This was bad lighting, rushed photography and I had no idea how to photograph to show off the intense holo-ness, but even from these crappy photos, you still get an idea of the amazingness! Yes, I walked into things because I was staring at my nails - we've all done it, and this polish deserves it!

Mmmmmm rainbowy goodness... I used two coats for these photos, and I used INM Out The Door fast-dry top coat... that was a mistake. The holo finish is much MUCH more obvious without topcoat, but as I said, this was a rush job so I didn't bother to take it off and start again... Sorry! Maybe in the future I'll take better snaps - I just had to share!

Yep, I'm hooked, and can you blame me!? I definitely wanna get my greedy little paws on some more holo polishes. There's nothing like this in my collection, and it's getting lonely there by itself =P. Must be time to save up and do a proper haul...

Have you tried a holo polish yet? Were you pleased or disappointed? I'd love to hear any stories you have - I'm always interested in fellow polish-holic experiences! =)

Hopefully I'll be back in full swing soon so keep checkin' in. Hope you're all smiling your lovely smiles! Thanks for reading ^_^

- Ally xx

Suzi's Flowers

Well hello there, friends! Yes, I know I've been AWOL for a loooong while now but I have plans to make it up to you! Without going into too much detail, I've been battling some pretty serious depression and painting my nails just hasn't been at the top of my priority list. I'm on the way up though, and I have plans for a good solid comeback *rubs hands together while emitting evil laugh*.

Ahem.

On today's menu I have a comparison of two OPI pinks - Flower to Flower and Suzi's Hungary Again! - the latter from the relatively recent 'Euro Centrale' collection. First up I just wanna say that I luh-uh-uh-ove the formula for the Euro Centrale cremes - Suzi's Hungary Again!, You're Such a Budapest, Can't Find My Czech-book and My Paprika is Hotter than Yours! all have totally delish two coat creamy formulas that glide like butter and shine like jelly. If you've been eyeing up any of the collection, those are the ones I'd recommend. The others are lovely, but those 4 cremes are something truly special. 

For these photos I used two coats of Suzi's Hungary Again! with a top coat of Seche Vite because I'm as impatient as... Someone who's impatient, I guess!?

As mentioned above this totally delish two coater glides on like heaven, and without a top coat it's just as glossy. There is a very very subtle pink shimmer in this baby that my camera didn't capture (a tone-matching shimmer that's present in My Paprika is Hotter than Yours! too). This doesn't affect the look of the polish or make it any less creamy (read: dreamy), but apparently it's a little trick to get the polish more even in appearance so even those of us who are useless at applying polish evenly can get away with this one.

As I decided where on my shelves of polishes to make this polish's home, it looked pretty darn similar to OPI Flower to Flower which came out in a Spring collection a couple of years ago. I'll use any excuse to paint my nails some more, so I grabbed FtF off the shelf and did a quickie comparison.

They look more similar in their bottles than they do on the nail, granted, but it must've been dim lighting that day because the differences in these two are huge. As you can see SHA gives off a more neon-orangey glow when next to a pink pink, and FtF has a much more obvious silvery shimmer. I used two coats of FtF but didn't bother putting a top coat on.

Even though they look nothing alike in these photos, I'm still happy I decided to check, if only because it meant I got to play with FtF again. It's such a Barbie pink that I hardly ever use it, and haven't brought myself to wear it out of the house yet. Just not my colour... 

Do you have any favourites from the Euro Centrale collection? Can you get away with the PINK Barbie pinks? Look forward to next time - the comeback will officially commence soon! 

Thanks for checking in, lovelies ^_^