A vegan nail polish blog. A celebration of colour and light, as well as of justice for nonhuman animals.

Archive for July, 2013

Orly Smolder

Orly Smolder is from last fall’s Fired Up collection (these photos were actually also taken last fall, still have a backlog of posts!). It’s a beautiful, dark glowing burgundy wine red shimmer. It’s not so dark that it ever looks black, and there is a hint of an orange flash to it in the bottle, that doesn’t really show up on the nail. Gorgeous colour, though!

Orly Smolder

This is two coats (plus topcoat), and the formula is great, no complaints at all.

Orly Smolder

This mani was a couple of days old when I took the photos, so if you click to look at the full size photos you may see a few scratches on the surface and some tip wear, but that’s just my usual wear and tear.

Orly Smolder

This one is *almost* as awesome as Flicker, my favourite from the Fired Up collection!

Orly Smolder

One last pic, under my Ott Lite:

Orly Smolder

China Glaze Flip Flop Fantasy and Sun Worshipper

More neons! This is a fun manicure I did using two older China Glaze neons, Flip Flop Fantasy and Sun Worshipper.

China Glaze Flip Flop Fantasy and Sun Worshipper

Sun Worshipper is a neon yellow-orange, and Flip Flop Fantasy a neon pink-coral. Three coats each, plus top coat (they dry semi-matte, like most neons do).

China Glaze Flip Flop Fantasy and Sun Worshipper

The formula on these is kind of streaky, but no worse than most other neons in my opinion. The result is certainly worth waiting a couple minutes between coats to prevent dragging. Top coat also helps smooth out the finish.

China Glaze Flip Flop Fantasy and Sun Worshipper

Apparently Flip Flop Fantasy has recently been reformulated, and the newer version is more peach-coral. I’m going to have to check that out next time I’m in Sally Beauty, since I love peach!! 🙂

China Glaze Neon & On & On, Shell-o, and neon pink comparisons!

China Glaze Neon & On & On and Shell-o are from their recent Sunsational collection of neons. Since they’re both in the pink-coral family, I thought I’d post them together along with nail wheel swatches of all the neon pinks I own!

Shell-o is a neon coral pink jelly. I used three coats over ridge filler for the swatches. I didn’t have problems with application for this one.

China Glaze Shell-o

It dries somewhere between glossy and matte, and these photos do not include top coat.

China Glaze Shell-o

In the shade:

China Glaze Shell-o

Neon & On & On is a warm/coral leaning pastel neon pink creme. I used three coats over ridge filler, plus top coat.

China Glaze Neon & On & On

The formula on this one was difficult to work with. It helps to not go over the same spot twice while applying each coat.

China Glaze Neon & On & On

It dries very quickly, so that’s a plus. The polish dries matte, and a little lumpy before topcoat due to the thick and quick-drying formula. But top coat really helps to even it out. Next time I think I’ll try adding thinner to this one.

China Glaze Neon & On & On

In the shade:

China Glaze Neon & On & On

ANd now for the great neon pink comparison! I’m including two photos in slightly different lighting (apologies that the orientation of the wheel isn’t quite the same in both photos).

1) Kleancolor Barbie Pink, 2) China Glaze Surfin' for Boys, 3) China Glaze Flirty Tankini, 4) China Glaze Shell-o, 5) China Glaze Pink Plumeria, 6) China Glaze Flip Flop Fantasy, 7) China Glaze Neon & On & On, 8) Milani Pink Hottie, 9) Color Club Electro candy, 10) Zoya Kiki, 11) Color Club Poptastic, 12) Kleancolor Neon Pink, 13) Misa Girls' Night Out, 14) Kleancolor Pink Lady, 15) Zoya Renée, 16) Orly Passion Fruit, 17) China Glaze Rose Among Thorns, 18) Misa Bikini With a Martini

1) Kleancolor Barbie Pink, 2) China Glaze Surfin’ for Boys, 3) China Glaze Flirty Tankini, 4) China Glaze Shell-o, 5) China Glaze Pink Plumeria, 6) China Glaze Flip Flop Fantasy, 7) China Glaze Neon & On & On, 8) Milani Pink Hottie, 9) Color Club Electro candy, 10) Zoya Kiki, 11) Color Club Poptastic, 12) Kleancolor Neon Pink, 13) Misa Girls’ Night Out, 14) Kleancolor Pink Lady, 15) Zoya Renée, 16) Orly Passion Fruit, 17) China Glaze Rose Among Thorns, 18) Misa Bikini With a Martini

1) Kleancolor Barbie Pink, 2) China Glaze Surfin' for Boys, 3) China Glaze Flirty Tankini, 4) China Glaze Shell-o, 5) China Glaze Pink Plumeria, 6) China Glaze Flip Flop Fantasy, 7) China Glaze Neon & On & On, 8) Milani Pink Hottie, 9) Color Club Electro candy, 10) Zoya Kiki, 11) Color Club Poptastic, 12) Kleancolor Neon Pink, 13) Misa Girls' Night Out, 14) Kleancolor Pink Lady, 15) Zoya Renée, 16) Orly Passion Fruit, 17) China Glaze Rose Among Thorns, 18) Misa Bikini With a Martini

1) Kleancolor Barbie Pink, 2) China Glaze Surfin’ for Boys, 3) China Glaze Flirty Tankini, 4) China Glaze Shell-o, 5) China Glaze Pink Plumeria, 6) China Glaze Flip Flop Fantasy, 7) China Glaze Neon & On & On, 8) Milani Pink Hottie, 9) Color Club Electro candy, 10) Zoya Kiki, 11) Color Club Poptastic, 12) Kleancolor Neon Pink, 13) Misa Girls’ Night Out, 14) Kleancolor Pink Lady, 15) Zoya Renée, 16) Orly Passion Fruit, 17) China Glaze Rose Among Thorns, 18) Misa Bikini With a Martini

Ruby White Tips Batworld Collection – Sweet Faced Cornelius and Mr. Kitty

I have the final two polishes that I own from the Ruby White Tips Batworld collection to show you today!

The polish Sweet Faced Cornelius is named after this sweet little guy:

Photo credit: Batworld.org

Photo credit: Batworld.org

Cornelius, the polish, is a sheer layering jelly polish full of iridescent green shimmer, flakes/tiny shards, and holo particles. The first two photos show four coats of polish over my bare (stained!) nails.

Ruby White Tips Sweet Faced Cornelius

Ruby White Tips Sweet Faced Cornelius

The rest of the photos show one coat of Cornelius over black.

Ruby White Tips Sweet Faced Cornelius over black

The polish was thick but not difficult to work with, even when I did the four coats on its own.

Ruby White Tips Sweet Faced Cornelius over black

It also dries almost totally smooth; no extra layers of topcoat needed here.

Ruby White Tips Sweet Faced Cornelius over black

I’m looking forward to trying this one over one of those deep green with golden flecks polishes, like China Glaze Cast a Spell; I think that will look awesome as well!

Ruby White Tips Sweet Faced Cornelius over black

The final polish I have to share is Mr. Kitty, named after this little bat who was in turn named after the feral cat who brought him to the sanctuary! Ms. Kitty is a feral cat the Batworld staff take care of, and apparently three times so far she has brought weak or injured bats to the sanctuary door, without harming them at all herself.

Photo credit: Batworld.org

Photo credit: Batworld.org

Mr. Kitty the bat next to the polish! You can see just how tiny he is, about the same size as the bottle of polish!

Photo credit: Batworld.org

Photo credit: Batworld.org

Mr. Kitty the polish is a sheer taupe based polish with pink duochrome shimmer and tiny flakes in it. It’s kind of a chameleon and looks different in different lighting! The pink/magenta shimmer sometimes leans lavender or purple, and other times shifts more to a golden/coppery, rusty brick tone.

Ott Lite photos:

Ruby White Tips Mr. Kitty

I used two thick coats over ridge filler, except on the ring finger where I used one coat over black (no ridge filler underneath, but I should have used some!).

Ruby White Tips Mr. Kitty

I found the formula to be thick (it was also very hot and humid that day, so that most certainly contributed!), but didn’t have any problems until I came to the layered accent nail. I had a little trouble applying one even layer over the black, but I added a few drops of polish thinner and then it was fine.

Ruby White Tips Mr. Kitty

I really like this one both on its own and over black!

Ruby White Tips Mr. Kitty

Sunlight photos, which tend to show off the purple/magenta aspects:

Ruby White Tips Mr. Kitty

Ruby White Tips Mr. Kitty

Oh yeah, the polish also comes with this cute little bat charm attached:

Ruby White Tips Mr. Kitty

Ruby White Tips Mr. Kitty

In partial shade:

Ruby White Tips Mr. Kitty

Ruby White Tips Batworld Collection – Ethereal and Poppy

Hi all, I have two more polishes from the Ruby White Tips Batworld collection to show you today! The first two polishes, Boo2 and Peekaboo, were shown in my last post here. As mentioned there, half the proceeds of this collection go to the Batworld sanctuary to help them rescue, rehabilitate and care for orphaned and injured bats.

The first polish I’m showing you today, Ethereal, is probably my very favourite from the collection so far. When I was preparing this post I went to the Batworld.org website to get photos of the rescued bats who inspired these polishes, and I was very sad to learn that Ethereal, the little albino bat, just recently passed away suddenly. You can read her story here. Rest in peace, little one. 😦

Rest in peace, Ethereal. Photo credit: Batworld.org

Rest in peace, Ethereal. Photo credit: Batworld.org

Here is a bottle picture of the lovely polish named for Ethereal. I love the matte peach glitters in this one, they make it so very unique.

Ruby White Tips Ethereal

The swatches of Ethereal show three coats of polish. Two would probably be okay for those who don’t have yellowy-stained nails like I do. It would also make a great layering polish over many other shades!

Ruby White Tips Ethereal

The formula was thick but not too thick, with a good amount of glitter (I didn’t have to do any dabbing or placing of glitter when applying it). There’s a lot going on in this polish, with its white shimmery base, peach matte hex glitter, satiny white hex glitter, square iridescent glitter that reflects pink and green, sparse scattered micro holo particles and pink/purple shimmer flecks, and small iridescent flakie shards that reflect blue and purple… and maybe some other things I’m not catching? 🙂 Despite all that, it’s in no way “too busy”, it all works perfectly together! Did I mention this one is my favourite? 😉

Ruby White Tips Ethereal

A slight texture can be felt from all the flakes and glitter, but a good topcoat takes care of that.

Ruby White Tips Ethereal

Ethereal in the shade:

Ruby White Tips Ethereal

I had an email conversation with Laura, the creator of Ruby White Tips, and she mentioned plans to create a new shade “in memory of” Ethereal and possibly retiring this one, so if you like it like I do, I’d suggest picking it up sooner rather than later.

The second polish I have to show today was inspired by Poppy, an “Indian flying fox”, one of the largest species of bat, who was “retired” from a zoo. Glad she is now in a non-exploitative sanctuary!

Photo credit: Batworld.org

Photo credit: Batworld.org

This is two coats of Poppy the polish (three on my pinky, just because of a smudge). The application of this polish was smooth and easy.

Ruby White Tips Poppy

The shade of the polish fits its name, being a red shimmer that has a brick undertone and pink shimmer. There is holo microglitter throughout the polish.

Ruby White Tips Poppy

The microglitter leaves a bit of texture on the nail, so a coat or two of a good topcoat is recommended. I know I took some photos pre-topcoat and some after adding a layer of topcoat, but I can’t remember now which each of these particular photos were, sorry about that!

Ruby White Tips Poppy

A nice, pretty shade to go with a very pretty bat! 😀

Ruby White Tips Poppy

As I mentioned, I was talking to the creator of Ruby White Tips, and shared with her the link to my first Batworld swatch post. She was kind enough to offer a coupon code for my readers for 15% off purchases at her Etsy store! (Discount not valid on Mystery Bags.) The code is VEGANCLAWS. Thanks, Laura, and glad you like the swatches! 😀

Ruby White Tips Batworld Collection – Boo2 and Peekaboo

I’m excited today to show you two of the five polishes I have from Ruby White Tips’ Batworld collection! The creator donates half of the proceeds from polishes in this collection to Batworld, a Texas no-kill organization that does rescue, rehabilitation, and sanctuary work for orphaned and injured bats.

Here are the five polishes I have from the collection. There has since been a sixth one released (which of course I just had to order as well! ;)). I’ve decided to split the swatches into two posts because I have so many pictures. Today I’ll show you Boo2 and Peekaboo!

Ruby White Tips Batworld.org collection

Each polish in the collection is named after one of the bats who are permanent residents of the sanctuary (because of injuries that didn’t heal well enough for them to be released safely). Here are the real Boo2 and Peekaboo who inspired these two polishes:

Photo credit: Batworld.org

Photo credit: Batworld.org

Boo2 is the one who is looking at the camera and comforting Peekaboo in this photo. They say that he is Peekaboo’s boyfriend. 🙂

And here is the nail polish named after Boo2:

Ruby White Tips Boo2

It’s a great “blurple”/deep periwinkle shade with a warm purple shimmer and holo microglitter, and is kind of hard to photograph accurately, so I’ve included photos in several different lighting situations. These first few are in partly sunny light. Two coats of polish.

Ruby White Tips Boo2

There isn’t any top coat in the first few photos, and it dries to a satiny finish. There is also a bit of texture from the holo microglitter, so it’s probably best with a good thick topcoat.

Ruby White Tips Boo2

The next group of photos are under the light of a halogen lamp. The latter of these ones (the ones with topcoat) are the most colour accurate of all the photos, I’d say, and show off the warmer purple shimmer the best.

Ruby White Tips Boo2

Ruby White Tips Boo2

The rest of the photos have one layer of topcoat added. I think next time I’d use two layers, or a thicker topcoat.

Ruby White Tips Boo2

Ruby White Tips Boo2

Ruby White Tips Boo2

Ruby White Tips Boo2

And the last two are in shade/overcast light. It isn’t quite as blue in real life as it looks here.

Ruby White Tips Boo2

Anyway, this is such a great shade of purple/blue!

Ruby White Tips Boo2

Next up is Peekaboo! Peekaboo is a pinkish lilac shimmer with micro holo particles, sparse medium holo hex glitter, and some very small iridescent shards scattered throughout the polish.

Ruby White Tips Peekaboo

Peekaboo has a more sheer formula, and this is three coats. I love it like this but I think it’d also look great layered over a similar creme, such as Zoya Perrie, for a more opaque look.

Ruby White Tips Peekaboo

No topcoat in these photos; this one dries shinier than Boo2 does.

Ruby White Tips Peekaboo

It also has smooth holo particles rather than the slightly bumpy microglitter (the larger hexes and small iridescent shards in Peekaboo, though, do add their own small amount of texture).

rubywhitetips_peekaboo

In the shade:

Ruby White Tips Peekaboo

I love both of these! Stay tuned for swatches of the other three polishes!