Category: Duocrome

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SWATCH SUNDAY — Claire’s Venomous

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday. It’s an especially beautiful Sunday because it’s my birthday! Okay, so I’ve never really been a birthday person — even before I hit my 30s — but I do love a free Starbucks drink so I’l celebrate it slightly.

Today though, we have another Swatch Sunday & I dug & dug through my nail polish stash to find an Halloween-esque nail polish shade, & I found this very special shade circa 2010/2011. This is Claire’s Venomous.

2 coats over OPI Black Cherry Chutney + top coat

So a little back story on this shade. I purchased this during the beginnings of my nail polish addict stages. I remembered reading this Claire’s (which I worked at during this time) had released some nail polishes that were dupes for the MAC Venomous Villian’s collection, so naturally I knew I needed them. I only have 2/3 shades (I believe) but they are prized treasures in my nail polish stash.

Now, for my swatches I did two coats over a one coat of Black Cherry Chutney. The formula is very, very thin — requiring 3-4 coats — so I always prefer to add some undies. (If you want to see swatches on this shade layered, check out Deez Nailz post. ) I love the foiled finish of this shade, & how the polish shifts depending on how you move your hand. Depending on the undies you choose, you can bring out more of the green shift you see in the bottle.

As above, you can see a good example of how the shade shifts on the nails. I wrote in a previous post about Quo by ORLY Wrong so Right that they were dupes, but looking at the close up above I feel like you get a lot more of the gold/green flash with this shade which I quite like. This was actually the colour I chose for my nails for a wedding I attended this weekend, & I thought it was the perfect colour for Autumn. & the nail is very Halloween-y, obviously.

What do you think about Claire’s Venomous? What is your oldest/most prized nail polish in your nail polish collection? Do you think this is a great Halloween-y polish? Let me know all your thoughts down in the comments below!

Happy Sunday Everyone. ♥︎

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SWATCH SUNDAY — Pacifica Plant Magic Mermaid Tail

Good morning lovelies & happy Sunday. This weekend has been a bit exhausting, but I did managed to get a brand new polish to share for this week’s Swatch Sunday.

(& one for next week too — stay tuned!)

I was perusing my local Shoppers Drug Mart & noticed that they are clearing out their section of Pacifica nail polishes. I’ve been curious about these shades for a while, but the price tag was a bit steep, so when I saw them for 50% off, I decided now was the time! & the shade I picked? No surprise there: Mermaid Tail.

2 coats + top coat

The formula on this shimmery shade is pretty thin. The first coat is almost Smokey, but the second coat definitely builds. Personally, seeing it under my light, I kind of wish I had done one more coat, just because I feel like it would have built the colour a bit more solidly.

If your nails are longer, I would definitely recommend a third coat.

The base is a deep green, with a bright turquoise shimmer. The bottle shows off a bit of purple shift too, but that never showed up on the nail sadly. However — the colour is very pretty, & I can see why it has the name Mermaid Tail. It’s very fitting.

Not a colour I would usually pick, but it is very pretty. & I like the fact it’s 16 Free, so I feel safe using it on my little girls nails (she’s who I really bought it for — she’s obsessed with all things mermaid!)

The Pacifica Plant Magic shades are currently $7.49 CAD at Shoppers Drug Mart. It’s categorized as clearance, so it definitely looks like a deal you want to take advantage of while you still can. I didn’t see Mermaid Tail listed online, but they had plenty in store, so if you have a Shoppers near you, I’d definitely check out the selection.

Have a lovely Sunday! 🖤

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SWATCH SUNDAY — Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Hyp-nautical

Hello loves & happy Sunday! & happy long weekend to all who get to celebrate! The May long weekend always feels like the official beginning of Summer, which I’ll gladly take — even if they’re calling for thunderstorms today. Bring on the beach & BBQ!

Today, though, I’m throwing things back to a shade originally released for Winter 2020. What can I say — I like to keep you on your toes. This is Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Hip-nautical.

3 coats + top coat

I’m not even sure how to begin to describe this shifty polish. The base is a darker blue that flashes purple or lighter blue depending on the lighting or how you move your fingers. It did take 3 coats for a full solid coverage — & the best shift — but the polish formula is very thin so it dries quickly.

Definitely needs a good coat of top coat to finish it off. Keeps that beautiful shine, & helps smooth out any brush strokes.

The shift between colours is actually very good. Maybe not as shifty as in the bottle, but I rarely find that drugstore polishes are. The flash of blue is very strong on this shade, which is just absolutely gorgeous! & I love, as you can see in this macro shot, you get all the levels on this polish in one shot.

Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Hyp-nautical is now part of the permanent core collection, so you can find it where ever Sally Hansen shades are sold including:

What do you think about Sally Hansen Hyp-nautical? Is this a shade that you would wear? Are you a fan of the Sally Hansen Miracle Gel line? Let me know all your thoughts in the comments below.

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SWATCH SUNDAY — OPI Peace, Love & OPI

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday. & happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Canadians. I hope you all get a chance to celebrate however you prefer — whether that is turkey, Tofurky or pizza!

Today, though, it’s all about Swatch Sunday, & I’m sharing a fun old school shade from OPI dating back to OPI Fall/Winter San Fransisco collection from 2013. This is OPI Peace Love & OPI, a beautiful charcoal grey metallic with a fun teal purple duo chrome effect.

2 coats + Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure

The formula on this beauty isn’t too hard, though it does have a bit of streakiness to it, which I found is alleviated with some top coat. The colour is beautiful — it reminds me a lot of Essie For The Twill of It which is another silver/grey favourite I used to wear quite a bit. & I do love a good duo/multi chrome effect, although I found it didn’t quite show up as much in my photos as it does in person.

A little macro shot action. You can really see the teal & purple here.

This shade has been in my stash a long, long time. I think, at least 6 years — it has a white spot on its lid, which says to me I bought it on clearance at Chatters. When I worked close to one, I used to love checking out the clearance section because they always had the most amazing deals on polishes!

What do you think about this shade from OPI? Do you have Peace Love & OPI in your own stash? Let me know what your favourite metallic grey polish is down in the comments below.

Have a lovely Sunday.

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SWATCH SUNDAY — Joe Fresh Quartz

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday! Hope you’re all having a beautiful & fantastic weekend so far. The weather here has been beautiful so far, & I got to enjoy a lovely Saturday off work (that never happens) so I’m feeling refreshed for the week ahead.

So lately I’ve been rewatching Buffy the Vampire Slayer — I’m on season 2. Which mean, obviously, I’ve been obsessing about her nail polish. In particular, I noticed this metallic grey shade she’s been wearing a lot this season. So I decided to take a look into my stash, & found this beautiful Joe Fresh shade I’ve owned since 2015-ish or so: Quartz.

3 coats + Essence Extreme GEL Top Coat

Yes, so this shade is pretty sheer upon first, & even second, application. I ended up with three thin coats for full opacity. However, they applied with minimal streaking & brushstrokes, so I was pretty happy with that. You can also apply this over a darker shade with lesser coats as well. I do believe that will bring out the duochrome effect a bit more dramatically as well.

A macro shot for good measure. The shift is very good on this shade, depending on which was you move your fingers. I love the purple to green shift on this — it’s beautiful.

But just for a fun, I thought I’d add a little sparkle to this beauty which has been in my stash just as long: CND Vinylux Dazzling Dance. This shade has a similar colouring, but with some added holo sparkle! & the results was perfect.

Adding Dazzling Dance definitely changed the switch from a greenish to a blue/silver, but I love the end result. That sparkle definitely makes up the duller duochrome shift. But I totally think this polish is giving me late 90s, early 2000s vibes & I’m totally here for it.

What do you think about this week’s Swatch Sunday pick: Joe Fresh Quartz. Do you prefer it on it’s own, or with the the added sparkle of CND Vinylux Dazzling Dance?

Let me know all your thoughts down in the comments below!