Category Archives: Nail Polish Swatches & Reviews

piCture pOlish Dragonfly Swatches & Review

Picture Polish Dragonfly Swatches Review

I’ve worn piCture pOlish Dragonfly numerous times since purchasing it last year, but each time I wore my manicure, Mother Nature didn’t cooperate. It seems like each time I went to wear this, several days were overcast.

As you know, I like to include photographs of a nail polish in artificial light and natural light because it captures the personality better. Many times, you can see more of the features and nuances when you compare them in both lighting conditions.

Finally, there was a brighter day recently, so I didn’t let the opportunity fly by me! 😉 I snapped piCture pOlish Dragonfly like it was Canada’s Next Top Model Nail Polish.

Despite having all the conditions, this polish is the kind that looks more spectacular in person, so no photograph can do it any justice. Its beauty is brilliant!

If you’re a fan of green and teal nail polishes like I am, this will make your heart skip a beat and play hopscotch! 😉

piCture pOlish Dragonfly is part of the December 2014 Collaboration Collection, and it’s sentimental to me because the colour was designed by the talented Lucy’s Stash nail blogger, Lucie aka Lucy, whose work I admire. (On her blog, she reviews many nail polishes and also does intricate nail art, which I often drool over! Check her out!)

Although piCture pOlish is a limited-edition colour that’s sold out where I bought it (Nail Polish Canada), you can leave your e-mail address there, and they’ll notify you if it gets restocked. Also, at the time I wrote this blog post, it’s still available on the piCture pOlish and Harlow and Co. websites. (You can find all the links later in this post. None of them are affiliate links.)

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OPI I’m in the Moon for Love Swatches & Review

OPI I'm in the Moon for Love Swatches Review

Don’t look now, but my nails are mooning you! 😉

I’ve gone ‘plum crazy’ over this plum: OPI I’m in the Moon for Love from the Starlight Collection!

It reminds me slightly of the first non-drugstore nail polish that I’ve ever purchased: OPI Louvre Me Louvre Me Not. Although it’s not a dupe, they’re like sisters.

This shade is nostalgic for me because long before my love of green nail polishes, I was in love with berries, plums, and purples.

OPI I’m in the Moon for Love is one of those easy-to-wear colours because it’s not dark and not bright – just right and with a touch of subtle shimmer.

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Madam Glam Holo Fever Swatches & Review

Madam Glam Holo Fever Swatches Review

Sometimes you want simplicity. Other times, you want fireworks on your nails!

You’ll get the latter with Madam Glam Holo Fever, a glittery purple-based polish that left my nails drooling with my jaw on the floor.

This is the grand introduction to Madam Glam nail polishes on the blog, as I’ve never worn this brand before. (By the way, they ship worldwide!)

Complex like a painting, I find myself gazing at Madam Glam Holo Fever intently to appreciate the careful attention to detail.

It’s more than just a glitter polish. There are many interesting layers that contribute to the spectacular bigger picture.

When you see more photos included in this post, you’ll see why this polish is ideal for when you’re craving a statement manicure!

Back when I first started collecting nail polish more seriously, I was obsessed with China Glaze Grape Crush, which was discontinued. I scoured all my usual e-tailers and eBay, but I never got my hands on it.

Although this is not a dupe, and Grape Crush was a huge lemming of mine that never found its way into my Helmer, I can say now that Madam Glam Holo Fever has squashed it. Holo Fever is everything I’ve ever wanted Grape Crush to be and more, so after all these years, I’ve finally called off the search.

P.S. I can’t write this review with paying homage to one of my favourite songs – Peggy Lee’s Fever!

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INGLOT 988 Swatches & Review

INGLOT 988 Swatches Review

INGLOT 988 is a Comfort Nail Polish to me that’s akin to a piping hot bowl of chilli on a day when the weather outside is frightful.

It wasn’t always this way, but green speaks to my soul. Although I can appreciate a diverse spectrum of shades, green is the colour that I find to be the most soothing and ‘natural.’ It’s the colour that I feel represents me the best, and it’s rare that a green doesn’t make my heart sing like a Disney princess whose bed is made by sweet little birds. (Pfft! Who needs a Prince Charming?) 😉

How has your New Year been so far? Did you make any New Year’s resolutions? Are you sticking to them?

I rarely make New Year’s resolutions anymore. Instead, I set goals for myself frequently throughout the year, and that works best for me because I like having numerous achievements to strive for on a regular basis instead of once a year.

Now it’s time for a tangent, cosine, or sine. 😉

Something that’s unrelated, but that I wanted to mention is that the other day, I was doing random searches on YouTube. Ever do that? You end up researching one thing, but then you fall down the rabbit hole and wind up somewhere completely unexpected.

I started off listening to old songs that brought back happy memories – 2Pac Thugz Mansion (the acoustic version), Fight Test by The Flaming Lips, Fabolous’ You Be Killin’ Em, and T.I.’s Whatever You Like.

Then, after a long string of searches, it was the Six Degrees of YouTube Separation. I ended up listening to a man speaking about his experience in a maximum-security prison!

While listening to this man, I was inspired because he totally turned his life and attitude around. After spending years in prison and being stripped of his freedom, he was finally released, and he chose to lead a life that wasn’t down a criminal path.

Despite the temptations and his friends who were released and repeated the same old mistakes, this guy had the courage to resist. He created his own happy story, and he took full responsibility for all the crimes he committed in the past. He even tried to help other convicts change their ways, and he put himself in danger by doing so.

Stories like his make me think that there really are angels on earth.

People like him inspire me the most. It’s not those who have it all who impress me. The people who have lost it all and have learned what the real riches are set the biggest example for me. It’s people like him whose stories I’d want to help write into a book. The world needs to hear them and come back down to earth.

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Zoya Lake Swatches & Review

Zoya Lake Swatches Review

Like an icicle hanging from the shingles of a rooftop, Zoya Lake from the Whispers Collection paints a wintry scene.

Zoya Lake is a demure blue, and it’s proof that you don’t need to do a cannonball to make a splash!

Despite its cool demeanour, you’ll warm up to it quickly because it has a soft and gentle personality. (You’ll welcome it readily because it contrasts with the sparkly nail polish that you may have sported during the holidays.)

It’s an innocent blue that fits into winter as much as it would for spring, making it a great transitional shade. (Of course, I encourage you to wear whatever colour you love. Who says that you must follow seasonal trends?)

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Zoya April Swatches & Review

Zoya April Swatches Swatch

No, you haven’t stumbled upon the wrong blog. It’s Swatch And Learn. Hehe, but you probably just aren’t used to seeing such a soft shade on my nails too often, as I tend to reach for dramatic colours.

However, with all the pomp and circumstance surrounding the holiday season, I’ve been starting to crave something more demure for my nails. It’s a palate cleanser.

It was great timing when the Zoya Whispers Collection came my way in December.

The first nail polish from it that I chose to wear was Zoya April, and it was exactly the simple and pure shade that I wanted to start 2016 off fresh with.

What’s interesting about it is how it’s almost like a chameleon. Yes, it’s a standard creme, and no, it’s no multi-dimensional, but when I photographed it in artificial light and natural light (as per my usual routine), Zoya April revealed a different personality, as you will see further in this post.

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OPI Give Me Space Swatches & Review

OPI Give Me Space Swatches & Review

Nail polish and I are BFFs. So when a lacquer told me the other day that it wanted to spend some time apart and see what it was like to be on someone else’s nails, needless to say, I felt a little hurt.

But, since I’m not one to restrain the freedom of another, I let OPI Give Me Space from the Starlight Collection wander off and explore new territory. This was not before I prepared it a hearty breakfast and packed it an extra sweater (in case it got chilly) and a new bottle of top coat (in case the journey was long).

A few days later, to my great joy, I looked up and saw it skipping happily towards me! It came back, kissed my nails, and told me that there’s no place like Helmer home!

After hugging it long and hard, I promised it a special feature on the blog, so here is my detailed review of OPI Give Me Space! 😉

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