A Peek into my Stash — Part One.

Warning: this post is going to be VERY picture heavy.

So I’ve been thinking for a while of going through my polishes, and actually documenting what I own. With it all packed away in it’s storage unit, something I forget what polishes I actually have. When I saw Confession of a Nail Polish Addict‘s pictures of her own stash, I was inspired to take the work to document my own. I’m going to be breaking it up into a couple posts, just because it would take a crazy long time to take pictures of everything, and then put them in all one post (that would be a lot of pictures!) So instead I’m going by my drawers — today we have the bottom two drawers of my storage uni.

So without further ado, here is part one of my stash post. =)

From the forgotten stash — Icing’s Romantic/Relaxed.

Today I have another polish from my forgotten stash with you–and another “mood” polish! Like I stated in my other Claire’s mood polish, I was quite obsessed with these when they first came out, as I had never witnessed a thermal polish before so these left me in awe. Now that I have my Mood polishes back, I’m definitely going to have to go on a search to find more for my collection.

Today’s polish is Romantic/Relaxed from Icing’s Mood Swing polishes.

Romantic/Relaxed is a pink metallic polish with is scattered through out (while cold) which transforms into a gold polish when it is hot. I’d call the darker version of this polish (which I believe is the “romantic” part) almost a blush. The color is very pretty, and subtle and the gold shimmer scattered through out is gorgeous. It also dries to almost a satin finish, but I added top coat to help the polish last longer (and cause–I top coat all my manicures.)

Romantic/Relaxed while cold.

The magic happens, though, when you hands start to warm up. (And this is why I love this polish SO much) Suddenly your polish goes from a blushy pink to a full on pale gold shimmer. I know I’ve heard some people online in swatches of this polish say they weren’t too keen on the either color, but I think both are beautiful.

Romantic/Relaxed — while hot (index and middle finger) and cold (ring and pinky).

I was so much more impressed with the change on these as opposed to my Claire’s Mood polishes which I didn’t see as much of a difference while swatching. Icing’s Romantic/Relaxed seems completely unaffected from it’s time spent in a box in the attic.

Romantic/Relaxed mid-change.

Overall, I really, really love this polish. My only complaint is neither Icing nor Claire’s carries any of their Mood polishes anymore. I really wish they would bring them back because I can guarantee I would purchase every single color they released.  Thermal polish seems to be a popular trend that isn’t slowing down, and now that I’ve been playing with the few that I have I need MORE!

So what do you think of this “mood” polish?

Long lost goodies.

So the other day I was over at my parents. They’re moving away the beginning of next year, so I’ve had to go through the few boxes I left in their attic when I moved out. I knew a box containing the stash I had collected while living at home, and after going through a couple I found it!

Surprisingly–considering it’s been sitting in an attic for the last two and a half years–it survived. I was expecting a lot of causalities, but there were only a few polishes of mine that didn’t make it. (Mostly shatter and crackle polishes). But what excited me most of all was that all my Claire’s Mood Polishes have survived.

Claire’s Mood color changing nail polish in peaceful/confident.

When these polishes first came out (I believe it was in either 2010, or 2011), I was obsessed with them. I loved the thermal effect, and promptly bought 4 of them–3 are Claire’s brand, the other Icing brand. Unfortunately, I don’t think the years have been kind to the polish. Maybe it’s my base coat or top coat, but the color change isn’t as vivid as I remember it being.

Index & Middle finger: after running under hot water. Ring & pinky finger: unchanged.

You can kind of see the change on my index and middle finger (after dipping in hot water).

I’m slightly disappointed that they seem not to work as well as they once did, but never the less the color is gorgeous so I’m happy to have found this and all my other polishes I’ve been without for so long. I’m especially excited for all the nail art combinations and swatches to be had.

It’s like Christmas in May. =)

Icing’s Peek a Blue.

Today I’ve got an older polish from the depth of my stash to share with you.

This is Icing’s Peek A Blue, which is a sparkly blue polish that I picked up from Icing last summer. It was on clearance, so I managed so score it for a sweet $2.49 (it was regularly $5.00)

Peek a Blue is a very, very sheer light blue polish scattered through out with slightly darker micro glitters. I’ve applied two coats of it over a two coats of Sinful Colors Be Happy, as it would take quite a few layers to make it even close to opaque. But because the base of Peek a Blue does have it’s only tinge of color, the base color of Be Happy doesn’t really change it much. It still very much looks like the polish in the bottle, even with layering it over another color.

The second I saw this polish, I remember thinking I need that! And now I remember why. Even though it’s very sheer, it’s just beautiful on the nail.

Tomorrow I have some pretty nail art to share with you using Peek a Blue as my base color. =)

Forgotten Polishes: Drops of Jade.

Sometimes I get overwhelmed with new polishes, and completely forget about the older polishes in my stash. The other day, I was looking for something quick but pretty for my nails. I didn’t have time for nail art, but I didn’t just want to wear a basic color.

Looking through my stash, I found my bottle of Maybelline Color Show in Drops of Jade from the polka dot collection. I bought it last Summer, and remember being so obsessed with it when I first bought it. Then it got lost in my stash, and I forgot I had it! Which is sad, because this is the perfect polish for nails on the go–it’s like nail art in a bottle. I applied 2 coats of polish for this manicure, but if I had more time I would have went with three just for a little more coverage. Thankfully, because of the glitters, you can’t really see any bald spots.

So what do you think of the Maybelline Color Show Polka Dot polishes?