Illamasqua: Raindrops

Purchased By Me 

A quick post today because I was a little busy over the weekends...

Presenting... Illamasqua's Raindrops!

Raindrops. 3 thin coats.

A blue-grey jelly filled with sprinkles of tiny silvery white flakies meant to resemble its namesake.

One of the most raved-about color released by Illamasqua. It was first introduced as part of the winning trio of Illamasqua's polish design contest but it was discontinued before I could get my hands on it (I was certain my wail of anguish could be heard all the way at the other side of the globe). Thankfully, Illamasqua recently re-released it as part of their Broken Heart Collection and, having learnt my lesson, I immediately placed an order for it.

The emo-gal in me fell in love with the inspiration and Illamasqua certainly didn't disappoint. Raindrops is the perfect portrayal of a rainy day. The little flakies are much more visible in real life than what the swatch picture shows - closer to what you see in the close-up picture on the left.

Application was perfect as well. I've heard that the previous batch of Raindrops was really sheer but I did not have much trouble reaching opacity with 3 thin coats.

I've heard that Illamasqua also released an accompanying Pink Raindrops but I skipped it because I am not that fond of pink.

What do you think of this? Did you get your hands on any of the Raindrops?

OPI: Pirates of the Caribbean - On Stranger Tides

Purchased By Me 

So, I'd lost my blogging mojo for a few weeks. To be more accurate, I actually bordered on losing interest in nail polishes altogether. Terrifying, I know... But there are many reasons that drove that crazy idea into my head - work, filling orders from my Etsy store and my stubborn insistence to indulge in my other hobbies (eg. manga, TV dramas) till late in the night. With so many things to do, I hardly found the time to do swatches / nail art for the blog *hangs head in shame*

This went on for a few weeks and I finally decided to do something about it:

From now on, my Etsy store will only be opened on the first and last 3 days of each month. 

I thank you for your understanding. Hopefully, this will give me more time over the rest of the weekends to recharge and spend time on other things that I love too - including updating this blog! ♥

To kickstart the first post after my brief hiatus, I'm happy to say that I've finally gotten my hands on OPI's Pirates of the Caribbean collection! *happy dance* I am not even a fan of pastel colors (I love them but they don't love my skin tone) but I am all gaga over these colors. I believe this is the first time that I've spent slightly more money to get my hands on discontinued colors and I am not regretting it the least bit. Take a look:

Mermaid's Tears. 3 thin coats.
Bright but slightly dusty turquoise. You know how much I love turquoises. Make them dusty looking and I'm completely sold. This is also the reason why I spent a couple of bucks more to get this one. Thankfully I didn't have to fork out retail price for it though - OPIs are going at about S$20 through the official retailer *winces*

Stranger Tides. 3 thin coats.
A dusty murky green. I can't even begin to say how much I love this.

Skull and Glossbones. 3 thin coats.
A beautiful light grey with hints of khaki green. I had dismissed this initially because I thought it would look horrid on me but it rocketed to be one of my favorite colors in this collection. The green is just enough to make it wearable and unique. Simply perfection.

Steady as She Rose. 3 thin coats.
A beautiful lilac shade-shifter. It leans more pink or purple depending on the lighting. Another must-have. Work appropriate too!

Sparrow Me the Drama. 3 thin coats.
Soft bright pink. I don't really like bright pinks but I make an exception for this - it is bright but dusty enough for my liking.

Planks A Lot. 3 thin coats.
A beautiful dusty red-toned purple. I thought it was similar to a-england Guinevere but this is less dusty and brighter.

Yup, I'm seriously in love with all the colors in this collection. If you are a fan of dusty shades, you wouldn't want to miss this collection... well, except the silver shatter perhaps - because it is passé. Although the collection has been discontinued, I believe it is not difficult to find them online on eBay, etc. My advice? Grab them before they become really HTF.

Which color(s) do you like?