Lacquer or Leave Her!: Favorite Holiday Polishes: Basics Edition

Thursday, December 19, 2013

Favorite Holiday Polishes: Basics Edition

Hello!

After a couple of false-starts, lol, here is the real post about my favorite basic holiday polishes!

I'm going to do two 'Favorite Holiday Polishes' posts, one that looks at basic, standard polishes, and another that looks at specialty polishes. Today I'm doing the 'basics', and what I mean by that are the typical colors you think during this season that you'd want to use for basic wear, and for nail art. In my mind, these are reds, greens, blues, golds & silvers, and purples. I think these cover a variety of the holidays that are celebrated this season, but if there is a holiday color that I've missed, please let me know...And please don't judge the older, very icky, swatches too harshly. >.<

Reds

Barielle Dinner At 8

The perfect happy Christmas red. Good for nail art, or just shining on it's own. I'm pretty sure that this is what Mrs. Claus wears on her nails. :)

Orly Smolder

If Mrs. Santa was a vampire, this is the polish she'd wear. Sexy, vampy, perfect for that amazing holiday party with that cute guy that you're hoping will ask for your number...Heck, wear this polish and you won't feel like waiting. You'll walk up to him and tell him what time to pick you up.

Zoya Elisa

Bad swatch of an awesome polish. This is what Mrs. Santa wears when she wants to make some new elves. Hmm...is that how that elf thing works? I'm not sure, and I don't think so, and the more I think about it, the more I realize I don't want to go there. A-hem. But yeah, this is what she'd wear. Christmassy but sexy all at once. :)

Zoya Pepper

This is a little darker than the typical Christmas red...But for those girls who like a little danger in their polish...why should that have to stop at Christmas time? ;-)

Greens

Color Club Ho-Ho-Holly

A pine green flecked with gold. If you put a Christmas tree decorated with gold ornaments into a blender, this is what would come out. But please don't.

Julep Cindy

A lighter, more grass-green polish with gold flecklets in it. Perfect for gatherings that are fun, flirty, and funky.

Barielle Polished Princess

Want to capture that retro 1960s How-The-Grinch-Stole-Christmas sort of look? This is the perfect polish to send you on your way. Add some kartoonkers and some foo-floonkers, and you're set.

Zoya Hunter

Zoya Hunter

If you're looking for something a little more adult, understated, and elegant, Hunter will do the job for you while still capturing the spirit of the season.

Models Own Golden Green

This actually has a bit of duochrome to it, so I maybe should have saved it for the specialty polishes list. However, I think this is the perfect polish if you're going for a more Victorian Christmas-type of feel, so I wanted to include it here. :)

Blues

Zoya Crystal

Bad swatches and shrinkage aside, this is a beautiful blue holiday polish. Slate blue with flecks of gold throughout, this feels like it's reflecting candlelight all the time. If you've had too much red and green this season, reach for this beauty.

Zoya Hazel

Zoya Hazel

Hazel is Crystal's lighter, more silver cousin. This also is a salve for the soul if you want something festive, twinkly, but not red or green.

Zoya Neve

Zoya Neve

Neve has a lovely holiday jewel-tone royal blue with an incredible shimmer. Very, very sexy without being typical or expected. :)

Sinful Colors Ciao Bella

Sinful Colors Ciao Bella

Ciao Bella is a bit brighter for your more fun, funky holiday looks, but still keeps that sexy sizzle. This is one of my favorite blue polishes of all times, for any occasion. :)

Layla CE10

Another slight cheat, but totally worth it. Bright, fun, and beautifully blue. :)

Purples

Orly Velvet Rope

A rich, velvety blue-leaning purple that sits firmly in the jewel-tone family. The little brush of teeny glitters gives it a bit of extra holiday punch. :)

Wet n Wild Fergie Ferguson Crest Syrah

This one makes me think of a yummy plum pudding, with those spiced raisins and plums and the amazing rich sauce...It also makes me think of mulled wines. :)

Finger Paints Plum Startled

This one screams visions of sugar plums to me...Deep plum purple with blue shimmer...aaahhhhh.

Zoya Mason

This is possibly my favorite red-leaning purple ever. Ever. Gorgeous. Flawless application. A.Dore.

Golds & Silvers

Orly Flare

I don't like plain metallic colors, I think they look a bit tawdry unless they're done really, really well. In my opinion, a metallic has to have some je ne sais quoi to make it acceptable for wearing on its own or as a base for nail art. Flare has that in the form of a very lightly flecked polish that gives texture to the color. This is what a gold should be.

Jessica Gingersnap

If you took a gingerbread man, gilded him, and them crumbled him up, this is what you'd get. I love the rusts and the golds all together, making this a very compelling polish. If you want something that has the richness of gold but doesn't just blind you, check her out.

Julep Faye

You could argue that Faye is a brown. Okay, you don't have to argue, it's a brown. But the gold shimmer in it is so pretty, I felt it needed to make an appearance here somewhere. This is another way to get a glimmer of gold without having 24-karat nails. :)

Julep Mia

As I was putting this post together, I realized I have a lot of silvers that I use for stamping, but none that I actually like to wear as a base, except this one--and I just got this one in my most recent Julep box! This is a complex, interesting color, not just a plain silver--it has greenish-gold to it, and little gunmetal flecks. So if you're like me and don't want to look like you simply poured molten silver over your nails, I think you'll really love Mia.

Okay, that's it for the basics! Tomorrow I'll have some selections from the Incoco Winter 2013/2014 collection for you, and then I'll be back on Saturday with my favorite specialty polishes.

Thanks for your patience with those false-starts! Darn internet gnomes...sigh...
M.