My top 5 indie polishes!

(Nothing to disclose)

Hello!

A bunch of my fellow blogging buddies and I decided to do a link-up of our five favorite indie polishes. Some of us are doing are favorites from this year, some are doing our all-time favorites--so here are my five all-time favorite indie polishes, in alphabetical order.

Cult Nails: Coveted

I went back and forth about whether to include this polish or Iconic, because they're a tie for me; in the end I chose Coveted because I've featured Iconic before. And there's just so much I love about this beauty--the dark-grass shade of the green, the glowy sparkle, the squishy jelly, the flakie shards. It was one of the first indie polishes I absolutely...Coveted. Sadly, Cult Nails has closed their doors, but you may be able to find this baby in blog sales...:)

Cult Nails Coveted

Cult Nails Coveted

Cult Nails Coveted

Cult Nails Coveted

Elevation Polish Gobi

Gobi is an ethereal beauty that defies description. It's a soft caramel jelly holo with a soft mint green flash. It looks like it glows from within, like it's radiating the light of angels. It's the most amazing neutral, sophisticated and understated, while still being special and eye-catching. It's breath-taking. This polish isn't currently available, but you can find tons of other amazing polish in the Elevation shop.

Elevation Polish Gobi

Elevation Polish Gobi

Elevation Polish Gobi

Elevation Polish Gobi

Elevation Polish Gobi

InDecisive Bloodstone

Ah, Bloodstone. Beautiful anytime, but possibly the most perfect Christmas polish ever made. Deep pine green sprinkled with red, gold and green glitters, with a subtle sprinkle of gold shimmer throughout. It has a vintage feel, like winter in an English manor house. If the ladies of Downton Abbey had worn nail polish, they'd have loved this. And, and: she's still making this one, and you can find it here.

InDecisive Polish Bloodstone

InDecisive Polish Bloodstone

InDecisive Polish Bloodstone

InDecisive Polish Bloodstone

InDecisive Polish Bloodstone

Lucky 13 Lacquer But I Want To Fight! & Fool Of A Took

Yes, okay, this is technically two polishes, but they were released as a twin set, so I'm counting them as one. These two polishes represent Merry and Pippin from the Lord Of the Rings books/movies, and I think they capture the spirit of the hobbits well, with a touch of whimsy in them both. But I Want To Fight! is a dusty grape jelly with green holo glitters; it's pretty with just a bit of twinkly sparkle. Fool Of A Took is a muted avocado with purple glitter that has made it into my Halloween nail art several times, and is fun even when it's not October. These are no longer available, but there are plenty of other beauties that are in the Lucky 13 shop.

Lucky13 Lacquer But I Want To Fight!

Lucky13 Lacquer But I Want To Fight!

Lucky13 Lacquer But I Want To Fight!

Lucky13 Lacquer But I Want To Fight!

Lucky13 Lacquer But I Want To Fight!

Lucky13 Lacquer Fool Of A Took

Lucky13 Lacquer Fool Of A Took

Lucky13 Lacquer Fool Of A Took

Lucky13 Lacquer Fool Of A Took

LynBDesigns Do I Look Like A Frolicker?

This polish is a tangerine jelly with pink-purple flakies; together they give the polish a coral summer-sunset-sky look that's like nothing I've seen elsewhere. It's summery and feminine and it feels like it has just the right amount of magic splashed in. Art in a bottle. You can find LynBDesigns here.

LynBDesigns Do I Look Like A Frolicker?

LynBDesigns Do I Look Like A Frolicker?

LynBDesigns Do I Look Like A Frolicker?

LynBDesigns Do I Look Like A Frolicker?

LynBDesigns Do I Look Like A Frolicker?

LynBDesigns Do I Look Like A Frolicker?

Mentality Tenderness

(Um, Michelle? I think this is more than five polishes, even with your little cheat about the twin polish set from Lucky13 Lacquer...) (Shhhhh...quiet...nobody needs to know that, keep it to yourself!)

*Ahem*. This polish. THIS polish. THIS. POLISH. Deep regal purple with an amazing scatter of holo throughout. Nothing more needs to be said. Just enjoy and try not to drool everywhere. You can find Mentality's shop here.

Mentality Tenderness

Mentality Tenderness

Mentality Tenderness

Mentality Tenderness

Mentality Tenderness

Mentality Tenderness

Mentality Tenderness

Mentality Tenderness

Sweet Heart Polish Hurry Ba-ack!

(Um, Michelle? I think you're pushing this pretend-this-is-only-five-polishes thing a little far...) (Hey! If Douglas Adams could put out a trilogy that had five books, I can do a post of my five favorite indie polishes that has eight polishes! Work with me here!!)

Hurry Ba-ack! was a limited edition polish in honor of the Haunted Mansion ride at Disneyland, and I think it is easily the funnest polish (most fun polish?) I've ever seen, hands down, indie or no. I love the combination of the bright glitters in the squishy jelly, with the healthy dose of shimmer added in. I love that it captures the vibe of the ride, at least for me. I never thought I'd call a black-based polish 'happy', but it is. It's happy and it's fun, and it makes me smile. I loved it so much that although I was originally sent a mini for review, I bought myself a full-sized bottle. LOVE. This was a limited edition polish, but you can find her other beauties here. :)

Sweet Heart Polish Hurry Ba-ack!

Sweet Heart Polish Hurry Ba-ack!

Sweet Heart Polish Hurry Ba-ack!

Sweet Heart Polish Hurry Ba-ack!

Narrowing it down to five was crazy difficult, I had at least 30 more I wanted to include. So I'm thinking maybe I need to do this by season or something in the future, give myself an excuse to pull out pics of more awesome polishes! But there are my top indie polishes today, at this moment. Wait, maybe I should have put in...focus, Michelle, focus!! Don't forget to check out what the other bloggers chose in the link-up below. :)

So what do you think of my choices? Any there you love? And what's your favorite indie polish of all time?

Happy polishing!
M.

An InLinkz Link-up

Before & After: Gobi Nouveau

Hello!

The students are back in school, and the fall colors are starting to appear in fall collections. It's still warm outside, but there is starting to be that different feel to the air. It's that magical time where summer is starting to turn into fall...it's not quite completely summer, and it's not quite completely fall, and as each new day wakes up, it decides on its own which side of that line it's going to stand on.

Here is a polish that I think captures that beautiful transition: Elevation Polish Gobi. It has a soft fall feel in the caramel-brown scattered holo, but summer peeps out in the soft mint-gold flash. I was lucky enough to grab this in one of Llarowe's restocks a while back, and I'm so glad I did--this is one of the most unique polishes I own, and it catches my eye constantly while I wear it. And yet, it it absolutely work-appropriate. This is two coats:

Elevation polish Gobi, artificial light

Elevation Polish Gobi, direct sunlight

A polish this special deserves an equally special type of nail art; so I picked what is possibly my favorite stamping image in the world, from Cheeky Jumbo plate 8, to put over it. I wanted something very subtle to let the magic of this polish shine through, so I only stamped on the ring finger, and I used China Glaze Passion to complement the color in a soft way:

To me, this manicure hints at the coming pleasures of fall, while still carrying the sparkle and light of long summer afternoons. It's peaceful, but has a glowing energy. I love it, and I hope you do, too. :)

Thanks for stopping by! Hugs,
M.