The end

Well folks this is it, the end of my experiment, the end of my A to Z of nails.  I started out in January 2012 and it's taken me nearly 2 1/2 years to wear every single polish in my collection.  It just shows no one can possibly wear that much polish (although it doesn't stop me buying more!).  In that time I have had two children (at the same time!) and they are now 19 months old.  A lot can happen in the length of time it takes to try on nail polish!

It does seem strange now that I am able to wear what polish when I want.  I feel a bit institutionalised, like I am not sure what to do with myself now.  You mean I am free to choose what I want to wear? But I have so many, how will I decide?  One thing for sure is I definitely will be buying more, some things do not change!

Thank you for sticking with me through this journey, I hope you all enjoyed it as much as I did.

Lealea x

Purging my stash

At over 300 bottle of polish I am starting to run out of room and no one in their right mind needs this many polishes unless they own a nail polish company.  So I went back through all my old blog entires and decided to be ruthless and cull any that I disliked.  All in all I think I removed approximately 40 bottles from my nail polish drawers, making them considerably lighter (and making room for more polish!).  I am not going to list all those that I am getting rid of but you can see in the photo it's a considerable amount.  It's a shame but hey - life is too short to hold on to things if you will never use them again. Even nail polish!

Until next time,
Lealea x

My favourite mettallics

I was surprised that I loved as many metallics as I do, but some of these are truly beautiful colours.

In photographic order:

Silver Plated - Avon
Silver Foil - Barry M
Halographic - Color Club
Harp on It - Color Club
Penny Talk - Essie
Rage - Orly
Copper - Barry M
Fiery Blaze - Miss Sporty

That concludes my favourite polishes, some gorgeous polishes I am looking forward to wearing again.

Next up - polishes that didn't make the cut.
Until then,
Lealea x

My favourite purples

Given that purple is my favourite colour it was no surprise I have many purple polishes which I have raved about.

In photographic order:

Purple Sherbet - Ciate
Berry Ice Cream - Barry M
Planks A Lot - OPI
Ultra Violet - Rimmel
Climax - Rimmel
Let's Talk - Sinful Colors
Tanzanite - Revlon

Next up and my favourite metallics,
Until then,
Lealea x

My favourite reds

It seems I have many favourite reds and they are all very similar, bright and metallic looking!

In photographic order:

Watermelon Fizz - Revlon
Red Carpet - Rimmel
Luminous Red - Nails Inc
Under 18 - Sinful Colors
Red Glitter - Barry M
Salsa - No. 7
Diva of Geneva - OPI
Auvergne - Marks and Spencer

Next up are my favourite purples.
Until then,
Lealea

My favourite pinks

If you would have asked me before I started this journey I would have said I have loads of pink polishes I love. However even though pink polishes make up the biggest colour in my collection, reading through all my blog entries there was only one that I raved about - Flip Flop Fantasy by China Glaze. It's just amazing and everyone should own it.  The end.

Next up are my favourite reds.
Until then,
Lealea x

My Favourite Greens

As you can see from my previous post I have many more favourite blues than greens but I did found some I really love.

In order on photograph:

Gray's Anatomy by Wet n Wild
Greenberry by Barry M
Gorgeous by Sinful Colors

Next up,are my favourite pinks,
Until then,
Lealea x

My Favourite Blues

After nearly 2 1/2 years and around 300 polishes I have finally come to the end of my collection so I decided to round this all up by reviewing my favourite polishes. I went back through my blog entires and pulled out all those polishes that I raved about and put them together in the different colours.  Interestingly those that I thought I would like I didn't and some that I thought nothing of I loved wearing.

Here are my favourite blues in photographic order:

Blue Rhapsody - Essie
Bluebell - Nails Inc
Blueberry - Barry M
Blueberry Ice Cream - Barry M
Azure by Rimmel
Retro Blue by Barry M
Sparkle Blue Magnetic - Barry M
Navy - Barry M

Next up are my favourite greens,
Until then,
Lealea x

Unnamed polish from Company Magazine

I got this polish in a two set as a freebie from Company magazine before Christmas.  One of the polishes was named, the other had no sticker on so I have no idea whether it has a name.  The polish is a lovely mint cream colour, very springlike.

I was worried that this polish would be rubbish to apply but actually the brush was very good, the formula was good and it applied opaque in two coats.  I'm impressed Company Magazine.

Next up - my review of my favourite polishes,
Until then,
Lealea x

Urban Vibe by Maybelline

This is another polish from the Street Artist collection from Maybelline.  This is a splatter effect top coat, matte black and orange irregular shapes and bar glitter is a clear base.  I layered this polish over a black coat which made the orange pop but the matte black was not really visible.  For this reason I would suggest layering it over white maybe.  I thought it was ok, but didn't think it stood out much, much preferred the blue version (Alley Attitude).



I used two coats over the black although I think one would have sufficed.  It applied evenly with all the glitter, no fishing for different pieces as you have to with some glitter polishes.

Next up is an unnamed polish from Company.
Until then,
Lealea x

Standback by No. 7

I bought this polish after Christmas in the Boots sale for £1.50. It was only when I got it home I realised it had a tester sticker on it.  Oh well it did not seem to be used and wasn't damaged so I will not complain too much.  The polish is a bright blue cream polish in the bottle but on the nails it comes across as more green.  I liked the bottle colour much better than the colour on my nails.

The No. 7 polishes are easy to apply with their wide brushes.  Although I would not pay full price for one, Boots usually have offers on and I have a fair few of these for that reason.

Next up is Urban Vibe by Maybelline.
Until then,
Lealea x

Silver by Seventeen

I am a sucker for holographic polishes so when I saw this in Boots and I had a voucher for additional advantage points with my Advantage Card I jumped at the chance to buy it.  It's a beautiful silver halo which changes to all colours of the rainbow.  Shame then that it was not that fantastic on the nails, it just fell flat somehow.  The holo effect was only really noticeable in full sunlight and elsewhere it just looked a bit like a dirty silver colour.  I much prefer my Color Club Holographic polishes.  Don't bother with this one.

The polish applied well and was opaque in two coats and it was cheap but I wouldn't recommend you rush out and buy it when there are better out there.

Next up is Standback by No. 7.
Until then,
Lealea x

Russian Navy by OPI

I first saw this polish in TK Maxx in a set and I absolutely loved it but I was saving for Christmas at the time so did not buy it.  I therefore decided to buy it with my Christmas money.  The polish is a dark navy with a purple shimmer, lovely colour.  It was a bit more disappointing on the nails than in the bottle but nice nevertheless.

The polish applied easily and was opaque in two coats.  A nice polish.

Next up is Silver by Seventeen.
Until then,
Lealea x

Pirouette My Whistle by OPI

This is the last of the Top Ten collection mini set from OPI.  This polish is a glitter top coat with silver micro glitters and larger hexagonal glitters in a clear base. The polish was ok, nothing particularly special about it, I certainly would not rush out to buy a full size, I think I have better cheaper polishes than this.

The glitter applied nicely with an even coverage.  I added two coats just to give extra coverage and to make sure each nail had some of the hexagonal pieces.


Next up is Russian Navy by OPI.
Until next time,
Lealea x

Pink Soda by Soap and Glory

This polish came in a Soap and Glory gift set I was given at Christmas.  It's a baby pink cream colour lovely in the bottle. It's a shame then that I hated this polish on.  It was so see through I put three coats on before I realise there was no way it would ever be opaque.  I decided to use it as a French manicure base but the colour was too pink really and so just looked strange.

I love Soap and Glory products usually but this polish let me down big time.

Next up is Pirouette My Whistle by OPI.
Until then,
Lealea x

Peace, Love and OPI by OPI

This polish is from the San Francisco collection released last year. This is very similar to Essie's For the Twill of It in that it's a purple/green duo chrome like petrol in water.  You do not need to have both polishes, they are pretty much the same.  I like it, but with For the Twill of It, I would prefer to see more of the duo chrome colours on the nail.

The polish is easy to apply and opaque in three coats like most duo chrome polishes.  It's a good polish to have in your collection.

Next up is Pink Soda by Soap and Glory.
Until then,
Lealea x

OPI Ink by OPI

This is another polish I have wanted for a whole after I saw it in another bloggers collection.  It's a beautiful dark purple with a hint of orange flashes in the light.  That does not translate so well on the nails but it's still a lovely purple.

The polish applies easily and was opaque in two coats.

Next up is Peace, Love and OPI by OPI.
Until then,
Lealea x

My Private Jet by OPI

This is one of the iconic polishes from OPI for the reason that they changed the formula on this polish  from the original.  The original had much more holographic pieces in it which made people love it.  Then for some reason OPI changed the formula to remove the holographic pieces and while it's still a lovely polish it's not as great as the original.  Mine is not the original and while I like it, I don't love it.  It's a nice metallic brown polish with a hint of holo shimmer but it doesn't show that well on the nails.

The polish applies well and was opaque in two coats.  If you ever find the original formula then snap it up, if not, I wouldn't tell you to rush out and buy this.

Next up is OPI Ink by OPI.
Until then,
Lealea x

Minty Fresh by No. 7

I saw this polish a couple of years ago but never bought it.  After Christmas I was shopping the Boots Sale and saw lots of No. 7 polishes in the sale so was excited to see this for £1.50.  The colour is a light blue/green cream colour, more blue than For Audrey which is more green.  It's a nice spring pastel colour.



The polish applied easily and No. 7 polishes have a nice wide brush which are great to work with.  A good polish for a great sale price.

Next up is My Private Jet by OPI.
Until then,
Lealea x

Mermaids Are Real

This is another polish from the indie seller bought for me as a present from Etsy.  Mermaids Are Real is a glitter top coat polish, a mixture of purple, green, gold, blue and red glitters in hexagon and square shapes.  Lovely in the bottle.  Of the three I was bought this was my least favourite as I thought the mix of the colours was a bit messy but I still liked it.



This polish was not as thick as Galaxy in a Bottle and it applied a good even coat of glitter on the nails.  One coat only was required to get a good layer.

Next up is Minty Fresh by No. 7.
Until then,
Lealea x