Turn all of your creme nail polishes into shimmers (temporarily): Review of e.l.f. sheer topcoats

Disclosure: This post contains no affiliate links.
Collecting a few cheap effects topcoats is a good way to double (or triple, etc.) the number of nail polishes you have available, in a way. I've posted before about using a holo topcoat so that you instantly have as many different colors of holo polishes as you have polishes. Using these $2 e.l.f. shimmer topcoats similarly multiplies your options. If you have a color you love, but have seen a shimmer version of it that you're debating buying, getting the right shimmer topcoat might be a cheaper option (and it can be used with all your other colors, of course). I've included one example below where I was able to dupe an Orly nail polish using an ULTA creme I already had and an e.l.f. topcoat. These shimmers are also just really fucking pretty, so that's maybe enough reason to check them out.

Here are swatches of all the e.l.f. topcoats I own over Revlon Parfumerie Wild Violets. I also included the other glitter and flakie topcoats from e.l.f that I have, for the sake of completeness. The last time I checked, it was hard to find swatches of these shimmers, so I hope this is useful to someone. The only shimmer topcoat from them that I don't have is Twinkle Twilight, which I think is a silvery shimmer. (I want it too.) Each of these is one coat over the dark purple base, photographed in natural light.

Swatches (left to right) of Revlon Parfumerie Wild Violets (alone) and then topped with e.l.f. Summer Solstice, Supernova, Big Bang Blue, Fairy Dust, Love Me, and Enchanted.

More photos below:

Battle of the fairly-quick-dry topcoats: NYC Grand Central Station ($2) vs. Orly Polishield ($10)

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.
I love quick dry topcoat. So much. I'm pretty sure that discovering Seche Vite is the main thing that enabled me to become a nail polish hoarder.

Okay, maybe I need to rethink my love for it.

But until two or three years ago, I had no idea there was a way to paint your nails without having to sit around completely still for 45 minutes afterwards and then still wake up the next morning with the impression of your pillowcase on at least three fingers. Patience is not one of my great virtues, nor is memory. As in remembering that I just fucking painted my nails and so now is not a good time to anything at all.

The most convenient quick dry top coats that I've tried can be applied within minutes (or even seconds) of the last coat of color, and it will dry to the touch in less than 5 minutes. In less than 10, you can zip your jeans on or off, wash dishes, open beer cans, etc., without any damage. Living the dream. I've tried a shitload of different brands, and my favorite one was Butter London's - but since it is exorbitantly, horrifyingly expensive, Sally Hansen's is a very close second. Poshe is also good. Seche Vite works fast and is very shiny, but causes too much shrinkage, in my opinion. Nubar's Diamont is shitty.

Royal and navy blue nail polish swatches and comparisons (picture heavy post)

Disclosure: This post contains an affiliate link.

Left to right (in natural light): Ma = Maybelline Color Show Denim Dash, CG = CoverGirl Outlast Out of the Blue, SH = Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Pacific Blue, ES = Essie Butler Please, SC = Sinful Colors Endless Blue, CG = China Glaze ManHunt, RR = Revlon Top Speed Royal, ZI = Zoya Ibiza, SH = Sally Hansen Insta-Dry Co-bolt Blue, ORN = Orly Royal Navy, ZS = Zoya Song, OSC = Orly Stone Cold, SH = Sally Hansen Insta-Dry Freeze! (and pretty brooch just because it's blue and sparkly)

Remember when I posted about a (near) dupe for Essie Butler Please, Sally Hansen Pacific Blue, which is even better? Well, I recently picked up Sinful Colors Endless Blue, which I would also put in the near dupe category - and it's even better than the other two!

This inspired me to do a mega-comparison of blues. I have so many blue nail polishes, you guys. So fucking many. Almost as many as I have greens or teals or purples. I didn't swatch all my blues here - I decided to limit this to just the ones in the royal-to-navy range. I hope this will be useful for some people in deciding if a blue you have is actually almost the same as something you are lusting after. None of the ones I had were dupes, other than the three mentioned above, though some are sort of similar. I'm not going to review each polish in detail; I'll let the swatches speak for themselves. Feel free to ask questions about any of them in the comments.

Oh, the other reason I did this? Because swatching nail polish is so fucking soothing and fun. It's like making a craft with the lowest skill level possible and lots of pretty colors. You can get the wheels at bunch of different places for cheap, like these ones from Amazon (I've also found them at Sally Beauty and on ebay). I also really like arranging things by color - which means that on my wheel, I kind of find it annoying that the order isn't exactly right. The CG and RR toward the middle should be switched, and so should the ORN and ZS on the right side, right!?

On to the swatches!

Extra 50% off Sally Beauty clearance items (until July 7) plus an extra 20% off a $50 order (today only)

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.
What's left of the China Glaze Cirque du Soleil Collection is on clearance, as is the Orly Mash Up Summer Collection (new bottle design), plus about a bajillion other things, including a lot of hair tools. For the extra 20% off $50, use code 555195. You also get free shipping over $50, otherwise it's $5.95. It might be better to check in store and avoid the shipping (but my store never has any of the clearance nail polish left).

HauteLook/Nordstrom Summer Beauty Bag ($29), and Orly and SpaRitual nail stuff on sale too

The spring beauty bag was mostly makeup, and this one has a little more skin care, if that's what you prefer. There's a Laura Mercier tinted moisturizer, Napoleon Perdis primer,  Aveda hand cream, some tanning stuff, CC cream, hair texturizing spray, Estee Lauder mascara, lip/cheek stain, etc. I haven't actually tried any of these things, so I don't know ho exciting they are.

There are also a bunch of Orly polishes on sale for $4.50. It's the old bottle, which is on sale everywhere, but there's a little more selection here than, say, CVS. I actually prefer the old bottles, myself. And there's no Spa Ritual polishes on sale, but there's a bunch of treatments and base/topcoats, etc.

Honestly, when I saw the previews for both of these, I thought they would be a little more exciting. Am I missing out? (You need an account to browse HauteLook. You can use my invite link, if you like.)

Cheapest quick dry polish topcoat yet (but there's a catch)

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.
I bought this NYC Long Wearing Extra Shiny Top Coat a few weeks ago when I needed to get my drugstore.com order up to $25, not expecting much. It doesn't even say "quick dry". Blah! I wasn't sure what I was going to use it for.

Oh, but it is! It dries as fast or faster than any other top coat I've tried, including Seche Vite. I'm talking less than a minute until you can brush away that fucking hair that's tickling your nose. And it's really glossy. Best part? It's 99 cents.

So what's the catch?

Orly on HauteLook

I know I already posted an Orly sale earlier this week, but holy shit you guys, they have Space Cadet for $4.50! Have you see this? Here's All Lacquered Up's photo.

Aaaahhhhhh! (Ingenue, Preamp, and Fantasea are also good. Synchro is not.)

You need an account to browse, so here is my invite link. I don't know how fast this stuff will sell out.

Two Fucking Awesome Nail Polish Deals

• BOGO free Orly at Sally Beauty
• 3 free Zoya polishes when you pay $10 shipping and handling (starting Monday, Jan. 7)

More info, including the coupon codes, provided by the awesome Nouveau Cheap.