My nail polish collection

In the past months, I've become a nail polish magpie. I kid you not if I tell you I have around 45 (give or take) nail polishes in my stash, and I have ordered 7 more that have to arrive soon.

Yes, I have a terrible addiction, and it's a problem.
My idea is that, (if I'm able to), I will give the polishes I don't use to my girl friends. But it's quite probable also that I won't be able to part with any of them. You know, "just in case" I might use them later.

So, if you have a problem with nail polish like I do, then maybe you'll like this post, where I will show you swatches and comparisons of every nail polish I own and group them together with those in the same colour family.

Hope you like <3

Teals, bright blues and green blues

L to R: MAC Mischievous Mint, KIKO 389, Essie Turquoise and Caicos, KIKO 352, KIKO 342, Butter London 'Slapper'

(LEFT) Pinky: Mischievous Mint; Ring: KIKO 389; Middle: Turquoise + Caicos; Index: KIKO 352; Thumb: KIKO 342

(LEFT) Pinky: Mischievous Mint; Ring: KIKO 389; Middle: Turquoise + Caicos; Index: KIKO 352; Thumb: KIKO 342

(RIGHT) Thumb: Butter London 'Slapper'

Yellows and Greens

L to R: KIKO 279, Illamasqua "Rare", H&M "I'm not a kiwi", KIKO 396

Index: KIKO 279; Middle: Illamasqua Rare; Ring: H&M I'm not a kiwi; Pinky: KIKO 396

Neutrals and Nudes

L to R: Sephora nº49; Astor 610 Satin Angel; Rimmel "018 Rose Orchid"; H&M duo "Lavender Frost"

Pinky: Sephora nº49; Ring: Astor 610 Satin Angel; Middle: Rimmel "018 Rose Orchid"; Index: H&M duo "Lavender Frost"

Pinky: Sephora nº49; Ring: Astor 610 Satin Angel; Middle: Rimmel "018 Rose Orchid"; Index: H&M duo "Lavender Frost"

Metallics

L to R: OPI "Rainbow Connection", KIKO 354; KIKO 274; KIKO 395; H&M duo "Golden Nails"

Pinky: OPI "Rainbow Connection"; Ring: KIKO 354; Middle: KIKO 274; Index: KIKO 395; Thumb: H&M duo "Golden Nails"

Pinky: OPI "Rainbow Connection"; Ring: KIKO 354; Middle: KIKO 274; Index: KIKO 395; Thumb: H&M duo "Golden Nails"

Pinky: OPI "Rainbow Connection"; Ring: KIKO 354; Middle: KIKO 274; Index: KIKO 395; Thumb: H&M duo "Golden Nails"

Oranges and Red-orange colours

L to R: Models Own "Tangerine Queen"; KIKO 280; Models Own "Fluro Orange"; KIKO 236; Models Own "Hedonist"

Thumb: Models Own "Tangerine Queen"; Index: KIKO 280; Middle: Models Own "Fluro Orange"; Ring: KIKO 236; Pinky: Models Own "Hedonist"

Thumb: Models Own "Tangerine Queen"; Index: KIKO 280; Middle: Models Own "Fluro Orange"; Ring: KIKO 236; Pinky: Models Own "Hedonist"

Pinks and Corals

L to R: KIKO 281; H&M "Check Me Out"; OPI "Kiss Me On My Tulips"; ASTOR 235 Insolence; Butter London "Disco Biscuit"; Models Own "Bubble gum" 

(LEFT) Pinky: KIKO 281; Ring: H&M "Check Me Out"; Middle: OPI "Kiss Me On My Tulips"; Index: ASTOR 235 Insolence; Thumb: Butter London "Disco Biscuit"

Pinky: KIKO 281; Ring: H&M "Check Me Out"; Middle: OPI "Kiss Me On My Tulips"; Index: ASTOR 235 Insolence; Thumb: Butter London "Disco Biscuit"

(RIGHT) Thumb: Models Own "Bubble gum"

Pure blues

L to R: KIKO 338, KIKO 299, KIKO 265, Nails Inc "Baker Street"

Index: KIKO 338, Middle: KIKO 299, Ring: KIKO 265, Pinky: Nails Inc "Baker Street"

Index: KIKO 338, Middle: KIKO 299, Ring: KIKO 265, Pinky: Nails Inc "Baker Street"

Index: KIKO 338, Middle: KIKO 299, Ring: KIKO 265, Pinky: Nails Inc "Baker Street"

Dark hues: purples, reds + black

L to R: H&M "Soaked in Purple", H&M duo "Lavender Frost"; NARS "Purple Rain"; H&M duo "Golden Nails"; KIKO 227; Maybelline 501 Cherry Sin; Astor 550 Red Lace; KIKO 275

(LEFT) Pinky: H&M "Soaked in Purple", Ring: H&M duo "Lavender Frost"; Middle: NARS "Purple Rain"; Index: H&M duo "Golden Nails"; Thumb: KIKO 227

Pinky: H&M "Soaked in Purple", Ring: H&M duo "Lavender Frost"; Middle: NARS "Purple Rain"; Index: H&M duo "Golden Nails"; Thumb: KIKO 227

(RIGHT) Thumb: Maybelline 501 Cherry Sin; Index: Astor 550 Red Lace; Middle: KIKO 275

(RIGHT) Thumb: Maybelline 501 Cherry Sin; Index: Astor 550 Red Lace; Middle: KIKO 275

Have you got a huge nail polish collection you're ashamed of but love at the same time too? 

Love,

Maria.

Best coral nail polish: H&M Check Me Out

I love coral. But I REALLY love corals to be more pink than orange, for some reason. I thought maybe NARS' "Trouville" would be a great acquisition, even Butter London's "Trout Pout", which certainly makes my heart skip a beat! (I think they are both VERY similar, but Trouville is lighter.)

The other day, I discovered the most beautiful coral nail polish, although not pastel like "Trout Pout" and "Trouville", was H&M's "Check Me Out", thanks to a friend's recommendation.

It's 3,99€ so it's not a very expensive nail polish at all! It's not the cheapest either, but I think it's one of the cheapest in my collection. So, in other countries, this might me around 4-5$, and 2£, more or less. 

(It doesn't look that soft in this picture, but believe me or not, 

I took this picture at 2pm and I don't know why it turned out so dark!)

It definitely looks pink on flash pictures, and under the sunlight it's a very soft pink with orange undertones. It's bright, but at the same time, not TOO bright to be inappropriate in formal occasions such as work interviews, but it adds a pop of colour that looks very summery but at the same time, acceptable all year round. 

(The colour shown on the thumb here is a very accurate representation of what the colour really looks like,

and not the previous darker pictures)

It's a very warm pink, and I think it suits many different skin types! It looks positively neon-esque under the sunlight, and for summer, it creates a beautiful look!

(The right side of the bottle is a very accurate way of seeing 

what the colour really looks like under the sunlight)

The packaging is very similar to Butter London's, as you can see here, although if you take H&M's polish's cap off, there isn't a second cap, but I think H&M's brush makes application more comfortable than Butter London's. 

I've been wearing H&M's "Check Me Out" for three days now, and there are no chips. I have to say, however, that you need three coats to achieve full opacity. 

I don't know if this is a limited colour, because I don't really know too much about the permanent line of H&M's nail polishes, but there are very bright and beautiful colours (I actually saw a similar colour to Butter London's "Slapper") so I definitely recommend you to check them out! 

Veredict?

I definitely love this nail polish, in case you still hadn't noticed! This is the perfect summer nail polish, I really fell in love with it from the start, and this will be my go-to colour for the rest of the summer, and probably, the year! 

The only possible perk? It MIGHT be limited edition, so I'm thinking it might be useful to buy a couple more just in case...

Have you ever tried H&M's single nail polishes? Will you give them a go after seeing what "Check Me Out" looks like?

Love, 

Maria.

H&M duo nail polish

Hello everyone! :)

Yes, I know, ANOTHER nail polish related post. I've been such a sucker for nail polish lately. But I wanted to share the love with you guys, specially because yesterday I found an amazing duo nail polish by H&M for just 3 bucks, and THAT IS SOMETHING I OUGHT TO SHARE.

I already owned a nail polish duo by H&M, and I actually bought a similar one, but that doesn't mean I don't LOVE both of them. It's quite ironical, but my favorite golden foil nail polish is the H&M duo that I already owned, and even though it's SO CHEAP, the quality is amazing. But now I own the new generation of duo nail polish (the packaging is way better), I think they also made their formula a little more opaque and less prone to showing strokes and other marks. 

I wasn't able to swatch it on my own nails because I am wearing still my OPI 'Kiss me on my tulips' and OPI 'Rainbow connection' (as accents). I am so lazy, and taking off glitters is such a long and boring process, I will just stick to these, even though I'm crazy in love with my H&M nude polish (THIS IS A NUDE POLISH, NAILS INC), and I really want to try it out!!

The first duo (top) is called "GOLDEN NAILS" which is quite appropriate since it has the most beautiful golden foil polish I have ever tried (and I have like... four of them, and more expensive), and it is paired with an amazingly beautiful bluish toned purple polish which goes on like a dream. As you can see, the packaging is really battered, and it's sometimes a little hard to open, but it's quite a nice way to take nail polish when you're on the go. The only con of this nail polish is it's tiny tiny TINY  brush, but with great care, you can apply nail polish perfectly, even if it takes you a little longer.
I am actually not sure if they sell this duo anymore, or if they have started selling it with the new packaging already (I imagine they might've), but I guess these aren't really unique colors, so don't worry if they aren't available anymore. I just wanted to show you H&M's polish evolution!

The second duo (bottom) is called "LAVENDER FROST", which is NOT appropriate at all, since the purply color is not lavender, nor there is any frost in any of these two polishes. But whatever, I didn't buy this for its name, but because of its nude. I actually bought it thinking the purple tone would be the same as my first duo's. But apparently not, thankfully, because I like having variety. This purple is more on the red side, an aubergine color which I really like and I'm very glad that I got.  

The packaging is also way better, just look at those polka dots! I feel it's more cute and has less edges, which made the first duo look way cheaper. On the brush... oh, my, god. It's so much better! Very large and wide, it will cover my nail in a swipe, I'm sure. (Haven't tried it yet, as you already know, but taking swatches of the colors was a dream with this brush!)

Even though the second duo seems to carry a lot more product, apparently, they carry the same (0.3oz/10ml in total, both nail polishes).

Left to right: nude and aubergine [Lavender Frost]; purple and golden [Golden Nails] 

You can really see the difference in color between both purples in this picture. And the gold isn't a full on YELLOW gold,
it looks quite toned down and bright, so it goes with absolutely everything you wear, (don't worry). 

 (Blurry swatches, yaaaaay!): Golden Nails

 Lavender Frost

Top: Lavender Frost; Bottom: Golden Nails.
Swatches and duos, side by side.

In this picture you can see what the gold foil polish looks like in real life.
Do you see the whitish yellow tinge? Not full on yellow, at all! 

I definitely didn't think I was going to like this new duo, but I think it looks wonderful, and I really think you should try it out! I mean, it's 3€, which is 1.5€ per polish. They're fantastic quality, and have amazing colors. They can be worn for days without chipping, although DO wear base and top coat, because I didn't use to, and they chipped in a couple of days, specially the dark purple one. 

Overall, great quality for such a cheap nail polish combo! 

I hope you liked it, and maybe the next time you pop into H&M you will be looking into these, and maybe picking other shades I overlooked. 

Do you guys already own any H&M polishes? What do you think about them? Any other cheap but awesome brands we should try?

Love,

Maria.