creme - Lucy's Stash

Hello lovelies,

I'd like to introduce you to a British brand called Bad Apple Cosmetics! I've discovered them just recently when I saw one of their pretty duochrome colours. I was fortunate enough to receive some samples for review so now I can show them to you!

Something about Bad Apple Cosmetics: 'The Bad Apple design was developed by Darren Woods who prides himself on being the sole designer of these exclusive colours. By drawing upon his extensive experience within the industry and from all the advice he has given to others about colours, he has finally been able to design and develop his own range of stunning nail varnishes. This Bad Apple range is based on 70s cars such as the TVR. Bad Apple nail varnishes are no drip, no chip and high gloss. Bad Apple Cosmetics do not contain Formaldehyde, Toluene, DBP or Parabens.'

Come on, click on the Read more link, you know you want to see more!

3D Cape - grey shimmer base with pink and magenta duochrome shimmer. This polish is a part of the 3D collection full of duochrome shades. Although it doesn't look like it in the pictures, this polish has lovely duochrome effect. The colour changes from pinkish purple shimmer to olive green but it's not too strong. It applied very easily and I needed two coats for full coverage. I generally don't have any problem with this polish and I have used the Bad Apple Top & Base coat.

Lucy's Stash - Bad Apple Cosmetics 3D Cape

Alkmene - frosty cotton candy pink with glass fleck particles. This was my least favourite shade I must admit as the finish and the formula were not up to scratch. It was easy to apply but very streaky so I had to pay a lot of attention when painting nails. The pigmentation is slightly lower so I have applied three coats. There are small particles that look to me like glass flecks in the polish which cause the finish uneven and they look like imperfections. If this is intentional then I don't think it was a good choice.

Lucy's Stash - Bad Apple Cosmetics Alkmene

Bad Bad - classic black creme. This is a good black polish that has good formula. I was happy with the pigmentation as one thick coat provided full coverage. It applied very easily and dried quite fast. It dries slightly satin so topcoat is needed if you want glossy look.

Lucy's Stash - Bad Apple Cosmetics Bad Bad

Barn - bright pink base with fuchsia shimmer. This is a really lovely summer polish and it is much brighter in real life! Its pigmentation is excellent, it is almost one coater. I have applied two coats just to ensure full coverage. It applied very easily and dried fast.

Misty - dark blue-grey creme shade. It has really great formula that applies easily and dries fast. It is almost one-coater but I have applied second coat for perfect coverage. I've sealed the whole manicure with Bad Apple Top & Base Coat.

Lucy's Stash - Bad Apple Cosmetics Misty

I have applied Bad Apple Top & Base Coat under and over each polish. It has thin formula that flows well. I always compare everything to Seche Vite topcoat as you know. The BA Top & Base Coat dries slower than Seche yet sufficiently fast for me to use over swatches or nail art. I will be using this topcoat when I don't need extra fast drying and thick coat. It dries very glossy which I liked a lot.

I was curious about how the 3D Red Cape and Alkmene look over black so I have layered them over Bad Bad.

Each nail polish bottle is round shape and has 14ml and good wide brush. It is not as wide as OPI brush but it still provides good nail coverage.

I liked some of the shades a lot, especially 3D Cape and Misty and I am really thinking about getting some of the other 3D duochrome shades. I was quite disappointed that the formulas weren't consistent and they changed from polish to polish. I would really like to see well-pigmented consistent formula in the future as I quite like the concept of this brand. I will however give Bad Apple another chance! Support British brands I say :)

You can purchase Bad Apple polishes at the Cheap Smells website for really good prices or directly at the Bad Apple Cosmetics website. They also sell nail wraps so if you're into them check them out too!

*These were provided for a review

Hello lovelies,

Nicole by OPI came up with another gorgeous collection celebrating TV show Modern Family. I must admit I haven't heard of this show until I first saw a press release for this collection...but then again I'm not American so I hope I can be excused :) Anyway let's get back to the polish beauties...

Collection consists of 14 shades of different shades and finishes, all having names tied to the Modern Family characters.

Lucy's Stash - Nicole by OPI Modern Family collection

Hayley Good Lokin'... - small rose pink glitter with bigger pink holo hexagon glitters in a clear base. Glitter has good density, there's quite a lot of it in the bottle but it's easier to layer it rather than apply it by itself. The application was a bit harder as the formula is slightly thicker. I'm wearing just one coat over Am I Making Myself Claire?.

Lucy's Stash - Nicole by OPI Hayley Good Lokin'...

Am I Making Myself Claire? - pale dusty lavender creme. This little beauty has an excellent pigmentation! It is almost one coater but those of you with long nails will be better off with two coats. It applies easily as a butter and dries fast.

Lucy's Stash - Nicole by OPI Am I Making Myself Claire?

My Jay Or The Highway! - dirty taupe creme. It's quite unusual and not very girly colour but I would like it in an Autumn palette. It applied well and dried fast despite runny formula. I needed two coats for full coverage. No topcoat in the pictures.

Lucy's Stash - Nicole by OPI My Jay Or The Highway!

Stand By Your Manny - medium blue with silver shimmer. I've had quite a trouble with this polish. The formula is runny and sheer and drying time is longer - average. I needed three coats for full coverage.

Lucy's Stash - Nicole by OPI Stand By Your Manny

Alex By The Books - pale mint creme. Such a pretty shade! Not too pastel yet not too dark. The formula on this one wasn't flawless either - it creates patches when going over with the brush more than once. I needed two thicker coats for full coverage. It dries glossy and in an average time.

Lucy's Stash - Nicole by OPI Alex By The Books

A Like-Haley Story - bright neon pink with magenta shimmer. I'm so angry at my camera that it doesn't show the true colour. In real life the shade is bright, rich and neon, absolutely perfect for summer. It has great well-pigmented formula that applies easily. The shimmer also shows nicely on the nail.

Lucy's Stash - Nicole by OPI A Like-Haley Story

A Phil’s Paradise - foil greyish olive green. This shade is very similar to OPI Number One Nemesis, they are almost dupes. It applies well and dries fast and is slightly streaky. I'm wearing two regular coats.

Lucy's Stash - Nicole by OPI A Phil’s Paradise

Luke Of The Draw - black jelly base with silver glitter. This polish is a dupe of OPI Metallic 4 Life with the same formula too. It is on the sheer side so you'll need three regular coats for full coverage. The formula is quite thick and gloopy and difficult to work with I must say. I applied topcoat to smooth the surface.

Metallic 4 LifeMet

Metallic 4 Life

Back In My Gloria Days... - red based purple with shimmery particles. Oh how gorgeous this purple is! It's so much nicer in real life! I'm wearing two coats but I feel three would be better for my long nails. It applied easily and dried fast and I'm wearing topcoat.

Lucy's Stash - Nicole by OPI Back In My Gloria Days...

Basking In Gloria - rich red berry shimmer with bigger sparkle particles. My second favourite, this is a real stunner! I just love this colour, in fact I want a car in this exact colour! :D I needed two thicker coats for full coverage. It applied well but the formula was little bit runny. The drying time was good.

Lucy's Stash - Nicole by OPI Basking In Gloria

Candid Cameron - green-blue duochrome metallic. Another beautiful shade reminding me of mermaid-like colours. The duochrome effect is not that strong on the nails but it does show a little in certain lighting. It has an excellent pigmentation, I'm wearing two coats that dried fast. It applied well however the finish is streaky so I had to pay attention to brushstrokes.

Lucy's Stash - Nicole by OPI Candid Cameron

I Do De-Claire! - medium/light pink with pearl finish. I really don't like this polish. It's not the colour it's the finish. It's very streaky which shows every small imperfection. It applied well and it has good pigmentation as I needed just two thicker coats.

Lucy's Stash - Nicole by OPI I Do De-Claire!

She’s Lily Something - pink and blue glass flecks in a clear base with pink star glitter. This is a glitter topcoat that is meant to be layered so I have applied it over I Do De-Claire! There is plenty of the glass flecks but not enough of the star glitter. I had to fish them out and place them on the nail carefully. They are quite big so sometimes they stick out. It applied well.

Lucy's Stash - Nicole by OPI She’s Lily Something

What’s The Mitch-uation? - dark indigo metallic shimmer. It looks very similar to OPI Into the Night from the Amazing Spiderman collection but it has slightly better formula. It applied easily but the finish is streaky. As with the OPI polish, this one also has lower pigmentation and I needed three coats for full coverage. Two coates weren't quite enough but could do if you have short nails. The polish dries slower.

Lucy's Stash - Nicole by OPI What’s The Mitch-uation?

What a collection! I have my favourites in there, I love especially the dark rich shades. I really like that there is a wide range of finishes but I would prefer if he formulas would be consistently good. I'm sure everybody will find at least one shade they'll like since there's 14 of them in this collection. Enough said, I'm happy I could try these polishes, some of them are absolutely gorgeous and you can look forward to nail art posts with them!