Butter London Swinger Swatch And Review

Happy Monday!  Did you enjoy your weekend?  I lost the night time game with LO and ended up falling asleep early both weekend nights.  I lost a lot of swatching time but I probably needed the recharge.  In other news, out of curiosity I started checking out the #extremecouponers on instagram and have been hooked by their incredible hauls.  I went out on Sunday and did some couponing myself, and managed to score a $35 dollar haul at CVS for less than $1 after Extra Bucks.  Couponing is no joke!  Hopefully this won't turn into hoarding.

I decided to go with an untried languishing in my drawers for my St Patrick Day mani, and pulled out Butter London Swinger, a sparkling microglitter polish of chartreuse green with darker green hex glitters.  I used three semi sticky coats to build up opacity, all the while trying to hold my breath from the overpowering stinky fumes.  It dried to a slight gritty finish so I used two layers of top coat to smooth it down.

Butter London Swinger

Butter London Swinger

Butter London Swinger

Butter London Swinger

Butter London Swinger

 The stinky smell seems to linger on the nail after it has dried, so I'm not sure if I'm willing to keep this in my drawer.  I love the overall glitter effect, it's like a green disco ball exploded on my nails.  It's so incredibly sparkly.  To accent for St Paddy's day, I painted a quick four leaf clover on my ring finger with Hits Polish Enchanted Evergreen.

Butter London Swinger St Paddy's Nail Art

Butter London Swinger St Paddy's Nail Art

Don't forgot to wear your green today!  No one likes to get pinched. 

Butter London HRH Swatch And Review With Bonus Stamping Enchanted Polish Mercy

Nothing To DisclosePurchased

Occasionally I feel nostalgic when I think of the days when I use out to Hollywood Blvd to go dancing.  There's something about the energy and the comraderie amongst all the dancers, and the pulsating beat that would move my soul.  I miss the creative process of imagining new dance steps and watching other dancers move in new innovative ways in the cypher.  I know there's some of the old crew who are still dancing, despite having kids and jobs... I wish I could do it because I miss the creative outlet but I know I'd be super wiped out and feel guilty leaving LO at home.  Heck, I haven't even seen a movie since she's been born!  How do people do it?  Fellow moms, will I ever get over feeling guilty?

Anyway - not sure what brought that on, but let's get back to the point at hand - nail polish!  I have for your eyes today Butter London HRH, a gorgeous royal purple shimmer.  True to Butter London's formula, it's a bit on the thick side which is tricky when working with a shimmer.  You have to apply it in as little swipes as possible to minimize brush strokes.  I found that it leveled fairly well except for the areas around the base of my nail.  It applies with a lot of streaks, and three coats are needed to avoid any visible camera patchiness.  I finished this with a layer of GlitterDaze topcoat for shine.

Butter London HRH

Butter London HRH

Butter London HRH

Butter London HRH

Butter London HRH

Butter London HRH

Next, I decided to add some extra eye appeal by adding some stamping with my Winstonia plates.  I've been wanting to use this particular pattern for ages but never found a good opportunity to use it until now.  I went with subtle stamping and used Enchanted Polish Mercy to stamp my pattern - I wanted to use a purple holo and I realized that this was my only one.  How did I let that happen??  I'll have to rectify that ASAP!

Butter London HRH Stamped With Enchanted Polish Mercy

Butter London HRH Stamped With Enchanted Polish Mercy

Butter London HRH Stamped With Enchanted Polish Mercy

Butter London HRH Stamped With Enchanted Polish Mercy

Butter London HRH Stamped With Enchanted Polish Mercy

I still consider myself really clumsy when it comes to stamping, but I think the Winstonia plates make it easier with their crisp construction.  My only complaint is that my nails are getting too long for the designs, so I won't be able to use any of the full nail patterns unless I shorten them.  I don't know why I wanted so long to use this pattern either, it transferred over without any problems whatsoever.  I love stamping with holos - they really add a lot of visual interest to a mani and are easy to stamp with.  Have you braved stamping yet?  If not, I definitely think you should give it a try, especially if I can pull it off! 

Nothing To DisclosePurchased

Polish Me Silly Clowning Around Over Butter London Slapper Swatch And Review

Purchased

Happy Post Christmas Pre New Years!  I hope everyone is enjoying the time in the interim.  My brother from NYC is here celebrating the holiday with the rest of the holiday, and if things go as planned, we'll be eating lots and lots of food.  I'll need to get my elastic pants out of the closet after this weekend!  Do you have anything fun planned? 

I haven't been staying current with the new Butter London colors but during a recent Friends and Family sale, one color caught my eye, and that was Slapper, described as a "truly teal nail lacquer, bold and very bright."  Teal, check.  Bold, check.  Very bright, absolutely!  And in case you were wondering, a Slapper in British slang is a woman with loose morals.  Go figure out of all the newer colors I'd choose this color.  Application was typical Butter London goodness, which was incredibly easy with its buttery smooth formula.  I used two coats here for opacity, and it dried to a pretty shine on its own.  The only disappointment I could nit pick at would be that the color on the nail doesn't match what's in the bottle.  Once on the nail, it takes on a less bright teal effect and turns a bit greener.... I'm not entirely sure how that happens! *shakes fist at polish gods*  No topcoat in these pics because I don't think it needed one.

Butter London Slapper

Butter London Slapper

Butter London Slapper

Butter London Slapper

Butter London Slapper

 Next, I added a glitter topcoat that I lemmed ever since I first laid eyes on it on Instagram.  I present to you in all its full glory, Polish Me Silly Clowning Around.  It contains fabulous sheer neon hex glitters in varying colors and sizes.  At the time of its release, which I think was during the spring, it was in a class to itself with nothing else rivaling its unique sheer neon glitters.  Soon after there were a ton of me-too glitter variations that were released by other brands.  I don't know why it took me so long to kill the lemming, but now that I did, I'm so very glad.  I can see how versatile it will be over a multitude of colors, and it doesn't take someone a keen eye to be able to layer it successfully over another shade.  Winning!  The formula was thick as to be expected with a glitter topcoat, but it applied easily and had a hefty amount of glitter in each swipe.  Some of the glitters were larger than I can usually handle(that's what she said) but with some careful placement I was able to control most of the runaway glitters.  This is all finished with a layer of topcoat.

Polish Me Silly Clowning Around

Polish Me Silly Clowning Around

Polish Me Silly Clowning Around

Polish Me Silly Clowning Around

Polish Me Silly Clowning Around

Polish Me Silly Clowning Around

Don't you love how Clowning Around transforms Slapper?  It turns it into a colorful wonderland of glitters but without adding too much sparkle as to detract from a work environment.  It's understated yet fun.  *lovingly pets the nails*  I would definitely recommend this polish, or one of the me-toos, to any self proclaimed polish afficionado.  I don't know what's come over me after this post, it looks like this slapper just can't stop clowning around!  Maybe it's all the pretty colors....  Have you tried Clowning Around?  Did it make you want to start goofing off while wearing it?

Don't forget to put your entry into the Hobby Polish Blogger's Holiday Giveaway, it ends December 31st!  You get a chance to win a gift certificate for $100 or $200 once you enter.  Click here to go to the original post!

Purchased

Butter London Petrol Overcoat Swatch And Review

Purchased

Hello dears!  It's Veterans day and although it's a bank holiday, I have to work.  For those who have a day off, please enjoy it for me.  LO is off as well, and she'll be spending the day at DH's work.  I wish I could take her into my office but that's a recipe for disaster!

I managed to snag Butter London Petrol Topcoat during a recent sale haul and I'm happy to share some of those swatches with you tonight.  I've been intrigued by this shade ever since I saw it was released, especially when described as opalescent sheen of oil reflected in rain(!!!).  It's a shimmery turquoise to purple shifting "overcoat," meaning that it's sheer enough to wear over another color yet opaque enough to build up on its own.  I was able to use four coats here with minimal difficulty with application.  The formula was thinner than what I'm accustomed to for Butter London, but as a topcoat it had a perfect consistency.  No topcoat in these pics.

Butter London Petrol Overcoat

Butter London Petrol Overcoat

Butter London Petrol Overcoat

Butter London Petrol Overcoat

Butter London Petrol Overcoat

Butter London Petrol Overcoat

Butter London Petrol Overcoat

Butter London Petrol Overcoat

True to its description, it really does look what I think an oil slick would look like with rain reflecting off of it.  The duochrome properties are really prominent even in low light, and I imagine if worn over black or a dark base color, the colors would probably pop a lot more.  I do however, feel that I've seen this color before, but I can't think of any exact dupes.  Sally Hansen Grape Going is more purple, Color Club Port-Folio has more green do it, and Finger Paints Itsy Bitsy Spider is a lighter version.  If you like duochromes and can nab this during a sale, I would recommend it because it beautiful to look at and seems versatile if used as an overcoat. 

Purchased

#31DC2013 31 Day Challenge - Red with Butter London Chancer

Purchased

Uh oh!!  I done did it!  I'm going to try and participate in Chalkboard Nail's 31 Day Challenge.  I wasn't planning on it, but then I figured why not?  It seems like everyone else is so excited about it and I've never had the courage to try and complete a challenge like this before.  Let's hope that I can stick to it!

The first day of the challenge is Red Nails so I went with a classic red jelly microglitter, Butter London's Chancer.  It's my favorite formulation of all the brands because the red microglitter really sparkles within the squishy red jelly.  I did all fingers with two coats of Chancer and did an accent nail with Cosmetic Art's version of Color Club Red Velvet, a black jelly with red microglitter.  There's a cut out heart within that accent nail, and inside of that heart is mini heart of Chancer.

31 Day Challenge - Red with Butter London Chancer

31 Day Challenge - Red with Butter London Chancer

31 Day Challenge - Red with Butter London Chancer

31 Day Challenge - Red with Butter London Chancer

Wow, one day down!!  Only 30 more to go!  I may or may not post a mani for each day, but rather than falling behind, I'll just keep up with whatever that particular day's post is.  It's hard keeping up with a baby on my hands! 

Check out the other ladies who are participating in this month's 31 day challenge!  Thanks to More Nail Polish for making the In-linkz. #31DC2013

Butter London Blagger Swatch And Review

I hope everyone had a wonderful hump day!  I had a really interesting day myself.  I had a business meeting scheduled during a time I normally don't work, so I ended up taking LO to the meeting.  Luckily I knew the people at the meeting fairly well, and they really enjoyed having LO sit in during business.  She charmed everyone and had plenty of smiles to give.  Now, if only she can get paid for it!  

I have a lovely creamy cobalt cream by Butter London, called Blagger.  I love that the Butter London polish names are based on British slang, and Blagger is no different.  A quick search pulls about the definition of "British prison slang for bank robber."  I imagine you can use it in a line such as, "I just got jacked by the mechanic, what a blagger!"  Anyhoo, not sure if I really used that right, but onto the polish.  It's a lovely shade of blue that's perfect for year round.  It's not dark like a navy blue, but it's not a bright cobalt either so it pops but is still manages to stay understated.   It has the perfect Butter London formula and is nearly a one coater, but I did two coats for these pics.  I finished with a layer of Poshe.

Butter London Blagger 

Butter London Blagger 

Butter London Blagger 

Butter London Blagger 

Butter London Blagger 

How gorgeous is that blue?  It's the perfect shade for fingers and toes, and the consistency and coverage makes it a great nail art polish.  I don't normally like to wear blues because of staining but I didn't have that problem upon removal, which is another plus for me.  I've been phasing out my Butter London collection, but I think I might have to reneg that and stock up on their creams.  Do you like Butter London polishes, and if not, why?

Butter London Scoundrel Swatch And Review

I had a super nice dinner tonight to celebrate a friend's birthday at an Engish gastropub.  It was an expensive bill, but worth every penny.  I was tempted to order fish and chips but got the seabass over gnocci due to the waitress' recommendation.  It was delicious, but part of me still wishes I ordered the fish.  It was an English restaurant after all!  LO gobbled up the sweet potato jam that was on the side of my chicken liver mousse plate... it was her first restaurant dish!

I have an oldie but goodie tonight, and that's Butter London's Scoundrel, a super creamy and buttery dusty purple.  The formula was a little thick but still workable.  I used two coats and followed with a topcoat of Poshe.

Butter London Scoundrel

Butter London Scoundrel

Butter London Scoundrel

Butter London Scoundrel

Butter London Scoundrel

I love Butter London polishes and use to have a lot but I've downsized that collection... The formula has always been stellar but there are cheaper brands out there with similar colors.   I think I'll only keep the really unique colors, like All Hail The Queen when it comes to this brand.  What about you, do you own any Butter Londons?