Sunday, February 4, 2018

Bee's Knees and Different Dimension

xoxoJen's swatch of Bees Knees and Different Dimension

Friend from Work from Bee's Knees is a pretty purple squishy jelly with a sprinkle of microglitters in it. I enjoyed wearing this at 2 coats, with topcoat.

xoxoJen's swatch of Bees Knees Friend From Work
xoxoJen's swatch of Bees Knees Friend From Work
xoxoJen's swatch of Bees Knees Friend From Work

Editing on 2/10 to add: It was brought to my attention by another customer of Bee's Knees that my swatch images don't look like their bottle at all. After a few days of working with her, a few other customers, Sarah and a couple of friends of mine, I have found that the shimmers and flakes sink to the bottom. I didn't shake the polish before application so only the jelly base and very few shimmers are shown in my photos. Today I have spent from almost six hours now shaking my bottle on my izenpro shaker and leaving it upside down. It has been shaken about once an hour on average - six times total. It is still not completely mixed, but I am seeing a difference in how much shimmer and flake is mixing with the base which also appears to be transforming the color of the base. I may swatch it again once everything appears to be dispersed better to see if it looks different from the swatches in this post.

After a day or so, I added one coat of Different Dimension's Cold As Ice on top of the Bee's Knees. I love this combo!

xoxoJen's swatch of Different Dimension Cold As Ice
xoxoJen's swatch of Different Dimension Cold As Ice
xoxoJen's swatch of Different Dimension Cold As Ice

What is your favorite combo?

Saturday, February 3, 2018

HHC February: CBL & Cupcake

Hella Holo Customs featured guests for February are Colors By Llarowe and Cupcake. Their polish creations are all stunning! These will be available on February 7 through February 21 to HHC Members only. You'll need to join the facebook group to get the sale links.

xoxoJen's swatch of HHC February: CBL & Cupcake


Turn of the Tide
a sea blue linear holo with intense pink to gold shimmer
Just look at that pink shimmer!! Two coats. Topcoat. Great formula.

xoxoJen's swatch of CBL Turn of the Tide
xoxoJen's swatch of CBL Turn of the Tide
xoxoJen's swatch of CBL Turn of the Tide
xoxoJen's swatch of CBL Turn of the Tide


Lion, Scarecrow, Tin Man
an intense magenta purple with deep blue micro flake that gives a deep blue flame

Wow! This polish left me speechless as I stroked it onto my nails. It has a bright blue holo flame and is such a vivid purple. It is my favorite purple so far this year, ya'll. Leah Ann has set the bar high for 2018 bests!
Two coats, could have gotten away with one. Topcoat. Great formula.

My name suggestion was chosen for this polish! I firmly believe this is CBH's big sister or maybe CBH all grown up, so I came up with a name in the same family. I'm honored that Leah Ann chose the name I suggested!

xoxoJen's swatch of CBL Lion, Scarecrow, Tin Man
xoxoJen's swatch of CBL Lion, Scarecrow, Tin Man
xoxoJen's swatch of CBL Lion, Scarecrow, Tin Man
xoxoJen's swatch of CBL Lion, Scarecrow, Tin Man


I'm Frond of You
lilac purple prism holo flake with various size aqua flake.
Two coats. Topcoat. Great formula, however; this polish contains ultramarine blue and has the skunky odor that pigment causes. I noticed it most when I first opened the bottle of polish, and much less after topcoat and drying. Because I swatched these back to back, I was only able to wear this polish long enough to shoot photos so I can't speak to whether the odor goes away or not.


xoxoJen's swatch of CBL I'm Frond of You
xoxoJen's swatch of CBL I'm Frond of You
xoxoJen's swatch of CBL I'm Frond of You


189 Feet Tall
a silver linear holo with heavy blue shimmers and silver holo microglitters.

My name suggestion was chosen for this polish too! 183 feet is how tall the Cinderella Castle is from water level, but when measured from the bottom of the concrete moat it is 189 feet tall and is Disney's official measurement. Since the castle is what inspired the polish, I thought it only fitting. I'm honored that Sara chose the name I suggested!
Super sparkly and beautiful! Two Coats. Topcoat. Great formula.

xoxoJen's swatch of Cupcake 183 Feet Tall
xoxoJen's swatch of Cupcake 183 Feet Tall
xoxoJen's swatch of Cupcake 183 Feet Tall


Freshwater Magic
a lilac linear holo with blue shimmer and a sprinkling of gold holo microglitter.
Loving this shade of purple, perfect for the upcoming holiday and springtime! Two Coats. Topcoat. Great formula.

xoxoJen's swatch of Cupcake Freshwater Magic
xoxoJen's swatch of Cupcake Freshwater Magic
xoxoJen's swatch of Cupcake Freshwater Magic


Dusty Romance
a rose colored mauve crème based linear holo wih flecks of silver shimmer
One Coat. Topcoat. Yes, you read that correctly, I only used one coat in my photos! Fantastic formula.

xoxoJen's swatch of Cupcake Dusty Romance
xoxoJen's swatch of Cupcake Dusty Romance
xoxoJen's swatch of Cupcake Dusty Romance


All six of these HHC polishes are stunning! My favorites in this collection are Lion, Scarecrow, Tin Man because hnnnng! and Dusty Romance, the one coater!

Tuesday, January 30, 2018

Literary Lacquers: As You Wish Valentine Trio

Literary Lacquers was inspired this month by the Princess Bride book. Amy, the artisan behind the brand, created two new core shades plus a limited edition glitter topper which will launch on February 2 at 2pm Central. The three polishes are known as the 'As You Wish' valentine trio. While I have not personally read the book or seen the movie, I am definitely a fan of these polishes!

xoxoJen's swatch of Literary Lacquers Valentine Trio


Princess Buttercup
A white matte polish dotted with light pink glitter and shimmer for an overall pinkish effect on the nail. It is a bit sheer, so I used three coats for photos. The formula was fantastic, not streaky or clumpy at all. I've shown it below both ways - in its original matte finish, and with a glossy topcoat.

xoxoJen's swatch of Literary Lacquers Princess Buttercup
xoxoJen's swatch of Literary Lacquers Princess Buttercup
xoxoJen's swatch of Literary Lacquers Princess Buttercup
xoxoJen's swatch of Literary Lacquers Princess Buttercup
xoxoJen's swatch of Literary Lacquers Princess Buttercup
xoxoJen's swatch of Literary Lacquers Princess Buttercup


The Man in Black
A black matte polish dotted with pink glitters, shimmers and coppery flake. The formula was smooth and easy to apply. I wore two coats for the photos and am also showing it with a glossy top coat and heart on each nail from the glitter topper.

xoxoJen's swatch of Literary Lacquers The Man in Black
xoxoJen's swatch of Literary Lacquers The Man in Black
xoxoJen's swatch of Literary Lacquers The Man in Black
xoxoJen's swatch of Literary Lacquers The Man in Black
xoxoJen's swatch of Literary Lacquers The Man in Black
xoxoJen's swatch of Literary Lacquers The Man in Black


Mawage - Limited Edition for sale through Feb.
A clear based glitter topper with holo silver and pink hex glitter and pink heart-shaped glitters. There are plenty of hearts in this polish, but they will settle since they are heavier. A quick fix is to prop the bottle upside down for a few minutes so they settle nearer the top. I had no issues getting hearts out once they were nearer the top. I used four coats because I wanted to see how it looked without a base color. I quite like it, but in hindsight I think I'd sponge it on instead when wearing it without a base color.

xoxoJen's swatch of Literary Lacquers Mawage
xoxoJen's swatch of Literary Lacquers Mawage
xoxoJen's swatch of Literary Lacquers Mawage

You can get yours on Feb 2, at 2pm Central in the Literary Lacquers online store. To stay in the know, join the Literary Lacquers facebook group, where we have fun activities and a book club!