Mixed and Matched

I might be deluding myself here, but I like to think that my nail polish procurement issues veer more towards charming quirk as opposed to worrying pathology, a tenuous distinction made and tempered only by the fact that I really USE my polishes, even – especially – those of the pricey and/or hard-to-find variety. The kid in me that used to keep a small collection of Au Coton bags (Canadian gals who grew up in the ’80s will recognize that name – it was kind of the American Apparel of its time, and your purchases came in adorable, multi-coloured carrier bags) feels that pull to hoard pretty items, especially those that are, like so many nail polishes, limited edition or otherwise special in some way, but the adult that I actually am (or pretend to be) demands that I get some real utility out of this stuff, no matter the price tag or an item’s perceived awesomeness.

I offer that by way of explanation for these three mix ‘n match manis I did this weekend, a red-to-purple and then purple-to-red gradient using two new Enchanted polishes, the latter of which I later topped off with a glittery Emily de Molly, an audacious move, according to some good natured grief I received on Instagram, as apparently you DO NOT defile an Enchanted polish with anything else, not even another Enchanted polish. I guess you’re supposed to swatch it once, post the photos to Instagram whilst obnoxiously referring to it as a “baby” (eeeugh) and then stare longingly at it until the day it all just dries up? Sounds productive.

And so instead I choose to actually use my polishes – all of my polishes – in gorgeous, single-colour manis or in combination in nail art, mixing it up and maximizing my purchases for all they’re worth, regardless of a polish’s pricetag or pedigree. That seems like the best way to get the most out of my not huge, but also not insubstantial, stash, all the while making room for more (see, worrywart Instagrammers, there’s your silver lining)!

Here I did a red-to-purple gradient using Enchanted’s plummy January 2015 over their red rose February 2015. I then did another gradient, this time reversing the colours to purple-to-red, before topping it with Emily de Molly’s glittery Heart Street. Heart Street is a hot pink, jelly-based glitter that you can absolutely get opaque in about three coats, but I prefer it as a single-coater over dark polishes, particularly lush purples like January 2015 that pull and highlight all that gorgeous, fiery-coloured glitter.