Fall Favourites

Driving home after running some errands this crisp, sunny morning, I decided to take a shortcut via a meandering country road. The last time I took this route I rounded a corner and immediately had to stand on my brakes to avoid hitting the 30 or so wild turkeys that were strutting about the hot top. What brought me to a standstill today, however, was rounding that corner and noting that somehow, without my being totally conscious of it, fall arrived. And it will be gone very soon. And then I won’t be taking that shortcut at all, because I can’t deal with black ice and wild, disobedient turkeys.

But before fall slips through my grasp like so many burnished leaves fluttering lazily to the ground, I thought I’d keep it in the here and now and feature some of my favourite seasonal polishes of this year and years past.

Starting in the upper left-hand corner of the collage, we have KB Shimmer’s Soul Deep, a midnight blue creme that’s a neat twist on the traditional black mani. A one-coater to boot, Soul Deep also makes for an excellent background to all manner of nail art.

Next we have another KB Shimmer polish, this time burnished orange holo Rust No One. Despite not being the hugest booster for orange lacquers, I think Rust No One is one of my favourite polishes, period, flashing mad, ultra flattering fuchsia rainbows and shimmer. This is another one I use as the background for a lot of nail art, although it’s a lovely, lovely pick for not-so-simple everyday wear.

Rounding out the top row we have yet another KB Shimmer polish, this time chunky glitter jelly Leaf of Faith. This polish is like fall in a bottle, all crunchy leaves and rich, cranberry jelly (indeed, I recently used Leaf of Faith in a canned cranberry sauce manicure – it makes a more than adequate substitute for canned jelly, if that’s your nail bag.)

Moving down to the second row, we have Smitten Polish’s Can You BeLeaf These Puns?, a chocolate brown micro glitter that looks like holographic coffee grounds. It can be quite difficult to find a true, dark brown holo, but Smitten knows how to do them up right (Seasonal Lattes, an espresso brown linear holo, is another favourite.)

Next we have another Smitten lacquer, this time a glittery green pick from last year’s springtime collection, Not Your Mama’s Easter Grass. I think this polish, with its hint of texture and vaguely unnatural-looking hue, is actually a perfect stand-in for the ultra vibrant, still-green leaves that cling stubbornly to the trees at this time of year. It will also more than pull its weight come Halloween.

Moving down to the bottom left, we have KB Shimmer’s Such a Vlad-Ass, a vampy, blood red creme that is the very epitome of polished perfection. I love this polish so much; would paint my walls with it if I could.

Bottom centre we have a bit of an older pick, Lilypad Lacquer’s black holographic Rainbows in Space. To be sure, Rainbows’ holo rainbows are indeed lovely, but I love this polish because of the almost textured, flannel-type look it takes on in lower lighting, morphing from a rather standard black holo to a beautifully woolen-looking, somehow cozy flannel grey. Gorgeous.

Finally, we have another micro glitter from Smitten Polish, this time Orange You Glad It’s Pun-kin Season? As a friend pointed out, this polish is PURE PUMPKIN, although I also get a hint of 1970s shag carpeting. No mind, it’s the perfect pick for this time of year, whether you’re walking among the leaves or picking out a pumpkin yourself – that way you can make sure it matches your nails!

You can buy KB Shimmer’s polishes through their website here, or through Harlow & Co. if you’re an international customer. Smitten Polish’s lacquers are available through their site here. And finally, Lilypad Lacquer’s polishes are available through their site here.