Colors by Llarowe Gemini Rising

Gemini Rising is a very bright green linear holo. The color is stunning, amazing, gorgeous, and all those other similar adjectives you can find with the help of thesaurus. Definitely the best green color in my collection. The formula is thick but manageable and it is possible to apply this polish in just one coat. I've applied two coats for extra saturation. I wore this polish for a week, and nothing happened to it at all. I mean, literally nothing, it stayed where it was. That's an impressive durability for a holographic polish.

So where's the catch? Gemini Rising stains like hell. The stains are bright yellow and they stay with you. I've tried a nail polish remover without acetone, then the polish remover with acetone. I've tried citric acid. I've tried toothpaste just for the sake of it. Awful. My nails are yellow on their own because I always use colored nail polish. But never have I ever gotten such vivid stains.

The Colors by Llarowe brush is another point worth mentioning. As for me, it's even more terrifying that those lemony stains. The brush is gigantic, and my nails are pretty small and curved. The brush in Gemini Rising was more or less okay, but in my other CbL... well, I wouldn't call it a brush. Witch's broom, that's what it was. Perfectly round brush with a diameter of more than a half cm. That's bigger than my thumb nail!

As usual, press 'read more' for more photos~

Emily de Molly Land of Confusion

Emily de Molly Land of Confusion is a light green strong linear holo. The formula is great, I've applied the polish in two coats. The polish dries fast and smooth on the nail. I've experienced no staining. 

I suppose, you could you apply more coats to make Land of Confusion appear brighter and more saturated. As for two pretty thin coats, the color is subtle. Maybe, that's the difference between batches. Emily de Molly polishes are hand-mixed and most swatches I've seen are of the version from 2-3 years ago, while I've bought mine a month ago. Or, maybe, the pigment faded. To be honest, I like that vivid old version better, there's no way I could ever get that color with my version of Land of Confusion.

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A-England Dragon

A-England Dragon is medium green scattered holo. This shade of green is simply gorgeous! The formula is awesome, it's super-easy to apply Dragon in just one coat. The polish is fast-drying and smooth. I've experienced no staining or any difficulty with removing the polish in all three years of owning Dragon.

Dragon is one of oldest and most treasured polishes in my collection. The shade of green is stunning! It's soft, not too light or too dark, with the occasional golden holo flash. I have one word for it, perfection. Press 'read more' to see two more photos~

Picture Polish Escapades

Picture Polish Escapades is a dark teal jelly with holographic particles. As for me, it look more blue than green. Usually it look almost black, to be honest. The formula is similar to that of other Picture Polish holos. It dries fast and smooth on the nail, it doesn't stain, it's opaque in two coats, all the usual stuff. It makes my hands lighter to the extent that my camera struggles with taking a picture. You can probably see that. On the photo Escapades looks as I see it in 'real life' while my skin looks, for the lack of better word, weird. Escapades is a beautiful polish, especially if you manage to apply it in one coat.

A-England Fotheringhay Castle

Fotheringhay Castle is an olive-green scattered holo with gold shimmer. The formula is great, it's not as thick as some other A-England polishes. Fotheringhay Castle is very nearly a one coater. Use a bit thicker coat to apply it in just one coat. The polish dries fast and smooth on the nail. It's pretty glossy on its own, the swatches show the real finish without the top coat. The polish doesn't leave stains on nail plates or skin.

I love almost all greens, this one is definitely one of my favorites. The color looks good with my skin tone. Press 'read more' to see two more photos~

A-England Order of the Garter

Order of the Garter is a bright blue polish with with aqua blue shimmer. The formula is very thin and watery so I can't really tell if this is meant to be creme or jelly. I'd opt for jelly, in any case. I like these watery formulas and I find it easy to apply even extremely thin polishes. You'd probably need 2-3 coats for this polish to be opaque. I've used 3 thin coats, and the polish has dried pretty fast. I've had no issues with removing or staining.

This polish is lovely! Most photos show it to be a bit dull. Maybe, there is difference in pigments between different batches. Three years ago I got a display with Order of the Garter applied as a promo from an online store. It was dull and boring, to be honest. But I do collect A-England polishes so a year ago I bought Order of the Garter during a sale. The polish in my bottle was bright and so very beautiful! It looks totally electric under direct sunlight. Amazing, really!

Dance Legend Wazowski

Dance Legend Wazowski is a metallic multichrome shifting between green, gold, and blue. It is a part of the Chameleon Collection that was released in 2013. One coat is enough for this polish to be completely opaque. For the photos above I've applied two coats but that's just because my nails don't fare well with metallic polishes. 

The formula is nice, it should have been very easy to apply this polish. However, the brush in my bottle was cut in a diagonal line so it was a bit tricky to apply it smoothly near the cuticle. The main shift is between green and gold. To be honest, I've only seen Wazowski turn blue in the bottle. Multichromes depend greatly on the shape of your nails, my nails aren't enough for blue color to show, obviously. Nonetheless, Wazowski is just simply stunning!

Emily de Molly Mind Powers

Mind Powers is a medium blue linear holo with lots of green shimmer. The amount of shimmer is enough to make the polish almost metallic. That's why I'd suggest paying attention to the brush strokes. I'd recommend applying two thin coats of Mind Powers to reduce them. You could probably manage to apply this polish in one thick coat but it would be harder to get rid of those brush strokes. The formula is good, the polish dries fast and smooth. It looks glossy enough even without a top coat. I've had no issues with removing this polish or staining but I've heard of people having problems with the stains. So just in case, use a good base coat.

There are lots of shimmer in the polish but it's pretty hard to capture it in a photo. You need good lighting for taking pictures, and as soon as you have that all you get is a strong linear holo. Press 'read more' for other photos~

Emily de Molly Cool, Calm and Collected

Cool, Calm and Collected is an aqua blue linear holo. The polish dries smooth on the nail and is opaque in 2-3 coats depending on the application. The formula is fantastic! It's very easy to apply this polish, it dries fast, the finish is pretty glossy on its own. I've added a top coat for durability but it hasn't changed the appearance of the polish. I've had no issues with removing the polish or staining. 

The color is very beautiful. When there is enough light, the holo simply lights up. The overall effect is stunning! Like water under the sun, maybe. The holo is pretty strong in the direct lights. I'm so glad that I managed to find a bottle of Cool, Calm and Collected now that it's discontinued. 

For more photos press 'read more' below~

Emily de Molly The Pretender

Emily de Molly The Pretender is a purple jelly with duo-chrome shimmer shifting from green to gold. The polish dries smooth on the nail, the finish is semi-matte. I've used two coats of The Pretender and a top coat for my swatches. The formula is great and thin enough for me, it was super-easy to apply the polish. The Pretender dries fast but you may want to wait longer before applying a top coat as it can make the polish shrink. I've had no issues with removing the polish. 

The green shimmer is overpowering, it makes the purple base look dusty at all times. I've tried looking at it in the direct sunlight, in the shade, in white and yellow electrical lights. It's all the same green shimmer. Sometimes at extreme angles you do see it shift to gold or, surprisingly, violet, but most of the time it is green. I like this effect so much! I find it unusual and captivating. There are lots of green shimmer in The Pretender so be careful with brush strokes. It is better to apply this polish in just a few strokes. 

The photo above was taken in the shade, the photo below was taken in white electric lights.