Emily de Molly LE 38

Emily de Molly LE 38 is a bright blue/purple polish with strong red overlay. LE 38 uses the same pigment that Split Personality had. They are pretty much the same with the exception of flakes. I really like polishes with contrasting shimmer like LE 38 or The Pretender. Red shimmer makes the blue base look purple and almost metallic in certain lighting. The only downside for me is that the suspension base in LE 38 isn't able to support all this shimmer and it just sinks down to the bottom of the bottle. You have to roll the bottle gently between your palms to re-mix the contents.

The formula is nice and thin enough so it was very easy for me to apply the polish. LE 38 is heavy with shimmer and that means brush strokes are a concern. If you are not sure about your ability to manage them, I suggest applying it in coats that are as thin as possible. I've used two coats for the photo above. The polish dries sort of matte so I suggest using a top coat, if you prefer glossy finish. LE 38 dries pretty fast but I waited extra time before applying my top coat to avoid polish shrinkage near the cuticle.

The top photo is taken in natural light. Press 'read more' to see other photos~

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.

A-England Incense Burner

Incense Burner is a violet-based brown with lots of multi-chrome shimmer shifting between brown, purple, gold, and green. The formula is thick and highly pigmented, I really don't like that. It took a bit of effort to apply it cleanly and close to the cuticle. I don't like correcting the manicure after I've dried the polish, so it's a must for me that a polish allows application without any troubles. This is definitely not the case here. I will, of course, give Incense Burner another chance after adding lots of thinner. 

Incense Burner can be fully opaque in just one thicker coat but it would be harder to apply it without getting some of it on the cuticles. I chose to apply two thinner coats in order not to bother with cleaning up. It dries up pretty fast and is as durable as many other A-England polishes. I've had no issues with removing it.

I've seen some very beautiful swatches of this polish so I was disappointed with the way it looked on me. Most of the time it's just plain brown. With lights on, or in the sunlight, I can see the purple shimmer shifting to green sometimes. And that's all. The polish is still very good-looking but those swatches with extremely bright shimmer are misleading, in my opinion.

UPD. I used Incense Burner as an accent for my mani so I was able to do take some macro pics. Press 'read more' to see them~

Picture Polish Pandora

Picture Polish Pandora is a part of Opulence Shades collection and is a re-release of Ozotic 624. Pandora is a purple scattered holographic jelly. It tends to look closer to violet in the shade. Pandora contains no glitter and dries smooth on the nail. I had no issues with application of this polish. The removal is easy, and I haven't experienced staining so far. I've used two coats of Pandora and a top coat for these swatches. 

I'm a bit disappointed with this one, to be honest. In my opinion, the holographic particles differ from those in Cosmos, Kryptonite and other holographic jellies by Picture Polish. Holographic particles in Cosmos make it look deep, for the lack of better word. Particles in Pandora are smaller, and there are lots of them. I'd say, Pandora looks pretty flat for such a polish. Sure, it's all sparkly and glimmering with the right kind of lighting but you don't get that a lot in real life. It also makes my fingers look reddish and yellowish, and I am definitely not a fan of this sausage-y look I get. I've tried to adjust lighting to get rid of this effect but wasn't exactly successful.

A close-up of the nails plus photos in the shade and in the sunlight can be found under the cut. I personally prefer the way Pandora looks in the shade. It becomes darker and more violet than purple, so my fingers seem whiter.