Indie Spotlight: Paint Shop Polish Review

*Polishes provided by Paint Shop Polish for honest, unbiased review*

Howdy everyone!  I'm gonna start here with a warning; this is a photo-heavy post.  Why so many photos, you ask?  Because I'm reviewing not one, not two, but FOUR polishes from a brand-new-to-me indie polish, Paint Shop Polish.  I discovered Paint Shop Polish via The Polish Diva and loved the look of them.  Candi, the owner/designer of Paint Shop Polish, was kind and sweet enough to send along these four mini bottles for review.  She's also given a little something for my readers, but we'll save that for the end of the post ;)

First up is Sycamore.  A bright, lemony, gold shimmer, Sycamore is part of Candi's Fall 2013 collection.  This color was so flattering, I didn't want to take it off!  The gold and shimmer definitely say Fall, but I could also see this polish used for a summery manicure as well.  Gotta love a color with versatility!

Golden fleck-y goodness!  Application was good.  The brush on my bottle was a little wonky, but it's the only one of the four I had an issue with, so it's the exception rather than the rule.  Sycamore is quite sheer and it would be a wonderful layering polish.  I've used four coats here and still had a bit of  VNL on a couple of nails.  I could see this layered over a red or orange to add a lovely shimmer...and now I'm wondering what it would look like over straight black.  Oh, the possibilities!

Sycamore is definitely worth a look if you're in the market for a versatile Autumn-inspired polish.

 *Polishes provided by Paint Shop Polish for honest, unbiased review*

Next up, we've got Baltimore. This polish is a glitter topper inspired by the Baltimore Ravens.  Candi has several NFL-inspired polishes in her line-up (pun intended) and if you don't see your favorite team, she accepts custom orders and I'm sure she'd be happy to whip up some team spirit for you! 
 

Anyway, back to Baltimore!  Lavender squares, black and gold hexes in two sizes, and white bars make up the glitter portion of this clear-based topper.  I'm particularly partial to this color combo because, while I'm not really a Ravens fan, they do happen to share their team colors with my KSU Wildcats, so I'll be able to work this into a future Pigtails & Purple Nails post.  Bonus!
 

I'm showing 2 coats of Baltimore over the previously mentioned 4 coats of Sycamore.  There was a little bit of settling with the gold hexes in this polish, but a quick upside-down session with the bottle fixed it right up.  I dabbed on the first coat and the second was applied normally.  Glitter coverage was good and the base isn't too thick, which is nice.  


*Polishes provided by Paint Shop Polish for honest, unbiased review*

And we're on to the first of two polishes that are part of Paint Shop Polish's limited edition Sons of Anarchy-inspired collection, SAMBEL.  SAMBEL is named after the Belfast chapter of Sons of Anarchy.  I wish I could tell you more about the inspiration, but I don't actually watch the show myself.  Fortunately, my lack of SOA knowledge has no bearing on my appreciation of polish!

SAMBEL has a blackened base with a gorgeous dark green shimmer.  In this case, the green is actually much more pronounced on the nail than it was in the bottle, which is a happy :)  This turned out to be a surprise favorite for me.  Once I got SAMBEL on my nails, I couldn't stop staring at the deep green shimmer.  This jewel tone color is totally on trend for Fall, so even if you're not a SOA fan, you'll want to seriously consider adding SAMBEL to your collection!

Again, application was smooth and opaque in 2-3 coats.  The first photo shows no top coat while the following two have a coat of Seche Vite on top.  Paint Shop Polish has done a nice job with the finish on these polishes; a nice shine without a top coat is always a plus!


*Polishes provided by Paint Shop Polish for honest, unbiased review*
 

SAMCRO is the second SOA-inspired polish I received for review.  Named for the SOA Charming chapter, SAMCRO is similar to SAMBEL but with a blue shimmer instead of the green.  You may want to view these photos at a larger size to see the difference between them.

Unlike SAMBEL, SAMCRO's blue shimmer didn't become more pronounced on the nail, but it did look the same in the bottle so what you see it what you get.  Now, I'm not baggin' on SAMCRO!  It's still a pretty polish, just in a more subtle way than SAMBEL.  The shimmer is kind of opalescent with the blue being the most noticeable color.

SAMCRO also had great application and was opaque in 2-3 coats.  First two photos shown with a coat of Seche Vite and the last photo is without top coat.  If you're looking for a dark color that has a subtle hint of color, give this one a shot!

I was so excited to get to try out Paint Shop Polish and am so pleased to report that these polishes really lived up to my hopes!  The colors are rich and the formulas are great, you can't ask for much more than that!  All of these polishes and more are currently available in Paint Shop Polish's etsy store and they all retail for $4 for a 5ml mini bottle and $7.50 for a full size 15ml bottle.  You can keep up with Candi and Paint Shop Polish over on Facebook.  Make sure to "like" her page for updates on new products, giveaways, and all that good stuff!

Now, remember earlier when I said Candi had a little something for my readers?  Well, she's offering a discount code for 15% off of your purchase!  That makes these lovelies a total steal!  To get your discount, simply enter the code TOPCOAT at checkout.  And make sure to thank her in the Buyer Comments!

Alright, I'm just about wore out here lol  I do want to remind everyone to enter the The Nail Files Turned 2! giveaway for your chance to win some awesome prizes from myself, Taneja’s Bride, Accio Lacquer, My Boyfriend Hates Makeup, A Polish Playground, Mandie’s Manicures, An Accent Nail, Nail Addicted Sisters, Galactic Lacquer, Pretty Jelly and last but not least.. xo, noelle! You don't want to miss this!

Thanks so much for reading!