If you’re bored and tired of this frigid gloomy winter, well, rest assured that you’re not alone. I can’t wait for the colors around me to come back. Speaking of colors, there’s a couple of new shades from Smith & Cult nails polish lately and they’re really pretty. As someone who’s never tried any Smith & Cult nail polish before, even though I keep seeing them in my local department store, I feel like it’s about time to venture to new nail polish brands and explore different unique shades that are outside my comfort zone. I’m talking about taking a break from my usual vampy red nail colors.
The Smith & Cult nail polishes are one of those chic nail colors that you just can’t help but stare not only at their interesting shades but also at their glamorous packaging. Such design for a nail polish. But the beautiful colors and beautiful containers come with a steep price. For $18 per nail polish, it’s definitely a splurge. However, having a few shades that you know you’re gonna use a lot and love for a long time makes it all worth it, like the three I got here.
These three new shades are not only Spring and Summer-ready shades, but also theyโre great transitional shades from Winter to Spring. Apart from that, if you’ve been following the “mannequin nails” trend, that is, matching your finger’s skin tone to your nails which gives a lengthening effect, then you’re gonna love two of the shades here.
I applied these nail colors using Smith & Cult’s very own base coat and top coat. My experience with both is just amazing. The Basis of Everything base coat settles very fast and it made my nails feel very strong. The Above It All top coat is one of the best top coats I’ve ever tried. It does what a top coat should do. It dries and sets the nail polish immediately and it makes for strong nails that shine. It’s perfect.
Peaceful Paranoia ($18) – This opaque dark cream with a pinkish/magenta sheen is probably one of the most perfect shade for that mannequin nails trend. It’s definitely gonna match to your finger especially if your skin tone is light to medium like mine. However, to be honest, I’m not so crazy about the whole mannequin nails trend, I think it’s just not a trend for everybody, and it’s a pretty difficult trend to pull off. If you’re a long-time reader of my blog, you know that I like mE nails red, scandalous, and vampy, LOL. So, you can imagine my reaction when I painted my nails with this cream-tone shade. But anyways, even if this color is too close to my skin tone, it doesn’t mean that I couldn’t love this. It took me a while to get used to this color though, but after a few days, I feel like it’s really not that bad. I could get used to it. But do I really need to psyche myself that much in order to love a nail color? hmmm… Anyway, apart from that, let’s talk about the longevity and overall impression that I got with this color. Once on my nails, I had a hard time seeing that pink/magenta sheen that comes from the nail polish itself, it’s almost like it only reflects from the bottle. After probably a week or so, I noticed a slight chipping on the side of my nails, but overall it stays on almost perfectly for more than two weeks.
Powder Posse ($18) – If I had mixed feelings about the Peaceful Paranoia shade above, this creamy pale lilac is a surprise love for me. I like this one a lot better than Peaceful Paranoia because at least this shade shows a bit of contrast between my skin and my nails. It’s definitely a shade lighter than my own skin tone, but it looks clean, sleek, and polished. It still looks like I have mannequin nails on but it also looks like I have nails for real. You know what I mean.
A Short Reprise ($18) – Lavender Mauve. This is my most favorite shade among the three. It’s so pretty and it’s not an aggressive “look at me” shade. It’s just simple yet stunning. This is indeed a nice transitional shade or a color meant for Spring and Summer. The tone of this reminds me a bit of Essie’s Angora Cardi, but this one has more lavender shade in it. Overall, this is a relaxing pretty nail color that you don’t see a lot in most nail polishes nowadays, but when you see one, you know you’ve got to have it.
I feel like I’m gonna be seeing some more Smith and Cult nail polishes popping in my drawer after this. I love this nail polish already. The formula is long-wearing, doesn’t have that much strong odor, and I get about two weeks or more of wear, and it’s also an 8-free nail polish. I also love the brush applicator, it’s much better than OPI, Essie, Chanel and Tom Ford’s, but I still love Dior’s brushes though, because those are fat and wide, so it’s easier for me to apply the colors on my nails. Other than that, I am now a convert of Smith and Cult nail colors and I highly recommend them. Yay!
The Smith and Cult Nail Colors are currently available at Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus, SpaceNK, Bloomingdales, Net-A-Porter, and Amazon.com
