Crumpet's Polishes of the Year 2013 - Purple

Hi Goddesses

Today I've got my favourite purple polishes of the year for you.  It will come as no surprise that in these lists of favourite polishes, there are more purples than any other, but I don't actually feel this has been purple's best year.  OR I have just bought ALL the purples, and there is very little left for me!

My most favourite purples of the year aren't actually in this post, so, excluding my Big 4 brands, here are my Top 13 Purples (and Lilacs) of the Year.

(To go to the post, just click the polish name).


Above The Curve - Wisteria



Ah, dark decadence, bestill my heart.  This is witchily gorgeous and just about perfect.


Cadillacquer - Fireflies



It was one of my proudest moments of the year when Madeleine asked me to swatch a LE polish for her.  Unfortunately it coincided with the worst nail break of all time, and some creative photography was required!  A gorgeous polish, darkly intense and juicy, like blackberries, speckled with gold.  Entrancing.


Catrice - The Dark Knight


A polish as dark as night itself, but look how glossy and shimmery and ugh, it's like a vortex, sucking everything into itself until there is nothing left but the beauty of the polish.  Coldly magnificent.


Chirality - The Sinking Belle



This is the other LE I was honoured to swatch this year, and it couldn't have been more Crumpet-y perfect :)  A delicious mauve-based holo, this is as cuddly as a kitten.   I love soft, calming tones like this.  Beautiful.


Dollish Polish - Purple Rain



There were a lot of polishes like this in 2013 - speckled, freckled and fun.  This is a lovely confection, perfect for those days when you want a little magic, but can't be arsed to create some nail art!  Lol.


Femme Fatale - Fatal Attraction


Man this brand has driven me MAD this year.  Genius creativity but always out of stock!  Thankfully, they now have their own international website which makes obtaining them easier.   This is just beautiful - pink and purple collide in heavenly explosions on the nail.  Divine.


Jacava - Blueberry Muffin


Want to know a secret?  I think the Jacava bottle is one of my favourites.  I love its little dumpy shape, and the wand definitely makes for easier application - but sadly screws up your storage.  This lilac is sublime.  I couldn't get enough of it earlier in the year, and I know I will be returning to it LOTS in 2014.


Smitten Polish - Look To The Western Sky



Oh wowballs, this is everything a purple glitter SHOULD BE.  Isn't it disco-tastic?  I love the vibrancy, the colour collisions - ah, I love it all!


Too Fancy - Aphrodite



I debated whether this should go with the reds, but in the end I decided this was closer to blackcurrant than anything else, which makes it purple, yes?  This is just one of THE deepest darkest gorgeousest holos I own.  Buy it.


Zoya - Stevie



Another PixieDust, this time the lovely Stevie.  A lilac texture polish was my holy grail this summer, and I really feel only Zoya got the colour *exactly* right.  

Happy Dots with Jacava Polishes

Hi Goddesses

OMG it is 33 degrees today in the UK - yesterday it was 20.  There is no wind, and going outside is like stepping into an oven.  Crumpet really not happy, so it's a good job we have an icy cool mani today to stop us from melllllllting.

This is the final nail art look I did with the 3 Jacava polishes I was sent for review - Mont Blanc (white), Knightsbridge Opulence (pink) and the gorgeous Blueberry Muffin.

This mani is super simple, and its effectiveness lies in varying the size of your dots, so we have big pinks with small purples, and big purples with small pinks.

It doesn't get much simpler, and I always love how it's the simple ones that often look the best.

You can buy Jacava's amazing 8 Free polishes HERE - they really are fabulous, and the formula, application and colour intensity are all stunning.

Enjoy xx :)

Jacava Water Marble

Morning Goddesses

And yes you heard right - Crumpet did a water marble!   They are one of my very very favourite nail art techniques, but I really struggle with them for a variety of reasons I've bored you with before.  I do think I am starting to eliminate the culprits though, and I am hoping to practice practice practice until I am GOOOOOOD lol.

This watermarble features the 3 Jacava polishes I was sent for review - Mont Blanc, Blueberry Muffin and Knightsbridge Opulence.  I think they work really well together.

Whilst I do like how this turned out, I am obviously drawn to the imperfections lol.  It bugs me that the ring finger is crisp and clean and the others are muddier - anyone have any ideas about that?

I also like how, totally by accident, the index and middle finger look like I've created a butterfly haha.

So water marble, still my favourite - to look at, not to do lol.

Enjoy xx :)

Digit-al Dozen DOES Tape Manis - Jacava Reciprocal Gradient

Hi Goddesses

Wow, summer has FINALLY hit the UK!  Blooming heck it's hot!  By hot I mean 27C, which is about 5C over my maximum tolerance.  And there's no breeze!   I don't really do summer ....

So what better way to cool down than with this icy tape mani using Jacava Mont Blanc and Blueberry Muffin.

Reciprocal Gradient is the fancy name for this mani.  It was coined by Emma at Globe and Nail when she came up with the idea a few months ago, and it involves creating a gradient, adding tape in vertical lines, and then doing an OPPOSITE gradient over the top.   You then whip your tape off to reveal this amazing blurred / magic eye structure.

I deliberately made my gradient a little choppy, for added effect, and I left the ring finger in its initial phase, so you could see how it looked before I added tape.

A few of you yesterday were concerned with how long these manis take.  Well yesterdays, AFTER the white base coat had dried, probably took no more than 20 mins to do 1 paw.  Today's took longer because it required a gradient before adding the tape, but the tape and re-gradient was remarkably quick - probably 10 minutes for 1 paw.

Please make sure you check out the rest of the Girls - I've seen some amazing manis posted today.  Tape manis rock!! Enjoy xx :)

Crumpet Reviews - Jacava London Mont Blanc, Blueberry Muffin and Knightsbridge Opulence

Hi Goddesses

You may remember a few months ago I got the chance to review a new brand - Jacava London.  The brand is 8-free, super opulent and a classic in the making, and this week, I was lucky enough to be sent 3 more for review.  Not only that, but you'll see 3 nail art looks with them over the next 3 weeks AND if you click HERE you can enter their competion to win their new AW2013 collection.

I'm going to start with my favourite from the trio - Blueberry Muffin.  Wowee, this is gorgeous.  Super pigmented, super glossy, this is a lilac to take your breath away.

As you know, I have quite the collection of lilacs, but this one has gone straight into the Top 3.  It's just perfect, and there's something about the colour that's electric.

Personally, I can't get enough of it, and it might even challenge the immortal OPI Planks A Lot as my go to lilac.  Awesome, and just lushly perfect.

Mont Blanc.  A white you say?  Crumpet chose a white???!!  Well, yeah, I did.  I've realised lately how vital a good white is for nail art and nail patterns, and so I was keen to give this one a go.

The holy grail of white polishes is one that is streak free, and look at this - this is 3 coats, perfection, glacier smooth surface.  I also liked that it wasn't too stark - there's a hint of cream in there, albeit very diluted, and it just makes this dreamily good.  It's a cool glass of milk!

And finally, Knightsbridge Opulence.  When I chose my first 2 Jacavas all those months ago, I really kicked myself for not picking this beauty, so I didn't hesitate to ask for this one.

This is shimmery, electric gorgeousness on a grand scale.   The pink is perfectly mid-toned, and the blue sizzle in it just adds a cold fire that is delicious.

As this is shimmery, it takes a little while to build to the right opacity.  I used 4 coats, but I suspect this will change as I use the bottle more.

So, massive thumbs up for Jacava.  They're not cheap - at £14.50 a bottle - but they are damned gooooood.   I love everything about them, from the shape of the bottle, the shape of the wand, the width of the brush to the important stuff - the formula and quality of the polish.  You can buy them HERE or follow them on Facebook here.

Bravo and pip pip for another awesome British brand.  These polishes were sent to me for an honest review - enjoy xx