Essie Marshmallow and Orly Winter Wonderland

Quick - someone write this moment down!  I'm about to show you a manicure I wore to work....and it wasn't an edgy neutral!  I KNOW, right?!  Don't worry, I'm not ill, and I promise you my unhealthy obsession with edgy neutrals has not ended.  *Cuddles with bottle of $OPI Metro Chic*  This was actually a two part manicure that spanned over four days.

I started out with Essie Marshmallow.  This polish had been on my list for a long time.  After seeing a comparison of whites from Scrangie (It's the second photo in this post.), I just had to have it.  Most whites are almost harshly opaque and somewhat chalky in texture.  Not Marshmallow.  It's a soft, squishy, jellyish white like no other.  Unfortunately, the price you pay for that squishiness is at least three coats.  There's no real application issues, it just takes that many to even everything out.  Scrangie used three, and you could certainly stop there.  I did four, because I wanted that extra opacity.  I love how it turned out!

(click to enlarge)

Such an angelic white.  And a nice change of pace from my typical "office colors."  I wore Marshmallow on its own for two days, and then I decided to spice it up.  I had a few "effect" polishes to choose from - Sally Hansen Hidden Treasure (an opalescent flaky), China Glaze White Cap (a sheer white with golden sparkles), and Orly Winter Wonderland (a soft white irregular fleck).   None of these are really buildable to opacity, which makes them great for layering.  Here's how each of them look over Marshmallow on my nail wheel (Sorry for the bad photos, it's difficult to capture the beauty in all of these!):

 (L) to (R):  Hidden Treasure, White Cap, Winter Wonderland

 (L) to (R):  Hidden Treasure, White Cap, Winter Wonderland

Why I didn't choose Hidden Treasure or White Cap is beyond me, but Winter Wonderland had been a lemming of mine since it came out in this past year's 'Tis the Season collection, and look how nice it is where the light hits it!  I had to try it out.  (And don't worry, White Cap will get it's moment in the spotlight soon!  hehe)  So here it is, one coat over Marshmallow:

(click to enlarge)

I promise you this looked better in person.  The lighting casts a strange beige color to it that isn't as noticeable in real life.  Maybe I should've taken a picture in the sun (D'oh!).  Can you see those irregular shaped flakes?  Winter Wonderland is kind of like if a shimmer and a flaky had a baby.  It's sparkly like snow on a sunny day.  It's interesting and pretty, and I did get compliments on it, but I'm not loving it.  Shame, since I waited so long to finally get my hands on it.  Oh well, back to the drawing board!