My Favorites: Unicorn Pee (P4)
{unicorn pee (part 4)}
So- it's been quite a while since I uploaded an installment of 'my favorites'! I'm hoping to post more regularly, but life (of course) gets in the way of things often! I've still chosen Friday as my upload days for this series, so keep an eye out on Fridays for a (possible) new post! <3
Onto my UP favs! Here we're starting to get into the more dense parts of this series, with somewhere around 30 polishes for today's entry! A good chunk of the polishes shown in this series might be discontinued, LE, or from brands that no longer exist. I will still be including the brand & polish name with each set of swatch pics for reference though! I hope you enjoy reminiscing with me about my favorites, and I'd love to hear about yours!
I Got A Killer Pussy Cat- Don Deeva
This is a really neat polish. A multichrome magnetic with unicorn pee! Both before & after seeing this polish, I've not seen anything else like it. Absolutely one of the most unique polishes I've seen in my time in the nail polish world.
A Wedding Dress That Isn't Bright Turquoise- Dreamland Lacquer
This is one of the first polishes with UP that I tried out. It's a juicy teal-ish blue base with (obviously) UP. The formula was a dream, and this was one of the rare occasions I really didn't mind seeing VNL. The pictures shown were applied in either 2 or 3 coats. It's just a really special polish, with such an oddly specific name, and I honestly still don't know what it referred to (if anything).
Base: Waxing Poetic- Vapid Lacquer
Topper: Phoenix Song- Starlight & Sparkles Polish
The shimmer in Waxing Poetic is an interesting kind of shimmer- it's almost like a very finely shredded metallic flake. It shifts from pink/purple into orange, and then into a golden green. The UP & holo in Phoenix Song made the pink-y shimmer of Waxing Poetic seamlessly pop and glow. To me, it looks like a creme teal base with a shimmery topper just because of how well everything blends.
Phoenix Song- Starlight & Sparkles Polish
Again, Phoenix Song! On it's own, it seems to really be heavily holo-leaning. It's a nice palate cleanser polish while still having it's own star quality, though.
Snow Glowbe- Tonic Polish
This polish is a version of a former Tonic Polish called Snow Globe that looked exactly like this, except this version has glow in the dark pigment (hence the word 'glow' in globe). This is one of the polishes I love that deviates pretty heavily from the polishes I normally reach for. There's just something about the pinky-red base + heavy UP + those iridescent glitters that really speaks to me. PLUS it glows in the dark, which is super neat to me- it makes the allure of this polish even stronger for me.
230- Clarins
Here we've reached the pinnacle of my entire nail polish career! As a preface- my dad & step-mom have always supported me in exploring nail polish and the ways that I've incorporated it into my life as both a hobby and a passion. My dad even used to let me use his nails when we were out so I could test the formulas of drugstore polishes (I have always been a formula snob, so I liked to test polishes with a very small swipe on his nail since my nails were almost always polished already). They will jokingly tease me by saying "Look at the holo!" and move their fingers to 'show off the holo'- because of how obsessed I was (and still am!) with holographic polishes & seeing them in motion. There was a time I spent around a month or 2 outside the apartment we were living in at the time, and once I was home, I had all my nail mail waiting for me- but in a peculiar way. Each polish had been individually wrapped like presents for me to open like my own personal Christmas morning. My step-mom had taken the time to open my nail mail and wrap up each polish, simply because I said I thought it'd be a really nice & comforting homecoming activity for me to open polishes at random. All of this to say- they really understood/understand how important all this had become to me, and the amount of passion and love I had/have for everything involving nails. After some years into my nail polish journey, I was offhandedly yapping about UP to my dad and step-mom, and how Clarins 230 was one of the most iconic OG UP polishes. I also mentioned how it was no longer available & pretty HTF, as well as the exorbitant prices it was being resold for online. Around a week or 2 after that convo, I'd just gotten home from a shift at work, and my dad came upstairs to say hi to me while hiding something behind his back. He then revealed to me THE Clarins 230 that he got for me as a 'just because' gift. Not only did it excite the NPA in me to have such a coveted polish, but it was a beautifully heartwarming reminder that I am known & therefore loved. To be clear, the formula for 230 SUCKED, but the actual polish itself wasn't really what made it so special to me- the meaning and thoughtfulness behind it from someone so important to me made me feel recognized and heard. Purely for that, it is hands down the best & most sentimental gift I've ever received in my entire life. Also as a collector, it was really satisfying to have such a rare polish in my collection!
Base: Pacific Blue- Sally Hansen
Topper: 230- Clarins
As much as this combo is stunning, it sort of showcases the abysmal formula of 230 and how badly it pooled during application. I'm also not even sure 230 dried down fully no matter how long I'd wait. I'm still so very obsessed with the way Pacific Blue looks under 230, though. Photographing 230 was so extremely fun because of how effortlessly it shifted. So many different angles to look at different color shifts! I plan on having the last part of this series be an all around favorites for nail polish, which will include bottle shots & a video showing how shifty 230 is!
Base: Pacific Blue- Sally Hansen
Topper: Cosmic Ocean- Girly Bits Polish
Okay now I can talk about Pacific Blue again! Since cremes aren't something I like to wear, it will probably not be shown other than as undies; I maybe have a few swatch pics of wearing Pacific Blue on it's own, but I almost always really dislike wearing a creme polish by itself. Also, it takes forever to dry fully- it'd always dent or smudge even after QDTC. Anyways, here we have Pacific Blue underneath the gorgeous Cosmic Ocean! This isn't an 'OG UP' polish, but it's a sister pigment of UP, so I'm counting it. The base is slightly tinted a tealish blue, and then has the green/blue leaning sister UP pigment which gives an overall glowy effect.
Phoenix Kyanite- Starlight & Sparkles
I really love how jewel-toned this juicy blue base is, it compliments the UP a lot with a subtle shimmery contrast. I'm reminded of my birthstone, Sapphire, but if a unicorn peed on it haha. It overall applies very evenly on the nail color-wise & formula-wise.
Blue Rose*- Indigo Bananas
Blue Rose is a thermal polish, however I could not find a swatch pic of it in it's warm state, so these pictures are of it in it's cold state only. The blue is very striking, it reminds me of that one royal blue Revlon polish that was commonly paired under Clarins 230. This is one of three Indigo Bananas UP thermals I'll be showing today.
Let's Slang- KBShimmer
As a longtime KBShimmer lover, this polish was so exciting to see, especially since I had been getting into UP polishes. I either got it in a goody bag from the very first PolishCon held in NY back in 2017 (can you believe its almost the 10th year of PBE?!), or I ordered it from a limited release after PolishCon. This one is similar to Phoenix Kyanite by Starlight & Sparkles, but with a much deeper blue/navy base.
Dark Star*- Indigo Bananas
For this Indigo Bananas UP thermal, I actually do have both the cold & warm states to show! The color change between cold & warm aren't too apparent in person, but both shades of blue as a background for the UP look great. The first set of swatch pics are of it in it's warm state, and the second set is of it in it's cold state. I may be a tiny bit biased since blue based polishes are something I commonly gravitate towards, but this is such a stunning polish, and I wish Indigo Bananas would re-release these as thermals again! AFAIK, the only versions of these that are still being sold are non-thermal versions, so it's just a crelly/creme base with that UP pigment.
Base: Stonewashed- KBShimmer
Topper: P38- Colors by Llarowe
This is an older UP polish that I swapped with a friend for a bottle of Shift Happens by Girly Bits. This is one I deeply regret destashing, especially since I seem to have a strong preference for blue based polishes. Colors by Llarowe is a brand that no longer exists as far as I know, which is sad since to me they've been an OG indie nail polish brand for the longest. The polishes they made were always so interesting and very beautiful; one of my favorites from CbL is Red Baron- which will be showcased in the holo part of this series!
Chimera Night- Starlight & Sparkles
This is a super interesting polish- it has OG UP as well as it's sister pigments! I'm not sure what each pigment is called on their own, so I'll refer to them how Starlight & Sparkles has them listed on their site. They call OG UP 'Phoenix', then next is a yellow to green shifting pigment named 'Dragon', the green-ish to blue shifting pigment is called 'Unicorn', 'Kelpie' is a teal to blue shifting pigment, which leaves us with the final pigment being their newest addition called 'Phantom', which is a blue to purple shift that looks similar to that really intense, almost glowing blue shimmer that's been popular the past couple years, but with more of a purple shift. This particular polish does not have the Phantom pigment, but does include all the others listed previously. So it has Phoenix, Dragon, Unicorn, & Kelpie, all in a blackened crelly/jelly base. The holographic topper of the Chimera shimmer mix is one of my favorites. It's so sparkly and shifty, but also slightly subtle enough to be worn on it's own as a complete mani.
Alpenglow II- Dreamland Lacquer
This color is quite a prugly one, but that's one of the main reasons I loved it so much! It's a deep forest-y green with olive tones that warm up that base. Plus, the UP gives it even more warmth and depth, and it contrasts so beautifully with the odd (but stunning) shade of green. This is another polish I've unfortunately destashed & no longer have- much to my dismay.
Unicorn Tears- Starlight & Sparkles
I know I often mention the contrast of a shimmer against it's base color, but with shimmers (and especially UP pigments), I feel like it is an unavoidable description. The way that UP pigments behave & shift are so much different compared to a normal shimmer, and so they look much different in a polish than how a normal shimmer would. They both still have very similar principals for the way they look in a finished mani, however UP pigments have a much finer particle size than an average shimmer, which is a great indicator as to if a polish has OG UP, or if it's just an aurora shimmer. ANYWAYS- the intense green shimmer paired with the deep purple jelly base just fits so well! It looks magical.
(I could talk about unicorn pee & it's sister pigments for
an entire lifetime if it wasn't already obvious :P)
All UP In Ma Bizness- Girly Bits Polish
I specifically remember making the purchase that included this polish, because it was a limited collection Girly Bits released that included many UP polishes, and I had specifically timed my work break to be able to order the polishes I was after before they all sold out! I unfortunately don't have a picture of this one, but another one of the polishes from that release that absolutely stunned me was called 'Holy Sheet!'. It's a purple/magenta to pink thermal with OG UP. The thermal had died on me after some years (dead thermals are very much an annoyance to me because if I ever wear a dead thermal, I just get sad that it doesn't have it's thermal affect anymore), so I think this one ended up getting destashed. I also think the polish shown here, All UP in Ma Bizness, has been destashed as well.
Hard To Empress- KBShimmer
I can't remember why or when this polish came out, but as a longtime KBShimmer lover, I was quick to grab this one. The iridescent flakies pair super well with the UP, it makes the polish look like it's glowing on the nails. It has a good amount of the cool-toned, bright blue iridescent shifting flakies which shines beautifully with the deep cool purple base.
Curio- Tonic Polish
This polish was released by Tonic Polish alongside another that's also included in this favorites called Serendipity. Curio is the cool purple version of Serendipity- Serendipity is a much warmer purple, almost even a bit red leaning. Curio has a much cooler toned purple base. The intensity of the purple + the squishy look of the jelly finish is stunning on it's own, but the addition of UP takes it to the next level. It makes the UP look like a glowing fire lit from within.
Coronation- Cirque Polish
Okay so upfront, I know there's been a TON of controversy regarding Cirque's re-releases of this, where they've stated each time that it'll be the final restock of Coronation ever, but then some time later will do another limited release. It creates the icky FOMO feeling, which is a bit predatory towards consumers, but I digress. This is not the original version of Coronation; I think I bought mine sometime around 2020. I've seen many comparisons of the original to the re-releases and they definitely look much different. However, I still do find this polish quite pretty. I am not one to enjoy glitter very much, but the touch of silver holographic micro glitter blends really well with the other accoutrements of this polish & just elevates the look more. IMO, I think the re-releases are a mix of OG UP pigment + aurora shimmer, which to me, takes away from the allure and magic of what this polish was. But nonetheless, I am still including it in my unicorn pee favorites!
Empress- Tonic Polish
Compared to the usual jelly base we see in most UP polishes, this is instead a crelly base. It's a warm lilac-y purple, and I feel like the name Empress is very fitting for the polish since it looks very royal purple to me.
Base: Alexandria's Genesis- Tonic Polish
Topper: Shift Happens- Girly Bits Polish
I really love the base polish, and Shift Happens is such a ubiquitously good UP polish. The pairing looks super neat, & I especially like the macro shot. It has a loud yet classy vibe.
Uniporn- Tonic Polish
This is quite a sheer jelly base, and I feel like the base color sort of loses the charm of the UP, but it also does look like it's almost glowing on the nails. It's an interesting polish, though I do prefer the darker, more opaque red bases for this sort of look. Still a very gorgeous polish.
Cherry Pie*- Indigo Bananas
This is the second of the 3 Indigo Bananas UP thermals I'm showing that unfortunately do not show off all of the thermal shifts. This set of swatch photos showcases Cherry Pie in it's cold state. Similar to the Girly Bits polish I mentioned earlier named 'Holy Sheet!', this is a pink thermal with OG UP. The thing I loved most about these Indigo Bananas UP thermals was how opaque they were while also not losing the magical look of the UP.
Base: Serendipity- Tonic Polish
Topper: A Star Is Formed- KBShimmer
As mentioned in the Curio portion of this favorites, this is the warm counterpart of that named Serendipity. Topped with A Star Is Formed, there's an almost ethereal look to this pairing. I really enjoy this topper from KBShimmer, and with Serendipity as a base, it creates a gorgeous finished product.
Divinity- Ninja Polish
Last, but definitely not least, is Divinity! I'm honestly not sure how long ago this was released, but I was lucky enough to find it on a destash page some years after it's original release. This is one of my all time favorite UP polishes. It's got a slight purple tint to it's darkened red base. It looks to me like this polish was packed with UP pigment, and it's crelly-ish leaning base doesn't take away from showcasing the beautiful addition of UP. This one is definitely a candidate for me to use the entire bottle up, which I don't think has ever happened for me (aside from top coat of course)!
