I’ll start with my neutral choices. I know, me and neutrals? Who woulda thunk it! J My first neutral pick is Zoya’s Jaime. It’s a really pale, iridescent, almost duochrome, whisper of baby pink. It would be great for a French manicure, a sheer wash of color, or it can be built up for more of a whispering pink nail. I went for the last option, which took 3 coats. It’s such a beautiful hint of color. The iridescence doesn’t show up much on the nails, but it’s a gorgeous subtle neutral. It’s a shade that is really great any time of year, but I love it for Fall because it is kind of a slight twist on winter white.
Next we have Porchester Square from Nails Inc. It’s a really pretty pale dusty gray with a hint of warmth. I used 2 coats and it was perfect. This color is actually available in a few different formulas made by Nails Inc. I used the standard nail polish formula (now available from Ulta).
A polish that just says Fall to me like no other is from Butter London. It’s the shade Trifle, which is a warm chestnut brown with a subtle metallic finish. It’s not too red, but not too ashy, nor is it too mirrored in the finish. It’s just a perfect shade of brown with the nicest touch of metallic. As with pretty much every metallic I’ve tried from Butter London, Trifle is not streaky or difficult to apply, and the brush strokes are never apparent. I used 2 coats in the photo an it’s just the perfect metallic brown for Fall!
A gorgeous true holographic shade from an indie polish company is next! It is from KB Shimmer and it’s called Rollin’ with the Chromies. I am so in love with this polish! It really is a true holographic, or chrome, shade. It reflects a rainbow of different colors that just dance across your nails as the light shifts. I don’t know how she does it! The main color is kind of a blue-toned gray with a tinge of purple. It’s really fascinating to look at. It’s also really difficult to photograph, but I think I managed to get a decent photo of it. Another nice thing about this polish is that you can layer it over other colors to alter the undertones of Rollin’ with the Chromies. I’ve shown it with 2 coats just by itself, though it looked perfect with only 1 coat. I added the 2nd just to deepen the color a bit. Seriously, I think everyone needs this polish! J
The final neutral comes from Zoya and it is what Zoya considers to be a holographic polish. It is called Storm and it basically contains a shit-ton of micro-fine holographic glitter. The end effect is really pretty, though not quite what I would call holographic. The base on this one is a standard black, but the holographic glitter bits makes it so much fun, plus it’s great for parties. Storm looked best in 2 coats as well.
Getting into some color, there is Bluebell of the Ball from Flower Beauty. I really love the Flower Nail’d It Nail Lacquers. They have some great colors (with a lot of Butter London dupes it seems), a wonderful formula, and a very reasonable price! This is 2 coats of an almost Wedgewood-like blue. I love this shade for Fall because, though it’s still somewhat bright and colorful, it’s a slightly dulled medium blue, so it’s not too loud and it still looks blue. I love navy polishes too, but so many of them just come across almost black on the nails. Not so with Bluebell of the Ball!
Sticking on the cooler side of things, I have chosen Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics’, or OCC’s, polish in Echo. I am a huge fan of greens and this one is just spectacular, especially for chilly Autumn weather. It’s a deep foresty-teal green that just makes me so happy. Again, many deeper greens tend to go black on the nails, but not Echo! And OCC’s polish formula is also divine – never streaky, highly pigmented, perfect in 2 coats. Just gorgeous!
Next I have a random jewel-toned purple with an almost metallic finish. It is another Zoya polish and it is called Suri. It is a very deep royal shade of purple, but again it never looks black. I used 2 coats and the finish is very shiny, slightly metallic and just a gorgeous jewel of a polish!
Kind of keeping with the purplish shades, but moving into more berry territory, we have one of Milani’s new Color Statement Nail Lacquers. It is the shade Sugar Plum. Love it! I used 2 coats again and it is basically a shimmering plum shade. I’m not 100% sure I love this formula as it seems to chip easily on me, but then again my nails have been quite damaged whenever I’ve tried one so I don’t know if it’s the polish or just my crappy nails! J
My favorite standard berry shade comes from Zoya and it is called Moxie (also the name of one of my cats!). Moxie – the nail polish – is just a basic berry crème that looks so good with virtually anything this time of year. It’s not too vampy, not too dressy, not too casual, it is just plain wonderful. I feel like everyone needs a good reddish-berry in the Fall, and Moxie is my choice! (Not gonna lie, I initially chose it mainly for the name, but I’m so glad that I did!) I painted on 2 coats. (The photo looks a bit more red than in person, but it's the best I could do.)
Everyone needs a good basic red, right? Well, for Fall, I like a slightly more subdued red. Enter Old Blighty from Butter London! Old Blighty, aside from having a kick-ass name, is a subtly browned red. Basically a brick red, and I feel like it’s the perfect Autumnal Red. It’s still a definite red, just taken down a notch. So, so pretty and, as with almost all of these polishes, it took 2 coats.
It wouldn’t be a Fall polish picks without a Bordeaux / burgundy shade, would it?! My pick for this marvelous category is from Pacifica and it is called Red Red Wine. Oh. My. Gawd. This is the type of Bordeaux that I’ve been searching for for years! Again, my problem with so many deep burgundy shades is that they end up looking black on the nails. Not so with Red Red Wine. It just kind of fits into that space between black and red. I suppose some may consider it just a deep red. However you care to classify it, it’s stunning! The formula is also spectacular (again, I used 2 coats) and I really love the brush on this polish (it’s the only polish I have from Pacifica, but now I definitely want more!). Red Red Wine is probably one of my favorite picks for Fall this year! J
That wraps up my dozen polish picks for the Fall of 2014! I hope you enjoyed all the nail candy and I would love to know what shades you’re loving for the Fall. If you’re aching for still more nail polish shades, check out some of my other seasonal polish pick posts:
Summer 2014 Summer 2013 Fall 2012 (neutrals, oranges & glitters) Fall 2012 (metallics) Fall 2012 (blues & greens) Fall 2012 (berries, reds, burgundies & purples)
Hopefully I will do this again for the Holidays, but don’t hold me to it (that damn indecisiveness may get me!). Until then, here’s to a fantastic Fall! J
If you're looking for these polishes, you can find them in the following places:
Zoya is available from select Ulta retail locations & Zoya.com Butter London is available from Sephora, Ulta, & ButterLondon.com Nails Inc. traditional Nail Polishes are available from Ulta; select formulas available from Sephora KB Shimmer can be purchased through their Etsy site Flower Beauty is available exclusively from Walmart Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics polishes can be found at Sephora & from OCCMakeup.com Milani polishes are available from Walgreens & CVS Pacifica polishes can be found at select Whole Foods locations & PacificaBeauty.com