I don’t know a whole lot about KB Shimmer, but I do known that it’s a handmade brand sold on Etsy. I initially heard about KB Shimmer through a soap making tutorial – she also sells soaps and some bath and body products in her shop. Kind of a weird introduction to a nail polish maker, but she makes beautiful soaps as well! J Anyway, I believe the colors in her shop change with the seasons and I assume they are made in somewhat small batches. In other words, if you like a color, you might want to pounce on it! J It does appear that three of the shades I own are kind of staples that are always available though.
Getting back to the polishes, the formula is quite impressive and surpasses that of many larger brands! What stands out the most to me are her unusual colors – they are predominantly jelly glitters and duochrome holographics! The glitter polishes are not terribly difficult to remove like so many others. The glitter lies pretty flat against the nail as well, which can sometimes be an issue. I also love that the base colors are semi-sheer because it kind of “layers” the glitter, adding more dimension and interest to the polish. The many sizes and shapes included also adds to a nice effect on the nail. The holographic duo chrome polish I have is really like none I’ve ever seen before! I only have the one, but I am completely infatuated with it! It is the truest holographic polish I think I have ever seen, and it reflects so many colors that I can’t even count them! J I’ll get into that more when I discuss that shade. So let’s get into my “collection,” shall we? J
Probably the first polish that I had to have was “Oh Splat!” Let me just say, well done with the names as well KB Shimmer! J This is a white jelly polish filled with green, blue, pink, purple and I believe gold glitter in small, medium and large hexagonal shapes. It’s beautiful and just plain fun! I believe this takes me three to four coats to make it opaque on it’s own, but it can easily be layered over a white polish – or any other shade really – for fewer coats. It makes me think of a birthday cake for some reason. It’s just a really fun, and perfectly wearable color!
The next shade is one that screamed New Years Eve to me this past year. It is “Band Geek.” Such a cute name! J It’s a beautiful black jelly polish chocked full of gold, silver and bronze glitter in a variety of shapes and sizes. It’s a wonderfully festive polish and I absolutely adore it! Without an opaque undercoat, I think this took two to three coats to achieve full opacity. It’s a nice twist on boring old black and it just screams “party” to me! J
The final polish from my initial purchase is called “Ice Queen.” This is the most dazzling glitter topper I’ve ever seen! It’s so beautiful! It is a clear base just crammed with multiple sizes and shapes of silvery holographic glitter. There are even diamond shaped glitters in there! J It really does look like an icy, wintery wonderland. This contains plenty of glitter, so there’s no need to fuss about with getting placement just so. There’s plenty for every nail. Top this over a deep, dark polish to really make it shine!
One of my new polishes is called “Berry Patch.” This is a pale pink with a subtle berry-purple tint to it. It really makes me think of berries for some reason. Again, it is filled with a variety of shapes and colors of glitter. It looks like the glitters are a mix of small and medium fuchsia, medium hexagonal holographic silver and larger navy hexagons. It was opaque in two coats, though I did have to work a bit to place the large navy glitter. Here’s a shock – I love this shade too! J It’s almost a neutral, but it has the beautiful glitter kick as well. So pretty!
On to “Iris My Case.” I haven’t worn this one yet, but I think it’s beautiful for Spring! It’s a nice pastel lavender with small and medium glitter flecks. I see navy, deep purple, pink, fuchsia and silver in there. This is not as glitter-filled as most of the others, but I think it seems appropriate given the base shade. You don’t want to hide the lovely pastel heart, plus glitter can be overdone! J
Next we have “You Autumn Know,” which is another white base with tons of glitter. You might be wondering why I need two white-based glitter polishes. This polish is actually quite different from “Oh Splat!” It’s brimming with the hues of autumnal leaves and crisp autumn air. All of the glitter is warm in tone. Plus, it not only has multiple sizes, it also includes some mini-bar glitter! The other glitters come in hues of orange, gold and fuchsia. It’s absolutely stunning and, though I have yet to wear it, I’m dying to! J This was actually what inspired me to place the second order. J
Last, but certainly not least, there is “Rollin’ With the Chromies.” Oh. My. Gosh! This polish is kind of lost in the sea of sparkly glitter beauties in the KB Shimmer shop, but don’t overlook it because it is so wonderfully beautiful! I almost didn’t order this one, but I think it may actually be one of my favorites! It’s not only a holographic polish that surpasses every so-called holographic shade I’ve seen before, but it’s also a duochrome! What?!?! How is this possible? J I would say it is predominantly a bluish-purple, but it flashes pink, aqua and even a subtle orange and a slight yellow. It’s truly a sight to see and I cannot do it justice in still photos. This is such a beautiful polish! It was also really even in one coat, though a bit sheer. Two coats is perfect, and I think three might make the color even more intense. It’s an amazing polish and I’m really curious how she makes these types of shades! J
That’s it for my current stash of KB Shimmer polishes! I imagine I’ll be adding more soon because they are just so stinkin’ beautiful! J If you haven’t done so already, do yourself a favor and check out the KB Shimmer Etsy store. There are so many pretty polishes…and they cost less than most brands you’ll find in stores like Ulta or Sephora. They run about $8.75 for a 15mL bottle. Each polish has a few photo examples of the polish painted on nails, which is really helpful. They are pretty true to the bottle, but it’s always nice to see it swatched on the nails. I hope you enjoyed this look at KB Shimmer and my sampling of her wonderful polishes. I adore them and highly recommend them! J