Must Have Polish Colors : How To Grow Your Stash The Sensible Way!
Written by: Swati on:
How many times have you wandered across the beauty aisles and picked up nailpolish colors randomly, just because it looked pretty in the moment? I am guilty of doing this so many times now that I have lost count. The problem is when you come back home and find out that you have a very similar looking shade already...Now that is annoying!
You don't need a gazillion polishes in life (of course having them wouldn't hurt, but let's be a bit practical).
There was a time when most of my polishes were different variants of nudes and neutrals. It is the category I gravitate towards the most. But then what is the point of have 10 nude shades? Over the past few months, my collection has grown and has more diversity (hence the post).
Do excuse the polish pile in the photo above. In no way am I telling you that you need to have these many (I have more thanks to the "blogger life...or that is how I justify it at least).
Having 6-10 polishes would be more than enough actually, provided that you cover the shade range well. That way you will have options, all occasions can be covered and you wouldn't get bored too!
So let's jump into it straightaway!
(Click on the names to look at the nail swatches!)
1) The Nudes
Every girl has to have a couple of nude shades! These are the most wearable and versatile polishes you will have. Trust me! Wear it to work, evening out, a classy date...anything. I love the way nudes make your nails and hands look super clean and chic.
Of course the tone of the nude polish will change and depend on your skintone. You can opt for pinky nudes, brown toned or beige toned ones.
Some of our all time favourites are:
Revlon Powder Puff (is scented with a tinge of glitter)
If you are on a budget you can check out:
I think we have covered a variety of nude tones, take your pick :)
Nykaa Nude Collection also covers a lot of tones.
2) The Pinks
A nice bright pink can brighten up your mood and hands in a jiffy. Wear it to brunches with your girls or just a fun day out.
I quite like Lakme Color Crushes, Colorbar and Nykaa Floral collection when it comes to pinks...they have a lot of variants with different tones (reddish, purple, true bright pinks, they have them all covered). There is something for everyone.
I have 3 in my kit - Lakme No 17 , No 18 and No 43
3) The Darks
I absolutely love wearing dark colors during fall-winter (actually I love wearing a maroonish red all year round, especially on my toes!). There is something about a dark red/maroon that looks sophisticated and powerful at the same time. I will also include a Bright Red here (I did not create a separate category for that).
My absolute all time favourite was the Maybelline Colorama in Rubi (now discontinued) and now I am loving Maybelline SuperStay Gel Nailcolor in Midnight Red. A deep purple wine color is also a good option to have, like the Maybelline Colorshow in Wine and Dine.
Revlon also has some lovely deep red tones.
4) The Oranges
Orange is such a happy fun color to sport, especially in the summers. Pick a bright neon-y one or a more muted corally tone depending on what you feel comfortable wearing.
Maybelline Color Show in Coral Craze and Lakme 9-5 in Pink Profit - toned down corally oranges.
Maybelline Color Show in Tangerine Treat is a lovely bright orange.
The metallic nail trend will always be around. Keep a nice Metallic Gold in your stash. It goes well with Indian outfits, and will work for all festive occasions. Lakme Color Crush 01 and Maybelline Colorshow in Bold Gold are the ones we have.
I highly reccommend you to check out the Nykaa Gold Rush collection which has many variants in different tones and gives you more options.
Apart from that, you can also keep one more color in a metallic finish - Rose Gold, Champagne, Silver, your choice :) Nykaa Mirror Chrome collection is quite nice and has a lot of options! I have Pink Pinwheel from the collection.
6) The Mattes
The matte trend is big at the moment! Keep a couple of matte colors (in whichever shade you like).
I highly recommend the Nykaa Matte polishes (they have a ton of shades to choose from) - I especially like are Pink Meringue, Almond Crumble and S'mores Milkshake. I recently got the red one (I use a clear top coat to turn it glossy whenever I want to!).
They even have a Nude Matte collection - Nutcracker Dreams is an absolute fave!
Colorbar also have some good matte polishes - Blackness is a new love.
Or you can be smart and just invest in a Matte Top Coat! L'Oreal and Bourjois have them. Turn any polish into a matte one in a jiffy!
7) Glitter
Who doesn't like glitter polishes! They look fun and add the much needed sparkle to your nails on festive occasions (Diwali, Christmas, Weddings...)
A Glitter Top Coat is a sensible thing to have. Top any of your regular polish with glitter and you are good to go. Colorbar Glitterati in Disco Ball is an all time favourite (has small round flecks). I also like the Maybelline Color Show one (irregular gold confetti). You don't need both, pick any one.
And get a Glitter Polish as well - Maybelline Glitter Mania in Pink Champagne and Gold are just lovely.
8) Pastels
I am not a huge fan of pastels...yet. Hopefully someday. But they look good in spring-summer. If you like wearing pastels, keep one :)
Maybelline Color Show in Cotton Candy is the only one I have tried so far.
Nykaa also has a Pastel collection.
9) Clear Top Coat
Makes your polish last longer. Comes in handy to seal in nail art designs. Turns a matte polish glossy..you can understand why your stash needs one!
So that concludes list...Phew! It looks long I know, but in total you need only 8 polishes to begin with - Nude, Pink, Red/Maroon/, Orange/Coral, Metallic, Matte top coat, Glitter top coat & a Clear top coat. Throw in the 9th if you like pastels.
Someday may we all have an entire cupboard full of different shades, but until then, these have got you covered :)
xoxo,
Swati
0 thoughts