Don't go searching for a mermaid if you don't know how to swim.

Today's lovely was a pain in the tail (haha, tail...get it?) to photograph.  It's Sinful Colors Green Ocean over American Apparel Passport Blue.

This photo doesn't begin to capture its charm.  Nevertheless, here's another attempt...do yourself a favor and click to magnify:

Shimmery!  Green Ocean is a very sheer pale green jelly with blue-green flakies and blue-green iridescent glitter suspended in it.  I tried it over a few dark colors - black, green and this navy American Apparel Passport Blue.  It really popped on that blue!  When you move your hand in the light, it flashes from blue to teal to green and back again.  It's downright mesmerizing!

Good thing it IS a lovely, because the formula leaves a lot to be desired.  I opened up a bottle in Walgreens to peek at the texture, and it was gloopy and stringy.  I tried another bottle and it was just gloopy, so I bought it.  After several drops of Zoya Renew, it was at least usable, but it was difficult to place the flakies.  Some fingers barely had any.  The ones that DID have a lot were bumpier than an Arkansas freeway, so I covered everything with one coat of Zoya Armor and another of Seche Vite.  This smoothed them out quite a bit.

Now, a word on American Apparel polishes:  I don't love them.  A lot of nail bloggers do, and I'll admit, the formula is great.  Every one I've tried is a one-coater.  But...the bottle SUCKS!   Check this out:

Sure, its simplicity is aesthetically appealing and the shape makes it easy to store, but the brush has to be so long to reach the bottom of the bottle, that TONS of polish slides down the stem and ends up pooling all over your nail!  It's a total mess to use and to clean up.  I'm learning the trick though:  Clean the brush completely against the neck of the bottle, and suspend it over your nail until enough polish slides down the stem to go ahead and apply.  It just irritates me that I should have to learn by error to use this otherwise excellent product.