Stranger Tides with Shine of the Times and Polish Maintenance

It's the time of year when I bring out my Pirates of the Carribean polish collection.  I'm really fond of this set.  I have the mini pack and some full size bottles.  Stranger Tides is in a mini bottle.  It is half empty.  I think I have two more uses left.  I added a drop of thinner to it, but I really should use it up this year before it gets goopy or streaky.  I used two coats and then brushed Essie Shine of the Times from the tip going up halfway.  That is another beautiful polish that is no longer available.   The stamping was done with plates BM-311 and Konad m66 using SH Insta-Dri in Coco-a-Go-Go.   Coco was another limited polish that I hope they bring back.  It is my favorite color to stamp with. 
This was done right before my nails broke and I had to trim them really short.

About once a month/month and a half, I do some polish maintenance.  I go through EVERY bottle and give them a good shake so they don't permanently separate.  If it is starting to thicken, I will add a few drops of thinner.   What I have never done until now is clean the bottle necks.  Only found out about doing that very recently.  No wonder two of my shatters dried up.  The polish dries up around the top and no matter how tight you think you are closing your bottle, air is still coming in, slowly drying up your polish.  It took a while, but every bottle (including all my nail art bottles) are cleaned.  They were all pretty crusty around the top.  Even some drugstore polishes that I've never used yet.
It's a pet peeve of mine when people open nail polish in the store and paint the shelves and make a mess of the bottles.  I don't think I would be able to work in the cosmetic department of a store.  I would be giving lectures to customers.  Painting the shelf is not going to tell you how a polish is.  There are so many swatches online that it is not neccessary to paint the shelf or the little paper they tape on the rack.  The polish section in Wal-Mart is awful.  There is paint on the racks and it looks like several bottles had dropped and spilled polish all over the floor.  They just got a new display, but the worker said it won't stay that nice for long.  I stopped buying from Wal-Mart because I feel like I'm buying used polish.  Okay I'm done ranting and completely got off track.
Why am I being so anal about polish maintenance you might ask?  Well, on a lot of sites, they say nail polish lasts about two years.  It can be true.  If you don't store, shake, and clean your bottles properly.  Most polishes are not cheap.  Even some drugstore brands.  It's an investment that I want to take care of.  I want to be able to use a polish until it is empty before throwing it out.    I am in quite a ranting mood today.

Pacific Blue/Shine of the Times

I felt like another bright summer blue.  I haven't used this bold, cornflower blue since last summer.  It's a one coater, but I used 2 coats out of habit.  I added Essie Shine of the Times.  Now this color practically glows.  I failed to catch the iridescence on camera.  It shines blue, orange, and green.  These two polishes are perfect for each other.  

This pic is color accurate.  Shine of the Times lightens Pacific Blue
slightly.

I edited this pic to show the iridescent flakies.

I am just loving this manicure.  It's very eye-catching.  I was going to retire my Pacific Blue to my nail art box but I now have a change of heart.  Essie Shine of the Times has revived my appreciation for this blue.  I wish I could have caught on camera the brilliance of this combo.  I highly recommend trying this.