China Glaze - When Stars Collide

Hello dear readers!

Today, I'm going to show you swatches of China Glaze - When Stars Collide. I wore this color last month but couldn't post it because I wanted to post Halloween manicures... so here it is.

 When Stars Collide is a maroon color holographic nail polish. It was part of the China Glaze Hologlam collection.

Here you can see the holographic shine. The holo effect is not as strong as on previous collections but I like the subtle metallic finish.

I experienced a bit of difficulty in application such as bald spots and dragging when I applied a 2nd coat. Not too bad but still, not a perfect application.

Here I posted swatches for CG Strap on your Moonboots, another nail polish from the hologlam collection.

What do you think of this nail polish?

♥♥Thank you for reading♥♥

My 1st Attemp at Water Marble Nail Art

Hello dear readers!

Today, I'm excited to show you my first attempt at water marbling :) I know I'm years too late to try this trend. In my case, this was not as easy as it seems... you have to choose the right nail polishes otherwise, you'll end up with a blob of polish on the bottom of the cup of water... it happened to to me before :'( and for this reason, I thought trying more would be a waste of time and precious nail polish.

I have to admit that I love to watch water marble YouTube videos (I find them relaxing for some strange reason). The whole process is fascinating and the end results amazing. I know this manicure is not spectacular as many other water marbles out there... but, bear with me... it's only my 1st attempt ;)

For this manicure, I used three China Glaze nail polishes from the Avant Garden collection: Passion for Petals, Fancy Pants and Dandy Lyin' Around. The base of this manicure is Passion for Petals as well. I found that most China Glaze nail polishes are good for water marbling.

As you can see, the swirls of nail polish are not as much. This is because I was experimenting and I just added a few drops of each color in case I failed... but in the end, I really like the randomness of the lines.

Have you tried water marbling? What do you think of my first attempt?

♥♥Thank you so much for reading♥♥

China Glaze: Sunsational Jellies

Sent for Review

Finally, the second half of the China Glaze Sunsational Collection - the jellies!

As you may have already heard, some of the jellies are quite sheer so I chose to layer all the colours over white in my swatches below.

Isle See You Later. 4/5 coats over white.
A blue jelly. The sheerest of the whole collection. It is so sheer that I wouldn't advise you to try getting it to reach opacity on its own. Because it is so sheer, the blue does not come across as deep as it looks in the bottle. Nonetheless, it is a gorgeous bright baby blue on the nails when layered over white.

Keepin' it Teal. 4 coats over white.
A green-leaning teal jelly that is also on the sheer side but slightly better than Isle See You Later.

Shell-O. 4 coats over white.
A coral orange jelly that screams fluorescent. With my thing for corals at the moment, it is no surprise that I really like this one.

Heat Index. 3 coats over white.
Bright hot pink jelly. Very aptly named. Hmmm... I think the next time I will add another coat or two to get closer to the bottle colour. I am surprised that I quite like this one.

You Drive Me Coconuts. 3 coats over white.
A relatively more muted pink with blue undertones as compared to Heat Index. It is still very bright though. The formula is one of the better ones in this half of the collection - I suspect it can actually reach opacity on its own.

Are You Jelly? 3 coats over white.
Another bright purple! It is also more opaque but the formula is a little patchy.

Now that you've seen all the swatches of the China Glaze Sunsational collection, which ones are your favourite?
(psst! If you've missed out on my previous post, you can check out the first half of the Sunsational collection here.)

On the whole, formula aside, I must say I really enjoyed the colours that China Glaze has put out for this summer. I am especially in love with the cremes. Because of them, I am officially a neon convert now. No kidding, even as I type, I am wearing some of them as a gradient on my toes - no worries, I won't be posting pictures of that. ;)




**Products were provided for our honest review. Please see our disclosure policy for more information.**

China Glaze: Sunsational Cremes

Sent for Review

Hola!! After enduring a terrible work week, I thought I would chase away all my sorrows and brighten up my weekend with some neons (pun completely intended)!

Despite all the hype over neon colours in the polish community, I have always avoided neons because I found them too stark and too eye catching for my taste... that is, until I saw the promotional pictures of China Glaze's neon releases for summer 2013. The pastels called to me and my eyes were immediately drawn to the blues and greens. I knew I had to have them. And I was right! Take a look:

Disclaimer 1: I've tried my best-est of best-est to get colour accurate pictures but my camera just refused to handle so much awesomeness. They are brighter in person.

Disclaimer 2: I did not go for any tanning session. The neons are so bright that my camera (and even my eyes) decided that I must have become tanner some what. Silly them.

Too Yacht to Handle.
Yup, this is a almost-neon sister of the famous For Audrey. It looks identical to For Audrey but when you put them side by side, you will notice the difference immediately. Too Yacht to Handle is a bajillion times brighter and For Audrey looks really dusty in comparison. Too Yacht to Handle also comes across as being slightly greener. Both are gorgeous in their own right.

Hightlight of My Summer.
A yellow-leaning pastel mint green. I really like it more than I'd expected. It is really bright. I'd thought Illamasqua Nomad is bright but it pales next to Highlight of My Summer. Nomad also has a tinge more blue than Highlight of My Summer. Yup, I do love these two colours.

Sun of A Peach.
An eye-searing neon peach. Ughhh I love this so much - unexpected favourite. Awesome colour with an awesome name to match. Just plain awesome. I wore it when I dropped by my workplace during my call break (needed to settle some personal matters) and my friend was completely blown by how fluorescent my nails were. Yup it is that bright.

Neon & On & On.
A neon pink with just a touch of coral. I thought I wouldn't like it but the coral is making me mince my words. Also an unexpected favourite.

Bottoms Up.
A neon bubblegum pink with a touch of blue. I am sure this would grace Barbie's nails during summer.

That's Shore Bright.
A bright red-leaning purple. The least neon of the collection - is it a neon? Nonetheless, it is still a fun summery colour to sport.

Now, you may have already heard of this already. The formula of these colours are not the nicest to work with. They apply streakily and do not level on their own. I suspect the white in the pastels is not playing nice - as usual. I found that it helped a little to use piCture pOlish's Revolution (meant to be a glitter base but it did not work as well as I had hoped it would be) - the colours applied less patchily that way. Seche Vite did wonders to level out the streakiness as well.

Nonetheless, I am really head-over-heels in love with the sunsational cremes. I liked that they are not the usual highlighter colours. They look less stark that way, don't you agree?

Ever since I have received them in my mail, I've pulled them out countless times to wear them one way or another. Just before I came back to work, I did this completely work-inappropriate mani just because I can ;)

I started with a white base and randomly sponged on the colours from the Sunsational cremes before topping them with a coat of black shatter. Oh yes, shatters do look good once in a while ;)

So what do you think of the Sunsational cremes?
My personal favourites are Sun of a Peach, Too Yacht to Handle, Highlight of My Summer and Neon & On & On... ok. That's not really helping :P
Which colour is your favourite?

Stay tuned for swatches of the other half of the collection ♥



**Products were provided for our honest review. Please see our disclosure policy for more information.**

China Glaze Hologlam - Strap on your Moonboots

Hello dear readers!

Today I want to show you swatches of China Glaze  - Strap on your Moonboots.

This nail polish is part of the Hologlam collection. There are 12 different holographic nail polishes but this one is one of my favorite colors.

Strap on your Moonboots is a stunning navy blue holographic nail polish. Formula-wise, it is pigmented enough with 2 coats. As for the application, I had a few problems because the nail polish was goopy in consistency...the nail polish cap was loose when it arrived and I think that's the reason and not a problem the formula. 

 

The holographic finish is different from CG previous holographic collections, it is linear and the particles are very fine...I also like that it has a metallic sheen to it that I've never seen on other holographic collections.

Do you own a nail polish form China Glaze Hologlam Collection? 

If not, what do you think of this color?

♥♥Thank you for reading♥♥

Press Release: China Glaze App!

Oops! A little late on this one but I thought I should share this anyway because I love to match my nails to my outfit. It really completes the look!

Swatch it, watch it, match it! China Glaze® brings the world of nail color to life with the launch of the NEW China Glaze® App for iPhone®, iPad® and iPod touch®. The free app offers multiple features perfect for every nail polish enthusiast, and utilizes the latest cutting edge technology to transport users into China Glaze®’s colorful universe.

Nail polish enthusiasts will love the multiple features of the new China Glaze® App.

The new China Glaze® App offers a first of its kind “Match A Color” feature, where users can truly “Live In Colour” from the palm of their hands. “Match A Color” was created with the latest technology to allow users to take a photo of anything they desire with their iPhone®, iPad ® or iPod® touch and then browse through multiple options, from exact shade matches to related textures from the brand’s expansive treasury of over 300 colors.  This must-have feature allows nail polish enthusiasts to find polish-spiration anywhere at anytime.  That hot pink bag you were eyeing? Yep, there’s a China Glaze® polish for that.

In “Try It On,” users will find themselves in a China Glaze® fitting room, where they can select shades from the China Glaze® closet to try on customizable virtual nails. Users can determine which shade looks best on them by adjusting the nail length and skin tone to match their own hand, and save desired shades to the device’s camera roll for easy reference.

Sharing is caring, and in the colorful world of China Glaze®, “What’s Haute” is the place to see what’s hot. Connect here with the brand to see real-time updates of new collections, nail trends and “how-to” video feeds from the official China Glaze® YouTube Channel.  All features on the China Glaze® App allows users to share their favorite shades with their social media networks including Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram. Did you say your friend really liked the shade Re-Fresh Mint you were wearing yesterday? Send the color straight to her Facebook page, or @her on Instagram.

Nail professionals, the China Glaze® app has something for you, as well. Salons and nail pros can register for product updates and to be listed in the Salon Locator feature, currently in development for future updates. Also in the works are features to expand the China Glaze® app into a true community, including Discussion Boards, Wish Lists and more.  

The China Glaze® App is available for free download from the App Store on iPhone®, iPad® or iPod® touch or at www.AppStore.com

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China Glaze® is free of DBP, toluene, and added formaldehyde. China Glaze® nail lacquers are available through salons and professional beauty supply stores nationwide. For more information, visit www.chinaglaze.com or follow China Glaze® on Facebook (facebook.com/chinaglazeofficial), Twitter (@chinaglaze), Instagram (@chinaglazeofficial) and Pinterest (@chinaglaze).

China Glaze® is a division of American International Industries.

About American International Industries

For 42 years, AII has been the leading manufacturer and worldwide distributor of innovative, quality beauty and skin care products for men and women.  Our product lines include Andrea, Ardell, Body Drench, Bye Bye Blemish, Checi, China Glaze, Clean + Easy, Clubman/Pinaud, Duo, European Secrets, EzFlow, Fright Night, Gena, GiGi, Gypsy Lash, IBD, It’s So Easy, Jeris-Lustray, LASH BeLONG, Nail Tek, No Tweeze/Micro Tweeze, 'N Rage, Poshe, Prolinc, RAW, Seche, SuperNail, Surgi-Care, Waterworks, Winning Nails, Woltra, Woody’s, and Youthair. For more information, visit our website: www.aiibeauty.com.

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Do you match your nails with what you wear?

12 Days of Round-Up: Upcoming Collections in 2013

Phew! I've just survived my first day of work training and it was more tiring than I'd thought. The best part was... I didn't even have any work to do! But really, sitting at the desk doing nothing for hours straight is really exhausting and no fun at all. I sure hope tomorrow will be slightly better!

Anyway, let's jump straight to today's post before I call it a night! As with our usual tradition, here's a round-up of some of the new/upcoming collections in 2013!

Disclaimer: Pictures are taken from everything2k unless specified otherwise!

OPI Mariah Carey

I've already posted about the liquid sand polishes from this collection but OPI also has something for those who are not loving the gritty texture! Creme, glitter and shimmers - now that's something for everyone! I love how the colors are very rich and diva-esque.

Zoya Lovely

source: zoya

Ahh... one of the early spring collections that is already available! This collection features pastel hues in cremes and heavy shimmers. I've read that the formula is slightly tricky for these though. That aside, Neely (was there ever any doubt) and Julie are calling my name.

Orly Hope and Freedom

I am not sure if these are already available but I believe these are already available through some etailers in Singapore. Of course, Peaceful Opposition stole all the limelight with the white-based glitters (swatch here). High On Hope looks gorgeous in the bottle too but not so much on the nails... Still rather pretty though! I haven't seen swatches of the other colors yet but Boho Bonnet and Coachella Dweller are pretty too and worth a look if you don't already have similar colors.

China Glaze Avant Garden

source: melva@nailvibe

Another spring collection that is already available in Singapore through etailers. I'm not too sure about the "Brights" half of the collection (on the left of the picture) but I'm loving the pastels. Not sure if there are dupes for them though.

OPI Eurocentrale

source: opi

Yessssssss! Oh how I want these so bad! If you have missed it, hop over now to see swatches of the blues by Manicurator - they are to-die-for!!!! I am also eyeing BudaPest and Polka.com (how cute is that name?!) It's been a while since I've been so excited about so many colors in an OPI collection - I feel so much love for OPI now.

ETA: February 2013

Butter London Spring 2013

source: bagfulofnotions

Pastels. Omg. They look so so pretty but I don't know if they will look any good on my skintone. That peach and turquoise are making me drool.

Essie Spring 2013

Last but not least, we also have a spring collection from Essie! I'm loving the three colors at the bottom! So pretty! Is there anything like Maximillian already?

ETA: March 2013

Moving away from the Spring collections, here are some of the other collections that are coming out in 2013:

OPI Oz

source: opi

An Oz collection with no reds or emeralds?! I am just a wee bit disappointed. But then again, the new Oz movie is adapted from the novel and not exactly what we have seen in the past so maybe the reds don't come into the picture so much. The glitters are interesting but I don't quite know how I feel about the soft shades. The NYC Ballet collection has set a pretty high bar!

ETA: March 2013

China Glaze Glitz

source: chinaglaze

Gorgeous 3D glitters, combined with black Bitz ’N Pieces create a Mosaic Masterpiece on nails.

Yes, this collection features some sparkly glitters mixed with black hexes and bar glitters! Now that is definitely edgy alright! I haven't seen swatches of these but they look pretty promising in the promo shots. I hope it won't turn out too much like Whirled Away - it just didn't look quite right to me...

China Glaze Hologlam

Yes, this is a repost but I couldn't resist including this again! The swatches seen at Polish Galore look really promising but recent swatches that appeared on Instagram seem otherwise... You can check them out here and here. I'm really hoping that CG don't disappoint me!!

ETA: March 2013

China Glaze NEONS On The Shore

Create waves with NEONS On The Shore. Twelve new SUN-sational crèmes and jellies.

Yes you read that right - JELLIES. I wonder how neon jellies look like. The teal looks really pretty in the promo shots though!

ETA: April 2013

Sooo... what do you think of these? Which ones are you eyeing?

xoxo,
mich

P.S. Don't forget to enter our year-end giveaway to win amazing polishes from both mainstream and indie brands! Ends 12 Jan 2013.

12 Days of Round-Up: Trends in 2013

It's 2013!! Did you have a great New Year's Day? :party

To usher in the new year, I will be continuing the 12 days of round-up series by covering some of the polishes to look out for in 2013! :e Of course, the materials I have to work with are very limited so this will only be a small preview of what is in store for us this year.

OPI Liquid Sand / China Glaze Texture / Zoya PixieDust

source: OPI

source: everything2k

source: zoya; swatches at manicurator

Very fine glitters that dry matte and gritty. Yup, all three of them are putting out these glitters in different colors! Heh.. makes one wonder if all the companies have a meeting at the start of the year to decide on the trends for the year. xD

I am most fascinated by how the polish base seemingly disappears to leave behind the glitters. That aside, I am not normally a fan of gritty nails so I don't quite know if I will like these. Swatches for the OPI and Zoya glitters are already floating around and bloggers agree that they are not as gritty as they look so I may give it a shot. Of these, I have to say that I prefer the OPI colors - kudos to them for adding different glitters to make it more interesting and varied. And Stay the Night looks absolutely stunning - I have a weakness for red and black.

Nails Inc Leather Effect

source: nailsinc

From The PolishAholic's swatches, especially the sun pic, the leather effect polish appears somewhat similar to the liquid sand / pixie dust glitters but Jen noted that it was less gritty - perhaps due to the creamier base? In any case, I am loving their packaging - black leather with skulls? Yes please! \m/

From what we can see so far, it appears that the companies are going big on texture for the new year!
What do you think of this trend? Yay or nay?

xoxo,
mich

P.S. Don't forget to enter our year-end giveaway to win amazing polishes from both mainstream and indie brands! Ends 12 Jan 2013.

12 Days of Round-Up: Mainstream Favorites

Whoohoo!! We are officially mid-way through our round-up! I hope you are enjoying the series so far! It is something that I have never tried before but I do like sharing some of my favorites with you and hearing from you about your favorites!

Today, I have some of my favorite mainstream polishes to share with you.
I must confess though, I did not buy many mainstream polishes this year. With the colorful indies everywhere, it is starting to require much more before a polish wow-s me - as if I am not already picky enough. :P

China Glaze Riveting. 2 coats.
Bright and fiery. I am not a fan of orange but I couldn't help falling in love with this.

China Glaze I'm Not Lion. 3 coats.
Light champagne holo glitter that is incredibly sparkly and elegant - just the way I like my bling.

Max Factor Fantasy Fire. 1 coat over Zoya Kelly.
Magic in a bottle. I know there are a lot of polishes with the same color-shifting shimmer but I love Fantasy Fire because the shimmer really pops in the sheer purple base. I have never worn it on its own before but I just (like half an hour ago) painted it on a swatch stick. I can stare at it all day long. I will try to take a picture soon!

OPI Every Month is Oktoberfest. 2 coats.
Inky base with fiery red shimmer. This was an instant favorite from all the fall polishes by the mainstream brands. Simple, elegant and smoking hawt at the same time.

Innisfree #101 (Deborah Lippmann Mermaid's Dream Dupe). 3 coats.
A polish that looks like the shimmery scales of a mermaid's tail - or at least it looks like what I imagine a mermaid's tail to be. I didn't even know it was possible to replicate the perfectly textured look in a polish! For sweeping me off my feet like that, it deserves a spot on the list. I'm using the innisfree dupe because I am a pauper but you know I am referring to the original. :i

Of course, the blue-greens are also on this list but I thought I shouldn't bore you with a repost ;)
What are some of your favorite polishes in 2012? :h

xoxo,
mich

P.S. Don't forget to enter our year-end giveaway to win amazing polishes from both mainstream and indie brands! Ends 12 Jan 2013.

12 Days of Round-Up: Favorite Color

I must confess, I don't usually have a particular color preference. Admittedly, I had my pink and blue moments back when I was young but I've since grown to love a wider range of colors. But of course, I still find myself having a soft spot for certain colors every now and then.

This year, the official Pantone color of 2012 is Tangerine Tango. Butttt... that color never really caught my eye. >.<
Instead, I've noticed that the newer members of my stash in 2012 are largely... blue-greens! :h

Let's take a look at some of the blue-greens that caught my heart this year:

China Glaze For Audrey. 2 thin coats.
This was the color that started it all off. A friend of mine asked about turquoise nail polishes and I stumbled upon For Audrey. It was not love at first sight because I wasn't sure how it would look on me but I am glad I bought it. It is such a pretty color that I don't really care whether it looks good on me or not. It is one of the colors that I reach for very often - so much so that I have only about half a bottle left now. :$

Zoya Bevin. 2 thin coats.
A soft dusty sage green that is incredibly elegant and beautiful. It wasn't love at first sight either but I fell hopelessly in love with it after seeing it on my friend. :L It is not easy to get Zoyas in Singapore and I nearly went crazy with need. I know that OPI Thanks A Windmillion is very similar but for some reason I really wanted Bevin. It took me months before I was able to satisfy my lemming but it is well worth the wait. It is surprisingly eye-catching for such a soft color and I received many compliments while wearing it. <3

Rescue Beauty Lounge Halcyon. 2 thin coats.
This is another beautiful dusty medium sage green from RBL's Fan Collection for Spring 2012. I know that Aqua Lily was the one that caught the hearts of many others but Halcyon was the first to call my name when I saw swatches of the collection. It took me a lot of willpower to close the browser tab but as fate would have it, a friend of mine accidentally bought an extra and asked if anyone wanted it. The rest was history. I didn't expect to love this as much as I do but, boy, those gold-copper-pink shimmer-flakes are simply stunning. They are subtle but very visible on the nail and catch the light so beautifully. I never knew pink would go so well with green, copper and gold!

China Glaze Exotic Encounters. 2 coats.
A dusty green-leaning teal. By the time the China Glaze On Safari collection came out, I was hopelessly in love with blue-greens so naturally this was a love at first sight for me. Even the holographic glitters in that collection did not distract me from this gorgeous creme.

a-england Galahad. 2 thin coats.
A bright yet slightly-dusty blue-leaning teal this time. Slightly more teal than what my camera picked up. Not a very common shade but I do love it. I also love how pigmented this is. I could get away with one coat if I had been more careful.

Cult Nails Living Water. 2 thin coats.
A dark teal jelly with tiny brillant blue and green glitters. I love my darks so there was no way I could leave out this beauty. Even after wearing it so many times, I still lose myself in this dark sparkly polish each time I put it on. :L

What is your favorite color this year?

xoxo,
mich

P.S. Don't forget to enter our year-end giveaway to win amazing polishes from both mainstream and indie brands! Ends 12 Jan 2013.