Lacquer Lundi

Ever since I was a child I have been drawn to sparkly things - glitter...sequins...diamonds. If it twinkles and catches light, I'm mesmerized and intrigued. So, this week is Glitter Week here at HZC. Every selection of polish I have to show you contains the glittery good stuff. Fair warning though, removing these polishes is a royal pain in the arse. Be prepared to use a ton of remover (and trust me, stick to pure acetone for this - non-acetone removers won't cut it) and a bucket of patience. I typically saturate a a small square of felt in remover and hold it on the nail for a count of 100 or so. This helps to loosen the grip that the glitter has on the nail. At this point, sometimes I get lucky and the glitter slides off. More often than not, I'm unlucky and I have to scrub (and swear) until it finally releases its strangle hold on my tips.

On to the pretties:

China Glaze - Ruby Pumps
- purchased at Sally Beauty Supply for $2.00 CDN

Let me start by saying that I am not normally a huge fan of red nail polish. I think it's too boring and expected - I tend to go for less traditional colours. With that said, I love this polish - it is probably one of my all-time favourites. It's not just any old red - it's a deep blood red jelly base jam-packed with red glitter and it is positively sublime.

Ruby Pumps glides on smoothly and since it is so well pigmented, it covers in two coats. It wore well for the four days that I had it on (for a gal that likes to change polish every day or two, wearing this for four full days means that I really liked this polish). I got several positive comments on this polish from my female colleagues, so it apparently strikes a nerve with many women.

I'm thinking it would be excellent for a holiday themed manicure - Valentine's Day and Christmas spring immediately to mind.


Color Club - Object of Envy
- purchased from Head2Toe Beauty for $2.50 US

Object of Envy is part of the Color Club Vixen Collection, which consists of seven glitter polishes. Of course, I was drawn to the green one like a moth to a flame.

This polish has a colourless base packed with emerald green glitter, which unfortunately on the nail does not become opaque even with four coats. Had I placed it over another opaque polish, I would have been much happier with the results. However, this is not a fault of the polish, but rather a lack of foresight on my part.

That said, this polish applies like a dream and it really is quite stunning in the sunlight. I wore it on a day that I was outside a lot and it is dazzling when the sun hits it.

This is another great choice for a holiday themed mani - you too could be a super sexy leprechaun. Erin go bragh!


Wet n Wild Wild Shine - Frosted Fuchsia, Sparkled & Kaleidoscope
- purchased at WalMart for $1.47 CDN

I used three polishes for this manicure - Frosted Fuchsia for the base, Sparkled on the index and ring fingers and Kaleidoscope on the thumb, middle and pinkies. Bottle shots of the three polishes are at right (in the same order they are mentioned).

I really wanted to like these polishes - the colours are cool and they're inexpensive. Unfortunately, the reality is that they are just plain cheap. So here's the good, the bad and the ugly (in that order):

Sparkled is a interesting dusty pink glitter in a colourless base. The formula is good (not too thick or too thin) and it allows for the deposit of a fair amount of glitter on the nail. A decent polish for the price.

The formula of Frosted Fuchsia is a lesson in dichotomy. It is wonderfully pigmented so that it covers in one single coat and the colour was quite pretty which are positives. However, the formula is slightly gloppy and the brush was awful (it was attached to the lid at an angle, rather than straight, so it was difficult to manipulate) which are negatives.

Kaleidoscope was so promising in the bottle - a colourless base, peppered with silvery glitter that reflects the colours of the rainbow. However, that's where the honeymoon ends. The glitter goes on the nail haphazardly - chunky in some areas, thin or non-existent in others. And forget about trying to move the glitter around on the nail for better coverage - it pulls and wrinkles due to the thick formula. Lastly, the brush is horrible - puffy and wonky and blech.

The wear on this polish stinks too. Less than 24 hours after application, it was flaking off in huge chips. I have a few other Wet n Wild polishes in my stash yet to be tried, but unless they impress me beyond reason, I won't be wasting my money on this brand any longer.


BB Couture - Sea of Cortez
- purchased from overallbeauty.com for $8 US

Sea of Cortez is another one of my favourites. It is a medium teal jelly base packed with light green micro glitter. On the nail it is deep and rich and luscious. It is one of the most unique colours that I own.

This polish glides on nicely and is easy to move around on the nail. However, it does require several coats to build up the opacity - I chose to do four coats, although I could have stopped at three. I just like the extra depth of colour provided by that fourth coat. My only real complaint with this polish is it's drying time. Even with a fast dry top coat, the polish was still a bit dentable an hour later. (Technically, this polish is supposed to be a "4-in-1 Formula: Base coat, top coat, nail strengthener and color in one bottle." However, I never go without a separate base coat and fast drying top coat, so perhaps the long drying time is not the polishes fault, but rather a casualty of my routine.)

This polish held up well, with only minor tip wear and no chipping after two days.