Today I have three picks from this year's China Glaze Halloween collection called "Monster's Ball" to show you! Also included in the collection is Ghoulish Glow, the glow in the dark topcoat, a black textured polish, and a pretty glitter topper called Fang-Tastic that didn't look so unique to me.
First up is my favorite of the collection, China Glaze- Bat My Eyes:
Bat My Eyes is a dense mix of small and larger gold hex glitter in a dark grey jelly base.
There are also short bar glitters of a slightly deeper tone of gold, maybe even copper-orange, which are also slightly duochrome. They change subtly to a blue green color when viewed from oblique angles (although the effect is mostly seen in the bottle).
Artificial light, two coats:
At times, some of the hex glitter even seem to flash silver, but that could be an optical illusion.
Window-filtered daylight:
It's gorgeous in an ugly-pretty way! I love love this one!
Outside, shade:
Sun:
Formula: It's thick, but glides on the nail pretty well. The glitter is very dense, and you'll have good coverage with two coats. Actually, one coat was very nearly opaque. The base carries the glitter decently, but you'll probably want a topcoat to smooth things out.
Since this is a glitter, I would recommend a peel or glue base.
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Next, China Glaze- Howl You Doin':
Howl You Doin' is a deep, purple-plum jelly base filled with lighter purple microshimmer and small orange flakies. There is also a bit of blue flash when you tilt the polish at an angle, which I'm thinking comes from the purple glitter.
Artificial light, two coats:
Window-filtered daylight:
This is a beautiful polish, but part of me wishes the base were a bit lighter, so that the glitter and flakies would be more apparent. Don't get me wrong, you can definitely see them- it's just not as in-your-face as I thought it might be.
Outside, shade:
Sun:
Formula: It's very thick, but I'm not surprised since there's so much glitter. The base is only mediocre at carrying the glitter, in my opinion, and it 'feels' kind of grainy when you apply it. The formula is still workable though, and it doesn't pull or drag. I used two thickish coats.
Quick Comparison!
Howl You Doin' is very similar to Orly- Fowl Play, so let's take a look:
As you can see, they're quite different up close! Fowl Play contains much larger (and more!) orange flakies, and has small blue flakies instead of the dense purple hexes in Howl You Doin.' The smaller flakies in Fowl Play also have a bit of a duochrome shift, which is seen more in the bottle than on the nail.
The base colors are also very, very close, but it seems like Fowl Play's is a touch lighter. Fowl Play also goes on the nail more smoothly, and is much less bumpy.
Overall, Howl You Doin' is sort of a poor dupe, in my opinion. If you like this look, I'd go for Fowl Play if you can find it! I strongly prefer it!
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Last, a glitter topper called China Glaze- Boo-gie Down
Boo-gie Down is a clear base filled with a variety of chunky glitter. There are white, black, and coppery-orange hexes, as well as some slightly larger copper hexes, and some super chunky black hexes. There are also large black bar glitters, as well as some very small (in comparison) black and copper hexes. So, really a variety.
It's very much like a 'splatter manicure' in a bottle!
Artificial light, one coat shown over Nubar- Orange Cream:
I have to say I have no idea why I was compelled to buy this one, since I thought I was going to dislike it. However, to my surprise, I love it! I'm not always a fan of chunky glitter, but this somehow worked for me, and I really enjoyed wearing it.
It's very similar to the polishes found in the Glitz Bitz 'n Pieces collection. So, if you liked those, you'll probably like this one.
Window-filtered daylight:
Outside, shade:
The orange base color maybe isn't the best to show off the copper hexes in this, but I wanted the look to be Halloweenish, damnit! At any rate, I believe that those copper hexes are what really make this glitter polish interesting...
Sun:
Up close!
Formula: It's got a nice suspension base which isn't too thick, yet still carries the glitter easily. The density is great, and you just need one coat for a good application. I thought I was going to have to fish around for the largest black hexes, but I didn't need to.
One criticism is that I could do without the bar glitter. I don't think it adds anything special to this topper.
What do you think? Do these types of shades get you in the mood for Halloween?
Great picks, I love how they look on you. Beautiful swatches as always, a pleasure to follow you!
ReplyThank you!
Man, you have the uncanny ability to make stuff I'd previously thought "meh" look really awesome with your swatches! Might have to pick a couple of these up.
ReplyI think if you've gotta have one it's Bat My Eyes...so unique!