KBShimmer Quick And Flirty

 Nothing To Disclose
If you know me, you know how much I love purple. Add holographic? I'm sold. So when KBShimmer came out with Quick And Flirty in their Spring 2014 collection, I had to buy it (with a few others). 

I used a base coat of Cult Nails Get It On, 2 coats of polish and topped it with KBShimmer's top coat Clearly On Top. This was also my first time using Clearly On Top and I was happy that it didn't dull the holographic properties of the polish.

Full on sun. Hello beautiful. So you can see there is a nice glow on this polish - easy to apply, no flooding in the cuticles.

Even in the shade you can see this lovely scattered/linear holographic all in one. And it's all mine. Muahaha. I need to check this against a few older polishes of mine (that are now discontinued) to see how close they are.

KBShimmer [website] can be purchased through their website for those in the United States and through Harlow and Co for international sales. Prices range from $7.50 to $8.75. Connect with KBShimmer through their social media networks: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest.

CPNALV: China Glaze 2014

China Glaze will always be my first love. They are responsible for my polish obsession.

First things first. Flip Flop Fantasy. The Swatchaholic posted on Instagram the other day a great comparison between the "old" Flip Flop Fantasy and the "new" Flip Flop Fantasy.

Bad news, there is a third version floating out there. GOOD NEWS China Glaze has secured the pigments from the original batch and WILL be making the original polish again. That's something that I had to ask immediately upon arrival because I know everyone wants to know.

So now let's talk collections until the end of the year.

First up is the Limited Edition collaboration for the movie The Giver, coming out August 15th. You can find this collection already in your local beauty supply store but if you like it, GET IT NOW because around this time next year, this will be gone forever. 

Coming this fall will the the All Aboard collection. This is a 12 shade collection that has all been inspired by Fashion Week. After this collection goes out, all these will be moved to the core collection. Choo-Choo Choose You is my stand out - it's a dusty purple with a shimmer to it.

This fall for Breast Cancer Awareness, China Glaze will have the Celebrate Courage collection. The three reds on the right are all repromotes of favorite colors including one of my FAVORITE POLISHES OF ALL TIMES - Strawberry Fields. On the left are three brand new colors that dry to a velvet matte finish and totally opaque in just 2 colors. 

This Halloween brings the Apocalypse of Colour collection - a 6 piece which includes (wait for it) a full sized bottle of Ghoulish Glow! People have hated only having mini bottles so China Glaze was like - yes, let's make if full size and good to go!  Additionally, China Glaze will introduce "Tiny Tots" - a micro mini polish that hasn't been seen much in the states before. They are .125 fl oz which are perfect to throw in your handbag for a quick fix. The 3 being introduced are a white, a black and an orange (all mico minis of existing colors).

Rounding out this year is the Holiday 2014 collection Twinkle. We have glitters, we have metallics, we have cremes. Additionally there will be 3 gift sets available but to my sadness, there isn't a shot glass this year. I MEAN CANDLE HOLDER. 

And finally is the Tiny Tots which will be available as a tabletop display and HELLO FAIRY DUST.

If you haven't read this post by the mercurial magpie, do it now. (Slight NSFW language)

Coming in 2015 were some neat things that I can't talk about yet but stay connected with me and I'll let you know when it's out!

Gelaze by China Glaze Update

So speaking of Gelaze, they are coming out with new colors! And more importantly for the professionals out there, Gelaze is finally launching their 0.5 fl oz PRO bottles!

The new PRO bottles are launching now at professional beauty supply stores but not at Sally Beauty Supply. Sally will continue to carry the mini sizes for the non-professional (like me!) to get their Gelaze fix.

Coming in January 2015, 23 new shades will be launched. Unlike Ever Glaze, Gelaze is the gel version OF existing China Glaze lacquers. These 23 shades will all launch as minis and as pro 0.5 bottles but just a quick heads up - of the above 23, Sally Beauty Supply will only be carrying 6. (The names were not available at press time.)

Also available now are the Gelaze starter kits for mini and pro which includes a lamp, remover and removal wraps. Larger bottles of the remover are also available.

Ever Glaze by China Glaze

Last year at Cosmoprof North America, China Glaze shocked me with Gelaze and this year they've surprised me again. Coming in January 2015 to Sally Beauty Supply is the newest invention in the line of China Glaze products - Ever Glaze. Ever Glaze is a self fusing color lacquer that has a special top coat that does not take a UV or LED lamp to cure but the results are gel like quality with 7 day wear and removes with just normal acetone based polish remover.

Say what?

Let's try that again.

-It's polish.

-It lasts for 7 days.

-The self fusing top coat hardens like gel but without the use of a UV or LED lamp.

-To remove, just use normal acetone based polish remover.

Mind blown.

All 36 shades are brand new to the China Glaze line (no matchy matchy colors like the Gelaze + China Glaze collections) with a new bottle shape. The brush, however, is currently the same as China Glaze (although that may change).

No color names have been released at this time but it's just a matter of time now that the cat is out of the bag.

The above photo is the salon display for Sally's (not final mock up, so yours may look different come January 2015).

LOOK AT ALL THE PRETTIES.

And a final display of the polishes.

So what do you think? For those who have heard of CND "Vinylux" (hello, I just posted a water marble with it) or Young Nails "Caption", this is the same concept. Gel like quality from a lacquer without the harsh removal process.  Makes me happy.

How about you? What are your thoughts on it? Stay tuned to PolishGalore for more show coverage of China Glaze and Cosmoprof North America 2014!

July 4th Nail Art with CND VINYLUX!

For once this year, I will be out celebrating the 4th of July and so I knew that I needed some rocking nails. Because I will be out of town, I wanted something with lasting power and what better nail polish to use than long lasting CND VINYLUX Weekly Polish?

I decided to go for a water marble for my test run and the results were definitely neat. I'm my own worst enemy and I have some ideas on how to improve but for now, check out what I did!

To prep, I started with clean nails and got my supplies ready.

I have my favorite polish remover, cotton pads and clean up brush for clean up, regular petroleum jelly with cotton swabs to prep my skin with, orange sticks, glass of tap water and CND VINYLUX in Rouge Red, Cream Puff and Blue Rapture. The last bottle is the CND VINYLUX Weekly Top Coat.

To start, I applied 2 thin coats of Cream Puff. Now, you can see it's a tad streaky, and possibly a 3rd coat would even this all out but I wasn't too concerned - I just wanted a base to marble on.

Then I marbled. I tried a number of variations, including not adding white, alternating white between the red and the blue, and attempting to swirl the colors completely. What transpired was a different design on each nail.

I'm not sure which nail I love the most. They all were so unique in their own way. I was really impressed with the Top Coat, as this was my first trial run with it, and my nails were dry enough to go to bed within 30 minutes. For a long lasting product like this, I expected it to take longer to dry but CND states that the top coat dries in just 8.5 minutes. 

One mistake that I made was that I didn't cap the tips of my nails. I'm at the stage where my length is too long for typing in my day job, leading to tip wear immediately. Because of my tip wear, I had to remove my design but it all works out because I'm getting a manicure before the trip so I can water marble again.  I also got some great tips on my Facebook, including to use a smaller cup and try bottled water. I look forward to marbling again VERY soon.

You can purchase CND VINYLUX for $9.90 per bottle at select salons.

Join CND via their social media channels: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and on YouTube.

Disclosure: The product[s] in this post was [were] provided to me by the company for consideration.  For more information, please read this post.