I'm Swatchin' You - China Glaze Re-fresh Mint

As you know, I used China Glaze's Re-fresh Mint as my Mint Mani in memory of Talia Joy Castellano on Friday.  However, I did not give any details on the polish out of respect for her memory.  So today, I'm just providing the details on my experience with this mint green creme.

The formula was great.  The first coat was a bit streaky, but the second coat provided solid coverage.  I stopped at two coats.  And I loved how easy this polish was to clean up.  With such a light creme, I was expecting to end up with that whitish film after cleaning up.  I was pleasantly surprised to find no residue at all.

As I said on Friday, I am not a big fan of mint greens...or any light green for that matter.  I bought this specifically to remember Talia Joy.  I just thought the name, Re-fresh Mint, was perfect for the Mint Mani memorial.  It was the first polish that came to mind.  Which led to another thought.  Wouldn't it be fantastic if China Glaze would change the name of this polish in her memory?  Or maybe they could even issue a special limited edition version of this where the proceeds can go to cancer research?  I'm thinking Talia's Joy would be a great name!  Hmmmmm......

SH Double Duty and SV as base and top.

3 Colors Nail Art Brush Review - Born Pretty Store

Hello and happy Tuesday!  First of all, be sure to get your entries in for my giveaway!  It ends next week.  As for today, I'm reviewing a product from Born Pretty Store.  This is their 3 Colors Nail Art Brush set. 

The set includes a fine detail brush (red), medium liner (green), and a long striper brush (blue).  They are also numbered 1, 2, and 3, respectively.

Other than the fact that they look like pens, the brushes are of decent quality.  I don't know that they will necessarily last, but they're great for someone just starting out with liner brushes (like yours truly).  And at $2.57, they are definitely a deal.  And if you hit the Born Pretty Store banner in my sidebar, you can use the code there (GMG10) for a 10% discount!  I like that they come with protectors over the bristles.  Makes storage much safer.  I did play around some with all three brushes, experimenting to get an idea of how they work.

The brushes loaded well (I do have experience with painting...just not with nail polish, as some of my epic failure manis have proven).  I did find that the brushes stained fairly easily with highly pigmented colors, but this didn't affect their performance.  Then, I decided to try my hand at a mani.  So...I bring you my Purple Pixie Stripes mani.

I started with Zoya Stevie for the main color.  My accent nail is a base of ChG Sweet Hook.  Then I used the fine detail brush (the easiest brush to work with for a beginner like me) to add three stripes using SH CSM in Bewitched.  I topped my accent nail with a coat of SV.  Not too terrible for a first attempt at striping with liner brushes, is it?

Anyway, get in on the giveaway, and I'll talk to you tomorrow!

This product was sent for review.

I'm Swatchin' You - China Glaze 108 Degrees

Today's pretty little polly is coming to you from China Glaze's Summer 2011 Island Escape collection.  This is 108 Degrees, and fuchsia pink shimmer.  Holy double bandages, Batman!!!

This took two coats.  I have to say, I was not impressed with the formula on this.  The first coat was streaky with no signs of self-leveling.  Thankfully, the second coat evened out the look.  And I did experience some minor cuticle flooding.  The bottom line:  nice color, weak formula.

 SH Double Duty and SV as base and top.

I'm Swatchin' You - China Glaze Dress Me Up

I bought this color because it reminded me of the nail polish worn by Molly Ringwald in The Breakfast Club, which I loved (so 80s!).  It's called Dress Me Up, by China Glaze, a dark mauve creme.

The formula was a bit on the thin side.  This only took one coat, though.  Other than that, I had no issues with the color.  I do think it looks much prettier IRL.  Also, I think it would look amazing on my nails when they are longer.  I don't like them on my short stubs, so I will only use this one when my nails have grown out more.

Does anyone have any other suggestions for colors that are close to the one in the movie?

SH Double Duty and SV as base and top.

I'm Swatchin' You - China Glaze Emotion

Today's color is China Glaze's Emotion, a pink metallic.

This is going to be short and sweet today.  You are looking at one coat.  The formula was a bit thin, resulting in some minor flooding.  And you will get some visible brush strokes.  Have a great day, everyone!

SH Double Duty and SV as base and top.

I'm Swatchin' You - China Glaze Harvest Moon

I love today's color!  This is ChG's Harvest Moon.  I classified it as a brown, and it's actually a bronze with shimmer.  This is from the Spring 2012 Hunger Games collection.

Harvest Moon's formula was incredible.  Two easy coats was all that was needed.  Unfortunately, my easy clean-up streak is over.  This was a little tough to clean up, leaving traces of shimmer on the cuticles.  If only I was good enough to not require cleaning up!  But this gorgeous color is so worth it!

SH Double Duty and SV as base and top.

I'm Swatchin' You - China Glaze Golden Meringue

Today's color is coming to you from China Glaze.  It's Golden Meringue, a sheer peach shimmer.

I was really nervous about this one after the whole disappointment over ChG's Love Letters.  I was afraid this was going to be gorgeous in the bottle, and should therefore stay there.  I was happily surprised to find this beautiful color that I really love.  You are looking at two coats.  My only complaint was that the formula was crazy thin.  Despite leaving my bottle open for EVER, I still experienced cuticle flooding.  But I am happy with the color.  It reminds me of OPI's Peach-A-Boo, which I reviewed here.

SH Double Duty and SV as base and top.

I'm Swatchin' You - China Glaze Peachy Keen

Today's polish is another case of "It looked prettier in the bottle."  This is China Glaze's Peachy Keen.  It's a peach creme from the Spring 2010 Up & Away collection.

You are looking at two coats.  The formula was good, and this self-levels well.  I think I actually may have needed a third coat to settle it out more.  But the color was just too blah for me.  It reminds me of those really plastic-y band-aids.  Oh, well.

SH Double Duty and SV as base and top.

I'm Swatchin' You - China Glaze Champagne Bubbles

So, remember a few days ago I told you that my cuticles have been ravaged by some work I'm doing in my mother's bathroom?  Well, manual labor strikes again.  While removing a wallpaper border, I broke TWO nails.  A moment of silence, please.  Beware, extreme nubbins lay ahead...with horrible cuticles to boot.

Today's color is China Glaze's Champagne Bubbles, a gold shimmer with silver micro glitter.  This is from ChG's Winter 2011 Let It Snow collection.

This is two coats with no issues.  The formula was good, and I really had no problems with this at all.  The color is good, but not really anything to shout about.

SH Double Duty and SV as base and top.

I'm Swatchin' You - China Glaze Swanky Silk

Today's polish is the first one I'm showing you from my favorite China Glaze collection, Bohemian, just released this year, 2012.  This is a pink and gold duochrome called Swanky Silk.

The formula was fantastic.  This applied smoothly and evenly and was opaque in two coats.  I tried my best to capture the duochromey goodness, and I hope you get an idea of just how pretty this color is.

SH Double Duty and SV as base and top.

I'm Swatchin' You - China Glaze Papaya Punch

Good morning, fellow adventurers!  Today's color comes to you from China Glaze.  This is Papaya Punch, an orange creme from their Island Escape 2011 collection.

The formula was pretty good. It applied evenly, and levels nicely.  However, there is some balding with each coat, so it took three coats for solid coverage.  This is one of those colors that I thought I would hate.  I know, so why buy it?  To be honest, I realized I had all of the other colors in the Island Escape collection, and my OCD took over from there.  But it really isn't a bad color at all.  Definitely has its purposes.  Thoughts?

SH Double Duty and SV as base and top.

I'm Swatchin' You - China Glaze Love Letters

Today's color is called Love Letters, from China Glaze.  It's a water finish in a peach tone.

This is two coats.  It applied with no issue, and the formula was great.  I love this in the bottle.  Not so much once it's on.  I think one coat may work nicely as a french base.  Otherwise, I imagine this is how my fingers would look if my nails were peeled off.  Ew.

SH Double Duty and SV as base and top.