Day 1: China Glaze Kinetic Candy Swatch and Review

Hello everyone! Today it is April 9th 2012, officially marking the first day of my yearlong challenge! Ambitious, I know. Especially since my collection is limited (but always growing...seriously) and I don't always like to polish my nails. My mother doesn't approve of my growing collection, but hey, you can't stop an addict!

Today, I'm bringing you a gorgeous light blue creme from China Glaze. Kinetic Candy, part of the 2012 Spring Electropop Collection, is a recent addition to my collection, and I am quite enjoying this! I own another one in the collection - Electric Beat - also a beautiful pale blue, but Kinetic Candy is more turquoise/green. It's quite bright and looks very interesting on my skin tone (I have quite yellow undertones in my skin).

As you can see, in the light of my piano lamp, the color isn't quite as bright as, say, a neon color (China Glaze has some beautiful neon colors too), but it's bright enough to fit into the summer/spring trends of 2012. I'm not a bit follower of these trends myself - I'll wear dark purple in the middle of July - but this one is a polish that no one can doubt is appropriate for the spring and summer seasons.

This color has been compared to For Audrey, Refreshmint, and others of China Glaze's known turquoise/pale blue range of colors. Personally, I have neither For Audrey or Refreshmint, so I can't make that comparison for you. Funny story: I was actually at Sally's trying to pick up Refreshmint when I picked up this color instead by accident. Turns out someone had put this color in the Refreshmint slot....my bad for not being more careful.

In terms of application, this one is for sure a one-to-two coater. It's quite a nice creme (China Glaze always has nice cremes!) with fantastic pigmentation, but a bit on the thicker side. I guess it's not too much to complain about, but I really did not appreciate how thick it was. Made the application a bit streaky and a little uneven. In the end, after a thicker second coat, it all worked out!

To finish off this manicure, I added the Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Top Coat, for which you may see a review coming up soon. Can't say it's my favorite, but it's not terrible and leaves my nails quite glossy (for a while...)

Overall, I would give this polish a 8.5/10. It's a beautiful color that's perfect for these upcoming months (though I'd happily wear this in December) with outstanding pigmentation. I didn't appreciate the formula too much, which explains the loss of 1.5 points. Even though it's not a perfect 10, it's still a great polish! I'm not sure if the Electropop collection is limited edition or part of their permanent line now, but I'd suggest hitting up your Ulta or Sally's Beauty Supply before this polish is out! I'm quite happy with my accidental find. :D

Until tomorrow,
The Nail NInja