Monday, November 20, 2017

KBShimmer Nail Care and Fall 2017 Blogger Collaboration Swatches & Review

Press  Sample

Hey there!  I hope everyone had a fabulous weekend.  I'm back on this Monday evening to tell you all about the KBShimmer Fall 2017 Blogger Collaboration collection, which I have received from Color4Nails to review.  Christy, the creator of KBShimmer, has brought us an awesome group of polishes with the help of some of my favourite bloggers.  It's a pretty big collection, coming in at a whopping 14 polishes, and there is SO much variety here.  They've truly pulled from all of the beloved KBShimmer finishes from crelly and jelly glitters to Mega Flame to Holo Glow and more.    Since there are so many polishes, this might be a long post but I hope you stick around to the end because I also have a review of some of the KBShimmer Nail Care products...and a photo of one of the worst things I've ever done to my nail and how KBShimmer has helped me hide it.  So read on!



For all my swatches, I used one coat of Fillin' Groovy base coat and one coat of Clearly On Top top coat.  The first two photos of each were taken in a light box with 5K bulbs and the third one was taken in direct LED light.  The color accuracy of the direct light photos might be a bit off but I thought including these was important to really show how sparkly and holo some of these are (and to show how shiny Clearly On Top top coat helps make things).

#squadghouls 
Holly of Miss Holly Berries


Color: dark forest green jelly with gold and orange hex glitter
Coats: 2 
Application: a bit thick so I had to manipulate it a little (not shocking in a glitter/jelly)
Finish: dries with texture from glitter.  Easily smoothed out with one coat of top coat.
Notes: a really perfect color for fall (and would’ve been great for Halloween.  Seriously, get this now for next season).  I think with the green and golds, it’ll be a nice base for Christmas nail art as well.  
 


Alicia of Delishious Nails


Color: bright bright turquoise blue with glow shimmer and holo flakes
Coats: 2 
Application: smooth and easy
Finish: smooth
Notes: such an incredible color.  Definitely a favourite. 



Gaby of LacquerLoon


Color: brown base with gold and copper holo microglitter, like the Mega Flame line
Coats: 2.  First coat was surprisingly opaque though thanks to the high glitter load.
Application: easy.  I could imagine this polish might thicken a bit with time but nothing a few drops of of thinner wouldn’t fix.  
Finish:  textured from microglitter
Notes: Pretty much my dream fall polish and I don’t even like coffee!  In real life the color is even richer and a bit warmer.  I see more gold in real life than my photos indicate.  



Michelle of Ehmkay Nails


Color: dove grey crelly  with flakies and subtle violet shimmer 
Coats: 2
Application: Flawless.  I thought the large flakies would throw me off a bit but I have no problems to report.  
Finish: smooth
Notes: with matte top coat, looks like concrete.  Or like a Cadbury’s mini egg!  



Jen of My Nail Polish Obsession


Color: bright barbie pink with strong golden shimmer
Coats: 2 
Application: I think the amount of shimmer has thickened it up a tad.  First coat was quite opaque but patchy.  2 coats worked for full coverage though.  
Finish: dries smooth but watch for ridges from application.  I needed top coat to smooth it out.  



Lisa of Cosmetic Sanctuary


Color: plum base with holo microglitter, like the Mega Flame line
Coats: 2
Application and Finish:  Identical to Espresso Yourself.  Easy to use but dries with some texture.  
Notes: color of the glitter really complements dark purple base



Sam of Sam Nailed It


Color: dark eggplant purple (looks almost black in regular indoor lighting)
Coats: 2
Application: good but be careful about flooding.  With my non dominant hand I got it all up in my cuticle.  
Finish: shiny and creamy
Notes:  I will always love KBShimmer’s cremes and this is no exception.  I've already worn it again since swatching it.  



Judy of Beauty Judy


Color: dark teal to indigo duochrome with holo flakes (like a duochrome Holo Glow)
Coats: 2 but one was pretty opaque
Application: really easy
Finish: smooth finish
Notes:  Has lots of sparkle without the pain of removing glitter.  This is a win!  



KBShimmer creation


Color:  the color of butterscotch.  Some swatches I’ve seen make it look a bit more orange than the real color, at least to my eye (keeping in mind, there are screen differences).    
Coats: 2
Application: really easy, smooth and creamy
Finish: glossy
Notes: another win for KBShimmer cremes



Mishra of Nail It Lovely


Color: olive Green holo flakes with lighter green shimmer 
Coats: 2 but 1 thick coat could suffice
Application: easy peasy
Finish: smooth finish.  Shimmery and sparkly like the Holo Glow line.    
Notes:  I’m not a big green person so I didn’t think I’d like this but I love it.  It’s really quite regal.  



Antoinette of aricedotcom


Color: really is a sky blue creme with peach shimmer
Coats: 2 
Application: Could see shimmer strokes but nothing major.  
Finish: glossy creme with shimmer



Amy of McPolish


Color: pale silver holo microglitter in clear base with red shimmer
Coats: 2…so opaque for such a light coloured glitter!  
Application: easy but, as with the other glitters, it could get thick or messy
Finish: a bit of texture so it needs a coat of glossy top coat
Notes: amazing!  My photos really don’t do it justice.  It’s lighter and more sparkly in real life.  This one is going to be distracting!  



Valesha of Peachy Polish


Color: dusty orange with copper shimmer
Coats: 2
Application: easy.  Could see brush strokes in shimmer during application but these reduced after drying
Finish: glossy creme with shimmer
Notes: I like this color with the shimmer but isn’t a great color for my skin tone



KBShimmer creation


Color: rose/rose gold linear holo
Coats: 2 
Application: So easy
Finish: linear holographic 



KBShimmer Nail Care

Lastly, I received 4 of KBShimmer's nail care products, 3 of which I was already a regular and repeated purchaser of so that tells you that I really am a fan of them but now I get to tell you a bit about them.  


Nail Prep: a thin liquid that you apply to your nail before base coat or polish to adjust the pH and help polish adhere better.  It removes oils from your nails which I find to be a bit culprit when nail polish chips before you want it to.  I always make sure to remove the oil from my nails when I want my mani to last.

Fillin' Groovy: a ride-filling base coat that also prevents staining.  I hadn't tried this product before, and have had less than stellar results from other ridge-filling base coats but this has been a godsend since receiving it.  Why, you ask?  Before look what I did to my nail while filing off some gel polish after a couple drinks?  This would certainly show up in photos but I used a coat of it under all the polishes here and you can't see a thing!   Word to the wise: don't file while tipsy!


Clearly On Top: a quick dry, glossy top coat.  If you read my descriptions, you know how often I use this top coat.  It dries in minutes, doesn't smear nail art (do be sure to "float" it) and doesn't cause shrinkage.  Here I put one coat over #squadghouls, a polish that dries textured due to the glitter.  It smooths it out easily.


Oh Matte!: This is my third bottle of this matte top coat.  I just noticed the description says to use thicker coats but I find even thin coats create a matte look.  I used it here over High-Rise To The Occasion.  It's super matte!


Thanks for sticking around this long!  I'm sure you can tell, I really enjoy this collection and the KBShimmer nail care product line.  My personal favourites are Better Lake Than Never and Pearls Gone Wild but, honestly, they're all lovely.  Christy and the bloggers should be very proud!

$9.25 USD/polish
$6 USD/nail care product
Available at Color4Nails

'Til next time...


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