Nail Polish Stress Test: Whim Gone Glamorous

As my search for a wannabe gel polish that doesn’t suck continues, I’ve come across a couple brands where I’ve balked at buying them. This is because in my opinion the cost is too high versus the odds of them being any good. One of those brands is the Ulta Exclusive, Whim. However, my friend came across a shade she really liked from that collection and offered to let me borrow it, along with the necessary top and base coat. I never turn down an opportunity like that, so today’s subject is Gone Glamourous.

Gone Glamorous is a dark vampy red jelly that has iridescent flecks in it. The flecks look awesome in the bottle, but once it’s on, you really can’t see them. I found the formula to be on the thin side, and while it applied okay, I had problems doing it neatly. I think this is partly because of the formula of the polish itself and partly because of the base coat, appropriately named Cover Your Bases. It’s supposed to act as a “magnet” for the polish and it certainly did that. When I went over it with Gone Glamorous, it adhered and dried very quickly.

I also found this polish was on the streaky side, so I used three coats to get full opacity. I finished off my mani with the recommended top coat, On Top Of It. I had to use a heavy coat as it dragged the color off otherwise. It dried pretty quickly. It looked pretty nice, but I really prefer the shine Seche Vite provides.

This is another polish that almost water marbles but dries too quickly to pull it off successfully. To my surprise, it stamped beautifully. It did well enough that I was able to use an image with fine lines for my ring finger accent nail. The sparkly bits didn’t interfere with stamping at all. Since I knew by this point that using On Top Of It would wreck the design, I used Seche Vite on that one nail.

So, how did it hold up?

Business as usual, it was wrecked in one day.

Verdict: Party Polish

The polish, top coat, and base coat cost $10 each. For $30, I want better results than that.This is exactly why I didn't buy them myself. However, if you came across Gone Glamorous in the clearance bin and were into nail stamping, it might be worth picking up.That's the only thing that saves Gone Glamorous from being Loser Polish.

Nail Polish Stress Test: Ulta XOXO

Ulta recently had a $2 sale on their nail polishes. Being as they’re normally $6 I had to jump on that. One of the polishes I got was XOXO.

XOXO is an interesting polish in that you really can’t tell what it’s like until you actually wear it.

When I saw it on the website, I thought it was pink and red glitter in a clear base. 

 When I got the bottle, it looked like a red jelly with pink microglitter. 

When I applied it, it turned out to be a red jelly with scattered holographic microglitter!

This polish is really really pretty. Every so often I had to stop and admire it. I was able to get full coverage with three coats. I added my usual coat of Seche Vite on top.

So how did it hold up?

Eh. It was pretty banged up after one day.

I didn’t have any luck watermarbling or stamping with it.

Verdict: Party Polish

I really wanted this to do better, but it is what it is. I still love it and will keep it, but as a weekend polish. I still want to try it in a French Manicure or layered over something else.

Nail Polish Stress Test: Ulta Blue Holiday

If you happen to meet a courier out of New Vegas offering polish, say yes, because they find awesome things! Case in point, Ulta Blue Holiday, a creme polish she scavenged for the ridiculous price of $.47!

Blue Holiday is more blurple or indigo than straight up blue in my book. Whatever color you want to call it, it’s one of my favorites, and I was overjoyed to receive it! It went on in two easy coats. It looks a bit darker on than it does in the bottle to me, but nothing major. I put my usual coat of Seche Vite on top.

 

Did it last? Yes it did. It went a solid two days before I felt the need to take it off. I could have pushed it to three if I'd touched it up. I'm definitely pleased with how this did.

A color this dark should stamp, right? Right! I was able to successfully water marble with it as well. 

Verdict: Excellent

It did well considering its color. It stamps. It water marbles. This is definitely going to be a go-to polish in my collection!