Good evening dears! I've got a looong post for you tonight so grab a seat in your most comfortable chair, get yourself prepped with a glass of wine or a cup of coffee, throw a blanket on that lap and get ready to see China Glaze's answer to the Autumn season. This is The Great Outdoors. It's a 12 piece collection and it's full of different finishes that will surely make every polish lover squee!
The Great Outdoors collection is available online now (Amazon) and in your local beauty supply stores. Don't forget about the great art kits and mini set I'd mentioned in my CosmoProf coverage post (you can see it
HERE). So are you ready? I am so let's go!
*press sample*
--CREMES--
I started out with the cremes. Because they looks AMAZING. And guess what? They were amazing! Change Your Altitude is a beautiful, light greige shade that is perfectly neutral and easy to wear for any occasion. The formula and application were both like fabulous. I used 2 coats for full coverage and no topcoat.
My Lodge Or Yours? is one of my favorites in the collection. It's a feminine soft mauve creme that is so very lady like. But imagine how you can make this a little dangerous by adding some kick-@ss nail art! The formula and application were like butter. Creamy, smooth, perfect. I used 2 coats for full coverage and no topcoat.
S'more Fun is an interesting color. I would have expected a graham cracker or chocolate or even white marshmallow shade for the name. So even though the lemon-lime creme shade doesn't match the name, the polish itself is still pretty darn fabulous. The color is unique and definitely unexpected for the Fall. Great formula and application. I used 2 creamy coats for full opacity and no topcoat.
Here we've got a deep, mossy green beauty called Take A Hike. Great color, great name. I totally think of lush, damp woods. I'm not a hiker or a camper or even an outdoorsy person but even I can appreciate the beauty of nature. The formula and application were both aces. I only needed 1 coat of this beauty for full coverage. No topcoat used.
Free Bear Hugs is the last creme in the collection. And another one of my favorites! It's a very dark black-red creme. Hello vampilicious, dark and broody! This is gorgeous. The formula and application were stellar! It was a 1-coater to boot! No topcoat used.
--METALLICS--
Alrighty, moving on to the metallics! Up first is Check Out The Silver Fox, a metallic gunmetal gray. This baby is gorgeous, just like brushed chrome! Great formula and application. I used 2 coats and put a layer of topcoat on it but it didn't need it at all.
Wood You Wanna? is a nice, cozy metallic brown-burgundy shade. This one is very comforting, but I think that about a lot of brown shades. They just make me think of all things warm and fuzzy and fleecy. The formula and application were perfect. I only needed 1 coat for complete opacity. Again, I used a layer of topcoat but it wasn't needed.
--DUO CHROMES--
How cool is it that China Glaze released duo chromes in this collection!? And the 3 they came up with are really lovely! This is Cabin Fever, a pink to copper shifting polish. What really impressed me was how opaque this polish was in 1 coat. I also liked that this polish wasn't streaky, which lots of duo chromes tend to be. The formula and application were easy breezy to work with and put on. I used 2 coats and no topcoat.
Gone Glamping is a pretty interesting duo chrome. It's a gold to green shifting polish, but I see a lot of brown and even some silver in there. So maybe it's more of a multi chrome than a duo chrome. This one was a bit more sheer but it built up nicely in 3 coats. Formula and application were both good - no issues to mention. No topcoat used.
The last duo chrome is Pondering, not only my favorite of the 3, but also one of my top picks from the entire collection. This is a purple to blue shifting polish. It's effect is a bit more subtle but it's gorgeous. I think it would make an amazing base for a galaxy mani! This one was creamy and opaque with a fabulous formula. I used 2 coats and no topcoat.
--SHIMMER--
Here's the only shimmer of the 12 piece collection, Sleeping Under The Stars. Again, one of my top choices from The Great Outdoors. I love the dark blurple color, I love the red shimmer. So pretty! Formula and application were spot on. I used 2 coats and no topcoat.
--GLITTER--
Last but not least is the only glitter in the collection, Let's Dew It. I have mixed feelings on this one. I think it's a gorgeous blend of blue, purple and charcoal. There's also a pink-purple shimmer that makes a gorgeous effect. But the glitter didn't apply evenly (even though to my naked eye it looked fine) leaving some sparse spots on my nails. I think that if you layered this over a base color, like Change Your Altitude, it would look amazing. So I will wear this again, but not on it's own shut so I have better coverage. I used 3 coats and finished with a layer of topcoat.
