China Glaze – ElectroPop Collection part 2 (swatches, comparisons & review)

Presenting the second half of China Glaze’s spring 2012 ElectroPop Collection: the blues, one yellow … and a glitter! I should begin by setting the record straight; in my review of part 1 (here), I erroneously stated that ‘Gothic Lolita’ was the only shade with shimmer in this entire collection, however this group has its own shimmery star as well! All swatches are with base and top coats.

‘Aquadelic’ – an absolute dead ringer for the shade made famous by Tiffany®, is a vivid turquoise-leaning Robin’s Egg shade of blue, with some subtle yellow undertones. The first coat applied a touch patchy, but the second coat not only eliminated any issues, it gave perfect coverage without any streaking and levelled off utterly smooth. Incredible gloss left behind at the finish.

in sunlight

indoors

with flash

My first thought was that ‘Aquadelic’ was a near-duplicate of China Glaze’s cult shade ‘For Audrey’, and while there’s no denying the resemblance, there are some minor differences as well, primarily in the intensity of the hue. Whereas ‘For Audrey’ appears to be a truer turquoise from the bottle photo, swatched beside the slightly more vivid and greenish ‘Aquadelic’, it comes off as rather blue based. Other than that, the formula was almost identical on both. The following swatches are: index & ring fingers – ‘Aquadelic’, middle & pinkie fingers – ‘For Audrey’.

in sunlight

indoors

with flash

The following swatches show one coat of ‘Techno’ layered over both ‘Aquadelic’ and ‘For Audrey’, still in the same order as listed above.

in sunlight

closeup

indoors

with flash

‘Sunchine Pop’, the second shimmer of this entire collection, is an egg-yolk shade of yellow, filled with ultra-fine pearly shimmer. The first coat showed some bald patches, which were then completely covered and smoothed over by second layer. I love how happy this shade looks, and that shimmer gave it a unique depth of tone.

in sunlight

indoors

with flash

Once more, as soon as I applied ‘Sunchine Pop’, I was immediately reminded of CHANEL’s Mimosa (previously reviewed here), and even though the bottle photo shows them to be somewhat different from each other, once swatched I was surprised by how close they actually are. The following swatches are: index & ring fingers – ‘Sunchine Pop’, middle & pinkie fingers – ‘Mimosa’. Here’s how ‘Mimosa’ compared to ‘Sunchine Pop’s’ more daffodil yellow hue:

slightly thinner flowing
applies easier with less streaking/patchiness
definitely more shimmer filled, but a similar quality
not as vivid, more of a lemon-curd yellow
not as opaque even at two coats

in sunlight

indoors

with flash

With one coat of ‘Techno’ layered over both ‘Sunchine Pop’ and ‘Mimosa’, still in the same order as listed above.

in sunlight

closeup

indoors

with flash

‘Kinetic Candy’ may very well be the sleeper hit of this group! A washed out sky blue with the most subtle green tints thrown into its base, this had a slightly thinner formula than the others, which helped it flow exceptionally easily. Two coats are all that are needed to achieve complete opacity and I was pleasantly surprised by the fact that for a pastel hue, there was absolutely no streaking or patchiness. Amazing gloss at the end – LOVE!

in sunlight

indoors (* please look beyond the lobster hue of my skin!)

with flash

With one coat of ‘Techno’ layered over ‘Kinetic Candy’, I was totally captivated; I found that the more prismatic pieces completed complimented the lighter yet funky neutral base.

in sunlight

closeup

indoors

with flash

‘Electric Beat’ – the slightly deeper-toned sibling of ‘Kinetic Candy’, is a saturated periwinkle blue shade, in a wonderfully easy to apply formula. Some patchiness that was noted with the first coat, immediately disappeared once the second layer was applied, leaving nothing but a smooth and high gloss finish behind – a pastel hue, but with an urban vibe to it just the same … another hit!

in sunlight

indoors

with flash

Once more, one coat of ‘Techno’ layered over ‘Electric Beat’ did everything right to this shade, as both the base colour and the prismatic glitter totally set each other off beautifully.

in sunlight

closeup

indoors

with flash

‘Gaga For Green’ is a paradoxically ultra-vivid yet somewhat still muted looking clover-green shade. The formula was a surprise as well, applying rather sheerer than the other colours in this group with a hybrid jelly-crème finish. The finish was not only rather pillowy-looking, but the glass-like finish was absolutely superb!

in sunlight

indoors

with flash

One coat of ‘Techno’ layered over ‘Gaga For Green’ turned out to not be my preferred combo, as I found that the vivid base shade and everything going on with the layering lacquer seemed to clash – like they’re each trying too hard! However, this would make a fabulous Christmas look!

in sunlight

closeup

indoors (*do not adjust your sets: yes, the green makes my skin look lobster-ish once more!)

with flash

‘Techno’ is hypnotic; a clear suspension formula base absolutely loaded with silver ultra-fine glitter and larger prismatic hexagonal glitter pieces, this is a kaleidoscope captured in a bottle of lacquer! Care needs to be take for application in the sense that you absolutely must wait at least 2 minutes between coats for the best look, but for a layering polish I found that it still gave decent coverage due to the density of the glitter. For the smoothest surface, do not skip top coat, but I must say that it was surprisingly smooth to the touch even without. As with all glitter polishes, some elbow grease is required for removal, but I’ve discovered that China Glaze glitters are definitely some of the easiest to remove.

2 coats in sunlight (no top coat)

3 coats in sunlight (with top coat)

closeup

indoors

with flash

I was fairly convinced that ‘Techno’ was the China Glaze version of OPI’s ‘Serving Up Sparkle’ (previously reviewed here), and while initially they may seem almost identical, there are several differences. All swatches are: index & ring fingers – ‘Techno’, middle & pinkie fingers – ‘Serving Up Sparkle’ (plus top coat). Here is how the OPI compared to ‘Techno’:

formula was slightly thinner-flowing
the hexagonal glitter pieces were significantly sparser
much less densely applying, needing at least another coat to reach the look of ‘Techno’

in sunlight

closeup

indoors

with flash

Final thoughts: Something feels right about bright pastel hues for spring; even though these may not be the “wheel re-invented” as far as originality is concerned, I love the energy that these colours project and I can’t stress enough how fabulous China Glaze’s formula is – especially when you factor in the budget-friendly price point. I did not expect that ‘Kinetic Candy’ would grab me the way it did, but I so love how it’s a pale but vibrant baby blue – adding flamboyant ‘Techno’ on top, took “cute” to a whole new other level! If you haven’t already, give this ElectroPop collection another look – you may find some surprises, much like I did.