Not all glitterbombs are the same, a comparison of three blues

As many polishes as I now own, and as many Indies as I've seen, I'm still often surprised by how different a polish can look on the nail as opposed to in the bottle.  I decided to take three blue Indies that were similar in color and compare them.

From L to R:  Harlow & Co Sparkling Waters, Wingdust Ocean Tears, and Feenix... well, the label fell off, and they are out of business anyway.  But the lesson still works, I think.

Harlow & Co. Sparkling Waters.  This is two or three coats, no undies.  This one has no shimmer, only glitter in a clear base, but it still comes together as a cohesive polish.  It can be hard to tell which polishes are only toppers and which ones can be build to opacity from looking at a bottle.

WingDust Ocean Tears.  This one is much more teal, has a colored jelly base, and also builds up to opacity, but with a much different look.  The glitter is swimming in layers of the colored base, and isn't nearly as shiny as Sparkling Waters.

Feenix ??.  I didn't realize how metallic this polish would appear on the nail.  These types of bases tend to hide the glitter a little more, and have more of a gritty, bumpy look that requires a thick topcoat.  I love the iridescent, almost foil look to this polish, though.  The glitters are more of a scattered holo, just to catch the light.

This is one of the reasons I like being a beauty blogger and why I like looking at nail polish swatches.  Some of these things are hard to see in the bottle - the finish of the polish, the distribution of glitter, the finickiness of the formula.  I hope that's part of why you like reading my blog, too!

If you want more information on these brands, Harlow & Co still has one of their polishes listed on their site, but I don't know if they are discontinuing their own line and focusing on selling other Indie brands.  Feenix has closed up shop, but WingDust is still around, and you can find her on FaceBook and her shop.