SWATCHES: China Glaze // Cali Dreams Spring 2021 Collection

It's here! It's FINALLY here! These actually came out for spring in the US but over here in the UK, the only place that stocks new CG collections are Nail Polish Direct and so I waited patiently. I was pretty much checking their site and blog daily for any hint when I asked on instagram if they were getting the collection and they said in about 4 weeks. As soon as the in stock alert hit my email inbox I bought the entire lot because it's quite possible my favourite release ever released.

Look at those colours! A pastel creme girls dream. CG are known for doing weird formulas in their collections so I'm super happy this is just a straightforward set of cremes in a range of beautiful sunset shades. Coupled with the amazing neons in the Havana Nights summer collection, CG has pretty much won this year in terms of nail polish (for me anyway). Let's get into some swatches!

Shore Feels Good // pool blue creme

Collection: Cali Dreams

Release: Spring 2021

Coats: 2

I think this is my favourite blue that has ever blued. Never have I seen a blue that has matched my skin tone so flawlessly. My favourite thing about this shade is that it's really bright, even in dark rooms. It has an almost teal tinge to it which gives it a little something extra as well. It is on the jelly side so you can get away with one coat because it's not streaky or you can add another for full on shiny coverage.

Surfside Skies // pale periwinkle creme

Collection: Cali Dreams

Release: Spring 2021

Coats: 2

I can't decide if this is a purple toned blue or a blue toned purple...China Glaze describe it as a cool toned purple so I guess it's supposed to be that. Either way; it's amazing. This is the perfect transition shade for sunset gradients or the perfect start. The first coat can be a little streaky and difficult to apply but the second covers up any imperfections. It's a much better application than most CG polishes I own anyway.

My camera captured this way more blue than it actually is so I had to do some colour correction on the photos to make them more representative of the shade irl.

Live In The Mo-Mint // pale mint creme

Collection: Cali Dreams

Release: Spring 2021

Coats: 2

CG say this is a pale mint green but it looks pale pastel blue to me. But it doesn't matter because I love pastel shades. On the nails, it has more of a green tint to it but I feel this is another chameleon shade. For this one, the best result is one thin coat followed by a slightly thicker second coat; leaving you with wonderfully glossy/plump nails. The only similar shade I can find in my collection is Ferris Wheel by Ciaté but that's way more expensive.

I'm No Tourist // cool toned pink/beige creme

Collection: Cali Dreams

Release: Spring 2021

Coats: 2

If my skin tone was slightly lighter this would be the perfect nude for me. It's not often you come across cool-toned nude shades so I really appreciate this one. This is a perfect base to add neon accents on; I can already see the neon slime drips with this. Here's a quick look I did using CG's Pool Party and Flip Flop Fantasy V2:

Honestly obsessed with nude bases and neon accents this year. I think that's my "thing" for this year.

Vacay Dreams // pastel pink/peach creme

Collection: Cali Dreams

Release: Spring 2021

Coats: 2

This seems very similar to More to Explore from their 2015 summer collection in the bottle but on the nails it's way more pink. I did a little comparison to show. If you know me though (and seen some of the posts on this blog), you'll know peach/pink pastel shades are my favourite. This is a nice light peach though that will go great with greens.

Sunset Crew // rose pink creme

Collection: Cali Dreams

Release: Spring 2021

Coats: 2

I'd say this is my least favourite shade in the collection; not because it's bad, shades like this just clash too much with my skin tone. I think the shade is beautiful though. I'll probably use this as decoration or within gradients. If I'm going to wear a pink; I'd prefer it be on the neon side. Formula wise, this is what I would call the 'typical' china Glaze formula; i.e., it needs to be applied in thin layers or you're gonna have a bad time.

Sunny You Should Ask // pale mustard creme

Collection: Cali Dreams

Release: Spring 2021

Coats: 2

I love this shade; I have a thing for teal and orange combos; it's just so striking so I love that I got this in the collection. The first coat is a bit streaky but the second is perfect. This isn't a shade I would wear completely by itself but in gradients it's going to be fantastic.

Tangerine Heat // orange/yellow creme

Collection: Cali Dreams

Release: Spring 2021

Coats: 2

I wouldn't really call this tangerine...it's more pastel yellow than orange. It doesn't particularly suit my skin tone either but I can make it work with decoration. With a second coat, it kind of goes a bit neon in darker rooms. I'd say this one is the streakiest out of them all and the hardest to apply.

// Verdict

I can't get enough of this collection. The formula for the most part is absolutely bang on. Knowing my love for pink/peach shades you would've thought my favourites would be Vacay Dreams and Sunset Crew but it's actually the striking Shore Feels Good and Sunny You Should Ask. I wish I could get these in gel as well to paint with as they dry quite fast.

Overall, if there is a set to buy this year, it's this one. For the UK, it's only available on NailPolishDirect right now for £42 for all 8.

SWATCHES: Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine // Iced Latte, Berry Sorbet, Pink Lemonade

It's March!!! 🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉And that means spring is finally right around the corner; oh god it's been so long since I felt the sweet sweet warmth of the sun. In other news, I was not spending money in Superdrug and did not buy more nail polish....

Pink Lemonade // Muted Pink Creme
Release Date: Spring/Summer 2016

Oh boy do I love this shade. It looks like more of a dusty dark pink in the bottle but on the nails it's just a true soft neutral pink. This is a perfect spring shade for floral mani's. It also dries quite quickly for the Gelly range. One coat isn't quite enough, but two does the trick and it dries nice and glossy.

Iced Latte // Vanilla Creme
Release Date: January 2020

This is a fantastic vanilla shade that isn't too yellow. This is the type of shade that will look good on any skintone. I can imagine this would make a nice coffee watermarble with a brown polish. This one definitely needs two coats as the first is quite streaky.

Berry Sorbet // Pale Blue Creme
Release Date: January 2020

Two coats is still a little streaky for this one as you can slightly see through the polish still but three coats isn't abhorrent for a gelly polish...in fact it's kind of the norm. I love this shade though; it's halfway between pastel blue and mint.

// Verdict

Well, I enjoyed these new spring shades so much I went out and bought 6 more Gelly polishes...They had a 3 for 2 on Feel Unique, don't judge me. This is my first time buying a Gelly shade in about 7 years and I'm not sure why I haven't bought more. They really do look like gel polish. I recently bought some gel and lamp (more on that in a post though) and these polishes have the exact same consistency as the gel ones. With the plumpy top coat on top, you can't go wrong.

Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine

£3.99 each

Spread Your Wings // Birchbox May 2019 Nails

I think this was one of the first Birchboxes in a while that I wasn't desperate to recreate. There's just something about butterflies...I don't think I'm a butterfly person. The contents weren't the greatest as well. I've received the Philip Kingsley Elasticizer 5 times now and I've not even used up the first tube I got. It's just such a pain to use. The best item by far is the Mimitika sunscreen. It's SPF50 with no grease, not even a hint; it actually mattifies my makeup. It also doesn't have that sunscreen smell or leave any white cast/flashback. It was the item I wanted to receive the least and ended up being the best. I'll be buying this full size for sure.

But onto the nails; again not my favourite.

The grass was hand-painted and not the best but I am really enjoying using acrylic paint, who knows, maybe I'll become the next Bob Ross but for nails.....I won't hold my breath.

How I did it:

I started off with a white base coat and then painted on the leaves. I used the overprint stamps from the Harunouta plate for the butterflies and then used a dotting tool to add some extra detail.

Polishes/Tools Used:-

- Essie // Blanc (white)
- MoYou London // One and Only (pastel peach), Orchid Chic (magenta)

- Born Pretty Polish // #379 (pale yellow)
- Sally Hansen Hard as Nails // Jam Sesh (lavender)

- Barry M Liquid Chrome // Bright Lights (gold)

- Crafts 4 All Acrylic Paint // 105 Titanium White, 605 Green Pale, 615 Emerald Green, 753 Black

- Revlon Colorstay Gel Envy // Diamond Top Coat
- Harunouta Plate // L071