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Many people have noted that the new Colors of Paradise collection (see the swatches) has colors that look very similar to the All About the Glow Collection (see the swatches) that was released last summer.  So I have prepared some comparison pictures to show you the differences (if any).

Let’s Start with the purple, Tahiti Hottie.  Many of you commented that it looks exactly like You Glare, I Glow.  I highly disagree on this one.  Tahiti Hottie is much more of a reddish purple.

Here’s what it looks like compared with a few other colors.  From left to right:  CND Shellac Tango Passion, Gelaze Flying Dragon, Gelish You Glare I Glow, Gelish Tahiti Hottie.

Next let’s take a look at that blue that you all love, Mali-Blu Me Away.  This one is pretty unique and there wasn’t a medium blue in the All About the Glow collection.  From left to right, the colors seen here are:  Gelish After Dark, Gelish Holiday Party Blues, Gelish Caution, Gelish Mali-Blu Me Away, Gelish Ocean Wave, Gelish Sugar Daddy and Gelish Wiggle Fingers.

The teal blue in this collection is Rub Me the Sarong Way.  This one actually does look very similar to the teal from last year called Radiance is My Middle Name.  Sarong is just slightly brighter and it has better coverage than Radiance.  I don’t see the need to own both of these.

Here are some other teals.  From left to right: CND Shellac Hotski to Tchotchke, Gelaze Turned Up Turquoise, Gelish Radiance is My Middle Name, Gelish Rub Me the Sarong Way, Gelaze For Audrey, ibd Jupiter Blue, Fingerpaints Cool Blue.  I received a couple of questions about For Audrey – Sarong is a much brighter teal.

The new green shade, Lime All The Time is also similar to the shade that was released last year called Sometimes A Girl’s Gotta Glow.  Lime All the Time is lighter/brighter, but only by a few shades.  Again, I don’t think there’s a need to own both of these.  Lime All the Time has better coverage, so I would probably go with that one.

Here are some other limey shades.  From left to right: Gelaze Lime Light, Gelish Amazon Flirt, Gelish A Girl’s Gotta Glow, Gelish Lime All the Time, LeChat Spearmint.  This photo shows the difference between the shades a little better than the one above.  They aren’t dupes for sure, but very similar shades.Pacific Sunset is the new pink in the Paradise collection.  The pink from last year was Brights Have More Fun.  These two are also similar, yet different.  My photos don’t show the differences in these shades well, but Pacific Sunset is a brighter shade of pink and is less reddish.

Here are some other related colors.  From left to right: Gelish Shake It Til You Samba, Gelish Brights Have More Fun, Gelish Pacific Sunset and Gelish Make You Blink Pink.  Make You Blink Pink is the other pink from last year’s summer collection.  You can see this one is a very different shade from the others, but I thought it would be good to show.

And lastly the new orange shade is Rockin’ the Reef.  Last year’s orange/peach shade was I’m Brighter Than You.  These colors are very different from one another, but Rockin’ The Reef does resemble some other colors which you’ll see in the next photo.

Rockin’ the Reef is a unique shade in the Gelish line.  It’s an orange that leans slightly coral.  It’s similar to Tiki Tiki, but not quite as orange, and it’s lighter than the other more coral colors.  I have a really hard time capturing true colors when they are side-by-side like this, so this isn’t 100% accurate.  From left to right: Gelish Tiger Blossom, Gelish Fairest of Them All, Gelish Tiki Tiki Laranga, Gelish Rockin’ the Reef and Gelish I’m Brighter Than You.

I hope you all find this post helpful in determining which colors to buy!  I still think the two that everyone should get are Tahiti Hottie and Mali-Blu Me Away! 

And here are a few answers to some FAQ’s that I receive whenever I post pictures of my swatch sticks!

Q: Where do you buy your swatch sticks? A: eBay! I buy them from China using this listing.

Q: Do you use a base and top coat on your swatch sticks? A: I do not use a base, but I do use a top coat.

Q: What do you use to label your swatch sticks? A: I use this Brother label maker and clear labels. The clear labels are just slightly too wide to fit on the sticks so I have to trim them down before applying.

You also get a sneak peek at my latest nail art using this collection in this video.  Details about that look will be posted soon.  Enjoy!

The colors seen in this video are:
Gelish Pacific Sunset (compared with Make You Blink Pink & Brights Have More Fun)
Gelish Rockin’ the Reef (compared with Tiki Tiki Laranga & I’m Brighter Than You)
Gelish Lime All the Time (compared with Sometimes A Girl’s Gotta Glow)
Gelish Rub Me the Sarong Way (compared with Radiance Is My Middle Name)
Gelish Mali-Blu Me Away
Gelish Tahiti Hottie (compared with You Glare, I Glow)

Did you know that Gelish just released 7 new Trends glitter toppers?  There are four Spring colors, and three Summer colors.  I have all of them, and today I have swatches of the four Spring Trends.  These polishes are all loaded with glitter of different shapes and sizes, in fun pastel colors.  They can be work on their own and they all look great over white or light colors.  My swatches all show the Trends paired over a base color and an accent finger with a white base (Gelish Arctic Freeze).  I applied two coats of the Trends toppers over the colors.

Still pictures never show the true sparkly goodness of glitter polishes.  All four of these toppers have some holographic sparkle to them.  All of the small dark colored looking glitter flecks are actually holographic glitter!

Gelish Trends Candy Coated Sprinkles has a sheer base with a pink tint, and has peach, blue, pink and green glitter, and some small holographic glitter specks.  I paired this over top of a light pink color (TruGel Extraordinary Spectacle).

Gelish Trends A Delicate Splatter has small blue and holographic glitter, and larger green and blue hex glitter.  This one reminds me of a Robin’s egg, so I paired it with a light blue (Gelish My One Blue Love).

Gelish Trends Feeling Speckled also has a slight pink tint to the base, and is loaded with light blue, dark blue and white glitter.  I really liked the way this one popped over darker colors so I paired it with a shade of dark blue (Gelish Deep Sea).

Gelish Trends Dabble It On has a clear base and is loaded with some light colored glitter in green and white, and some larger holographic hex glitters.  I paired this with a light green shade (Gelish Kiss Me I’m a Prince).

I’m not sure if I can pick a favorite out of this collection – they’re all pretty spectacular!

I posted the four new Spring Trends a few days ago and many of you asked if they can be worn on their own.  The Spring and Summer Trends can all be worn on their own, but they won’t provide full coverage like some of the other Trends that are more dense with glitter.  So for each of these swatches, I applied three coats on their own… no base colors, so you can see exactly what they look like.  They would all work well paired over other colors, or you can wear them just like this.  Each of the new Trends has some holographic glitter.  (I will swatch the Spring colors on their own too).

Watch the video:

Rays Of Light – Blue, Green, Purple, Gold multi-shaped mix of glitter.

Looking Glass – Purple, Pink, Blue & Green hexagon-shaped glitter.

Shattered Beauty – Pink, Green & Purple with specks of Gold glitter.

As with the Summer Trends, I also made a short video to show you the sparkly goodness of these polishes!

Candy Coated Sprinkles:

A Delicate Splatter:

Feeling Speckled:

Dabble It On:

The colors in this collection are:

Clean Slate – a blue/grey creme.  This color is very sheer, and I would actually call it a jelly.  The first thing I thought when I saw this color is that it would be the perfect shade for black lace designs with a sheer background.  Guess what I’ll be trying next?

Rake in the Green – a grey/green creme.  This is a lovely, dark shade.  It’s very similar to Gelish I’m No Stranger to Love, except a little lighter and a little more grey.

Berry Buttoned Up – a purple pearl.  I’m so in love with this shade of purple!  This is exactly what the Gelish line needed.

Hello, Merlot! – a berry creme.  This is such a lush, creamy red and is opaque in just 2 coats!

Whose Cider Are You On? – a brown pearl.  Another totally unique shade to the Gelish line, and it’s such a rich shimmery shade of brown.  This will be a big hit in fall.

Do I Look Buff? – a neutral creme.  This is a perfect neutral shade for my tastes.  It falls in between Need a Tan and Skinny Vanilla Latte, and has a slight pearly shimmer.

So which one(s) are your favorite?!  I love them all!

Gelish MINI colors can be purchased at Sally Beauty stores. 

For more information, visit http://www.gelish.com and http://www.gelishminis.com

I finally have the limited edition Gelish Playin’ It Cool Collection swatches to show you.  I don’t have an inside scoop on this collection, so I’m not sure why it hasn’t shown up in stores online yet… or if it will.  I do know that the colors are available in the US at Cosmoprof stores because that’s where I got mine.  Well actually, one of my amazing readers picked them up for me.  Thank you, Joelle!!!

There are four shades in this collection with names that are inspired by the jukebox era of the 50′s and early 60′s.  These polishes had a fairly thick formula and will wrinkle if you’re not careful.  They all seemed to apply a little streaky for me as well except for the red.  My swatches are three coats of each as usual.

I’m trying a new swatch format with just one picture per color, but it’s a wider shot than normal.  Let me know what your thoughts are on that and if it works.  I’m trying to keep the posts from getting too long, and I think my usual two poses are pretty similar to one another except they’re rotated a little.

One Cool Cat is a creamy medium blue.  This shade is pretty unique in the Gelish line, but ibd Swag Bag is a close comparison. On my fade test, this color seemed to get just a hair darker after prolonged exposure to sunlight.

Let’s Go to the Hop is a creamy medium pink.  The only color that I have that’s similar to this is Gelish Sugar n Spice, but I’m wondering if my swatch stick for that color may have faded a bit because I remember it being brighter.  Let’s Go to the Hop turned a hair lighter after exposure to sunlight in my fade test.

Doo Wop is a soft, creamy yellow.  If you look at this polish really really close you can see a very subtle shimmer, but I still call it a cream because it’s not noticeable.  This is a much needed shade in the Gelish line, and I hope they keep it around.  This is a much richer yellow than any of the other Gelish yellows.  The shade is similar to LeChat Lemon Drop and CND Shellac Bicycle Yellow.

Cruisin’ the Boulevard is a bright red.  Unfortunately there’s nothing unique about this color.  If you ask me, this one looks just like Gelish Red Roses, Hot Rod and Spicy Fortune…. they’re all too close to tell apart.  So if you already have one of those, skip this one unless you’re looking for better opacity.  Cruisin’ the Boulevard does seem to have the best coverage.

I have swatches of the new Gelish Get Color-Fall Collection for you!  These Gelish MINI polishes can be purchased at Sally Beauty Supply.  The six colors in this collection are inspired by the brilliant colors of nature in the fall.  Each of my swatches demonstrates three coats of color.  The formula of these polishes was great and very easy to apply.  Keep in mind though that I am using the MINIs, so the full size versions could be slightly different.  So let’s get to the colors…

Gelish Do I Look Buff

Do I Look Buff is a neutral cream.  It has a very slight shimmer to it that’s hardly noticeable in pictures.  I think this is my perfect nude!  It falls right in between Need A Tan and Skinny Vanilla Latte on the color scale.  This color does fade (darken) slightly over time.

Gelish Berry Buttoned Up

Berry Buttoned Up is a lush, shimmery purple!  I’m in love with this shade.  It’s totally unique to the Gelish line, but is similar to CND Shellac Tango Passion and ibd Indian Sari.  In my opinion, this one is the best of the three.  It has the best coverage and the most shimmery finish.

Gelish Clean Slate

UPDATED on 8/11/14:  I received a new bottle of Clean Slate and it is an opaque medium grey as seen in the picture below.  Please ignore my previous photos of the sheer grey polish as that is not the correct color.

Gelish Rake in the Green

Rake in the Green is a dark grey/green cream.  This color is similar to Gelish I’m No Stranger to Love, but this is a little lighter and has more grey.  This is a great dark shade for fall and winter.

Gelish Whose Cider Are You On?

Whose Cider Are You On is a gorgeous shimmery brown!  This is another unique color. This shade is much darker and much more rich and shimmer than Gelish Sweet Chocolate.  I think this will be a very popular color this fall.  Love!

Gelish Hello, Merlot!

Hello, Merlot! is a rich, berry cream.  I have a lot of shades of red, but this one is a little different from all the rest.  It has a slight pink-ish tone to it that makes it more of a berry color than a pure red.  I typically shy away from reds, but I really like this.

So which is your favorite?!  For me it’s a toss up between All Berry Buttoned Up and Whose Cider Are You On?

Let’s start with Berry Buttoned Up… an absolutely gorgeous new shade of purple.  I mentioned in my write-up that is is a little similar to some purples from other brands, so let’s see how they compare.  From left to right, this photo shows Gelish Plum & Done, ibd Indian Sari, Gelish Berry Buttoned Up, CND Shellac Tango Passion, Gelaze Flying Dragon and Gelish Starburst.  ibd Indian Sari and CND Tango Passion are the closest contenders, though they are both a little more reddish-purple and Berry Buttoned Up has a bit more of a frosty finish.

Whose Cider Are You On? is another favorite from this collection and I don’t think any other browns in my stash come close to it.  Most of my dark browns are cream finishes except for Sweet Chocolate, and it’s just not as rich and lush as Cider.  From left to right, the colors here are Gelish Sweet Chocolate, Whose Cider Are You On?, Strut Your Stuff, Double Shot Espresso (only available in mini size), Want to Cuddle? and Lust at First Sight.  Whose Cider You On is a must have!

Are You Feeling Buff? is the new nude/tan polish.  I actually put two swatch sticks with this color side by side so that you can see that it does fade a bit… it turns a little more yellow-tan.  It has a nice subtle pearly finish, and is a few shades darker than Need a Tan.  The colors seen here are Gelish Do I Look Buff (faded), Do I look Buff? (new), Need a Tan, Skinny Vanilla Latte (only available in mini size), ibd Dockside Diva, and Taupe Model.  I want to point out that Skinny Vanilla Latte and Taupe Model also fade and these are likely the faded versions since I’ve had these swatch sticks prepared a while.

Hello, Merlot! is the new creamy red. This red looks a little more cranberry to me than the other shades that I have.  Below are some of the darker red shades from my Gelish stash.  Seen in the photo from left to right are Gelish Black Cherry Berry, Touch of Sass, Elegant Wish, Hellot Merlot, Lady In Red, and Backstage Beauty.  This is probably one of my favorite reds.

Clean Slate is an opaque, medium blue-grey.  I previously posted that this one was sheer, but I found out that my bottle had the wrong formula… so scratch that!  The colors seen here are Gelish Cashmere Kind of Gal, Let’s Hit the Bunny Slopes, Clean Slate, Midnight Caller and Fashion Week Chic.

And finally, let’s compare Rake in the Green, a dark grey/green cream.  I put this next to a couple of dark blues and some of the darker greens from my stash.  It falls somewhere in the middle… it’s not a pure green, but it’s not blue either.  It’s very close to No Stranger to Love, but is just slightly lighter and more grey.  The colors from left to right are Gelish I Heart My Instructor, Is It An Illusion?, Rake in the Green, No Stranger to Love, The Dark Side and Race You to the Bottom.

It’s hard to believe that the holidays are just around the corner again. You can always count on some gorgeous sparkly nail polish collections for the season. Today I have swatches and color comparisons of the new Gelish Haute Holiday Collection! This collection contains six gel polishes; four colors and two Trends glitter toppers. The colors are fairly traditional holiday colors, and some of them are reminiscent of colors from past collections.

All of the colors are a little on the sheer side, but they do build up to a good opacity with three coats.  I found that some of them applied a little streaky, but they self-leveled well and were nice and even after curing.  I didn’t have any other application issues, they applied from edge-to-edge with no pooling or shrinking.

The Gelish MINI Haute Holiday Collection can be purchased at Sally Beauty Supply online at www.sallybeauty.com, or in retail stores.  This collection will be available on shelves from October through December.  You can also purchase directly from the Gelish MINI website at www.getgelished.com!

The winter collection (The Big Chill) will be available from December through February, and I’ll have those swatches as soon as possible.

Here’s to the Blue Year is a dark navy base with some medium-sized hex glitters and some smaller glitters.

Many of you have asked how this color compares to Holiday Party Blues.  In my opinion, the glitter in Here’s to the New Year is a little sparse and feels a bit muted compared to Holiday Party Blues.  The shade of blue is very, very similar but maybe slightly darker.

The colors below from left-to-right are: Gelish Wiggle Fingers…, After Dark, Caution, Holiday Party Blues & Here’s to the Blue Year.

Berry Merry Holidays is a really pretty, dark, berry-toned burgundy with a unique shimmer finish.  You can see little flecks of red and blue-ish purple shimmer throughout.  This shade is very unique to the Gelish line and I think is a must-have.

Sugar Plum Dreams is a shimmery bright red, a classic holiday color.  When compared side-by-side with other reds, this one looks slightly pinkish.

So let’s see how these two reds compare to other sparkly reds in the Gelish line.  Sugar Plum Dreams has a very consistent shimmery finish compared to the glittery finish of All Tied Up. The shimmer is finer than Good Gossip, which is more sparkly.  And Berry Merry Holidays is the darkest shimmery red, next to Wanna Share a Lift?

The colors in the photo below from left-to-right are: Gelish Life of the Party (Trends), With His Red So Bright, Good Gossip, Sugar Plum Dreams, All Tied Up With a Bow, Wanna Share a Lift?, and Berry Merry Holidays.

Below is a blurry shot of the four colors on the right, so that you can really see the unique shimmer of Berry Merry Holidays.

Kisses Under the Mistletoe is a very pretty teal with fine teal glitter throughout.  This one is a little more sheer than the others and does show some visible nail line, but I still rather like it.

Kisses Under the Mistletoe is actually very similar in formula to Just What I Wanted, except the shade is visibly more blue/teal than green.

The colors seen below from left-to-right are: Gelish Mint Icing, Just What I Wanted, Kisses Under the Mistletoe and Oocha Coocha.

Edit:  I forgot to show Race You to the Bottom in my comparison, so here is a picture that includes Race You to the Bottom from last winter’s Snow Escape collection.

Your Sleigh or Mine is a Gelish Trends glitter topper.  Below you can see two coats over my natural nails, but the Trends toppers are also great when worn over color bases.  The two Trends toppers in this collection are very similar to one another as they both have purple and blue glitters, but one has silver glitter and the other has gold.  Your Sleigh or Mine is the silver version.

The two Trends toppers are available as a set here on Amazon, which comes with a free Gelish Top It Off.  The set is called Twinkle Kisses.

Feeling Bubbly is the gold Trends glitter topper, also with blue and purple glitters throughout.

So what are your thoughts on the Haute Holiday collection?  Which ones are your must-haves? 

The Gelish MINI Haute Holiday Collection can be purchased at Sally Beauty Supply online at www.sallybeauty.com, or in retail stores. This collection will be available on shelves from October through December. You can also purchase directly from the Gelish MINI website at www.getgelished.com!

Are you ready to see the new winter colors that Gelish recently released?! This is The Big Chill collection, which is comprised of six cool, shimmery colors. I think you’ll be pleased with this collection because all of the shades are pretty unique and the formula is fantastic. Most colors are opaque with just two coats, and they applied perfectly.

The Big Chill is a LIMITED EDITION collection and will only be available for a limited time.

The Big Chill Collection from Gelish MINI can be purchased at Sally Beauty Supply online at www.sallybeauty.com, or in retail stores.  You can also purchase directly from the Gelish MINI website at www.getgelished.com!

You’ll notice in this post that my nails are much shorter than normal. The cold winter temperatures have done a number on my nails. A couple of them snapped right off, so I’ve been nursing my shorter nails and using lots of cuticle oil to get them back to normal. You’ll see more nail posts from me in the coming weeks! Now let’s get to the colors!

The Big Chill is a pale, light grey with a pearly shimmer finish.  The comparison picture below shows that this is the lightest grey in the Gelish line.  It’s very close to Cashmere Kind of Gal, but slightly lighter and it of course has the pearl finish which makes it different.  I really quite like it.

Snowflakes & Skyscrapers is a darker grey with a multi-colored shimmer finish.  The description on the press release calls this color “taupe pearl”.  I see the taupe shades in the shimmer, but the base color seems very grey to me.  I can see gold and purple flecks in the shimmer.  This is a pretty unique shade, which you can see in the comparison picture above.

Call Me Jill Frost is a really lush, dark purple pearl.  When I first saw the color pops I thought this shade would be just like all of the other purples that I have, but it’s totally not.  It has some blue tones to it, while Berry Buttoned Up has some reddish tones to it.  I’m crazy about shimmery purples, so this has won me over!

I’m Snow Angel is a deep brown-ish red with a golden shimmer.  Again, it’s a really unique shade.  I thought this one would be close to Elegant Wish, but you can see in the comparison photo that it has much better coverage and it’s darker and has more brown tones.

Ice Skate, You Skate, We All Skate is a shimmery dark emerald shade.  It’s a very teal-leaning green.  It’s similar to Race You to the Bottom, but it’s a little darker and the shimmer is more subtle.

My Jewels Keep Me Warm is a coppery pink glitter polish in a pink-tinted sheer base.  This is a really unique polish.  I don’t have anything like it so I compared it with a couple of other Gelish glitters that have the same type of glitter, but they are obviously different colors.  As far as the color goes, it seems to have some orange tints and the shade really reminded me of Cuccio Higher Grounds.  This shade required three coats for opacity, and I had a hard time getting glitter coverage on the tips of my nails which is pretty common.

I actually wore this for Thanksgiving this year and got tons of compliments on it.  I didn’t think I was going to like this, but it was really stunning on my nails.  Love it!

The Big Chill Collection from Gelish MINI can be purchased at Sally Beauty Supply online at www.sallybeauty.com, or in retail stores.  You can also purchase directly from the Gelish MINI website at www.getgelished.com!

Today I have a few swatches from limited edition Gelish collections that were released LAST year for the holidays. I realized as I was looking at my stash spreadsheet that I never swatched these colors on my nails, and for the sake of swatching ALL of the Gelish colors I had to do them. LOL I wrote about these colors last year along with a few comparison photos (see that post here).

Since these colors are from last year, I don’t know what the availability is.  I found all three on Amazon and have linked to the listings below.

This is Gelish Kick Off the New Year from the Year of the Horse Collection.  It’s a really gorgeous holographic glitter polish that has great coverage all on its own.  The swatch below is two coats with no base color.  It reminds me very much of LeChat Hologram Diamond in terms of coverage and sparkle.  Kick Off the New Year has holo glitters of all different shapes and sizes, including some bar glitters.  This is a really fabulous glitter polish for New Years Eve or a festive party!

Red-y For the Festival is also from the Year of the Horse Collection.  It’s a classic red cream with great coverage in just two coats.

And lastly, this is Dancer, Prancer, & Cranberry Vixen from the 2013 Winter Reds Collection.  It’s a dark reddish purple cream, and is also opaque in just two coats.  The other color in this collection was With His Red so Bright, which you can see and read about here.

Starburst was one of the very first gel polish colors that I purchased.  I started off with about 10 colors, and wore this one frequently.  I haven’t used it in a long time and had forgotten how pretty it is!  It’s a medium-to-dark purple with a shimmer finish and is opaque in 2-3 coats.

2012 Flashback!  See my original Starburst swatches here… FYI, I didn’t have the same application issues this time. I think the bottle just needed a good shake!

Cashmere Kind of Gal is a light grey cream that was released in the 2012 House of Gelish Collection.  When I first got this polish it had some issues with wrinkling due to the thickness of the formula.  I added a few drops of gel polish thinner to the bottle and it applies very well now.  This swatch is two coats.

2012 Flashback!  See my original Cashmere Kind of Gal swatches here…

Tip:  Gel polish thinner is great for thinning out polishes with thicker formulas like this one, or to restore older gel polishes that have thickened.  The shelf life of gel polish is said to be 18-24 months, but I have many polishes in my stash that are much older and are still in great condition.  Store the bottles out of direct sunlight, in a moderate temperature (avoid extreme hot or cold temps), and thin them if needed and they should last a good long while!

Gelish and Morgan Taylor have collaborated with Disney and are releasing limited edition Cinderella collections inspired by Disney’s live-action movie, Cinderella.  The movie will open in theaters on March 13th, and the Gelish and Morgan Taylor Cinderella collections will be available for a limited time beginning in February.

Both collections consist of six colors.  Five of the six colors match, and the sixth color is individual to each brand.  Morgan Taylor will also release three duo sets and new Morgan Taylor MINI’s.  Gelish will release three new Trends toppers and Two-of-a-Kind duo packs with the five matching Morgan Taylor shades.

These are the six new Gelish Cinderella colors:

And these are the three new Gelish Trends toppers:

These are the six new Morgan Taylor Cinderella colors.  You can see that the first five are the same, and the sixth color is unique to the brand.

This is just a teaser… I will have a full review with swatches and color comparisons soon!

Morgan Taylor products are available for purchase at www.morgantaylorlacquer.com.
Gelish MINI products are available for purchase at www.sallybeauty.com.

Gelish MINI colors can be purchased at Sally Beauty Supply online at www.sallybeauty.com, or in retail stores. You can also purchase directly from the Gelish MINI website at www.getgelished.com!

Each of the color swatches below shows three coats of color on my natural nails. My nails are short again due to another break (I’m still blaming the cold weather). The formula of the colors was a little inconsistent. Most of them applied a little streaky, which is why I ended up using three coats to get full coverage. Each of the Trends glitter toppers are shown with two coats over my natural nails.

Party at the Palace is a minty teal blue with a beautiful shimmer finish.  This color starts off very sheer, but it builds up to opacity.  You can see that after three coats I still have a little visible nail line.  Party at the Palace is available in a Two-of-a-Kind set with a matching Morgan Taylor shade.

Here is a picture of Party at the Palace next to some other shimmery teals.  It’s not quite as sheer as Oocha Coocha.

During my fade test this color actually changed a little.  With exposure to natural sunlight the color turned slightly more yellow/green.  It was hard to capture in a photo, but in person you can visibly see the difference.  The photo below shows a freshly painted swatch stick on the left, and one that was exposed to sunlight on the right.

My Carriage Awaits is a peachy coral shade with a subtle shimmer.  This is a pretty unique color in the Gelish line.

Here is a side-by-side comparison of My Carriage Awaits with some other peach and coral shades.

Ella of a Girl is a medium pink cream… love the creative play on the name.  This shade is available in a Two-of-a-Kind set with a matching Morgan Taylor shade.

Here it is next to some other light & medium pink shades.  Unfortunately many of my swatch sticks are old and most are now faded, so the comparison photo below isn’t a very accurate depiction of the colors when they are first applied.  The light pinks definitely have a fading issue.

Ella of a Girl also fades to a lighter shade of pink with exposure to the sunlight as you can see in the photo below.  The swatch stick on the left is freshly painted, and the stick on the right was exposed to the sunlight.

Watch Your Step, Sister! is a dark pink cream that leans a bit coral.  I’m really crazy about this color for spring and summer.  This color is available in a Two-of-a-Kind set with a matching Morgan Taylor shade.

Below is the comparison photo of this color.  It’s very similar to Gelish Passion.

If the Slipper Fits is a silvery blue shimmer polish with holographic glitter.  This is a very unique shade to the Gelish line.  The base is pretty sheer, but it also builds up to opacity though you can still see some VNL after three coats.

I didn’t have anything to compare this color to, but I wanted to show it next to some silvers so that you can really see the blue tones.  When I had it on alone it looked very silvery, but when you put it next to greys and silvers it most definitely has a blue-ish hue.

Live Like There’s No Midnight is dark blue with a shimmer finish.  It’s really lovely and sparkly.

Live Like There’s No Midnight looks very similar to Caution, but it’s more shimmery and has more dimension than Caution.

That concludes the six colors, and next at the three TRENDS! The Trends can be purchased in a three piece set or separately.

Stepsisters Rule! is a dark pink Gelish Trends glitter topper mix that has some holographic glitters.  I think this one is really nice when worn on it’s own like this.  In general, I like how most of the Trends toppers look over a natural nail vs over a color.

I applied one coat of Stepsisters Rule! over white, black, and the two pink shades from this collection… Ella of a Girl and Watch Your Step, Sister.  I didn’t realize that my black base only had one coat and is a little streaky until I was editing photos.

Here is a photo of some other pink/red Gelish Trends & glitter toppers.  Shattered Beauty is a fairly close comparison to Stepsisters Rule!

I’ll Make it Fit is a Gelish Trends glitter topper with a multicolor glitter mix.  These glitters seem to take on some jewel tones.  This is also really pretty when worn alone.

In the photo below I have applied one coat of I’ll Make it Fit over white, black and the two blue shades from this collection.

There are a couple of other Gelish Trends that look similar to I’ll Make It Fit… Rays of Sunlight is probably the closest.

A Moment of Magic is the third Gelish Trends glitter topper.   This one has a golden/yellow-tinted base and has yellow, white and a few pink glitter hexes in it in addition to some gold microglitter.  The base looks very yellow in the bottle, but seems to lighten after curing.  Again, I like how this color looks on it’s own without a base color underneath.

In the photo below, I applied A Moment of Magic over white and black.  I don’t care for this shade over dark colors at all, but it might look nice applied over a yellow or gold base.  I was exhausted by the time I got to this swatch and didn’t make the effort to pull out other colors to try it over. These swatch posts take a LONG time!  LOL

Here is a comparison shot of some other gold glitters.  A Moment of Magic is pretty unique.

Gelish MINI colors can be purchased at Sally Beauty Supply online at www.sallybeauty.com, or in retail stores. You can also purchase directly from the Gelish MINI website at www.getgelished.com!

Whew, that was a long post!  Don’t expect anything else from me this week!  Just kidding (or am I?)!  LOL

So, which colors from this collection are your favorites?

Each swatch is shown with three coats of color.  I found the formula of these to be on the thin side and they applied a bit patchy, so I used three coats for full coverage.  Some of these colors caused my camera to freak out a little, so please be sure to read the corresponding notes.

Gelish Do You Harajuku? is a minty pastel green with a subtle shimmer.

Here is a comparison picture that shows Do You Harajuku? next to some other pale greens and teals.  Do You Harajuku? is lighter than Gelish Kiss Me I’m a Prince and is more of a pure green than teal.  I added some yellow-leaning greens on the left side to show that it’s not yellow either.  It’s a nice unique shade.

From left to right: Gelish You’re Such a Sweet-Tart, Gelish Lime All the Time, Gelish Do you Harajuku?, DIY Minty Fresh, Gelish Kiss Me I’m a Prince, OPI That’s Hula-rious, and Gelish Seafoam.

Gelish Look at You, Pink-achu! is a bubble gum pink cream.  My camera may have made this one appear slightly brighter than it is.

I would consider this color to be a medium pink that’s on the bright and cheery side, but isn’t so bright it’s neon.  Below is a picture of Look at You Pink-achu mixed in with some other medium pinks.  I have a really hard time comparing my pink swatch sticks because many of them have faded over time.  Many of the Gelish pinks are faders, but I haven’t had time to test any of these colors for fading yet since I just got them and rushed to get swatches done.  I will report back if I find any issues.  (Update 5/17/15: I’m  happy to report that I didn’t find any fading issues with this color, or any other color in the collection!)

From left to right: Gelish Ella of a Girl, LeChat Cotton Candy, OPI Suzy Shops & Island Hops, ibd Funny Bone, Gelish Look at You Pink-achu!, LeChat Paradise (from the new Oasis collection), Gelish Make You Blink Pink, and Gelish Sugar ‘n Spice.

Gelish Anime-zing Color! is a gorgeous blurple cream. My camera really freaks out when I try to photograph blue-leaning purples and it always makes them look more blue than they are.  I tried color correcting this photo so that it has more purple tones, but I can’t guarantee the accuracy at all.  It’s not quite that glow-y.  The comp photo below may be a closer match.

I put this color next to some blues and purples to try to show how it compares.  You can see that it’s somewhere right in the middle… a perfect blurple.  I love these shades, I just wish my camera did too.  Gelish doesn’t have any other shades that are quite like this one.  LeChat Sweet Iris is probably the closest match that I own.

From left to right: LeChat Frozen Cold Spell (mood), Gelish You Glare I Glow, LeChat Sweet Iris, Gelish Anime-zing Color, LeChat Into the Deep (new Oasis collection), Gelish Mali-Blu Me Away, Shellac Purple Purple.

Gelish Tokyo a Go Go is a pink-leaning purple cream… another awesome shade.

Tokyo a Go Go is nice and bright compared to other similar colors in my stash.  I was hoping to compare it to Carnival Hangover, but I can’t find my swatch stick or my bottle.  TruGel just launched a color called Hypnotic that’s pretty similar in shade in their Neon Daze collection (swatches coming soon).

From left to right: Gelish It’s a Lily, Couture Glam Squad, ibd Cashmere Cutie, Gelish Tokyo a Go Go, TruGel Hypnotic, and Gelish Tahiti Hottie.

Gelish Pop-arazzi Pose is a bright red-leaning neon pink cream.

Below is a comparison photo that shows Gelish Pop-arazzi next to some other red-leaning Gelish pinks.  It’s not obvious from this photo, but Pop-arazzi is a little brighter than most of these other shades.  It’s a great beach-going color.

From left to right: Gelish Gossip Girl, All Dahlia-ed Up, Pop-arazzi Pose, A Petal for Your Thoughts, and Passion.

Gelish Manga-round With Me is a coral-leaning neon pink cream.  My photo may glow a little more than real life, but this color is definitely bright!

I put this color side-by-side with some other bright coral-leaning pinks and oranges for comparison.

From left to right: Gelish Rockin’ the Reef, Gelish I’m Brighter Than You, LeChat Sunkissed (from the  new Oasis collection), Gelish Manga-Round With Me, LeChat Rose Glow, TruGel Beach Club Babe (from the new Neon Daze collection), Gelish Brights Have More Fun, and Gelish Shake it Til You Samba.

These colors pop all on their own, but I wonder how they would look when applied over white.   I may have to do some experiments, and I definitely want to try some nail art with these!

I found most of these colors available on Amazon.com in the duo sets (linked to above).  You can also purchase the color individually from Esther’s Nail Center, and if you buy all six from this site you can get a free Gelish travel case.

Which colors are your favorites?

I recently received a batch of Gelish bottles that I purchased and my immediate thought was… “Are these authentic?!” My bottles didn’t have the signature Harmony wording down the side that I’m used to seeing. I also received a few questions from readers asking the same thing, so I reached out to my contact at Esther’s Nail Center to inquire since they are a distributor. She confirmed that they are indeed authentic and that the bottle design has changed. All newly released bottles (including older colors) will now have the new label design.

I took some photos of the old and new designs to show you what authentic bottles of Gelish look like. I don’t have any knock-off bottles to photograph, but I’m aware of some of the characteristics.

The front of the bottle no longer says “Patent Pending”, and the “Harmony” signature has been removed.  If your bottle has any other text down the side of it such as Kissgel or CCO, it’s NOT a Gelish product!   Some of the Gelish collections have a slightly different look than the standard bottles.  The ones I can think of that look different are the Trends, Sizzling Summer Nights, Magneto, and Aurora FX.

Above is a side view of the two bottles, and below is a back view.  You’ll notice that the new labels have a dark green box that says “Gelish Authentic”, and it also has a little arrow on the corner that tells you the label can be peeled back to reveal more info.

The new bottles now list the patent numbers on the side.

The labels on the bottoms of the bottles have also changed in various ways.  The batch number is printed on the new labels, whereas the old bottles have the batch number printed in yellow text underneath the label.  You have to peel the label off completely to see it.

Both labels can be peeled back to reveal even more information including the ingredients.

And here’s a quick look at what you will see when you peel the back label on the new bottle – information in French, Spanish and Italian.

Check your bottles for any discrepancies.  As mentioned, watch for any wording other than “Harmony” down the side of the bottle.  Another telltale sign can be the shape of the cap.  If you look at a Gelish bottle from the top the cap should appear square with rounded corners and have a dimple right in the middle.  Gelish bottles are all clear with a white coating that stops at the bottom of the neck of the bottle, with the exception of the Trends.  The Trends labels don’t have the little window and the bottles are a dark color instead of clear.

This is just an informational post that I hope you find helpful.  I was confused, so I figured some of you may be as well.  If you can think of any other unique characteristics of Gelish bottles, or knock-offs, please leave a comment.  Thanks!

The Gelish collection consists of three unique colors and one Trends glitter topper.  The formula of these polishes was very nice.  They applied evenly and provided full coverage with just two coats.  I did experience some curing issues with the two pinks though – they didn’t cure completely in my Gelish 18G lamp in 30 seconds.  When I applied my top coat some of the color pulled right off, so I reapplied and cure for 60 seconds.

Postcards from Paris is a light minty teal cream.  I love teals, but I do have several others that are very similar.  It’s brighter and more blue-toned than Gelish Seafoam, and it’s lighter and also more blue than Gelish Mint of Spring.

Cancan We Dance is a unique peach-leaning pink with an iridescent purple shimmer.  I think my camera pulled out more of the pink tones, but in most lights it appears more peachy.  It’s a very unique shade to the Gelish line.

Amour Color Please is a purple-leaning pink with the same purple iridescent shimmer.  I also don’t have any other colors quite like this one.  It’s similar in shade to Ink Dilemma, and it also reminds me a little of Gelaze Purple Panic, except not quite as bright.

Escar-go to France is a Trends glitter topper with multi-colored glitter. There are light pink, dark pink, light blue, and holographic glitters in a clear base.

What do you think of the colors in this collection?  I love that there are some new unique shades, but I wish they were more readily available.

In this post you will see my swatch photos and a description of each color.  In an effort to keep this post from being extremely long and photo-heavy I will create a separate post in a couple of days that shows comparisons to existing shades on swatch sticks, so be sure to watch for that!  Most of the colors in this collection are very unique to the Gelish line, which I’m excited about.

Tan My Hide is a pale nude cream with a subtle shimmer.  This might be the lightest neutral shade from Gelish yet.  It’s a very pale tan shade that leans slightly pink.  This color applied a tad bit streaky and I found that three coats were needed for even coverage.

Tex’as Me Later is a dark, rosy pink with a frost finish.  As with most frosts, this color does show brushstrokes so long base-to-tip strokes are recommended for an even finish.  I experienced some shrinkage with this color and found it to be a little thin.  I applied three coats for optimal coverage.

Holy Cow Girl! is sage green with a subtle shimmer.  This is one of those colors that appears green to the eye, but when compared with my swatch sticks it actually leans much more grey than green.  This color is a two-coater!

Chain Reaction is a gorgeous pewter metallic with a frosty finish.  This color will also show some brushstrokes, but the application was flawless.  It covered from edge to edge with no shrinking and was almost completely opaque with just one coat!  This swatch shows two coats for good measure.

From Rodeo to Rodeo Drive is a purple-leaning taupe with a slight pearlescent shimmer.  This is such a difficult color to classify as I see shades of grey, purple and taupe all in one.  It’s definitely unique to the Gelish line and is a stunning shade for Fall!  This is two coats.

Plum Tuckered Out is a dark purple cream.  I was amazed at how evenly this color applied, and at the viscosity.  It was thick enough to provide full coverage with just two coats!  There are many dark purple shades in the Gelish line and I personally have a hard time distinguishing them from one another.  This shade does lean a little more plum than most of the others if you look closely.

Seal the Deal is a super dark burgundy with a pink-ish purple shimmer.  I feel that my photo doesn’t do this color justice!  It’s a lovely rich color that’s perfect for the season.  This is also a two-coater!

Pumps or Cowboy Boots? is described as a black/brown cream.  Before reading the description of this color I actually thought it was more burgundy-leaning than brown.  It definitely has some reddish tones to me, and almost matches my Black Cherry Berry exactly.  My bottle of Black Cherry Berry is very very dark like this, though I’ve seen other swatches where it’s a lighter shade of burgundy… I’m not sure why that is to be honest.

As far as consistency goes, this color is Plum Tuckered Out’s twin.  It also was nice and thick and provided full, even coverage in two coats.  One note of warning though is that both of these colors needs to be applied very thinly because they wrinkle easily.  My middle nail wrinkled pretty bad, but after applying the top coat it wasn’t noticeable.

So what do y’all think of this new collection??  I like the colors much more than I thought I would!  The first five shades in this post are the most original of the bunch.

And just a fair warning that this will probably be the last time you see my almond-shaped nails for a while.  I chopped them all off and am starting over with my square shape again.  :)  I do love the look of the almond shape and am glad I tried it.  My nails were actually the longest they’ve ever been when I took these photos!  I just feel they’re harder to maintain, and I’m afraid I might poke an eye out with them.  Back to “square” one.  ;)

I posted swatches of the new Gelish Urban Cowgirl Collection a few days ago, and many of you are wondering how the colors compare to existing colors. Many of the colors in this collection are original and unique, but a few have some similar shades. I also conducted a fade test on the colors, and will note any issues along the way.

First let’s take a look at all of the colors in the collection side-by-side. You can click on this photo and all others in this post for a larger view.  You can see that the last three colors are similar in shade and darkness, but have some different hues.

I compared Chain Reaction with other silver/pewter-toned metallic shades.  Chain Reaction is the brightest silver and has better coverage than most.  Seen below from left-to-right are: Gelish Chain Reaction, Couture High Maintenance, Gelish Showstopping, Gelish Iron Princess (magnetic), and Madam Glam Milkyway.

Here is Holy Cow-Girl next to other sage shades.  There aren’t any other Gelish shades that even come close to this color.  From left-to-right are: LeChat Tranquility, Gelish Holy Cow-Girl, CND Shellac Wild Moss, BMC Cafe au Lait, and ProGel Teal Dawn.

Gelish Tan My Hide is a very pale neutral color, and I put it next to a few super light pinks and some very pale tan nudes so that you can see how it falls in the middle.  From left-to-right are: BMC Peaceful Harmony, ibd I’m No Damsel, Gelish Tan My Hide, Gelish Forever Beauty, DIY Nudist, and Pink Gellac Champagne.

Unfortunately Tan My Hide does FADE! :(  The color loses its pink tones and turns more yellow/tan over time.  What a bummer!

Gelish From Rodeo to Rodeo Drive is another original color that is unlike any others in the Gelish line.  I put it next to a few other neutrals that are purple/plum leaning.  You can see that Rodeo Drive is a little more taupe than the others, but it’s not brown.  It didn’t look anything like any of the brown taupe shades that I have, so I left those out.  From left-to-right are: Pink Gellac Naked, Pink Gellac Pure Cashmere, Gelish Rodeo Drive, and ProGel Secret Scene.

I found that Rodeo Drive also FADES slightly in the sun.  It’s not quite as obvious as Tan My Hide, but it definitely loses some of the purple hues and looks more taupe/brown after a while.

Here is Tex’as Me Later next to some other frosty pinks.  This color has some dusty rose qualities to it and is most similar to Sally Hansen Raisin the Bar.  There aren’t any other Gelish shades quite like it.  From left-to-right are Ink Berry Funk, Pink Gellac Candy Pink, Gelish Tex-as Me Later, Sally Hansen Raisin the Bar and Madam Glam Bombshell (different finish, but similar shade).

Tex’as Me Later also changed ever so slightly in the sun and turned a little more dusty, losing some pink tones.  This change was so slight that my camera didn’t even pick the difference, so I don’t have a photo of this.

Pumps or Cowboy Boots is a difficult color to describe.  Gelish says it’s black/brown, but I see some deep burgundy tones so I put it next to some other dark burgundy shades.  Gelish has so many of these dark burgundy and purple shades that they all start to look the same to me.  If I didn’t have my swatch sticks labeled there’s no way I’d ever tell them all apart.  From left to right: Gelish Dancer Prancer, Gelish All About Me, Gelish Love Me Like a Vamp, Gelish Pumps or Cowboy Boots, Gelish Black Cherry Berry, and Gelish Inner Vixen.

Seal the Deal is also a dark burgundy shade, but it stands out because it has a pretty pinkish-purple shimmer finish.  I put it next to some similar shades.  From left-to-right are: LeChat Night at the Cinema, Daisy Queen of Grape, Gelish Seal the Deal and ibd Midnight Martinis.

Plum Tuckered Out is a very dark plum shade.  Again, Gelish has so many of these types of shades, but this one does look a little more plum than some of the others.  I couldn’t find my bottle or swatch stick of Plum and Done for comparison, so that one is not shown.  The three shades on the left lean more burgundy than purple, but I wanted to show how these shades tend to look alike.  From left-to-right are: Gelish Dancer Prancer, Gelish All About Me, Gelish Love Me Like a Vamp, CND Plum Paisley, Gelish Plum Tuckered Out, Gelish Diva, and Gelish Perfect Silhouette.