Thursday, December 11, 2008

Swatches: China Glaze Romantique Spring 2009 Collection

If you noticed, the other day (on Twitter) I said these were ugly and disappointing, and I didn't even want to swatch them.

Well, the sun was out yesterday and I got around to swatching them and I think I've changed my mind!

In the bottles they do look pretty ugly. Bland, boring, would never catch my eye on a shelf among other more interesting polish collections.

However, on the nails they're actually really cool. They're a frosty metallic texture. Not really chrome or reflective, but a smooth shimmery type of metallic. Sort of futuristic looking. Not all of the colors are 'my thing', but there are a few that I'm seriously digging.

These are sold in two halves like past China Glaze collections, a warm selection and a cool selection. I don't remember which are which, so I'll present them alphabetically.

As always, please click on the pictures to view them full size- I try to leave them really big so you can see the detail of the polish :)


Admire. See? Isn't it cool? Admire is a cool silvery pinkish color. For once, a pink that is flattering on me!


Adore. I don't know what color this is. I want to say blue, but it seems more... teal? Is it turquoise? I say it's blue. This is one of my favorites. Spaceman blue. (... Cause you're the one that I adore... We must never be apart....We must never be apart... )


Awaken. Awaken, take the land that must be taken! Okay, sorry, had to do it. Ten points to anyone who gets the joke :) Aaaaanyway, it's a gorgeous blued-charcoal metallic. Looks really similar to some of China Glaze's other charcoal metallics, but the texture of this one is superior. Smooth and opaque, very lovely.


Cherish. A frosty mint green. This one was disappointing to me. How many light mint greens do we need, honestly? I can think of four other polishes I have that look like this. Nail polish companies: stop making light greens. We want rich, deep, saturated forest greens!!! Cherish the thought of always having you here by my side...



Delight. Kind of a bronzy brown with a reddish mauve tint to it. This is one of the ones I thought looked really ugly in the bottle, but once I put it on my nails I decided that I liked it. (Uhh... sky rockets in flight??)



Devotion. Sweet devotion, it's not for me... Just give me motion and set me free.... Seriously, all of these names are reminding me of songs. Maybe they did that on purpose. Devotion is a gorgeous frosty silver. Right up my alley, I'll definitely be wearing this one.


Emotion. Sweeeeeet emotion.... Metallic medium warm-ish pink. Plain, but pretty. The color doesn't wow me but I like the finish. I would probably never wear this, but I'm sure it will be a popular color. But I need some time of from that emotion, time to pick my heart up off the floor...


Harmony. Unforgettable harmony. Holy crap, did I just sing Barry Manilow lyrics?! I'm embarrassed for myself. *ahem* Harmony is a drop-dead gorgeous metallic purple. I really love this one. It's bright and shiny and PURPLE!!! .... together in perfect harmony...



Joy. Have I no control, is my soul not mine? Am I not just man, destiny defined? (That's one of my favorite songs ever. Anyone know it?) Joy is a really stunning muted purple metallic. This might be my favorite of the entire collection. Truly lovely. Joy to the world...


Magical. There's not too much magic in this one. It's a pretty yet bland pinkish silver. Kind of... champagne? It's not really gold, but it's too pink to call it pure silver. I can't think of a song lyric for this one.


Passion. Wow, I can't think of a song lyric for this one either! Totally gorgeous light gold metallic. Might be tied with Joy for my favorite. I would wear this all the time. It rocks.
(Ooh, I think I have a song. Amy Rose's theme in Sonic Adventure is called My Sweet Passion...)


Poetic. I'm not sure what to call this color, either. Light metallic dusty rose? Mauve? Pretty but again, not anything special. It doesn't wow me, but I still like it.


Overall, I do like this collection. As I said, my first impression of it was that it was really ugly and boring. It's not. The bottle color is very deceptive, because once you put these on your nail they're really fascinating. And the more I think about it, the more I appreciate China Glaze for doing different collections. I mean, look at some of the other collections that were released recently. Essie Winter, OPI La Collection de France and Holiday in Toyland, Lippmann and Rescue Beauty Lounge's recent collections... This collection is nothing like any of those. I'm not sure if it's because it's meant for a different season, but this is totally unique. Essie would have released red and pink cremes, OPI would have done maybe some interesting vampy shimmers, but China Glaze released pastel metallics. I like that.

The formula was pretty nice on these. It was still a little runny and goopy like three-free polishes tend to be, but these went on nice and smooth with minimal running or streaking and they were surprisingly opaque. The were a little quicker to dry than usual as well. I have no complaints.

The names are really hard to remember. It's like OPI's Designer Series with the one word names that aren't the least bit memorable or descriptive and they're all really similar. Design, Desire, Extravagance, Exclusive, Elegant... How am I supposed to mentally connect the name of the polish with the color? I need a cheat sheet or something.

I found it amusing that most of the names immediately made me think of songs. I suppose that the names are generic enough that the words are used in a variety of songs, and maybe they meant it that way. Maybe I'm just nutty.

So... what do you think? I say: Awesome finish, bland colors, but a very versatile and pretty collection.

32 comments:

  1. Joy looks absolutely lovely, and I'm also disappointed in the green. I wish more nail-polish companies would create deep, emerald-like polishes. Actually...wait...maybe not. Then I'd be broke! :P Anyway...thanks for the gorgeous swatches. You've done it again, Scrangie!

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  2. I love them Scrangie!! And i need to know what other 4 minty greens you have, cuz Cherish sure looks nothing like what i have LOL! I'm waiting on the cool set from H2T and i can't wait til they arrive... Thanks for the piccies! :D

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  3. Atomica, exactly! Don't they know that every time a gorgeous emerald green comes out, we all go INSANE and buy multiple bottles (or is that just me doing it? lol)

    Michelle, off the top of my head, Essie Mint Chintz, Love My Nails Envy, Pure Ice First Time, Milani Key Lime Shine, OPI Keep Off The Grass... I'm sure there are more, but those are the ones I've worn recently :) Light greens seem to be a popular color with polish companies for some reason..

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  4. I remember seeing a blackish nail polish with very-fine emerald-green microshimmer/fine glitter (not sure). I'm kicking myself for not buying it. Maybe you have it? It's Nicole by OPI, but I don't know the name of the shade.

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  5. Atomica, I think I know which you're talking about! There was a set of black Nicoles that all had different colored shimmer. I have Black To The Future, Blues in the Night, Black Cat-cha Later and one other one, can't remember the name. Mine are mostly blue, I haven't seen the green anywhere :(

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  6. Love the swatches! You make ev polish look beautiful! My boyfriend got the entire collection for me for our anniversary, I was so hoping the order would arrive in time for our dinner on Monday...but I don't think they will :( The names are very appropriate for the occasion, I guess! :p

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  7. And Scrangie--I've seen that black with green glitter Nicole since the drugstores here carry them. I can't remember the name off the top of my head either, Nicole names don't really have any connection to the colors either....well, not as bad as these ChGs or the OPI DS's but still bad.

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  8. Oh man, that's intense. Did you do that all in one day? The colors are nice. Oh, and hi.

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  9. I'm loving Adore! :) And nothing like a bit of Barry Manilow :P

    All these swatches are so awesome! Thanks so much for these :)

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  10. I will get the cool set as a Christmas gift from a friend. I think they look pretty nice. I even consider to get the warm set even if I really look better in cooler colors. OK, I do prefer deeper colors, but sometimes a pale metallic can look nice.

    And I only have one minty shimmery green, I think, from Cover Girl. ;D

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  11. Hahaha! Awesome! Nail polish and Dethklok!

    I was thinking that this collection would be too pastel-y, but there are a couple of shades that I think woulc be summer-perfect. I can already see my toes in sandals!
    (Wishful thinking with an ice storm outside!)

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  12. My favorite think about this collection was the finish o of the polish. For me, they were kind of metallic looking inside and then outside, like yours, they were super shimmery! I also find myself these days using 3 coats of color most times, so these were nice because they were so opaque I truly only needed 2.

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  13. Thank you Scrangie for swatching these. I also love Joy! I think it's the one that stands out the most in the collection, I'm not so much for the pastels...

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  14. I am definitely getting Joy, I am not to sure about any of the others. Thanks for showing us!

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  15. +10 points for quoting Dethklok and VNV Nation!

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  16. I was thinking Harmony by Elton John..."Harmony & me, we're pretty good company...Harmony...gee I really love you and I want to love you forever". For the Passion polish, I'd go with A Passion Play by Jethro Tull or REM Talk about the Passion.

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  17. Like the colors (even the mint green as I don't have a polish in that shade), but I'm not so wild about the finish. I don't dislike metallics, but they're prone to visible brush marks which I'm not so crazy about and these look like it'd be difficult to get them look nice and smooth. Joy and Delight look like must haves though!

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  18. i give you bonus points for working VNV nation lyrics into the Joy polish description adn i'm still kicking myself in the ass for not buying it when i ordered harmony, adore and cherish..which mu hubby is still not letting me have till x-mas...the schmoo

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  19. Thanks for showing all of these! I think they look cool enough to own, yet I don't feel the usual post-Scrangie-swatch-watch urge to order them as fast as possible. Maybe it's my lack of love for shipping charges... maybe it's my fear of brush strokes... maybe it's my huge stash of "haven't tried" bottles staring at me conveying their feelings of neglect...

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  20. I think Harmony and passion are the ones that interst me the most.
    great swatches:)

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  21. OMG, I just have to have Adore, Harmony and Passion! But I was wondering, is Devotion purple-y at all? Some people were calling it a lavender.

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  22. Karman, thank you :D I bet they will look awesome on your beautiful nails! And I don't know why they name things such nondescript names. It's annoying!

    Chrisssss, thanks! And hello! I did do them all in one day, along with 45 other polishes. :D

    Lina-Elvira, thank you <3

    Sminkan, I think you'll like these. I bet you can make them look even cooler once you spice them up with your awesome nail art :D

    Stubby, saves you money :D I'm not liking OPI's spring collection either! boo!

    HoneyHoneyNY, YESSS I love you! Hahaha :D

    Katee, me too. A total surprise, I almost wrote them off completely!

    Marie, isn't it beautiful? I'm not into pastels, so I was happy to see it :D

    Angel, you're welcome! Joy is really pretty, I'm wearing it now!

    Felis, YAY!!! You rock <3

    Lisa, ooh those are good ones! I didn't even think of those. Rock on :)

    Diana, oh man I know what you mean about the brushstrokes. These aren't as bad as some other metallics (like OPI Glamour Game), the brushstrokes fade a bit once they're dry, but are never truly smooth.

    Christine, VNV Nation is my favorite band in the entire universe, so I had to work it in there somehow :D It's so awesome you know the song!! <3

    Fauxfun, ahh I know how you feel :) I wasn't even crazy about the collection but I had to at least swatch them. They're cool but not OMGMUSTHAVEITNOW cool, you know?

    Sanna, thank you :D

    MariahGem, it does have a hint of lavender in it, but it's too silvery to call it a true purple/lavender. It's like how some gunmetal shades look blue, this is a silver with a hint of purple. Confusing enough? lol ;-)

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  23. Well, I tried some of these on and was surprised to find most of the polishes had these weird fibers or something in it! Anyone else have that problem?

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  24. Lisa, that is very strange! I haven't experienced that- anyone else?? Weird!

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  25. Wow, they all look great on you! It's funny how some polishes just need to be tried on before you can appreciate them. Good to see China Glaze doing it's own thing

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  26. Scrangie, thanks for a great blog. I live in regional Australia, and usually need to order online.
    Is Harmony anything like Anklets of Amethyst by the same company do you think?thanks.

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  27. Stephanie, thanks! Me too :)

    Noyna, Hm, Anklets of Amethyst is a similar color, but the textures are very different. Anklets of Amethyst is a sheer-ish shimmer polish. It's very, very shimmery and maybe a little more on the red side of purple, harmony seems to be more on the blue side of purple. I have a picture on NailGal if that helps :)

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  28. I picked up Awaken and Joy and just put Awaken on. I really love how it looks on me. Very flattering ;) I may go back and get Adore. I really am anxious for the Summer collection to come out though. Those look awesome.

    Speaking of 3 free, do you know if Finger Paints is 3 free?

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  29. Phyrra, awesome! And I'm pretty sure Finger Paints brand is 3-free :)

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  30. I recently got this collection (warm 6pack) and I was dissapointed...I thought they were going to be a lot more chromy, shimmery! But they just rnt for me. Wish I could exchange it for the island escape collection! Lol

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  31. OH MY GOD YOU WATCH METALOCALYPSE. Nuff said, fav blogger.

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