| hal-uh-ween |
"(a shortening of All Hallows’ Evening), also known as Hallowe'en or All Hallows' Eve, is a yearly holiday observed around the world on 31 October, the night before All Saints' Day.
Typical festive Halloween activities include trick-or-treating (also known as "guising"), attending costume parties, carving jack-o'-lanterns, lighting bonfires, apple bobbing, visiting haunted attractions, playing pranks, telling scary stories, and watching horror films" - Wikipedia
(I'd like to add Halloween-inspired nail art painting to the list)

This is not a trick, lovelies. China Glaze Halloween treats drifted in early this year! I've been eyeing them since March. Nail mail has never materialised into a blog post this fast for me.

This is a 6-piece collection, but Roguish Red was not on my to-buy list. Sorry to disappoint, but I won't have a swatch for it. If you know me well, you'll know that I tend to shy away from bright reds, corals and oranges, among a few others.(I have no idea where I got this Russ Halloween kitty from, or why I still have it, but it's the only occasion-appropriate prop I could find)

Visually, this collection exudes a typical Halloween vibe. You've got a red for blood, a grey for tombstones (as mindpolish was quick to point out), a glittery orangey copper for Jack O'-Lantern, a blue-purple for the magic of witches and wizards, a sheer iridescent for ethereal apparitions, and a dingy green-gold for monsters, creepy crawlies and everything else in between.

Bizarre Blurple
From its name and promo shots, Bizarre Blurple suggests hints of duochrome or shimmer. In reality, it's a rich blue-purple shade with subtle blue shimmer, and an even subtler purple shimmer.

Here's 2 coats of Bizarre Blurple (over 1 coat of butter LONDON Nail Foundation, with 1 coat of Cult Nails Wicked Fast top coat; for all subsequent swatches as well, unless indicated otherwise):

Indoors, artifical light

On the first coat, it seems like intense blue pigments and shimmer particles were thrown into a purple jelly base. The formula was easy to work with, achieving full opacity in 2 coats. I was anxious about visible brush strokes, but it was self-leveling. It dried smooth and glossy, even without a top coat.
I'd like to think that the magical shimmery finish of Bizarre Blurple resembles the lush, velvety cloak of a wizard. Magical, because sometimes you see it (under bright lighting), sometimes you don't (under low lighting). But it is more impressive on the nails than in the bottle.

Bizarre Blurple is not a terribly unique shade to some, but the closest polish I have is Orly Mysterious Curse (the name's very Halloween-appropriate too!). Here's how they compare:

Pinky & middle finger: China Glaze Bizarre Blurple. Ring and index fingers: Orly Mysterious Curse

While Bizarre Blurple is a (subtle) shimmer, Mysterious Curse is a metallic, two-coater (subtle) duochrome that shifts from teal to purple. Brush strokes are also slightly more visible with Mysterious Curse, but the formula was a breeze to work with.

(Note: Double up on the base coat with these 2 polishes for staining's a b*tch)

Cast A Spell
This one's a foil, rich with olive green, antique gold shimmer and fine glitter particles in a black base. I'm a sucker for such colours and finish, even though this might not be groundbreakingly new or unique.

But this one casted a spell on me at first swipe. Lo and behold - one coat and top(coat)less!

Outdoors, daylight

Indoors, daylight.

It is generously pigmented, and the consistency of the formula is divine. It leveled seamlessly on the nails. Once I'd gotten the hang of it, I didn't even need to clean up the ring finger and pinky (I work from index to pinky, most of the time).

Where have I seen a similar shade? *rummages through stash* The closest polish I have is Nubar Verde and here's a comparison:

Pinky & middle finger: China Glaze Cast A Spell. Ring & index fingers: Nubar Verde

Verde has a teal tinge to it, so it's nowhere close. Streaky on the first coat, but 2 coats and it's opaque. A layer of top coat was needed for gloss. Depth-wise, not as striking as Cast A Spell.

Immortal
Never trust promo shots. It''s usually overwhelming or vice versa. In this case, the promo shots do not do this unique grey any justice. I loved Cast A Spell for obvious reasons, but Immortal is an unexpected surprise!

Immortal is a slate grey creme, with turqoise and fuchsia shimmer!

Here's Immortal in 2 coats:

Outdoors, daylight

Indoors, daylight

Indoors, daylight

Although pretty pigmented, I find the viscosity a tad runny, but I'll take runny over goopy any day. It dries to some level of gloss, but nothing comparable to Cast A Spell's.
Immortal is edgy, without being vampy, with a hint of girliness.

Now, I don't have other polishes in a similar shade to compare this with. I take it as a sign of good-buy.

Glitter Goblin
What's a Halloween collection without glitter? This year's offering is a mix of small, orangey-copper and holographic hex glitter in a clear base. Again, do not trust promo shots. This one's disappointing. Orangey-copper shades aren't attractive to me, or on me. With a name like Glitter Goblin, I was expecting something more sneaky and intense.

I do, however, like that it's packed with holo glitter that glows and does its magic in the sunlight. Unfortunately, the sun went down by the time I swatched this.

Nevertheless, here's Glitter Goblin in 2 coats:

Indoors, artificial light

Indoors, artficial light

This medium-density glitter spreads rather easily over the nails, without having to continually fish for glitter. So, you get the option of using it as a glitter top coat over a base colour, or 2 to 3 coats for a full glitter-bombed mani. The gritty texture was tamed with a layer of top coat.

Here are some variations over the other polishes from this collection (click on image to enlarge):

Maybe I'll try it over black one day and call it "The Slutty Pumpkin" (guess what this is in reference to).
Continue on below for Glitter Goblin over Bizarre Blurple.

Make A Spectacle
I've noticed a few people speculating if Make A Spectacle is another Lush And Luxe from China Glaze's The Hunger Games Capitol Colors collection. Not quite.
Looking at it through the bottle, my first instinct was to grab Snow Globe to compare. They have that same iridescent hex glitter. Make A Spectacle has a frosty white glow to it, while Snow Globe's clear base seem more off-white.

Bottle shot of China Glaze Snow Globe

Here's Make A Spectacle in 1 coat:

Outdoors, daylight

Along with the iridescent hex glitter, this ethereal beauty also consists of tiny iridescent flecks. (I'm still debating if it's flakies, but flakies are larger, and colour-shifting, no?)

In 2 coats:

Outdoors, daylight

(Oh gosh, feeling conscious of my irregular nail beds.)
LOVE how the flecks add a little twinkle to the areas not covered by glitter. The formula is thicker than the others, but manageable.

Here's a close-up showing the mentioned flecks:

And here's how it compares with Snow Globe and Lush And Luxe (all in one coat over Bizarre Blurple):

From left: China Glaze Snow Globe, Make A Spectacle and Lush And Luxe.

And before I put my Reynolds Wrap^® Aluminum Foil to good use, here's a parting shot:

From left: Glitter Goblin over Luush And Luze, Make A Spectacle and Snow Globe, (all over Bizarre Blurple)

So, will any part of China Glaze's Wicked Collection have a home in your stash? I'd love to know if you've spotted any dupes.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

***UPDATE***
For those outside the US, if you're keen on getting your hands on the full China Glaze Wicked Collection now, head to Star Trinkets and drop her an email. Priced at SGD 60 for a set of 6 (including Roguish Red) + SGD 15 for shipping.

Disclaimer: I am not sponsored/ endorsed by any of the above-mentioned companies. All opinions expressed are my own, and will always be. All products were purchased by me.