Hi
Goddesses
I wanted to
do a post which evaluated how good or bad the nail polish world has been to us
this year. I am aware that my readers
are split about 50/50 between well-read nailaholics who know more than I do,
and real nail newbies who appreciate being pointed in the right direction.
So here you
have my opinions on the output of the main brands, together with my ultimate
winner of the year.
OPI
Let’s start
with the biggest. OPI was the reason I became
re-obsessed with nail polish because a workmate wears them all the time with
minimal chipping. A quick journey
through ebay and I saw their preference for reddish colours (matched my own at
the time) and an obsession was born.
Since then,
I have been educated, and I have come to realise that the Queen has lost her
crown. Newer brands have become better,
and other brands have overtaken her. OPI
no longer rules the roost. Why ? I don’t know.
Maybe they became complacent, maybe they didn’t realise what other
brands had up their sleeves, but OPI have been well and truly left on the shelf
this year, churning out dull crèmes and only briefly hinting at their heyday
with The Muppets Collection.
Final
Verdict - A really disappointing year.
Zoya
So after my
OPI obsession, came Zoya. No one does
purples like Zoya. They also use a small
brush – neater application – and have smaller bottles height-wise – better storage.
Zoya have
released some beautiful collections this year, yet I’m quite shocked to end the
year without feeling the love for them.
I literally could not wait to get my hands on Smoke & Mirrors when
it came out, and yet have not been wearing it half as often as I expected.
All this
though is only half the story. Zoya have
– in my eyes – the best customer respect on the planet, and do awesome
giveaways regularly, just because they love their customers. They also do the best nail polish remover.
Final
verdict – a solid year, with much expected in 2012 – we’ve seen photos of the
flecked top coats, and the Zoya fairies still keep whispering about holos. I am sure if Zoya do a holo, it will be the
most beautiful ever made.
China Glaze
I had never
heard of China Glaze before this year, but d’you know what, if I was
recommending just 1 brand to a beginner, it would be this one.
CG is
reasonably priced, offer great colours, do glitters, holos, crèmes, shimmers, the best crackles –
you name it, you can find it in the CG catalogue.
Their collections this year may not have set the world on fire, but
there have still been interesting individual polishes.
Final
verdict – a solid year, with great expecations for 2012 and The Hunger Games
collection.
Color Club
Color Club –
what’s to fault? Awesome polishes, great
application, holos, glitters and yes!
FOILS !!
Final Verdict
- It’s been a great year for Color Club, and all at an insanely affordable
price.
Sally
Hansen
Good ole
Sally. She may be nearly 100 years old,
but she still keeps knocking them out! Lol.
Again, a
brand I was unaware of in the UK but wow – good prices, great colours and
application and a full range of finishes.
Final
Verdict – good, not spectacular, but good
A-England
This baby
was born this year, and wow was she born with great qualities. A stunning range of colours, amazing
application and to die for finishes.
This is a
THOROUGHLY impressive brand, with a woman at the helm- Adina – who has a true
passion for polish as well as the most adorable cat in the world, Tristram.
Final
Verdict – totally blew everyone away with her Mythicals Collection. Oustanding, and with great hopes for her next
Collection.
Glitter Gal
Hands up if
you’d heard of Glitter Gal at the start of the year? Probably none of us, but holy holo wowness,
what amazing polishes.
A Glitter
Gal holo is beautiful like very little else in the world. Exquisite beauty and finery, amazing colours,
balanced only by a far too small bottle and a tendency to give colours names
slightly darker than how they appear on my nails!!
Final
Verdict – outstanding year. 2011 was the
Year of Holo, and Glitter Gal led that charge.
So, to the
Awards
Honourable Mention
Although she
is not a brand, I want to include in this post a woman who has possibly done more
than anyone this year to champion exotic and amazing polishes.
Step
forward Leah Ann Rowe. I remember buying
from Leah Ann back in July. Back then,
she had a handful of Glitter Gals which she mainly sold through her eBay store.
Since then she has created a true, loving Facebook community, genuinely
interacted with her “fans” the way only a fellow nail geek can, and introduced us
to-
·
Glitter Gal
·
Ozotic
·
A-England
·
HITS
·
Picture Polish
·
Ludarana
I know I speak
for many of us when I say – where would our stashes be without her ? I know our
bank balances would be healthier! And
then she topped it all by bringing Lynderella to her site … and promises more
magic for 2012.
Leah Ann –
you’re awesome.
Best Indie
Brand – Cult Nails
I don’t own
any Cult Nails polishes yet, but I would love to know how a small US brand
managed to create more buzz than ANY of the multi-nationals.
Well done
for all you achieved with Unicorn Puke / Clairvoyant – you’ve touched the true
heart of a polish lover.
Best Expensive
Brand – Deborah Lippmann
I know, I know,
but 3 of her polishes are in my all time Top 10 (Ruby Red Slippers, Across The
Universe and Lady Sings The Blues).
Let me put
it this way – 2012 is going to be The Year of the Flakie, 2011 was the Year of
Holo, and 2010 was the Year Glitter Came Back, and no one did more to achieve
that and continue that than DL.
She redefined
what a glitter could do in a polish, keeps releasing bijou little collections,
does crème and shimmers AND did her own flakie, Edge of Glory.
Can you
imagine if DL was in charge of OPI – can you IMAGINE what a year that would
have created for OPI ?
Within
Budget Brand of the Year – Wet n Wild
A US brand I
had never heard of, Wet n Wild has rocked my world this year. They did
the best glitter of the year – Tangled in My Web – as well as a couple of GREAT
collections and generated HTF buzz with On The Prowl and the Ice Collection.
I don’t
know if it was this year or last year but there is also a great collection
based on TV programs which I LOVE.
Final
Verdict – a surprisingly strong performance with great polishes of all shapes
and sizes – an EXCELLENT year.
So there
you go – which brand blew you away this year?
If you could only keep the polishes you bought from one of them, which
would it be??
xx
Enjoy J xx
J
Top Tip – if you’re
ever unsure what a nail colour looks like, go to Google images, which will give
you plenty of contrasts and compares.