Review: Color Club Halo Hues Nail Lacquer in Eternal Beauty

The product featured in this review was purchased with personal funds.

When I first heard that Color Club released a new collection of Halo Hues for 2013 (not to be confused with the original 2012 collection), I sort of thought I didn't need them. But then I started to see swatches, and I quickly discovered that there were darker shades in this new collection (most linear holos tend to be lighter colors). And when I saw the shade Eternal Beauty, I knew it had to be mine. 

Since the 2013 Halo Hues are not yet available on the Color Club website, you have to look elsewhere for them. A friend of mine was making a large order for several of these shades on Amazon so I gave her my eight bucks (they retail for $7.95 on Amazon) and a week later, it was mine! Take a peek...

Color Club Holo Hues 2013 Nail Lacquer in Eternal Beauty

(retail: around $8, 0.5 oz)

Keep reading for my full review, with lots of swatches...

(two coats, no top coat)

As you can see, there is NO struggling to see the holographic effect of this polish, and it's visible in all forms of lighting. Here are some shots taken in darker lighting:

I'm not an expert when it comes to holo polishes, but I do know that top coats can lessen the holographic effect of some holo polishes. So I wanted to show you what this polish looks like WITH top coat (for this photo I used Essie Good To Go top coat):

With top coat

And again, for comparison, here is Eternal Beauty WITHOUT top coat:

Without top coat

As you can see, top coat definitely dulls the crispness and diminishes the holographic effect.

And because I've always wanted to do holo polka dots, here you go:

Color Club Eternal Beauty polka dots over Wet n Wild Megalast polish in On A Trip

Like I mentioned above, I'm no expert when it comes to holographic polishes. I know they can be finicky and they're prone to chipping easily, and I don't own any of the special base coats created to extend the wear-time on holo polishes.

That said, here's what I can tell you about this particular polish:

The formula is a bit thick and goopy, but it's not impossible to work with. I find the thinner the coat the better with these types of polishes, and I was able to lay down a fairly thin first coat, no problem. Dry time on the first coat was excellent--it dried within just a few minutes. The second coat went on a bit thick, but this polish does self-level easily so no problems there. Dry time on the second coat was good as well. It was dry to the touch in minutes, but it did take a little while longer to completely dry because that second coat was thicker.

Since I don't recommend top coat with this polish, you're obviously not going to get excellent wear (unless you have a special base coat that works well with holos). I recommend applying this polish to clean, oil-free nails to help keep this polish in place a bit longer. I was able to go about twelve hours before I saw my first chip, so this could be the type of polish you reserve for a special night on the town (if you don't own a special base coat to help extend wear).

Worn as polka dots, this polish obviously lasted a lot longer on my nails, but it was hard to contain my compulsion to apply a top coat after applying my dots. I love a smooth surface, but I knew that the top coat was going to diminish the holo effect so I stayed strong and didn't use one.

FINAL VERDICT: I think this is a unique shade when it comes to the world of linear holographic nail colors, because it's so dark and and jewel-toned. I don't think it has a dupe out there (but I could be wrong and I'm sure one of you can correct me on that!) and for that reason, I'm super happy I purchased it. As with all holos, you really need to see this one in person to appreciate how beautiful it is. The formula is a bit goopy but it's not difficult to work with, and dry time is pretty good as well. The only issue I have with this polish is that it can chip within the first day of wear (typical for a lot of holo polishes) and you have to resist the urge to apply top coat. If there is a special top coat that works for holos, without diminishing their effect, I would love to hear about it--I don't personally know of one. 

Do you own any of the older or newer Halo Hues from Color Club? What do you think of them?