Showing posts with label Put Up Your Dupes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Put Up Your Dupes. Show all posts

Tuesday, January 30, 2018

6:00 AM

Put Up Your Dupes Sinful Colors Hush Money Vs. Sinful Gold N Roses


     I'm back today with another comparison post. This time I'll be comparing two polishes from the same company, Sinful Colors. It's not often that a company dupes itself but Sinful Colors had been known to at least come close on more than one occasion. Take my post on Cream Soda vs Orange Cream for example. Add to that it seems like every time Sinful releases a new collection someone in the Sinfully Polished group asks for a comparison to a previous color. That's why when coming up with ideas for my dupes series I went straight to my Sinful Colors stash. Today I'll be comparing Hush Money,  a core line color, to Gold n Roses from the 2016 Valentine's Collection.

L-Hush Money R-Gold n Roses

     In the bottle, you can see that both colors have a nice rose gold tone. At first glance, these would appear to be the same color. It's not until you look closer that you can see there is a finish difference but the shades look exactly the same to me.  Is it the same once the polish is on the nail? Both colors will be shown as two coats plus top coat.


     Not exactly the dupes I thought I had when looking at the bottles. Gold N Roses (on my ring and pointer finger) is so much lighter and looks almost peach to me after 2 coats while Hush Money maintains that nice rose gold tone and full opacity. 

     
     The difference in finishes is more evident on the nail than in the bottle. Hush Money is a micro-shimmer and Gold n Ross is a glass fleck. 


     Gold N Roses is a much thinner polish with an obvious VNL after 2 coats. Hush Money is very opaque but not a one coater. I still had a slight VNL after one coat but it builds up quite nicely. Part of me wonders if I'd added a third coat of Gold N Roses if the colors would be closer to dupes. I just can't get over how different they look on the nail. 


      It turns out that these two are not dupes at all. Do you need both in your collection? I'd say that's up to you. Personally, I prefer Hush Money, it's more opaque and has a richer rose gold tone. I'm not giving up on Gold n Roses yet though. I'm going to have to wear it with a third coat to see if I can build up to slightly darker color or at the very least get rid of the VNL. Which color do you prefer? Thanks for stopping by and Happy Polishing!

Friday, August 25, 2017

12:07 PM

Put Up Your Dupes - OPI Teal the Cows Come Home vs. Sinful Shine Blue Bayou


    It's been quite a while since I've shared a dupes post with all of you and I thought it was high time I changed that. Today I'll be comparing OPI's Teal the Cows Come Home and Sinful Shine's Blue Bayou. You might remember I recently reviewed Teal the Cows Come Home but Blue Bayou has yet to make it to the blog.  I'm having doubts about reviewing it mainly because it was part of an LE collection and no longer found in stores.  Then again, I have had a lot of older, no longer available polishes on the blog lately so I shouldn't really let that stop me right?

     Teal the Cows Come Home was released by OPI in 2006 as part of the Brighter By the Dozen Collection. Blue Bayou was released earlier this year as part of the Bayou Babes Collection. Both polishes have a shimmery finish and upon first glance appear to be the same color.


     In the bottle, both colors appear to have the same blue base color. The OPI appears to have a silver and aqua shimmer while the Sinful Shine appears to be more silver and purple. But how does that translate to the nail?


     For Application, both polishes applied smoothly and evenly but were sheer on the first coat. Blue Bayou appeared to be a darker shade of blue on the first coat with a bit more sparkle and shimmer. Both polishes reached full opacity after 2 coats. Shown here is 2 coats plus top coat.


    Once dried on the nail you can see that these 2 polishes are in fact not dupes. They are extremely similar but there are enough subtle differences to make them non-dupes.  Just like in the bottle they both dry with the same blue base color and a shimmery finish but that's where the similarities end. For me, the OPI has a stronger shimmer look to it while the Sinful Shine has a stronger green flash which I hadn't noticed in the bottle. Blue Bayou dries a bit darker, not much but it's enough for me to notice.



      You can also see that the shimmery particles appear to be larger in the Sinful Shine than they do in the OPI.  I think this helps to hide more of the brush strokes leaving a more pleasing finish on Blue Bayou than Teal the Cows Come Home. What do you think?

     Over all, I like both colors but Blue Bayou is my favorite out of the two. There are a few reasons for that and it's not just the wallet friendly price of the Sinful Shine. I like the slightly darker blue shade and the fact that the brushstrokes are less evident. Which one is your pick? Thanks for stopping by and Happy Polishing!

Friday, July 15, 2016

6:00 AM

Put Up Your Dupes - Orly Beautiful Disaster vs. China Glaze Flying Dragon


     It's time once again for another comparison post! I just love these kinds of posts, don't you?  This time around I'll be comparing Orly Beautiful Disaster to China Glaze Flying Dragon. Both polishes are a beautiful, red-violet color often referred to as a deep tone of rosy magenta. This similarity is what caught my eye and made me wonder just how close these nail polishes really are.

     


    When comparing Beautiful Disaster and Flying Dragon in the bottle you can tell that these two are very close. Beautiful Disaster is a darker shade and leans more purple. But as we all know what you see isn't always what you get. Some nail polishes dry darker or take on a different undertone.At this point, I'm not convinced one way or the other if these are dupes or not. I had to investigate further.... I had to see them on my nails.



     Well, there's no denying it, they are much closer on the nail but these two polishes are not dupes. I used 2 coats plus top coat for this comparison. Beautiful Disaster shown on my pinky and middle finger dries to a shimmery high gloss finish. Flying Dragon shown on my ring and pointer finger dries to a matte finish. The addition of a top coat brought out some shimmer which I wasn't expecting from a neon polish and, made the colors appear to be closer than they really are.

     I decided that in order to do this post correctly I needed to show what the polishes looked like without top coat. See what I mean when I say the top coat made them appear closer than they really are.


      

     The application process was surprisingly similar. Like most neons, Flying Dragon was a bit streaky on the first coat but built up nicely with the second. As I mentioned in my previous post, Beautiful Disaster also had some streaks and patchiness with the first coat, builds up nicely after applying the second but like a true shimmer finish has a few brush strokes. 



     Final verdict: while these polishes have similar undertones, they are not dupes. The colors are similar shades of red-violet but the finish is what really separates these two. Which one would I buy? Both! The differences are enough that there's room in any nail polish collection for each one. And the price points are pretty much the same for each brand. My question for you is, if you could only have one which one would you choose? 

     That's it for this segment of Put Up Your Dupes. I'm off to look at my collection for more possible dupes. Thanks for stopping by and Happy Polishing!

Wednesday, July 15, 2015

6:00 AM

Put Up Your Dupes - Sally Hansen Silver Sweep vs Essie No Place Like Chrome


      About a month ago I did a post comparing how 4 silver nail polishes worked for stamping. While doing that post I discovered 2 sets of dupes. The first set I've already posted about: Zoya Trixie and Sally Hansen Celeb City. Now it's time to see if Sally Hansen Silver Sweep and Essie No Place like Chrome are true dupes too. 


     Looking at these two in the bottle they look very close but seem to have a slightly different finish. Silver Sweep seems to have more shimmer, but does that transfer over to the nail?

2 coats no top coat

     In fact, it does! While both polishes are completely smooth to the touch No Place like Chrome has a smoother look to it. However, the color itself is exactly the same. And these are so close that looking at them I thought they were 100% dupes. I only noticed the differences when editing my photos. 

     Both polishes are extremely opaque on the first coat and work great for stamping. No Place like Chrome did give me some slight dragging during application and having less shimmer shows more of those pesky brush strokes. Another downfall of the smooth finish in No Place like Chrome is that it is extremely unforgiving when it comes to imperfections on the nail. 

2 coats plus top coat

     The addition of top coat made the faint brush strokes in Silver Sweep pretty much disappear, while you can still see some in No Place like Chrome.  Just how close are these two if they aren't 100% dupes? Let's see if a macro shot can help us out...


     When we look this close the differences are impossible to miss. So sadly while these 2 are very similar they are not dupes. Do you need both? Probably not, but which one do you choose? 

     I would have to say that Silver Sweep just edges out No Place like Chrome for me. I tend to suffer from ridges in my nails and I like that Silver Sweep disguises them more than No Place like Chrome. And then, of course, we have those brush strokes, Silver Sweep wins in that category for me as well. I do like both colors though and to be honest, glad to have them both in my collection. Thanks for stopping by and Happy Polishing!

Friday, June 26, 2015

6:00 AM

Put Up Your Dupes - Sally Hansen Celeb City vs Zoya Trixie


     I'm back from my camping vacation and happy to announce that my nails survived! Sadly the polish I was wearing did not. Now it's time to get back to the business of blogging and I decided to start things off with the ever popular dupes post. Earlier this month I shared with you my Silver Nail Polish Stamping comparison post where I hinted at finding a few dupes. I have one of those to share with you today. 


    
      Looking at Zoya Trixie and Sally Hansen Celeb City in the bottle there really isn't much of a difference. Unless you count bottle shape but who really does that? The liquid inside is what really matters and they look like dupes to me. But sometimes looks can be deceiving so let's see what these two look like on the nail.


     Hmmm looks like a dupe to me! I actually had to refer to my notes when editing this photo because I couldn't tell which polish was on each nail.  I see the same finish, the same silver tone, the same amount of sparkle and the same minimal brushstrokes.  The only differences I found was in the application and the results may shock you.

      As far as application goes I had better control with Celeb City. My bottle of Trixie had a thinner formula than I remembered or expect from Zoya. Both bottles are about 3 years old and are stored in my helmer so I don't think age or storage played a factor. 


     Both polishes are fully opaque in 2 coats and like I mentioned in my stamping post they both work great for stamping. In my humble opinion, these two polishes are definitely dupes. But if you could only have one which one would you choose? The budget-friendly Celeb City which costs around $3.50 and can be found in mass retailers or the Salon style Zoya Trixie that costs $9 and can be found at select retailers or Zoya.com?  Thanks for stopping by and Happy Polishing!

Friday, May 29, 2015

6:00 AM

Put Up You Dupes - China Glaze For Audrey vs. Rimmel Mintilicious


       After my recent post on Rimmel Mintilicious, I was asked how close it was to China Glaze For Audrey. Well, I happened to own For Audrey so I set out to find the answer. Is Mintilicious a dupe for the famous For Audrey? Let's take a look.

 
     At first glance, you can see that For Audrey is slightly darker in the bottle. It also has a greener undertone to it than Mintilicious. But do these differences carry over once applied to your nails?


     They sure do! As you can see these two are not dupes. While they are both nice colors For Audrey almost looks muddled or dingy next to a brighter Mintilicious. And just for the record, I have never thought For Audrey was a dingy color when I've seen it worn alone. 



     Now let's talk formula. For Audrey had better coverage on the first coat, but both were completely opaque after 2. I used 2 coats plus top coat for this post.  I even tested out how well each of these will stamp using Shandy plate SH20.


     Both polishes worked out really well for stamping. For my base color here I've actually used 2 polishes for another comparison post that will be up on the blog soon. I won't reveal what the polishes are just yet, but they are in fact dupes. Looking at Mintilicious and For Audrey stamped next to each other they look like dupes don't they? 

     I've heard that For Audrey is discontinued but I see it on the shelf every time I go to my local Sally's so you still might be able to get a bottle, Mintilicious is only available online if you're looking to add it to your collection. 

      Over all, I think that these are both really great colors and definitely not dupes. If I had to have only one in my collection I would have to go with Mintilicious, but only because it's the brighter one. I hope you found this post helpful. Thanks for stopping by and Happy Polishing!

Monday, April 6, 2015

10:17 AM

Put Up Your Dupes - Battle of the Greys. China Glaze Intelligence, Integrity & Courage vs. Elephant Walk vs. Sea Spray


     Over the weekend I was sent an e-mail asking if I could compare 3 grey nail polishes I own by one of my readers. Naturally I was thrilled! Someone had taken the time to look through The Collection tab and ask for my help in a polish purchase decision. The polishes in question? Intelligence, Integrity & Courage, Elephant Walk and Sea Spray by China Glaze. 

L-R Intelligence, Integrity & Courage, Sea Spray and Elephant Walk


     At first glance these 3 look fairly similar in the bottle, but when placed right next to each other you start to notice the differences. But do these differences carry over once applied to the nail? We've all had those polishes that look one way in the bottle, and completely different dried on the nail.

     

      Let me start off by saying that as far as application goes all 3 are pretty even. Kind of what you'd expect from nail polishes from the same company, even though that doesn't always happen. (I'm looking at you Essie!) I had nice smooth application with the first thin coat having some minor streaking and full opacity reached after 2. Shown here is 2 coats of each polish plus top coat.

     On the nail these 3 don't look much different than they do in the bottle. Elephant Walk is still the darkest and Sea Spray is still lighter. Sea Spray has a slight blue under tone to it, while the others look more like a true grey. What you don't see in the bottle is that Elephant Walk and Sea Spray both have some subtle micro shimmer to them. Intelligence, Integrity & Courage is the only straight creme in the bunch. 



     In this picture it's a little easier to see the micro shimmer, Especially in Elephant Walk. Needless to say these 3 are not dupes, not even in the slightest so if you're into grey's Id say it's a safe bet to have all 3 in your collection. But my comparison isn't over yet. In my previous post on Intelligence, Integrity & Courage I showed you how well it worked as a stamping polish.  Since then I have rediscovered my love of stamping. I also wanted to have this post go beyond the typical comparison post where I only shared about the color and formula. Can you guess what's coming next? That's right I also compared how these 3 will work for stamping.



     Now this was a hard picture to capture thanks to the glossy finish my Out the Door top coat provided! I applied Bleached in Peach from the Maybelline Bleached Neons Collection as my base color. I wanted something besides white to showcase the grey.  The image I used I think is supposed to look like snake skin from Shandy plate SH213. It's an interesting pattern but not one I can see myself using over and over again. I liked it for this post though because it had a lot of tiny details that would really test the polish.  Id say all 3 passed the test and worked as a stamping polish. I knew with Elephant Grey being the darkest it would show up the best but I was surprised to see that Sea Spray stood out more than Intelligence, Integrity & Courage. 

     Big shout out to Cassi for making my day and helping me to remember that people do actually read my blog and find it helpful! I want all my readers to know that if they'd like to see a certain polish swatched or compared Id be happy to do it if I own it. I have all of my polishes listed on The Collection Tab up top for you to browse through. If I've already posted about a specific polish , the name links directly to that post for easy convenience. 

     I hope you've enjoyed this post, thanks for stopping by and Happy Polishing! 

Wednesday, August 6, 2014

6:00 AM

Put up your Dupes: Darling Diva Soubrette vs. KB Shimmer Rollin' With the Chromies

   
     Today I've decided to compare for you Darling Diva's Soubrette and KB Shimmer's Rollin' With the Chromies. Both Multi-chrome, linear holographic polishes that are still available for purchase. To see my posts on each polish individually just click on the links above.


     As you can see from the bottle shot these are very similar polishes but are they dupes? Right away you might be thinking no, obviously, the multi-chrome on Rollin' With the Chromies is much stronger. Just look at those bottles. Well not so fast my friends, don't forget that there's a considerable size difference to consider.

     Do I have you confused yet, or do you think you know how this post is going to turn out? Let's take a look at these two polishes on the nail to be sure.

The photo was taken in a lightbox

     At first glance, I'd say yes we have some dupes. But take a closer look. Do you see it? Not yet? ok, I'll just wait a minute before I go on..... Do you see it now? Soubrette's shade of purple is just a little darker. Also, the linear holo in Rollin' With the Chromies is just a wee bit stronger.  The color shift is equal in both polishes. Do you see it now? How about a closer look so you can see what I'm talking about.

The photo was taken in a lightbox

     They still look like dupes to you, don't they? I'd have to agree that these two are so close they could easily be considered dupes. They are 98% dupes when it comes to application. Both polishes flow smoothly only the nail with nice even coverage. The only difference is that I used 2 coats of Soubrette and 3 of Rollin' with the Chromies to reach full opacity.

      Now the big question. How do they compare in the sunlight? After all, we all love holographic polishes in the sun, don't we?


      There we go. Now you can see the differences I was mentioning earlier. Rollin' wins in the holographic category hands down. For this reason, only, I would say that these two are not 100% true dupes. But they are pretty darn close, and I know more than a few people would disagree with me. What do you think, Dupes or not?

      Soubrette can be purchased on Big Cartel,  Rollin' with the Chromies can be purchased on KBShimmer.com.  Do you need both in your collection, probably not. I'll leave it up to you with which one to get. As always, thanks for stopping by and Happy Polishing!









Wednesday, July 9, 2014

6:00 AM

Put up your Dupes: Sinful Colors Cream Soda vs. Orange Cream



     Lately I've been noticing that Sinful Colors has been releasing very similar colors in their collections from last season. I decide to go through my stash and see if I had any dupes. Today we take a look at Orange Cream from the 2013 Sugar Rush collection and Cream Soda from this seasons Mod in Bloom collection. My review of Cream Soda last week prompted this post.


     In the bottle there doesn't seem to be much of a difference between these two. They both are a creamy peach color. There is very very subtle shimmer in both Cream Soda and Orange cream. The similarities continue into application. Both are on the runny side, and slightly sheer. I needed 3 thin coats to reach full opacity. But are they exact dupes?


   
     No they are not 100% exact dupes but they are so close they might as well be. It's not quite as obvious in my photos but Cream Soda has a touch more pink to it, making it appear slightly darker. Orange Cream tends to look more peachy on me.

Cream Soda is on my pinky and middle fingers, Orange Cream is on the ring and pointer.


    From this angle the difference are a little easier to see. But again the differences are so slight that I would say you wont need both if these is your collection. And what about that very subtle shimmer I mentioned earlier? The only way I could capture that was with this macro shot.


     The shimmer is so subtle that I couldn't see it on my nails. In fact I can barely see it in the bottle. I was honestly shocked when I saw I was able to capture it in this shot.

     My Overall conclusion is that these are in fact not dupes. ( maybe 98% dupes) Are they similar, oh yeah they are! Do you need both? I guess that's up to you to decide but I wouldn't think so. Id say based off of formula and appearance there is no clear winner here. Which one would you choose?

     Now I'm off to look at the other polishes I've picked up from these two collections to see if I have any other possible dupes. Thanks for stopping by and Happy Polishing!

Friday, June 27, 2014

6:00 AM

Put Up Your Dupes. OPI Spotted vs. Fing'rs Get Spotted

 
     Hi Everyone. I'm currently on vacation, camping with my family deep in the Northern wilderness. But I still wanted to share a post with all of you. Today's post is one that's long overdue. Today I'll be comparing the Fing'rs Get Spotted top coat and OPI's Spotted.  You can find my original post about Get Spotted here.

     So this won't be the in-depth comparison that I originally wanted it to be because I'm a little pressed for time right now. I still have a ton of packing to do, and I've got 6 volleyball games to play tonight. Nothing like waiting till the last minute right?

     In my picture, I've shown both topcoat applied the way they are supposed to be applied, and also with my little top coat trick.


     OPI Spotted is on my pointer and ring fingers, Fing'rs Get Spotted is on the middle and pinky. The base color is Orly Flawless Flush. As you can see there is quite a bit of difference between all 4 fingers.  My ring and pinky fingers have the specialty coats applied according to the directions. I got mostly cracks and a few spots. OPI seemed to perform better, but still not with the desired results.

     Now for my little top coat trick. When I originally tried the Fing'rs Get Spotted I oopsed and applied a layer of quick dry top coat to my base color before the Get Spotted. And I got amazing results. I decided to see if I could get the same results with OPI. On my pointer and middle fingers I tried out this trick again and would you look at that! I got the desired "spotted" effect.


    OPI Spotted still performed better than the Fing'rs Get Spotted. The trick is still to use extremely thin coats even if you use a top coat in between. The thinner the coat the better the results. If I had to choose between the two I'd go with OPI. OPI Spotted is considered a HTF polish if you can't get your hands on it, the Get Spotted is an ok substitute but definitely not a dupe.

     I've recently been made aware that Fing'rs has changed the formula of their Get Spotted polish. I have the original one that came in a kit. I have no knowledge if the newer version is better or not, but I do want to make you aware of the change.

     Thanks for stopping by and Happy Polishing!




Thursday, December 12, 2013

12:00 AM

Put Up Your Dupes: Orly Miss Conduct vs China Glaze Infra Red


     For today's comparison post I have Orly Miss Conduct vs. China Glaze Infra Red. I was recently going back and rereading some of my old posts and noticed my comment stating that Infra Red sort of reminded me of Miss Conduct so I decided it was time for a comparison.



     Both polishes are a deep, sparkly shade of pink. Both polishes were fully opaque in 2 coats and had a smooth application. But that's where the similarities end. Miss Conduct is a scattered holo, while Infra Red is a linear. The sparkle is far more intense in Miss Conduct, on the nail, and in the bottle. All that intense shimmer gives Miss Conduct a slight texture when dry, while Infra Red is smooth to the touch.


     The final verdict is that these 2 polishes are obviously not dupes. I would have to say that the base color is the same with 2 completely different looks. Do you need both in your collection? That all depends on you. I personally like having both polishes. They both would make great bases for nail art or worn on their own.

     As for a favorite... well Miss Conduct eeks out Infra Red with all its sparkle. Which one is your favorite? Thanks for stopping by and Happy Polishing!

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

8:11 AM

Put Up Your Dupes - Zoya Thandie vs Sally Hansen Sun Kissed


     About a week ago someone posted on facebook asking for a comparison of Zoya Thandie and Sally Hansen Sun Kissed. It just so happens that I have both polishes in my collection so I quickly swatched them and posted a pic on their page. I soon realized that I haven't done a comparison post in a while and really should share my findings with all my lovely readers.

     As you may have noticed I like to start these post out with a bottle shot. I'm sure most of you have had a polish look one color in the bottle and look different once it dried on the nail.

Zoya Thandie Comparison Sally Hansen Sun Kissed Comparison

     Just looking at these two in the bottle I thought that they were extremely similar. The slight difference being that Thandie has an almost pinkish undertone that becomes more obvious when placed next to Sun Kissed. The one time I wore Thandie I did notice a touch of coral to it. You can see Thandie on my nails here.

     But how do the polishes compare when they are dry? Well, let's take a look...


     The coral influence in Thandie is very apparent on the nail wheel while Sun Kissed has more of a "true orange" look to it. In the end, these colors are not dupes. In fact, I might not go as far as to say they are similar either because of the different undertones.  Thandie being pinker and Sun Kissed being more yellow. (That might just be me though. My job, after all, is to look at paint samples all day and tell people what's different about them and why one would look better in their space vs the other.) I'm sure lots of people would consider these polishes similar. Do you need both in your collection? I'll leave that up to you to decide.


The differences in the bottle are less noticeable than on the nail

     As far as application goes both polishes flowed off the brush nicely. Thandie was closer to full opacity in one coat but still had some slight streaking. Full opacity was reached after 2 coats for both polishes. And the final result was a smooth shiny finish all around. I don't really have a favorite out of these two, to be honest. I can see using Sun Kissed for a Halloween manicure and Thandie in a sunset gradient.

     Am I crazy for not considering these polishes to be similar? Would you buy both to have in your collection?  Do you have any requests for comparison posts? If I have the colors I'm more than happy to put a post together. Thanks for reading my post. Id love to hear your thoughts on these two. Happy Polishing!


Tuesday, September 3, 2013

9:10 PM

Put Up Your Dupes! OPI Down to My Last Penny vs. Revlon Captivate


     Today I have a comparison of OPI's Down to My Last Penny and Revlon's Captivate. Both polishes are great colors for the upcoming fall season. Last Penny is a HTF Black Label polish that I was only able to get my hands on through a bog sale. I have found it listed on eBay for the hefty price of $65. Captivate is from Revlon's 2012 fall collection but I still see it in stores so I am assuming they have merged it into their core line. Captivate can be purchased for around $5 depending on the retailer. So how do these two compare? Will you need to shell out the Big bucks for Last Penny or be a thrifty polishaholic with Captivate?

     Well, we are about to find out. Let's start by comparing the two polishes in the bottle.



      As you can see both colors are extremely close to each other.  Both colors are a warm copper with golden shimmer.  Last Penny has more golden shimmer which makes it appear more lit from within in this shot. But will that make a big difference when applied to the nail?

2 coats of each polish no top coat.


     My official opinion is that these are not dupes. They are, however, similar enough that you don't need both in your collection. Last Penny has just a hint more orange than Captivate. I guess all that golden shimmer did make a little difference after all. Both polishes have a smooth application and full opacity with 2 coats. I am having a hard time picking a favorite because they are just too close in color, application, and coverage. The only real deciding factor would be availability. And Captivate wins that category hands down.

     Are you able to choose a favorite between these two? Thanks again for stopping by and as always, feel free to leave a comment. Happy polishing everyone!

Sunday, March 24, 2013

2:00 PM

Put Up Your Dupes! CG Agro vs. Cg Cast a Spell


     For today's comparison post I have for you China Glaze Agro vs. China Glaze Cast a Spell.  Now Normally I don't think to find dupes from the same company but when I swatched Cast a Spell I just had to find out how close to Agro it was. Now so far I have yet to discover any true dupes in my collection. I have had a few that are very close and would probably appear to be the same polish to someone who isn't a polishaholic. But again today I have struck out in finding a true dupe. Let's start with the bottle shots, shall we.....


    

     As you can see these two are both deep green colors. Agro seems to have a golden shimmer while Cast a Spell has a definite glitter appearance to it. They both have glints of gold to them but Cast a Spell is more obvious.


   Let's see how these two compare when swatched on a nail wheel.




      I wish my camera would have been able to capture this better for you but every shot I took turned out blurry. This was the best one out of the 20 I took. As you can see Cast a Spell dries to a darker finish. Both polishes are smooth to the touch when dry. Agro's shimmer is more apparent when the light hit it while Cast a Spell's is obvious in any light. No dupes with these polishes.

Thursday, March 14, 2013

9:44 AM

Put Up Your Dupes! Zoya Zuza vs. CG Watermelon Rind


      It's time for another comparison post. This time I will be comparing Zoya Zuza to China Glaze Watermelon Rind.  The thought that these polishes might be dupes came to me while I was swatching Watermelon Rind. The first coat went on so light and sheer it completely reminded me of Zuza. I dug into my Zoya tote to find my bottle and began comparing.

     First, we have the bottle shot


     Looking at them side by side you might think I was crazy for wondering if these two are dupes. Zuza is a much lighter aqua/teal color with lots of shimmers evident even in the bottle. Watermelon Rind is a dark teal with the shimmer showing up when holding the bottle at various angles.
You're thinking I must be insane at this point, aren't you? These two don't even look close to each other! Now let's take a look at them on a nail wheel.



    Now, do you see why I thought they might be dupes after one coat of Watermelon Rind? Here I have two coats of each polish without top coat. While Zuza (on the left) is still a lighter shade of teal, it dried darker than it is in the bottle.
   
  Both polishes have a shimmer to them when dry. Zuza leaning to an almost silvery shimmer while Watermelon Rind has a blue shift to it, reminding me almost of a flakie but not quite. No dupes with these two. 


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