So... I did it again. Honestly, I resisted picking up the Color Club Aura Energy Collection at first because I wasn't sure that it would really be my thing, but ultimately there was one shade in the collection that I just absolutely couldn't resist and I had to have it. Ever have that happen to you? It's probably not the best practice, but in this case... it kind of turned out amazing, because this collection is really surprising to me in the very best way! 

About:

Is your motto “Good Vibes Only”? Well then, it’s time to receive all of that good energy that you put out into the world! Six new shades from Color Club will recharge and revitalize you to your core. Featuring a unique combination of iridescent shimmer, you’ll find that each shade is more enchanting than the next.

Color Club That's The Spirit

Dark Blue/Gold Iridescent

It seems only right that we start with the shade that drew me in initially. As soon as I saw this in the bottle, I absolutely wanted it in my collection, but I was afraid it wasn't going to live up to what I had hoped. I really needn't have worried, because this polish is exactly what I was hoping it was. This smoky dark royal blue base is just absolutely packed with this golden copper shifty shimmer that makes it feel seriously indie and unique to me. This shade applied really smoothly, though it does show some brush strokes that shimmer, and was fully opaque in two easy coats. I love the pairing of a really cool blue shade with this warmth of the copper mixed in and I'm just kind of in love with this one. 

Color Club All Charged Up

Gold Iridescent

This was definitely one of the biggest surprises of the collection. I was expecting it to be a straight up topper shade, but it can actually be built up to opacity alone and looks absolutely beautiful. The coppery gold base is the quite metallic and works as a really great vehicle for that red to green iridescent shimmer. As you can see in the swatch, when applied over black you get more intensity to the shift and it really pops, while it gives a more metallic copper look with a more subtle shift when worn alone. For full opacity, I applied three thin coats that dried down quite quickly. This formula is really, really beautiful to work with and applied with smooth, even coverage both alone and over the black. 

Color Club Kind + Aligned

Pink Iridescent

The first of the three true toppers in this collection, this shade is a pink iridescent with the most subtle shiftiness in the collection. For me, over black, this actually felt like it pulled more solidly purple with pink and blue shimmer rather than a strong shift. It's a stunner though and I know people who love purple polish will be really into this one. I did try to build this up - just to check - and it doesn't build to opacity but it does actually make a super pretty sheer polish that makes the nails underneath look really good. The formula of this one was really, really nice and applied smoothly and evenly over the black without having to be too fussy about it. 

Color Club Yes Of Quartz

White Iridescent

Another huge surprise to me in this collection was this shade, which I think most people would assume is a straight up topper in the bottle. In practice, though, this shade actually worked best for me when I skipped the base and built this up on the nails. It does have a white base that's very chromey, giving this a lot of reflect, and a strong iridescent that makes it a bit of a chameleon. In person, I found it pulled a lot more white than the silvery tone that shows up in the photos. This swatch is three coats built up. The texture of this was a little bit tricky to work with because it's a little bit thick and it dries quite quickly and the texture can look a little... off at first, but once it completely dries down I love the look of it. There's almost some texture to it that adds more dimension. For me, this shade absolutely begs to be a base for nail art. 

Color Club Glow Away

Purple Iridescent

Finally, of the three toppers I personally think this one is the most unique. The purple base of the shimmer is really gorgeous and over black gives a really rich, almost vampy look. The red to green shifty shimmer in it is what really pushes it into unique though, adding a warmth to the people that feels really unique and modern. Again, this was a really easy topper to work with and gave smooth, even opacity on one coat. I actually tried this one out adding a second coat and it really lightened everything up, even over black, and gave a completely different (but still really pretty) look, which makes me feel like it's also really versatile. 

I feel like this collection strikes a really unique note, particularly for a mainstream polish brand, which is what has really been exciting me about Color Club recently. I love the use of the shifty shimmer in these polishes, which really feels more like something that indie brands are doing than any of the readily available mainstead polish brands. The topper shades do remind me a little bit of what they did last year with the Shine Shifter collection, but what really makes this collection feel different to me is those more opaque shades that really shine. Honestly, I think a lot of people will be able to find something that they love in this collection. 

I just continue to love Color Club polishes more and more these days and this collection, along with the Matte-ified Metallics Collection that I swatched last week, have really just cemented that. I feel like they really have something for everyone, from their really beautiful créme shades that I feel like I've been reaching for all summer for nail art, to these really unique and interesting shades in formulas that you don't see all that often from mainstream brands. In short... I like this collection and I think there are some serious must haves in here for me!

Thanks for reading!