REVIEW: OPI x HelloKitty Holiday 2019 Collection
You guys, I'm so excited for today's review! As soon as I saw initial swatches of the OPI x HelloKitty 2019 Holiday Collection*, I was really excited and wanted to get so many of the shades on my nails. The last time OPI teamed up with HelloKitty for a collection, back in 2016 I believe, I missed out because I hadn't yet dived fully into the nail polish and nail art obsession in which I currently reside, but even I knew that it was a hugely popular and exciting collab for polish lovers, so this collection seemed extra charged with excitement.
Without further ado, keep reading for my review & swatches of this collection!
Packaged in absolutely adorable bottles with cap sleeves that are covered in HelloKitty bows, this collection contains 15 shades in a variety of different finishes, including several glitter toppers for your more blinged out holiday party looks. All 15 shades are available in OPIs three different formulas - their Nail Lacquer formula, which I'm swatching here, their Infinite Shine formula, and their GelColor formula.
Initially when I saw this collection online, I wasn't entirely sure how I felt about it. I struggled with feeling like it was cohesive or that it ticked the boxes I look for in a holiday collection, but now that I have the polishes in hand and have gotten to play around with them I really love what OPI did with this collection. The shade selection might initially feel disjointed, but ultimately I feel like there's something really celebratory about these shades and they feel like they offer a little something for everyone, with a versatility that I wasn't necessarily expecting.
The selection of different finishes is really interesting and I feel like the shades that they decided to do them in were really smart in that they work well in different pairings with other shades in the collection for really varied looks. There's also some real definition in the look of the different glitter toppers, with different densities and sizes of glitter and even a couple that are in a kind of irridescent, lightly pigmented base to go along with the four that are in clear bases. Overall, I feel like this was a surprisingly well thought out collection.
Let's Be Friends*
Pale, barely blush créme.
I swatched this at 3 coats to get the coverage I was looking for. On the first coat, it was pretty streaky and sheer, on the second it was still a little bit streaky, but on the third coat I got a really even coverage over the nail. It's maybe a little bit tricky to work with, but as far as this type of shade goes it definitely wasn't too bad, and this barely there blush tone that makes it almost-but-not-quite white is absolutely stunning. This is the kind of shade that I would personally reach for instead of going for a really stark white as a base for nail art. I can definitely see why this is a much searched and loved shade from the original HelloKitty collection.
Glitter To My Heart*
Silver and matte white glitters in a clear base
This is one coat of Glitter To My Heart over All About The Bows. Honestly, I think this might be my favorite glitter in the collection because it just screams holiday nails to me. I've always loved glitter toppers for winter that have these matte white glitters in them because it so clearly evokes snow - and it works over literally any color base. In one coat this gives me exactly the coverage and dispersion that I prefer for this type of glitter, but you could add another if you wanted more density. Personally, I can't wait to pair this with a soft blue base and create some wintery nail art.
A Hush Of Blush*
Soft cool blush pink shimmer
Honestly, I didn't think I was going to be super into this shade, but once I got it on the nail and saw how delicate and pretty the shimmer is I kind of fell in love. This is another three coat shade and I had to give a little extra time between coats to get it dry and settle in, but it was very much worth it. There are some brush strokes in this polish, but they're really subtle and I almost feel like they add to the look somehow. For me, this definitely feels like a winter pink with it's almost dusty cool tone, and the shimmer adds a really icy and festive touch.
Let's Celebrate*
Fuschia and irridescent glitters in a soft shimmer base
This swatch is one coat of Let's Celebrate! over a base of My Favorite Gal Pal. I decided to swatch it this way because I really felt like this polish was going to sing over a dark base and I'm kind of obsessed with what it did. It took that very sort of deep teal base and brought it more to a royal purple kind of look, and the glitters almost give a galaxy-like effect. Ultimately, I think that this really unique topper could really work beautifully over a wide variety of shades and look really gorgeous, but I love it over a dark base.
All About The Bows*
Cool toned cherry red créme
OPI really did kill the reds in this collection, I have to say. All About The Bows is the much more cherry red of the two, with a strong pink undertone. In fact, in some light one might even argue that it's more of a fuscia than a red, but I found it really felt like a true cherry red on me. The crelly formula was really amazing to work with, applying really smoothly and evenly on the nail and giving me full coverage in three thin coats. If you have shorter nails with less visible nail line, I think you could probably easily get away with two, but for me this is a three coater. And a very, very well worth it three coats for this beautiful shade.
A Kiss On The Chic*
Warm crimson red créme
This might be my perfect red shade. The formula is an absolute dream at two really, really easy and smooth to apply coats and it packs a lot of shine. I feel like this is pretty much a perfect red shade, maybe not the most unique but certainly one that is perfect for the holidays and would literally look beautiful on every single skin tone. It's just a classic and the formula on this one has been absolutely nailed by OPI. Huge, huge recommendation.
Pile On The Sprinkles*
Purple and irridescent glitter topper with a soft shimmery base
This is one coat of Pile On The Sprinkles over A Hush of Blush. I wanted to show this layered over a lighter base so that you could see how the slight tint to the base of this polish can shift a lighter shade a little bit more lavender. You could wear this shade alone if you're into a sheer, glittery polish and I think it would be really pretty, but I feel like personally this is a shade that I'll wear as a topper and probably at two coats. It's a little sparse on one coat, but with a second it'll add a lot of dimension. Also, in person there's a really, really pretty shifty shimmer in the base that I couldn't seem to get on camera. Very pretty.
Hello Pretty*
Deep grape purple créme
This was another three coater for me. If you have shorter nails with less visible nail line, I feel like you could probably get away with two coats, but for me I needed three for really full opacity. This is quite a thin crelly formula, so I recommend thinner coats so that it's not going to end up running towards the cuticles. All of that said, this actually was a really easy formula to work with and the color payoff is so gorgeous and rich that it's worth the three coats to me.
Let Love Sparkle*
Pale silvery blue pearl with tiny blue irridescent glitters
Unfortunately, this shade just didn't end up being what I was hoping. It built up to opacity in three coats, but just by virtue of the combination of the pearly base with the addition of the glitters I found it a little bit hard to work with and I don't personally love the finish that it dried down to. This does dry down to a sort of subtly textured finish, so for people who like that kind of finish this could be something you get really excited about. The shade of icy winter blue and the way that it catches the light is beautiful, so if you're into the finish then I say go for it!
My Favorite Gal Pal*
Deep peacock blue créme
This is three coats of My Favorite Gal Pal. In pictures it's actually pulling a little bit more navy than it is in real life where it definitely carries more of a teal undertone to give that really deep peacock look. The formula of this really, really reminded me of Hello Pretty in that it was quite thin and required thin coats, but built up to a beautiful, really rich shade. I think if you have shorter nails without much visible nail line, this could absolutely work in two coats, and I even think that if I applied slightly thicker coats I could even get away with two on my nails. The thing that I really, really love about this shade is that it maintains both depth and vibrancy in a way that can be pretty hard to find in this type of shade.
Many Celebrations To Go!*
Champagne gold metallic shimmer
If I'm going to wear gold polish, this is the exact tone of gold that I want. It doesn't run too yellow at all, it's almost more of a champagne gold, and it packs a lot of really pretty shimmer. This one is a little bit sheer so I did built it up with three thin coats, but it dried quite quickly and I found it pretty easy to work with. There are definitely brush strokes in this polish, but like with A Hush Of Blush, I almost feel like they add something to overall look. I feel like this shade will be a winner with a lot of people for holiday parties, because it maintains a softness while packing a lot of shine. I also think this would be pretty much killer on just about any skin tone.
Isn't She Iconic!*
Smoky gunmetal shimmer
This is actually a really interesting shade of silver. It's much deeper than a classic silver and has a hint of teal to it that gives an interesting richness. Despite the depth, this does catch a ton of light for a fairly glitzy look. It's opaque in two coats and does have some brush strokes, so I would recommend a pretty careful application on your second coat. I'm actually kind of in love with this one and I feel like it's exactly the kind of polish I would wear with a little black dress for a holiday party. It's got a little bit of glam, but in an almost grungey way.
Glitter All The Way*
Dense gold glitter topper
This is one coat of Glitter All The Way along top of A Kiss On The Chic. I chose this pairing because it's so classically in-your-face holiday that it made me smile. This gold glitter is basically amazing. It has several different sizes of gold glitters in it that end up giving it a lot of texture but also a solid amount of coverage. It also packs a ton of shine. While I was taking these photos, I was struggling with lighting them because there's so much shine that it was reflecting hard. I also tried this over a black base (not on my nails, on my nail art mat) and it's an absolute stunner over black, so I really feel like you could pair this with just about any richly toned base and it'll pop like crazy. Love this one.
Born To Sparkle*
Rose gold glitter topper
This is one coat of Born To Sparkle over Hello Pretty. With three different sizes of rose gold hex glitters, this gives really easy coverage in one coat without having to work too hard. I don't think the glitter in this is dense enough to build up to full coverage just applying it with the brush, but I think this would also be a really great option to sponge on for a full coverage glitter look. Chunky rose gold glitters are a favorite of mine, have been for a long time, so even though this might not be the most unique shade I do think it's a beautiful addition to this collection and I love that there's so much texture from the different sizes of glitter.
Dream In Glitter*
Fine red metallic glitter topper
This is one coat of Dream in Glitter over Many Celebrations To Go! I paired these two for the swatches because I really wanted to show the texture of the glitter, but I actually think I'm most likely to use this over a red base for a straight up red glittery nail or over black for something a little bit more vampy. This is overall a really pretty glitter, doesn't really blow my mind or anything but it's quite easy to work with for even coverage and has a good amount of shine for a holiday mani.
Also included in this collection are some great mini sets and stocking stuffers, because of course we need those options for this time of year. Personally, I love this little 4 piece set pictured above because it contains a really great, wearable selection of colours that I think a lot of people will really love. I definitely recommend taking a look at these for yourself or friends and family who'll love this collection!
Overall, I'm pretty impressed with this collection. Initially I wasn't so sure about the curation, but I've definitely come around to the way of looking at it and have recognized the versatility of it. Formulawise, I feel like there are some absolutely perfect shades in this collection - and that the shades that do require a little more building up tend to be pretty worth it for the payoff in the end.
If you're interested in checking out the OPIxHelloKitty Holiday 2019 Collection*, it's available now in stores and online. The full collection is available over at NailPolishCanada.com and Ulta.com (as well as other online OPI stockists) and this week I've also seen it in store at Sally Beauty!
Thanks for reading!
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