OKAY HI. Remember how I said we were getting back into a groove of more regular posting on this blog? WELL. First I got sick, with a nice lovely little head cold, where it was important for me to just lay around and do nothing.
And then way more exciting: my fiancé and I got a dog!
We’ve been throwing around the idea of getting a dog together for a while, and this boy came up on a rescue’s website and he just sounded so perfect, and then boom next day we had him. We knew he would go fast so we were there, practically banging down the door at the minute the adoption center opened. His name is Huey, he’s 1.5 years old, he’s a beautiful brindle mix, and we love him so much. So he was planned in the way of us wanting a dog in general, very much unplanned in that we had to immediately take him with us to PetSmart and get food and essentials on our way home.
Of course, since then it’s been about settling him in and getting him into a good routine. And we’re truly starting to get there – he’s truly so sweet, and he’ll just sit on the bed watching me or snoozing as I swatch. So he’ll be the best little nail boy. Yes I was fully knocked off my own schedule for a few weeks, but we’re coming BACK.
***
Okay yes, enough about the most perfect boy, let’s talk about some POLISH. Anytime we enter into a new season of nail polish, it doesn’t feel truly kicked off until I swatch and post about the newest OPI collection. This post overall is a little later than I hoped (see explanation of sweet boy above) but BETTER LATE THAN NEVER, IT’S OFFICIALLY TIME FOR SPRING. You know, we’re still having 30 degree days here in Chicago so winter is desperately trying to cling on anyways.
Alright, Spring 2024. We have the ‘OPI Your Way’ collection. It’s a traditional 12 bottle release, with 7 more opaque creme polishes and 5 more sheer shimmery shades. With ‘OPI Your Way’, the whole idea of this collection is about layering the shades to create new and unique nail looks. It’s something different, and I loved all of the options and combinations you could explore.
These are available from polishpick.com as well as from Beyond Polish (you can use code GINGERLYPOLISHED for 10% off individual items – it is an affiliate link so I would earn a small commission, so no pressure to use it!)
Let’s dive on into the swatches!
***
I’m starting out with those more opaque shades first, and then we’ll look at the shimmer toppers.
This first shade is a bright fuchsia creme shade called ‘Without a Pout’, and it’s perfect for those moments when you walk into the sun and feel that warmth, that promise of nicer, sunnier weather just breaking through the last of the winter chill. (Can you tell I’m dreaming of higher temperatures, especially now that I’m taking 2-3 walks a day outside with a dog).
Anyways, this was an easy 2 coat formula, and painted on evenly onto the nails. My one nitpick – that just comes after testing out so many other OPI polishes – is that these feel like thinner creme formulas. They’re still a smooth finish but you can see the ridges in my nails peeking through as they’re just not fully covered. It’s a me problem overall since I have very ridged nails but I always want to note everything. For most this won’t be an issue at all.
***
Next up we have ‘Apricot AF’, and it’s a bright, yet cooler toned orange creme. There are definite pink tones to it, but it’ll be one that pulls differently depending on your skin tone and undertones. For example, on my cooler pink skin, I’m losing that peachiness and it’s instead showing up as a warmer orange. It’s always so interesting to see – and of course, I can only show how it specifically looks on my own nails.
This formula felt even more thin than ‘Without a Pout’ above, almost like it had some jelly to it. The first coat, especially on my above-mentioned very ridged nails was uneven and streaky. I did end up using 3 coats for this one, as I still had some streaks after a 2nd. It was overall not my favorite formula, and was not as opaque as I would have liked – OPI has done better.
***
Now the next shade, ‘Buttafly’, has some shimmer to it’s creme base, but it’s still more opaque than the shimmer toppers later so we’re keeping it up here. This is a pale yellow base filled with the most delicate and subtle of golden shimmer. That shimmer does get a little lost on the nails, but gives it a nice little glow.
Now again this is definitely a more sheer and thin formula – which I can expect with lighter yellows like this. It’s streaky and uneven on the 1st coat, and I still had some patches on the 2nd because of the ridges in my nails. I could see others with smoother nails being good with just 2 coats – especially if you float the polish onto the nails, as swiping too much can cause more streaks.
***
Continuing on, we have ‘$elf Made’, yes please include the $, it’s this polish’s proper name.
This one is an almost minty, cooler-toned green creme. I just love greens, especially greens like this one. It just feels so spring-like, and perfect for the season. It just feels so nice. (Thinks of the random 70 degree days we’ve been teased with).
Once again, I did find this one a touch more sheer and uneven on the 1st coat. It does build up well and is opaque in just 2 coats. Though like ‘Without a Pout’ above, it felt like a thinner creme than normal so I did add a 3rd to smooth out the ridges in my nails more. It paints on evenly, and for those with smoother nails, you’ll be set with just 2.
***
‘*Verified*’ – yes again, please use its proper name and include the asterisks, it’s important. This one is a soft, almost periwinkle sky blue. It feels so calm.
Again, this had a more sheer and thinner creme formula – like it had a touch of jelly to it. The first coat was a touch uneven, but a 2nd covers and made it fully opaque. Broken record here, it did feel thinner than other formulas, so I added a 3rd to further smooth out the ridges on my nails.
***
Finishing out the cremes, we have 2 browns. First up is ‘Material Gworl’ – yes I do read it as GUHWORLLL in my brain every time. This one is a very warm medium caramel-y brown shade. Those yellow tones do fully come to play on my cool pink undertones.
Just like all the others, this was more sheer and squishy, so the 1st coat was uneven. The 2nd coat fully covered and made it opaque.
***
Last for the cremes, we have ‘Spice Up Your Life’. This one is a super warm, true caramel shade. Listen I know I called the previous one caramel, this one is CARAMEL, there are different shades of caramel. It feels like those caramel candies any older person has handed to you at least once in your lifetime. It is VERY warm toned so it’s clashing a touch with my skintone, but I always love a weird little color.
This was another easy 2 coat formula. Just like the others I did add a 3rd coat to fully smooth out the ridges in my nails, but overall it was nice to paint on.
Spice Up Your Life – Live Swatch
***
And now we get into the shimmers, or the “glazes” as OPI labels them. First we’re starting with ‘gLITter’ (is “lit” still a thing the kids say? I still say it, is it lame now? Someone let me know.) Anyways, this shade is a bright tangerine orange shimmer. It has golden glitters running throughout, giving it a nice little glow on the nails. Some might say it looks “lit”. (Sorry)
Now this one is the most pigmented and opaque of these “glazes”, being more of a dense shimmer, so it can be easily worn on its own. I was pleasantly surprised that I was able to build it up to fully opaque in 3 thin coats. I do wonder how this would look as a topper, and how much this would change the color of any base you layer it on.
***
Next up is ‘Suga Cookie’ (which might be my favorite name). It’s a sheer, lilac purple dense shimmer shade. There are very subtle flecks of blue and gold all throughout as well.
Now these are called “glazes” and are designed to be layered, but I did still want to show how they build up on their own – even when they’re more sheer. With the live swatches, you can watch the 1st coat application to also know what it’ll look like as a topper.
So for this photo below, this was 3 coats built up, and there’s still a tiny bit of nail line at certain angles. But overall it’s a soft and subtle look! I enjoyed it.
***
‘Snatch’d Silver’ is a more silvery toned shimmer with a bright pink flash to it. It also has iridescent blue and golden speckles all throughout, making it such an interesting shade.
This one is more sheer, so after 3 thin coats, there is still visible nail line. But all of these toppers can make a lovely little “your nails but better” look, if you want something easy and subtle.
This is one that can get a touch goopy with too thick of application, so I recommend thinner coats if you’re looking to really layer it up.
***
Now don’t worry, after that silver, we do of course have the golden counterpart. This one is ‘Gliterally Shimmer’ and it’s a clear base filled with a dense golden shimmer as well as larger silver metallic glitters.
You know the drill, 1 coat of this on top of any polish will add some sparkle, or you can layer it up for a subtle nail look. This one is more sheer, so 3 coats still leaves some visible nail line, but it paints on smoothly.
Gliterally Shimmer – Live Swatch
***
And last but certainly not least we have ‘Glazed ‘N Amused’. This one surprised me, not looking like much in the bottle, but then it ended up being one of my favorite shades!
This is a pearly topper with a bright red flash to it. 1 coat over any shade will give that pearly glaze, but I loved the way this looked built up as well. This is 3 coats, and there is still visible nail line, but it just adds a lovely sheen to your naked nails. I know I’ll be throwing this one for quick nail looks so often. Don’t knock it until you try it.
Glazed ‘N Amused – Live Swatch
***
And that’s the set! I really loved the concept of this whole collection – I’ll always love when a mainstream brand experiments and tries something new. I’ll definitely have to try out some combinations with multiple shades and use some of those glazes.
My one nit is that the creme formulas did feel thinner than previous ones I’ve tried from OPI – they were technically opaque but they didn’t smooth out my ridges as well. They’re not the worst and they’re still very workable – if you have smoother nails, you’ll be just fine. Again, this just comes from swatching maybe hundreds of OPI shades before this! Of course I’m going to compare.
What do you think of this set?
********
Upcoming Posts
Orly Aqua Aura Spring 2024 • Glam Polish Wish collection • Essie Spring 2024 collection • Holo Taco I Need Space collection • China Glaze Meadow Dreams Spring 2024
********
Follow me!
Instagram: @GingerlyPolished
Pinterest: @GingerlyPolished
Beyond Polish: GINGERLYPOLISHED for 10% off (affiliate code/link)
GINGERLY POLISHED 