Like many other nail polish brands, Holo Taco has a little rewards system – as you buy more, you gain points and steadily make your way up the various tiers. And with each new tier, you receive new and additional benefits – all the way up to the highest called Holo Royalty. Among having all of those perks of the previous tiers, Holo Royalty members also get a chance to add their input to future shades and releases.
To do this, each year Holo Taco sends out a survey filled with choices on various mood-boards, colors and finishes of never-before-made shades. Eventually all of these answers get compiled and voila, a set of polishes is born! I finally made Holo Royalty this past year so I was invited to the super secret survey and added in my thoughts. I’ll be waiting in great anticipation to see what polishes arrive from that, most likely in the next year.
The first collection from these surveys released last year, in the form of 3 purple polishes in different finishes. I do have this trio, and I do plan on getting it swatched up and posted, some might say just for history and archives.
But now we’re looking at the 2nd annual release, 2024’s Holo Royalty polishes. We have 4 shades, all filled with various sizes and shapes of sparkle, in some cooler toned colors. I do love that we got some different shades that Holo Taco doesn’t normally do, like a light ballet pink and soft sky blue, with some different finishes and glitters. We have 2 softer shades, and then 2 more bold, chunky moments.
These are available on the Holo Taco website. These are limited edition, so even though they’ve been sticking around so far, they won’t be around forever!
Let’s get on into the swatches!
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We start out with ‘Blush Money’. This one is a cooler toned, well, blush pink jelly base filled with larger silver holographic glitters. We haven’t really seen such a soft pink holographic shade from Holo Taco so we’re clearly filling in some customer desired gaps with this one.
Since this has a jelly base, it is more sheer and will need more building and layering up for full opacity. I was able to cover any last visible nail line with a 3rd coat, though you could be good with 2. I did use thinner coats in my application, to help make sure it wasn’t too thick or goopy even with 3 coats. I found this shade painted on smoothly, and the glitters distribute easily since they’re suspended in the jelly base. Overall it’s so gorgeous!
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Next up we have ‘Spyglass’. This shade is a cooler sky blue base filled with a blue shimmer as well as a delicate holographic sparkle. The glitters in this one are smaller and give a smoother look than ‘Blush Money’ above, but don’t worry it definitely still sparkles.
This was more of a true shimmer formula so it was more opaque than ‘Blush Money’, and I was able to get this shade opaque with just 2 coats. I do find Holo Taco’s formulas are thicker overall, but I’m one to love a thicker polish. I find that it just helps give more control on application, and helps with opacity. But of course if you’re not used to that, it can feel thick. I’ve never had issues with drying time versus other brands, so don’t knock it until you try it.
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Next we have ‘Teal No Lies’. The name truly pairs with the shade again here, as it’s a rich metallic teal filled with delicate silver flakes. I am loving the different types of glitters and shimmers in this quad, with each polish giving us something unique.
This shade is a touch uneven on the 1st coat, more-so than I would expect for such a rich color. But luckily that 2nd coat comes in and smooths it all out, building up that pigment and making it fully opaque.
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And rounding out the quad we have ‘Inside Job’. This is a deep purple jelly base filled with larger silver holographic sparkles as well as silver metallic square glitter pieces. It’s the “chunkiest” finish of the bunch.
This is another jelly formula, so that 1st coat is a touch more sheer and just needs more building up. It was pretty well opaque in just 2 coats, though I did still notice the color continuing to deepen with a 3rd – so it’ll depend on your own application and preferences. I do again suggest a thinner application with this one, especially with those larger glitters – you don’t want too many to get bunched up at once. They do still apply and distribute smoothly, and I had no issues getting them out of the bottle and onto the nail. I would do a couple of shorter swipes with the brush on each coat to pop them onto the nail and place them around, which you can see in the swatch video.
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And that’s the little set! I do love these Holo Royalty collections as they just feel so personal and special – especially now that I’ve gotten to participate in a future one! There’s a little something different with each formula, and you have a glitter for almost any preference in this set. I had no issues with application and I had fun with these.
Are you interested in grabbing any? Are you in the Holo Taco rewards program?
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Upcoming Posts
Holo Taco Cookies & Cremes collection • Essie Summer 2024 collection • Sally Hansen x GLAAD Pride 2024 collection • ILNP Cabana collection • Mooncat x PowerPuff Girls collection
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