Sally Hansen 420 Pacific Blue Swatch and Review (Comparison of 2009 and 2014 formula, and bonus nail art!)

OK guys, I read my post yesterday and thought it was a bit grouchy. But that's because I woke up with a fever today and all the phlegm town and ugh. But you know, it's way better now than later this summer (#becauseweddings) so I am going to just update here and then power through the day. And by powering through the day, I actually just mean sleeping on the couch watching World Cup and most likely falling asleep. I'm kind of bummed out I'll miss out on Cheap Tuesday burgers but you know what, I won't miss out on Cheap Polish Tuesday because this one is apparently a big deal. This is Sally Hansen Pacific Blue (which can be found for $2-3 at most drugstores).

(Wait there's two?) I'll get to that in a sec.









Admittedly, I was never an original owner of Sally Hansen Pacific Blue until recently. Either of them. But last week the nail polish community (as passionate as they are), exploded over seeing that their beloved 2009 formula of Sally Hansen Pacific Blue was reformulated. Not only was it reformulated, but the colour was completely redone.

Here's why the 2009 permutation was so loved:

+ one coater blue
+ non-staining blue
+ perfect medium toned blue
+ considered a "gateway polish"
+ rumours of a marijuana scent

Alright well I can never pass up a non-staining blue - that shit is almost unheard of. So I had to try it myself. Also a one coater? OK we'll see about that one. Here's my one coat swatch of the 2009 formula of Sally Hansen Pacific Blue with no top coat:









Let's take a look at the new 2014 formula. Apparently it's "disgusting and runny and terrible". Here's two coats of the *new* Sally Hansen Pacific Blue:









If you haven't caught onto the differences, here's a comparison swatch. One coater 2009 original Pacific Blue creme on my index and ring, and two coats of the *new* 2014 Pacific Blue:







CLAW of CTHULHU'S VERDICT: OK guys I get it. The 2009 Pacific Blue polish is awesome - it's just like you said - a non-staining, one coater perfect medium toned blue creme. I am definitely biased towards creme polishes. They're so versatile for use of nail art. I can see why it was called a "gateway polish" to get into the hobby because the formula is very sleek and allowed for so many creative endeavors into the hobby. Did it smell like marijuana? Ehhhh I dunno about that. I think if you look hard enough for it, you can smell it but it doesn't smell like straight up marijuana. (Yes I would know this because BC Bud, you know.)

Now the 2014 formula... Guys, let's be real. It's not as shitty as you guys are making it out to be. I don't like it. It's not my kind of blue, it's definitely not something I would go out of my way to buy. The formula is a two coater - which is honestly pretty standard for most of the polishes I own! I'm not a huge fan of polishes that have a hint of shimmer to them either. I definitely don't care for it much and the 2014 formula will never be a good nail art polish.

My personal final stance is mostly indifference. As an Essence fan, we see polishes in their line come and go, and some of them being great formulas as well. I feel that Sally Hansen should have gone one of two routes: 1) Completely discontinue Sally Hansen Pacific Blue 2009 formula; or 2) Continue producing Sally Hansen Pacific Blue in its 2009 permutation and introducing the "2014 Pacific Blue" as its own entity. Not 420 Pacific Blue. That really sucks for fans of Pacific Blue who are really gung ho. I would be pissed off too.

As a bonus, generally one coaters fare well as stamping polish and I think Pacific Blue did fairly decent over top of white, at least. I think that was pushing it a bit. Still, it reminds me of those white and blue chinaware! I used Nailz Craze NC03 and NC06 for these.





For whatever reason, I actually ended up buying two back-ups of Pacific Blue (2009 formula) (I feel like I shouldn't have to clarify that one haha). If I had to be honest with myself, I truly buy stuff when I am stressed out and the next month is definitely stressful.

What do you make of the great Pacific Blue debacle? Do you feel like people are making something of nothing? Is Pacific Blue one of your gateway polishes?

Sally Hansen Gem Crush 05 Be-Jeweled Swatch and Review (Diablo 3 Wizard Arcane Inspired Nail Art)

It's Cheap Polish Tuesday! I haven't done one of these for a while! I actually had these grandiose plans of posting every day last week, in theme with Diablo 3, as Reaper of Souls came out last week but as it turns out, I had a battle with Diab-I mean, a plague of sorts and was bed ridden. Currently I am going deaf from this head cold and I am just miserable! So, I guess I'll try to cheer myself up by posting these "Arcane" inspired nails!





This is just a swatch of Sally Hansen's Be-Jeweled from the Gem Crush collection that came out a year or so ago. I still see them on the shelves and they've gone down in price sub-$5, which puts it right in line for Cheap Polish Tuesday. Be-Jeweled is a nice pastel-leaning purple glitter with bits of bigger pink highlight glitters. The application was great - everything went on smoothly. The first coat was a bit patchy but the second and half coats went on smoothly as the first coat just acted as a sticky foundation for the glitter. I used a coat of Seche Vite to make things smooth.











I think this polish is the PERFECT Arcane polish for something quick and easy. I might do some more advanced Arcane nails using a sponged technique like how I made the pastel galaxy but if you want some Arcane nails in a hurry, this is perfect! And affordable! Hello Cheap Polish Tuesday!

Anyone know how to get rid of this "underwater" "plugged" ear feeling when sick? Will it go away? I am honestly scared this is permanent! Anyone else enjoying Reaper of Souls for Diablo 3? I think the game is fixed and is absolutely AMAZING now! I am having so much fun! Now if I wasn't sick...

Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure White Out Swatch and Review

Oh hey guys it's that special time of the week where we explore and discover polishes that are found for $5 or less! So this one isn't a stranger to Claw of Cthulhu, but is to Cheap Polish Tuesday. Today I have a Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure which I found in the discount bin at Shoppers Drug Mart for $5. Still a little on the pricey end but definitely not $9, which is the usual price for these ones.

Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure White Out is a white creme, that is actually very surprisingly a limited edition polish. I was hoping to find something that could keep up with OPI White Alpine but unfortunately this is not it. While it still applies OK, it still requires two and an extra ha;f coat for coverage of the patches. It applies smoothly, but still tends to be a bit patchy. Here's my swatch of Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure White Out in two and a half coats with no top coat:









And for funsies and unfortunately this did not go as planned - I sponged some OPI You Don't Know Jacques! on my tips. I guess I underestimated the density of the formula and instead of looking like a subtle grey gradient, it looked like I dipped my finger tips in dirt. LOL SO BAD. So I went along with it and even applied some OPI Matte Top Coat:







It was so bad I had to remove it right away. I didn't bother keeping this one for longer than 5 minutes. Yikes.

What do you consider to be your ideal white polish? Would two and a half coats suffice for you? Have you ever created some serious disaster nail art that you had to remove ASAP?

Sally Hansen Fuzzy Coat #500 Fuzz-Sea Swatch and Review

Hello, I am back! Sorry about that - I was going to rock some Shitty Nail Art Monday but I've been so busy with weddings and I didn't have any photos in my queue. But alas! Here I am today, just in time for Cheap Polish Tuesday. Today I've got one of the polishes I was coveting so hard this year - Sally Hansen Fuzzy Coat Fuzz-Sea. I got this one on sale at Shoppers Drug Mart last week for $4.99 - I believe the regular price is around $7. Anyway, sale price sneaks this polish into my Cheap Polish Tuesday!

Sally Hansen Fuzzy Coat Fuzz-Sea is a fair dense mix of lime green and teal micro bar glitters that are almost fiber-like in a clear suspension base. Formula wise it applied OK, but the glitter distribution was a little finicky. Like most textured polishes, secondary coats always stick closer to the first coat's texture foundations. So in other words, if the fiber glitters were favouring mostly one side, the secondary coat would favour that side as well. In order to get full coverage, quite a few coats are needed. I used between three to four. According to Sally Hansen's website, this polish is supposed to finish with a "3D textured, woven fiber effect" (source). I honestly don't like the "3D effect" - I don't think it's an effect at all, it just sounds like a marketing phrase blanketing the fact that that's what the glitters will do when it dries.

Here's Sally Hansen Fuzzy Coat Fuzz-Sea with one coat:



Here's Sally Hansen Fuzzy Coat Fuzz-Sea with two coats:



Here's Sally Hansen Fuzzy Coat in three to four coats on the nail without any top coat:











So the "3D effect" isn't much of an effect at all as you can see - I do like the "3D aspect" in that you can see all the layers of the fiber glitters over top one another in their own layers, but that maintains itself even with a nice top coat. Here it is with Seche Vite, as you can see - there's no noticeable different with the overall look:





Anyway I hope it doesn't sound like I am tearing Fuzz-Sea a new asshole; I honestly thought this polish was pretty cool, and I don't have anything exactly like it in my collection. The closest I have to it would be Daily Lacquer's circus collection. The only thing I didn't like was my own application - I couldn't quite get the sides. Next time I will have to apply on those sides directly, or I will try wearing a base colour underneath, maybe something similar to OPI Fly to match the teal fiber glitters.

I recommend picking this one up if you spot it on sale and if you're looking for something kind of bizarre. Have you tried any of Sally Hansen's Fuzzy Coats? Do you think that this was actually intended to be a "texture" polish, or do you think it's a marketing phrase?

Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure #560 Mermaid's Tale Swatch and Review

It's Friday here on Claw of Cthulhu, and I'm taking a vacation day on Monday! I don't know if I'll be back on Monday or Tuesday but in either case, I'll be back next week at some point. Today I've got a polish that I am actually surprisingly excited about - Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure #560 Mermaid's Tale from the Under the Sea collection! I picked this up from Target Canada, when it opened here in the Lower Mainland. It cost on the high end at $8.97.



Sally Hansen Mermaid's Tale is a sheer ocean toned blue jelly, with blue and green hex glitters, sprinked with smaller blue glitters. Application wise was good, however the jelly was very sheer and even though it can be built on its own, I would layer this glitter over top of a creme next time. The brush was flat and wide, similar to the brush in the Insta-Dri line and was easy to work with. As I stated before, it's really sheer, so in order to build up my swatch, I ended up having to use about three to four coats, which is extremely ridiculous. Here's my swatch without top coat:







Here's a photo of the bottle and brush:



I think Sally Hansen has so many different polish lines, so I had to look up what exactly do they mean by "Complete Salon Manicure". Here's a copypasta on Sally Hansen's description of what you get with their Complete Salon Manicure line:

Skip the salon, get the results. Don't settle for just color when you can get a base coat, strengthener, growth treatment, salon-inspired color, top coat, chip-resistance and a gel finish all in 1 bottle. Featuring the unique precision brush for a flawless finish and patented Vita Care technology for advanced 10 day wear, more shine and nourishing care.

I've also read that the Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure line is "5-Free (including formaldehyde resin and camphor, which can be an irritant)" (source), despite them not advertising it on their website.

I really liked this colour. Like, a lot. I know that Sally Hansen claims it's an all-in-one formula, but honestly, I think this colour benefits from a glossy top coat. Here's a coat of Seche Vite over top:





I love it, guys, I really do. Now, supposedly this is a dupe for Deborah Lippmann's Across the Universe, which I wanted so badly, but couldn't bite the bullet for $22. Now it's completely sold out on Nail Polish Canada, with no intention of a restock, but to be honest - I really, really liked Sally Hansen's Mermaid's Tale - even if I felt weird for spending $9 on a Sally Hansen polish. It's an extremely pretty glitterbomb that I am sure will get worn multiple times.

What do you think of Mermaid's Tale? Do you believe in all-in-one polish formulas, or do you still slap on base coat and top coat afterwards? Can anyone confirm this is a Deborah Lippmann dupe? Welp, that's all for now - I hope you enjoy your weekends and I'll see y'all next week!

Sally Hansen Hard as Nails Xtreme Wear Gunmetal Swatch and Review (Bonus: Rainbow Honey The Worst Possible Thing)

It is Cheap Tuesday where everything is cheap like tacos and movies so today in the world of Claw of Cthulhu, it's no different - it's Cheap Polish Tuesday where we explore and discover polishes that are found on sale or at regular price for $5 or less. Today I've got a Sally Hansen polish and Sally Hansen seems to have so many permutations of lines, it gets a little confusing. This from the Hard as Nails Xtreme Wear line. I know this one is definitely under $5 at Shoppers Drug Mart up north here, but I for sure picked this one up for $2 on sale.

OK this will be a mouthful... Sally Hansen Hard as Nails Xtreme Wear Gunmetal is gunmetal with cold undertones and finishes a tad frosty. It matches my Volkswagen Jetta's gunmetal colour very closely! Formula and application wise, it goes on quite nicely and has slight frost finish. It will probably have the tendency to streak, so apply with minimal brush strokes on the last coat. My swatch is 2 coats and no top coat:







I've also used this polish before when I made matching nails with my car. Ch-ch-ch-check it out:





And of course, for funsies, I added some Rainbow Honey because Rainbow Honey is my favourite and for the last couple of months, I've made the decision to only buy Rainbow Honey polishes until next year. (Albeit we'll see how well I do with that one.) Here's one coat of The Worst Possible Thing over top:







Now as for being 3 Free, that's where I am a little unclear. It isn't labelled on the bottle. I've also read that the Sally Hansen Hard as Nails top coat is not 3 Free - not sure if the same is to be said about the polish line! But I'd consider that a buyer beware.

How are you rocking Cheap Tuesday? I am seeing Pacific Rim for a second time tonight - this time in 3D! (Even though I hate 3D movies.) What do you think of this gunmetal? Are you aware of any other polishes that are similar and might be 3 Free?