Bonita Salon Witches Ball Collection For Halloween 2014

Hi everyone! Lately I've been feeling bored when it comes to drugstore polishes, but that changed when I saw my friend Lindsey's swatches of Bonita Colors over at Wondrously Polished. Bonita Colors is a new brand that came on the market earlier this year. They have several different lines, the Salon line is supposed to be their more expensive line, but at $3.99 a pop they are incredibly cheap.

Bonita Salon Witches Ball Collection Halloween 2014

Unfortunately they are not available in Canada, so when I'm in the US I beg someone to take me to Rite Aid so I can pick some up. I was able to get this Halloween collection a few weeks ago, thanks to my friend Joy. Thanks Joy!


About this collection:

What initially attracted me to the collection, aside from the brand, is the fact that many of these are not your typical Halloween polishes, so they would really be great for year round.

Five of the polishes have an almost identical finish - these are cremes with a silver shimmer that looks almost like fine silver glitter. The shimmer changes depending on the colour of the polish, so the orange polish looks like it has a lighter orange shimmer. The one exception is Wicked Good Time, the lime green, which has a foil finish.

Side note: I'm going to be playing around with my photos over the next while - trying different poses and cropping, things like that. I want to improve the overall quality and clarity of my swatches and nail art photos, so if you see anything that stands out (good or bad), let me know!

The collection:

Cocktails and Carving is a muted orange with a silver shimmer that looks light orange. I don't normally gush over oranges, but this one is incredible! Perhaps because it's not so bright, but I feel this is much more wearable than most oranges I come across. It's actually very flattering on my skin tone, and it was a pleasant surprise for me.

Bonita Salon Cocktails and Carving swatch

The formula is very even and smooth, I really had no issues with this one. I used 3 coats but 3 would work.

Bonita Salon Cocktails and Carving swatch

Dying to Party is a cool-toned white creme with a silver shimmer. On the nail the shimmer tends to get lost and makes the polish look like a light, light grey.

Bonita Salon Dying to Party swatch

Formula wise, it goes on streaky at first. Otherwise the formula is good and it's not too thick. It covers at 2 coats but I needed an extra coat to cover streaks and patchiness. I used 3 coats here.

Bonita Salon Dying to Party swatch

Eat, Drink & Be Scary is a midnight blue with silver shimmer that just glows when applied! There's a subtle teal tone, which makes this even more stunning. I find this colour to be very unique and I don't have anything like it in my collection.

Bonita Salon Eat, Drink & Be Scary swatch

The formula was excellent. It goes on very smooth and evenly, almost effortlessly. I used 2 coats but it's almost a one coater.

Bonita Salon Eat, Drink & Be Scary swatch

Lacquer Treats is an orchid colour with a silver shimmer. The shimmer on this is very strong, and it almost resembles a foil finish. The colour is very gorgeous and I think it would appeal to a lot of people.

Bonita Salon Lacquer Treats swatch

The formula is almost identical to Eat Drink..., it goes on evenly and smooth and is almost a one coater. I used 2 coats here.

Bonita Salon Lacquer Treats swatch

Too Cute to Spook is a raspberry creme with silver shimmer that looks like a bright pink shimmer. This colour is so saturated and gorgeous, it was instant love. It somewhat resembles Bonita Salon Peonies Gone Wild but is a touch more red in tone and has a more pronounced shimmer.

Bonita Salon Too Cute to Spook swatch

The formula on this was identical to Lacquer Treats and Eat Drink... I used 2 coats here.

Bonita Salon Too Cute to Spook swatch

Wicked Good Time is a lime green foil. If you like lime greens, you might like this, it's very bright! I personally am not a fan of foil finishes, so this was the one polish from the collection that I could have done without. I would have preferred a green identical in formula and finish to some of the others.

Bonita Salon Wicked Good Time swatch

Formula wise, this is a one coater if you apply your polish carefully. It goes on very smooth and evenly, perfect actually, but like all foils, the clean up is very challenging. You also have to work fast when applying because it starts to set very quickly. I used 2 coats here.

Bonita Salon Wicked Good Time swatch

Final Thoughts:

The great thing about inexpensive polishes like this is that if you don't care for a colour, you haven't lost out much. My personal favourites are Cocktails and Carving, Too Cute To Spook, and Eat, Drink & Be Scary. The rest I will probably destash.

Some people have noted the quality of the brushes with this brand. I did notice the odd stray hair or two, but it wasn't anything that effected the polish application. Also the saying "You get what you pay for" comes to mind here, I wouldn't really expect high end quality brushes on an inexpensive drugstore brand. I will say that the formulas and brushes are much better than I would expect from a polish that retails for $3.99 or less (I bought these for $2.50).

What do you think of these? Have you tried Bonita Colors?