China Glaze x Wonka Holiday 2023 Nail Polish Collection Swatch And Review

Purchased, affiliate links used

Hello my friends! Today I am sharing the newest collection from China Glaze. This release is in collaboration with the upcoming Wonka movie. So if you’re expecting a typical red, gold and green holiday color story from China Glaze this year, you will be disappointed. Personally I like this color story a lot!

I don’t want to spoil my review so let’s just get in to this post! This collection is starting to pop up in stores so you will be able to find it in places where China Glaze is sold. If you want to snag it online, Beyond Polish has the collection up. Feel free to use my affiliate code, NicoleLovesNails to save an extra 10% off the polishes!

I have some comparisons in this blog post but I have a more detailed side by side for comparisons in my live swatch video as well as showing the polishes in natural lighting!

Live Swatch Video

https://youtu.be/ATyJLPXArPs

China Glaze is a US based mainstream brand. Their polishes are in 14ml bottles, 7 free and cruelty free.

For The Dreamers

Description: a full coverage magenta glitter

For The Dreamers is a fun, bright berry leaning magenta and I am really digging it! This is a full coverage glitter polish so the base is also tinted. The only thing that would have made this polish more fun is if the glitters were holographic or reflective.

The base was on the thicker side, I didn’t need to add thinner but I am pretty sure that I will need some thinner the next time I reach for this polish. I feel like China Glaze glitters tend to be on the thicker side so I wasn’t very surprised by the thickness.

My photos show For The Dreamers in 2 coats plus 2 coats of top coat. The glitters are very top coat hungry so depending on how thick your top coat is expect to do at least 2 coats of top coat. I probably could have used a third layer.

Removal will of course be on the more difficult side, I would not recommend scrubbing this polish off. Use the soak off method of a peel off base coat.

Noodle

Description: a shimmery teal

Noodle had a pretty good formula, I was surprised by how opaque it was on the first coat. Not one coater opaque just more opaque than I expected.

The shimmer in here isn’t the most in your face shimmer, it’s more ‘glows from within’ than super obvious shimmer. You don’t get any noticeable brush strokes.

My photos show Noodle in 2 coats plus glossy top coat. Looking at my photos, I feel like I could have used a third coat in a few spots. It looked fine to me in person though. I’ll call this a 2-3 coater depending on personal preference.

Pure Imagination

Description: a purple crelly base with pink to gold shimmer

Pure Imagination in my not-so-humble opinion, this is the most interesting polish in the entire release. In the bottle, you see a beautiful large particle shimmer that shifts pink, gold to green. I WISH it was as color shifty on the nail but you do get a pink to gold color shift.

This polish is on the thinner side, it has a tendency to run down the stem of the brush. It is also fairly sheer on the first coat but builds up nicely in two to three coats. Even though it is on the thinner side, you can work in thicker coats to make it a solid two coater.

My photos show Pure Imagination in 3 coats plus glossy top coat. The third coat deepened the base color on this polish but I wouldn’t say you have to do three coats to get good coverage.

Secret Recipe

Description: a chocolate brown creme

Secret Recipe for whatever reason, this was one of the colors that I was most looking forward to. I don’t know why but a chocolate brown creme is just a color that I love with all of my heart. While I wasn’t disappointed by this polish, it wasn’t exactly what I had hoped for.

On the first coat, this is pretty sheer and the formula feels fairly thin. Not gonna lie, I had some flashbacks of the (cursed) I Don’t Give A Sip collection. This polish seems to have a slight crelly formula, there is a level of juicy/squish factor in how it looks.

I love the color of this polish but don’t love it being a three coater and on the thinner side. I am going to give it a pass since it’s crelly leaning but I do wish it was a little bit thicker.

My photos show Secret Recipe in 3 coats plus glossy top coat.

This color reminds me a lot of Brew That from last year’s fall collection. They’re not dupes but they are pretty similar.

Totally Taffy

Description: a candy pink creme

Totally Taffy is a very cute cotton candy pink. I am not the biggest lover of light pinks but again I can admit this one is pretty cute. It reminds me of the shade of pink that’s used for gender reveals.

The formula didn’t feel overly thick or thin but it was pretty streaky. Colors this light tend to be streaky but I had a really hard time with the application. It could have self leveled better and I just could not get even coverage. The polish also felt a little chalky.

China Glaze released a ton of pink cremes this year and this was my least favorite one. I had hoped it would be similar to the pinks from the spring collection but it wasn’t.

My photos show Totally Taffy in 3 coats plus glossy top coat.

Wonka

Description: a gold shimmer

Wonka It wouldn’t be a Willy Wonka inspired collection without a golden ticket gold, and this is that polish. I also feel this is the only color in the collection that is giving me “holiday” vibes.

This had a fantastic formula, it didn’t feel overly thick or thin and I didn’t have any application issues. This is a more sparkly gold so you don’t get any brush strokes through the shimmer.

My photos show Wonka in 2 coats plus glossy top coat. Removal will be very easy but also fairly messy.

Final Thoughts

As someone who doesn’t generally love holiday collections, I am pretty happy that we have an atypical holiday color story from China Glaze this year. I feel like these colors do remind me of Willy Wonka, or at least the past movie versions of him.

My top picks from this release are going to be Pure Imagination and Wonka. Secret Recipe will be my honorable mention but that’s mainly just because it’s a brown creme which is apparently my new obsession?

While this collection didn’t let me down, I don’t think it’s the most fun China Glaze holiday collection that I have ever seen either.

China Glaze
14ml, 7 Free, Vegan & Cruelty-Free
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Sale Information

The China Glaze x Wonka collection is available now in places where China Glaze is sold. This collection is likely limited edition.

If you would like to purchase this release at a discount as well as support the blog, consider shopping on Beyond Polish. You can use my affiliate code NicoleLovesNails to save an additional 10% on your order.

You can also purchase China Glaze polishes online at the following retailers Amazon, Sally Beauty, Walmart, Rite Aid, PolishPick, Head2Toe Beauty, 8ty8Beauty and Ulta.