China Glaze: Smoke and Ashes

Finally the last color I got from the China Glaze Colors from the Capitol Collection: Smoke and Ashes (District 12 - Coal)!

Smoke and Ashes was one of my most anticipated colors from the collection based on the promo pictures. Dark with tiny sparkles of color - what's not to love? And it definitely did not disappoint. Look:

Smoke and Ashes is really dark but not quite black and is filled with small green and blue flecks that really pops out when the light hits the nails. I know the pictures don't really show it but the flecks are more obvious IRL - almost like mini flakies. Really sophisticated looking.

Love!!!
(sorry for the slightly blurry pic)

It reminds me of Cult Nails' Living Water but they are not quite dupes. For one, Living Water has really bright glitters instead of flecks. I will get around to doing a swatch and comparison one day!

Application for Smoke and Ashes was slightly tricky - I had a bit of dragging issues with my second coat. I will definitely wait a while more for the first coat to dry the next time I wear this. Otherwise, the formula is slightly thick but smooth and very pigmented (it really surprised me that the flecks showed up at all!).

What do you think of Smoke and Ashes? Did you get another other colors from the collection? Which are your favorites?

xoxo,
mich