I’ve been collecting heart-shaped stuff for years and years. I’ve got quite a collection! I usually show you various pieces from my stash during Valentine’s season, but a serious heart-collector is acquiring hearts all year round.
So when I saw Color Club’s “50 Shades of Love” topper on BeautyJudy’s blog a few weeks ago, I had to add this to my collection.
50 Shades of Love is part of the Color Club spring collection, Love Tahiry. All of the polishes have a scent. 50 Shades of Love has a faint sweet candy scent that you can only smell if you put your fingers up to your nose.
I went for this polish because of the hearts, the scent doesn’t affect me one way or the other. There are oodles of red and some silver hearts in a clear base. In addition, there’s a bit of silver glitter.
Unlike BeautyJudy, I am not a nail blogger (sorry about the mess that I should have cleaned up!), and I found this topper a bit difficult to work with. I found it hard to control the number of hearts I was able to get on the brush and I had to work at placing the hearts on my nails. In fact, I ended up with too many hearts on the accent finger of my left hand. That’s OK, I’ll live.
Also, I didn’t get much silver glitter to show up either. I did tip the bottle upside-down a number of times during the process to try to get more hearts on my brush. Not quite sure what else to try, but I will try it again.
I applied Color Club’s 50 Shades of Love over two coats of Zoya Flora, a medium pink cream. I used Sally Hansen Smooth and Strong as a basecoat, and NYC Grand Central Station Quick Dry as the topcoat.
Looks like a pretty Valentine’s Day mani, but for me it’s pink and hearts any day of the year! Although I struggled a bit with it, I’m still very glad that I bought this cute li’l topper 😀
Color Club Nail Lacquer was developed for professional use, but it became a cult classic among polish lovers. The nail lacquers are cruelty-free, vegan friendly and made in the US. $8.50 a bottle. Color Club 50 Shades of Love can be purchased on Amazon or on the Color Club website.
I seem to collect nail polish more than I use it. I just do not have the patience to wait out the drying process. Plus my nails have started spooning and I do not want to highlight that and I have a cat who demands attention at the most inconvenient times. But I do love hearts and glitter and anything pink too. Cute mani !
I hear ya, Laura! I think it’s kind of the same for me…except for the cat! Cats deserve the attention they want, however 😉 Since I’ve been working so hard in the garden, it’s not worth it to bother with my nails. I put on plastic surgical gloves first, and then gardening gloves over those but my nails still get wrecked from all the pulling etc. But I couldn’t resist this topper. I’ve wanted one with just hearts forever. So into the stash it goes!
That is SO adorable! It’s the perfect topper for Valentine’s Day 🙂
I couldn’t wait till next February! We heart-collectors are celebrating all year long 😉
Gorgeous mani, Allison! Perfect for your unmitigated love of hearts!
Lola’s Secret Beauty Blog recently posted…EcoBrow Defining Wax in Liz & EcoBrow Defining Brush | Swatches and Review
Addiction, you mean?
This is soooo cute. I need this in my collection for everytime Valentine’s Day rolls around!
Chelsea recently posted…Marc Jacobs New Nudes Sheer Lip Gel | Review + Swatches
It is and you do, Chelsea!
I love that nail polish!! Do the heart stick out off your nail?I recently bought an OPI polish with flower glitter and the flowers kept getting caught on my hair and they came off- it was really annoying!
Agata recently posted…Will L’Oreal Miss Manga Rock Mascara rock your eyelash world?
They are fine under topcoat. But great question!
So cute! I love it, I like heart stuff too!
Heather recently posted…Hair Repair by New York Streets Review
Hearts are just irresistible to me <3
Definitely a great Valentine’s Day polish!
Destany recently posted…Sally Girl Nail Polish Remover Petals
Yes, I figured I’d grab it now while I know it’s available since I don’t have a heart topper.
Very cute polish!
Leigh recently posted…Small Beauty Kind Haul & Coupon Code
I think so!
So pretty and girly. I love glitter toppers.
Phyrra recently posted…Kat Von D Shade + Light Eye Contour Palette
I agree, I love glitter toppers too. I love the hearts! #Ineedallthehearts
This was one of the polishes in the collection I could have done without. All of the red hearts in my bottle are flaking off and the “flakes” were floating in the clear base. It was a cute idea, but with the flaking I don’t know if any red hearts will be left in my bottle come VDay next year
Lisa Heath recently posted…Zoya Summer 2015 Paradise Sun Collection Swatches & Review
You are the expert, Lisa! I’m not sure what you mean about flaking off and floating. My hearts seemed to be somewhat clumped up in the bottle. And when I got too many on the brush on my accent nail, I couldn’t get them off the brush and back into the bottle. I must say I was disappointed in the way the hearts are distributed in the base, but I didn’t know if that was common for such big flakes or not. I got decent placement on 9 out of 10 nails, and thankfully my mani is wearing pretty well. If it were not for the hearts theme, I would probably give up on it, but the hearts were the reason for my purchase so I’ll deal with it!
I mean the red color on the red hearts is actually coming off and the red coating for the red hearts is floating in the base.
If you look on my post of it, you can see what I mean in the closeup photo (and feel free to delete my link once you see it.. I do hate dropping my links in anothers post! http://www.cosmeticsanctuary.com/color-club-love-tahiry-collection-swatches-review/ )
Lisa Heath recently posted…China Glaze Summer 2015 Desert Escape Collection Swatches & Review
No, I’ll keep it! thank you, Lisa, for taking the time to respond and share what you meant and your experience with the topper. I hope that won’t happen to mine. So far, it’s OK but I just got it last week or so. I hate to pay full price for a somewhat more expensive polish where I have to pay for shipping and it doesn’t work out.
Hopefully it doesn’t do it. I was disappointed when I noticed that, but I think I noticed it right away.
Lisa Heath recently posted…China Glaze Summer 2015 Desert Escape Collection Swatches & Review
I hope I luck out and they don’t lose their color!
Sometimes fishing and placement are just the price we have to pay for cute glitter bits. I’ve got a couple that I can only use when I have time to muck about with toothpicks or a dotting tool, but when I’m in the mood then they’re totally worth it. 😀
Fishing and placement definitely were issues with this topper, but I was able to conquer the problem in all but my left hand accent nail. I’ll keep at it. I had to own this hearts topper! I’ll remember the toothpick next time. Thanks for the tip, Rach!
What a fun topper. Who says you can’t wear hearts all year long.
Yes, thanks for agreeing with me!
This is adorable. I would be peeling those hearts off because the corners would have me feeling some sort of way, but it is absolutely the cutest polish EVER! <3
Shipra recently posted…Starlooks Infatuated Ultra Matte Lip Paint Swatches and Review
Surprisingly, the hearts are well-covered by my topcoat so there is nothing sticking up at all. There are issues with application, but the hearts are stuck on there flat!
I do enjoy fun-shaped glitters from time to time. I found that painting the glitter onto a makeup sponge and then dabbing them on helps get enough glitter, in the right places, without getting too much base, which makes the nail thick and lumpy.
Nidia – Lit From Within recently posted…Sleepy Cream
Thank you, Nidia, for the great suggestion. 🙂 I may try that if I have the clumping issue in the future. As you can tell, I am so far from being a nail blogger, it’s not even funny!
Glitter toppers with shapes can be tricky sometimes, but this is still a pretty. Perfect for Valentine’s Day.
Mercedes recently posted…Repairing heat damaged hair with THEORIE
This one definitely is a bit tricky, Mercedes. On that one nail, I just couldn’t get the hearts on the brush back into the bottle. Oh well. Yes, it is perfect for Vday, but I love hearts and wear them year-round 😉
Thank you for the shout out! I didn’t have to fish TOO much from this, bottle; although there’s always fishing when it comes to glitter toppers like this. But I found I would get excess hearts and have to brush a few on the inside of the neck of the bottle and then grab them and dab them on where I felt I needed them after the initial coat of polish. I agree with Lisa – some of the hearts in my bottle were flaking color from them, but the appearance to me looks like the glitters were hit against each other and scraped, if that makes sense? But in my swatch you definitely see small red particles, but they look like they were intentional. Mine have not started flaking badly or in big pieces. I will be sad if it does before I have a chance to wear it for Valentine’s Day! I hope you enjoy this polish, and I loved learning that you collect hearts. I enjoy learning more about bloggers outside of their love for beauty!
beautyjudy recently posted…Pixi Sweet Strawberry Nail Colour for Summer
Judy, although I had to work harder than usual to apply the hearts, I’m still glad I bought it. As far as I can see, I haven’t had any flaking yet. When I got that big glob of hearts on the brush, I tried to scrape ’em off on the side of the bottle’s mouth but they wouldn’t budge so I decided to go with it to show readers what might happen with it. Next time, I’ll have a toothpick handy and pick ’em off, if need be! I also hope it’ll make it till next Vday, but since I’m not a nail blogger who has to test all the time, I know I’ll use it beforehand. Thanks again for the review and inspiration! And yes, I have a huge collection of hearts. #Iwantallthehearts
I love when main streams do indies sometimes but only when them do them really good! I hate having to fish or play with the glitter too much once it’s on y nails but I have such a hard time saying no to different shaped glitters.
I am powerless in the face of anything heart-shaped! I just had to have this heart-shaped topper! I know very little about Color Club; they’re a regular ole’ mainstream manufacturer? Hmm.
I loveeeee heart glitter. This one was temperamental for me but for the one or two times out of the year I will wear it I’ll make it work.
Brooke @ Blushing Noir recently posted…Scratch Lacework Nail Wraps Swatches + Review
Hopefully, I’ll get the hang of it too. There’s a lot of time between now and Vday <3
Cute! I find almost all polishes with larger glitter can be fussy to apply, but they’re usually worth it 😀
Bailey recently posted…Mary Kay Mineral Cheek Colour Duos
You’re right, Bailey. And I’m such a heart fanatic, I’ll make it work.
I was so distracted by all your pretty heart items that I almost forgot there was a manicure involved. I think the top coat of the nail polish would drive me to distraction because I’d want to pick it off. But I’d like the pretty bottle on the shelf with my other favorite polishes.
MarciaF recently posted…Purely Cosmetics and IT Cosmetics have some amazing powders
hahaha, Marcia! Surprisingly, the hearts lie flat and they are quite well covered by topcoat. But I know what you mean: I have a gorgeous Starrily topper whose stars have points that stick up and drive me crazy.
It looks so cute 🙂 Perfect polish for Valentine’s Day manicures.
Leelo R recently posted…NOTD: gradient nails and stamping
Yes, it is, and for me, every day is Vday 😉
That is such a cute topper. I’d wear it even if it isn’t V day too. This chaotic world needs a reminder even from a mani…. love prevails…
Kath TheFabZilla recently posted…What Motivates You? #FitnessTalk
What a perfect way to look at it!
How cute! This will make a great topper when V-day rolls back around.
Aprill recently posted…Now On Beauty Brands: Simple Sugars Grapefruit Vanilla Body Scrub
Yes, it will, but I won’t be waiting till then to wear it 😉
I love heart top coats, but it is very difficult to control the number of hearts. I have seen ladies dump out a bit onto tin foil (or whatever) and use a toothpick to strategically place the hearts then use a top coat…but I don’t really have time for that LOL!
Kristina Vieweg recently posted…Zoya Paradise Sun Collection Review | Summer 2015
Me either, Kristina. I did pretty well with 9 out of 10 fingers. Next time, I’ll get out a toothpick to move the hearts around if necessary on my finger and maybe to pick off some of the extra hearts that I can’t get off the brush.
Love heart polishes!
Stephanie Louise (@StephLouiseATB) recently posted…The Mega Matte Lip Product Guide
I was so happy to find this heart topper to add to my collection!
I normally do not have any luck with shaped glitter like polishes like the hearts. I think they are so cute, but I get so frustrated when I have to fish out each one and then carefully place them on my nails just to have them flake off on me by the next day. It may be an error on my part… but it drives me nuts. Which, is a bummer because I always love how they look.
Honeygirlk recently posted…Get a Better, Gentle Cleanse With NEW Simple Micellar Water
This was a bit of a challenge to apply. Fortunately, though, the hearts lay flat on my nails and are completely covered by topcoat so they don’t come off. I have a topper I love from Starrily but the little stars do poke up and I end up peeling them off, bummer
Hearts are never out of style! What a cute mani
NORAH recently posted…Prepping For A Special Family Event With St Ives
Thanks, Norah! I certainly believe that 🙂
Such a pretty top coat! I really like the way it looks.
Thank you, Justina! Me too. Hope it’s easier to apply next time 🙂
Such an adorable topper and mani!
Kristin Bassett recently posted…My So-called Beautiful Life: Chicago
The Color Club heart topper is so cute. I love it too with pink, but I must try it with white or grey or black or…