Ulta3 Greetings from Paradise Candy Cane Collection Swatches

Phew, that's a long title! To start off, let me just apologise for the crappiness of the post you are about to read. My lightbox light got smashed yesterday so all these photos are taken on my extremely attractive brick front porch. To add to that, these have got to have the worst formula I have ever experienced in a nail polish. Thick, gloopy, sheer, streaky - name a problem, this collection has it. I seriously reswatched these about 3 times to try and get them to look good but I eventually just gave up and did them on swatch sticks.

These are the Greetings from Paradise collection by Ulta3, which come in both a giant metre-tall candy cane for $12.95 and there are some also available as a mini collection of 4 polishes. I picked up the candy cane at Terry White at Bondi Junction, and let me say, it was pretty embarassing being judged by that crowd, carrying it through the shopping centre because they didn't have bags big enough. Anyway, onto the actual polish:

All of these were somewhat sheer and watery, and also very streaky. They all needed 3 coats for full opacity, but streaks and patches were still visible.

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Exotic Canary - Yellow.
Tangerine Tango - Orange.
Coral Reef - Pink-toned Coral. Crelly-ish, but too streaky to be a good layering jelly. Makes an awful squishing noise when the cap is unscrewed.

Exotic Canary, Tangerine Tango, Coral Reef

Peach Paradise - Peachy Pink. A bit lighter and pinker than the below photo.
Pink Hibiscus - Bright Pink (but not a neon, just a very pink pink). A bit lighter than the below photo.
Flirty Bikini - Blue-toned Pink, almost purple. A bit lighter and pinker than the below photo. There's the tiniest bit of shimmer in the bottle that can't be seen on the nail.

Peach Paradise, Pink Hibiscus, Flirty Bikini

Acapulco Bliss - Magenta/Fuschia with a very slight shimmer.
Sea Breeze Swirl - Muted Green.
Calypso Holiday - Light Blue with shimmer (the shimmer is almost green).
Pacific Splash - Shimmery Dark Blue.

Acapulco Bliss, Sea Breeze Swirl, Calypso Holiday, Pacific Splash

My favourite colours are Flirty Bikini, Sea Breeze Swirl, Calypso Holiday and Pacific Splash, but unfortunately they were so streaky I don't see myself wearing them often. Here's a few comparisons with other Ulta3s:

Pacific Splash vs Hollywood - in the bottle Hollywood is a touch lighter than Pacific Splash, but on the nail they are dupes. Hollywood's formula is better, even though it also needs 3 coats it isn't patchy at all.

(L-R) Pacific Splash, Hollywood, Pacific Splash, Hollywood

Acapulco Bliss vs Footloose Fuschia - Footloose Fuschia is a touch darker and doesn't have any shimmer. But the shimmer in Acapulco Bliss is barely noticeable so I think under normal lighting conditions they are close enough to be dupes.

(L-R) Acapulco Breeze, Footloose Fuschia

Kit Dulux Kiss vs Pretty Serious CGA vs Ulta3 Flirty Bikini vs Sportsgirl Delilah vs FOA Have Your Cupcake & Eat It Too - None of these are dupes but I thought I'd throw this in for comparison's sake.

Peach Paradise vs Watermelon - Peach Paradise is the tiniest bit brighter than Watermelon.

Carrot Top vs Tangerine Tango vs Crazy - Again, none of these are dupes but I thought it might be useful with getting an idea of the colour. Crazy is basically the same but with shimmer, and much sheerer.

My verdict: This collection is great value at what works out to be $1.30 a bottle, and there are a couple of nice colours, but unfortunately the formula just ruins it for me.