Comparison... Friday?: Dusty Purple Holos

I've decided to move the normal weekly comparison to Fridays while I participate in the Golden Oldie Thursday Challenge.  Tonight's post is a much anticipated, much discussed, and much questioned comparison...  Are there any polishes that will work as a stand in for Enchanted Polish Up in Smoke?  I think there are a few close options, but the ultimate determination is up to you.  Make sure you read all the way through because I have a super special and exciting announcement at the end of the post, and you don't want to miss it!

I purchased, or made, all of the polishes in this review.

Tonight's comparison polishes include:

Enchanted Once Upon a Cloud, Enchanted Majestic, Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer Love Makes You Do the Wacky, Enchanted Up in Smoke, and Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer Hypothermia.

Here they are all side-by-side:

First, let's discuss the similarities, and then we'll chat a bit about the differences individually.  This post will be picture heavy, so get ready.  Also, click on the photos to enlarge them!  Photos are taken in direct sunlight, indirect sunset light, and artificial sunlight.

All five polishes have a hint of a pink-ish flash, and they're all very holo.  All but Once Upon a Cloud are a dusty purple base, and Majestic, Wacky, and UiS are all around the same shade of purple.  The three middle polishes are most closely related, but they are all subtly unique.  Let's take a look at their differences in a little more depth.

Once Upon a Cloud

Once Upon a Cloud is a grey based polish with pink shimmer and a larger particle holographic pigment.  The pink was a little shy in the photos, but it's very noticeable in person.  This is two coats with one coat of KBShimmer Clearly on Top.  Application was easy without any clumping, balding, dragging, or pooling.  I needed almost no cleanup at all.  It's a bit on the thicker side for a holo, which I attribute to its almost creamy base texture.  The holo, however, is less prominent than in the others, which I also attribute to the creamy base texture.  It's a bit too opaque, and that causes the holo pigment to get covered up.  Overall, it's a lovely polish, but it's definitely the outlier of the group.  Unfortunately, OUaC was a one-off polish that was released only once.  It's just new enough, though, that you can still find it for a decent price on blog sales and in online sales groups.

Majestic

Majestic is a dusty purple holo with a strong fuchsia flash.  The flash in Majestic is probably the strongest of all of the polishes in the comparison.  This is three coats with one coat of KBShimmer Clearly on Top.  Application was easy, again, and dry time was average.  The base of Majestic is ever so slightly more grey than Wacky, UiS, or Hypothermia.  Despite being a bit more opaque than the others, the holo effect is still quite prominent, but it can be occasionally drowned out by bright pink flash.  Majestic was released last summer and has been restocked a few times by Enchanted as well as by her stockists.  However, I believe that it has been discontinued, so, again, you'll have to look for this bad boy in groups or on blog sales.

Love Makes You Do the Wacky

Wacky, as I affectionately call it, is a purple based linear holo with a strong fuchsia flash.  Application is easy, but it's a little bit thinner than any of the other polishes in this comparison.  It's also a bit less opaque than the rest of the group, but this is still only three coats with one coat of KBShimmer Clearly on Top.  While the base pulls a little grey, it's definitely more purple than grey, and it's also less creamy than Majestic or UiS.  The pink flash is strong in Wacky, but it doesn't obscure the purple base.  Wacky was a part of the Once More with Feeling Collection that was stocked throughout the fall of 2013.  It has been discontinued, but you can still find it in blog sales or sales groups.

Up in Smoke

Up in Smoke is aptly named as the purple base is a bit hazier and smokier than the others.  The base is almost imperceptibly darker than Majestic and Wacky, but not quite as dark as Hypothermia.  Application is super easy and gives full coverage in pretty much two coats.  Here, I've used three coats for the photos.  The flash in UiS is a shade or two darker than the flashes in Majestic and Wacky.  The holo pigment is strong with the perfect balance of holo, base color, and flash.  Unfortunately, UiS was an exclusive shade just for Mei Mei's Signatures.  There may be more released, but that's unknown at this time.  This polish is a very hard to find polish and sells for a high price or swaps only for very hard to find polishes.  If it's ever back on Mei Mei's, you'd better grab it as fast as you can!

Hypothermia

Hypothermia is a vibrant purple holo with a slight purple flash and royal blue micro shimmers.  Application is easy in two coats, but, again, I used three for photos and topped it off with KBShimmer Clearly on Top.  The base color is slightly darker than Majestic, Wacky, and UiS, and the added shimmer gives the polish more depth than the others.  Its flash is less prominent, and I think that part of it is an optical illusion from the holo pigment and the royal blue shimmers.  Hypothermia is a limited edition polish that is only available to those who purchase the full Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquer Winter Collection, which is currently in stock.  

You can purchase Enchanted Polishes at her store.  She's been downsizing her etailers, but I believe that Nail Polish Canada and Mei Mei's Signatures are both still carrying Enchanteds.  Follow Chelsea on Facebook and IG for news and updates on new releases and restocks.  Blue-Eyed Girl Lacquers can be purchased here.  Follow me on Facebook and IG for news and updates on new releases and restocks.  

And now for my big announcement!  I will be re-releasing Love Makes You Do the Wacky for a limited release for my Valentine's Collection February restock on 2/2/2014 at 3:00 pm est!  This will be a very small restock with only a few bottles of each polish stocked.  There may be a second small restock in the middle of the month depending on interest.  But if you've been looking to get Wacky, you'll need to act quickly!  I'll have photos of the rest of the collection within the week!

So, what do you think?  Are they close enough to one another that you don't need them all?  Which is your favorite?