Archived Post

China Glaze Holiday 2010: Part 1 Review, Photos, Swatches

China Glaze Holiday 2010
Nail Lacquer: Mommy Kissing Santa, Phat Santa, Ruby Deer

China Glaze Holiday 2010: Part 1

For the holidays, China Glaze has an impressive sixteen new shades for us. The first six I’m reviewing include three red-based shades as well as three cream finishes. I had no application issues with any of these six; they all applied quite easily for me–two coats needed for opaque color. The consistency of these shades was on the thinner side, but it wasn’t watery or sheer. Each China Glaze retails for $3 to 4, depending on where you purchase yours from. I know the brand is carried at various etailers as well as Sally’s (not sure if it’s in store yet, though).

  • Mommy Kissing Santa is a ruby red with matching shimmer. It almost has a metallic look but not quite. It’s a pretty red, but there’s a good chance you have something that seems similar in your stash. Zoya’s Karina is a little lighter and glitter rather than shimmer based; Two coats.
  • Phat Santa is a deepened red cream. It seems a touch lighter than Essie’s Limited Addiction. Two coats.
  • Ruby Deer is a brightened cherry red cream. It’s similar to Zoya’s Burke (less neutral red) and Essie’s Red Nouveau. Two coats.
  • Naughty and Nice is a blackened burgundy cream. The base color actually reminded me of China Glaze’s Mummy May I (which has glitter), also similar to Essie’s Velvet Voyeur (a bit redder in tone). Two coats.
  • Sugar Plums is a burgundy wine with flecks of darkened ruby micro-glitter. It does have a bumpy/gritty finish, so it needs a thicker top coat to look smooth. Two coats.
  • Little Drummer Boy is a rich navy blue with softened blue micro-shimmer. There’s something about this particular shade that has a lot of depth and character. I looked through my past nail swatches from the year, and I couldn’t find anything quite like it. Two coats.

If you want to know more about how products are evaluated, read out Rating System FAQ! 🙂

  • Product: 29/30
  • Value: 9/10
  • Ease of Use: 4/5
  • Packaging: 4/5

RECOMMENDATION: I like Sugar Plums and Little Drummer Boy the most; the reds felt a little dupe-able, so whether they’re must-haves depends more on your personal stash.

AVAILABILITY: 8ty8beauty.com

China Glaze Holiday 2010
Nail Lacquer: Mommy Kissing Santa, Phat Santa, Ruby Deer

China Glaze Holiday 2010
Nail Lacquer: Mommy Kissing Santa, Phat Santa, Ruby Deer

China Glaze Holiday 2010
Nail Lacquer: Mommy Kissing Santa, Phat Santa, Ruby Deer

China Glaze Holiday 2010
Nail Lacquer: Naughty and Nice, Sugar Plums, Little Drummer Boy

China Glaze Holiday 2010
Nail Lacquer: Naughty and Nice, Sugar Plums, Little Drummer Boy

China Glaze Holiday 2010
Nail Lacquer: Naughty and Nice, Sugar Plums, Little Drummer Boy

China Glaze Holiday 2010
Nail Lacquer: Naughty and Nice, Sugar Plums, Little Drummer Boy

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Mommy Kissing Santa Nail Lacquer (Natural Light)

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Mommy Kissing Santa Nail Lacquer (Natural Light)

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Mommy Kissing Santa Nail Lacquer (Natural Light)

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Mommy Kissing Santa Nail Lacquer (Flash)

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Phat Santa Nail Lacquer (Natural Light)

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Phat Santa Nail Lacquer (Natural Light)

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Phat Santa Nail Lacquer (Natural Light)

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Phat Santa Nail Lacquer (Flash)

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Ruby Deer Nail Lacquer (Natural Light)

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Ruby Deer Nail Lacquer (Natural Light)

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Ruby Deer Nail Lacquer (Natural Light)

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Ruby Deer Nail Lacquer (Flash)

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Naughty and Nice Nail Lacquer (Natural Light)

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Naughty and Nice Nail Lacquer (Natural Light)

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Naughty and Nice Nail Lacquer (Natural Light)

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Naughty and Nice Nail Lacquer (Flash)

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Sugar Plums Nail Lacquer (Natural Light)

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Sugar Plums Nail Lacquer (Natural Light)

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Sugar Plums Nail Lacquer (Natural Light)

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Sugar Plums Nail Lacquer (Flash)

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Little Drummer Boy Nail Lacquer (Natural Light)

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Little Drummer Boy Nail Lacquer (Natural Light)

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Little Drummer Boy Nail Lacquer (Natural Light)

China Glaze Holiday 2010
China Glaze Little Drummer Boy Nail Lacquer (Flash)

46 Comments

Comments that do not adhere to our comment policy may be removed. Discussion and debate are highly encouraged but we expect community members to participate respectfully. Please keep discussion on-topic, and if you have general feedback, a product review request, an off-topic question, or need technical support, please contact us!

Please help us streamline the comments' section and be more efficient: double-check the post above for more basic information like pricing, availability, and so on to make sure your question wasn't answered already. Comments alerting us to typos or small errors in the post are appreciated (!) but will typically be removed after errors are fixed (unless a response is needed).

We appreciate enthusiasm for new releases but ask readers to please hold questions regarding if/when a review will be posted as we can't commit to or guarantee product reviews. We don't want to set expectations and then disappoint readers as even products that are swatched don't always end up being reviewed due to time constraints and changes in priorities! Thank you for understanding!

Comments on this post are closed.
Joyce Avatar

Because of these swatches, I definitely HAD to get some of holiday 2010! I ended up getting the Party Hearty set, Cheers to You set (the shot glass gave me a laugh), Jingle Bells, and Frosty. I wanted to get Mommy Kissing Santa for another red color, but I just bought Ruby Pumps because it’s like a cult favorite I think? They’re all so beautiful though!

Valene Avatar

Oh I like this new post FAQ thing. *thumbs up* I really like the China Glaze line up for the holidays, I like them all but I don’t think I need all of the reds, maybe just one of two.

leesie Avatar

I figured I’d chime in just to be helpful–I’ve ordered from them, too, twice. If I remember correctly, it takes about three days from the time I place my order for the order to get to me in Northwest Indiana (it ships from Bay Shore, New York, although they probably/maybe have other warehouses). I order polishes four at a time (a CS rep told me I could only order four at one time, which I still think seems sort of silly), and shipping is $7. They’re reliable, though; I’ve not had any problems with them.

brandy Avatar

I just ordered 14 polishes and my shipping was $11! The polish is only 2.68 though and no tax so it still ends up $3 and some change a bottle! Nice!

leesie Avatar

It really is the best way to get China Glaze, at least the older colors the stores don’t have any more. : )
See, I figured that 4-bottles-only rule wasn’t actually a rule. If it were, it’d be written somewhere visible, and they wouldn’t let you put more than four bottles in your cart. Thanks, silly customer service guy. *sigh*

Ru Avatar

I really like Little Drummer Boy, but then I realized that Opening Night by OPI Sephora is pretty similar (a bit darker).

Also really love Mommy Kissing Santa surprisingly.

leesie Avatar

I’ve been ducking into Sally’s every chance I get (which is about every four or so days) to check on these. Out of these six, I only really want Little Drummer Boy, and will probably grab one of the red creams. Up until now, I’ve been building my collection with creams (with the exception of a holo and Orly Lunar Eclipse), but Little Drummer Boy looks so pretty in all the swatches I’ve seen that I think I must have it.
It’s all your fault I even care, Christine. Darn you.

Nicole Avatar

Little Drummer Boy is definitely my favorite here! It’s very wintery! I own only two red nail polishes. I have the hardest time wanting to buy more reds and knowing what shade to go for. There are too many options out there! Haha.

Jennifer Avatar

Heather, I have the same problem. It always looks great on Christine`s nails tho 🙁 lol. No matter what I do, China Glaze polish always goes on thick and streaky : \

Michelle Avatar

Wow, another collection of unoriginal reds for christmas? This puts me to sleep. The only interesting color is Little Drummer Boy, and even that isn’t very original…

Mina Avatar

Christine, I have been really fighting myself about whether or not I should buy Rescue Beauty Lounge’s Under the Stars, but I just can’t justify spending $18 on a polish, plus $8.50 for shipping! I know RBL does a 5-hour half off sale, but even with that, it just seems oh-so-pricey! Would you say Little Drummer Boy is similar? Based on your swatches, Under the Stars seems less shimmery, so when the light hits the color, what shimmer is there really stands out in a sea of dark blue. I am so in love with that shade!

We try to approve comments within 24 hours (and reply to them within 72 hours) but can sometimes get behind and appreciate your patience! 🙂 If you have general feedback, product review requests, off-topic questions, or need technical support, please contact us directly. Thank you for your patience!