When I was a kid, I couldn’t resist shaking jingle bells when I was in craft stores. It would sometimes annoy my mom because I had the urge to not just ring one bell, but as many as I could get my grubby little hands on.

(I blame the classic Christmas film, It’s a Wonderful Life. Once I learned that every time a bell rings and an angel gets its wings, I wanted to ring all the bells, so that none of the angels would have to wait for their wings!) 😉

It’s that time of year when festive manicures are coming out in full force! With Christmas just a few weeks away, it’s time to start busting out the glitz and traditional combination of red and green.

I was already wearing OPI Amore at the Grand Canal from the Venice Collection, and the moment I laid eyes on Pretty Serious The Singing Seed, it was like the money-maker high E above middle C that launched Christina Aguilera’s singing career – it felt right in every way!

Pretty Serious The Singing Seed is a glitter topper that features short gold bar glitter, as well as green and gold glitter. It’s the ideal complement for any holiday reds that you already have in your nail wardrobe, taking them from everyday classic to Christmas classic with just a single coat.

P.S. I hope that my U.S. readers had a wonderful Thanksgiving yesterday and are having a fun and safe Black Friday today. (Here in Canada, we also have Black Friday deals! I’m going to keep my eyes peeled like a banana for something good. I’ve been thinking about upgrading my washer and dryer.)

Pretty Serious The Singing Seed Pictures

Pretty Serious The Singing Seed Swatches

All swatches have:

• OPI Nail Envy Nail Strengthener (Used as a base coat)
• 2 coats of OPI Amore at the Grand Canal (Provided by PR)
• 1 coat of Pretty Serious The Singing Seed
• Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat

Artificial Light Photos

Natural Light Photos

Claim: TRUSTED

• Green & gold glitter (Yes)

Key Notes

• Name: Pretty Serious The Singing Seed
• Collection: Pretty Serious Naileontology Collection
• Colours Available in the Collection: The Singing Seed, Baphomet’s Berserker, Blood of Knossos, Eye of Copernicus, Fossil of the Death Worm, Ichi Hanami, Khepri’s Amulet, The Crimson Pearl & The Dragon’s Curse
• Amount: 11 mL (0.37 fl. oz.)
• Retail Price: $9.95 AUD
• Disclosure: This was provided as a press sample by Pretty Serious Cosmetics.
• Where to Buy: Pretty Serious Cosmetics website, Harlow & Co. & select stockists

Pretty Serious The Singing Seed Review

Colour

Like a cup of holiday cheer, The Singing Seed by Pretty Serious has the right mix of festive charm, in the form of sparkling gold and green glitter.

Suspended in a clear base, making it versatile to layer over virtually any colour, are green and gold glitter, as well as short gold bar glitter.

While the gold dominates, enough green shines through, so while the overall appearance has the Midas Touch, the leprechauns are still representing themselves! 😉

Finish

Although The Singing Seed by Pretty Serious looks like a chunky glitter that would be rough and scratchy, the finish is actually quite smooth and comfortable, even before applying a glossy top coat. (Of course, once you use a top coat, it smoothes things out even more to give it that glass-like shine.)

It’s no secret that glitters like these can be challenging to remove. That’s why I prefer to use just one coat of glitter layered over a base shade. This helps to make the removal process easier than if you were to layer coat upon coat of chunky glitter.

In the event that you wanted to wear the glitter solo, I tested it out on a nail wheel. It’s buildable, so you can technically get full coverage with about three to four generous coats, however, I strongly advise wearing this layered instead.

Application & Formula

There’s enough clear polish that coats each glitter well, so I didn’t experience any gooping. The formula was smooth and thin, so it was easy to get the glitter onto the nails evenly without much effort.

Even if some glitter tended to pile up in the first section of the nail that you touched with your brush, you can just paint as usual, and it disperses the glitter nicely.

One coat was all I used for this layered look. The density of the glitter was great because it had a balance of showing off the right amount of bling, while still allowing enough red to peek through.

Ingredients & Animal-Friendliness

Those who are making conscious shopping decisions will be happy to know that all Pretty Serious Cosmetics nail polishes are free of Formaldehyde, Toluene, DBP, and Formaldehyde Resin. Additionally, they are all vegan and cruelty-free.

Cute Story Behind the Nail Polish

On Pretty Serious Cosmetics’ website, they had a cute little story behind the polish. I love what they wrote, so I decided to share it:

“Some time ago, a retired construction worker came to the museum with a collection of large seeds he was hoping to have identified by our Naileontologists. Though he found them at a demolition site he had been working on in lower Manhattan, they appeared to be either very foreign or very old, potentially both, and he had no luck in making any grow. Our Naileontologists had been rather stumped themselves, unable to identify their origin or make them grow for several years. Suddenly, one of the plants sprouted during a solar eclipse, revealing a carnivorous plant of the fly trap variety with the incredible ability to sing! These stunning plants can turn any mood or situation into a song and are quite clever with prompting you for a bit of food!”

Pros Blingtastic gold & green glitter Has short gold bar glitter Clear base makes it versatile to layer over nearly any shade Smooth, dense glitter No Formaldehyde, Toluene, DBP, or Formaldehyde Resin Vegan & Cruelty-free

Cons If you don’t like ordering nail polishes online, it can tricky to track down Pretty Serious nail polishes

Final Verdict: 9.5/10

The Singing Seed by Pretty Serious Cosmetics from the Nailentology Collection is a winner in my nail book! Not only is it versatile to be layered over many different colours because of the clear base, but the density of the glitter adds the right amount of bling without covering up your base colour.

This is an easy solution for creating festive manicures. After all, most of us already have a standard red creme in our collections. With this green and gold glitter topper, you can easily transform your existing manicure to say, “Ho! Ho! Ho!” 😉

Have you decided what you’re going to wear as your Christmas manicure? Did you celebrate Thanksgiving yesterday? Are you doing any Black Friday or Cyber Monday shopping?