China Glaze Grape Expectations Ombre Set

Have you guys seen the China Glaze Ombre sets at Sally Beauty? I recently stopped in and picked one up. Each Ombre set includes four coordinated polish colors from older collections as well as ten sponges, and they cost ~$13. Not a bad deal at all, especially if you don't own the polishes in the set already and you happen to have a $5 Sally coupon (like I did!).

There are three available sets: Grape Expectations (purple), Sweet Sensations (pink), and Wait Teal You See (teal/green). Clearly I picked up Grape Expectations, which includes Sweet Hook, Spontaneous, Grape Pop, and Crimson.

I tried the set's sponges on my right hand but found them to be a bit too coarse for my liking. I opted to use a triangle makeup wedge, like I always do for my gradients, on my photo hand.

I will say though that the set's sponges were easier to use than the makeup wedge. They required less coats and were definitely more beginner friendly. The gradient just wasn't as smooth -- it was kind of like the sponge stamped its pattern on to the nail. Does that make sense?

Either way, I was tremendously happy with the results of this kit. I think China Glaze did a great job of picking out the shades and the set seems like a genius marketing idea. Plus, now I have these shades to use in more nail art going forward! #winning