OPI Black Shatter vs. Silver Shatter: See the Difference HERE!

If you are new to shatter polishes, or have tried the black and want to apply the silver, here is all the information you will need to know:

OPI Black Shatter is part of the Katy Perry Collection. (Click Here to see Glambo's review.) It came out in early 2011 and was an instant hit! Stores sold out of their supply immediately and were backordered for weeks. Silver Shatter is from OPI’s Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides collection. It was released May 1st, and is also proving difficult to capture. Although both colors ‘shatter,’ there are differences in the application technique to acheive the optimal effect.



Pictured here:
Black Shatter over silver nail polish (left), and Silver Shatter over black nail polish(right).

Black Shatter should be applied with very thin strokes: The thinner the better to for the most crackled effect. Black Shatter has a matte finish, and top coat is necessary to add some shine. The Black Shatter gives nails a leather-like feel. When it chips (as all manicures eventually do,) it will come off in chunks along the crackle lines.

For those that think Black Shatter polish makes your nails look goth, then Silver Shatter will give a futuristic impression. The Silver Shatter polish is thinner. It appears to have a clear base that is infused with silver shimmer. Unlike the Black Shatter, thicker application strokes are necessary to get the most shattered look. The Silver Shatter does seem to take longer to break apart than the black. You may also get ‘glitter cuticles’ when first applying Silver Shatter. It’s happened to us several times, and is easy to clean up with polish remover. It wears well, and due to the lighter color, is less noticeable when it chips.

CLICK HERE to view OPI's Video "How to Apply Silver Shatter."

With both polishes:

• Do NOT go over the same area twice. That spot will not crackle if you do.
• Use a top coat once the shatter polish has dried. A three minute wait time is suggested.
• Crackle polishes do not shatter as well over a glittery base color. Keep that in mind when you are selecting a color to show through your shatter.
• Due to the drying effect of the shatter, keep the bottle covered as much as possible.
• You can touch up the tips of your nails when the polish eventually chips. That will extend the wear of your manicure for a few more days.
• Both polishes will get you noticed! Don’t be surprised if complete strangers comment on your nails.

Personally, the Glambo Girls prefer contrast between the base color and the shatter. One of our favorite combinations is OPI Black Shatter over white.

The Pirates of the Caribbean colors are light and muted, but we love the silver shatter over brighter, darker shades. To see Silver Shatter over POTC shades, CLICK HERE. (Note the pale, Steady as She Rose. The camera picked up more contrast than you initially notice with the naked eye.)

To see how OPI Shatter polishes measure up against China Glaze Crackle colors, CLICK HERE.

More shatter colors are coming from OPI. Expect to see white, navy, turquoise, blue and red on the beauty supply shelves soon.

OPI - Katy Perry Colors & Black Shatter

We love 'em!

The Teenage Dream seen here was so pretty that it was almost disappointing to cover it with Black Shatter. It is a cheerful, pale pink with two types and sizes of glitter. The bottle matches the polished result on your nails.

OPI Katy Perry Teenage Dream / nails match the bottle

The Last Friday Night blue is very pretty once applied. Look at this gorgeous light blue! But wait- the bottle color looks dark. Well... it took us SEVEN coats to get close to that shade. We could have added a few more to obtain the color we thought we had purchased. Last Friday Night is a beautiful shade even with just two coats. It's a color you won't regret giving a try.

Left Fingers: THREE coats
Right Fingers: TWO coats
Katy Perry Last Friday Night by OPI




It took us SEVEN coats to achieve
 the color portrayed here.





Honestly, the Not Like the Movies polish was the one that Colleen L. was the least excited about, and Silvia L. liked right away. That changed once we polished our nails. It's our new favorite! It looks great on every skin tone. The alternating lavender and green hues over the polishes' steel grey base keep it fun and fresh. In certain lighting, one hand had a purple-esque look while the other hand reflected a soft green. Neat!



Left: Not Like the Movies / Right: The One that Got Away



The One that Got Away is described as a 'deep berry' and has a slight shimmer. .... It's a nice twist on similar shades that are so popular they are a nail polish / pedicure staple. This one is sure to be a top-seller.

The Black Shatter is still all the buzz. Jimmy Fallon even commented on Maria Menounos' shattered manicure recently on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. Click Here to view.

Glambo has multiple posts about Black Shatter and all the shatter/ crackle colors. Take a look around our blog and bookmark it if you are becoming a shatter fanatic. Thanks for stopping by!

Black Shatter - So Popular Even Jimmy Fallon will Notice Your Manicure

Maria Menounos appeared on Jimmy Fallon last night. She stopped by to chat and promote her book, 'The Everygirls Guide to Life' - which we can't wait to read! The Late Night host sees her nails and Maria talks about OPI's Katy Perry Black Shatter here: We also like Black Shatter over silver. Maria should take Glambo's tip and touch up the ends. With the polished shatter effect, you can get away with an imperfect manicure by brushing more black shatter over the chipped edges.

Shatter vs. Crackle: Bring it on!

The hype surrounding these nail polishes has been so tremendous that I can almost hear the theme from ‘'Rocky” playing. The contenders: OPI’s Katy Perry Black Shatter vs. China Glaze’s Crackle.

We’ve tried them both, and here is all the info you need to know about the two competitors:

OPI’s Black Shatter is still nearly impossible to get. It’s the first one of it’s kind to hit the market and it’s been extremely popular. (See Glambo post: “Black Shatter, Where are you?”) China Glaze’s crackle -in color! - was just released this week. If you polish your nails with either of these products, people will stop you to look. It’s a very cool effect and is definitely a conversation starter.

One thing we noted is that the OPI version grabs more heavily onto glitter polishes and gives more black coverage. To us, it seemed like more of a leather look than the leopard style spots the ad photos show. My first reaction after putting it over the light and pretty “Teenage Dream” was, “I didn’t want a Goth look.” But the more I looked at it, the more I liked it. The glitter sparkles through in the sun and I just couldn’t stop looking at my nails! Polishes with less glitter allow the Black Shatter to separate more, changing the effect and letting more of the base color show through.

We were curious about the China Glaze version because their polishes tend to be thinner than OPI’s. The China Glaze colors are very appealing as you can see in the video below. They come with packaged with a black nail polish and top coat. The colors crackle over the black base to give the effect.



The China Glaze black base polish was thinner, and I did one set of nails with one coat and one with two. The colored China Glaze Crackle polish went over the black, and it looked great. The Crackle glaze was thinner, which we liked. Using only one coat of black base didn’t seem to make much of a difference, so if you are in a hurry, you can skip that second coat. We like the idea of crackle colors over other colored nail polish. Our advice is that if you want a Black Shatter look, then use the black crackle or shatter over your favorite color - vs. painting your nails black first like China Glaze suggests. Both the OPI Black Shatter and China Glaze Crackle are a matte finish, so a top coat is essential for sheen and longevity.

We wondered, “How will they hold up?” I followed through by taking on the biggest opponent to any manicure: I spent a few hours filing paperwork. My nail polish did eventually chip, and it came off in large, thick chunks along the crackle lines. However, due to the nature of the imperfect shatter look, I was able to put just a little more Black Shatter on the tips, and follow up with another clear coat. It looked great again.

A few other things we noted:

The China Glaze colors appeared to be separating in our brand new bottles. Glambo suggests that you roll the bottle to mix it up well before polishing. Also, make sure that you wipe the top of the bottle after polishing and before you replace the lid. The shatter/crackle effect is drying and it makes the polish build up on the bottle edges. This will lead to a tough time twisting the bottle open later if the bottle isn’t cleaned properly.

We also like that the OPI version has a crackle lid, and the China Glaze clearly says, ‘crackle’ on the bottle. (I could just see myself grabbing a bottle from my polish stash a few months from now, not realizing that it was a crackle effect until it was too late.)

As of today, OPI’s Black Shatter is difficult to find. (Beware of E-Bay sellers that have ‘estimated’ shipment dates as they do not even have the product in stock.) The China Glaze colors are in demand, but seemed a little easier for us to get than the OPI version.

There are subtle differences, and we loved them both! The result: OPI’s Katy Perry Black Shatter and China Glaze’s Crackle each get Glambo’s Kiss of Approval.