Safiya x Holo Taco Review

Updated on October 19th, 2025

In my Rating YouTuber Brands post, I mentioned I wanted to try Simply Nailogical’s brand Holo Taco. For my birthday last month, I bought myself the whole Safiya x Holo Taco Collection, which I wanted to review here.

Before I begin, the Safiya x Holo Taco Collection box is no longer available, but most of the individual nail polish shades as well as the nail file and glitter pack are.

What is Holo Taco?

Holo Taco is a nail polish brand started by Cristine Rotenberg, better known as Simply Nailogical on YouTube where she has 7.45 million subscribers. On YouTube, Cristine has shared a plethora of nail art videos, and her most popular videos are her Polish Mountain and Return to Polish Mountain videos where she used 100+ coats of nail polish on her nails.

In 2019, Cristine launched her own nail polish Holo Taco to share her love of all things holographic. Holo Taco nail polishes are long-lasting, vegan, cruelty-free, and have a 10-free formula. The 10-free formula ensures the nail polishes are free of formaldehyde, toluene, DPB (dibutyl phthalate), formaldehyde resin, camphor, ethyl tosylamide, xylene, triphenyl phosphate, MIT (methylisothiazolinone) and parabens. Furthermore, the nail polishes are available in a variety of finishes including holographic, glitter, chrome, metallic, creme, and magnetic. There are also top coats and base coats available. Holo Taco has regular new releases as well as limited edition collections including the Safiya x Holo Taco Collection with fellow YouTuber Safiya Nygaard.

You can purchase Holo Taco on the Holo Taco website, but Holo Taco is not available in physical stores. Also, Holo Taco ships from the US, and international shipping is available. Furthermore, customs duties and import fees are paid at checkout, so there will not be any unexpected fees upon delivery. As far as delivery time, I placed my order on September 9th, and it was delivered on September 16th in Denmark. One week is fantastic for international shipping!

Who is Safiya Nygaard?

Safiya Nygaard is a YouTuber with 9.87 million subscribers. Safiya is known for her bad makeup science videos, questionable fashion videos, and more recently her travel videos. She became friends with Cristine in 2017, and they have collaborated on previous videos including We Got A Head-To-Toe Holographic Makeover, Making Custom Nail Polish Colors, $130,000 NAIL POLISH?!, and Giving Safiya Wedding Nails. Therefore, it made sense for them to collaborate on a nail polish collection.

What is Included in the Safiya x Holo Taco Collection?

The collection includes 5 limited edition nail polishes for $14 each, Safiya’s Black Crystal Nail File for $12, and Safiya’s Black Bat Glitter Pack for $5. The limited edition nail polish shades include:

• Spirit Fingers – grey with red shimmer and scattered holo
• Brucie – dark teal with linear holo
• Feeling Fiendish – mauve with a creme finish
• Bat B*tch – black pearl with blue shimmer
• Berry Me In Holo – berry with crushed holo

Is Holo Taco Nail Polish Good?

Now for the review! First, I will discuss the individual shades and then my overall experience using the polishes. I will also share my thoughts on Safiya’s Black Crystal Nail File and Safiya’s Black Bat Glitter Pack.

Bat B*tch Review

Bat B*tch is the first nail polish I tried out from the collection, and I thought it would go perfectly with my look as I was going out that night. However, Bat B*tch is not One-Coat Black, and you definitely need 2 coats for full coverage. Furthermore, Bat B*tch is my least favorite shade in the collection because in indoor lighting or outdoor shade, it just looks like regular black nail polish. You need to use the flash on your phone, a camera, or direct sunlight to see the blue shimmer. I read reviews on the Holo Taco website as I was curious if it was just me who thought the nail polish just looked black, but others have shared that it does look like regular black nail polish to the eye, which is disappointing.

Spirit Fingers

Spirit Fingers is the second shade I tried from the collection, and you need at least 2 coats. Even with 2 coats, I have noticed that the nail edge shows through the polish, so it would be beneficial to use 3 coats. However, I do love the shade because it is unique. I have not seen a nail polish before that is grey with red shimmer, and I love the hint of holo. The red is noticeable in all lighting, and Spirit Fingers is my favorite shade out of the collection, but you need to build it with 2 to 3 coats for full coverage.

Feeling Fiendish

Feeling Fiendish is similar to Safiya’s mauve purple shade on her merch website Fiendish Behavior. The nail polish has pretty good coverage with 1 coat, but it does look better with 2 coats. Feeling Fiendish is such a pretty mauve, and I do like that there is one creme shade without shimmer or holo in the collection.

Brucie

The shade Brucie is inspired by Safiya’s video Mixing My Own Lip Colors with the Anastasia Beverly Hills Lip Palette that she named Brucie after the shark in Finding Nemo. Brucie is the most pigmented shade in the collection, I need to use 1 coat for full coverage. Furthermore, the linear holo is noticeable in all lighting. I love teal and darker shades, so Brucie is my second favorite shade in the collection.

Berry Me In Holo

Berry Me In Holo is inspired by the berry color Safiya would get from her franken lipstick videos such as Melting Every Lipstick From Sephora Together and Melting Every Lipstick From The Drugstore Together. I only need to use 1 coat for full coverage, and the holo is noticeable in all lighting. Berry Me In Holo is a gorgeous berry shade, and it is another great shade from the collection.

Holo Taco Nail Polishes Review

The Holo Taco nail polishes apply well, and the nail polish brush is easy to use. Also, the nail polishes dry fairly quickly. As far as how long the nail polish lasts, I do not regularly wear nail polish, therefore, my nail polish does not last as long as someone who does because my nails are not as porous. The first couple of times I used the nail polishes, I noticed chipping at the nail edge the next day, but I did not do any nail prep, and I was doing dishes and cleaning, which could have caused the chipping.

I then watched Cristine’s This Is How To Paint Your Nails! stream, which Cristine has uploaded the highlights for in the video this is why your nail polish doesn’t last!!!. I used nail oil, applied acetone to my nails, used the Holo Taco Quick Dry Base, applied the nail polishes carefully, added the Holo Taco Glossy Taco top coat, and cleaned up around the edges with acetone. It has been several days since I applied my nail polish, and there is no chipping!

When it is time to remove the Holo Taco nail polish, the nail polish comes off easily with either an acetone-based or an acetone-free nail polish remover.

Safiya’s Black Crystal Nail File Review

I have used a glass nail file for years, and I recommend one as it is very easy to use to file nails, and you just rinse the file with water to clean it. Also, the nail file does not break down, and it can last for years, though I accidentally broke a previous one in half, so be careful with them. However, I would probably not recommend Safiya’s Nail File. Safiya’s Nail File is made from Czech crystal glass, but the nail file is only one-sided, whereas other glass nail files and even the other Glass Nail File on the Holo Taco website are double-sided. I do not understand why Safiya’s nail file is only one-sided because it does make it harder to use, but I do like the black color and the design. I would highly recommend a double-sided glass nail file instead of Safiya’s.

Safiya’s Black Bat Glitter Pack Review

I have not used nail glitter before, and the first time I used this bat glitter, I followed the directions of applying a top coat (Glossy Taco), applying the bat glitter then adding another layer of top coat on top. I noticed one of the bats fell off that same day I applied them then another bat fell off the next day. It could be that I did not apply them well enough to ensure the wings were not sticking off the nail. However, I did read through reviews on the Holo Taco website, and it does not seem like it is not just me who has issues with the glitter. Some of the reviews mentioned that the bats are stiff and stick up and do not curve to the nails, so they get caught and fall off.

I attempted to use the bat glitter again, and I was more careful when placing the bats and pressing them down to ensure they stayed. So far, it has been several days, and they have not come off. However, I did have an issue when applying them and one of the bats fell on top of another bat, and it messed up the nail polish underneath when I was moving the bat off. The bat glitter is definitely not beginner-friendly!

Overall Thoughts on the Safiya x Holo Taco Collection

I will say I am impressed by the Holo Taco nail polishes. Besides the Bat B*tch shade, I love the 4 other shades in the collection, including Spirit Fingers, Brucie, Feeling Fiendish, and Berry Me In Holo. Some shades need 2-3 coats for full coverage, but that can be expected with different formulas. The nail polishes apply well, and with a base coat and a top coat, the nail polishes do last without chipping.

However, I am not the biggest fan of the accessories included in the collection. I love the design of Safiya’s Black Crystal Nail File, but I do not understand why the nail file is only one-sided when all other glass nail files I have seen and used are double-sided. Also, Safiya’s Black Bat Glitter Pack is definitely not for beginners like myself, as the bats are difficult to apply to the nails and make them last without falling off over the next couple of days. With that said, I would recommend trying out Holo Taco’s nail polishes and their Quick Dry Base and Glossy Taco.

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Have you tried any nail polish from Holo Taco?