Quirius Nail Polish Swatches and Review
A month or so ago, a reader emailed me asking about a brand of nail polish called Quirius. As much as I try to stay on top of all the brands out there, it seems there are new ones popping up every day and I had no clue what she was talking about. A quick Google search brought me to the QRS Beauty website and what looked like some fun blues, greens and purples. You know, my core color group.
The low prices and fun shades drew me in so I placed an order. The polish arrived a week before I left for The Makeup Show in NYC so I figured that would be a great time to test the wear. The color I chose was gorgeous and received many compliments but did it live up to the test? Read on to find out. |
As reader Grace commented, I didn’t mention the color I wore on the trip in my MU Show recap. As I told her in my response, I was iffy on the brand due to the poor wear. Though to be fair I layered Chanel Illusion D’or on top so I didn’t want to lay blame if it was unjustified. A second wear test was necessary. That happened this past weekend.
The color I wore both times is called Caribbean Turquoise and it is an utterly perfect representation of what turquoise should be. It’s not too green or too blue, just a perfect mix of the two. Though unlike shades like Chanel Nouvelle Vague or China Glaze For Audrey, this polish is electrified. It borders on the neon even drying to a satin finish like most neons. The color itself is stunning.
Though that’s where the praise has to end as the formula has some major issues. It’s not well pigmented, it doesn’t level out, you need three coats to make it look halfway decent and the wear is horrendous. I can’t remember the last time I was this disappointed in a polish’s application and longevity.
Can you imagine how it felt to have a bunch of my favorite beauty mavens ask about my nail color only to have major chips and tip wear after a day? A DAY people!! Not to mention that I have no clue how this brand is supposed to be pronounced. Queer-ee-us? Curious? Talk about making it hard to tell people what you’re wearing.
5 Day Wear Test with Chanel Illusion D’or
Like I mentioned above, I wore this polish twice. Once with CND Stickey and Air Dry with Chanel Illusion D’or on top (above). Once on its own with alternating fingers based with CND Stickey and Nubar Foundation with Nubar Diamont top coat (below). Both times, my polish started chipping and wearing off after a day. As you know, I spent last weekend away from home and every time I looked at my nails I was cursing this polish for how bad it looked. Oh how I just wanted to remove it! But in the name of the wear test I kept it on.
After five days, this is where we ended up. Again monster chips and major tip wear. I get that a lot of you only wear your color for a day or two because, like me, you have nail color ADD but if I can’t get at least two days out of a polish that’s just unacceptable. It’s a shame too because Quirius makes some gorgeous colors.
Just to see if maybe the issues were due to the neon-ish tendencies of Caribbean Turquoise I tried one of the other cremes I ordered, Ivy Wreath. Ivy Wreath is lovely grass green. It’s more yellow based in person than it appears on camera and will look fab with a faux-tan or olive complexion. I seriously LOVE this color. Again, application issues and the inability to level out plagues the polish. I added top coat for this pic and while it looks OK on screen, in person it falls flat. It’s definitely my favorite color and I’m going to wear it in spite of its flaws but the visible unevenness will bother me a bit.
So, maybe it’s just Quirius’s cremes that have problems. Let’s check out a shimmer…
Cresskill Eve looks very promising in the bottle. A mossy green with gold metallic shimmer and hints of teal. Sounds like a winning combination, no? I just wish it was more opaque and smooth. I’m not up for brush stroke madness. In spite of how cool this color is, the fact that I couldn’t get it even takes away from that. Bummer!
As a last resort I pulled out the darkest color in my haul, Paris Night. As I’ve said in the past about MAC, they do shimmer and dark polishes really well but tend to misstep when it comes to lights and cremes. Could dark polishes be Quirius’s strong suit? Unfortunately, no.
Paris Night is a dark denim blue. In the bottle you can see a hint of purple shimmer but it doesn’t show up on the nail. It goes on uneven and doesn’t have enough pigmentation for a two coat application.
Bottom line: As much as I wanted to love this brand for its diverse color range and affordable price point, I just can’t get on board. If there is a color from the line that you love and can’t find anywhere else order it and be prepared for a short wear time.
Quiruis Nail Lacquer can be ordered online from the QRS Beauty website. Polishes retail for $3/ea and they have a choose your own adventure type deal where you pick 6 colors for only $15.
Have any of you tried Quirius? What has your experience been in terms of application and wear? If you have any tips for making their polish last, please share. I’d love to make them work.
Also, don’t forget to vote in the ALU Senior Superlatives Class of 2010 poll. Help award your favorite nail brands and get the chance to win a prize pack of OPI, Seche & Zoya goodies.
Disclosure: I ordered the polishes in this review from QRS Beauty. For more info view my Disclosure Policy.
Lisa N.
Ms Meatballhead
Birdie
Spa pediccure chairs
from ur review i remembered MAC nail polishes which start chipping and cracking on the 3rd day of wearing. i really hated it and regret paying too much for something that doesn’t last. the colors u displayed are gorgeous but it’s a shame they didn’t last for even one day!
about a trick to keep the lacquer lasts more is to apply the top coat horizontally on the edges of ur nails..they said it would keep the lacquer from chipping easily!
Yep, wrapping the tips is essential to a long lasting mani and I did that. I think a lot of people forget that step or don’t know about it when applying polish. Maybe Quirius’s formula just doesn’t work on me. They don’t list their ingredients online or on the bottles so I have no clue what could be causing the poor wear.
I’ve never heard about “wrapping the tips” and would be happy to learn some new polish tricks. Could it be possible for you to do a post about your nail routines (you know applying polish, nail care etc.)? and with a lot of pictures!
Or have you already done one? I’m a fairly new reader and haven’t yet run into one. If you know some good instructions on other sites too, please point my nose to the right direction. I’m so lost in the world of beauty blogs…
Thanks in advance!
Yeah, me too never heard of wrapping the tips and my polish is lucky if it lasts 2 days intact. A quick description of the best way to do this would be very much appreciated.
Silja, have a look at Laquerized blog, she has some good tips re painting and manicuring nails, but doesn’t mention wrapping the tips.
Thanks.
That’s too bad. I love the greens and the turquoise!
I’ve never tried the brand before; the colors you chose to swatch are beautiful (I really like the last 2). Even though the polish runs for $3, I like polish that at least stays on for a week or two.Did you try a top coat like Sally Hansen’s Insta Dri top coat? It’s the one in the red bottle that after 2 minutes of applying your nail color it will dry it? I use that on a lot of my nail polish colors to help them last.
I used a quick dry top coat and I wrapped the tips. I’m hoping a regular Quirius wearer will share which base/top coat combo they use to get extended wear.
These nail polishes aren’t worth it. They cost $2 and they chip the same day. Sinful colors and Quirius are the same price and the last longer. i used 4 coats of Quirius and 2 coats of Sally Hansen’s instant dry and they chipped the same day. They got beautiful colors you can’t deny that. I like Quirius top clear it’s really shiny.
I’ve had pretty good results with Quirius in the past – Paris Night is one of my favorites. Maybe they’ve changed something about their formula? I bought Paris Night years ago at a brick and mortar, and it applied like a dream and was shockingly opaque. It did dry strangely, a little flat looking even with t/c.
Wow, that’s bizarre. I’ve never had a single problem with Quirius – only Icing has ever chipped on me the way you describe. Body chemistry is so individual!
So true! I’m sure some people get great wear out of them. The application was sub-par though. Did they apply well for you?
I walked by a full display of Quirius the other day. While I have always been a little ho hum over the brand whenever posted, I have to say I was completely taken aback by how many gorgeous colors they have!
Really impressive. (Too bad their bottles are so ugly :/)
I liked this review a lot. You should also review Diamond Cosmetics! I think they have an EXCELLENT price point and have some amazing colors!! My favorites are Don’t Teal My Heart Away and Cherry Tobacco. I found that they apply beautifully but can be chippy. It would be interesting to hear your thoughts.
This is a shame. I like the colors you chose very much. But to see they don’t live up to a 5 day (minimum) mani standard. Blech!
Will you experiment again, maybe with a different base? Or, have these gone well past your courtesy?
I have to say I’m a big fan of the last two. It matters not that the wear time is a day or two-honestly I’ve got a TON of polishes that are 3 x as expensive and the wear time is similar. I’ll be sure to check them out
That’s too bad since I haven’t had any issues with application with them.
Too bad about the wear…the colours are fantastic! I have the same issue with Diamond polishes…they chip the same day on me. Nothing else has been as bad.
Can anyone pls explain to me how to wrap your nail tips? I’ve never heard of that!! Thx
Hi! Will you be doing swatches of the Essie summer 2010 collection???
Thank you SO MUCH for the info- I seem to have many of the same experiences with certain polishes as you do, so I believe that Quirius would most likely behave the same way on me. Too bad- their colors are really pretty great- anyhow, I’m glad it works well for others. Body chemistry- it’s a head scratcher. Oh, well-more $ to spend on something that actually works for me…I just ordered the Olan Labs topcoat! I hope it is the answer to my mani dreams!!!
Thanks again for all of the info- it’s really helpful!
Thanks for the review, you saved some money and heartache. I saw these on another blog and was planning to order since they’re so cheap. They sound horrible.
That’s too bad. Anyway, Lovely colours
What is this top coat wrap technique? I think I would like to start utilizing this trick.
So you still just put one coat of top coat on your nails, but apply it horizontally, rather than vertically? Does it look funny? I looked at your full manicure pictures of the Qurious wear tests and I couldn’t see anything looking funny, so the wrap technique must not be visible. That’s a good thing.
Great tip! Hopefully it’ll help my chips. Thanks.
Yes, beautiful colors in the Quirius line, but that’s not good that you aren’t getting your wear for your $$.
Have you used any of the Golden Cosmetics nail polishes?
bummer! i like their little chubby bottles too
I’ve had no problems with Quirius polishes. Application was excellent and the wear time was too, no chips after a week. I use various basecoats (Barielle Nail Camo, Nail Life Revitalizer Formaldehyde Free, China Glaze Calcium Gel, Orly Nail Defense) but I always use Out the Door TC. Quirius’s Starry Night is the perfect saturated bright purple and Ruby Pumps is my favorite red glitter, very rich and metallic. I have 10 or 12 colors from them.
I haven’t tried these polishes but I’ve had bad experiences with CND Sticky with CND Speedy. It was chipping horrible with my manicures even when I used it with CND Muddy Rose. Chipped and peeled before noon.
After 5 days I’m surprised that it looks so chipped. Every time I make a nail polish review I test the color for 5 days and post photos. This is the only way to know if that polish is worth buying it or not. Pretty colors don’t impress me much because I don’t like to chance my nail polish every 2 days.
Paris Night and Cresskill Eve are stunning! Too bad they don’t wear well.
I looove this brand. I did a pick my own set and they sent me a free one too (Ivy Wreath!) with a little sticker on it with my name and saying it was a gift for me!! I’ve never had any problems with them (I use Nailtek 2 foundation base, Out the Door Top)and I plan on getting more. Erin Island is an amazing neon mint green.
I love the info that u provide for us polish freaks, was wondering if you’ve tried or heard of Orgasm cosmetics? They have a line of polish with about 50 colors. All very lovely color’s. Would u consider doing a swatch review on them? I love their name and the names of the polishes. It would be great to see the reviewed by you!
I ordered a few of these last summer and unless they’ve changed their formulation I think it bears stating that they are not big-3-free. Just a heads up for the pregnant ladies/those who are concerned about the effects on reproductive organs.
I bought 2 bottles of this brand in a beauty supply in NYC last summer and I totally regret!! The colors were way too sheer and it takes up to 4 coats to get something half decent… I usually buy Essie or OPI, and randomly some drugstore cheap brands , but so far this is my biggest dissapointment!
Pretty colors but thats too bad about the wear. OPI does that to me, my mom can wear it for days on end, mine chips after a day or two and i like my manis to last at least 4 or 5 days.
I love the brand Sinful Colors, they wear forever on me and its cheap and at Meijer so i can sneak new polishes every time we go grocery shopping
My favorite red polish of all time, russian red, is a red shimmer with gold shimmer. I bought it over a year ago and have had no prpblems with chipping. Love it especially for pedicures. Beautiful color.
Had a salon manicure yesterday at my usual place and chose a greenish turquoise by “QRS” which I assume is the same as this Quirius brand. I searched for a review of their polish because today not even 24 hours later all of my nails are chipping. I don’t know why I bother going to the salon, my nails always look nicer and wear better when I do them myself….
What a bummer! Yes, that sounds like the same brand. I would call the salon and see if they will offer a polish change
I can say that in the past some of their neon colors were more difficult to apply. (as are all neon colors for every company i think) but the colors i bought recently have stayed on for a very long without chipping. Also they have just launched their q-gel polish. I bought debutante and coral reef in both gel and polish, both application amazing!
Their prices are now $4 for the bottles online still considerably cheaper than other brands. I recommend them they work great for me.