ALU’s 365 of Untrieds – OPI Grape…Set…Match & Servin’ Up Silver from the OPI Glam Slam! England Collection
365 of Untrieds is my personal challenge to weed through the polishes in the ALU stash that I’ve been wanting to try but just haven’t gotten around to.
The other day when I shared The Painted Nail’s Legendary Lavender I received a few questions asking how it compares to the latest OPI Glam Slam! England release, OPI Grape…Set…Match. At the time I had played with the color a bit but hadn’t taken it for a full test drive so I figured today was a great day for that. Released to coincide with Serena Williams’ next big Grand Slam tournament, Wimbledon, the newest OPI Glam Slam! releases take us to England and add a new top coat element to the party. Rather than a new Shatter, the Glam Slam! England duos come with Servin’ Up Sparkle, a holographic glitter top coat. According to OPI Executive VP & Artistic Director Suzi Weiss-Fischmann, “England’s premier tennis tournament warrants colors with extra glitz and glamour. The next big trend in nails is making lacquer look 3-dimensional by adding different micas and glitters, turning fingertips into jewelry. With two bold metallics and a sparkling glitter, these colors are fit for royalty.” |
Formula & Application: OPI nail polishes are now 4-Free (including formaldehyde resin) and free of camphor, which can be an irritant. This is a new development as OPI’s pre-Texas were only 3-Free. I just wish OPI had changed the color of the print on the labels so buyers can identify 4-Free polishes like they did when they made the switch to 3-Free.
The OPI Pro Wide Brush is flat, wide and medium in length. It’s of average stiffness and easily spreads out on the nail when pressed. The only downside to the Pro Wide brush is that it can be too wide for slim fingers or little toes.
Each of the polishes in this set apply with a slightly different texture. Servin’ Up Sparkle is a clear based glitter so it is squishy and very jelly-like to suspend the glitter. While the smaller particles are evenly dispersed you may find yourself having to intentionally place the hexagonal sequins to get them on the nail. Grape…Set…Match on the other hand has a texture that falls somewhere between a jelly and a creamy opaque. I would call it a semi-opaque polish since I needed three coats to get full coverage. People who are more heavy handed with their application can get away with two coats.
OPI Grape…Set…Match was well named not only for the tennis reference but because it has a red grape hue to it. It’s a highly reflective sparkle polish with a reddish-purple base and tons of fuchsia and blue smooth micro-glitter though the blue is a bit more prominent on the nail.
Adding a layer of OPI Servin’ Up Silver turns it into one big holographic party. Just to be clear, the glitter doesn’t create a prismatic effect but the individual particles light up in different colors like Lite-Brite pegs. The holographic sequins are kind of few and far between so you really have to work to get a lot of them on the nail. Now while I don’t own China Glaze Shooting Stars, based on pics of it I have seen, the two seem awfully similar.
The second I saw Grape…Set…Match I thought of OPI Ink. They both have the same kind of glitter and finish. GSM is the redder version of OPI Ink and it lines up on the color wheel somewhere between it and The Painted Nail Legendary Lavender. OPI Ink. is so much darker and bluer than GSM that I didn’t include it in my comparison swatch below.
As you can see both colors have similar red grape bases but it’s LL’s brighter hue that makes it pop a bit more in comparison. And GSM’s blue glitter definitely makes it a bit cooler toned.
Bottom Line: Of all the Glam Slam duos we have seen thus far, this may be my favorite in that both colors are keepers. Don’t get me wrong, Spark De Triomphe is still my hands down winner for best individual performance but this set gets the best group/duo award from me.
365 of Untrieds Stash/Share Verdict: I’m STASHing both for now but I’m only hanging on to GSM for comparison purposes as I personally prefer Legendary Lavender and don’t really need both.
The OPI Glam Slam! England duos are available now at salons and spas nationwide including Beauty Brands, Beauty First, Chatters, Dillard’s, JCPenney, Pure Beauty, Regis, Trade Secret, and ULTA. OPI nail polishes retail for $8.50/ea and the Glam Slam! duos retail for $14.95/set for two .5oz bottles.
Thoughts on Grape…Set…Match and Servin’ Up Silver? Will you be getting this set? What has been your favorite Glam Slam! duo so far? If you have China Glaze Shooting Stars, how do you think it compares to SUS top coat?
Disclosure: A product sample was provided by OPI. For more info view my Disclosure Policy.
Lisa N.
Ms Meatballhead
Birdie
Spa pediccure chairs
this is my favorite set too. Before I tried it I wasn’t even impressed, but then I put it on and I’m floored by how beautiful the colors are and how great everything applied!
Oooooh, I definitely need GSM. Not really a fan of SuS, but then again, I never really liked chunky hex glitter to begin with.
Beautiful!! This is definitely my favorite set and possibly the only set I will purchase. I was just not a big fan of the crackle. I loved the concept but I just wasn’t feeling it… So I love that OPI included a nice glitter!
Do you know how Grape…Set…Match compares to GOSH Gasoline? If they’re dupes, I’ll pass, and if not, I’ll be hunting them down once they arrive in the UK!
Oh I wish I knew. I only have one GOSH polish and it’s a green. Gasoline sounds pretty though
The colors are very similar, but Gasoline is more jelly-like, so Grape…Set is more pigmented. Definitely enough of a difference to justify owning both
I really like this. Once in a while, a glitter draws me in. Love the Lite-Brite reference!
Oh man…this is totally not good for my wallet! LOL.
I’m a tennis player so naturally I want these polishes so badly! I honestly don’t really like the colors, though. I think they could be better. Thanks for showing us swatches!!
While I think Grape…Set… Match is nice I would like to just get Servin
i don’t own the other serena polishes, cause i really don’t like them all that much..
but i do really want to get this one, grape set match is so beautiful!
the glitters are ok too, but look a lot like one i already own, so yeah i kinda wish they were sold seperately..
I love it and I must have it!!!
Going crazy stalking this one!!
I love this purple polish. I like the duo all together. But I really love the fact that it’s a purple that looks purple. LOVE!!
Grape set match is SO pretty!
Thank you so much for your excellent swatch photos! It caused me to run straight to Amazon and order this set!
Thanks for swatching noth Legendary Lavender and GSM. I am totally in love with the blue shimmer in GSM, so I am going to have to go with that one.
I like these! Very pretty.
meh- OPI hasn’t been impressing me lately (bit lets be honest im SOOOOO psyched for the muppets collection!) All the serena williams colors have been ok but nothing terribley groundbreaking imo. Also-all the colors combines don’t seem to make a cohesive collection that sort of disappoints me. I hate to be a negative nelly but these have all been passes.
GSM is gorgeous, like a summery version of OPI Ink — one of my faves! Will have to search this out.
I love this set and want it so badly. Purple polish is my downfall, and I love the top coat.
SO good. Loving that top coat! Were you planning on reviewing the other base colour, Your Royal Shine-ness? Some swatches have made that look gorgeous under SuS.
=These are SOOOOO pretty. Could you do a comparison between this and Estee Lauder’s Ultra violet? I have that and it looks very similair, but I want this and I really have to stop getting colors that are dupes for one another
Wow! It looks cosmic?! Love it! (Want it!)
Has anyone ever seen that brand Petites Color Fever at Rite Aid? They have a color called Zodiac that looks like it would be a close dupe for Legendary Lavender, and since I already own Zodiac, I just ordered this set (a sparkly purple + holo top coat = sad wallet). Thanks for the swatches!
CANNOT WAIT!!!
I love this set (the combo made for GREAT impromptu Pride nails in celebration of NY’s passage of the same-sex marriage bill, wooo) BUT today I think I found an almost exact dupe to Servin’ Up Silver? A silver holo sparkle caught my eye at Forever 21 and, for $1.80, how could I pass it up? When I got home and tried it out I realized it was almost identical to SUS and when I swatched them next to each other (both alone and layered on top of Grape Set Match) the only real difference seems to be that SUS is heavier on the microglitter while the f21 brand seems to have more of the large glitter pieces.
The f21 polish doesn’t seem to have a color name so I can’t be much help there, but it comes in a little bottle with a pink cap that looks like a flower.
Here is a link to the f21 polish: http://www.forever21.com/product.asp?catalog_name=FOREVER21&category_name=beauty_nails&product_id=1081257723&Page=1
Hi, is grape set match very similar to Zoya mimi??
I ABSOLUTELY LOVE GSM! I hope it is as beautiful on my nails as it looks on yours! I am a big fan of the blue sparkle that came through in the picture as compared to LL’s straight purple.
It’s Servin’ Up Sparkle not Servin’ Up Silver