Fall 2011 Nail Polish Trend – Military Greens
From olive to hunter, military inspired designs and colors dominated the Fall 2011 runway shows. Those shades came straight off the models and into nail polish bottles in a number of the fall collections.
Over the next couple weeks I’ll be walking you through the big nail polish trends for the season, showing you the newest shades to hit the market and the old school colors you may already own that will get your nail style ready for fall.
The New Class (Fall 2011 Release) – all polishes are shown using two coats
Laying down: MAC Fatigues & Deborah Lippmann Billionaire. Standing: China Glaze Westside Warrior, Color Club Artsy Crafty, Finger Paints Military Green, Butter London Wallis, OPI Uh-Oh Roll Down The Window & Cult Nails In A Trance. Top Row: Zoya Yara & Zoya Dree
Butter London Wallis ($14, butterLondon.com, Beauty.com, ULTA, Nordstrom) is a metallic olive green that leans heavily towards gold. The base is a dark olive but the green-gold flakes floating on the surface give this colors a foil-like finish.
China Glaze Westside Warrior ($3, Head2ToeBeauty, TransDesign. $6, Sally Beauty) reminds me of castelvetrano olives. I only recently discovered these buttery gems through a friend and I’m obsessed. My only complaint with Westside Warrior is that the formula wasn’t up to par. It was pigmented but a little goopy and hard to work with.
Color Club Artsy Crafty ($8, ShopColorClub.com) is a lush forest green with a greyed underbelly that gives it some grit.
Cult Nails In A Trance ($10, CultNails.com) is a browned olive green shimmer. The satiny finish and old world charm hearkens back to medieval tapestries or royal gowns.
Deborah Lippmann Billionaire ($16, DeborahLippmann.com, Barneys, Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom) is the darkest of the fall green offerings. It’s as if you took a vivid hunter green and drabbed it out with a touch of brown and black. The color was used at the Lela Rose F/W 2011 show and it’s got this great jelly consistency that is packed with pigment.
Finger Paints Military Green ($4.99, SallyBeauty.com) honestly looks terrible in the bottle. It was kind of yellowish, like baby poo or something but on the nail, LOVE! It’s reminiscent of Essie Sew Psyched or Chanel Khaki Vert and applies flawlessly on the nail.
MAC Fatigues ($15, MACCosmetics.com) is part of the MAC Me Over! collection and what I love about it is that it’s not as yellow based as the other colors in this category. It’s more cool tone friendly.
OPI Uh-Oh Roll Down The Window ($8.50,OPI.com for locations) is a vivid olive hue. I know the words feel wrong together but I’ve been calling it a bright drab. The name is the only thing that bothers me. Even though, at my core, I’m a 12 year old boy with a love for potty humor, mixing that with something in the beauty world doesn’t sit right with me.
Zoya Dree ($8, Zoya.com) is the darkened version of OPI Uh-Oh. They definitely live in the same neighborhood, go to the same school and may even share some classes together.
Zoya Yara ($8, Zoya.com) – Okay so I have this sweater that I refuse to get rid of even though it’s so out of style it’s not even funny. The reason I keep it, it looks exactly like Yara! It’s this yellow-based green knit hoodie that has small golden threads woven throughout. Now that I have a polish to match it, why would I donate it?
The OG’s – The “Original (Military) Greens” in my stash
Not all of these shades are still available but if you have them in your nail wardrobe, now is the time to rock ‘em.
Laying down: NARS Mash & Rescue Beauty Lounge No More War Standing: Essie Sew Psyched, Chanel Khaki Vert, American Apparel Hunter, Zoya Gemma, Rescue Beauty Lounge Diddy Mow, Illamasqua Hectic, NARS Platoon
Best colors to pair with Military Greens – Berry, gold, pewter, camel
Thoughts on the Military Green nail color trend? Did your faves make the cut? Which new colors do you plan to pick up? Are there any readily available shades that I missed that we should know about?
Disclosure: Product samples were provided by reps for butter LONDON, China Glaze, Color Club, Cult Nails, Deborah Lippmann, Finger Paints, MAC, OPI and Zoya. For more info view my Disclosure Policy.
Lisa N.
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I don’t mind them and probably have at least one in my stash that could (Essie’s Sew Psyched) probably count. That said it really isn’t my favorite trend, especially since this color family seems to have a tendency to pull warm which I don’t pull off well.
I don’t normally pay much mind to trends unless the color of choice is a fave of mine anyway – like gray as the new neutral – in which case I’ll lap ‘em up. LOL
I’ve been rocking a lot of Essie Sew Psyched and RBLs Diddy Mow and Orbis Non Sufficit.
Also, check out this mani. I used this idea last week: http://nailside.blogspot.com/2011/05/gi-jane.html
I…want to like these. I’ve walked past Uh Oh Roll Down the Window about 50 times, but I just can’t bring myself to buy it. And while I love the idea of Wallis, I’m not sure if I’d end up wearing it that much. I did pick up Butter London’s British Racing Green today, though, if that counts; it’s kind of similar to Artsy Crafty.
It is a fun trend in theory, though…if I was going for a true olive/army green, I’d probably get Zoya Dree, now that I’ve seen it next to Uh Oh. It’s a little more smoky and a little less of that certain funky green shade (trying to keep it classy here, heh).
yeah, uh-oh roll down the window AND it’s a pooply color. no thanks.
I love BB Couture Grenade. It is an awesome military green.
I have loved and will always love greens!! Pretty or “ugly,” I will never get tired of this color. Maybe being born on St. Patrick’s Day has something to do with it.
This post just made my day, thanks!
I want to jump on this trend because the colors are so unusual for me and I love the muted hues, but I’m not sure how to pull this off since I still seem clueless when it comes to picking colors that suit me. Not to be a bother, but could you make a suggestion for my skin tone? If not, that’s okay. You are a busy lady, after all.
It’s really hard to suggest colors based on skin tone if I can’t see you in person. Then again I wear colors that totally don’t flatter me if I love it.
My skin has a sallowness to it that makes it hard for me to decide what looks good on me, but I guess staying away from yellow-ish colors should work, right? Some of the colors you’ve swatched really caught my attention, so I think I will do what I usually do: find colors that appeal to me, try it out, and if I like it wear it for a few days, and if I don’t, wear a different color. Thanks!
I’d recommend Zoya Shawn.
If you need to avoid yellow tones then go for MAC Fatigues. Like Michelle said in the above post its not as yellow based as the others which means its much more universally flattering.
Of course Deborah Lippmann Billionaire and Color Club Artsy Crafty are also equally good if you’re avoiding the yellower tones.
If your skin has warm tones like mine, maybe you can try jewel colors like deep blues, greens, burgundies and rich berries. I really love those colors. Even if you are not as dark as me (MAC NC42), they may still work for you.
This is sooo boring. Haven’t we been seeing these colors for the last couple of years…. Can’t these companies come up with something better?
I’ve got Yara and Dree, and both are *super*. As far as “Uh Oh” looking like something nasty…dude, you have not seen gross until you’ve seen China Glaze “Trendsetter” on your hands. Urgh.
This is one of my favorite polish categories. When I first found your blog, I was ecstatic to see that RBL No More War existed, and then I was excited when Zoya Shawn came out. When I got them both, I did camo print nail art. Looks awesome with gold glitter.
The nice thing about being a “woman of a certain age” is that you know what does and does not work for you. You indulge in the trends when they do, and can gleefully ignore them when they don’t.
This, for me, is a huge don’t.
Wise words for a polish lover to live by
LOL! As a ‘woman of a certain age’, I agree! I pretty much do what I want with my nails. And I get loads of compliments no matter if I am on trend or not.
I am seriously addicted to nail polish and I love greens , but I am not sure about most of these. I guess I will have to see them in person.
Feasting my eyes… What a nice post. I’m loving all these popular greens, they’re similar yet so different. Thanks for sharing
Wow, Finger Paints Military Green looks nothing like the bottle. I didn’t think that I needed it, but after seeing your swatch, I think I just might! I also now NEED Wallis. LOL at “OG’s”!!
I don’t own any military greens, but some of those are gorgeous!
wow, that’s a lot of green polish! I picked up Butter London Wallis, but expect that will be my only green for the season since I have plenty of Khaki Vert leftover.
I totally agree about Berry going well with this shade of green. I look really well in those colors because it compliments my skin tone.
And, I’ve always had some piece of clothing that is this shade. It’s just a stable in my closet.
i love this trend because these colors flatter my skin tone and they’re more neutral than the brights I normally wear. That being said, I have to get my hands on Wallis! I’ve been in love with it since the first time I saw it.
Aaah … can I get a ‘YES’, mixed with ‘woohoo’, with *finally* on top? Thank you!
I adore this type of colours, absolutely adore it! Let’s see, I’m getting both of Zoyas and skipping the China Glaze (probably), due to how similar it looks to some of my colours and I have a dupe of Finger Paints at home too. From the old ones I have Hectic, Gemma, Sew Psyched and a good dupe of Khaki Vert.
Quite a few of the greens are coming out in Europe with some of the brands, also some fugly colours in the similar colour vein. I don’t mind them one bit!
I don’t think these shades look the best on me but they definitely are TRENDY and so you will find me sporting this shade in the fall/winter… I love the bottle shots you took! Thank you for this post!
Ugh, I hate colors like this. This is one trend I’ll be avoiding.
FYI, an OPI promo video paired “Uh Oh, Roll Down the Window” with being pulled over by a cop, which goes with the road trip theme. It had nothing to do with a smell.
I love these greens, I just pulled out an old Revlon Street Wear that fits this category and found myself with Sew Psyched in my shopping cart today. I’ve done camouflage nails for years, usually on my toes. Think it’s time to up the ante and try my fingers.
Don’t forget American Apparel ‘Army Jacket’! It also falls in this category. I loveloveloveLOVE this trend, only a little bit because my husband is in the military. Every time I wear a color like this, I feel like I’m showing my support of him and his comrades in a mature and sophisticated way. I really can’t resist a khaki or olive drab polish, regardless of label, lol. I have everything from Zoya ‘Dree’ to AA ‘Army Jacket’ to ReBeL ‘No More War’. I love them all!
Agree this is SUCH a trend this fall, I can’t believe so many major brands all had the same idea here
I can say I would have walked right by finger paints military green seeing that bottle. Now I need that color. I’m really loving the army green colors for fall.
I love this post! These greens are awesome….I have some of them and intend to wear them this fall.
OPI tried to push an olive green in the mid 90′s. It did not go over and I know I got rid of mine as a total outcast. We just were not ready for anything edgy I guess then. It was a golden army green as I recall. Uh Oh reminds me of an old boyscout uniform color but that really would not have gone with anything map wise around driving around the US.
Are you talking about OPI Quebec & Call? At the time it came out, I wasn’t into the olive shades and I passed it up at Trade Secret when they had a bin of them for $2.
I saw your new class and freaked because Gemma wasn’t there! Then I had a total “duhhh” moment because Gemma’s not really a new class kid, is she?
Hopefully I can rock her in the near future. I used to think she was a little plain (I used to think Zoya Adina and CG Below Deck were plain too -.- ) but now that summer’s over I agree that she’ll make a nice fall color.
I LOVE Butter London Wallis. Any ideas for a dupe that can easily be found in Canada (OPI, China Glaze, Essie, drugstore brand)?
I actually have an old school olive green you missed, or disn’t grab back in the day! Lol that makes me oddly proud:)
I am one of few people until recently that LOVED this color for my nails and have been wearing it since I was in middle school!
Which old school olive green?
Being that I have three of the Originals (Essie Sew Psyched, RBL No More War, and AA Hunter) and three of the New Class (Wallis, Westside Warrior, and Yara), I would say this is definitely one of my preferred color groups! I can appreciate that it isn’t a set of colors that is universally flattering/to everyone’s taste, but I find these colors so wonderfully strange and elegant at the same time.
I’m still contemplating Zoya Dree and FingerPaints Military Green although I’m concerned that the latter is too close to Sew Pschyed for me to get much extra utility out of. I am quite fond of OPI Uh Oh’s color, but the name so doesn’t do it for me that I can’t imagine picking it up–not at full price anyway, maybe if it hits the clearance shelf (my favorite place at any Ulta) at some point!
So I might also add that I love Sephora by OPI Caught with My Khaki’s down. It was from the latest spring collection and is by far my favorite in the military drab category. I did pick up Zoya Yara and am so looking forward to wearing it this week! I love your color swatch.
I disagree. Nailpolish is and should be fun, its one of the few things I do indulge in that is “trendy” because why not? its cheap and it comes off, its not like a tatoo or something.
I think as usual, this trend was started by chanel who just came out with Peridot. I just picked it up its stunning if you havent seen it, its sort of a holo, and its chanel!
I love this trend. It’s kinda last year’s thing (I think chanel’s trio stated it pretty well) but I’m happy it’s staying with us for another season!
I own Essie sew psyched and Chanel Peridot and plan on getting Zoya Yara, which is gorgeous.
This is an awesome comparison post. I own 2 of the oldies but they we both cremes so I still plan on getting 2 shimmers from the new releases: Zoya and Cult Nails. Looking fwd to you doing this type of post with other top trends.
I realllly love this colour group! To me it feels like is a new version of the taupe neutral we all love now. Another great one is Jessica Victorian Crush.
I can’t decide if I love Butter’s Wallis or not!
Absolutely loved this post! Thanks so much. Looking forward to the fall nail trends. About the green trend, you didn’t include my favorite olive/gold polish … China Glaze Peace on Earth. This polish has been actively suppressing my lemming for Chanel’s Peridot. Le sigh.
Zoya Yara is too good to be true…
I love army greens! The creamy ones make me happy & then that Zoya Yara – just gorgeous! I want to do a military gradient mani (I’m sure you’d be able to do a sweet one!) and I’m dying to find a less expensive DUPE for MAC Fatigues though… any suggestions?
I had China Glaze Westside Warrior, but a customer in my salon bought my bottle. Now I regret that, must find me a new bottle though. Your swatches are awesome!
Glad to see your review of this trend. Love it! The first I saw was Uh Oh and bought it immediately. Have since seen Dree, and having some buyers remorse. I don’t know if it is my skin tone or the lighting, but my Uh Oh looks much bluer and darker than yours. I like yours better. I’ve seen other swatches where they look almost the same. Could the manufacturing lots be this different? There was a lot of pigment settled at the bottom of mine, yours? Anyway, I thought I had convinced myself that I didn’t need Yara too, but…
It’s probably the lighting. Though OPI has been known to release different batches of the same color, it’s usually not at the launch. It’s when the color is reproduced later.
I am in love with this trend, I just found Ulta nail polish Army of 1 and think it’s amazing! And it’s on sale for 2.00 on the website now!! I think the camo/olive greens are very classy and unique at the same time! I will have to purchase more of the ones you have just posted!!!
I just picked up that color at the ULTA that just opened near me. Too bad I didn’t have it before I posted this. It’s very pretty.
I’ve had Sew Psyched for about a year now, and it’s the first time I’ve ever felt I was ahead of a trend. Woo-hoo!
I find with these greens, I either like very little yellow, or a LOT of yellow, but not something in the middle. To be specific, I don’t like China Glaze’s Westside Warrior of the non-metallic greens above. That bottle-green shade is just sickly to me. That said, all shades are relative, and the same color looks very different on different skin tones, and that green might look great on someone else. I just know I won’t be rockin’ it any time soon.
I love green polish and I’m always happy to add more to my collection. I’ll be on the lookout for Wallis as it looks like a beauty. BTW, I found that this was a very informative post! I sort of like it better than when an entire collection is reviewed.
My stomach is turning! Looks like your fingers got into something they should NOT HAVE.
I love these colors and have been waiting for something like this to come out for a long time. My favorite colors to wear are army greens and greys so finally being able to have a wide selection of polishes to choose from is fantastic.
Just got Zoya Gemma…yeah, I know I’m probably behind trend on that one, but I’m wondering if it fits this trend or is too summery?
I included Gemma in the post. In the last picture. I think it fits.
Yay! I’m an OG! As usual.
I absolutely LOVE the butter london one and zoya yara… I *NEED* these, why are they not very accessible in Canada? DARN IT.
You forgot to mention RBL’s recycle
Thanks so much for doing these comparison pics! I was waiting for someone to do it. I really want something from this trend but I couldn’t decide which one to get since I can’t find them all in one place to compare them. I think I like Zoya Yara the best followed by BL Wallis and Cult Nails In a Trance. I do have Zoya Gemma so I’ll wear that one until I get my hands on Zoya Yara. Thanks again.
Lancome – Pop Petrol
Actually wearing it now. I know it was an European only release, but I know you have a bottle!
Nail polish color should never be age oriented..if you are a trendy person and dress the part you can wear any color!
Isn’t Chanel Peridot of the same or similar descent? Or is it slightly too crazy for ‘military’?
Also, I adore this trend as I generally adore such colours and will be sure to try out the Deborah Lipmann, looks so rich!
I consider Peridot more of a metallic duochrome that looks more gold than green but that’s just me. I didn’t feel it was a good fit for this category.
I have Chanel Peridot on right now and I couldn’t agree more. It’s gorgeous, but definitely more gold than green.
For $25, it SUCKS. It chipped the next day and is really thin. The color is beautiful, but it does not last. Comes in a tiny bottle too.
I think Wallis is the only one of these that I absolutely need. I love the Deborah Lippman one though, I just don’t know if I need another near black color.
Essie’s POWER CLUTCH is another great grey-green for fall!!
Thank you, TLM! I was just about to add this! It’s a beautiful color that fits right in here.
forever 21 makes an olive nail polish with gold shimmer, kinda foil-y. it’s lovely. http://d1535dk28ea235.cloudfront.net/preset_65/_DSC0048-1.jpg
Thanks for sharing. Very pretty!
This is an awesome post. Not necessarily because I’m in love with this trend (I personally only have four of all the polishes you mention above) but just because it’s awesome to see a huge comparison post like this, considering how pretty much every collection released this fall has a polish that falls into this category.
Second this! That’s why I come here, for the hard core review and, of course, green loving
You’re the first person to make these colors look attractive to me
Couldn’t agree more! I come here to see a swatch before I decide to buy a new polish!
Me too! I LOVE to look at the swatches and decide which colors I want to try.
I know I’ve already left a comment here but– I was wondering if you know a Polish company called Inglot? They produce samoe really great shades; the ones that may fall into this trend are nos 319, 954 and 57 – the last one may be discontinued.
So, if you wanna check out some Polish polish (how cool does this sound?), go here: http://www.inglotcosmetics.com/ You can order them online, they’re 10$ a bottle.
And no, I’m not connected in anyway with the company, I just adore their polishes.
I’ve actually reviewed Inglot in the past. I wasn’t a fan of the O2M line but the regular polishes seem nice. http://www.alllacqueredup.com/category/inglot
I’m really surprised that you included Hunter Green from American Apparel but didn’t include Army Jacket. (I’m assuming you don’t own that colour.) AJ is much better suited for this military green collection.
I’m re-in love with Butter London Wallis.
great post!
You’re right, I don’t own that color. Plus I wanted to show a hunter color from the past that is still accessible.
Cult nails In A Trance and Butter London Wallis are my favorite, because they are something special with all the shimmer and they really stood out from a crowd
Showing us all the trend colors and comparing it to previous ones is a BRILLIANT idea!! I am not a green fan like you are, but I am looking forward to what you show us with other colors. Thank you so much!
I have BL Wallis, but I haven’t tried it yet. Loving Yara and I’m really not big on greens. I usually prefer blues and purples.
Essie Sew Psyched is one of my favorite polishes, its green but yet I feel its very neutral and even work appropriate! I also own Zoya Shawn and Zoya Yara and love love love both. Can this military green trend stay in forever?!
Love this new feature!! (It helps that I love military greens, but it is a great idea to post all the colors together)
Will you be posting FNO plans like you did last year?? I am trying to plan my night and your suggestions last year were the best.
Hi Chloe! I’m finalizing my FNO post right now.
I had 7 of these colors to choose from and opted for “Billionaire,” which I hadn’t worn yet. LOVE it!!!
Awww you must be in the green heaven, Michelle, with all these greens to choose from. Time to whip out my OPI At Your Quebec and Call, remember her?!
I keep calling this “pea soup” trend. I like your label of military better. To be honest, though, I’m tired of it already. Then again, I’ve never been a huge green lover.
I don’t like greens typically, but I am now wearing Borghese Euro Green, and I am in love! I think it somewhere between Butter London Wallis and Cult Nails In a Trance… It has this antique vibe to it.
My favorite color that made the cut was Deborah Lippmann’s Billonaire it is stunning in person. I’ve been looking for a color like it for a year now.
My FAVORITES!!! Awesome post. I might include Borghese Euro Green, Rimmel Rags to Riches and Sally Hansen Insta-Dry Bronze Ablaze among these, but not sure if you’re only doing 3-free and I don’t think these are.
loving Zoya’s Yara! idk if it is still available but i am going to look for it
Oh, God! Green again. Those greens shades remind me army, hospital… Terrible. I hope blue can be replaced them. By the way, I’m going to Chanel store buying my fav blue. Get out of the green!
I just recently bought a khaki green because I wanted it to go with some clothes. It’s a new brand called LOLA (by Perse) that a shop in Spain called Primor where I went to buy told me had just come out. It’s number 020 Military Khaki. It is very veriy similar to the Chanel in the second picture, actually it’s even very similar in design but I’m pretty sure it is much cheaper LOL. I would reccommend you grab it if you can, it’s quite good, lovely colour, perfect with two passes, creme with a nice gleam finish.
Target has an exclusive shade for this fall in the Nicole by OPI collection called Green Up Your Act. I think it would definitely fall under this military green category.
I agree with you. I live in Brooklyn, so OPI’s Uh-Oh can’t be found right now. I took this list to Target with me & almost bought Essie’s Sew Psyched, until I saw Green Up Your Act. It’s the new “funky” color to fall nail lacquer wardrobe.
It will add a quirk to the red, deep purple, and beige I’ll be wearing.
Really liked Wallis, but it is a bit more than I am willing to pay (although I am seriously considering it for Wallis & Knees Up, unless I can find a lesser expensive substitute!). Went off to Sally’s where I picked up Nina Ultra Pro Mossy Britches, an olivey, goldy, greeny metallic. From your swatches it looks kind of close to Nars Mash, maybe? Not sure, but I kind of like it (not my usual color at all, but the more I read your blog, the more colors I am willing to try!)
Your nails are so perfect. Gah! You make these greens look so beautiful. Especially love Zoya one. Thanks for the amazing work you do. Your website is the best nail site ever.
I must say, after seeing this post, i quickly became OBSESSED with military green polish. Especially “Billionaire”, I just had to have it. So, I went out and spent the pretty penny it cost, and I was actually disappointed with the color (formula is great, as usual.) It looked mostly black (people even commented on my “black” nail polish) and only looked slightly green in the sunlight. Maybe it was just me? It’s looks amazing here, but I’m thinking about returning it. I think I’ll swatch it next to “Here today… Aragon Tomorrow.” I’m curious to see if they are similar on the nail…
On a side note, I also bought “Yara” and “Wallis” and really enjoy those shades! Both are unique and have gotten me many compliments! Also got bL British Racing Green” and look forward to trying it (although it isn’t really military-ish.)
Wow, I must REALLY be into these colors (or, obsessed with nail polish and have almost all shades of all colors). I used to have Deborah Lippmann Billionaire, but it just looked black on me. I have Finger Paints Military Green, OPI Uh-Oh Roll Down the Window, Zoya Dree, Zoya Yara, Essie Sew Psyched, Zoya Gemma, Essie Power Clutch, maybe Zoya Shawn (can’t remember), and I came across this article because I’m thinking about buying Cult Nails In a Trance so I was looking up swatches.