OPI Mustang Collection Swatches & Review
OPI Mustang
I grew up spending many a night in car lots with my parents on our way home from eating out. My dad loved wandering through the rows of cars, with no pressure from salesmen, to check out the latest releases. And even though he has to own a van for work, the man loves American muscle cars. He used to fix up and drag race them before I was born.
I guess it’s no surprise that my first serious boyfriend was also into muscle cars, specifically the Ford Mustang (he owned a ’87 Fastback). Thanks to him and my dad, I know way more about the car than I should. For that reason, I was excited to see what the OPI Mustang collaboration, celebrating the Mustang’s 50th Anniversary, would bring us.
Formula & Application
OPI is a 4-free brand (Formaldehyde, Toluene, DBP and Formaldehyde Resin). 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.
In this collection, I was pleasantly surprised to find that, despite the variation in finishes, most of the colors deliver a smooth application and full coverage in two coats. Though the white and, oddly enough, the black are the opacity exceptions. Angel with a Leadfoot is a bit streaky while Queen of the Road goes on a bit sheer. Both need three coats.
OPI 50 Years of Style is a classic gold with a brushed finish to celebrate the Mustang’s Golden Anniversary. It a muted feel that reminds me of brushed metal car rims. As you can see, this one can suffer from brush marks so I find it best to apply a stroke down each side then finish with one smooth stroke down the middle.
OPI 50 Years of Style
OPI Angel With A Leadfoot is a creamy basic white. I don’t see much difference between it and Alpine Snow.
OPI Angel With A Leadfoot
OPI Girls Love Ponies is a hot fuchsia creme. It’s really vibrant and rich. Reminds me of a more intense OPI Indi-a Mood for Love.
OPI Girls Love Ponies
OPI Queen of the Road is a brown-based black with silver shimmer that is meant to be reminiscent of Mustang’s black interior. It’s a bit sheer but builds up well. It’s not quite as inky as Zoya Raven or Chanel Black Satin. The brown gives it a warm edge.
OPI Queen of the Road
OPI Race Red threw me off. When the collection first arrived, I was like, “Where is Race Red?” All I see is an orange. Well, this very orange-based “red” is it. I would say it’s a burnt orange as there is no actual red in my collection that looks anything like it.
OPI Race Red
OPI The Sky’s The Limit is a brilliant blue chock full of gold and blue glass flecks. And before you say, Catch Me In Your Net, they’re actually very different. Similar finish, different base color. CMIYN is decidedly teal whereas this is firmly on the blue side of the line. Plus, Sky’s the Limit is so much more pigmented.
OPI The Sky’s My Limit
OPI Mustang
Bottom Line: This isn’t the first time OPI and Ford have partnered together. They released a trio of shades for the fifth generation of Mustang that launched in 2005 that included two reds and a silver.
Given that this is the anniversary, I expected them to stick to a classic color palette with a surprise or two. Though, I secretly hoped we’d see a shade based on the Ford Mystic paint from the 90s. I mean, wouldn’t you want to wear a multi-chrome based on this? Maybe next time.
Ford Mustang Cobra with Mystic Paint
That being said, I’m loving The Sky’s The Limit and Race Red, even though it’s not red, for their uniqueness. And I’m not really into pinks but Girls Love Ponies has a great formula.
OPI Mustang is available now at salons and select retailers nationwide including ULTA and ULTA.com. OPI nail polish retails for $9.50/ea for a .5oz bottle.
Thoughts on the OPI Mustang collection? Do you plan to pick up any of these shades? What kind of color do you associate with the Mustang?
Disclosure: Product samples were provided by reps for OPI. Affiliate links appear in this post. When you purchase through an affiliate link, you help support this site. For more info view my Disclosure Policy. Mustang image via TheMustangSource.com
Lisa N.
Ms Meatballhead
Birdie
Spa pediccure chairs
Nice colors in this collection. Great swatches too.
Being a Mustang fanatic, I couldn’t wait to see the colors OPI would put together for this collection. I let my imagination run wild and now I feel a bit let down. There was so much they could have done but instead we’re given the same old boring colors (except for Sky’s the Limit). How cool would the Ford Mystic be on your nails? Race Red is a disappointment. Grabber Blue would have made a pretty polish. Oh well, lets see if they do any better for the 60th anniversary.
See, I knew someone would be with me on the Mystic paint. There’s actually a Taurus in my neighborhood with that paint and I drive by it all the time, just to see the color shift. And, gah, Grabber Blue would be amazing. Though I bet somewhere in my stash I have a polish that color. Now I’m on a mission.
Michelle, when you find it, please share!
I will. I’m going to go through my stash soon.
I came looking for this post after I saw your tweet. I can’t wait to try these out! I’m going to skip the black and the white but the other 4 are definitely going in my collection.
Great swatches! I didn’t think I needed any of the colors in this collection, but your swatches have persuaded me that I need Sky’s the Limit and Queen of the Road.
(Also, I agree – the Mystic paint would make a great polish!)
I have 50 Years of Style. I haven’t worn it yet, but it looks really pretty.
“Sky” is quite nice but nothing special. And brushstrokes are just a no-no. Why do brands release them? Disappointing.
I don’t get that either JayJay. When a polish applies poorly, I wonder how it got through so many levels of approval to hit the market.
I love your reviews! Always look forward to them. Thanks very much!
Thanks Tina! You’re so welcome
I really like Sky’s the Limit out of all these. Queen of the Road is my second favorite. Gosh you do a great job on your nails. Just beautiful. I just shortened mine after breaking two, so they will look quite different with polish!
Didn’t OPI come out with a color very similar to Mystic Paint about 2 or 3 years ago? It was very similar. There were a few colors that changed. I remember thinking they looked just like a fancy car!
Thank you! I have to file them down once a week because they grow so fast. I know that’s not a bad thing but I like to keep my nails short. Otherwise, they break and then I’m tempted to bite. The habit never truly goes away.
And are you thinking of Peace, Love and OPI from the San Francisco collection? It has a color shift but not like the Mystic paint.
The only one I’d consider buying is Sky’s the Limit. I don’t wear black, white, or orange and don’t like the brush marks in the gold. Nothing too exciting here.
By the way, I believe I’ve seen a duochrome polish that looks like the Mystic paint – it might have been a Zoya one from a few years back but I’m not sure of the brand.
Are you talking about Ki? Do they still make that? I know Adina is a duochrome but it’s ligheter than the Mystic paint. I’m sure a polish exists like that but I just feel like OPI and Ford should have created one.
Thank you so much for this review! As I live in Germany, unfortunately we are always a little behind with the latest collections…so we barely got the Coca Cola one.
I am considering to order one of these colors online…and I can not decide whether the red or the blue is my favorite. I am afraid I already have a similar red, so Sky’s the limit might be the one…but I do agree too you guys…this collection has no shade to really go crazy about.
Regarding the orange cast to the “red” paint in the Mustang collection, there was nothing more “red” in the original (1964 1/2) offering of Mustangs. In 1979 we rebuilt a 1964 Falcon that had a lot of Bondo build-up and creases that had never been repaired and I could go on and on. We took it down to the metal and painted it back with a Ford color that we always called “Rangoon Red.” I don’t remember if it was the real name or something we came up with, but it was the only color I ever saw on an original or restored Mustang, and it was definitely “orange-y.” BTW, when we talk about “muscle cars” we don’t generally mean the term to be applied to anything built after 1971 or so. We put an 8-cylinder in that Falcon along with a roll-cage, dropped it, chopped it, took the door handles off and built a custom hood for it, among a lot of other things. THAT was a muscle car. We had a 1971 Boss 351 around that same time. Didn’t need nearly the same amount of work, but man, THAT was a muscle car. I think it got about 11 mpg. In 1978 who cared, except that I could get a speeding ticket sitting in a parking space that I couldn’t have deserved, and certainly didn’t get some that I did deserve. Those were the days.
Hi!
I’m a long time reader but first time commenting. I’ve followed quite a few nail blogs BUT yours is really one of THE BEST out there! I like that you are very informed, you remember dupes off the top of your mind, and you also remember tons of OPI polishes! Your nails always look fantastic! I have been in love with Ford Mustangs ever since my uncle had a 68 model in red. So because of my Mustang infatuation, I will be getting the whole collection even tho I’m not crazy about the orangey red, or the gold.
It’s still hard to not buy dupes from time to time (by accident) because its still hard to check dupe comparisons sometimes. What would be awesome and extremely helpful, is an OPI dupe chart, where we could see all the dupes at one glance.
Thanks for such an awesome blog!
just to make it clear: the teal (NL F71) has this name on its label: THE SKY’S MY LIMIT. (not “the” limit.) you can try to use a sponge for application – avoiding brushstrokes (I hate them too;)