OPI Hawaii Spring 2015 Swatches and Review
OPI Spring 2015 – Hawaii
Growing up, all I knew of Hawaii was what I saw in the surfing movie North Shore (not the FOX TV show, though I watched that too) and that my mother wanted to go but felt it was one of those places that you visit and never want to leave. If I had a dollar for every time she said, “If I go to Hawaii, I’m not coming home,” well, I wouldn’t have to work.
This spring, OPI is celebrating the island state with a nail polish collection as colorful as the tropical paradise it represents. The twelve nail polish colors of OPI Hawaii include a variety of finishes and a rainbow of hues.
Formula & Application
OPI nail polish is 3-free (Formaldehyde, Toluene, DBP) though it’s been brought to my attention that some colors contain Formaldehyde Resin, but not all. Since my sample bottles don’t come with retail labels, I have no idea of which shades may contain the allergen. It’s best to check the label in store before purchasing.
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.
There’s too much of a difference between the polishes to give an overall statement about the application so I’ll address that individually below.
OPI Hawaii Swatches
Note: I did not receive the minty green, OPI That’s Hula-rious!, but, I plan to pick it up and will update the review when I do. ***Now UPDATED with That’s Hula-rious (below).
OPI Aloha from Hawaii is a bright fruit punch-esque coral that leans more pink/red than orange. It’s smooth and easy to manipulate, giving full coverage in two coats.
OPI Aloha from Hawaii
OPI Do You Take Lei Away is a cafe, bring on the, au lait creme. It’s a very light beige. The formula is outstanding for such a light color. Two coats and, boom, you’re good to go.
OPI Do You Take Lei Away
OPI Go With The Lava Flow really needs to be seen to be appreciated. Like flowing lava, there is a fire underneath the surface with this one. The warm red has golden mini-flecks mixed with silvery shimmer. It take three coats to get it opaque but it’s so worth it.
OPI Go With The Lava Flow
OPI Hello Hawaii Ya? is a greyed plum creme. It’s like Parlez Vous OPI’s darker, less pink sibling. Like the other cremes, so far, the application is a breeze, requiring just two coats.
OPI Hello Hawaii Ya?
OPI Is Mai Tai Crooked? is a cantaloupe orange creme. It’s more mellow than your traditional orange, like an Orange Julius. I just wish the formula was better. It applied super streaky and patchy. Three coats evened it out but I needed to be pretty heavy handed with the polish on that last coat.
OPI Is Mai Tai Crooked
OPI Just Lanai-ing Around is a pinked mauve with a barely perceptible crystal shimmer. The pigmentation and creamy feel of the polish made for a smooth application in two coats.
OPI Just Lanai-ing Around
OPI Lost My Bikini In Molokini is a vivid mid-tone violet creme. It cooler than A Grape Fit and Funky Dunkey but falls somewhere in between in tone. The formula is a home run, delivering full coverage in two coats.
OPI Lost My Bikini In Molokini
OPI My Gecko Does Tricks is a frosty lime green with a hint of golden shimmer and a bronze flash. It’s in the same range as Zoya Midori and ChG Cha Cha Cha but without the strong gold presence. It has a Sinful Colors watery, sheer feel and needs a minimum of three coats to build up opacity. The bronze shift is visible at the right angle but pretty subtle. If anything, I think it mutes the color.
OPI My Gecko Does Tricks
OPI My Gecko Does Tricks color shift
OPI Pineapples Have Peelings Too! should really be named Pineapple Depressed! I’m sad just looking at it. This golden yellow, frosty shimmer is super sheer, like bald patches sheer, with multi-colored, multi-sized glitters that you really have to work at getting on the nail. The result of three coats is an uneven, fugly mix of colors that I just want to rip off my nails. I can’t with this!
OPI Pineapples Have Peelings Too
OPI Suzi Shops & Island Hops is a baby pink creme. Like Is Mai Tai Crooked? it suffers from streaks during application and even after three coats, I couldn’t cover the patch in the center of my middle nail.
OPI Suzi Shops & Island Hops
OPI That’s Hula-rious is a pale peppermint creme. I put on Zoya Tiana and China Glaze Re-fresh Mint next to it and it was very hard to tell the difference. The OPI is a touch deeper and less yellow-based. The consistency is a little clunky to work with. It can go on streaky if you use thin coats, so I needed three to get it perfect.
OPI That’s Hula-rious
OPI This Color’s Making Waves is a oceanic, green-tinged blue shimmer, sprinkled with tiny gold flecks. It dries lighter on the nail than the bottle color. I think that’s due to the frosty shimmer. This one takes three coats to become opaque.
OPI This Color’s Making Waves
OPI Hawaii Spring 2015 swatches
Bottom Line: The majority of the cremes in this collection are outstanding with Aloha From Hawaii and Lost My Bikini in Molokini being my favorites. And while Go With The Lava Flow doesn’t photograph that well, trust me, it’s worth checking out. I wanted to love Making Waves and Gecko but they’re just okay. Something about them fell flat. And Pineapple, well, if I didn’t make it clear above, NOPE!
The OPI Hawaii Spring 2015 collection officially launches February 2015 at salons and mass retailers nationwide including Beauty Brands, Chatters, Dillards, Regis, ULTA and online at LoxaBeauty.com and ULTA.com.
Thoughts on the OPI Hawaii collection? Which of these do you plan to pick up? Is there a color you would have expected to see in a Hawaii collection that is missing?
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.
Lisa N.
Ms Meatballhead
Birdie
Spa pediccure chairs
I can’t wait until we get these in!! I love them all, except for the pineapple one. It looks like something my cat threw up. I’m surprised there’s not a blue in the collection.
Some nice colors in here. I’m really liking the cremes a lot.
Overall, I really like this collection, but I’m irritated by Pineapples Have Peelings Too. What were they thinking? It’s just ugly in the worst way. LOL
Pineapples Have Peelings Too was one of the shades that jumped out at me, but with your review of it, now I’m passing on it. But I’m still thinking about Is Mai Tai Crooked, My Gecko Does Tricks, and Hello Hawaii Ya. Now you’ve got me thinking about the two reds as well.
Whoa. Just, whoa. Pineapples Have Peelings Too looks super scary! I’ll pass. Yikes.
I’m loving all the creams, though. Interested to see what the other green looks like. Beautiful swatches, as always!
Shame about the application of OPI Is Mai Tai Crooked? – such a beautiful and unusual color! Do you happen to have any dupes for that one?
I loved reading your text! Pineapples Depressed really made me laugh out loud
I’m suddenly intrigued about Go With the Lava Flow, sounds interesting. And I’ll wait for your thoughts on That’s Hula-rious, that’s my most expected shade from this collection.
I was excited for the yellow pineapple polish, but now that I saw it on you, I am disappointed. It is an aweful shade of yellow with a frosty finish that looks flat on the nail. Too bad. I might have to have a look at the purple and the green though.
great swatches as always, and THANK YOU for honest reviews of each color!! how do you think This Color’s Making Waves compares to the shimmery blue from the Mustang collection, The Sky’s My Limit?
I don’t get the name of this polish: “Hello Hawaii Ya?” Also, how does “This Color’s Making Waves” compare to “Catch Me In Your Net” ?
Ugh! I do not like this collection at all and won’t be getting any of them! What a flop! I see several that are either dupes or too close to past OPI’s to bother with and then there are others that are just to fugly to wear! Thanks for the great swatches and for your comments on the formulas!
I am reallllly considering buying “That’s Hula-rious”, but am worried that it will go on too streaky. Would you still recommend it, despite the fact it took three coats? Thanks so much!
As lovely as Hawaii is, I would never want to live there. I think OPI did a good job with this collection of course with the exception of Pineapples Have Peeling Too. It’s the fugliest polish I’ve ever seen. Were they trying to be ironic?
Aloha from Hawaii is probably my favorite from this collection. Beautiful swatches, as usual!
When the first promos came out there was a listing for a colour called Hello Hawaii Ya that I didn’t see here. Was it dropped from the collection?
N
i love the lava flow and the mai tai one. i may have to check out mai tai as years ago china glaze made an awesome canteloupe polish that i am forever trying to recreate on my nails!
I am going to have to get Aloha From Hawaii and Go With The Lava Flow! They look incredible. That Pineapple polish is almost offensive it is so ugly.
Great review, as always! Agree on Pineapples . . . WHAT were thing thinking??
Man, that Pineapples polish turned out super sad. I was excited to see what you said after seeing the pic but now, I am sad. lol
This collection falls flat for me. The frosty shades, the cremes requiring 3 coats. I hope OPIs summer neons are spectacular.
These are all pretty fun. I would have loved a Magnum P.I. Pun in one of the names, but maybe the reference is too dated! The tragedy of Pineapple is the frost covers the fun glitter colors! I think visible colors over a gold would have made for a better luau.
Aloha from Hawaii reminds me of China Glaze High Hopes!
High Hopes is more neon and pink next to Aloha, which is definitely more red.
I agree with you about the Pineapple shade. It’s truly heinous. Some of the others aren’t so bad, but I’m surprised so many needed three coats. That’s disappointing and unexpected from OPI.
Hi Lisa! I feel like that ends up being the case with lighter cremes more and more. No matter what brand it is.
What were they even thinking with that yellow? How does Do You Take Lei Away compare to other colors, like my vampire is buff, or don’t bossa nova me around? I really want that mint green.. I was disappointed in the chanel green.
Seriously, I wonder how many people at OPI saw Pineapple and thought that was a good idea. It baffles me.
Vampire is not as tan. It’s more vanilla in comparison to DYTLA. I don’t have Bossa Nova Me Around to compare.
Ohhh I love this series…all the colors look like Hawaian & such pretty colors…like flowers..I know the Suzi shops & Island hops pink is streaky..but oh its so pretty!! Love all of them! I probably will be getting a few..I cant help it! lol Hugs…Deb:) xox
Thanks Debbie! Glad you like them. Enjoy your new colors
So glad I read your review! I was so looking forward to the Pineapples shade, now I’m going to just get the purple, thank you!!!
You’re welcome. Happy I could save you from wasting money.
Oops! On reread, I see you swatched it. Sorry ’bout that!
N
No worries!
This collection is underwhelming. Do You Take Lei Away and Is Mai Tai Crooked are the best of the bunch. Hello Hawaii Ya? is nice too.
I can understand that. There are a lot of cremes that seem similar to other colors.
I like the variety of colors, and it’s different from the usual pastels for Spring collections. Lost my Bikini is my fave and the 1 I may have to get. I’ve been looking for the perfect cantaloupe orange, but I’ll probably pass on Mai Tai because of the difficulties you reported. Just Lanai-ing Around is pretty, too. And though I’m not a fan of reds, Aloha from Hawaii is intriguing. Thanks for the beautiful swatches.
Some of these are really nice and I’m a bit surprised that Just Lanai-ing Around is one of my favorites. Not my usual color.
I love these colors! Thanks for the tip about the pineapple one. Saves me from getting one that sounds more difficult to use.
You’re welcome Mia! I wish that one had turned out better. It had possibilities.
I read your review, but bought Pineapples anyway because my salon had a good looking swatch. Next time I won’t second guess you. I used a gold base coat to avoid the patchiness, but mine came out just like your picture; small pieces of glitter and far apart.
Oh, I’m so sorry to hear that. Damn you, salon swatches! Filled with lies.
I absolutely love your blog- always well done with photos and funny descriptions! I think I’m getting Do You Take Lei Away and maybe the cousin to Parlez Vous! That yellow glitter one is a disaster in a bottle! Sometimes a color is so ugly that it’s uniquely pretty but not this one! Blah!
Wow, thank you so much. I’m flattered. And I agree, it is definitely not ugly pretty.
I read this review for the color That’s Hula-rious. But you didn’t mention how is applies. How’s the quality?
I updated the review to comment on application.
I was going to pass on Lost My Bikini. It looked similar to Zoya Mira and Orly Charged Up, two mid-tone purples that just haven’t lived up to my expectations for my favorite color, despite looking perfect in the bottle. But your swatch made me happy! I’m so glad I chose it over Hello Hawaii Ya? (it looks lovely, too; I’ve just reached my limit on grey undertones for the winter!) I also picked up Aloha from Hawaii; I don’t have this kind of red in my collection yet.
Excellent choices. I hope Lost My Bikini meets your expectations.
There are some very beautiful colors in this collection ! Some very outstanding , some simply so-so ! I wanted to let you know of a tip I read – on the colors that are so sheer , that it takes 3 coats , after applying your base coat – apply ONE coat of any WHITE coat . Then you can apply 2 coats of the sheer coat , with much better color and coverage results !! Also make sure you vigorously ROLL NOT SHAKE your bottles of Polish to thoroughly mix them . Shaking causes air bubbles , rolling does not ! My favorite colors are “Lost my Bikini. . . ” , “Suzie Shops. . “and
“Just Lanai-ing Around” – those are just fabulous !!
Hi Krista! Thanks for sharing your tips with us. Using a white base under sheer colors is also called “putting on undies” as though the polish is a foundation, like white underwear. And you’re right, rolling is always best.
I am wondering how the OPI Hello Hawaii Ya Compares with the China Glaze History Of The World. I already have the CG, so…
Anyone?
Hi Magda! They are nothing alike. HofW is a moody blue. Darker and more grey than OPI HHY.
Oh shoot, now I’ll have to buy HHY…
It’s sooooooo pretty!
I apologize to your wallet, but you’ll love it!
I got the whole collection, being a Hawaii fan. Some of these colors are very nice. But I truly hate the names. It seems like Suzy’s staff didn’t do Hawaii research. They could have used more colors typical of the islands. I’m going to try the Pineapple over the Peanuts yellow and see if that helps.