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Chanel Robertson Boulevard Nail Colour Collection

chanel, nail polish, nail lacquer, nail colour, robertson, la sunrise, la sunset, rodeo drive, melroseWhen I was in LA last month, I desperately wanted to stop by the new Chanel boutique on Robertson Boulevard but time wasn’t on my side. The reason for my desperation… the Robertson Boulevard limited edition Nail Colour Collection. Sold exclusively at the Robertson boutique from now until the online launch in July, this collection was created by Peter Philips, the new Global Creative Director of CHANEL Makeup.

Based on the bold pop art imagery, I wasn’t expecting the slight softness I saw in the shades I tested. It’s this quality that makes them very wearable, even for Chanel’s more conservative clientele. As expected, the lacquers applied flawlessly and with excellent pigmentation, I barely needed two coats to reach bottle color. At $25 a bottle, they better.

Rodeo Drive is a warm grapey purple with subtle silver shimmer. In the sun it reminds me of the cartoon character Grape Ape. Of all the polishes in this collection, Rodeo Drive was the one I most looked forward to seeing so I’m glad it lived up to my expectations.chanel, robertson boulevard, nail polish, nail lacquer, nail colour, rodeo drive, purple

L.A. Sunset is a creamy melon orange with a high gloss factor. I wouldn’t classify it as a bright per se but it’s definitely bold and summery. A perfect pedicure shade.chanel, robertson boulevard, nail polish, nail lacquer, la sunset, orange, melon, nail colour

With the popularity of yellow polish this season it’s no surprise to see one included in this collection. However, I was surprised at how sweet and sexy L.A. Sunrise looked on Selma Blair’s tips in InStyle‘s June edition. No mustard or neon here, just a gorgeous lemon sorbet. I plan to order it the day of the online release.
Melrose, L.A. Sunrise, L.A. Sunset and Rodeo Drive will be available for purchase exclusively on Chanel.com in July. You can sign up on the CHANEL site to be notified of their release.

Estee Lauder Pearls of Light Summer 2008

For Summer 2008 Estee Lauder released two color collections, Pearls of Light and Bronze Goddess. Pearls of Light is soft and glowy, filled with lustrous pinks and champagnes including two sparkling but subdued Pure Color nail lacquers.

I’ve never used Estee Lauder nail polishes before so I jumped at the chance to test them out. The bottles have always intrigued me, they’re so luxe with a great weighty feel. Don’t you just adore how the sphere of polish is encapsulated in the square glass? Or is it just me?

EL polishes have a flat brush that makes application a breeze. I really love that so many brands are using that style of brush. And the formula, well I’m super impressed with the formula’s staying power. I gave my Mom a set to try out, they’re very much her kind of shades, and when I realized she hadn’t done a polish change in two weeks I gave her a scolding. Much to my surprise, she showed me her nails and can you believe that with the exception of one massive thumb nail chip the rest had just some tip wear. TWO WEEKS LATER. Unreal! Holy staying power Batman!

Champagne Pearl‘s metallic quality gives it a duo-chrome appearance. It fluctuates between a champagne metallic and a reddish shimmer and feels very water-washed beachy. The multi-colored shimmer is what keeps both these shades from being another boring color. Is it me? Not so much. It’s not “pretty ugly” enough for me.
Pink Pearl is a bit more sheer as you can see in the pic. I used two coats with both shades yet I can still see the line of my whites through Pink Pearl. This is a very soft girly pink. Very work appropriate, even with all the fun shimmer.

So either Mom read my layering post or she just didn’t feel like redoing her nails and added more polish on top because she layered champagne pearl over pink pearl to create her own unique shade. I tried layering both ways and the results are pretty similar to the camera’s eye but in person they really are different. I think the Pink Pearl over Champagne Pearl is my favorite. The pinkness really stands out with the opaque nudish base underneath.
Estee Lauder’s Pearls of Light collection is available for purchase on the EL website however Pink Pearl is unfortunately sold out. Fear not fellow fanatics, you can still snag a bottle of your own. How? Stay tuned!

OPI Summer 2008 – Mod About Brights

When I first caught wind of a new Brights collection from OPI, I honestly wasn’t that jazzed. I figured, what could Suzi and her crew possibly come up with that would be fresh and new? But after three summers of Brights that were hit or miss, I will admit that I’m pleasantly surprised by the Mod About Brights collection. Instead of fooling us with beautiful in the bottle blues & greens that end up being sheer (I’m looking at you, Call My Cell-ery and Can’t You Sea?) these shades deliver a bold, funky punch of color that really stand out.

An entire collection of cremes, this rainbow lineup of nail polishes has a retro feel that reminded me of this drawing from the book 100 Years of Fashion Illustration by Cally Blackman (see above left). Don’t you just expect her to pop off the page and into a dance sequence from Austin Powers?

When these beauties arrived on my doorstep, I was jumping out of my skin to start swatching. I’ve been dying to show them to you all but time is not on my side. So what you see below is two coats of color with no top coat, exceptions are noted. As with the India collection, OPI is really hitting their stride with creme finishes in their Big 3 Free formula. They all applied smooth and even with a glossy finish.

Mod-ern Girl is a reddish coral shade that actually matches one of my favorite summer gauzy tunics. I can’t wait to pair them together.

That’s Hot! Pink is your typical bright summer pink. It’s La Paz-itively Hot without the blue undertone or shimmer.

Brights Power fits right in with the hot orange trend that is happening in nails but instead of being neon it’s just bright and fun. Definitely a better choice for people that are shying from the day-glo construction barrel shades I’m loving.

The “It” Color is a bit too French’s Mustard for me personally but I can see a darker skin tone rocking it on their tips. You know this is a total Rihanna shade, right? Unfortunately, it makes my skin tone look a bit dirty. I so wish I could pull it off though because I love seeing the reactions I get to wearing totally odd colors.

Green-wich Village. What do I even need to say? It’s perfect! Perfect I say. Can there ever be too many greens? Um, NO! And a green creme? You know I’ve been wanting a creme in every shade of green I can find. And even though Green-wich Village took three coats to achieve perfection, it’s worth it. Look at that color, look at it! You know you want to buy a bottle just to have, even if you’re too scared to wear it.

And before you even get a chance to ask I went ahead and swatched it next to Carolyn New York Greenwich Ave. You know someone was going to request it. The CNY shade is more pigmented and a bit deeper in color. It only required two coats to the OPI’s three. As you can see, they’re pretty close though not dupes. Do you need both? Only if you’re a fellow green freak.
I swear, either I’ve become clairvoyant or the brands have been reading my 2008 Wish List. Because Dating A Royal not only fulfills my need for blues that aren’t “almost black” (e.g. Yoga-ta) but also for blue and green cremes. Where did this undying love for cremes come from? I have no idea. Maybe because I feel like my nails are imperfect and achieving a smooth creme finish makes them look flawless. Anywho, this deep cornflower confection is unlike any other lacquer I own.

Of course, looking at all the bottles lined up like a little rainbow, I thought they’d make the perfect Skittles Manicure. Instead I ended up looking like the disembodied fingers that were put on ice during an episode of Dexter. Creepy, huh? I think I’ll stick to more candy/pastel shades from now on.

image: Frozen Barbie

The OPI Mod About Brights collection is on sale now at all professional salons and retailers including Pure Beauty, Regis, Trade Secret, Ulta, Beauty Brands, Beauty First, Dillard’s, and JCPenney.

Zoya Summer 2008 – Chit Chat

The Chit Chat collection from Zoya is just one of their summer offerings launching May 1st. Filled with golden metallic goodness, each shade has ribbons of shimmer and micro-glitter flowing throughout yet dries smooth to the touch.

Each lacquer was tested using two coats, except where noted, without a top coat. For the most part they all applied smooth and even with good pigmentation. I just wish the spectacular glitz factor would have translated on camera. I think the sunlight shot of Lianne captures it well but it’s really something best admired in person.

Regarding the name change: A lot of you have asked about why there isn’t a Mismas in this collection. I wanted to address you all at once. While I am extremely honored and flattered that Zoya would want to immortalize me in polish, I suggested that they name the shade after someone who would truly love and appreciate it. So naming the shade Bekka, after the color’s designer, seems fitting.

Gaia – Oh how I wanted to love Gaia (the label says Gala but it’s Gaia) because the color is outstanding. It has an icy white base but the ribbons of gold shimmer make it a perfect warm weather shade. Not at all dingy or white out-esque. Unfortunately, the formula is its downfall. After three coats it still wasn’t opaque or even on the nail.

Erika’s cool baby pink base has a slight lilac undertone but the gold shimmer gives it warmth. I think it’s the combination of the two that make this pink very neutral and wearable. As you can see, with three medium coats my whites are still slightly visible so, this may work better as a sheer.

Bekka is described as a “cool chartreuse metallic”. Three coats on me looks like a semi-sheer neon yellow leaning towards green. This shade just doesn’t work for me and if I’m being honest, it doesn’t really fit in the collection. I think coral would have been a nice transition between Erika and Lianne.

Lianne is my absolute favorite shade in the bunch. This gorgeous tangerine is right on trend and so so sparkly. The base color has a creamy melon feel but the glorious shimmer really makes it a knockout! I know I’ll be sporting Lianne on my tips and toes a few times this summer.

Annie is a red orange and looks like a duo-chrome in the bottle. On the nail the red is more prominent in indirect lighting while it looks more orange in the sunlight. The golden red base makes me think this will look best on warm and dark skin tones.

Elke has a berry red base but the shimmer warms it up. I think if you’re going to do a red in the summer, this is the way to go. With a glossy top coat the finish looks jelly-esque which gives it a lighter feel than your typical heavy winter red.
The Chit Chat collection is available for pre-order on the Zoya website and will be available in salons across the country after May 1st.

OPI Summer 2008 Preview – Mod About Brights

The Brights are back everyone! OPI is adding to their ever so popular Brights series with a set of 6 vivid creme polishes dubbed the Mod About Brights collection.

“The mod look is back in a fresh, new way, both in fashion and beauty,” says Suzi Weiss-Fischmann, OPI Executive VP & Artistic Director. “The six shades in Mod About Brights capture the fun and edginess of the mod ‘invasion’ of the Sixties, but with a bright twist that makes them exciting and current for 2008. And with fashion right now being all about color and vivid, graphic prints, these are the shades that are perfect for fingertips and toes.”


Yet again I’m getting giddy with delight over a fab looking green hitting the mass market. You know the frankeners on MUA will be adding black to Green-wich Village to try and duplicate RBL Recycle. And a royal blue creme… catch me as I swoon. If these cremes are as fantabulous as the ones from India, I’ll be in heaven. I’ve been on such a creme kick lately. Between that and my recent pink love you would think I had a polish lobotomy.

So here’s the line up and descriptions courtesy of OPI.
Mod-ern Girl – A pop of coral with more than 15 minutes of fame.
Brights Power – A brilliant orange that fashionistas find fab!
The “It” Color – This must-have yellow is the color to be seen in.
That’s Hot! Pink – Bright pink that sizzles with style.
Green-wich Village – A vivid green that’s downtown mod.
Dating a Royal – A royal blue that sets crowns spinning!

The Mod About Brights collection retail for $8.50 ($9.50 CAN) and will be avaiable in May at salons including the major chains; Beauty First, Beauty Brands, JCPenney, Dillard’s, Regis, Pure Beauty, Ulta, and Trade Secret.

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