Chanel Peridot

Good afternoon, Dear Reader!

After passing on Chanel Peridot with confidence, I saw someone wearing it in person recently, and that completely changed my mind.  I think it's one that doesn't translate to photos terribly well - I've seen pictures where it looks mostly kind of yellowish or gold , and that's not what it looked like in person at all.  I decided to get it somewhere with easy returns in case I hated it, and I don't.  If only I'd waited to get Stairway to Heaven from Nordies...

Anyhow, Peridot seemed like a nice change for today, so I tried it out.  It's a well pigmented two-coater, mostly green with some pale yellow and a strong shimmer.  I used SpaRitual Lacquer Lock as a base and their Tout de Suite for top coat (some experimenting a few years back showed me those consistently work well with Chanels) and two coats of Peridot.  Then I went outside and took some pictures.  This is Peridot in the sun.

Chanel Peridot Nail Polish, Two Coats

Since it's a duochrome, I also took a picture in the shade.

Chanel Peridot Nail Polish, Two Coats in Shade

It took about ten pictures each to get the real color, and even at that neither picture is as cool as in person.  I never knew it had the shimmer that shows in sunlight, but it does.  Peridot is a happy surprise that's kind of made up for the Stairway letdown.  This is not my favorite duochrome color combination (and not terribly far off from Nubar Wildlife but definitely not a dupe), but it's a very nicely done duochrome so I like it.  If it were the purple/green kind, I'd be giddy about it.

That's Chanel Peridot and the update for today, Dear Reader.  I have some new Konad stuff (the two new plates and multiscraper, which looks super handy) to show you this weekend, so until then, love and nail polish to you!



All Rights Reserved, Siobhan@The Nailphile. If you're reading this elsewhere, it's stolen from a real nail polish blog.

Chanel Blue Rebel

Good morning, Dear Reader!

Today is the last installment of Les Jeans de Chanel with Blue Rebel, the darkest of the three.  I put it on last night and managed to scuff it up a little bit before I took a picture, but I can still show you the color.

Blue Rebel is really saturated with color, and one thin coat is almost enough for a manicure.  Two makes it really shiny and rich.  It's just a standard blue, but very nicely done.

Chanel Blue Rebel Nail Polish, Two Coats

This is in direct sunlight, for reference on the color.  Although it is a very nice blue, this is the one of the three with which I'm least impressed.

That's the update for today, so until next time, Dear Reader, love and nail polish to you!



All Rights Reserved, Siobhan@The Nailphile. If you're reading this elsewhere, it's stolen from a real nail polish blog.

Les Jeans de Chanel

I bought myself the Fashion's Night Out exclusive Les Jeans de Chanel polishes for my birthday. This is a limited edition collection and they are sold individually at selected Chanel boutiques and online. (At the time of writing this post, they are still available.) I'm not certain if you can find these at Chanel counters or not.

(You may remember the Les Khakis de Chanel from last year's FNO. I treated myself to Khaki Vert, which I love but oddly enough don't have a swatch picture of.)

Anyway.

The three shades are Blue Boy, Blue Rebel and Coco Blue. Coco Blue is a shimmer, the other two shades are cremes.

Blue Boy, the medium shade.

Blue Rebel, the darkest shade.

And finally, Coco Blue. The shimmer is quite subtle.


In my memory, Nouvelle Vague was a light blue with subtle shimmer, just like Coco Blue. However! They are very different.

I don't have Riva to compare to these shades, unfortunately.


Here they are on the nail wheel at one coat. Blue Rebel, Blue Boy, Coco Blue.

And at two coats:

You can see some drag at the bottom of the nails for the two lightest shades, but I did a full manicure with Blue Boy and that wasn't the case. Two coats covered perfectly. The application on these was very nice, though I haven't done full manis with Blue Rebel or Coco Blue.

Some comparisons:

Misa Office Polish-tics, Blue Reble, Blue Boy

Blue Boy, Coco Blue, Nouvelle Vague. It's amazing how green NV looks next to Coco Blue!

Here's Blue Boy on the nail.

I do love this color. The formula is almost jelly-like and I had excellent control of it going on. Definite A+.

Of course this release brings up the usual hate and resentment about Chanel. There will always be people outraged at Chanel for the simple fact that it's Chanel, and there's nothing anyone can do about that.

Are these polishes 100% unique? Nope. I don't have any dupes in my collection, but I am sure they are out there. If all you want is a blue creme you have hundreds of choices. But I've never regretted buying a Chanel polish.

This brought up an interesting question...what kind of Chanel release would I not buy? Well I didn't buy Riva (I had purchase NV not long before and it just didn't whet my whistle) and I didn't buy Quartz. I passed on Particuliere and its friends Inattendu and Tendresse.

So there are many I don't buy. What else would I pass up? Bar glitter...though to be honest if Chanel actually did lose its marbles and released a bar glitter, I might have to buy it for the sheer noteworthiness of such an event. Perhaps a red creme...though I have from time to time given red Chanel cremes as gifts.

So it's not a knee jerk reaction to just buy them all regardless of what they look like. People like to say that Chanel could bottle a frosty mauve and people would go nuts for it, and while that might apply to some people I'd like to think I'm immune to label whoredom.

I mean I'd like to think it. I guess we'll have to wait for that frosty mauve to really know for sure.

Chanel Coco Blue

Good morning, Dear Reader!

Today I have Chanel Coco Blue to show you, which is the lightest of Les Jeans de Chanel.  It has a nice mica shimmer that give the polish kind of a glow and is distinctly visible as shimmer only in direct light.

For the manicure, I used SpaRitual Laquer Lock base coat, two coats of Coco Blue, and one coat if Lippmann Addicted to Speed to finish it off.  Here's Coco Blue in natural light on a slightly cloudy day.

Chanel Coco Blue Nail Polish, Two Coats

That's all for today, Dear Reader, so until next time, love and nail polish to you!



All Rights Reserved, Siobhan@The Nailphile. If you're reading this elsewhere, it's stolen from a real nail polish blog.

Chanel Graphite

Good afternoon, Dear Reader!

Today I'm wearing Chanel Graphite. which is every bit as fabulous as I'd hoped it would be.  It's the dark grey shimmery one released pretty recently, and all it took was two coats of color to be just right.  Here's Graphite in the sun.

Chanel Graphite Nail Polish, Two Coats

I'd count Graphite amongst the really fabulous Chanels - when they do a good one, they really do a good one.

That's about all there is to tell you about, so until next time, Dear Reader, love and nail polish to you!



All Rights Reserved, Siobhan@The Nailphile. If you're reading this elsewhere, it's stolen from a real nail polish blog.

Chanel Blue Boy

Good afternoon, Dear Reader!

I received a fabulous gift of Les Jeans de Chanel today, so it seems that my waffling over whether to purchase them resolved itself without a decision ever being made.  All three polishes are quite pretty, but I'd say Coco Blue is the standout of the collection.  It's lighter than I was in the mood to wear, so of the other two I chose Blue Boy, the middle one, to wear today.

Blue Boy is a medium kind of slate blue creme, but bluer than slate blue and I don't know the official name of the shade, but that seems like a close enough description since I'm about to show you a picture anyhow.  I used SpaRitual Lacquer Lock for a base, two coats of Blue Boy, and I topped it off with Addicted to Speed.  At one coat, Blue Boy looked like it might be a jelly, but the second coat made it a super shiny Chanel creme.  Blue Boy is to medium blue what Dragon is to red and Imperial to brown, where the color itself isn't out of the ordinary but the incredible gloss to the polish is.  Whether that's $29 special is a personal call, I think, and I'm just glad my birthday falls when it does so I can stop evaluating whether it's $29 special and just enjoy wearing it.

This is Blue Boy in sunlight after it had dried.

Chanel Blue Boy Nail Polish, Two Coats

I haven't tried a new Chanel creme in quite some time, perhaps since last September, and I'd forgotten the high shine they have.  It makes a simple color really a standout for me, so Blue Boy makes me happy.  I think my reluctance to purchase high-end polishes has made gift giving very easy for people who like me - I'm suddenly really easy to shop for!

That's what I know about Chanel Blue Boy, so until next time, Dear Reader, love and nail polish to you!



All Rights Reserved, Siobhan@The Nailphile. If you're reading this elsewhere, it's stolen from a real nail polish blog.

Les Jeans de Chanel Online

Hello, Dear Reader!

I'm doing some work way, way too late tonight, but it worked out well in the sense that I checked Chanel's site for Les Jeans de Chanel, this year's Fashion's Night Out nail polishes, at 11:01 p.m. thinking that it was the release date of Les Jeans de Chanel in the Eastern time zone, and as luck would have it they were there for the taking.  Here's their promo image for the category for all three Les Jeans de Chanel shades on their site.

Les Jeans de Chanel Nail Lacquers

Their price is $29 each, and while that's far better than the rumored $39, it's also a heck of a lot for a bottle of nail polish.  Given that my 40th birthday is next week and I was really happy with the Gift to Self of a Chanel order last year, I'm now waffling about these.  There's also a corner of my brain that's been fixated on the shimmer of one of their recent polishes, Graphite, for some time, so I'm still evaluating whether my overtired brain is simply trying to rationalize a Chanel order.

I'm guessing these will go quickly, although I'm open to being proven wrong on that.  If your heart is really set on any of these, my experience is that limited edition Chanels can rarely be found for less than retail, so I wanted to let you know that they're there for the taking at what might be the lowest price for which they can be purchased.

I'd better get back to being productive so I can get to sleep, so until next time, Dear Reader, love and nail polish to you!



All Rights Reserved, Siobhan@The Nailphile. If you're reading this elsewhere, it's stolen from a real nail polish blog.

Chanel Red Dream

Good afternoon, Dear Reader!

Although I have a few new things to show you, I felt like wearing a comfy old standby today, so I picked Chanel Red Dream.  It's an older one, a darkish red with a great sparkly shimmer, and although I'm sure I must have shown you this one at least once before, I think it's worth lots of looks.

I used SpaRitual Lacquer Lock and Tout de Suite with this manicure, as I've found that for me SpaRitual's products work well with older Chanels.  In between those I used three coats of Chanel Red Dream.  I took a picture of it with the sun coming and going, and was happy to find that one of the pictures shows the shimmer as it really looks on my hands.  Here's Red Dream.

Chanel Red Dream Nail Polish, Three Coats

I just love this polish.  It actually sparkles like in the picture just walking around, which make it nice to look at without being too much.

That's my manicure for today and just about all I know about Chanel Red Dream, so until next time, Dear Reader, love and nail polish to you!



All Rights Reserved, Siobhan@The Nailphile. If you're reading this elsewhere, it's stolen from a real nail polish blog.

Comparison: Chanel Peridot and Missha HGR01

Around the time I got Chanel Peridot I heard about a possible dupe, Missha HGR01. Here they are side by side.

As you can see, they're not twins. They are more like cousins...the idea is the same, but the colors are different. In the photo below you can see the color shift.

Chanel on the bottom, the Missha on top. You can see that Peridot is predominately green and gold while the Missha is blue and green/gold.

Color shift on the nail.

In the sun it's amazing.

Fortunately I like both versions very much! Some may prefer the Missha over the Chanel, or vice versa, depending on color preference. Application was good with both polishes. The Missha is rose-scented. It is fairly strong, though things like that don't really bother me.

The Missha *is* less expensive than Peridot, but it's shipped from Korea and if you're in the US you'll probably want to order it from eBay. So a little inconvenient if you're into instant gratification. I think that if you already own Peridot, don't rule out the Missha. It's different enough to own both (I know you love to hear that).

Topkapi madness!

A long time ago I started a new job and was immediately tasked with clearing out the desk of the person who used it prior. Mostly I was just files and stuff, but there was a drawer full of more personal items, like instant oatmeal packets and some change. I also found a bag from the Chanel counter at Saks, which contained (sadly) no left-behind makeup, but a receipt for something like $160. I was surprised at how few items were listed on the receipt!

Anyway, I never bought anything but nail polish from Chanel until last year, when I could no longer resist Rouge Coco in Mademoiselle (favorite!!). I've always wanted some of their eyeshadow, and late last week I finally lost my mind with regards to the Topkapi eyeshadow quad and I ordered it. I had some eBay and blog sale proceeds burning a hole in my pocket, most of it earmarked for the Urban Decay 15th anniversary palette. That product is sold out for the moment so I decided to pull the trigger on Chanel.

I'm kind of hopeless in the face of Chanel limited edition items anymore, primarily nail polish. I do have some Chanel perfume and the lipstick, which I really love (believe me you'd have to love it, for $30). Occasionally I buy this stuff because...I don't know, life is short? I like nice things. I like cheap things too but sometimes it's fun to splash out.

Anyway my Topkapi quad arrived yesterday.

I shipped it to myself as a gift, complete with note!

Again...life is short. (And Chanel gift packaging is free. Frankly it should be for $10 shipping.)

Chanel really has it nailed when it comes to packaging. Here's the little flocked pouch the compact comes in.

And the compact:

Yes it's plastic but it feels...serious. The lipstick I have (Rouge Coco in Mademoiselle) is the same way. Closes with a satisfying *click*. Weighty and sturdy feeling. Even the little plastic cover used to protect the shadows in transit was well made...and, of course, embossed with the interlocked Cs. (Naturally I seem to have lost track of that, but I don't really need it, it was just kinda neat.)

What really sealed the deal for me with this quad was the colors.

They're all colors I'll wear. I have lots of taupes and browns (I mean, this basically describes the UD Naked palette) so I know these will get use. What's better than something luxurious that you can use all the time?

I should also mention that while I was on the Chanel website, I made myself a big ol' wishlist of stuff that I want. I may or may not do something really insane and buy a lot of it for myself on my birthday. It's kind of fun to buy yourself something ridiculous on your own birthday.

Chanel Enthusiast

Good morning, Dear Reader!

Today I have another non-Zoya Smoke manicure, Chanel Enthusiast, which is a bright red creme.  My impression is that it is an LE from a few years ago.  It was the pick of the day because I have something later for which I wanted to just go with red, and I was really drawn to this one when I went to select a shade.  It just seems like a very summery red to me, very vivid and cheerful.

Enthusiast, like Chanel Dragon (another wonderful red) is even and opaque in one coat, but the second coat makes it really glossy.  That doesn't show well in today's picture - it's so hot and humid out that my nails kept getting fogged up when I'd try to take a picture.  It's not awful here (I just kept cleaning off the fog between pics!), but the amazing shine of Enthusiast will be lost in my pictures until it cools off a little.  Here is Chanel Enthusiast about 12 hours after application.

Chanel Enthusiast Nail Polish, Two Coats

So that's Enthusiast.  I Googled it to find the release date, but I got distracted before I arrived at that information by seeing it on Ebay for $70 and decided to address to matter of hunting for it instead.  It's a good red nail polish, but for me a $70 red is nonexistent, so if you like this one, my vote goes to calling Chanel to ask what current color is the closest match (their Beauty customer service is normally excellent).  The Chanel reds that I have are amazing, markedly nicer than any salon brands, and paying retail for them was bearable, but I'd feel kind of ripped off if I'd paid a nickel over retail for Enthusiast.  I'm on a mission to prevent a case of buyer's remorse here!

That's just about all there is today, Dear Reader, so until next time, love and nail polish to you!

Chanel Fall 2011

So I'm on a nail polish diet that started sometime...oh let's say Sunday, immediately after I placed my Chanel order. Since that time I've strolled past the racks at Walgreens, gazed upon clearance items at Rite Aid and grasped CVS ExtraBucks in my hot little hands, all without buying anything. On Tuesday, I got my hair cut at my usual place and I pawed through their basket of OPIs but didn't buy any. They even had the Pirates colors! The very ones I wanted. But I left them there. I reminded myself NAIL POLISH DIET and I walked away without further internal debate.

I'm somewhat fortunate in that a lot of the new stuff falls into three categories: Crackle polish, sheer sparkly top coats and glitter. None of these are my favorite things and so I can definitely live without them. Also, I'm still waiting on my Ozotics, I just got my Nfu-Ohs and the Chanels, so I think I'm good for a while.

Anyway my Chanels arrived today so I have lots o' pictures for you.

Part of the "Chanel buying experience" (even though the box comes from what is probably an industrial park in Tennessee and not Rue Cambon in Paris) is the presentation. Yes it's a regular cardboard box but you open it and see this:

All nice and nestled in tons of snowy Chanel logo-printed tissue. Samples on either side and your goodies in a little drawstring bag. (You can use it for your sunglasses!)

I am a fan of the iconic packaging.

What's better than Chanel?

Anyway I am sure you are more interested in the polish, so here we go.

Peridot...where to start.

Some people doubted the duochrome shown in the promo images would actually be in the bottle.

It is!

'Tis also on the nail.

These pictures show three coats. I used Palladio Fuse bonding base coat and Sally Hansen Insta-Dri top coat (I've not had good luck with Chanel and Seche Vite). The formula was great. It is a leeeeeeetle frosty. Just a tad. The tiniest bit. And really, the brush stroke issue is totally workable. It's more something to be aware of rather than a deal breaker.

I'm wearing Peridot as a full manicure, but I also swatched Graphite on three fingers and it's a real winner too.

This is also three coats with base coat and top coat.

There's something going on with Graphite...yes, it's black and silver, but there are other teeny, weeny, not-necessarily-visible particles of something else in there. Pink? Blue? I noticed it when I took off the polish after swatching. It's not that you can see the other colors as sparkly particles on the nail, it's more that they are buried in there adding depth and sparkle. Behind-the-scenes glitter!

I'm super happy with these polishes. Sadly, the release of these polishes has brought up the usual hating about Chanel - complaints that it is overpriced and of poor quality. I'll give you that it's overpriced...of course it's overpriced. It's Chanel! You are paying for those little interlocked Cs and all the trappings that goes with them. It's an indulgence.

I won't, however, agree that the polish is poor quality. If it doesn't work for you that's one thing. Some brands don't work for me either...so I don't buy them. It's frustrating but...it's just nail polish. There's always another color to try.

I do think base coat and top coat are touchy issues for Chanel and I can see how that would be a pain for some people. I understand being impatient with tricky formulas, but honestly the whinging seems more knee-jerk than based in actual fact sometimes. Patience and keeping an open mind goes a long way!

In any event, Fall 2011 is a big winner for Chanel in my opinion. What do you think?