Filed In: Chanel nail polish

CHANEL | L.A. Sunrise Collection Spring 2016

The L.A Sunrise Spring 2016 Collection from CHANEL launched across counters in a blaze of flamboyant colour and sizzling energy, albeit done in the typical refined manner that this brand has become known for. Aiming to capture the glorious landscape of this city in beauty form (you can read my review on the Sunkiss Ribbon Blush Harmony here), this collection certainly manages to do exactly that with shades that can take you from a Hollywood red carpet premiere to the free-spirited vibe of Coachella.

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CHANEL | Le Vernis Longwear & Le Gel Coat Longwear

March 18, 2016

CHANEL has gone back to the drawing board and has completely revamped their nail polish range, and has launched Le Vernis Longwear and Le Gel Coat Longwear, both of which come in a new formula for longer lasting wear combined with an insanely glossy finish. With 14 shades to choose from, there are a few colours from the original line that have come over to this new finish, but the rest are all brand new and wait to be discovered.

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Burberry Beauty|Cadet Green, Khaki Green & Poppy Black

January 18, 2016

Something about Burberry Beauty just speaks to me on so many levels; from the crisp & clean packaging to the actual products themselves, this range continues to impress me with their attention to detail and quality. Released as part of the Fall 2015 Beauty collection, these military hues were inspired by the Burberry Camouflage bucket Bag a signature piece from the Autumn/Winter 2015 runway show (and which I’m totally coveting), but are colours that also happen to be so totally on point for Spring 2016.

Camouflage Bucket Bag – Burberry Autumn/Winter 2015

Details: housed in a rectangular bottle with a removal outer gunmetal cap etched with the iconic Burberry plaid design, the brush is on the dense side but splays extremely well and is suitable even for those with narrower nail beds.

Burberry Beauty | Cadet Green, Khaki Green & Poppy Black

N° 206 Cadet Green, Limited Edition (CAN $23.00) | A cool leaning (blue based) green hue in a medium-thin almost hybrid-like (crème/jelly) formula that can be runny if your brush is loaded up too much (which could then result in potential flooding of cuticles). Barring that, this shade has amazing pigmentation and flow, falling in a self-levelling way and leaving behind an insanely glossy finish. Bonus: non-staining upon removal.

Coats applied: 2, plus top coat

N°205 Khaki Green, Limited Edition (CAN $23.00) | A true military green hue in a similar formula to Cadet Green, but slightly more sheer at the first coat. Warmer-leaning (due to a yellower base), the depth of tone builds up beautiful and offers complete opacity by the second layer, along with a self-levelling application and brilliant high-shine finish.

Coats applied: 2, plus top coat

The first thing that both Cadet Green and Khaki Green made me think of, were Les Khakis de CHANEL (released in 2010, now discontinued) the military-hued trio created for Fashion Night and which sold out at the speed of light. Naturally, I had to pull mine out of the vault to compare, and as the swatches below show, they’re really nothing alike:

Burberry Beauty | N°205 Khaki Green vs CHANEL Khaki Vert swatches

Burberry Beauty | N°205 Khaki Green vs CHANEL Khaki Brun swatches

N299 Poppy Black (CAN $23.00) | A deep ebony black hue with a formula that borders on perfection at every level: density, flow, opacity and brilliance. Everyone needs a good black in their nail polish wardrobe (instantly adds an edgy chicness to nails while frequently being the basis for many nail art designs) and Poppy Black is giving Camelot from a-england, my long-standing fave black, some serious competition. Bonus: non-staining upon removal.

Coats applied: 2, plus top coat (although the finish is beyond glossy on its own)

Interestingly, this trio happens to be my first Burberry polishes, but something tells me that they won’t be my last. These colours are both modern and classic, and while Cadet Green and Khaki Green were both limited edition shades, a quick search shows that they’re still available (I’ve included a few links below). Poppy Black is a permanent hue – a good thing, as this is one totally amazing black and well worth adding to your beauty arsenal.

Burberry Beauty products are available through The Bay & thebay.com, Sephora & sephora.com, Nordstrom and www.nordstrom.com locations across Canada. Find more information via www.ca.burberry.com

Press samples provided for my unbiased consideration

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CHANEL | Le Vernis 767 Fraîcheur

December 21, 2015

With January fast approaching, my mind starts turning to all things Spring (it’s the curse of the beauty industry; always being one – or more – seasons ahead) add to that the incredibly gloomy weather we’ve been experiencing here in Montréal (seriously, what does the sun even look like again?), I wanted to brighten things up and came across this little beauty in my archives: CHANEL’s 767 Fraîcheur, a shade that made my heart skip a beat when I first laid eyes on it, in part due to its incredible resemblance to the elusive Jade – one of 2 CHANEL shades I was never able to add to my collection (the other is Holographic and both were never released here).

Before I go on, I want to state that this was a limited edition shade released this past Summer and even though some retailers sold out at the speed of light, you might still be able to score a bottle with a little detective work (don’t be shy to ask sales associates to dig around their beauty drawers – you just never know what treasures might turn up)

767 Fraîcheur (CAN $31.00) | A celery/celadon green hue filled with ultra fine emerald shimmer of the type that may not be as visible in shaded light, but which certainly makes its presence known in brighter light. The formula leans on the mid-sheer side and while slightly thin, it’s definitely not runny at all. Self-levelling and quite glossy at the finish, shorter nails can get away with 2 coats for a solid opacity, while longer nails may need a third coat – unless like me, you like a slight translucency.

Coats applied: 3 (thin) plus top coat

CHANEL | Le Vernis 767 Fraîcheur (detail)

CHANEL | Le Vernis 767 Fraîcheur swatch

I would have loved to have included a comparison swatch to Jade, but that’s obviously not going to happen (although a quick google search will yield plenty of comparisons, for those curious enough to see). To my understanding, the two shades are extremely close, with Fraîcheur perhaps a touch more greener but with the same patented CHANEL ‘secret shimmer’. All I know is that this totally garden-fresh colour not only makes up for the ‘Jade loss’, but makes me happy every time I wear it and puts me in a regrowth state of mind as I gear up for many more beauty adventures to come in 2016.

Purchased product

CHANEL | Le Vernis 757 Rose Fusion, Rouge Noir Absolument Collection

December 8, 2015

Also released as part of CHANEL’s Rouge Noir Absolument Collection for Holiday 2015, is 757 Rose Fusion – a unique metallic lacquer that refuses to be pinned down colour-wise. Holding its own between the iconic 18 Rouge Noir and the flashier Le Top Coat Lamé Rouge Noir (linked below), this is a shade that boasts a quiet roar — and completely unique in my CHANEL collection of polishes (if you’ve been following me for some time now, then you know that THAT statement says it all).

Also reviewed from this collection:

CHANEL | Le Vernis 757 Rose Fusion

757 Rose Fusion, Limited Edition (CAN $31.00) | What initially appears to be a greyed coppery shade with metallic shimmer, develops into mauve, then lilac, then an oxidized hue – all depending on the light and angle with which it’s viewed. Basically, this is an antiqued rose shade with bronze and verdigris ultra fine shimmer, all of which help it morph into a zillion other colours that technically have no name. As with all metallic lacquers, Rose Fusion is not without its quirks; the first coat will lay down semi-sheer and by keeping a steady hand with the brush, you should be able to keep any visible brushstrokes to a minimum. Interestingly enough though, as the colour develops and dries, so do the brushstrokes also fade into the background, leaving behind a fairly smooth finish (which I obviously failed to accurately capture in my swatch photos, seeing as how my camera insists on magnifying EVERY detail). While shiny at the finish, adding top coat enhances and truly brings out all the shimmery bits. In a nutshell, wearing Rose Fusion is the closest you’ll get to ombré nails, without any effort whatsoever.
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Coats applied: 2, plus top coat

CHANEL | Le Vernis 757 Rose Fusion (detail)

CHANEL | Le Vernis 757 Rose Fusion (detail, alternate angle)

CHANEL | Le Vernis 757 Rose Fusion

CHANEL | Le Vernis 757 Rose Fusion swatch

CHANEL | Le Vernis 757 Rose Fusion swatch (detail)

CHANEL | Le Vernis 757 Rose Fusion swatch

Marrying metallic, shimmer, and a host of colours from pale to dark, Rose Fusion might very well be the sleeper product of this collection – don’t let its flashier siblings make you overlook this little lovely. Another bonus method of wearing this shade, especially if you tend to shy away from anything metallic, is by adding a matte top coat; this serves to tone down the shine, but still keeps the unique factor going … and is guaranteed to have people asking you (as they did me) “what IS that you’re wearing?”
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The CHANEL Rouge Noir Absolument Collection is available now through The Bay & thebay.com, Holt Renfrew, and Nordstrom stores across Canada. Find more information via www.chanel.com