OPI Miss Universe Collection (swatches & review)

In collaboration with the Miss Universe Organization, OPI has just released their ‘Miss Universe Collection’, honouring the pageant that was begun in 1952 by the Pacific Mills clothing company of California, and purchased in 1996 by Donald Trump. This is a set of four limited edition colours, all in expectedly flashy yet tasteful shades, echoing the splendour of this extravagant event. All swatches are with Seche Base Ridge Filling Base Coat and Revlon Quick Dry Top Coat.

The venue is set to air this September 12th and will be broadcast live from São Paulo, Brazil, which happens to not only be that country’s largest city, but the largest city in the southern hemisphere. With an estimated population of more than 11 million people in the metropolitan area, I find it amusing to note that São Paulo’s motto happens to be “I am not led, I lead” — how appropriate for the beauties who will be vying for the crown!

‘It’s My Year’ is a unique combination of a foil and duo-chrome finish, flashing at times bronze, then morphing into a gleaming plum shade. Initially, I thought this was a duplicate of ‘Rally Pretty Pink’ from the Serena Williams French Open Duos (reviewed here), and while they are indeed quite close, the difference is mainly in the formula, with ‘It’s My Year’ applying significantly more opaque. I applied three very thin coats for the following swatches.

I love the ombré effect of this view taken in full sun, with the shimmer dancing playfully along the upper part of the nail, leaving the rest of nail bathed in a rich purple hue.

A closeup view shows an almost equal dispersal of the bronze and mauve shimmer particles, and gives a very clear view of how well the two mesh together.

In this angled view, the golden/bronze shimmer becomes the focus, and the plum notes of the base take on the task of anchoring the entire look.

Interestingly, while bronze-y hues are normally classified in the “warm” family, the view shown here in indirect light lends a much cooler vibe to ‘It’s My Year’ and gives the purple tone a much more prominent role.

Shaded light, however, brings this shade right back into the realm of warmer tones, and once more highlights how well the two opposing shimmer hues work together.

A final view taken with flash brings the jewel-like purple tone into prominence and shows off a more intense look to this shade. While a faint image of my nail line can be seen in this shot, it isn’t apparent to the naked eye.

‘Swimsuit…Nailed It!’ has got to be one of the most vibrant, yet utterly regal royal blue colours I have ever come across. There seems to be an almost silvery cast over the entire shade which gives this varnish such incredible depth of tone, yet the blue is deep enough to swim in! A fabulous formula, I only needed two coats to achieve a wonderful opacity.

A view taken in sunlight gives this shade an almost majestic semblance, spotlighting its many nuances from cerulean all the way to navy, with the shimmer doing nothing to distract the eye from this gorgeous effect.

I love how a closeup view shows the incredibly fine internal shimmer, and how well balanced it is throughout the base shade, giving off sparkle yet managing to stay smooth-looking at the same time.

Once more, an angled view gives a detailed look of how the shimmer seems to brilliantly dance off the surface of the nail, yet the overall colour remains true to it’s royal blue leanings.

Indirect lighting shows the most true-to-bottle version of ‘Swimsuit…Nailed It!’, and reveals how the silvery shimmer lightens the base shade ever so slightly.

It’s this view taken in shaded light that gives this shade its most mysterious look yet, showcasing scattered gleaming highlights set amongst the backdrop of this lustrous sapphire hue….STUNNING!!!

A final view taken with flash and ‘Swimsuit…Nail it!’s inner diva comes to the fore, with the shimmer almost brilliantly blinding!

‘Congeniality Is My Middle Name’ (all right OPI….enough with the mile-long names, already!) may at first seem like a simple magenta hue, but delve a little deeper and you can entice a magical side to this shade. Filled with a blueish inner shimmer, it has that “lit-from-within” look that I so love and which gives this shade such a unique twist. I applied two coats for the following swatches.

This first view taken in full sun depicts this shade as being a deep pink/berry shade, permeated with exceptionally fine micro-shimmer for added sparkle.

It is this second sunlight view that breathes life into the heart of this shade, with the shimmer dancing provocatively across the nail, drawing your eye in.

A closeup view of ‘Congeniality Is My Middle Name’ reveals the complex inner shimmer and how well it ties into this gem-like hue.

Seen in angled light, the base shade takes on its most pink look thus far, while revealing a slight blueish cast overall.

I find it absolutely fascinating how this view taken in indirect light, shows a multitude of blue specks seeming to float just under the surface of the nail, like trapped starlight….so pretty!

Shaded light, and the flecks now take on a more magenta look, nestled in a deep bordeaux base tone, while the whole look seems to be rather cool-hued.

A final view taken with flash, and the fiery glory of this shade takes on a brilliant, yet utterly sophisticated demeanor.

The last shade of this collection, ‘Crown Me Already!’ is complete bling, but done in such an elegantly tasteful way. Filled with varying sizes of silver glitter, micro-glitter, and hexagonal glitter pieces, this has the usual “suspension-like” formula of such polishes, which is both thicker and rather jelly-ish, as well as providing a stable medium for application. I was concerned that it would apply rather sparsely, yet with so much going on in this one tiny bottle, I was actually surprised by its opacity. The following swatches are all shown with 2 views: a two coat application, immediately followed by a three coat application.

Seen in full sun, and without protective sunglasses on, you risk being almost blinded by this varnish’s brilliance (well, not really, but you get the drift!), yet it’s the best way to completely appreciate ‘Crown Me Already! in its entirety.

The same view, but with three coats, doesn’t alter the shade all that much, except for adding a touch more opacity and shine overall.

Of course, one hardly needs a closeup view of this shade to understand all its nuances, but by clicking to enlarge this shot, you can appreciate all the varying shapes and sizes of glitter that it holds.

The same view but with three coats, adds a noticeably denser overall feel to the look, yet the more opaque it becomes, the harder it is to define all the different glitter shapes.

An angled view wraps ‘Crown Me Already!’ with a sheer and sparkling white aura, and I love how it takes on an almost ethereal glow.

With three coats, the white overlay is still in visible prominence, yet its deeper opacity now makes it appear as though diamonds were strewn carelessly across the entire nail! (how I wish!!)

The following four photos are taken in indirect light and shaded light respectively, and even though the differences between them are imperceptible at best, there are still slight variances in tone and in how the deeper light reflects off the glitter, and well, it’s become something of a habit of mine by now to include these angles! In all four views, the shade has taken on its coolest semblance yet and seems to be bathed in a silvery-white light. The above photo is two coats in indirect light.

Indirect light view, three coats.

Shaded light view, two coats.

Shaded light view, three coats.

A final view of both versions taken with flash, serves to best highlight the differences between a two and a three coat application. In the above photo, you can clearly see a sparser effect to the glitter, as well as a slight indication of my nail line.

With three coats applied and seen with flash, the nail line is concealed much more, the glitter appears denser, and the overall brilliance of the shade is simply outstanding!

Please enjoy the following video clip of the glitz & glamour that is ‘Crown Me Already!’

Final thoughts: Everything I expected a collection of shades named after a beauty pageant to be, all came together in this capsule collection: brilliance, vivid colours and an expression of powerful femininity. The formula on all was excellent, with ‘It’s My Year’ being the thinnest and ‘Crown Me Already!’ the thickest, yet they all applied effortlessly, leaving absolutely no brush strokes behind, self-levelling and highly glossy despite the addition of shimmer and/or glitter particles, which has a tendency to dull other such lacquers. They all come with OPI’s patented Pro-Wide brush, and while I normally prefer a thinner brush myself, I love how easy this one is to manipulate, although those with smaller nail beds may find it challenging (but not impossible!). The bonus: removal was very easy…almost painless, considering all they’re loaded with. The collection is available now, wherever OPI products are sold. And the winner is…..well, you’ll have to tune in Monday, September 12, 2011 to find out!