OPI – The Texas Collection (swatches & review part 2)

To coincide with the Superbowl taking place in Arlington Texas today, I bring you my next instalment of OPI’s The Texas Collection swatches! (You can view my first review here). I was pleased to find that even though 3 out of the 4 were somewhat sheer, they are all basically streak-free and can be built up to decent coverage, with the shades themselves all very interesting, feminine, modern and unique. All swatches are with Sèche Natural base coat and 3 coats of lacquer, no top coat.

‘I Vant To Be A-Lone Star’ is an opalescent greyed out baby blue, with a ‘secret shimmer’ that is not easily apparent to the naked eye, but gives your nails the most luminous pearly glow. While it definitely needs 3 coats to reach full opacity and a wait time of at least a couple of minutes between coats, it is well worth the effort as this shade is absolutely beautiful! This is another one of those shades that can transcend the seasons, looking both winter-elegant and summer-fresh, flattering on everyone. Love, love, love this one!

‘San Tan-Tonio’ is a most delicious looking mocha hue; reminds me of what a melted Kraft caramel square would look like! While it looks to have slight yellowish undertones, it is easily wearable by both cool and warm skin tones. The only creme of the four, this formula was slightly thicker and while 2 coats gave good coverage, 3 made it perfectly opaque. There were no streaking issues and it seemed to be self-levelling, with a high gloss finish.

‘It’s Totally Fort Worth It’ is a sheer, muted & muddied pale silvery hue with a grey/lavender base and has an obvious pearly look to it. It is saved from being too frosty by the addition of very fine pink and green ultra shimmer in its depths and brush strokes were minimal as well. Because of its sheerness however, this needs at least 3 coats to give decent coverage, but the finished effect is at once delicate and mod, fully on pointe with today’s looks and very unique amongst other similar tones.

‘Austin-Tatious Turquoise’ has an almost duo chrome look in the bottle, but on the nails it becomes something else entirely new; reminiscent of the iridescence of peacock feathers, there’s not only an indigo flash that appears with your hand’s movement, but it’s loaded with glassy shimmer that give it depth and incredible sparkle. Leaning more blue than green, this semi-sheer shade is a fresh take on a turquoise hue and will easily become a summer favourite! The formula was a touch on the thick side but the application was very easy with a high shine finish.

Final thoughts: These four shades each had an interesting and unique look to them and I found the formula wonderful on them all. I searched through my stash and did not find anything similar which makes them a good investment from this collection, as far as originality is concerned. Even though ‘Austin’Tatious Turquoise’ is the most vibrant of the four, its indigo flash makes it at once toned down and mesmerizing. The buttery smoothness of ‘San Tan-Tonio’ makes this shade an excellent choice for a nude look, and for a lacier more delicate feel, both ‘I Vant To Be A-Lone Star’ and ‘It’s Totally Fort Worth It’ provide a shimmery look without ever going over the top. Overall, I highly recommend all four of these!