Vintage CHANEL: #59 Canicule – for all my beauties on Valentine’s Day! (swatches & review)

Ahhhh … l’amour … love is in the air ♥ ! Many years ago, my husband (wisely) declared that every day would be Valentine’s Day for us (told you he was wise!) and so while we don’t designate just one day out of an entire year to openly declare our feelings to one another, I still enjoy how people around me seem to smile more and actually seem happier on Valentine’s Day. Or maybe that’s what the greeting card companies want me to believe … *conspiracy theories growing* …

In honour of the holiday, I once more reached into my CHANEL vintages vault and discovered this absolutely perfect Valentine beauty: ‘Canicule’, a deeply glowing candy-apple red shade filled with ultra-fine red shimmer and sparse larger silver flecks. French for the intense heat of late summer, how perfectly this shade embodies the spirit of the day! The formula was absolutely superb, flowing evenly and with just the right amount of viscosity for a flawless application. With two coats, perfect coverage was reached, as it levelled itself off smoothly without any telltale brushstrokes left behind. I was amazed that a shimmer lacquer would be so stunningly glossy, even before I added a top coat. Bonus: ridiculously easy removal and absolutely NO staining left on the nail upon removal. All swatches are with base and top coats.

in sunlight

closeup

indoors

with flash

Final thoughts: What I love about this Vintage CHANEL series, is that I am not only re-discovering some of these beauties that I’ve collected over the years, but how I continue to be impressed by CHANEL’s far-reaching vision. ‘Canicule’ is one of those varnishes that may not seem all that unique at first; since its release (I’m not sure of the exact date, but it’s definitely more than 10 years ago) we have seen every shade of red imaginable and in many incarnations, and yet, there still remains something special about this one … ripe for passionate pursuits (you decide what that may be) ! ♥