Wednesday, October 19, 2011

NAILS: Disney Princess Designer Collection Nail polish

The release of the Disney Princess Designer Collection had a slow start, but then grew into such a craze!  Mainly, the Collectible Dolls, which feature all ten Disney "Princesses" re-styled differently from how we traditionally seem them.  You can easily search images of these dolls on your own.

I'm writing about the nail polish set that is part of the Designer Collection.  It features ten bottles, 0.2 fl. oz. each, with a color named for each princess.  It retails at $24.50 for the entire set, and can be found at select Disney Stores.  I know this is a bit late in the game, since the collection is a big hit, and they seem to be selling out of most product.  But I always feel the need to make my opinions public on these matters.  I'll describe each color individually.  (and I must apologize for lack of pictures and swatches- too broke to afford a decent camera)

MULAN (Very soft, baby pink)
I know Mulan is supposed to be the heroine from ancient China, but feel like the best way to describe this color is sheer French Manicure Pink.  I honestly do not think it is a very unique color.  In fact, I believe I have at least 3 other colors in my nail polish inventory very similar to this one, and most likely part of a French Manicure set.  It still is a very pretty color, and definitely work and school appropriate.  Good color for girls and women of any age.  Thin, watery consistency.  Needs two to three coats.

JASMINE (royal turquoise)
This is THE Princess Jasmine color.  It dries to a satin finish, almost as if you are wearing pieces of the fabric worn by the Arabian princess herself, or your can pretend you nails are precious gems.  The color definitely has a regal presence to it with an exotic touch.  Again, not necessarily a unique color-- let me know if you find any drug store dupes!  But a beautiful color nonetheless.  Slightly thick consistency- work quickly to avoid streaks.  What you see in the bottle is what you see on your nail in one coat.

SNOW WHITE (clear polish with red glitter)
The color description is pretty much it.  Clear nail polish with a ton of fine red glitter.  One coat is pretty splotchy; two coats are better; three is best.  I am quite disappointed in the color.  For Snow White, I was expecting a poisonous red apple color.  I see where they were going with the glitter, though, trying to make it more "magical" looking, but I must say it was poorly executed.  It is quite watery, as if the glitter was diluted.

CINDERELLA (multi-colored glitter)
Upon first glance, it looks predominantly silver.  But the multi-colored glitter does make its presence known. In contrast to the Snow White color, this color is definitely a glitter polish success, and I've only encountered few successful glitter nail polishes in my day.  It may not look like Cinderella's glass slipper, but it does look like the magic that brought it to existence.  The consistency is pretty smooth and fluid.  One coat does the job.  This is one of my personal favorites out of the ten.
[edit 2/14/2012]  I just found out that China Glaze Fairy Drops is a dupe for this color.  I'm glad that I found it, because now I have a bigger bottle of this great color!

AURORA (hot pink with some blue undertones (possible duochrome)
The dress should be "PINK!" "NO, BLUE!"  It is mostly a sheer hot pink paint, with small pieces of pink and blue shimmer noticeable upon close inspection.  You can also see a little bit of a blue tint when you play with it in the light. Great for everyday wear.  Watery consistency.  Because it is sheer, one coat is good for young girls wanting to add some color to their nails, and two coats show its true color.

ARIEL (deep sea blue with deep sea green glitter)
The paint is a bluer than the turquoise Jasmine color, and has small chunks of blue-green glitter.  It doesn't look exactly like the tropical beach landscapes that we see when we think of vacations, but more of a magical part of Ariel's world in the depths of the ocean.  Thicker consistency than the others.  One coat is pretty opaque.

RAPUNZEL (burgundy with silver shimmer)
This color seems to be the trending color of the season.  Very pretty in the bottle and when applied in one coat to the nail, but surprisingly dries to a matte finish.  The matte finish makes the shimmer look a bit chunkier.  When a shiny top coat is applied, it has more of a sparkling effect.  I feel like this color had the thickest consistency of the bunch.

BELLE (gold with gold glitter)
Definitely the color of the antiques of the enchanted castle.  True color in one coat.  Not necessarily a unique color, but a perfect Belle color.

TIANA (pearlized light seafoam green)
The color looks more pearly white in one coat on your nail than the green tint in the bottle.  Not exactly what you expect from a swamp frog, but it does have a combination of sass and charm of Tiana.  Smooth consistency.  Two coats brings out more of the green color.

POCAHONTAS (shimmery bronze-beige)
For some reason, I have a difficult time describing this "brown" color.  Pocahontas was in tune with the land, but "dirt" and "mud" just doesn't describe it.  I honestly think that it has some sort of a warm peach-based beige color and then slightly metallicized into a paint.  Nevertheless, this is probably my top favorite color of the set, and I'm not usually partial to earthy tones.  One coat reveals the slight peach color, while two coats defines the brown.

Hope this helps if you were considering the collection.  This is a must have for the fabulous Disney Princess fan.  For those who are hesitant to venture into the world of nail polish, this set is a good place to start the adventure.  If you're a nail polish connoisseur, I'm sure you might already have most of these colors in your stash.  I can tell you that Sally Hansen's 12 Blue Streak is a pretty good combination of Jasmine and Ariel, if you're into blues.  But I do recommend the set just to get the Cinderella, Rapunzel, and Pocahontas colors.  The only stand out negative quality of the set I have to mention is the durability.  With one layer of top coat, the color started to chip after two days.  My mother did have a better experience with the Rapunzel color and layers of top coat.




Products mentioned were purchased by me, and all opinions are my own with no outside influence.

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