Tuesday, February 9, 2010

OPI Hong Kong Collection

Good morning, Dear Reader!

Yesterday I got my OPI Hong Kong Collection, and I have a metric boatload of pictures for you. The natural light yesterday, and in the upcoming forecast, was really low, which made the colors look washed out, and bright artificial light made them a bit too vivid, so I have both for you. Times twelve colors. You can just mull this paragraph over for a bit whilst the page loads... I have avoided reading any reviews of this collection lest they affect my impression of it, so I'm just giving you my observations from swatching. I have seen pics of two of them, but the other ten were a new sight for me.

The Hong Kong Collection consists of nine cremes and three shimmers, one of which is sheer. All twelve were three coaters for me, but otherwise applied pretty well. There are some dupey colors both within this collection and to recent collections. I'll just show them to you in alphabetical order with the exception of the last one, so we end on a strong note. The last two, I really like a lot, some of the others I'm fond of and would wear, but there are a few... I'll show you the natural light picture of each first, then the artificial light picture.

First up at bat is A Good Mandarin Is Hard to Find, which is a bright orange creme.

OPI A Good Mandarin Is Hard to Find Nail Polish
OPI A Good Mandarin Is Hard to Find Nail Polish, Three Coats in Weak Natural Light

OPI A Good Mandarin Is Hard to Find
OPI A Good Mandarin Is Hard to Find Nail Polish, Three Coats in Strong Artificial Light

Bling Dynasty is a metallic shimmer, but a hard color to describe. My first thought was of an authentic Chinese restaurant I used to go to where they made their own hot mustard and sold it for something like $3 a pint - the color of Bling Dynasty reminds me of that hot mustard. The natural lighting picture is more accurate with respect to color, and the artificial light one shows the shimmer.

OPI Bling Dynasty Nail Polish
OPI Bling Dynasty Nail Polish, Three Coats in Weak Natural Light

OPI Bling Dynasty
OPI Bling Dynasty Nail Polish, Three Coats in Strong Artificial Light

Chop-Sticking to My Story is an odd orange creme, and likely the least flattering color that's ever been on my nails. If Ginger Bells was OPI & Apple Pie Version 2.0, Chop-Sticking to My Story is OPI & Apple Pie Version 3.0. Not 2.1, but 3.0 - it's so unattractive it's a complete overhaul.

OPI Chop-Sticking to My Story Nail Polish
OPI Chop-Sticking to My Story Nail Polish, Three Coats in Weak Natural Light

OPI Chop-Sticking to My Story
OPI Chop-Sticking to My Story Nail Polish, Three Coats in Strong Artificial Light

Dim Sum Plum is a pretty kind of berry creme, but it looks dupey to Fall 2009's Ate Berries in the Canaries from OPI Espana to me.

OPI Dim Sum Plum Nail Polish
OPI Dim Sum Plum Nail Polish, Three Coats in Weak Natural Light

OPI Dim Sum Plum
OPI Dim Sum Plum Nail Polish, Three Coats in Strong Artificial Light

Hot & Spicy isn't really either hot or spicy, although it's a pretty kind of bright cantaloupe creme.

OPI Hot & Spicy Nail Polish
OPI Hot & Spicy Nail Polish, Three Coats in Weak Natural Light

OPI Hot & Spicy
OPI Hot & Spicy Nail Polish, Three Coats in Strong Artificial Light

We'll skip to Lucky Lucky Lavender, a pale lavender creme. This is one I like, am sure I'll wear, but isn't anything new or exciting. Just a pretty Spring pastel. In these pictures, the fact that the weak natural light had colors reading somewhat blue and artificial somewhat pink is evident. Comparing the bottle to the two pictures on my monitor, the actual color falls in between the two pictures.

OPI Lucky Lucky Lavender Nail Polish
OPI Lucky Lucky Lavender Nail Polish, Three Coats in Weak Natural Light

OPI Lucky Lucky Lavender
OPI Lucky Lucky Lavender Nail Polish, Three Coats in Strong Artificial Light

Meet Me on the Star Ferry is one I'd seen maybe two pictures of, and was really looking forward to. It's a shimmer, a very sparkly kind of brownish mauvey shade, but I was let down by it on the nail. It just didn't look that good. However, when I went through pictures, it looked as good as other pictures I'd seen. It's just an exceptionally photogenic nail polish!

OPI Meet Me on the Star Ferry Nail Polish
OPI Meet Me on the Star Ferry Nail Polish, Three Coats in Weak Natural Light

OPI Meet Me on the Star Ferry
OPI Meet Me on the Star Ferry Nail Polish, Three Coats in Strong Artificial Light

Panda-Monium Pink is just a little bit paler than Lucky Lucky Lavender, which are the two I think are dupey within the collection.

OPI Panda-Monium Pink Nail Polish
OPI Panda-Monium Pink Nail Polish, Three Coats in Weak Natural Light

OPI Panda-Monium Pink
OPI Panda-Monium Pink Nail Polish, Three Coats in Strong Artificial Light

Pearl of Wisdom is the sheer, and I'm hiding my silk wrap in the pictures. It has a tinge of pink and is very shimmery.

OPI Pearl of Wisdom Nail Polish
OPI Pearl of Wisdom Nail Polish, Three Coats in Weak Natural Light

OPI Pearl of Wisdom
OPI Pearl of Wisdom Nail Polish, Three Coats in Strong Artificial Light

Red My Fortune Cookie is a somewhat orange red creme, and after three coats I still have VNL.

OPI Red My Fortune Cookie Nail Polish
OPI Red My Fortune Cookie Nail Polish, Three Coats in Weak Natural Light

OPI Red My Fortune Cookie
OPI Red My Fortune Cookie Nail Polish, Three Coats in Strong Artificial Light

My second favorite in this collection is Suzi Says Feng Shui, a medium blue creme. I'm sure others like it exist, but it's a good shade of blue and I'll wear it.

OPI Suzi Says Feng Shui Nail Polish
OPI Suzi Says Feng Shui Nail Polish, Three Coats in Weak Natural Light

OPI Suzi Says Feng Shui
OPI Suzi Says Feng Shui Nail Polish, Three Coats in Strong Artificial Light

Predictably, my top pick from this collection is Jade is the New Black. It's a green creme, probably most similar to Orly Enchanted Forest, but a little bit lighter. Here, natural light made it too blue and artificial too yellow - again, it's in between.

OPI Jade is the New Black Nail Polish
OPI Jade is the New Black Nail Polish, Three Coats in Weak Natural Light

OPI Jade is the New Black
OPI Jade is the New Black Nail Polish, Three Coats in Strong Artificial Light

That, Dear Reader, is OPI's Hong Kong Collection, and one incredibly long post. That's all for today, so until tomorrow, love and nail polish to you!

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