Chanel Peridot

I tried REALLY hard to resist.  I promise you I did.  I even asked Jessie to talk me out of it, and you don't even want to know how good of a job she did.  I totally was NOT going to buy it.  Then I was hypnotized by the magical gold and blue-green swirls...the photos popping up on MUA...

...allow me to introduce you to my very first Chanel nail polish - Peridot!

Peridot is a warm gold metallic polish with a green-and-sometimes-almost-blue duochrome.  I've heard some horror stories about recent Chanel formulas (I'm looking at YOU, Mimosa and Riva!), but this one was incredibly smooth and easy to work with.  I've told you guys before how heavy-handed my application can be, but the formula was so great, I was able to get paper thin layers - and only two of them!  It is a metallic, so there are some brushstrokes to deal with, but they're not super noticeable.  As with any duochrome, the effect is much stronger in the bottle (hence the magical swirls).  Although Peridot does show its golden face most of the time, I can attest that the green (and sometimes blue!) is still easily noticeable on the nail.  The difference is in the lighting, so I supplied you with about 800 photos to show it off as best I could!  :-)

The next four photos were taken under my Ott-Lite:

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The next three were taken in indirect sunlight by a window:

(Ok, I'm actually blocking the light in this one, but same location):

Aaaand finally, the last three were taken in warm artificial lighting...in my bathroom.  :-)

Usually this kind of polish is not my cup of tea.  I passed on China Glaze Peace on Earth and swapped away OPI At Your Quebec and Call (both of these are much more green and have no duochrome).  Peridot, on the other hand - I LOVE!  There's something just so completely fierce about it.  My pictures don't even begin to do it justice!  It paired really well with an olive green tank top I wore over the weekend, and I can see it carrying into the fall with an awesome military style jacket.  (I'm totally going to be on the hunt for an olive green military jacket now.  D'oh!)

Peridot and her fabulous sister Graphite (Quartz is the red-headed stepchild of the bunch.) were recently released as part of Chanel's Fall 2011 lineup.  The steep $25 price tag makes me immediately look to dupes before dumping the cash.  Graphite, from what I've seen, is stunning, but thankfully Revlon has bailed us out yet again with a near-dupe named Carbonite.  Yes, I'm going to buy it at least 30% because of the name (Star Wars nerd here!).  Peridot has some close competitors, but unfortunately for U.S. girls, they all seem to be foreign brands that may be hard to track down here in the States.  It was tough for me to finally give in, but I looked at it as a treat for myself, and a treat it was, INDEED!

Peridot is super limited edition, and as any Chanel does, has the potential to go "cult classic."  It's still available, so even if you're on the fence about it - grab it while you still can!  My theory was that even if the color didn't suit me, the bottle would be pretty enough just to look at!  :-D