OPI Swiss Collection for Fall 2010 – Part 1 Swatches & Review
 Outside of the movie Heidi, which has been remade way too many times, watches, banks and the Swiss Alps, I admittedly know very little about Switzerland. Which is why when I heard that OPI was releasing a collection based on the country I was skeptical as to what it would consist of.
Of course the OPI Swiss preview pics didn’t do these colors justice. Why the large bottle images continue to look like artist renderings is beyond me. Clearly they have a decent photographer to take the display shots, they should being shooting the closeups as well. Anywho, about the colors. I will admit that I was a wee bit disappointed to find that half of the collection is in the red family but reds are still a big seller in spite of a growing number of Fanatics making the more unique shades mainstream. At least OPI has been recognizing this and in the Swiss collection we have been appeased with six shades from the blue, green, purple and metallic color families and that’s what I chose to focus on first. |
Application and Formula: OPI is a 3-Free brand. They made the switch to 3-Free in 2008. You can identify an OPI with the 3-Free formula by the green lettering on the label. Bottles with black lettering have the old formula. Always check the labels to be sure. The OPI Pro Wide brush is flat, wide and medium in length. It’s of an average stiffness and easily spreads out on the nail when pressed. The only downside to the Pro Wide brush is that it can be too wide for slim fingers or little toes.
The application in this half of the collection was flawless. They flowed like the old chemical-filled OPIs of years past. I know you OPI vets will love that! With the exception of the brush hitting the skin surrounding my little finger, I achieved a perfect three coat polish with each one. Though there is a caveat; pigmentation. With the exception of the one creme, all the polishes required three coats but it was close. With two they looked okay but I could see VNL (visible nail line) so I threw on a third. With a ridge filling base you may be able to get away with two coats.
Glitzerland is a foil finish gold metallic. It’s a cross between a traditional yellow gold and champagne. The finish is very similar to the Orly Foil FX collection but I think the Orly’s pack a bit more bling. Though as a bonus, Glizterland leaves less sparkle behind on your skin to clean up. This one reminds me a lot of one of my fave OPI holiday polishes, I Get A Kick Out Of Gold, so I may need to steal it back from ALU Mom in order to do comparisons.
The Color To Watch is a murky lavender shimmer with a blue sheen. It’s the most sheer in the collection and even with three coats I can see VNL. It’s also a bit brush stroke-y and honestly not really my kind of color. In fact, even with six more reds coming I have to say this is my least favorite of the collection. It does nothing for me.
Lucerne-tainly Look Marvelous has the same finish and application as Glizterland. They both go on semi-sheer but build up well. This actually reminds me of the snow piles that collect in parking lots during the winter. As the snow gets mixed with the bits of asphalt the plows churn up, it takes on this graphite appearance. It’s just not as sparkly in snow.
Yodel Me On My Cell is a royal blue shimmer with a tinge of green making it look more aqua. But it’s darker, like the Caribbean at night and the random specks of blue micro-glitter look like little stars reflecting on the water. A nail tech commented on the ALU Facebook Page that to her this looks like a non-foil version of Catch Me In Your Net and while they are definitely similar, this is much more blue. There’s no green or gold flash to it. But I see why she made the comparison. If you missed out on CMIYN this may satisfy that lemming.
Ski Teal We Drop is a deep creamy teal. It leans more blue than green and looks like a lighter version of Rescue Beauty Lounge Teal. If RBL Teal was too dark for you, you’re going to love this. I’m thinking American Apparel Peacock may be a good match.
Cuckoo For This Color is aptly named as I still get giddy when I hear a new green is coming out. Yes, even though I have drawers full of green polishes I never feel like I have enough. But don’t call Hoarders on me just yet, I can still function in my polish room. Anyway, CFTC has a lot of blue in its base. It’s a pine green with shimmer and the same flecks of micro-glitter as Yodel. What’s bugging me, is that I feel like I’ve seen this before. I keep picturing Zoya Suvi in my mind even though the finishes are a bit different.
Bottom Line: The first half of the Swiss collection has a great range of color and Fanatics with smaller collections would be wise to add Cuckoo, Glitzerland and Yodel to their stashes. For me, the only must-haves are Yodel, Lucerne-tainly and Cuckoo because, who are we kidding, even if it’s a dupe I still won’t part with a green.
The OPI Swiss Collection officially launches August 1, 2010 but I hear it’s already popping up on shelves across the country. OPI polishes retail for $8.50/ea for a .5oz bottle and can be purchased at salons nationwide including chains like Beauty First, JC Penney Salons, Regis, Trade Secret and ULTA.
What do we think of these Swiss collection colors? Did they live up to your expectations or fall flat? Which ones are on your shopping list? If you already found them in your area, what colors did you buy?
Remember, let’s hear those comparison requests. I’m working on your Vintage Vixen & RBL requests this week.
Disclosure: Product samples were furnished by OPI. For more info view my Disclosure Policy.
You mention the somewhat sheer nature and that 3 layers are needed. I was wondering if that means that either The Color To Watch or Lucerne-tainly Look Marvelous might be good candidates for layering over black with an interesting effect, or alternatively a gradiated effect with or without a different colour underneath. What do you think?
I think Color To Watch would be good layered over black but Lucerne-tainly is a bit too pigmented for that. I tried for the heck of it to do a gradation from Glizterland to Lucerne-tainly and it look wretched. I wouldn’t suggest it.
I tried the color to watch two coats over Opi-Sephora Never Enough Shoes two coats and got a stunning indigo violet shade that’s perfect with jeans.
This entry was like a surprise party in my inbox. Yummeh. I too want to see the reds because your swatches are so dead-on for me.
With Heidi as a first name, of course I have to bite!!! I am loving Lucerne-tainly Look Marvelous – gorgeous. And Cuckoo could be a perfect Christmas color for me since I’m just not usually a red girl.
Your swatches are always fantastic and you give us such great info – and that’s why you are always my go-to source for all nail info.
Could you compare Lucerne-tainly Look Marvelous to China Glaze’s Jitterbug and Cuckoo For This Color to Nubar’s Earth? Thanks!
Hmmm, I think I may see some that I like. Odd colors for fall, but I’m glad they’re doing something different. I like the charcoal one, I always lean towards those!
i’d love to see china glaze jitterbug compared with
Lucerne-tainly Look Marvelous, Orly Luxe with Glitzerland, and china glaze emerald fitzgerald with Cuckoo for this color. thanks again for the great swatches
Wanted to add:
I know it doesn’t seem to be a favorite, but ‘The Color To Watch’ looks like it might be close to Misa’s ‘Denim & Lace’, if you even feel like comparing that one.
After going over your swatches again, I think I’m only interested in ‘Ski Teal We Drop’ and ‘Yodel Me On My Cell’, which might have more to do with the name than the color, although I’ve passed on similar shades before, so maybe it’s time to add a teal cream to my collection.
Looking forward to the reds, to see if there’s anything more interesting in that collection, although I’m not holding out much hope. How many different reds can a person own? (Of course, you’ll never hear me say that about a blue, purple or green, you can’t have too many of those, right?)
Ha! A woman after my own heart. Is it terrible that I don’t see the joy in owning every red that ever existed?
Ski Teal We Drop reminds me of MAC Blue India. If its a dupe then I will pass. Although I am a sucker for teaks. Also,Cuckoo for this color looks a lot like Emerald Fitzgerald (based on the picture).
It would be fantastic if Ski Teal We Drop was a dupe for MAC Blue India. I missed it during its limited edition release…
Any idea when the release date will be in Canada?
Good question. I’m only told the US release dates. I would imagine not long after.
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I saw this and immediately bought Cuckoo for this Color, Ski Teal We Drop, Yodel Me on my Cell, and The Color to Watch.
I can’t wait for them to come.
Who needs to eat with colors like these lol.
Can’t wait for the Reds…
Lucerne-tainly Look Marvelous & Yodel Me On My Cell are definitely on my shopping list!
I have a feeling Cuckoo for This Color will be making it on my list, as well.
I love this collection actually!
I get to excited when new collections are released!
I know other people mentioned it, but I’d also like to see a Glitzerland and Dazzled by Gold comparison…I have DbG and I love it, but Glitzerland is still drawing me in!
Could you compare Lucerne-tainly Look Marvelous to CG Jitterbug and Cuckoo for this Color to CG Emerald Fitzgerald….trying to spare myself from buying dupes and blowing my budget on nail polish!!
also was wondering if Yodel Me On My Cell resembled Zoya Charla…I am sure I have a dupe to this somewhere in the depths of my collection.
Will she actually post part 2 this time??
Why not just ask me?
Or better yet, how about giving Michelle a break, since she’s been out of town and has still managed to give us something to check out almost every day!
As someone who’s had the same color on her toes for 3 weeks (I know, the horror, but they still look pretty good), I don’t envy someone who does as much polishing as she does, it can’t be that easy, or pleasant for her poor cuticles. And remember, she does this to help all of us out, so we don’t buy colors we don’t like or duplicates of colors we have.
And again, for crying out loud, it’s just nail polish, relax!
Thanks Michelle, for all you do, I enjoy your site a lot!
Wow, you all really over react on here don’t you! Pathetic.
I was referring to the Espana and Hong Kong collections where she said part 2 was coming and it never did!
I don’t know that people were overreacting so much as defending me. Calling them pathetic is just as reactionary.
Yes, you’re right, I didn’t post the 2nd part of the Espana or Hong Kong collections. My point was, why not just ask me instead of making a snarky reply? If you would have asked, I would have told you that the reason I didn’t post Part 2 of the Hong Kong collection is that I lost the memory card I had the pics on and by the time I found it, it was May and I had so many other collections to review that it didn’t seem worth my time to edit the pics considering that a lot of other blogs reviewed them as well.
I was just reading your comments and there’s a mean Andrea in them and I just want you to know that’s not *this* Andrea. I looove your Web site! I hope you didn’t think that was *this* Andrea, not that you know who I am, but I wouldn’t want you to think that. Did that make any sense?
I want Ski Teal We Drop the most from this part of the collection, as well as Cuckoo and Yodel. Really nice colours. I didn’t think I’d like the Swiss collection as much as I have. Half of them are awesome in the end!
I appreciate that Andrea. I know you by your email address (which only I can see) so I knew it wasn’t you. I know you got my back girl.
That’s good haha, I didn’t know you could see email addresses. Glad to hear you didn’t think that was me. Have a nice day!
It wasn’t this Andrea either! : ) Love your site to pieces, and appreciate all you do for us. We nice Andreas (Hi, other nice Andrea!) know how much work goes into all of this.
I’ve already ordered CFTC, YMOMC and STWD. I’m a fiend when it comes to greens, blues and purples but I really couldn’t care less about reds. I own two by OPI that look good with my skin tone, and that’s all I’ll ever need (and I only wear them on my toes anyway). I’m the same with pinks and berries.
I love your swatches. of all the nail blogs that I follow, I find that your photos are the most color accurate true to life.
I looove STWD. And I want you to know that I only purchase nailpolish that has been swatched by you
I order all polishes in the US (I live in the Netherlands) and by looking at the swatches I know if something is right for me. So thank you very much!
While china glaze f/w collection did nothing for me, I’m literally mad about these!
I like ALL the colors of this bunch, except for The Color To Watch (I totally feel like you about it, these kind of colors always look so “blah” to me)
I don’t know which ones to chose, can’t afford to pick them all and I even like a couple of those in the red half of the collection, sob!
Hi, could you do a comparison of some hot pinks? I’m tossed up between a bunch of colors, but here are the ones I’m looking at in particular:
Pink Flamenco
ElePhantastic Pink
That’s Hot! Pink
Indi-A Mood For Love
& Shorts Story
I also liked Strawberry Margarita, but I saw that you didn’t have it
I know that you’re probably busy, but I would really appreciate it!
Hmm, if Cuckoo For This Color is still bugging you, your shot makes it look a lot like Zoya Veruschka with topcoat! CFTC looks like it leans a bit more blue, though.
Gorgeous swatches, thanks!!
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I thought I left a comment here the other day, must have forgotten! Could Muse by Illamasqua be a dupe for Ski Teal We Drop??? TIA!
I’m on my fifth day of Ski Teal You Drop and there is no chipping, no tip wear, just some growth at the bottom. I wore it through an intense day of baking, followed by partying, followed by cleaning. Then into the pool the next day for a few hours, then making a bonfire. No damage, nothing. It still looks brand new!
Glitzerland reminds me of Opi’s Up front and personal but less sheer.
Love the swatches! thanks!
Has anyone worn Ski Teal You Drop next to Macs Blue India? I have it and would hate to buy a dupe. But the pic looks like something I need to have! Lucerne looks great too, I want! and Cuckoo.
I will definitely show them side-by-side but Blue India is more greyed and murky whereas STYD is dark but rich in color.
Yodel Me on My Cell is very pretty. I’m gonna have to see if I can find it at Ulta.
So I went to the Merle Norman studio in the mall tonight and they had the Swiss Collection there. They were having buy one, get one half off! I ended up buying 4 (more than I had previously planned to, but who could resist with that deal?!). I got to try them on a piece of tape on a white bag. I knew right away I had to have Ski Teal We Drop–so gorgeous! I got Cuckoo for this Color. I had seen some other swatches of The Color to Watch and was not impressed with it–it’s just too sheer. I had hoped it would be like Sahara Sapphire (one of my favorites!) in lavender but it wasn’t at all. So, I got Yodel Me on My Cell and Diva of Geneva. Gorgeous colors! I liked Lucerne-tainly look Marvelous and I’m a Little Rosti At It and may get them in the future if they are still around. I love that I got a deal on them! Your comments on the collection are right on!
I just stopped by Cosmoprof today and picked up all six of these. I’m so excited to wear them in the fall. (: Thanks for posting up swatches!
Where is Cosmoprof held and does it have an open-door policy?
All the “this Andrea,” “Not THAT Andrea” reminds me of Alice and Wonderland. “THE Alice?” “I’m Alice, but not the one everybody’s talking about.”
Michelle, thank you for another awesome post! I’ve only been polishing since Christmas of this past year, and I’m already driving my husband up the wall. “Honey, come and look at this one, how pretty!” He thinks once one has reached 20 polishes, one must have every color in the rainbow and must stop. Poor, misguided man… To his credit, though, all the ladies at the Ed Wyse by our house know him by name and know the lengths he goes to to make me happy. I suspect he has Glitzerland and Lucerne hiding in his stash somewhere… how exciting!
i think that cuckoo for this color, will be the most popular seller as well as diva of genva, and yodel me on my cell!
These are some great colors from OPI! However, a couple of them look very similar to the new China Glaze ones you swatched a few weeks ago. Cuckoo For This Color looks very close to China Glaze Emerald Fitzgerald and Luzern-tainly Look Marvelous looks very very close to the new China Glaze Jitterbug. Jitterbug is slightly darker. I opened multiple browser windows and looked at the swatches side by side to find the similarities. Between the two, China Glaze always wins on application for me.
What are your thoughts. Are Cuckoo For This Color and Emerald Fitzgerald twinsies??
Great swatches! Quite a pretty collection… Ski Teal We Drop is the stand out for me. Maybe you could do a comparison of Lucernetainly look Marvellous w/ Brand New Skates + Orly Luxe and Glitzerland w/I Only Drink Champagne? and maybe Cukoo for this Color with CG Watermelon Rind?
Thanks Michelle! Great pics! I look forward to your comparisons as always!
I got Yodel, Cuckoo, and Diva. I did my own comparison of Cuckoo with $OPI’s Teal We Meet Again. I swore they were dupes or at the very least sisters. Alas, I was wrong. Teal We is more blue than Cuckoo.
Glitzerland seems very popular here in Jakarta. I visited 2 OPI counter, and both are out of stock.
Btw, how does Lucerne-tainly Look Marvelous compares to china glaze jitterbug?
I just picked up Cuckoo, Lucerne, and Yodel. Now to pick which one I use first….
I bought The Color to Watch because I’m a die-hard purple girl, and I haven’t used it yet, but am disappointed to hear it’s more sheer than it looks. I also hoped it would be closer to an ape of Chanel’s Paradoxal, but it isn’t nearly as grey as I’d hoped, even in the bottle. Can you tell me what sub-$10 polish you recommend to copy Paradoxal, as I am a poor collegiate polish addict?
Does Ski Til You Drop compare to India Blue by Mac?
I can actually answer that, since I have both on at this very moment. Blue India is a grayed slate blue, and Ski is darker, more vibrant, a touch more green, making it a truer teal. Side by side, they’re not really as close as you would think. To me, they both look best with three coats, and the OPI dries more glossy than the MAC. Definitely not dupes. If you want a more vibrant color, go with the OPI. HTH
Thanks! I actually own the Mac one already and didn’t want to by the Ski one if it was a dupe. So this works out great. Looks like I’ll be getting this one as well. Teal tones are very trendy right now. Once again, thank you so very much for your opinion.
OMG! Thanks for the swatches michelle! You’re my nail polish guru! I just got ski teal we drop after seeing your swatches! I’m so excited to try it on! Thanks again for your amazing website & for taking time to paint your nails for all of us out there who love your swatches! =)
what about brand new skates (opi) to lucerne-tainely look marvelous ? i was reluctant to buy that because of that maybe comparison.
and you’re right i missed out on catch me in your net so i bought yodel me on my cell, which i find a little flat and dark comparatively but it satisfies my blue-green nail polish need
yodel me on my cell reminds me of a much lighter version of glacier bay blues, which i love …
anywho, just interested in the teal, and perhaps one of the reds (from a to z-urich). otherwise, yawnnnn…
so i bought yodel me on my cell and with the recommended 3 coats its much darker like almost cuckoo dark. Don’t get me wrong i still love the color but i was wondering if you had any thoughts on how to make it the shade shown on your picture??? thank you for your help!! Love the swatches
That’s odd. I don’t know why yours would look so much darker than mine.
I picked up Lucern-tainly as a birthday gift to myself yesterday and absolutely love the glitz factor, as well as how forgiving the formula is. (I’m a noob when it comes to application.) Glizterland looks better on my skintone, but gunmetal goes better with my wardrobe. Thank you so much for the great swatches and adding a little color to my life!
I only picked up STWD from this collection. I don’t know, maybe I’m not a true nail polish fiend, but I feel like I have colours pretty similar to or better than these! CFTC reminds me of China Glaze Watermelon Rind (which I have), YMOMC indeed looks like CMIYN and therefore Zoya Charla (which I own)…I don’t know, I feel the niches these colours could have potentially filled in my collection are already filled. Just my thoughts. Although I LOVE STWD. I don’t ever want to take it off. It’s the perfect fall shade!
[...] show you my nails because my manicure is busted and faded, I can direct you to my favorite blog, All Lacquered Up. I go to Michele whenever I am looking for a new color. I also got Cuckoo for this Color, which is [...]
I recently tried Cuckoo and realy like it! I think this one works equally well for gals and guys.
Finger paints “winter’s whisper” is super super close to lucertainly looks marv (sp?) I have one on my right and one on my left, a normal person couldn’t tell the diff, and I don’t think its neccasary to have both, it would just depend on your skin tone. I am olive toned and prefer fp ww, while a cool tone may prefer the opi. Fp seems to have more depth and multi colored sparkle where opi is brighter and more reflective.
I’m not sure how I found your blog, but I keep finding myself more informed than my salon on colors, thanks to you! I’m wearing Lucerne right now, and it’s FABULOUS. Cuckoo was also terrific — I think I may just go through this collection one by one!
[...] OPI Swiss collection. But the one I’m truly dying for is Lucerne-tainly Look Marvelous. All Lacquered Up has some great pictures, and I dare you to not want Lucerne-tainly Look Marvelous as much as I [...]
hey you OPI lovers out there! Am I crazy? I have 60 bottles of polish…am I a hoarder, Obessive compulsive? Or is it just a ‘collection’. Opi comes out with such great colours it’s hard to walk away from them…..
I wish I had read this before buying The Color to Watch. I’m wearing it today after putting on 3 coats last night and then a sparkly topcoat to make it slightly more interesting. I am not a fan and so disappointed that I spent money on this when I could have bought another OPI polish that I would have probably loved.