OPI Burlesque Collection for Holiday 2010 Swatches, Review & Comparisons
This holiday, OPI hits a high note with the release of Sony Pictures’ upcoming film Burlesque. With an all-star cast including Cher and Christina Aguilera, this musical written and directed by Steven Antin opens nationwide in theaters on November 24, 2010.
OPI’s Holiday 2010 collection marks the third film collaboration for the brand this year. Following up the sell out successes of Alice In Wonderland and Shrek, the Burlesque lineup is sure to follow suit. This year OPI has flipped the script by forgoing their usual six reds in varying finishes to give us six shimmers in warm metallics, a vampy plum and some more traditional reds. “OPI is thrilled to partner with Sony Pictures’ Screen Gems on this exciting movie release,” said Suzi Weiss-Fischmann, OPI Executive VP & Artistic Director. “The colors were modeled off the majestic glamour, over-the-top costumes and mesmerizing Cabaret that are typically seen in Burlesque performances. The resulting bright, dazzling shades are perfect for the holiday season.” |
Formula and Application: 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 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.
In terms of application, I was very impressed with the pigmentation. With one exception all the polishes applied flawlessly in two smooth coats. Ali’s Big Break required three due to the sheerness of its jelly base. It was also the only color that gave me staining issues so I would double up on base coat with it. The foil finish metallics were somewhat bothersome to remove only because tiny bits of foil glitter were on my skin but applying a swipe of cuticle oil before removing drastically reduces that.
Ali’s Big Break is a jelly based candy apple with flecks of gold micro-glitter. In the bottle I expected it to be some sort of duo-chrome but on the nail it’s more like a piece of lucite with flecks of gold leaf trapped inside. As soon as I saw this polish I thought of one of my fave old CND colors, Winterfire, though my bottle is MIA for comparison purposes.
Let Me Entertain You is a bright glimmering fuchsia. The base looks like a jelly but it’s actually pretty opaque. The finish is like a toned down version of China Glaze’s glass flecks. The hot pink micro-glitter looks trapped, similar to Ali’s Big Break, only with a LOT more sparkle.
I didn’t have a great comparison for LMEY so I am showing it next to an older Holiday shade, OPI Don’t Toy With Me from the 2008 collection Holiday in Toyland. HiT has more red in its base and it’s quite a bit darker but they have a very similar finish.
Rising Star is a burnished copper foil metallic. I love that so many brands are coming out with more foils as opposed to traditional metallics which aren’t as user friendly. The color is not what I traditionally think of as copper but it’s not quite gold or bronze. It actually reminds me of these highlights I got back when I was still coloring my hair dark red. I had bright copper streaks added and this was back when the whole Kelly Clarkson thick highlights were in so they were pretty dramatic. I loved the color but the style makes me cringe now when I think about it.
I thought I might find a twin in Nubar Caramello but it’s deeper and more nutty, if that’s a descriptor, than Rising Star.
Take The Stage is a reddish bronze foil. Again it’s a great non-streaky metallic, like Rising Star, though I’m surprised that OPI didn’t include a cool toned metallic in the collection.
Take The Stage has a pretty close twin in Nubar Bronzo from the Venetian Glass Collection. The only minor difference is that TtS has a more metallic finish but to the casual observer, it’s not that noticeable. I’m also showing it next to OPI Lighten Up, You’re Two Pence! as a reference.
Tease-y Does It! is a vampy, deep plum hue with golden and red micro-glitter. The glitter looks like tiny burning embers floating on a pool of oil. In the bottle you would expect it to have a duo-chrome finish thanks to the gold glitter that picks up the light but on the nail it doesn’t translate. Of all the polishes in this collection, this one grabbed me the most. I hated taking it off, it’s that gorgeous. It just feels so elegant and the fiery glitter is mesmerizing.
As I was wearing Tease-y Does It, god I hate the name, I kept thinking it looks familiar but couldn’t come up with a polish name. It was driving me nuts. I was going through my “vampy” bin and still coming up empty until I opened my Chanel Feu De Russie box. Ding, ding, ding! While they aren’t identical, the polishes are very similar. The main difference is the base color. Feu De Russie has a black base while TDI’s is more burgundy. There’s an underlying smokiness to TDI that makes it look lighter and more plummy when dry. However, if you missed out on the Chanel, this is an excellent substitute.
The Show Must Go On is the solo duo-chrome in the collection. This hot pink shimmer flashes golden orange though it’s a pretty subtle effect.
I’ve heard a lot of people suggest that MAC Bad Fairy from the Venomous Villains Collection is a dupe for The Show Must Go On but you can see that’s clearly not the case.
Bottom Line: Tease-y Does It is my hands down favorite from this half of the collection. In spite of the cheesy name, I’m smitten with the color and am already planning to take it with my on my next pedicure appointment which says a lot. For almost a year I’ve been wearing purple on my toes almost exclusively so to switch up my game means the color is pretty special. The metallics are winners in my book only because I’m still on a foil kick. The rest are kind of meh for me only because that’s not my fave color family. The shades are pretty but not must-haves for my personal collection. Though if I didn’t own CND Winterfire, I would pick up a bottle of Ali’s Big Break.
The OPI Holiday 2010 Burlesque Collection will be available beginning November 2, 2010 at salons including Beauty Brands, Beauty First, Chatters, Dillard’s, JCPenney, Pure Beauty, Regis, Trade Secret, and Ulta. OPI nail polishes retail for $8.50/ea for a .5oz bottle.
Are you into these shades? What do you think of the whole movie collaboration thing? Should OPI keep partnering with films or do their own thing? Which shades will take up permanent residence in your collection? Which duo-chrome do you love more MAC Bad Fairy or The Show Must Go On?
Stay tuned for my review of the second half of the collection containing six GLITTERS!
Disclosure: Product samples were provided by OPI. For more info view my Disclosure Policy.
Hi Michelle,
Do you think you can compare Ali’s Big Break with MAC Concubine? And this is a bit delayed considering how old the NARS re-release post is, but could you please compare NARS Zulu to American Apparel Hunter?
yay! I just got myself Aly’s big break, Tease-y Does It and some of the glitters (shimmer&simmer, sparkle-licious and bring on the bling, but I think I might add show it & glow it, love these glitter polishes!)
Now I’m trying to decide between the orangey shades…I’m a MAC NC15 (just found out today ^_^) and not a fan of orange in makeup/clothes at all, but I’d really like a pretty fall-like shade to wear for halloween.
Advice anyone?
I just picked up The Show Must Go On! and Let Me Entertain You today and I love them! My mom picked up Teasy Does It so I know I will be borrowing that from her lol.
I’m oogling The Show Must Go On and I definitely like it more than the MAC version. I think the orangey undertones really sell it.
Hi, I was wondering if you could compare OPI Tease-y Does It to Chanel Strong. Actually if you have time could you swatch Chanel Strong and Chanel Steel. I’ve been holding off on getting either because I don’t know how they’ll look outside of the bottle. Thanks so much! love all your reviews and swatches!
so last thursday i went and picked up tease-y does it, let me entertain you, and the show must go on …. omg obsessed!! wore let me entertain you last week (i HATE all things pink and hot pink but this one is truly amazing) and this week im wearing the show must go on … these colors are to die for!!!
I caved with this collection, some of those shades are just too killer to waste! I finally decided on Ali’s big break and though it’s totally not my style, Teasy. I’m amazed just how pretty they look in the bottles, can’t wait to try!! After seeing this, I may have to splurge and snag take the stage too, guh! Loving it!
I am actually a bit disappointed in these colours. They don’t really excite me —and I also don’t really like glittery polish so I would never get anything from the other half of this collection.
The only ones I really remotely like are Teasy Does it and The Show Must Go On, but somehow I feel like I have something similar already from the OPI collection. Suuuper depressed considering how much I adored the Fall 2010 collection and Holiday 2009 collection… boo :[
Tease-y Does It behaves like a better version of Chanel Cosmic Violine. Ordered it on Amazon in a gift set with lip gloss. While I loved Cosmic Violine in the bottle, the base color in CV is a brown with too much yellow in it. At certain angles I found it downright unpleasant (diaper-ish). I love the smoky, cooler base in TDI. I suspect it will be a go-to holiday polish.
Love, love, love The Show Must Go On – I’m actually glad it’s NOT a dupe for Bad Fairy since I wasn’t crazy about BF when I tried it on. TSMGO is such a gorgeous color. Also loving Teasey Does it.
Considering my name’s Ali..I feel somewhat obligated to buy Ali’s Big Break, especially that it is even spelled the same way!
I just bought The Show Must Go On and I can’t wait to try it! Does anyone know if there is a red equivalent of Rising Star? I love reds but after getting three different ones I feel as though I’ve exhausted my options, but a red foil would be very welcome in my collection.
Hi no hun, its rising star isn’t red, its a rich dark golden foil color and very perty!
Hi, “Rising Star” is a deep golden foil color and so pretty! so no hun, its not a red color!!
Thank you for your help, but what I wanted to know was if there was a red “equivalent” to Rising Star. So if Rising Star is a foil then I wanted to know if there was a foil that was red. I am a bit new to nail polish and don’t know what’s out there. I’m sorry if I wasn’t clear. I tried looking for an opi color, but Dear Santa, Ruby for Rudolph, and Meet and Jingle are all shimmers, not foils. So I was wondering if anyone knew of an opi red foil. Thanks anyway!
Hi Chiara, try opi “Thanks So Muchness
” from the Alice collection! that red is a foil and has a little flecks of pink that flashes in the bottle, but on the nail, it looks fantastic!
Thanks! I will.
Love your reviews! I bought The Show Must Go On yesterday and put on 4 coats, two top coats. It is just beautiful! Glowing and gorgeous! Liked some of the other colors, but not on my hands. Would love to know how you keep your cuticles so beautiful and moisturized.
I apply cuticle oil a LOT. Like I put it on my nails before I remove polish and I put it on throughout the day as well. I carry one of those cuticle oil pens, like the ones at Sephora, in my purse and apply it while sitting at a stop light. I also try to moisturize my hands every time I wash.
great, thank you!
tease-y does it reminds me of midnight in moscow somehow… :/
[...] If you only get one polish from Burlesque, I wholeheartedly recommend Tease-y Does It. Such a cozy but interesting color! That said, if you’ve been waiting for glitter polishes, you may like some of the other shades better. Check All Lacquered Up for comprehensive swatches. [...]
I just got Tease-y Does It tonight and I’m IN LOVE! What a great color! This is seriously one of my fav OPI colors ever!!!
I’m off to buy Tease-y does it, after seeing it on you.
Thanks for modeling! (That’s a LOT of manicuring, girl!)
TSMGO is less orange and more pinky/red with 4 coats, just did 2 coats and top coat and its slightly more orange/gold/red. Still love this color, third week in a row on my hands and I’m usually all over greens. So pretty!
[...] som inte smickrar mig alls. Liten besviken är jag allt, för jag tycker nog det är fint på andra swatches jag har sett. Men men….man kan inte få allt här i [...]
[...] the extra effort. In bright sunlight, it looks browner than it truly is. I suggest viewing the swatches at All Lacquered Up to get a truer representation. It’s definitely a “vampy” [...]
I am so excited about Take the Stage! You’re too pence was my favorite fall nail polish because I’m an autumn redhead, but I haven’t been able to find that shade in a few years and haven’t found a suitable collection. I also like some of the fuscias because they remind me of my favorite one–Toronto rose.
hey.. has any one seen a red and green opi color in one bottle? my mother in law saw it in a magazine and im frantically looking for it for xmas… thanks
I was in OPI today and checked out what they had of the collection; totally fell in love with “The Show Must Go On”!
[...] eu receber o meu farei uma comparaçãozinha, mas por enquanto dá pra ter uma idéia por esse post aqui, da Michelle do All Lacquered Up. Luz [...]
[...] I finish knitting my second mitten (today), I’ve got another great color to try — from OPI’s Burlesque collection. Which one could it [...]
I realize I am late to the game, but Teasy does it reminds me a lot of Zoya Valerie, I will have to compare when I get home…I had to make a nail polish run at lunch, I needed a fix…
wow, I am the epitome of an addict…
I love this collection! It is my fav OPI collection ever. I usually only buy one or two unique shades (if that) from a new collection. Its the first time I’ve bought an entire set. I even got back-ups of Tease-y Does It and Sparkle-icious. After the Burlesque collection, I think the Texas collection is a bit of a let down. There are no stand out shades for me
[...] Lacquered Up reviewed and swatched the OPI Burlesque polishes and [...]
i have a bottle of rising star that i recently brought for my prom manicure, probably won’t use it again so if anyone is interested in it, then contact me @ gwtuitt@gmail.com
I’m wearing “Let Me Entertain You” right now & it looks a lot darker than in your picture (I’m only wearing 2 coats). I like it a lot better than the color you show – it’s amazing how pictures can be so different on-line!
On me, it looks a lot more magenta-colored.
Oh, and I also LOVE “Tease-y Does It”! I’ll definitely have to look for this one next time I get a manicure. So happy I saw your swatch!
P.S. I saw the film “Burlesque” a few months ago & I actually really liked it!
I absolutely love this collection, I didn’t know about it at the time, I am a huge Christina fan and loved the movie, so when I found out OPI had a collection a year or so ago I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it. These are by far my favourite nail polishes ever! Everything about them is amazing, the shimmer and duo chrome, the inital colours, just love love love! I’m waiting to get the glitter ones too and can’t wait!
I love the color red! Very passionate.