OPI Texas Collection for Spring/Summer 2011 – Creme & Shimmer Swatches, Review & Comparisons
The stars at night are big and brightDeep in the heart of Texas ~Deep in the Heart of Texas lyrics by June Hershey Tell me you can hear those lyrics and NOT clap your hands. Go ahead, tell me! This Spring, OPI is venturing down south to the Lone Star state of Texas. In the past OPI has focused on areas within the US (Painted Desert, New England) or specific cities (New York City, Chicago) but this is the first time I can remember where and entire state has been the inspiration for a collection. The OPI Texas Collection for Spring/Summer 2011 is standard in that it consists of twelve polishes but for the first time there is a definitive dividing line between each set of six shades. OPI is introducing their take on the beloved jelly texture with six “sorbet” style polishes; semi-sheer colors with a lucite look. Before we tackle the sorbet lacquers let’s examine the creme & shimmer polishes. |
Formula & 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.
This half of the Texas collection consists of three cremes, one opaque shimmer and two semi-sheer micro-glitters. The cremes all applied with a squishy texture that reminded me of China Glaze while the opaque shimmer (I Want To Be A-lone Star) had a creamier feel. The opacity with all four is spot on with each color. They only required two coats. The micro-glitters didn’t fare as well. After three coats I could still see my smile line through each one.
I Vant To Be A-lone Star is a pale pastel blue packed with silver shimmer. It straddles the line between baby blue and white. I was really impressed at how well it applied considering how light the color is. A polish this light tends to either be thick and streaky or watery and semi-sheer.
I’m sure a lot of you thought the same thing, that I Vant To Be A-lone Star is a dupe for China Glaze Sea Spray or Essie Sag Harbor. We were all wrong. The other two are darker with less obvious shimmer. Unlike its pale blue predecessors, I Vant To Be A-lone Star’s shimmer isn’t hiding from anyone.
San Tan-tonio is a sandy beige color. It’s a bit warmer than it appears on screen and reminds me a lot of CND Desert Suede. Something about this type of color makes me think of bad foundation. It’s just not flattering with my skin tone. I could see this looking stellar on someone with an olive or darker complexion.
OPI Austin-tatious Turquoise looks like a vibrant aquamarine hue in the bottle but on the nail it comes off lighter with a dirty gray undertone. The blue metallic shimmer and micro-glitter paired with the semi-sheer turquoise base looked promising it’s pretty muddled on my nails.
It’s Totally Fort Worth It has a shimmery pale grey base filled with pink micro-glitter. Like Austin-tacious Turquoise it has a muddy quality that appears a bit dirty. Normally I’m all about a “greyed” anything but it doesn’t work in this case. Throw in semi-sheer coverage and I”m all “Mismas out!” Sorry, it’s Idol season.
Suzi Loves Cowboys is one of the truest brown cremes I’ve come across in a while. There’s no dominating red or black base color pulling it towards warm/cool territory. It’s like a liquid Hershey bar. The squishy jelly-like texture had me thinking it might need three coats to go opaque but I was happy to only need two.
Don’t Mess With OPI is a rich grass green creme. For some reason when I uploaded my swatch image, WordPress changed the colors making it look WAY more muted than it appears in person. I can’t get it to load with the proper shade so I really wouldn’t go by this picture. DMWO is pretty bright in person but not like kelly green bright. It’s definitely darker like what I think of as a shamrock green.
I did a comparison with China Glaze Starboard and Essie Pretty Edgy and again, the colors didn’t appear right after the image was uploaded (If you know why this happens, EMAIL ME!). What I can tell you is that both Starboard and Pretty Edgy are lighter shades than DMWO. I would say Starboard and Pretty Edgy are more closely related with Starboard being more muted compared to the astroturf-esque Pretty Edgy.
Bottom Line: Regardless of whether these colors represent the state of Texas well, there doesn’t seem to be a cohesive theme here. Maybe I just don’t get it. Now you know I’m always on board where greens are concerned so Don’t Mess With OPI gets a definite thumbs up. I love the obvious shimmer in I Vant To Be A-lone Star and having a solid brown creme like Suzi Love Cowboys is a great addition to any collection so those both get my stamp of approval. The rest are a pass.
The OPI Texas Collection is available now at salons and spas nationwide. OPI nail polishes retail for $8.95/ea for a .5oz bottle. You can find OPI at national chains including Beauty Brands, Beauty First, Chatters, Dillard’s, JCPenney, Pure Beauty, Regis, Trade Secret, and Ulta.
Thoughts on this half of the Texas Collection? Do the Texan fanatics out there feel this collection represents everything great about the Lone Star State? Which colors made your list of must-haves?
Disclosure: Product samples were provided by OPI. For more info view my Disclosure Policy.
Don’t Mess With OPI seems like a slightly brighter version of Jade is the New Black from the Hong Kong collection. :/ Suzi Loves Cowboys seems like a great staple.
Can’t wait for the other 6 swatches!
I love Austin-tatious Turquoise. It’s stunning but requires 3 coats. The pale blue and green are great as well. I don’t like brown, so this one I’ll pass.
Honestly, as a Texan, I’m rather fond of this collection… while I don’t feel it seems as cohesive as others in a way this pleases me… they’re dealing with a large state that has a lot of stereotypes floating around which don’t even apply to majority of the people living here. I don’t think they stuck to stereotypes too terribly much in terms of colors, which is good – I know a lot of ladies who would of been annoyed about this… they definitely could of made a better story, but it could of been far worse.
Also, funny enough, up in the Ulta’s, etc… through Dallas Sand-Antonio is ALWAYS sold out when there are still a few bottles of other colors from the Texas collection floating around.
I was a little let down by this collection but I LOVE the jellies in it. I have Too Hot Pink To Hold Em’ and Guy Meets Galveston. You can wear them on their own but I prefer to layer them over white nail lacquer.
I picked up I Vant to be A-lone Star and Austin-tatious Turquoise about a month ago when I first saw them at Ulta. I am so pleased with Lone Star, I chose it over Sea Spray because of the obvious shimmer. And I had Austin on for about 5 days which is a record for me, it looked great with my skin tone and I did about 4 coats which really built up the color. Next on my list is Suzi Loves Cowboys… I think I need it after seeing your swatches!!
suzi loves cowboys and I’m a lone star! love them and will great when I have a freaking tan.
These colors are not reflective of Texas. This is most apparent by the use of a neon orange – anyone in their right mind knows the orange must be *burnt*. No UT fan would wear that and pass it off as orange. I got the Don’t Mess with OPI solely for St Patty’s Day – it looked shamrock green to me.
I sent an email to OPI several years ago about introducing the “College”series. I suggested HOOK’EM Orange, Gig’em, o-who, (haha), USC-ya later, Bear Claw (green/gold micro glitter)…no response from them. I found out today that Orly has “Texas Orange” and “HOOK’EM Orange”. OPI dropped the ball on this one….
I’m not to fond of this collection, it doesn’t seem very original. I’m still up in the air on buying some of the colours.
I agree this seems like a really random collection, like they had some ideas for new colours they just grabbed them all together and called it Texas. Regardless there are some gorgeous colours in there, I think Suzi loves chocolate will be on the top of my list, along with I want to be a lone star. Theres also an orange in the collection that Im really liking the look of.
lol at “bad foundation” thats exactly what its like lol
I think I have found my mannequin hands shade in San Tan-tonio. I may also get Houston We Have A Purple.
I love San Tan-tonio! I have always loved kind of nudish colors and this color is one that I need to own asap!
Thanks for the descriptive review
I like the Turquoise color the best~~the lighter colors won’t look as good with my skintone! I just purchased OPI The Color To Watch and am eager to try it out!
I will buy Suzi Loves Cowboys because I do not have a true brown in my collection, but I think I’ll put it away until next October – it just does not say “spring and summer” to me. I can’t wait to see your reviews of the other half of the collection.
Is it weird that I am from Texas (San Antonio) and I have never ever heard that song. When I moved to Florida for a year everyone asked me to sing that song and I was like… what song?? I don’t know any song.
Hey do you know what colour katy perry was wearing while promoting her perfume in germany? It looks like it could be teenage dream but I´m not sure
http://katypix.com/displayimage.php?album=1630&pos=6
I know she likes to wear Gelish a lot so I would guess she was wearing one of their colors but I’m not sure which one. The glittery pink in her OPI collection was inspired by Gelish June Bride, that she wears often so that could be it but with the camera lighting it’s hard to tell.
Yes, I LOVE San Tan-tonio!!!
Otherwise, I’m underwhelmed by this collection. I don’t know… maybe I’m missing something, but the colors together feel misplaced. Hodge-podge, like. Meh.
yeah this collection is a definite fail in my opinion. i was so disappointed when i saw it, and i totally agree with you on the randomness of it all. it feels like they just came up with this collection as an after thought or something and decided to throw in random colors they thought would be pretty. the only ones i like are SLC and i want to be a lone star.
Blah, blah, blah. I hate this collection. What’s next up for OPI?
I love this collection! I cant wait to try them all:)
Beautyfromscratch
I love the Texas theme and enjoy the variety of the colors. I have San Tan-tonio and it’s awesome on me. My husband typically hates any brown or beige polishes and even he thought it was cool and different! It’s too bad they didn’t do a “Yellow Rose of Texas”!
I’m surprised too that there’s no “Yellow Rose”. Also LOL-ing with the UT Longhorn who wanted a more orange-clay brown, though there’s no Aggies’ colors either – that might’ve re-ignited a war, hahaha.
I like San Tan-tonio; looks like it might make a nice spring mani/pedi.
I only really like the “sorbet” shades. “Houston We Have A Purple” is my favorite. I think the sorbets would be fun to layer over each other.
I think it was a bit of a stretch for OPI to try to claim that their “sorbet” finish is something new. I guess if someone has never seen jellies, then maybe they would believe them? Kinda lame, IMO.
And how close of a dupe is “Don’t Mess With OPI” to “Jade Is The New Black”? Looked to me like they are extremely similar, but “DMWO” has a grassier green feel to it while “JITNB” has a slight bluer tone.
thanks for this! i didn’t even know this collection was coming out! so behind
Are you going to swatch the other half? (I know reds aren’t your favorite
) I missed out on the Lippman I Want Candy red jelly goodness & I’m wondering how the red “sorbet” colors compare? I’ve read they might be similar, enough to satisfy my craving (for the red at least! if anyone knows of a dupe for the navy rehab color, I’m all ears!!)
I want to be A-lone star and Suzi loves cowboys are my favorite. It’s hard to find a perfect nail polish with the perfect brush and which is applied perfectly. These seems to tend perfection so I go and buy them
Wow. I am so in love with San Tan-tonio. Sadly, like you, I just don’t think it’ll work with my skin tone. Nice collection, although I just am not finding the greens to be something I’d wear in my daily life. Maybe I should branch out?
Are you posting the rest?
I saw this collection at Ulta a while ago and didn’t find it impressive at all. I agree with you that the lone-star polish is very pretty, but the rest just look cheap and boring. pretty disapointing =(
Thanks, I really love your site!
Just a question,
My bottle says I Vant to be A-lone Star, while on the site you call it “I Want…”
Which is the correct spelling?
Sorry, meant to say when are you posting the rest. I’m undecided whether to get any and wanted to see your swatches first.
I’m a Texan, born and raised, and I was so excited when I heard OPI was going to do a Texas-themed collection, but I agree with you: this was a completely underwhelming collection. My first thought was that the collection was not at all Texan, but I slowly came to change my mind. While the “sorbet” shades do not at all seem like Texas to me (maybe more Hawaii? Or the highlighter factory?), this half of the collection gets a bit closer. Suzi Loves Comboys, San Tan-tonio, and Totally Fort Worth It all fit the Texas vibe. Austin-tatious, while it doesn’t particular scream Texas, definitely screams Austin.
If I were putting a Texas collection together myself, I would pick Suzi Loves Cowboys, San Tan-tonio, and Totally Fort Worth It, and throw in a rich blue creme (no shimmer), a nice red (with just a tiny bit of shimmer), and the University of Texas trademark burnt orange. Seriously, that’s the color that seemed most missing from a Texas collection.
Does anyone else feel a strong sense of Deja-vu? I feel like I’ve been seeing these colors for the past month (butter london’s lady muck, RBL decorous, Chanel white pearl…) bleh
The colors are okay, but I realize I’m getting reallllly tired of pun-based names of OPI’s colors. Enough already!
When will a review of the rest of the collection be posted?
I love Austin-tatious Turquoise, it’s an amazing blue-green, the pale blue and Don’t Mess with Opi.
Will you be discussing the rest of the collection soon?
Austin-tatious Turquoise looks lighter than it does in other pictures I’ve seen. How many coats does it need to look more like it does in the bottle?
My picture is lighter than others and not accurate because of the file format. It’s actually on my list to be fixed
[...] of OPI’s new 2011 Texas Collection, this had been on my wishlist since I first saw it swatched at ALU. I only finally bought it when by some random chance it was spotted on sale for S$10 at a vendor in [...]
Love’ the grey blueish nail polish…do u know if sag harbor by Essie is abailable at ultra? It’s a nice color”
Sag Harbor was a limited edition shade so the only place you might be able to find it is eBay but I shutter to think how high the price is.
Yeah’ I thought so…. I’ve check some opi varnish online and w/ the s&h they sure come up the same price as ulta. O well luckily I purchase sum trught craeglist but one of them was defective w two Brisels out of it’s place and chipped from the tube, I called the seller back and didn’t exchange it..like bitch” I was gona go back and purchase more. But 2for $10 wasn’t bad at all. I guess. O well then’ thnxs thou..
I love San Tan-Tonio! I think its a great neutral color for fall!