I finally had a chance to snap up one of the sets of Sephora’s collaborations with Pantone , and surprisingly, not a single item was sold out, several weeks after the collection’s launch !
Sephora x Pantone Nail Enamel Collection
I was desperate to try this collection out, as mentioned in a previous blog – the packaging, the concept, and the bold hue legitimately “spoke” to me – so imagine my disappointment to discover these four shades for nails were more suited to a Halloween costume than a chic summer look.
Sephora x Pantone Nail Enamel Collection
The packaging is lovely – really, truly, lovely – the box is substantial and heavy cardboard, printed with a range of orange shades, all echoing the orange of 2012′s color of the year, “tangerine tango”. The top of the box slides off to reveal four variations on one shade, each housed in a square glass bottle with a white plastic cap. While the cap is lovely, underneath, the brush itself (which detaches from the cap) is flimsy, ridged plastic, which I found relatively hard to manoeuvre.
Sephora x Pantone Nail Enamel Collection
The shades – a shimmer,a matte, a cream and a glitter, are all inspired by “Tangerine Tango”, but unfortunately, they come across as more Jack-O-Lantern than the rich red-orange of the shade they’re based upon. The formulas were ok – the cream and shimmer took 3 coats to apply opaquely and evenly, the matte was difficult to apply and chipped off easily. The worst, however, was the glitter shade, which contains cheap looking, chunky orange glitter suspended in clear polish. I have, admittedly, been spoiled by the more refined glitter enamels on the market, and found this one reminded me a great deal of the Halloween makeup I bought at the local drugstore as a kid.
Sephora x Pantone Nail Enamel Swatches
Sephora x Pantone Nail Enamel Swatches
I really and genuinely wish the color in this collection had stayed more faithfully true to “Tangerine Tango”, which is, in my opinion, eminently more wearable. On my pale skin, these shades look frightfully bright and a bit 80s cheap, and a better, more wearable shade might have justified the mediocre formulas.
Sephora x Pantone Nail Enamel - CREAM
The bottles, however, are well priced at $24 USD for four full-sized nail enamels in wonderfully luxurious packaging, so if you are a fan of brights and neons, by all means, go ahead for this set. As for me, I’ll be returning mine, with a sigh of disappointment for the exciting collaboration that didn’t live up (for me, at least) to its hype.
