Deborah Lippmann Stairway to Heaven Nail Lacquer Review, Photos, Swatches
Friday, October 14th, 2011
Deborah Lippmann Stairway to Heaven Nail Lacquer
Deborah Lippmann Stairway to Heaven Nail Lacquer
Deborah Lippmann Stairway to Heaven Nail Lacquer ($18.00 for 0.50 fl. oz.) contains multi-colored square (mostly) glitter suspended in a clear base color. The polish is thicker, not quite gel-like, but it’s thick enough that after two coats (which is what is shown here) that I wouldn’t go for a third and expect excellent wear. There are large, square-shaped glitter in greenish-teal, bluish-green, light-medium purple, and golden orange. There also appears to be hexagon-shaped glitter in the same golden orange color.
This shade could be used for layering, but I really liked it alone. It was fun and whimsical; not your most obvious choice for holidays, but it has a wintry vibe to it. I could see it seeming more appropriate for spring, because of some of the overall lightness in color, but I just keep thinking “winter wonderland.”
Though glitter polishes are often difficult to remove, this seemed extra difficult, so it will require patience and plenty of your favorite remover. The key is to let the remover soak through the layers of polish, which will make it easier to remove. Generally, I get a week of wear with Deborah Lippmann’s polishes with minimal tip wear. Nothing comes to mind as a dupe, but maybe Temptalia readers know of one to share! 
Where to Buy: Beauty.com, $18
The Glossover
It's tricky to apply and remove, but I still really like and would likely have purchased it despite all the shortcomings--which really tells you how important color can be!
See more photos & swatches!
Deborah Lippmann Stairway to Heaven Nail Lacquer
Deborah Lippmann Stairway to Heaven Nail Lacquer
Deborah Lippmann Stairway to Heaven Nail Lacquer
Deborah Lippmann Stairway to Heaven Nail Lacquer
Deborah Lippmann Stairway to Heaven Nail Lacquer
Deborah Lippmann Stairway to Heaven Nail Lacquer
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Product & Review FAQ
Where can I purchase it? How much is it?
Beauty.com, $18.
Is it limited edition?
Yes.
Any dupes?
I couldn't think of any!
i think hard candy in break up looks similar
This is so beautiful.
i just imagine this as perfect over Chanel's Pearl Drop....however after hearing your impressions about removal and seeing your holiday post re. China Glaze's Let It Snow collection, i saw a possible dupe; Snow Globe. I'm wondering although sight unseen, how similar they are...
I like this but have China Glaze Snow Globe which is similar except the glitter is not square. I can't justify the price of a Deborah Lippmann colour to buy this when it is similar to one I have. Someone will probably dupe it in the future and make it cheaper.
Hmmm. Not sure I agree with people saying it's really dupeable! I know of some of the 'dupes' mentioned and I feel like they have too many qualifications (the glitter isn't square, slightly too pink, etc etc) to really qualify as 'dupes'. Sort of close but no cigar, IMO!
I love it and totally agree with the "winter wonderland" correlation.
reminds me of sally hansen's hidden treasure :) very pretty!
I love the square glitter. Wonder ho
Doh
I see what Lippmann is doing here for the glitter polish... "Stairway to heaven" - A Led Zeppelin song title And the previous "Do ya think I'm sexy?" A Rod Stewart song title... Looks like 70's rock song titles for this glitter polish... Love it
I have this and love it. I wear it layered over other polish and so far have'nt had a hard time taking it off. I just use a cotton ball and drugstore remover :-)
Maybe China Glaze Snow Globe is a decent dupe :)
SO. BUYING. THIS. Thanks for the lovely swatches!! :)
Thanks for the swatches Christine! is it even the same one as you posted here?! http://www.temptalia.com/deborah-lippmann-holiday-2011-collection#more-31110 it doesn't look the official picture at all! :( i thought it would have some very light blue glitters in it
it's SOOOO pretty!
It's really cute but I think I can find a few for $18. I really like the glitter though!
Reminds me of a snowglobe.... and, strangely, of cupcakes.
Sooo pretty and feminine… I really love it but DL nail polishes are so darn expensive.
Omg, love it! Perfect party manicure~
Christine, I didn't know you were going to be at the Beauty Social on Sunday and purchased Saturday tickets instead. BOO. Will you be there at all on Saturday? :DD
I'm not yet sure what I'm scheduled to be doing, but I expect I will be there... doing... something at some point, LOL. I'm flying in on Friday and leaving Monday, so I'm certainly there :)
This is so gorgeous! Great swatches Christine!
It's not the truest dupe around, but N.Y.C. (New York Color)'s White Lights Glitter polish has very similar colored glitter pieces in a clear base, though the pieces themselves are a lot smaller! Also, it's 99 cents, which is always a plus.
Maybe a little like last year's Sally Hansen "Hidden Treasure"...what do y'all think?
I don't have it, but if it's similar to Nubar 2010 then I'd say it seems more fiery - like it leans more orange?
Reminds me a lot of Hard Candy's Break Up. The glitter in that one is hex not square but it's close enough that I'd save my $18 lol
It looks really cute on its own! I like it that way.
I. need. this.!
Barielle's Buddha-ful is the same milky base with similar-colored flaky glitter, and KleanColor's Sugar Coat is a clear base with similar-colored round glitter. There is a masochistic streak in me wondering how the three would look layered.
This looks the same as the new Mac polish coming out in the Glitter and Ice collection. I just pre-ordered it in the store and it looks the same to me :)
Pretty, but I think it's not too unique.
So lovely!!
Ohmg I love! I've been waiting to get my hands on this nail polish!
I was so excited about this polish, now I'm so disappointed it's sheer! I wanted it just for the name but sadly I don't think it worth my money now.
I like how everyone is commenting with "Ooooh". That was my first thought!
Other than the square glitter it looks extremely similar to China Glaze Snow Globe :)
Want. Your nails are absolutely lovely, by the way!
Very pretty! I still cannot get enough of Nubar's 2010 that I wouldn't have known about if it wasn't for you Christine! I get so many compliments on it over any color especially dark. Gave 2 ladies at the Express counter your website. Keep up the great work!
Thank you!
Oooh, that's is pretty (very holographic). But, too expensive for me. I feel that if you are going to spend that type of money on a nail polish, you would have to feel like you were going to wear it a lot (get your money's worth). For me, this wouldn't be work appropriate, so I wouldn't wear it often.
Its very like GOSH Rainbow, very pretty! Love polish like this for layering, but it looks lovely on its own here, Christine!
Oh I am so excited! I ordered this and "I Love the Nightlife" and am anxiously waiting for their arrival (Neiman Marcus website said they were suppose to ship out soon). As soon as I bought them I got nervous that they would suck! Yay!
I quite like this
I find that polishes like this look great in photos but not so great in person. Maybe because I like the idea of these colors, but it's not my personal taste to wear them. I dunno. It looks lovely on you though!!!
I tried this color on at Nordstrom's the other day and in my opinion, the photos DO do this polish justice. It looks beautiful in person!
I can imagine that looking really pretty when the light catches the different shades of glitter.
Ooh, it's lovely and what a great name. I love that song.
Oooo! Pretty! I wanna layer this over a dark purple or dark green polish!
It reminds me of Color Club's "covered in diamonds" . I was really looking forward to DL's Stairway to heaven, i love the name, the look etc., but lately I've been seeing more and more DL dupes. Which makes me feel silly for paying the DL price, when I could've had the same thing for cheaper if I had waited a while longer. I hope a dead on dupe comes out in Stairway to heaven. LOL
Very pretty, i like the opalescent quality of the polish.
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