Archived Post

Chanel Paradoxal Nail Lacquer Review, Photos, Swatches

Chanel Paradoxal Nail Lacquer
Chanel Paradoxal Nail Lacquer

Chanel Paradoxal Stuns

Chanel Paradoxal Nail Lacquer ($23.00) is a stunning shade of grayed plum with red and violet microshimmer.  It applied beautifully–one of the best Chanel lacquers in terms of formula I’ve tried–and only needed two coats for complete opaqueness.   The nuances of this shade are best captured in direct sunlight, but it’s smoky and sultry in indirect/natural lighting, too.   Very, very beautiful and sophisticated.

I’ve always had good luck with Chanel lacquers–no chipping issues for me.  I always use mine with Zoya’s Color Lock System and that seems to keep everything on the up and up for about a week or so.  I know that this is not an affordable nail lacquer, but it’s not supposed to be.  Avid Chanel lacquer collectors won’t be disappointed by the latest shade release, though!

If you want to know more about how products are evaluated, read out Rating System FAQ! 🙂

  • Product: 30/30
  • Value: 6/10
  • Ease of Use: 4/5
  • Packaging: 4/5

RECOMMENDATION: Nail fanatics will likely gravitate towards this shade, because it is such a unique mix of gray, mauve, and plum. It’s not the prettiest nail color of all time, but as Chanel often does–it is different and still pretty.

AVAILABILITY: July 2010

Chanel Paradoxal Nail Lacquer
Chanel Paradoxal Nail Lacquer

Chanel Paradoxal Nail Lacquer
Chanel Paradoxal Nail Lacquer

Chanel Paradoxal Nail Lacquer
Chanel Paradoxal Nail Lacquer

Chanel Paradoxal Nail Lacquer
Chanel Paradoxal Nail Lacquer

Chanel Paradoxal Nail Lacquer
Chanel Paradoxal Nail Lacquer

Chanel Paradoxal Nail Lacquer
Chanel Paradoxal Nail Lacquer

39 Comments

Comments that do not adhere to our comment policy may be removed. Discussion and debate are highly encouraged but we expect community members to participate respectfully. Please keep discussion on-topic, and if you have general feedback, a product review request, an off-topic question, or need technical support, please contact us!

Please help us streamline the comments' section and be more efficient: double-check the post above for more basic information like pricing, availability, and so on to make sure your question wasn't answered already. Comments alerting us to typos or small errors in the post are appreciated (!) but will typically be removed after errors are fixed (unless a response is needed).

We appreciate enthusiasm for new releases but ask readers to please hold questions regarding if/when a review will be posted as we can't commit to or guarantee product reviews. We don't want to set expectations and then disappoint readers as even products that are swatched don't always end up being reviewed due to time constraints and changes in priorities! Thank you for understanding!

Comments on this post are closed.
Gisele Avatar

Not a color for me. BTW, I was at Nordies yesterday and the Chanel and Dior fall collecitons were out. I bought the Pink Teaser glossimer and Jade Rose np but decided against the Dior quint since it dupes shadows I’ve got. Booo!

Jill Avatar

Actually if it’s avalible to you in the U.K., or if you’re willing to get it on eBay or perhaps Amazon, Barry M’s Dusty Mauve is a PERFECT dupe. The formula is a bit thinner and I found it requires three coats for it to be opaque, it’s a great value and they are spot on. I’m currently wearing Chanel on every other nail and Barry M on the others and no one can tell the difference!

sillylilacs Avatar

Very unique, I feel like at first glance, it’s another deep dark plum colored polish, then you take a second look, and it turns gorgeous!

Colette Avatar

I find the color to be a bit dull to be honest. I’d have preferred a darker purple. This is a skip for me, even though I adore Chanel polishes.

Marina Avatar

It looks like Particuliere with purple shimmer added. I don’t like this type of colour for nails, looks a bit like dirty nails LOL but it would make a beautiful eye shadow!

Connie Avatar

I have been eyeing this all weekend. I finally bit the dust and bought this along with the Pink Explosion blush and lipstick in Legende.

Roxy Avatar

Hmm in that last picture it kind of reminds me of the Nars Purple Rain nail color which i own and adore. However i’ll be passing this one up! 🙂

Luisafer Avatar

I have something similar to this one *affordable* by the way, guess this one most be better, but I love the final result I get and I love the color!!!!

Annette Avatar

This was my first Chanel nail polish purchase. I usually wear lighter neutral colors, but I wanted to try something different. This nail polish is beautiful. In the sunlight, it’s absolutely stunning.

Melissa (divinem) Avatar

Question, Christine. This is my first Chanel nail lacquer. I notice that the square cap over the round, ridged lid doesn’t stay on. Is it supposed to be removed while applying the lacquer?

I noticed in the photo with the bottle in your hand, that you have the square cap off, too, so I’m assuming my packaging isn’t faulty?

Thanks for posting. I got mine the other day and LOVE it. Can’t wait for fall, my favorite season! 🙂

Melissa (divinem) Avatar

Glad to hear I don’t have a defect. Stupid packaging design. Too easy for me to lose the lid’s outer cap. Oh well. The color is phenomenal! Thx for following up. 🙂

Evelyn Avatar

I bought this color and I was thinking to myself that it reminded me of something. I realized it’s the color of kalamata olives! lol I like them and this color too!

SashaDeter Avatar

I’m not sure if I’m doing something wrong with my application, but I can’t see the shimmer at all, even in direct sunlight. Right now I’m feeling like I wasted $26 because it looks like a very expensive Essie’s Merino Cool.

We try to approve comments within 24 hours (and reply to them within 72 hours) but can sometimes get behind and appreciate your patience! 🙂 If you have general feedback, product review requests, off-topic questions, or need technical support, please contact us directly. Thank you for your patience!