Chanel Vertigo Le Vernis / Nail Lacquer ($26.00 for 0.40 fl. oz.) is described as a “grey-black.” I’d like to describe it as one weird color that’s impossible to describe! In the bottle, it’s like a deep, dark smoky plummy brown with bits of shimmer in it. In natural light, it’s an inky brown with a hint of gray and touch of burgundy. In bright light, it’s a plum-tinged brown with bronze and red shimmer. Cult Nails Enigmatic is redder, lighter, purpler. Rescue Beauty Lounge Recherche is purpler, more eggplant than brown. Illamasqua Baptiste is definitely purple. Chanel Paradoxal is purpler, less brown (but it’s kind of the closest in “feel”). China Glaze Bogie is duller, more purple.

Oh, Vertigo is a complex one, which is what you hope for when Chanel debuts a new shade.  I don’t know if it’s a pretty shade or one of those pretty-ugly kind of shades that people either love or hate.  I see myself closer to the love it crowd, but I don’t think it’s particularly flattering against my skin tone, so it’s not something I’d end up reaching for. I always appreciate it when a brand manages to come up with a color that’s more nuanced or harder to dupe.  I wish the shimmer was more noticeable, though, because it’s nearly invisible under most lighting conditions!

Chanel’s formula wears a full week on me with minor tip wear but no chipping.  The consistency of Vertigo was just right–not too thick or too thin–and it applied easily and evenly.  The color was fully opaque after two coats.

Chanel Vertigo Le Vernis / Nail Lacquer

Chanel Vertigo Le Vernis / Nail Lacquer

Chanel Vertigo Le Vernis / Nail Lacquer

Chanel Vertigo Le Vernis / Nail Lacquer

Chanel Vertigo Le Vernis / Nail Lacquer

Chanel Vertigo Le Vernis / Nail Lacquer