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Guerlain Blue Ocean Le Vernis Review, Photos, Swatches

Guerlain Blue Ocean Le Vernis
Guerlain Blue Ocean Le Vernis

Guerlain Blue Ocean Le Vernis ($26.00 for 0.40 fl. oz.) is described as an “aqua.” It’s a light-medium, mint green with subtle warm undertones and a fine pearl shimmer. NARS Thasos (P, $20.00) is lighter, no shimmer. Formula X Inspiring (LE, $12.50) is darker, brighter. Dior Samba (402) (LE, $24.00) is slightly warmer, less shimmery. MAC Ocean Dip (LE, $16.00) is darker, less shimmery. Illamasqua Venous (LE, $17.00) is darker, less shimmery. Illamasqua Nomad (P, $17.00) is brighter, less shimmery. Zoya Wednesday (P, $9.00) is cooler-toned, less shimmery. See comparison swatches / compare dupes side-by-side.

Long-time readers will know that one of my favorite nail colors is some variation on aqua, mint green, or teal, and as a fan of the Guerlain nail lacquer formula (generally), this was the product that most appealed to me when reading through the summer collection. It was disappointing, unfortunately, as soon as it was applied. It went on unevenly with noticeable streaking and color that looked patchy. I even tried three coats to see if that improved it, but it was still somewhat translucent in places. The texture is a little runny, so it does pull to the sides if you aren’t careful (so use thinner coats). I also experienced bubbling as the polish dried down, which is unusual in my experience. On me, the color lasted for six days with some tip wear–far shorter than most of Guerlain’s polishes for me–and had lost a fair amount of shine after a day. Even the initial dry down had more of a satin shine to it than a truly glossy, gel-like shy that you’ll find in their regular range.

See more photos & swatches!

Guerlain Blue Ocean Le Vernis
Guerlain Blue Ocean Le Vernis

Guerlain Blue Ocean Le Vernis
Guerlain Blue Ocean Le Vernis

Guerlain Blue Ocean Le Vernis
Guerlain Blue Ocean Le Vernis

Guerlain Blue Ocean Le Vernis
Guerlain Blue Ocean Le Vernis

Guerlain Blue Ocean Le Vernis
Guerlain Blue Ocean Le Vernis

Guerlain Blue Ocean Le Vernis
Guerlain Blue Ocean Le Vernis

Guerlain Blue Ocean Le Vernis
Guerlain Blue Ocean Le Vernis

40 Comments

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Noha Avatar

Thanx for the review…sorry to hear about the streaky application issue…it looks gorgeous on you though!
It’s such a shame when high-end polishes go on streaky…I have similar experience with my Chanel stash specially the light colors…but I’m still addicted 🙂

Sunny Avatar

Hey Christine, this actually looks fine in your swatch, but if you say you are disappointed, I totally believe you! What a pity. I might still want to swatch this tho. It’s one of the nail polishes I was looking forward to the most this season!

Sunny Avatar

Looks like my options are… a) Dig out Dior Saint-Tropez which is at least half empty and kind of thickening up. b) Rescue Beauty Lounge Sunny Skies, which isn’t comparable in terms of shade but still a turquoise. c) I think Givenchy also has a turquoise coming out so maybe I can still hope for that!

Sunny Avatar

It’s actually pretty great! I think Dior, Guerlain, and Givenchy nail polish formulas are comparable. The brush is easy to work with as well. My only gripe with all these brands is their permanent line-ups are really nothing too special. They’re great if you want a solid shade that you see yourself wearing all the time, but usually the limited edition shades are more interesting in my opinion.

Katherine T. Avatar

I never thought mint nail polish would look pretty but it does. And since it’s a summer color, I actually like it being a little translucent, as long as it’s evenly translucent, which it wasn’t. Too bad the formula is so hard to work with. For $26, this should be much much better

Nancy T Avatar

The color itself is downright *swoon* worthy! But WAAAY too sheer, especially at this price point, unless, of course, it were advertised as a jelly type polish. I’ll be doing my Revlon Jaded in the near future. Also a nice springy mint shade. I am not a fan of their Top-Speed formula though.

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