Illamasqua Baptiste Nail Varnish ($14.00 for 0.5 fl. oz.) is a stunning shade of shimmering royal purple with flecks of red and fuchsia-violet shimmer. It’s gorgeous in the light as well as out of it; it looks inkier when in the shade, but when the light hits it, all of the shimmer comes into play.
The formula was amazing! Smooth and easy to apply with plenty of pigment. I only used two coats on Baptiste, and it was completely opaque. It’s not too thick or thin–just right–which makes it easy to apply without worrying about streaking or patchiness. The wear was also excellent. Admittedly, I don’t do dishes (the boy takes care of that), but I do type all day, so sometimes that alone will show a polish’s true colors–Illamasqua stayed as pretty as when I put it on seven days later with just minor tip wear.
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Christine has normal-to-dry skin with areas of dryness (cheeks, nose, and under the eyes). She has a light-medium skintone with subtle, warmer yellow undertones. Her best foundation matches include: Tarte Rainforest of the Sea in Light-Medium Neutral (best match), Estee Lauder Double Wear Stay-in-Place Makeup in Desert Beige 2N1, Giorgio Armani Maestro Glow in 4.0, Hourglass Warm Ivory Vanish Seamless Finish, Laura Mercier Candleglow Soft Luminous in Dusk, MAC NC20/NC25, Make Up For Ever Ultra HD Liquid in Y305 (140). (For more information, please check the FAQ.)
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vanelle
Hey Christine,
Quick question: do you know if this chips easily like first few days (or even hours). You won’t believe the bad luck I had with Paradoxal Chanel nail polish, within hours of application it was chipping and all together didn’t last a whole week. I was so disappointed for a high end product I expected more. So I don’t want the same from illamasqua. Or maybe some colors are better than others!
I have no issues with chipping with Illamasqua (I would definitely mention it in the review if I did), but to be fair, I don’t have any chipping issues with Chanel either!
baby in a corner
Sometimes if i keep my nails a little shorter it helps prevent chipping cause your nails have less flex!
vanelle
K thanks @ Baby in a corner. I have really long nails but I’ll cut them short from time to time.
Thanks Christine. Maybe Chanel polishes just don’t like me much, I don’t even have a huge preference when it comes to polishes. Just great color, apply well and last at least a week.
Ooh, what base coat do you use with ’em? I always use Zoya’s, but maybe it’s a base coat issue (I know some don’t work across all brands).
vanelle
Well for this particular case none and that’s because I’m not really a big fan of the base coat I use(seche vite). But even when I do use the base coats on polish like OPI or essie, I never had any problems. But then again this goes back to the quality being ‘chanel’. I guess I’m meant to use a ‘good’ base for chanel, when I can use an average base or no base for essie and OPI and get great results. Lol
With the seche vite base coat, I just found it didn’t really do anything for me even keep the polish on longer. Maybe I’ll look into the zoya one. My beauty store is for some reason always out of zoya products.
I have nails a little shorter than Christine’s and Illamamasqua polishes NEVER chip on me. My manicure with Phallic lasted two hours of bowling last night. My nails get a lot of abuse from typing, my clumsiness, playing with my terrier, cleaning, et cetera as well. I have very minor tipwear after three days. If you don’t mind tip wear, it can last a week at least.
vanelle
Thanks Kate. I guess I need short nails to avoid chipping.
Chanel chips on me too, yet I absolutely adore Illamasqua. I got five days of wear without chipping out of it and then only had minimal chipping on one or two nails. I’ve used a Maybelline base coat under it and one from Alessandro.
baby in a corner
Love this colour, purple is such a good alternative to black on nails! but the other two colours are so summery! I await your verdict on them!
Oh and if he does the dishes, he’s definitely a keeper! 😉
Jihae
Wow, I love that purple. I can’t wait to see myself. Thanks!
Evelyn
I love this color!! My favorite purple and just gorgeous! Most polishes notoriously chip on me no matter what company they are from so I use a base from Nail Tek (I think foundation II) and top everything off with the seche vite topcoat and I get no chipping at all, or it takes a week for a small flake to pop off. I’ve used them with both the Baptiste & Paradoxal with no problems.
Yes, some (but not all) of their products are available through Sephora 🙂 I think more stores have it actually in-store these days, but for sure online.
FlyingBuffalo
This is such a pretty color for fall & winter! I’m quite attracted to Illamasqua products, especially their lip glosses.
EfbE_0033
Hi Christine! This color is absolutely gorgeous, it is love at first sight!!!
Do you know if it is available in France ? I haven’t seen any Illamasqua products here so far…
I LOVE purples, and this purple seems unique!! I would love to have it 🙂 I’ve also seen swatches of Collide, and that is another must-have for me.
The only problem is that I can’t justify spending $14.00 on nail polish right now… I’m saving for college so most of the money I get goes to my college fund or daily necessities. Maybe one day I’ll splurge though… 🙂
I absolutely LOVE Illamasqua nail varnish! They may even take over OPI as my favourite.
Vale
I can assure you that in those pics Baptiste is not even half beautiful as it should. It is the definitive purple. My bestest purple ever! I love it! ^^
Farida
Wow, I really like this colour. Again off topic but Christine, do you know if China Glaze “in for Audrey, (I believe that’s what is called) is discontinued? I live in Toronto, Ontario and I can’t find it anywhere. After your reviews, I have been hunting for it but no luck. Maybe someone who lives in Toronto can please suggest somewhere. THX a bunch for everything!!
That looks great Christine! What do you do to keep your cuticles so nice and non-ragged (like mine are, blech). I’ve tried rubbing oil on them, but it doesn’t seem to help that much.
NARS Purple Rain would be a great dupe for this one! 🙂
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Hey Christine,
Quick question: do you know if this chips easily like first few days (or even hours). You won’t believe the bad luck I had with Paradoxal Chanel nail polish, within hours of application it was chipping and all together didn’t last a whole week. I was so disappointed for a high end product I expected more. So I don’t want the same from illamasqua. Or maybe some colors are better than others!
Hey Vanelle,
I have no issues with chipping with Illamasqua (I would definitely mention it in the review if I did), but to be fair, I don’t have any chipping issues with Chanel either!
Sometimes if i keep my nails a little shorter it helps prevent chipping cause your nails have less flex!
K thanks @ Baby in a corner. I have really long nails but I’ll cut them short from time to time.
Thanks Christine. Maybe Chanel polishes just don’t like me much, I don’t even have a huge preference when it comes to polishes. Just great color, apply well and last at least a week.
Thanks for your help.
Ooh, what base coat do you use with ’em? I always use Zoya’s, but maybe it’s a base coat issue (I know some don’t work across all brands).
Well for this particular case none and that’s because I’m not really a big fan of the base coat I use(seche vite). But even when I do use the base coats on polish like OPI or essie, I never had any problems. But then again this goes back to the quality being ‘chanel’. I guess I’m meant to use a ‘good’ base for chanel, when I can use an average base or no base for essie and OPI and get great results. Lol
With the seche vite base coat, I just found it didn’t really do anything for me even keep the polish on longer. Maybe I’ll look into the zoya one. My beauty store is for some reason always out of zoya products.
I always use Zoya’s, which isn’t too price or anything, and that seems to work well for me 😀
K great. Thanks Christine. *Hi5*
No prob 🙂
I have nails a little shorter than Christine’s and Illamamasqua polishes NEVER chip on me. My manicure with Phallic lasted two hours of bowling last night. My nails get a lot of abuse from typing, my clumsiness, playing with my terrier, cleaning, et cetera as well. I have very minor tipwear after three days. If you don’t mind tip wear, it can last a week at least.
Thanks Kate. I guess I need short nails to avoid chipping.
Chanel chips on me too, yet I absolutely adore Illamasqua. I got five days of wear without chipping out of it and then only had minimal chipping on one or two nails. I’ve used a Maybelline base coat under it and one from Alessandro.
Love this colour, purple is such a good alternative to black on nails! but the other two colours are so summery! I await your verdict on them!
Oh and if he does the dishes, he’s definitely a keeper! 😉
Wow, I love that purple. I can’t wait to see myself. Thanks!
I love this color!! My favorite purple and just gorgeous! Most polishes notoriously chip on me no matter what company they are from so I use a base from Nail Tek (I think foundation II) and top everything off with the seche vite topcoat and I get no chipping at all, or it takes a week for a small flake to pop off. I’ve used them with both the Baptiste & Paradoxal with no problems.
What a great, deep purple color. I really love this. I want it for Halloween. 😉
Illamasqua is available at Sephora? Really? I had no idea. I’ve been wanting to try out ANYTHING from this brand for some time now.
Yes, some (but not all) of their products are available through Sephora 🙂 I think more stores have it actually in-store these days, but for sure online.
This is such a pretty color for fall & winter! I’m quite attracted to Illamasqua products, especially their lip glosses.
Hi Christine! This color is absolutely gorgeous, it is love at first sight!!!
Do you know if it is available in France ? I haven’t seen any Illamasqua products here so far…
I believe you can order from illamasqua.com.
Thanks Christine !
Oh, this one has been on my wishlist for so long.
Pretty but reminds me of NARS Purple Rain. Which would you say has better application?
This one definitely has a better application!
oh damn…i already have purple rain, so i won’t be getting this ):
This colour looks stunning! Are you wearing a top coat with that? It’s super glossy 🙂
No top coat!
wow thats a gorgeous purple!
That purple is just so gorgeous.
This is lovely!
i love all of the colors!
I LOVE purples, and this purple seems unique!! I would love to have it 🙂 I’ve also seen swatches of Collide, and that is another must-have for me.
The only problem is that I can’t justify spending $14.00 on nail polish right now… I’m saving for college so most of the money I get goes to my college fund or daily necessities. Maybe one day I’ll splurge though… 🙂
Luckily it’s permanent, so no rush 🙂
this is so pretty ! but kind of expensive. is there an opi that is similar in colour?
I’m not very familiar with OPI, sorry!!
It is SO pretty with flash!
I love Baptiste! What a gorgeous colour.
I absolutely LOVE Illamasqua nail varnish! They may even take over OPI as my favourite.
I can assure you that in those pics Baptiste is not even half beautiful as it should. It is the definitive purple. My bestest purple ever! I love it! ^^
Wow, I really like this colour. Again off topic but Christine, do you know if China Glaze “in for Audrey, (I believe that’s what is called) is discontinued? I live in Toronto, Ontario and I can’t find it anywhere. After your reviews, I have been hunting for it but no luck. Maybe someone who lives in Toronto can please suggest somewhere. THX a bunch for everything!!
Hey Farida,
I’m not sure, to be honest. I bought all of mine online at 8ty8beauty.com, lol!
Hey Farida! I still see For Audrey at Sally Beauty Supplies (I live in Chicago)
Oh man! I am a sucker for purple nail polish and this already equals love!!! I must have this. Thanks for showing! 🙂
I love that colour — it’s very much something I’d wear in fall and winter. Just wish it wasn’t so expensive!
That looks great Christine! What do you do to keep your cuticles so nice and non-ragged (like mine are, blech). I’ve tried rubbing oil on them, but it doesn’t seem to help that much.
Nothing :/ No cuticle oil or treatments. I always forget!
Did you prefer this to Nars Purple Rain? Which do you like more?
Thank you!
Baptiste.
Thank you 🙂 There’s only about 10 Illamasqua colors I want to try now.
oh, that looks sooooo pretty.
Didn’t see that at Sephora today. Have you compared it to OPI for Sephora color Just a Little Dangerous?
I don’t like frosty or shimmery nail colors but these 2 shades of purple might just make me cave.
I don’t have any OPIs, sorry! 🙁
I swatched them at Sephora last night; this definitely does look like OPI’s Just a little Dangerous.
Are you wearing a top coat? If yes, which one?
Yes, Zoya’s!
NARS Purple Rain would be a great dupe for this one! 🙂