Illamasqua Obsess Nail Varnish Review, Photos, Swatches

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Christine |

Illamasqua Obsess Nail Lacquer
Illamasqua Obsess Nail Lacquer

Illamasqua Obsess Nail Varnish

Illamasqua Obsess Nail Varnish ($14.00 for 0.50 fl. oz.) is described simply as “bright fuchsia pink.” It’s almost neon; it’s exceedingly bright and vibrant, but there’s something in the finish that holds it back from being a true neon. Obsess is a bright fuchsia pink with an underlying hint of violet with a cream finish. Urban Decay Miss T is similar but appears purpler. It’s purpler compared to Deborah Lippmann Makin’ Whoopee, though.

Illamasqua’s formula is three-free (it does not include DBP, formaldehyde, or toulene), and it wears a full week on me with very minor tip wear (and no chipping). The consistency of Obsess is phenomenal; perfectly balanced between thin and thick that it flows to the edges of the nail with ease and does so evenly. It’s opaque in nearly one coat (I used two for swatches).

P.S. — I have no idea why the stickers on some of my Illamasqua bottles are wonky; I’ll take that minor inconvenience because of the stellar formula, though.

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Illamasqua Obsess Nail Varnish
Illamasqua Obsess Nail Varnish

Illamasqua Obsess Nail Varnish
Illamasqua Obsess Nail Varnish

Illamasqua Obsess Nail Varnish
Illamasqua Obsess Nail Varnish

Illamasqua Obsess Nail Varnish
Illamasqua Obsess Nail Varnish

Illamasqua Obsess Nail Varnish
Illamasqua Obsess Nail Varnish

Illamasqua Obsess Nail Varnish
Illamasqua Obsess Nail Varnish

The Overview
Nail Varnish
Illamasqua
$17.00/0.5 oz.

97%

Average

View Swatches
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About Reviewer
Review FAQ
Reviewer

Christine Mielke is the editor-in-chief and has been reviewing products for over 14 years.

She has normal-to-dry skin with occasional dryness on cheeks and nose. She has a light plus skintone with subtle, warmer yellow undertones (view her foundation matches here).

Learn more about her review process here.

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20 Comments

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MORENA

This shade is easy to dupe, so I would save the $14 and shop around.
One illamasqua nail polish that is worth buying is Collide. Its a very hot, neon pink. great summer, or poolside nailpolish color.

JoElla

What a pretty color. It is bright, but not ‘OHMYGAWD I NEED SUNGLASSES’ bright.
Looking at the color in the bottle I would pass, seeing it actually swatched on nails, makes me want to try actually try it.

Joey

if anyone has this nail varnish, and China Glaze’s Purple Panic, would you be able to compare the two please and see if that is a potential dupe? they look incredibly similar in online swatches and unfortunately I don’t have an Illamasqua counter anywhere near me, where I could do my own comparison.
thank you! 🙂

Genevieve

The ones that I think come closest are Urban Decay’s Super-Saturated High Gloss Lip Color in Crush, Shiseido’s PK331 – Divine, Collection 2000’s Pink Shock, and Covergirl’s Powder Puff Pink. Sadly, the only one I can pull off is Crush 🙁

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