MAC Reel Sexy Nail Lacquers Review, Photos, Swatches

Christine — Sat, 31 Mar 2012 00:11:16 +0000

MAC In the Dark… Purple Nail Lacquer

MAC Reel Sexy Nail Lacquers

MAC Reel Sexy Nail Lacquers ($16.00 for 0.34 fl. oz.) include these three shades, all of which are creams: In the Dark… Purple (vivid violet), Screening Room (bright mid-tone teal), and Vivid Effect (vivid orange coral).

In the Dark… Purple is a medium-dark red-toned purple–kind of like an eggplant, but much, much lighter. Reminded me of Fig. 1 eyeshadow actually! It’s not quite opaque in two coats but close. Zoya Kieko is similar but a little dustier.
Screening Room is a blue-based teal with a cream finish. It’s mostly opaque in two coats. Illamasqua Muse is bluer. Estee Lauder Teal Topaz is a bit lighter, dustier. Orly Viridian is bluer. Cult Nails Let Me Fly is closer, though a bit bluer, and has shimmer.
Vivid Effect is an orange-coral that’s opaque in two coats. Dior Merveille is similar but has shimmer. China Glaze Poinsettia is redder. Rescue Beauty Lounge Bangin’ is darker.

I’m still recovering from the shock of MAC polishes now being–permanently–available at a whopping $16 a pop. They were $14 just a year ago. A lot of brands increase prices every 12-18 months, and the increase can be as little as $0.50 to as much as $4-5, depending on the base price of the product. MAC has historically raised prices on just about every product once a year, and on products at this price point, it has been $0.50–e.g. lipsticks, eyeshadows, and the like have gone up $0.50 a year, not $2 a year. There’s only 0.34 fl. oz. of polish in the bottle! C’mon! Price aside…

In the Dark… Purple was streaky; it was still a little streaky with a thicker second coat yet not fully opaque after that either. Screening Room was also on the streaky side, though it recovered mostly by the second coat. Vivid Effect was not streaky, and it was opaque in two coats, so that was the best performer of the three shades. It is the most dupeable, though. I don’t have wear issues with MAC’s polish formula; I usually get a week of wear with minor tip wear but no chipping.