Swatched: Models Own Black Swirl (Chanel Black Pearl Dupe?)!

This is another of the Models own spring/summer collection, Black Swirl... I think that this is (quite obviously) another cheeky name twist on yet another Chanel nail polish (Black Pearl) and some have described it as a dupe for it; however all the swatches I’ve seen of Black Pearl seem to show it having a tinge of teal/green whereas Black Swirl does not... so no, it's not really a dupe but still a lovely colour in its own right.

The swatches mostly show 4 coats, apart from the first (above) which shows 3 and seems to have a lot more brush strokes, hence why I added another which seems to have helped; I thought it should still be shown though.

The polish is actually a lot sheerer than I thought it would be, and I think even without the brush strokes I would have gone for the 4 coats, possibly even 5... but this dried fairly quickly so it didn’t really add much time onto the application.

I really quite like the colour, it’s quite dark and glossy at a glance but when you look closer you get to see the light reflecting off it to show more of a darn gun metal grey rather than a black.

What do you think? Do you like it?

Disclosure: PR Sample

Updated: Models Own 'Car Key Collection' - The Verdict!

You may remember me writing about the Models Own ‘Car Key Collection’ a short while back! Well I have been testing out the polishes and am back to tell you my thoughts on them. Firstly let me tell you about the polish rather than the colour, as if a polish doesn’t last or apply well then it doesn’t matter what colour it is.

Application was very easy, the polish went on much smoother than I thought it would, because of the bargain price of just £5 each (less if you buy more on the Models Own website). The coverage was also better than I thought it would be for the price, I did do 2 coats but I think I could have got away with just one coat if I had been in a rush.

Drying time was ok; it was touch-dry in a relatively short time – although with my 2 coats it did take quite a while to be completely hardened. This meant I did get a couple of dents accidently (story of my life) in it, but that’s no reason to not buy the polish though as I find this to be the same with many polishes at all price levels.

I applied using Models Own 3 in one base coat, top coat and gloss underneath, and then another layer over the top of the polish. The result was glossy and smooth, and more to the point it did not look like cheap polish.

I am SO impressed with how this has lasted, I had thought it would chip after only a couple of days but the first chip only appeared on day 8 (evening) of wearing it.

I did a minor rescue job with one coat of polish over the bit that had chipped and that seemed to hide the chip to an acceptable degree as a quick fix, but I think another coat would have been a lot better and I think you’d barely have known it had chipped. Still, it’s not a bad result for a very affordable polish in my opinion.

The colours stay true to how they look in the bottle, apart from going a little bit darker once dried on the nail but not dramatically so. Shown below both with and without flash - sorry if they seem a bit cut off at the bottom, they seem to be going a bit wonky when uploading - for reasons unknown to myself - you still get the idea though!

Without Flash!

With Flash!

With comparison to the Chanel Khaki range, I wish I could tell you how it compared in my own experience, but unfortunately I haven’t been able to find anywhere with the Khaki Collection in stock to purchase and compare. I can however point you in the direction of the fantastic blog from British Beauty Blogger (above is a little screen shot of her site, added with her permission of course) where you can see for yourself that there is a difference between the colours when compared next to each other, but don’t let that put you off buying any of these, as these polishes are lovely colours in their own right as you can see above.

I am still on the hunt for both Chanel Khaki Collection and other potential dupes so if there are any updates, I’ll be sure to post it up. If you have any potential dupes that you’d like investigating before you spend your hard earned dosh on them, please let me know and I’ll do my best to find out and swatch for you.

Models Own 'The Car Key Collection' - Chanel Khaki Dupe?

Models Own have brought out yet more affordable alternatives to coveted high-end products. This time it’s their ‘Car Key Collection’ which is a cheeky nod to the collection that they are emulating, Chanel’s exceptionally popular ‘Khaki Collection’ – geddit?

The collection consists of 3 shades - Grace Green, a mossy pastel green; Becca’s Brown, a dusky beige hue and Purple Ash, a vintage dusky rose (potential dupes of Chanel Khaki Vert, Khaki Brun, Khaki Rose respectively).

I love that Models Own acknowledge that not everybody who wants to keep up with the latest colour trends is able to afford to do so with all the high-end products, so I am really looking forward to seeing these once they arrive here.

They’re available to buy in Boots stores from October at just £5 each.