[Comparison] Essie Splash of Grenadine Dupes

Essie Splash of Grenadine is one of my favorite nail polishes.  I love the bright plum pink color.  Maybe that's why I accidentally bought two very similar polishes: Maybelline Love Me Lavender and Color Club Sweetpea.

Maybelline Love Me Lavender | Essie Splash of Grenadine | Color Club Sweetpea

Love Me Lavender (not a lavender shade) and Splash of Grenadine are nearly identical.  In some lighting, Splash of Grenadine looks a smidgen more purple.  Sweetpea is more gray and a shade darker than the other two.

Essie Splash of Grenadine (pinky & middle fingers)  with Color Club Sweetpea (ring finger) and Maybelline Love Me Lavender (index finger)

All polishes have thin consistencies and look opaque in two coats, but Color Club Sweetpea does not level out on the nail.  Splash of Grenadine wears the longest - almost a full week!  Love Me Lavender lasts a few days while Sweetpea chips within a couple days.

None of these nail polishes are available in permanent lines.  Splash of Grenadine was originally in a Summer 2010 collection.  I'm not sure if it has been moved to Essie's permanent line or not, but it can still be found online.  Sweetpea and Love Me Lavender are in Spring 2012 collections.  Essie retails for $8, Color Club retails for $8, and Maybelline retails for around $5.50.  I bought Splash of Grenadine and Sweetpea from Transdesign.com at discounted prices, and I bought Love Me Lavender at CVS.

Since Love Me Lavender and Splash of Grenadine are very nearly dupes, I recommend buying only one.  (I do not recommend Sweetpea at all.)  While Love Me Lavender costs less, it does not wear as long as Splash of Grenadine.

[Comparison] Color Club Lavendarling v. Zoya Malia

Although I had previously never tried a Color Club nail polish, the Spring 2012 colors from Color Club caught my attention, and I purchased a few polishes from the Blossoming Collection.  When my order arrived, I realized that Color Club Lavendarling looked awfully similar to another polish, Zoya Malia.

Color Club Lavendarling versus Zoya Malia

Zoya Malia is one of my favorite nail polishes.  It is a creamy medium grape purple.  Its formula is perfect - self-evening, not streaky, and looks fabulous in one to two coats.  However, Malia costs $8, and I purchased Lavendarling for only $3, so I would be happy to find a more affordable dupe.

In the picture below, I am wearing two coats of Zoya Malia on my middle and pinky fingers and two coats of Lavendarling on my pointer and ring fingers.

Zoya Malia (middle, pinky) | Color Club Lavendarling (pointer, ring)

While the colors of the two polishes are indeed identical, the Zoya formula far outshines the problematic Color Club polish.  As you can see, Lavendarling was thick, streaky, and did not even out on my nails.

I'll stick to Zoya Malia.

[Comparison] Maybelline Tangerine Tango and New York Color Peaches 'N Cream

I bought Maybelline Tangerine Tango nail polish because it is a vibrant spring orange, somewhere between a tangerine and a coral.  Unfortunately, its formula is terrible.  It is streaky and a little chalky, and its texture does not even out on my nails.  I then bought New York Color in Peaches 'N Cream, which has a far superior formula.  Peaches 'N Cream is creamy, not at all streaky, and it looks great in 1 to 2 coats.

New York Color Peaches 'N Cream | Maybelline Tangerine Tango

In the pictures, I wore two coats of Tangerine Tango on my middle and pinky fingers, and I wore two coats of Peaches 'N Cream on my pointer and ring fingers.  I wore Orly Bonder for a basecoat and no topcoat.  The two colors are identical (dupes), but as you can see, Tangerine Tango has streakiness.

New York Color Peaches 'N Cream (pointer, ring) | Maybelline Tangerine Tango (middle, pinky)

New York Color Peaches 'N Cream (pointer, ring) | Maybelline Tangerine Tango (middle, pinky)

Tangerine Tango is in Maybelline's Spring 2012 Fashion Week collection.  Peaches 'N Cream is in New York Color's Spring 2012 Sweets collection.  Both are limited edition.  Both can be found at various drugstores.  Locally, Tangerine Tango costs $5.50 (at CVS), and New York Color costs $1.99 (at RiteAid).