YSL La Laque Couture #51 Bleu Cyclades

For Summer 2014, YSL has introduced 2 nail lacquers as part of the Bleus Lumiere Collection. I had my eye on #50 Bleu Celadon the moment I spied the press images, and picked it up moments after it appeared on our local counters. But #51 Bleu Cyclades took me by surprise, and has been reigning prime property on my tips ever since.

YSL La Laque Bleu Cyclades is a deep blue with hints of inkiness and some subtle iridescence in the mix. It reminds me of looking into a deep dark tank at the aquarium in which resides a beautiful jellyfish gently pulsating to nature’s rhythms. Bleu Cyclades has a metallic finish which flashes both dark navy and hints of green under different angles, without going overly duochroms.

It was one of those rare moments of kismet – I had thought 1 dark blue polish this season would suffice, in which case I chose differently. But as I was planning an outfit in which a black dress would have been an easy base to work with, my stubborn brain kept obsessing over that blue polish. And it was all thanks to Sara’s comparison swatches over at Color Me Loud. I already owned Chanel Bel Argus (reviewed here) which I thought was very similar, but had a very strong metallic sheen with a holographic effect that made it more green than blue.

Bleu Cyclades is a slightly thinner formula than some of the other nail lacquers that I’ve been trying lately, but is mostly opaque in 2 coats. I felt I could even go with 3 to get the color deeper and darker. I’ve read some other reviews online saying this was opaque in 1 coat, so maybe I’m just used to applying in thin layers. Regardless, the wide head and thin brush made it quick and easy to apply, and it dries relatively quickly.

Unfortunately, I found this wore down a bit quicker than was typical of YSL polishes. It wore reasonably well for about 2-3 days, but started chipping by the 3rd day.

xoxo