YSL La Laque Bleu Majorelle vs Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Pacific Blue

About a year ago, I finally decided that bright, bold, cobalt blue nails WERE, in fact, as fabulous (about 3 years after the trend surfaced), but as I wasn’t sure if the shade would suit me, I dipped a toe in by picking up Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Nail Polish in Pacific Blue for $2.99. If it didn’t work out, no harm no foul at that price. As it turned out, while I liked the shade I wasn’t over the moon about it, and I promptly put it away never to wear it again.

Still, the color haunted me. I wasn’t satisfied for some reason, and onto my wishlist went YSL’s Bleu Majorelle, one of the most iconic iterations of the shade (I believe Nails Inc. Baker Street was the first of it’s kind). The high $27CAD price tag deterred me however, and I kept holding off, until one day I came to notice that my local Sephora stopped stocking the YSL polishes altogether. At that point, of COURSE then I had to have it ASAP. Conveniently, my observation occurred during the Sephora ‘Love Notes’ spring sale, so into my online basket it went.

There are NO regrets, people. THIS is what I was really looking for. Though Pacific Blue is a close contender and would do in a pinch if you’re looking to get on the cobalt blue bandwagon on the cheap, Bleu Majorelle has a richness and brightness that the Sally Hansen shade lacks, and it truly makes all the difference (to me anyway).  On top of that, the formula is TOP NOTCH – along with a ridiculously smooth and easy 2-coat application, note that these photos were taken 5 days into my manicure with not a chip in sight. This rarely happens for me – no matter what the brand, I almost always have chips by day 3. For once, I feel like the higher price tag is (nearly) justified.

Left: Sally Hansen Pacific Blue; Right: YSL Bleu Majorelle

These are the kind of polish purchases I enjoy now: one in, one out – I have no need for SH’s version so it will be passed on for someone else to enjoy. I should have known better, really, because I always prefer the ‘real thing’ and any time I try to make substitutions (with almost anything in life – food, makeup, etc.) I end up feeling unsatisfied and filling that void until I go ahead and get the real thing in the end. In this instance it wasn’t a big deal/loss, but something I really try and adhere to.

On a final note…bonus points for anyone who notices what is different in the picture above 😉

Did you get on the cobalt blue trend when it began? Are you content with ‘dupes’ or do you need the ‘real deal’?