It was way past time for me to swatch this one; Riva was released last November and is now gone from the Chanel site. It's pretty to look at in the bottle: a light sky blue with a delicate subtle shimmer. Out of the bottle, it annoyed me. Application was tedious. The first couple of coats were streaky, which doesn't surprise me with a light color like this. However, it didn't settle well. I used four coats and then gave up even though I could still see some uneveness. Maybe I should have tried thinning it, or letting it dry more between coats, or meditating to get into the right frame of mind before applying it, but geez, for $27 a bottle, I don't think I should have to do that much work. I have 80s vintage pale Sally Hansen frosts from Dollar Tree that behave better than this. It's a nice color, yes. Is it worth what I paid? I don't think so.
I'm curious to see how the new Revlon, Blue Lagoon, compares to Riva. Based on Revlon's Perplex and Black with Envy, I'm guessing it'll be a decent alternative. I know Blue Lagoon didn't come out in a separate display the way those other two Chanel knock-offs did, but it sure looks Riva-esque to me. I've read that some people have had problems with Blue Lagoon's formula, but I've usually had good experiences with Revlon so I'm planning to give it a try. Speaking of Chanel comps,
this one that Rachel Marie did of Mimosa and Revlon Electric convinced me I don't need to try that particular Chanel.
sheesh! sometimes you don't get what you pay for :(
ReplyDeletecolour still looks great on you. :)
Yap, I've been dissapointed by Chanel too, but this one has been on my lemming list forever, in Europe it was never released
ReplyDeleteI love the murky baby blue so I was able to get past the application issues. I think it is supposed to be a little bit sheer to give it the full effect... if you are going for an opaque look this polish isn't for you.
ReplyDeleteSo sorry to hear that you were disappointed Karen!
karen, sad but true.
ReplyDeleteUne Ruxi, I never understand why Chanel does that--they're a global brand.
tasha, I would have been happy to leave it sheer, but it wasn't at all even after two coats and the streakiness really bothered me. I might try thinning before I give up on it entirely.
The Revlon looks a good bet. I don't have any Chanel polishes and I haven't read anything that makes me want to reconsider.
ReplyDeleteI'm with Jen. I do have a couple of Chanel from years back and I think they have some interesting colours, but no-one ever raves about application or formula and for that price, they should be better. It's still a pretty colour mind.
ReplyDeleteI don't know maybe they think that Europeans don't like blue polish :)))
ReplyDeleteI honestly wouldn't bother with Revlon's Blue Lagoon, it's a total nightmare and not worth the time/money spent. It's thick and draggy and doesn't even give a nice finish :( xx
ReplyDeleteI skipped this one because I thought it was lame.
ReplyDeleteIt does look pretty on you, although I'm sorry that it didn't live up to the pricetag.
And why is Revlon on Chanel's back like this? LMAO.
These colors don't usually attract me - but this color is just WoW! I mean, WoW.
ReplyDeleteHaha - meditating to get into the right frame of mind - love it!
ReplyDeleteIt does look really pretty, but I know how that can all be ruined if the application is a PITA! You just can't get past that sometimes!
yeah, now a days, everyone is duping expensive polishes..which is definitely nice! haha I could definitely save a bit of money..and use that saved up money to buy..well more polishes! haha
ReplyDeleteIt's such a pretty colour, but for the price you don't want all that hassle of application. Hopefully the Revlon one will be nicer to apply :) xxx
ReplyDeleteAw, it's a nice color, but I don't think I could ever bring myself to throw down $27 for this. Sorry you had to find that out for me :(
ReplyDeleteHard Candy-Sky is supposed to be a dupe for this too. :)
ReplyDeleteI have the revlon one i will try to swatch it and post photos so you can see how it is. In my opinion the colour looks very similar. I think the channel one is maybe a bit lighter.
ReplyDeletethis is a really pretty color but from the way it sounds its not such a pretty formula! thats too bad though since it was so expensive! I have Studio M- whose that girl and it looks similar but it doesnt have any shimmer. better luck next time! :D
ReplyDeleteI have this too and you know what - I can never get it looking half as good as your pics!!!
ReplyDeleteIt looks a lot better in this NOTD than it deserves too! I will say this though, it is not a patch on Bikini Bottom but it is still better than Illamasqua Nudge which I got as a pressie from a friend a while back.
Thank you for this!
BV