Nicole by OPI has really embraced the crackle-polish trend, and this month they are releasing four new limited edition shades to the line of “Texture Coats”. These Nicole by OPI Limited Edition Texture Coats ($10.99 CDN) combine different colors, textures and opacities to create a quick and easy, graffiti-style nail art effect.

The Packaging

This line of Nicole by OPI Texture Coats don’t differ at all from the regular polishes, which I’m actually a little disappointed in. There’s no symbol or sticker or special packaging that distinguishes them from the other regular polishes, so you really have to always read the name to spot the “Texture” description. I’d much prefer to see a special design on the bottle or handle to help distinguish the effect, because you’re going to be really disappointed if you try to use these as a regular polish!

I was super excited when Nicole by OPI launched their new Perfect Stroke Brush, however these polishes don’t have it. They still have the regular brush that works alright, I just would have liked to see their new brush design because it makes applying polish so much easier.

Nicole by OPI New Limited Edition Texture Coats

The Product

These polishes are all meant to be used on top of another color, and as they dry, the polish pulls together and separates to form cracks, revealing the color under underneath in unique patterns.  We’ve seen this technology in many brands like OPI Shatter, China Glaze Crackle, etc. It’s easy to do and fun to watch, but I also feel as if the trend is fading away fairly quickly as new ones are emerging like Magnetic polish and Caviar manicures.

The line currently includes Gold, Silver, Red, White, Turquoise and Black texture coats. This range consists of four new, limited edition shades that I found each vary quite a lot in texture, color and opacity.  I also found them a little more difficult to work with than regular crackle polishes, finding the crackling effect to be very finicky (sometimes it would work really well, other times not well at all).

Opal

A metallic mother-of-pearl shade which a really interesting ‘chameleon’-like property, where it looks different depending on the color its applied over.  I really love the effect it gives and its cool to see it adjusting to the base color! One of my favourites.

Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquer in Opal Texture

Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquer in Opal Texture

Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquer in Opal Texture

Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquer in Opal Texture

Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquer in Opal Texture (Over Sephora by OPI Nail Lacquer in It's My Pink!)

Quartz

A metallic taupe shade with pink undertones.  This one is my favorite in the collection because I achieved the best results with it. Although it isn’t super pigmented, the crackles appeared defined and fairly easy to achieve.

Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquer in Quartz Texture

Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquer in Quartz Texture

Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquer in Quartz Texture

Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquer in Quartz Texture

Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquer in Quartz Texture

Amethyst

Sparkly purple polish- I found this texture to be particularly difficult, because the glitter polish itself is suspended in a clear base, so when the crackles did form it was hard to see where they were, simply because the polish itself was transparent in some areas.

Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquer in Amethyst Texture

Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquer in Amethyst Texture

Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquer in Amethyst Texture

Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquer in Amethyst Texture

Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquer in Amethyst Texture

Aquamarine

I had the same troubles with this one… although I found it looked really nice on top of white polish, because the glittery polish itself is transparent, it made the crackle effect look less defined. I really would rather have this gorgeous shade in a non-crackle coat, because I feel like glitter polish itself gives enough texture.

Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquer in Aquamarine Texture

Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquer in Aquamarine Texture

Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquer in Aquamarine Texture

Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquer in Aquamarine Texture

Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquer in Aquamarine Texture

Summary

• Price: $10.99 CDN for 0.5oz / 15mL
• Availability: Various drugstores (visit Nicole by OPI for locations)
• Selection: These four shades are limited edition
• Overall: I definitely liked some shades more than others, with Quartz being the best because of its metallic opacity. Opal had a neat effect of adjusting to its base color, but Amethyst and Aquamarine were glitter polishes, leaving an undefined crackle pattern and overall I thought they would just be better as regular glitter polishes.
• Rating: Quartz (A), Opal (A-), Amethyst (B-), Aquamarine (B-)