When considering nail polishes, Chanel nail polish never seems to get the same press as other brands such as OPI Nail Polish or China Glaze. Chanel is considered one of the premium nail polish brands to achieve that perfect fashion nail look. Many women may even think that there is a huge difference in quality and consider OPI polish as a premium brand, for example, and not place Chanel polishes into this category.
However, I think this is a bum rap, not to mention completely wrong! Chanel has some incredible color selections of polish, and is one of the largest cosmetic companies with a strong brand, research and product development teams, and of course a robust and well testing manufacturing process for polish. In fact, they are one of the top, most recognized brands in the world for not just nail products, but skin care, perfumes, fashion accessories, as well as watches and jewelry.
Part of the issue I think is Chanel may be positioned as so high end, that you just don’t see their nail polishes discussed among the general female population as much as cheaper priced brands of nail polish. With some of the Chanel nail polishes starting at $25 a bottle, and going up to over $80/bottle, that is a big difference in target market relative to the $8/bottle you see with OPI or China Glaze polishes! The question is whether you can achieve nails designs that look as glamorous or better than other nail polishes – I think at this price your nails should be perfect right?
[With some polishes like Chanel Riva Le Vernis Nail Colour going for $99 a bottle, Chanel is definitely not a mainstream polish, but is regulated to a population that has, well, tons of extra money to spend].
Is Chanel Nail Polish the best Nail Polish Brand?
Chanel is a French fashion house founded by the couturier Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel, and is known worldwide within the fashion industry. Unfortunately she passed away in January 1971, but the company and brand continues as one of the most recognized in the world, partly due to leveraging celebrity spokespeople in their advertising on an ongoing basis.
One of the reasons, in my opinion for lack of “buzz” in the nail design circles is being known for high end fashion – weather it is Chanel dresses or handbags going for several thousand dollars, or the luxury watches the company introduced in 1987. There just hasn’t been the buzz and focus on nail care at Chanel that you have seen at more dedicated nail companies like OPI. I think this just comes with the territory when you have a strong, but wide portfolio of products, as it doesn’t always result in the targeted focus and energy you see from a single product line company.
According to Wikipedia, Chanel operates over 310 boutiques worldwide, which are awesome, upscale shopping experiences [picture Rodeo Drive in Hollywood for example!].
Beautiful Glamorous Nails with Chanel Polish
Ok, so now you know a LITTLE about the company and brand…but what about their nail polish? After all, this is a nail polish blog around designs right? Many current nail styles are nothing more than properly applying a premium nail polish brand properly, and using the latest colors that stand out among fashion nails. So let’s get on with it already 
Being a french company, of course you will find the cool french terms and spellings used in the Chanel line of polishes.
“Le Vernis” is what they call their nail polish collection, which translates into “The Glaze” or “The Varnish”, which is appropriate for nail art people like us…everything just always sounds fancier and more upscale in French have you noticed that?
As mentioned earlier, at $25/bottle Chanel is definitely positioned at the high end for nail care products. They claim their polishes have a state of the art formula that moisturizes nails, strengthens them, while providing a very resilient high gloss, long lasting color to your nails.
They have more colors that I can index here – you can go look at their extensive collection of Chanel Polish Colors on their site – certainly the site, bottles, and names all lend themselves to the feel of a super high end deluxe polish [and of course the french names don't hurt from a perception standpoint!]. They of course have a nice collection of black nail polishes, which as you know from my other postings is also a favorite color of mine to experiment with.
I personally like the Chanel Lotus Rouge color as it is a rich burgundy color of polish, and when I want a classy color to go with an expensive cocktail dress I tend to look at shades like burgundy!
Based on reviews I’ve seen on line and my limited experience with Chanel, these are high quality polishes with a great selection of colors to meet almost any nail art design need. However, I’m not convinced personally that the price differential results in noticeably different nails for me personally – to achieve perfect nails I don’t think you always have to spend this much money. My guess is I would have to make an investment over a several month time period to see if the strengthening and conditioning aspects of the polish make a noticeable difference in the health of may nails, and if the color and chip resistance is higher than what I currently experience with something like the OPI nail polish brand or China Glaze.
My guess is if you are paying from $25 to $99 for a bottle of this polish, your nails will look absolutely beautiful…and if they don’t you won’t admit it after spending this much money on it anyway!
Where to Buy Chanel Nail Polish and other Nail Polish Brands
So of course you can buy these polishes, along with the top coat and other typical add-ons such as a base protective coat, at the Chanel Boutiques…you can also purchase them online from several places including the main Chanel site.
In terms of retail locations for these polishes, you can find them at several national chains such as Macy’s, Nordstroms [surprise], Dillards, Saks 5th Avenue, Von Maur, as well as specialty cosmetic stores around the country (i.e. such as the Cos Bar in Aspen, CO.)
So would love to hear from my readers that can afford Chanel Polish – do you think it is worth the price, a special treat for a special occasion, or are you paying for the name without much difference in how your nail designs look?