Fake OPI Polish

JANUARY 2, 2011 UPDATE:

A lot of website traffic comes to this specific post, at least one (often more) Google search a day. I would like to state I now have 15 bottles of OPI polish (purchased from Ulta, Trade Secret, eBay, and received in MakeupAlley swaps) and no two look the same.

According to OPI Twitter, (@OPI_PRODUCTS) "[There is] no sure way to tell unless bottle content [is] tested, unfortunately."  Each bottle is formulated differently, meaning different colors, consistencies, and contents.  The glass bottle depends on the manufacturing company. The warning labels and green/black labels also vary.  The labels are better explained here: Black Label OPIs.

It's going to be hard to tell just by appearance if it's real or fake. If the consistency is different than the rest, then you may have a fake on your hands (or it's been used and diluted with too much nail thinner.) - The best way to avoid this is to purchase from salons or beauty supplies (no eBay, blog sales, or swaps!)

Feel free to comment below with your input/your experiences.

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ORGINAL POST:

Today, I received two OPI polishes. Brand New Skates (I ordered it on eBay.) and Black Onyx (Was picked up at State Beauty Supply.) I realized the packaging was completely different. I pulled out my other six polishes, starting examining them and doing research.

NOTICE
I'm not 100% sure what I'm saying below is accurate. Please comment below if you know of a completely accurate link. I just don't want anyone else googling 'fake opi' and freaking out like me! hah.

HISTORY

Guide: How to Identify your OPI Polish, this shows the appearance over the years.

THE INSPIRATION
I googled 'fake opi' and these were the first results to pop up:
OPI Lovers? You Should Read This Before you Bid!
How to Tell if an OPI Polish is Fake

Both of these websites are repetitive, like one copied the other. They seem so sure in what they're saying as well. Never did they say it's a theory. (The second link compares two real OPI nail polishes.) I also commented saying I doubted her theory, and she deleted it!  According to the two sites, only 1 of my 8 polishes is real.


OPI Polish Collection Background
eBay
(All from Power Sellers with excellent feedback.)
Brand New Skates
Dulce de Leche
Mod About You
Over the Taupe

Local Cheap-O Beauty Shop
Elephanstic Pink

MUA Swap
At Your Quebec & Call

State Beauty Supply
Black Onyx

Trade Secret Salon
My Private Jet

NONE of my OPI polishes are alike on the glass bottom, back, or label.

Warning Labels
Supposedly according to those sites, the polish I just received from State Beauty Supply (Where all salons go and order for their customers!) was a fake, just because it had 3 warning labels instead of 4. I continued on with my research spree... over time, chemicals and ingredients in the polish have changed. So with different chemicals, it's going to mean different hazardous materials, therefore... different warning labels. Why the font is different, I don't know, I guess OPI wanted a change in appearance. There are also some polishes with only 2 warning labels, I don't own any, but they're out there, and completely legit.

Bottle Spacing & Ridges
Glass bottle manufacturer can't be perfect every time. OPI may change the appearance of their bottles over time too.

Different Color Labels on the Bottom
Black labels are an older formula. Green labels are a newer b3f. Explanation here.

Serial Numbers
I don't know about this. None of my polishes have "engraved" serial numbers. Only two have serial numbers stamped on the bottom glass


Help / Add More Info
Help from MUA (makeupalley.com) Boards I posted a thread similar to this, but more in a freaking out, questioning manner. lol. All of these replies helped me and I thought they should be recognized.

I am not trying to put down or make fun of the two top blogs in any way. Again, when you google 'fake opi' these are the first two things to pop up! I don't believe their information is accurate. MUAers agree. Do you?

I know many of you are bigger polish lovers and polish obsessed than I am; If you have any information you want to correct or add, please let me know. I will add it in and link it to your blog.

The consistency in all 8 of these polishes are the same. I don't know why I doubted them being fake. Don't believe everything on google! Chances are, your OPI polish is real no matter where it came from or how different in appearance they are.

Are your OPI polishes different in appearance?

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July Favorites

 "Favorites" posts/videos discuss the products (and other misc things) you loved for that month. The products can either be purchased that month or (old) "rediscovered" items. Favorites are published at the end of the current month or at the beginning of the following month."

Most of my money has been going to school related things lately. Also, I spent a lot on the UK-US Swap last month, and I've been using all of those cosmetics. So really, I didn't buy a lot of new cosmetics this month.

1.) My White Walls

If you're following me on Twitter, you know I took down my picture wall. One entire wall in my room was covered with pictures, it was about three layers deep too, I was constantly covering up people I didn't like at the time. lol. Or years changed, events changed too. This is only about 2.5 years of pictures. (I did this once before too in junior high, but took it down and started over.) I've done a lot of de-cluttering in my room on the other walls too. I can actually see the white walls now!

2.) Coach Poppy Pop C Groovy Bag
This is my first Coach purse. The bright colors are great for the summer; it's a good size, too.


3.) Stella by Stella McCartney
I purchased this in September, got tired of it, and fell in love with it again. It's such a clean, fresh scent. I keep a rollerball in my purse too.

4.) Eyeko Cream
This is my favorite thing I got in the UK Swap! It's a multi-purpose really light shimmer.

5.) MAC Lip Conditioner
This is my second time purchasing it. The first tube must have fallen out of my purse. I can't find it anywhere! :/ (It was only half-used, I more upset I can't B2M it.) It has a vanilla milkshake scent. It's pretty moisturizing.

6.) Smackers Lip Frosting - Birthday Cake
I think this is my third tube (I never repurchase things unless I love them.) It smells like you're rubbing birthday cake all over your lips. It has a sheer light pink pretty color too. This tube is pretty old, I rediscovered it this month! hah.

7.) OPI at Your Quebec and Call
I've been going back and forth between this metallic dark green and my normal nude color.

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US / UK Swap

Gemma, a lovely girl who lives in London asked me to do a swap! Follow her: Twitter and Blog. We emailed back and forth requesting items and giving each other updates.

I actually got my package a few days ago, thinking I'd do a blog after I tested/used them so I could actually review them, but I may just do a separate post later if any of you want an American opinion on UK goodies!

For whatever reason, UK will accept nail polishes, but they rejected the package to leave the UK since it contained nail polishes. Have any of you ever had this problem? I know nail polish swaps are pretty common for most people I follow. So, I'll have a package of nail polishes to talk about in about 5 weeks. They're coming by sea mail instead of air mail. On to the goodies I have now!


I loved how Gemma wrapped everything separately! So much time went into that, plus me and my little sister had fun unwrapping it!

The Eyeko, BarryM, and Retro LUSH items were all requested since they're basically impossible to find in the US. I asked for the TopShop temporary bracelets tattoos, too.

Everything else was picked out by Gemma!

BarryM
Lime Dazzledust
Strawberry Lip Balm

Eyeko
3 in 1 Cream
Mascara (Black)

Gosh
134 Darling Lipstick

LUSH
Summer Pudding Soap
Curly Wurly Shampoo Sample
Tuca Tuca Fragrance
The Wheel of Misfortune Biofuel Soap

LUSH Retro
Absolute Delight Ballistic
Happy Bubble Bar
Happy Birthday Bubble Bar
Ice Hotel Bubble Bar
Playdoze Bubble Bar

Primark Opia
Gold Flower Bird Heart Necklace
Silver Flower Key Heart Necklace
Floral Wayfarer Sunglasses

Sleek
Divine Storm 587 Palette

Top Shop
Moon Dust Eyes
Temporary Bracelet Tattoos

Other
Brilliant Shimmer Eyewand
Cupcake Lipglosses
Lancome Juicy Tubes Clear
Natural Collection Juicy Lips Barley Sugar
808 Collection Pure Gloss

Candy
Dairy Milk
Twisted Crème Egg
Caramel Nibbles
Caramac

I know BarryM 3 in 1 Crystal Clear Nail Paint (recommended by Hannah) I'm really looking for a good top coat! & Mushroom Nail Paint are on the way, along with a few other surprise nail polishes as well!

I love everything! Except I'm a little unsure of the Playdoze Bubble Bar. I guess I was expecting the lovely smell of play-dough? hah. I requested it for my little sister, she's 6, and LOVES LUSH! But even she didn't like the smell! hah. Have any of you tried this? Is it better in the bath?

My favorites right away were the Floral Wayfarers! (I lost my wayfarers in the lake! yay. a better replacement!) The Eyeko products, and the LUSH Happy Birthday Bubble Bar - I almost ordered a few of these many times just to have an easy, last minute birthday gift laying around the house. But I didn't want the smell to be awful. I really like it. I will repurchase more of these!

The chocolate was a complete gooey sticky mess and smelt like LUSH on the outside. :/ Hopefully, I'll still get the real UK taste, regardless of its shape. hah.

Click the picture below to see what American goodies I picked up for Gemma!




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Jazzed, Complete MAC Palette, & Cupcakes

Back 2 MAC

Jazzed Lipstick

I know I said I wanted nothing from the Into the Grove collection. Which was true, but after hearing so much hype about Jazzed and Stereo Rose, I wouldn't mind having them both. My counter had a few Jazzed Lipsticks left, so I went for that.

I'm so glad I did. I probably would have regretted it later on if I didn't get it. Get your hands on it, if you can! I believe the collection will only be out for another week or two with the new Neon one coming next week.

FOTD:

MAC Silver Ring & Black Tied Eyeshadow. NARS Orgasm Blush. MAC Jazzed Lipstick.

(Ignore my messy fishtail braid.) I know I'm behind and you've already seen a million pictures of it. But I was shocked at how pretty it really is. I guess it does live up to the hype and being impossible to find.

It's pretty orange in the tube, which I was really worried. But I put it on as soon as I got the car and realized how pretty it is! It's like a pink-coral. The best color comparison I could think of is NARS Orgasm Blush.

MAC Palette

Of course, I couldn't leave the counter without spending some amount of money; I picked up Beauty Marked Eyeshadow. I ran home to depot it, and at last, A COMPLETE MAC PALETTE. I was filled with excitement. My parents and my little sisters thought I was crazy, they just don't get it, do they? I've been working on this palette since February. SIX MONTHS! Finished, finally.

Beauty Marked? - "Kaitlyn, you hate purple?" - Yes, I hate purple. But I've been doing too much research and listening to how I should wear purple eyeshadow to make my green eyes look greener. I caved. I'm waiting on Creme de Violet to arrive now (ek, I should go buy another palette) to pair with Beauty Marked. I've been playing with my Coastal Scents 88 Palette (the only purple eyeshadow I owned) and realized it does really help my green eyes out a lot. Don't you agree? (I'm still refraining from purple clothes!)

FOTD:

Coastal Scents 88 Shimmer Palette purples. (Comment if you want the exact shades and I'll take a picture for you.) Clinique Fig Blush. MAC Viva Glam V Lipstick.

& More

A day isn't complete without sweets! We stopped by Muddy's Bake Shop.

Cookies and Cream, Prozac, Strawberry Lemonade & New Yorker Cupcakes

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June Favorites

"Favorites" posts/videos discuss the products (and other misc things) you loved for that month. The products can either be purchased that month or (old) "rediscovered" items. Favorites are published at the end of the current month or at the beginning of the following month."



Color Club Magic Attraction
I saw many bloggers post NOTD's with this. I eventually just bought it on eBay. I'm not sure where you can buy this brand... anyone know? It takes 4-5 coats to get the color of the bottle. But I LOVE it, it's holographic glitter than just glistens in the sun. It almost looks like MAC's 3D glitter on your nails.

LUSH Aqua Marina Cleanser
Purchased this without doing any research. I love ocean salt, but I only use it in the shower, I wanted an everyday cleanser. I just bought it out my counter, the LUSH girl told me how to use it. I drove home, and then smelt it.. ick. It reminds me of Sushi. Remind sushi on your face. ick. It's just a seaweed roll. You have to make a paste to use it. The smell eventually grew on me, it started smelling more clean. I use it at night, my face felt so good in the morning. This is supposed to be for sensitive skin. I have normal skin, so I'm not sure about its claim.

MAC Creations Hue: Turquatic
I was tired of my old perfume (Stella) so I purchased this. It's just a clean-cologne smell. It only last a few hours, which is annoying. If it had better staying power, I'd love it.

Joico K-Pak Intense Hydrator
You're supposed to just put this in dry hair and let it set. I've only that once. I've just been using this as a conditioner. It fixed my pool, lake, and ocean hair. Great for summer!

OPI Elephantastic Pink
I've found this being my go-to pedicure color. It's a barbie hot pink.

Palmer's Cocoa Butter
I hate the smell. I hate product food scents. This smells like I'm rubbing a Hershey's chocolate bar on my skin. I was extremely sunburned from the ocean. (for the first time in my life I was peeling, flaky skin. ew.) I was slathering the peeling with aloe vera and baby oil enriched with aloe vera. After a week and a half, I did some research and found out that aloe vera just hydrates your skin, making it feel better, but not healing it. Cocoa butter moisturizes it. So after 2-3 days of using cocoa butter, peeling was gone, and my skin discoloration was gone.

Ms. Manicure Mini Emery Boards
I purchased these forever ago and just threw them in my makeup bag. I find myself needing a nail file all the time lately. They're perfect just to throw in your purse.

MAC Thrills Frost Lipstick
I can't pull off red lipstick. This is just a light, wearable red. I've found myself reaching for this every day.

Maybelline Define-A-Brow
I've been using eyeshadow to fill in my over-waxed, uneven eyebrows. I read reviews on this, and how it was a dupe for MAC's eyebrow pencil. So I went to Wal*Greens and picked it up. I got Light Brown, thinking it was the lightest shade, next time I repurchased I'll get Dark Blonde. The pencil is super dark, you can't press hard at all, but it's a little easier than eyebrow powder or eyeshadow.

Urban Decay Eyelash Primer Potion
This is an HG for me. I had to repurchase it this month, so I felt like I should mention it in this favorite. I've been using it since Christmas. It's a really good primer to make your mascara stay all day.

MAC 239 Eve Shader Brush
I finally forked out the money for my third MAC brush. This should've been the first one I purchased. It can do everything for your eyeshadow, (all over lid color, crease, blend) you just have to clean it multiple times while switching colors.

EOS Lip Balm
I purchased this awhile back. I wasn't sure about it. I like the scent, I don't love it. Summer Fruit. I want to purchase the lemon one if I can ever find it. It has SPF 15, which we all really need for summer. I keep this in my purse and I've been reaching for it quite often. I love the reactions you get while applying it in public, too. haha.

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