It seems like just yesterday when everyone in the beauty blogosphere was running to every drugstore in town trying to find Sally Hansen Hidden Treasure. Well, it seems that we've got another frenzy-inducing drugstore polish on our hands, ladies (and gentleman). And this time it's a dupe of the infamous Chanel Paradoxal:
Revlon Perplex (retail: $4.99 at CVS)
I kind of knew from the moment I first laid eyes on Chanel Paradoxal back in the beginning of July that I would love it. Elvira over at Pink Sith ends her reviews with her signature: "Do you NEED this?" and when she said explained that she had never quite seen anything like this color, Paradoxal stayed in my mind all these months.
But if you know me, you know that Chanel's $23 price tag sends a tiny chill up my spine, so when I first heard rumors that Revlon had released a dupe of Paradoxal, I KNEW it would be mine. It was only a matter of time. Much to my surprise, I found the above display at CVS the other night and in a move that is highly uncharacteristic of me, I bought it for full price. No sale, no coupons, nada.
Since I do not own Paradoxal, I cannot state that this is an exact dupe. But after looking at countless swatches on a variety of blogs, I CAN confirm that it seems pretty darned close. Perplex is a combination of greige/taupe and purple and it's got that "hidden shimmer" that is probably the most talked-about quality of Paradoxal. The shimmer only comes out in certain lights, but once you can see it, you are in for a real treat. It makes this polish come alive and gives it that lit-from-within quality that so many of us love.
This has GOT to be the dustiest purple I have ever seen, but that hidden shimmer gives the dustiness an unexpected pop that you really have to see to appreciate.
Here are some swatches taken in various forms of lighting:
This polish is on the thinner side, but it only required two coats for complete opacity and it applied very easily. In the above photos, I'm wearing two coats with a coat of Seche Vite on top.
If the thought of a mysterious, dusty taupe-ish purple with hidden shimmer sounds appealing to you, and you don't want to pay $23 for the original, get out and start looking for Revlon Perplex! So far, I have only heard reports of people finding this display at CVS, Duane Reade and various grocery stores. I haven't heard from anyone who has found this is at Walgreens or Rite Aid yet, so if you have located it at either of those stores, leave a comment and let us know!
I am in love with Perplex and I am SO glad I found it. Do you think you'll be looking out for this one in your area?
very pretty on you!
ReplyDeleteOh wow! That's a really good dupe! So pretty! Looks great =D
ReplyDeleteEven if it wasn't a 'gotta have it', I'd still think it is an awesome color. Still out there looking for it, though!
ReplyDeleteAhh I want this so bad!! I've been stalking the CVS's here like crazy since I saw this first on your blog! No luck yet. The CVS stores near me always seem to be the last to get new stuff so we'll see. I am going to visit my parents for Thanksgiving soon though so I'll check their CVS :)
ReplyDeleteI am going absolutely CRAZY trying to find this. Nothing here in the DFW area and I have been looking all weekend. It is gorgeous and I need it in my life! It looks so good on you, lucky gal!
ReplyDeleteI'm not going out of my way searching for this in the insane manner that I did Hidden Treasure.....no, really.....but if I happen to find it, I'm definitely buying it. Looks great on you, G!
ReplyDeleteDefinitely going to be looking for this!
ReplyDeleteMy search for Hidden Treasure still upsets me. I found it after a week or two in a Rite Aid across town, but they didn't let me use the deal in the paper for buy one get one free. I ended up paying $18for two. It was rediculous... Revlon polish isn't too expensive, like $4? I'll look for this display.
ReplyDeleteI had no idea that Perplexed was that pretty! Checked Wags and Target with no luck. Going to make the drive to the boonies to the only CVS in my area, which is not known to get the latest anything so wish me luck!
ReplyDeleteholy shite! im def going to look for this. i was lucky enough to get 1 SH hidden treasure, then a month later i found another one and debated on buy a back-up. im glad i did, after the searching, it was worth it. so im definitely going to look out for this one since i dont feel like ordering from BarryM (plus its cheaper)
ReplyDeletelooks great, I'll definitely pick it up once I see it here. ;)
ReplyDeleteI went to Target and Wags today too, nada on Perplex and nada on the last WnW Christmas palette I'm missing either. But hidden behind some other ELF palettes I found another of the sold out limited edition 32 e/s palettes for $5 at Target! WooHoo! I want the 100 e/s for $10 so bad though! WAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteLots of lemmings for us makeup lovers this holiday season.
I picked this up yesterday at CVS! :) Also spotted it at Duane Reade. It was BOGO 50% all Revlon. my newest lemming: Milani Gems!
ReplyDeleteMust have. Hopefully, next time I get into CVS, they will have it. I am also continuing my search for the W&W holiday glitters. Which, as far as I know haven't made an appearance in my town, yet.
ReplyDeletevery close, but barry m is a closer dupe. The base is much more milky than this one, but OMG, CLOSE!
ReplyDeleteHi! Well, I'm not that big of a fan of nail polishes, but there is something about this one that makes me WANT it asap. Gonna be getting it for sure. Thanks for the pics.
ReplyDeleteYES! I knew if I waited long enough eventually a dupe would make it's way to me in Canada! This is perfect, thanks so much for this! YAY! I'm def. going to be on the look out for this one!
ReplyDeleteMy CVS has had the Perplex display for over a week and the only bottles gone are the one I got and one other. XD We don't get all the displays here, but as long as you check at least once a week you can pretty much be assured of getting what you want if they do get the display. That Revlon display with the matte nail polishes has been there for a month or two and the only stuff gone is the two nail polishes and eyeshadows that I got from it.
ReplyDeleteOh, and after weeks of stalking my Walgreens and CVS and making extra trips to other stores in my area and being told that if they didn't have the display by now they wouldn't be getting it, I just saw an employee at Walgreens setting up the Wet n Wild display! It looks like the one that has the palettes and the nail polishes. Yay! Now if I could just get a sale...
Gorgeous colour, and your application is perfect!!!
ReplyDeleteThis looks gorgeous! I have Paradoxal, and though I don't have Perplex they look exactly the same to me.
ReplyDeleteI have the Chanel color, but just bought the Perplex as well. Can't wait to swatch and see the results!
ReplyDeleteDamn...I originally avoided the hype on this one (purposely), but now that I've seen it, of course, I must have it!
ReplyDeletelol, i did the same thing as Maureen. and like Hana said, the CVS's around me still have 90% of their new-ish suede (?) polish, etc. display, since it came out, so hopefully when they do put this display out, it will not be sold out quick. (which i dont think it will). if Revlon is smart, they will put this color in their core line.
ReplyDeleteI found it today at CVS!!! It is so pretty!!! I also picked up a lipstick since Revlon is BOGO 50% and used my $2 CVS reward cash!!!
ReplyDeleteLocated it at my local Harris Teeter grocery store in Suffolk, VA! I searched Target last night with no luck so I was stoked to find in a food store of all places :). I've never purchased Revlon polish so I'll be interested to see how it holds up.
ReplyDeletei scored it tonight! i left work and on a whim decided to go to a different CVS to see what they had, (was not looking for this) i needed to get a couple of things anyways, and i cruised over to cosmetics and i found it! aaand i also got the Orly Cosmic FX in Haley's Comet (since i missed out on it before at Sally's, and i needed a backup for my OPI one). and it wasnt the ridiculous $10.00 price tag that they were. normal priced..
ReplyDelete............i didnt know Revlon was bogo%50...!!! oh well. lol
What a great find! This looks so much like the popular purple Chanel shade. I hope my local Duane Reade has this in stock! I am going to go out this afternoon to try and find it! Thank you!
ReplyDeleteThat is so gorgeous! I need to find this!
ReplyDeleteI used to have a shade from Victoria's Secret that was JUST like this shade.
ReplyDeleteI have to say when I first saw your post on this polish I was bummed..I'm a whole year LATE LOL..buuuut I held out hope I'd find it somehow but never saw it at CVS or Walgreens nowhere...until I decided to haunt my local big lots while waiting for my husband finish working at the police dept..lo and behold hidden on a shelf were 12 of these babies..for a $1 each..I took 'em ALL!!! MINE!!! so check your local big lots maybe you'll find 'em there too!!
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