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Wednesday, October 17, 2012

From the Vintage Vault (L'Oreal edition)


For this installment of From the Vintage Vault, I thought I'd share some older L'Oreal products from my stash. I've got some nail products and one of my all-time favorite lip products to show you today, so let's get started with this trip down memory lane.

 Take a peek inside the Vintage Vault, after the jump..


 Three old-school L'Oreal nail polishes:
regular formula (Cherie Cherry), Creme (Hot Pinque) and Wear Extraordinaire (Sangria)

 "Last Chance For This Item"

There's something about 80s/90s L'Oreal polish bottles that I find quite comforting. I don't know if its because I like the bottle shape more than the more modern style, or if these bottles just take me back to being a teen and painting my nails in my bedroom until all hours of the night (and waking up angry because I had sheet marks all over my nails).

The Wear Extraordinaire shade, Sangria, was one of the first vampy shades I remember finding at the drugstore and I remember being crushed to see that "Last Chance" sticker on this bottle. But wow, it sure was nice of brands to warn you like that when your favorite colors were about to be discontinued, huh? Now we usually have to watch for clearance sales to find out when something's been discontinued!

 Then and Now
 (Cherie Cherry, The Temptress' Power)

And to any one who thinks that the current L'Oreal brushes are too thin? Maybe you weren't around for THESE brushes:


It's hard to convey this in photos, but the brushes back in the 80s and 90s were so thin it seems almost laughable now. Here are some pics for perspective:

 

See how small the brush looks next to the opening of the bottle? Now look at the modern-day brush:
 
 

I'm telling you, those old brushes were TINY.
 
 Do any of you remember the short-lived Specialiste nail treatment line from L'Oreal?

 L'Oreal Shine Specialiste Ultra Gloss Top Coat
(circa 2000?)

Sorry, but this top coat sucked. I  think I used it twice and then never touched it again. But I did like the bottle!


And last but not least, one of my favorite glosses from L'Oreal:

 L'Oreal Glam Shine Dazzling Plumping Lip Colour in Siren
(circa 2003)


OK, Glam Shines aren't vintage, but I loved them so much that I wanted to add them here just as a little tribute.  

The Glam Shine line came out in 2003 and it had a nice, long run until it was discontinued in 2009. What I loved about Glam Shine glosses was that they weren't sticky, but they had amazing staying power. They were a bit thick, but they didn't feel heavy. They were more like a liquid lipstick, but they had the most brilliant sparkle to them:


And I could be wrong, but I think these were the first drugstore glosses to come with the "bent" applicator that seems to be so common now with drugstore glosses:



I opened this tube and, much to my surprise, it still smells exactly as I remember it: not like a regular L'Oreal lip product, but more like one of the old-school Shine Delice products (remember those?). It has a sweet, strawberry-citrusy, candy-like fragrance to it that I absolutely love.

Thanks so much for taking this stroll down memory lane with me. Do you remember any of these products from back in the day? Tell me all about it in the comments!
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34 comments

  1. This is so cool! I love your makeup from the vault posts! xoxo

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  2. Oh I LOVED those LOreal polishes in he 90's, haha ;) It's totally comforting to look at them, i still have my big stash of 90's nail polishes!

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  3. I thought the nail brush size comparison was great, really puts things into perspective!

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  4. Sangria was my absolute favourite at the end of high school! (1997)

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  5. Omg! Those old school loreal polish bottles take me back!

    The Glam Shine glosses were the best. I loved them and the Shine Delice lipsticks. I was heartbroken when loreal discontinued them!

    Thanks for another trip down memory lane!

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  6. I think I just finally threw out one of those old polish bottles, it was a dark red, can't remember the name, but it had definitely seen better days. And those Glam Shines - I had almost every color.

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  7. I remember being pretty young and seeing L'Oreal polishes in an endcap at Walgreens, I fell in love with Sea Fleur, a sheer pink with a magical (to my eyes!) blue iridescence. There was also Sea Violette, which was a darker fuchsia with the same magic blue interference. I would look for those particular shades every time I went to the drugstore.

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    1. Sea Violette was at Dollar Tree months ago ... Love that polish!

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  8. I love your Vintage Vault posts!

    I remember the L'Oreal polishes well - the slight trapezoid shape, back curve, and forever drying time (my best friend and I used to put our freshly polished hands in ice cold water in an attempt to hasten the drying). My sister kept borrowing my beloved cranberry gold-flecked nail polish (can't remember the brand) so for Christmas one year I bought her a bunch of L'Oreal polishes (all mauve, pink, reds in the mid 80's) from Woolworth's, a store long gone. I remember it being a very expensive gift for my allowance, L'Oreal was definitely one of the highest priced drugstore brands.

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  9. I love these posts! Keep 'em coming!

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  10. Omg i loved the Glam Shine glosses!

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  11. I loved the glam shine glosses I had one particular favorite, it was a light purple/mauve shade I think the name had the word grape in it somewhere! Can't find a shade in the drugstore that comes close to it!

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  12. The Shine Specialiste may not work as a topcoat, but it rocks as a basecoat for all things glitter. I ran out of basecoat and figured I'd give it a try, and wow, glitters just peel right off for me now.

    Also, anyone else having problems loading the You Tell Me page?

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  13. I love looking at the evolution!! I used to steal my grandmas loreal nail polishes when I was a kid and those bottles look pretty familiar!! I love these posts!!

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  14. Amen to the sheets marks part LOL ... I still have one of those polishes and the texture is like new... Amazing

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  15. I loved this post, you and I both are nostalgic for old lacquer bottles, and we are not alone, this is great! I also loved seeing the brush comparison. Really great job on this G.

    Thanks for sharing this with us.

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  16. Since I only throw out polishes as often as Halleys Comet comes around, I have those old L'Oreal polish bottles, too! They wore well which was amazing because we were so uneducated about base coats, top coats, etc. and waited HOURS for your polishes to dry. A good polish job would take at least 4 hours. Where did we find the time?

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  17. What a great post! I recently rediscovered a bottle of the first Revlon Colorstay top coat at my parents. I remember them coming in a set; color plus top coat. The color I had was a really pretty red. Not sure what happened to the nail polish but the top coat still applies really well. It hasn't thickened or yellowed over the years.

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  18. I have a few old school L'Oreals myself. Not crazy about the bottle style. They remind me too much of my grandmothers and make me feel stodgy.

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  19. Sadly I have and I swear to god just used yesterday a Glam shine in 820 princess. I found it unopened in an old purse a few months ago and figured what the hell seems fine and you're right AMAZING sparkle. Glad yo mentioned the bend in the applicator I thought I did that.

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  20. Oh I remember them all!!!! I think one of my first grown up polishes was Sea Fleur by Loreal and the bottle was the same shape as your photos!!!! This was a fun read, G. thanks!

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  21. I still have a bunch of old school L'Oreal polishes in those bottles! I like how they're slightly curved; they nest against each other so well!

    Without checking my Melmer, I have (and love) Orbit (BRIGHT blue with shimmer), Plumage (dark raisin-y purple with green shimmer), Bird Song (really pretty softened blue-teal shimmer), Mig (sheer pale purple-pink shimmer duo chrome), Off-Shore (similar to Mig but a seafoam), Chop Chop (bright-but-soft orange crème), and one that has an odd name that doesn't match the polish, like Techno or something (super frosty metallic sand). I used to have a gorgeous one (Ultra Violet?) that was a deep fuchsia with BLUEblue shimmer.

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  22. OMG! I forgot all about Glam Shine! I miss those glosses...

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  23. LOVE GLAM SHINE! Long-lasting and so much shine and sparkle. I just ordered a few more a few months ago. Haven't found anything comparable. I wish they would bring them back!

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  24. Did you ever try the old L'oreal Mega Hard base coat? I still pine for it. It had teflon in it, and was also a ridge filler. I stocked up when I found out they were DC-ing it but all six bottles are gone...

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  25. I totally remember the old L'oreal bottles! I bought a Glam Shine lip gloss at Big Lots a couple years back but had to throw it away before I had a chance to use it because it went bad. BTW, I looooooooove these posts! I especially loved the Urban Decay one because I adore them now & never had a chance to appreciate them until a couple years ago. Please keep these coming!

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  26. OMG!!! I love the Glam Shines!! I still have 2 in my makeup stash!! They were the best and I wish they would bring them back!!! Love the vintage vault!!!

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  27. Love this post! I have Sangria but my bottle is different so I'm guessing mine is older still. Pretty cool!

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  28. Oh, what memories! I'm going to pull all my Glam Shines out of my lip gloss drawer. They were the best! Here's a blast from the past for you. I coveted my L'Oreal Chrome Yellow nail polish from around 1986. It was one of the very few unusual shades available at the time. Wish I still had that one. Anyone remember it? Sea Lily and Sea Violette were two of my faves.

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  29. I'm so glad to find this post (3 years later!) because I just snagged a L'Oréal Wear Extraordinaire at a swap and was wondering what year it came out. I love a vintage bottle! Mine is 317 Solar a pale yellow with a pearly finish.

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