As I opened the plastic-bin lid, faint squeals of delight could be heard.
My nail-polish children looked up at me with as much desperation as the 3-eyed green-rubber aliens from Toy Story.
Then a hush fell over them all. Who would be The Chosen One this time? Who would be labeled ‘Trusted’ or ‘Busted’ on Swatch And Learn? If nail polish had eyes, they were all on me.
The fate of Nubar Peacock Feathers was in my hands – literally. This purple-green duochrome nail polish had a lot of expectations to live up to!
Some of the polish elders scoffed at the choice. They complained about how they’ve been waiting for years to be picked and then in walks the new kid, still shiny from Lacquer Academy, and gets chosen because of its bells, whistles, and Big-3-Free formula.
And because of all the commotion, the babies (the mini OPI bottles) woke up and started crying.
Was it worth all this fuss? Did Nubar Peacock Feathers shut them all up and perform like a champ in the lion’s den?
Nubar Peacock Feathers Pictures
Look at all those colors swirling around in this bottle! (Also, note the funny misspelling "resluts" instead of "results".)
Sorry, no ingredients listed this time. My label didn't include them.
Nubar Peacock Feathers Swatches
All swatches have:
- 1 coat of Orly Bonder Rubberized Basecoat
- 3 coats of Nubar Peacock Feathers
- 1 coat of Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat
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Claims: TRUSTED
√ Duochrome nail polish
√ Fast-drying
√ Long-wearing
√ Maximum coverage
Key Notes
- Name: Nubar Peacock Feathers
- Amount: 15 mL (0.5 fl. oz.)
- What I Paid: $4.50 CAD (Bought from a beauty-supply store at a special discounted price. Retails for $7.49 USD)
- Where to Buy: eBay & select beauty-supply stores
- Discontinued? Yes
Nubar Peacock Feathers Review
Color
Peacock Feathers by Nubar is mainly a vivid dark purple reminiscent of car paint – it’s a much slicker and a magician’s cloak kind of purple than my photos would suggest. Not nearly as blue. And it’s not so deep that it looks black.
The green duochrome is very easy to see in real life, but harder to capture on camera. When you look at your nails straight on, you’ll see the purple, but it’s when you bend your fingers or look at your nails on an angle that the green duochrome comes out with a vengeance.
Duochrome polishes like this keep my interest for longer, and it’s fun when you catch a glimpse of the green.
Formula & Application
This applied smoothly and without fuss, which is typical of the superb Nubar nail-polish formula. The polish was on the thin, slightly-runny side, but it’s nothing that I couldn’t work with. And it dried quicker than the average polish.
The problem came when I used the combination of the Orly Bonder Rubberized Basecoat and the Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat. Nubar Peacock Feathers shrank big time at my nail tips to the point where my natural nail was exposed! I had to slick on more polish onto the tips so it wouldn’t look as bad.
Now, I’ve heard lots of people complain about polish shrinkage and tip wear when using Seche Vite, but this was the first time I’ve ever experienced such dramatic shrinkage. Normally if I wait 10-15 minutes for the last coat of color to dry prior to slicking on Seche Vite, I get zero shrinkage or tip wear.
There’s something about the thin formula of Peacock Feathers that doesn’t play well with Seche Vite. Or maybe Orly Bonder didn’t anchor Nubar on that well. Not sure. Just know that my finished manicure looks horrendous. Wasn’t sure if I should even post the swatches since the shrinkage made my polish look like I applied it in the dark while listening to happy-hardcore music!
Finish
Although my photos make Peacock Feathers by Nubar look like it has pixelated-like shimmer particles, to the naked eye, it looks more smooth and shiny. The subtle shimmer particles are small and just add to the sheen.
Ingredients & Animal Friendliness
While my polish label didn’t have any ingredients listed, all of Nubar’s polishes are Big-3-Free (i.e. they don’t contain Formaldehyde, Toluene, or DBP). Also, the Nubar brand is cruelty-free.
Availability
Unfortunately before I did this review, I didn’t realize that Peacock Feathers by Nubar has been discontinued. I’ve had this in my stash for 2-3 years (when it was readily available) and only cracked it out now.
It’s sold out on the official Nubar website. But I have seen it on eBay sometimes and at small beauty-supply stores that carry Nubar. So if you like this duochrome, snatch it up quickly before it becomes impossible to locate.
Pros
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Cons
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Final Verdict: 7.5/10
Peacock Feathers by Nubar is a fun duochrome that I think would look great on any skintone. If you’re not comfortable yet with wearing a full-on green manicure, this would be a great transition. It’s classy and not garish or childish. And the Nubar formula is smooth and easy-to-work with.
Are there any discontinued nail polishes or beauty products that you wish companies would resurrect? If you could create any duochrome or multichrome nail lacquer, which colors would you include?
OMG OMG! i have never seen such a unique beautiful shade! awesome! :))
kuheli recently posted: Its shopping time!! yeeee!!! -D -D
Hey kuheli!
Glad you like it. Nubar has some of the best duochromes around, and their formula is usually impressive. Just wish they wouldn’t discontinued awesome colors like this.
Do you have any Nubar polishes? They’re not as easy to track down as OPI, but they’re amazing!
One of my favourite duochromes! I love it on you, and agree that I spend a lot of time moving my hands around to catch the green. I really enjoyed the first few paragraphs of this entry…nail-polish children! 🙂 🙂
mellinail recently posted: I Wish We Had Carpet
Hey mellinail!
Thanks! 🙂 Nubar has so many amazing duochromes. Really appreciate how they don’t seem to be afraid of testing out new colors and finishes.
OMG Mary this is gorgeous!! It looks absolutely amazing on you, I love it!! Too bad it’s discontinued… 🙁
Hey Ruthe!
Awww…thank you! 🙂
Yes, it’s such a shame that it’s discontinued and is becoming harder to find. Had I known it was going to be discontinued, I would’ve bought a back-up. Hmm…or maybe Nubar is going to re-release the color like they did with another one that had a heavy demand. We can only hope!
Oh, why do companies often discontinue a lot of great products? (Wah, wah, wah! Hahaha)
So I know this is an old post but I’m a total nail polish newb and was looking for the polish in this photo: http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lyhb86pOdZ1r8i4jdo1_400.jpg
I’m thinking this is it and now I see it’s discontinued. Any suggestions for look-alikes?
Cole recently posted: $60 EdenFantasys Gift Card Giveaway
Hey Cole!
That’s alright – I love reading comments even on older posts. 🙂
This is a really difficult polish to find a dupe for. I can’t even think of any off the top of my head that are as multichromatic as this one.
I found some comparison swatches that you might be interested in, though! (http://the-swatchaholic.com/?p=3508) None of them are dupes, but based on her swatches, they have a similar feel.
So sorry that I couldn’t be more helpful!
Love this color. Too bad I can’t afford the price it is going for on eBay. How does it compare to Essence Chic Reloaded? Thanks!
Or Sally Hansen Black and Blue?
Hmm…I don’t have Sally Hansen Black and Blue, either! Darn!
From online swatches, I’d say that the two polishes you mentioned are way closer to each other than Peacock Feathers. Peacock Feathers is much, much darker, and I feel that the shimmer in Peacock Feathers is finer.
Hey Enjoli!
Unfortunately, I don’t have Essence Chic Reloaded, but from the swatches that I looked up now to compare, I’d say that Chic Reloaded has a different finish. It looks more shimmery than Peacock Feathers, and Chic Reloaded looks lighter and has turquoise. Peacock Feathers is more of an inky type of shade.
Hope that helps!
Desperately looking for an old bottle, partial bottle, or full bottle of Nubar Peacock Feathers. I can’t find it anywhere!!! The last bottle I saw sold for $80 on EBay and I haven’t seen another all year! I notice you’ve had yours awhile, interested in selling some of it or trading? Know anyone else that might? Nubar says they had to discontinue it because the pigment isn’t available…..they are looking to find another pigment but it will “be awhile” but I can’t seem to find a site where I can post for someone to see it so I’m forced to write everyone, one at a time!
I got the nail polish bug after all the duochromes came and went!! I’m having to but them all with hefty price tags but I’m doing it!
Please let me know if you can help me.
Avemaria
Hey Maria!
Holy smokes that’s expensive! Hmm, as a collector, I really would like to keep my bottle, but if I ever come across a decently priced bottle of it, I’ll be sure to let you know. Sorry that I can’t be of more help!