Chanel Le Vernis 615 Sweet Lilac- Collection Reflets d'Ete de Chanel Summer 2014

I was waiting for Collection Reflets d'Ete de Chanel Summer 2014 with baited breath just for the new Le Vernis shades.  Let's be honest, when was the last time that there were 5 new Le Vernis (ok, 1 repromote which was never available outside of Asia and Chanel.com)? Chanel has been rather stingy with Le Vernis releases as of late.  There was 1 for Collection Variation, 0 with the online collection, 2 for spring, and 1 for holiday.  I've been wanting some new Le Vernis in my life!

I'll bring you the five polishes from Collection Reflets d'Ete de Chanel Summer 2014 over a total of four posts (I combined Tutti Frutti and Pink Tonic on one nail wheel).  I've chosen Sweet Lilac to start because I have a soft spot for purple polishes, and because I haven't seen an in-depth review of it online yet.

Sweet Lilac is a lovely Lilac shimmer with hints of red shimmer in the bottle that doesn't translate to the bottle. It appears to be the creme cousin of the discontinued Lilac Sky, which I've had such a lemming for lately (and have been restraining myself from using). Of the 5 Le Vernis, it feels spot-on at this moment. I probably will actually wear it to Easter services next week!

It looks lovely and perfect for spring on the nails (3 coats, with Butter London Nail Foundation and Hardware top coat):

The red shimmer and undertones really popped when I turned on the camera's flash:

For obvious reasons, I can't speak to longevity and wear time with this shade. I will note that it's more like the Le Vernis releases we've seen in the past seasons rather than Tutti Frutti, Mirabella, and Pink Tonic from this collection (I'll touch on their formula in the next few days). I get several days' wear from Chanel Le Vernis in general.

The big question is: How does this compare to Lilac Sky?  Simply put, it's more of a creme where Lilac Sky had a frosty/metallic edge to it.  Here are the two bottles, side-by-side.

They're even closer when they're swatched.  I've purposely put them side by side in the overall comparison. This was the year of Radiant Orchid, so I have plenty of other light purples to compare. I've swatched a few that I thought were probably the closest.

Unsurprisingly, Chanel Lilac Sky is the closest. They're both red-based purples.  Laura Mercier Reckless was more opaque and deeper from the first coat, Butter London Molly Coddled is too blue-toned, and Dior Lilac Colorvision is too light and blue compared with the two Chanels.

Overall, I find this shade perfectly on-trend (as usual, for Chanel), and it's a great addition to my collection. I have 50+ bottles of purple nail polish, and it's unique.

Chanel Le Vernis retails for $27, and Collection Reflets d'Ete de Chanel Summer 2014 is due to be released by 1 May.  I spotted the collection early at Neiman Marcus.