Whilst I was desperately seeking Turned Up Turquoise, I ended up buying a bottle of China Glaze’s Passion In The Pacific to fill the tropical turquoise void in my life. Well, you know, the one that hadn’t already been filled by Essie’s Turquoise & Caicos.
I initially thought Passion In The Pacific would be a shimmery zingy emerald to Turned Up Turquoise’s true turquoise hue – but in fact, they ended up as much closer cousins than I would have imagined. Just like Turned Up Turquoise, Passion In The Pacific becomes a lush jewel-toned turquoise in the brightest artificial white light and just like Turned Up Turquoise, it’s a standard summery palm tree green practically any time otherwise.
The main difference is the finish. Whilst Turned Up Turquoise has that trademark semi-matte finish of most neons, Passion In The Pacific is a definite ocean-in-the-sunlight shimmer. I’d even be tempted to call it a frost, if it didn’t seem utterly strange calling a colour evocative of beaches, summer and sarongs something so cold, stark and wintry.
I had all kinds of problems with it though. I don’t know if this is because Passion In The Pacific is an older polish so has a different formula than the China Glazes I know and love or if I just got a dodgy bottle, but it was dishearteningly difficult to work with. Extremely thin, watery and streaky, prone to air bubbles, looooong drying time and brush-strokey finish when dry. I hated it. As usual with polishes I hate, that meant it decided to stay with a vengeance – I managed a full week chip-free before I finally caved in and ditched those mocking air bubbles.
Under bright artificial light (plus flash)
The colour pay-off is a nice summer bright but probably not that unique – if I’d have known that it was so similar to Turned Up Turquoise, indeed if I’d have known I’d find Turned Up Turquoise in the first place, I probably wouldn’t have bothered. After all, there are enough top coats in the world that could probably recreate that oceanic shimmer, except without all the application problems and maybe look even better.
In short, Passion In The Pacific is a great summer colour – but only if you can’t find any other similar alternatives! Looks like he’ll be enjoying his beach-side cocktail on his own!
Looks good with: tropical brights, bikinis, cocktails with umbrellas in
Drying time: 10 mins
Coats required: 3-4
Chips: +7 days
China Glaze Passion In The Pacific nail polish, Spring/Summer 2006 Fiji Fling Collection, $60, Cher2
Through The Looking Glass 