Maybelline Color Show #280 Plum Paradise

Size: .23 fl oz/7 ml
Price: $2.89
Source: Walmart


This was a splurge I picked up because I didn't really have any purple in my stash, and I wear a lot of it. I believe that this was on clearance, but it was just kind of tossed in an unmarked bin.

The color is a rich, pearly, royal purple that I love. When it comes to applying it, however, it's a bit of a challenge. For the first coat, I tried to go really thin -- well, that left lots of horrible streaks, and passing over an area that was already painted even a few seconds later was a big mistake. I discovered on the second coat that the best option was to glop it on a bit thicker and then spread it out as quickly as possible.

It does dry quickly, which is a plus, and there's a lot of shine to it. I used 3 coats for these swatches.

I think that Plum Paradise would do better layered with something else--over a black or white, for example. White would really brighten it up and add a whole new dimension to the color, but it would probably also make the uneven application even more noticeable.
I wore this color for a day and a half, but even for that short of a time this color didn't really hold up. By the time I took it off, it was showing tip wear on almost every nail (and that's with both a base and a top coat), some of the nails had gouges in the color. It seems that this polish is very soft, even when dry, and just my daily routine left nicks and scratches in the color.

Over all, I'm not impressed. I might continue to use this color (as I said, layered over something else, and probably with two coats of top coat, just to be safe), but I really wouldn't purchase it again and I'm glad I paid less than $3 for it.