Dior Vernis Smoking Plum 987 Nail Polish

I'm about to do my nails for the weekend, and since I'm in a Dior mood the color I grabbed is Dior Vernis Smoking Plum 987. This isn't a summer color (I bought it in January or February), but dark plums have always been my thing. In the last couple of weeks I've been wearing strong colors on my hands and pale nudes on my toes (so they don't compete with my shoes and sandals. Besides, I have big flat feet- not necessarily something to enhance).

Smoking Plum (or Smoky Plum, I've seen it listed under both names, but in any case it's 987 or Prune Smoking in the French version) is a deep somewhat brownish red plum. To achieve the plummy shade you see in the bottle you will need three coats and some patience- this polish is prone to nail disasters if you don't make sure each coat is thoroughly dry. One coat is too streaky and a little too red, as you can see in the swatch. Two coats are fine and give a full coverage, just not as intense as the color appears in the bottle.

There is no visible shimmer when the polish is applied to the nails, though the bottle hints there is more to Smoking Plum than appears in first glance. It's the complexity of Dior colors- a certain glow that makes them special and stand out among similar shades. I just wish wear time was as spectacular. I always chip this color within a day or two.

Bottom Line: pretty.

Dior Vernis Smoking Plum 987 Nail Polish ($21) is available on dior.com and some counters (if I remember correctly, I bought this bottle at my local Nordstrom).

All photos are mine.