I found a source for us to differentiate the original version of OPI nail polish and the fake one! Here it is, taken from http://smaltiopi.blogspot.com/ -> thanks a lot for your post. Hope this will help.. :)
1. The COLOR
The most simple and easy to understand if the enamel is original or not is to see whether the color matches the name or not: this should be "Funky Donkey" which is purple, but it's a kind of blue instead => FAKE!
To check, put the name of the glaze on Google or here to see the original color.
2. The INSCRIPTIONS
The label written in front must be precise and not crooked.
- watch carefully the character is written with a 5, because it is very special.
- The letter is raised and a little rough, if you try to scratch or clean the bottle with the solvent, it doesn't ruin compared to the imitations that rubs off easily.
- On the back, there must be 4 symbols, if they miss one or are not in the same order as original => FAKE! However, the disposal of old collections (before 2000) do not report the last symbol.
3. The BALLS
Inside the bottle of the original OPI, there are two balls, if they aren't => FAKE!
4. The BOTTLE'S COVER
The original one is rough.
The top of the cover is rough as well and has a dot in the letter "P" of the word OPI.
Inside, the brush of the original one is not smooth, but serrated. But, in this case, the enamel of the old collections are different, but the imitation does not resemble anything.
The brush of the original one also has OPI word inside (You have to clean it to be able to see it).
5. The LABEL
Under the bottle, there are two types of labeling:
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or:
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If yours does not have one of them => FAKE!
6. SERIAL NUMBER
All the bottles have a number engraved at the top of the bottle, I could not take a picture of it because it's quite difficult to see. But, if you look carefully, you'll find it. If there is or is written rather than engraved => FAKE!
So, be careful to buy OPI next time, especially when you get it for cheap price. Just make sure you check the color first through the website to at least guarantee they have the same colors.
hi dear. i dont know which country u're from. but im from Singapore. and ive checked the Leadin deptmental stores in sg. and certain colors do have 3 symbols. only certain colors have 4symbols. :)
hi... yes, I wrote that the old collections don't write the last symbol as well :)
Sorry, if I wrote the wrong thing.
hi there!!i'm the owner of smaltiopi.blogspot :)
i'm happy that my post helped someone and that you did a translation (i'm so lazy :D)do you speak italian?how did you find me?
i'm just curious...
ciao from italy!!!!
Hi :)
How r u?
Unfortunately, I can't speak italian. hehe.. I also accidentally found you. I think it's through OPI page in facebook if I'm not wrong ^^
Thank you to let me copy and link your post to mine. hehehe... It helps a lot.
Hi. i know it's been a while. But i just bought teenage dream online from a distributor and it only has 3 symbols at the back. Does that mean it's fake?
Great post, we buy a lot of OPI and this is very useful information for us. SHame we cannot see the last pic of the number. i still cant find this one n the bottles. but thanks so much for the hard work and great descriptions on OPI Nail Laquers and polish.
Hi OPI Bangkok, no problem. I am happy that this post can help people because I love OPI as well :)
Hi dear,
This is a very useful post.
But may I know what does this mean?
"watch carefully the character is written with a 5"
Thanks!
Hi,
it's for the number 5, the character is very special so it looks different between the fake and the original :)
hope this helps.
How does the fake actually compare to the real one in terms of quality? Would you say that getting a bottle of fake lacquer for maybe $5 instead of the exorbitant $20 is worth while? I'm just wondering whether you feel that these fakes are a decent alternative to buying other brandless lacquers if they function well and if not better than some other cheaper brands.
Hi, I am not sure how the fake compared to the original one. But, I will prefer to get the original one.