Battle of the "Penny" Polishes [Part 2]

In my last Battle of the "Penny" Polishes post I ranted about how much I disliked Revlon's "Copper Penny." With Ulta's recent BOGO sale I decided to pick up Butter London's "The Old Bill," a color described as "a burnished copper nail lacquer with a beautiful antique patina." I picked it up, hoping it would be the color I wanted "Copper Penny" to be.

(photographed [L to R]: Essie "Penny Talk," Butter London "the Old Bill," Revlon "Copper Penny")

Though I include the swatches of Butter London's "the Old Bill" and Revlon's "Copper Penny" aside Essie's "Penny Talk" for comparative purposes, this post will focus mainly on the Revlon and Butter London. For more photos of Essie's "Penny Talk," you can find Part 1 here.

(photographed [L to R]: Essie "Penny Talk," Butter London "the Old Bill," Revlon "Copper Penny")

From the swatches, it's clear that Essie's "Penny Talk" has a different finish than the other two. Butter London's "the Old Bill" and Revlon "Copper Penny" are much more similar. However, even then, "Copper Penny" has stronger orange tones in it.

(photographed [L to R]: Essie "Penny Talk," Butter London "the Old Bill," Revlon "Copper Penny")

Revlon "Copper Penny"

If the orange tones weren't easy to see in the swatches above, you can certainly see them below.

(photographed: Revlon "Copper Penny")

I've said it before but I'll say it again, Revlon's "Copper Penny" has too much orange to be flattering against my skin. This polish is a strange combination of orange and ground-up silver.

(photographed: Revlon "Copper Penny," 2 coats, natural lighting)

My overall opinion of Revlon's "Copper Penny" is dislike. I've worn this polish a few times but fail to keep it on my nails for longer than 24 hours due to it's unflattering look on my hands.

Butter London "The Old Bill"

When I initially saw Butter London's "the Old Bill," my first thought was how much more brown this shade was than "Copper Penny."

(photographed: Butter London "the Old Bill")

Up close "the Old Bill" actually looks remarkably similar to "Copper Penny," just less orange. And as a result, it is much more flattering on my nails.

(photographed: Butter London "the Old Bill," 2 coats, natural lighting)

The formulation of this polish was fairly smooth and easy to apply. Two coats did the trick.

(photographed: Butter London "the Old Bill," 2 coats, direct sunlight)

Final Verdict: I am happy with my choice to pick up Butter London's "the Old Bill." It looks much better with my skin tone and was exactly what I was hoping Revlon's "Copper Penny" would be. If you dislike Revlon's "Copper Penny" for the same reasons, than I recommend you take a look at Butter London's "the Old Bill."