Sally Hansen Mermaid's Tale swatch. DL Across the Universe dupe.

I think it's pretty safe to say that Across the Universe, made by the illusive (and usually very pricey) Deborah Lippmann, is definitely something that many ladies (and men!) lust after. Well, that was me for a while, until I discovered Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure's polish appropriately named Mermaid's Tale.

It was offered to me in a swap and the person mentioned that it was a dupe. Well, if that didn't get me on board with it, I don't know what would have. I'm not exactly one who is ready to go drop $20 on one polish that I'm not absolutely guaranteed to love on my nails, so when this swap came in the mail...I just about lost it.

This is 3 coats of Mermaid's Tale with two coats of Seche Vite.

Now, I've got to apologize for my fingers (and my poor, poor cuticles) that are in terrible condition since I just finished cleaning my car from top to bottom. Also, this is this mani's third day of wear!

Application was average for a glitter polish considering I had to make multiple strokes in order to get more glitter in the middle of my nails. This is definitely a polish that is easily built to opacity. If I wanted a more watery look, I could have stopped at 2 coats, but I went for a third since I wanted to see the depth.

Though I didn't try it, I can imagine it would look a lot darker with some black beneath it.

Unfortunately, I don't own Across the Universe to do a swatch comparison with, but I'm sure there are many swatches out there on the web. ;) From my searching, it seems to be a nearly spot on dupe.

Frankly, if you can't justify spending the money for the DL, I'd say go with Mermaid's Tale. You know, you could always lie and say it is the DL...;)

Sally Hansen Mermaid's Tale can be found at stores such as CVS, Walgreen's, Target, and Walmart.