Pretty Jelly Velvet

Velvet was released last month by indie polish maker Pretty Jelly as part of the Rich Fabrics Trio, a set of lacquers inspired by luxurious and detailed fabrics. I saw all three swatched a couple of weeks ago by the incomparable Melissa of Lacquer Reverie, and, stunned by their rich, interesting colors quickly made my to Liz's etsy shop and ordered them. I thought I'd begin with Melissa's favorite of the three, Velvet. Sadly, my photos are not on par with hers (you can see her pics of this polish here), so I'll do my best to describe this beautiful creation.

Liz, the owner and creative force behind Pretty Jelly, describes Velvet as a "charcoal scattered linear holo with strong blue undertones... [and] strong copper shimmer, and copper,red, and purple sparkles," a perfect list of the components -- but this polish is more than the sum of its parts. It has a medium-dark dusty, plush charcoal base with midnight blue undertones that read variously as blue or green depending upon the type and circumstance of light. On me, these undertones had a deep sea green appearance except for around the edges of the polish, where you could see a lively shaving of midnight blue. The holographic display in this polish is also quite lively and direct sun produces a gorgeous perfectly delineated prismatic display. In indirect light, the shimmers come to the fore, especially the beautiful copper ones, which grace the polish with elegant warm flashes of coppery gold. The purple shimmers are also quite apparent, especially noticeable during application, and add a bit of light purple to the flash of copper, a combination that is rich and striking. The mix of components is beautiful with the charcoal base, giving it a sprinkling of colorful sparks in low light when they don't have the holo flair to contend with.

Application was great. The consistency of Velvet is fluid, creamy and dense with a silky, self-leveling flow over the nail. It is easy to manipulate with Pretty Jelly's flattened, flexible brush. Pigmentation is very good, with a wearable opacity achieved in two coats. I used three for the photos. Cleanup is remarkably easy for a dark polish with shimmers, practically trouble free with no sticky shimmers left on skin, cuticle or nail. Velvet dries in very good time to a silky smooth finish that loves a glossy topcoat to pop all of its components.

Photos show three coats of Velvet over Seche Rebuild treatment and Pretty Serious All Your Base basecoat with a topcoat of Seche Vite.

Pretty Jelly Velvet

Pretty Jelly Velvet

Pretty Jelly Velvet

Pretty Jelly Velvet

Pretty Jelly Velvet

Pretty Jelly Velvet

Pretty Jelly Velvet

Pretty Jelly Velvet

Pretty Jelly Velvet

Pretty Jelly Velvet

Pretty Jelly Velvet

Pretty Jelly Velvet

Pretty Jelly Velvet

Pretty Jelly Velvet

Pretty Jelly Velvet

Between the holo pigment and the copper, purple and red shimmers you can see a lot of color commingling going on in this chic slightly edgy lacquer. The shimmers add a touch of warmth to the base that you don't normally see in a dark grey polish, much less one with blue undertones. It's a bit of comfortable luxury that infuses the personality of Velvet with a soft, heathered vibe. All bets are off in the sun, however. The prismatic flair is superb, far better than my photos show.

This polish reminds me a little bit of Superchic Lacquer's Baker's Hunger for a Bun in the Oven in it's construction, but that polish doesn't have the drama that the deep charcoal base brings to Velvet. They share that sweet copper shimmer and it's warm glow, though. Outstanding polishes, both!

love,
Liz