The first is Bourbon on the Rocks, a fabulous shimmer polish by Misa. Misa is a smaller mainstream polish and treatment manufacturer located in the US. They are a family-owned company and their products are vegan, carcinogen free and cruelty free.
I've read reviews online where Bourbon on the Rocks is identified as a blackened orange or red. I would say that it is a blackened auburn or reddish chestnut polish with super abundant crimson and copper microshimmer. The sheer black base darkens the polish at the edges of the nail as the microshimmer catches and refracts the light in the center, giving it that delicious "lit from within" quality. Provocative, luxurious and elegant -- this is one is seriously wowza.
Application was dreamy. The formula is thick but liquid and flows effortless onto the nail. Even in its liquid state this polish a light catcher, it is so reflective that it almost seemed like I was applying oil to my nails instead of polish. Bourbon on the Rocks dries naturally to a high shine. Photos show two coats of Bourbon on the Rocks over my basecoat duo of Seche Rebuild and Essie First Base with a topcoat of Seche Vite to speed the drying process, which felt longer than average to me.
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| Misa Bourbon on the Rocks, bottle shot |
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| Misa Bourbon on the Rocks |
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| Misa Bourbon on the Rocks |
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| Misa Bourbon on the Rocks |
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| Misa Bourbon on the Rocks |
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| Misa Bourbon on the Rocks |
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| Misa Bourbon on the Rocks |
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| Misa Bourbon on the Rocks |
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| Misa Bourbon on the Rocks |
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| Misa Bourbon on the Rocks |
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| Misa Bourbon on the Rocks |
Pretty darn glamorous! That shimmer is so deliciously silky looking I can hardly stand it.
If you look closely at the photos you'll see tip shrinkage on some nails. Short as they are, it's difficult to wrap the tips of my nubbins without making a huge mess so I've been skipping that crucial step. My bad, and I paid! When my nails are long enough for proper tip wrapping without painting my skin in the process, I'll redo Bourbon on the Rocks and take more photos.
Fuzzy totally swooned over this polish. I swatched a number of other polishes the day I swatched this but I don't think she ever forgave me for removing Bourbon on the Rocks. When I'd bring her other polishes to check out it all I got was, well I liked the first one better....
The next brown I have to show you is a glitter polish. It'd called Superstar and it's by Deborah Lippmann.
Superstar has abundant small bright copper square glitters in a jelly base that is a dark seal brown with charcoal tones to it. It has excellent coverage for a jelly glitter. I applied two coats over my basecoat due and was happy with that. The sparkly copper glitter gives this polish a festive, happy feel on the nail, not something you'd necessarily expect from a brown polish.
As many glitter jellies do, Superstar dries quickly to a finish that is textured from the glitter and needs a glossy topcoat to show it off properly. I used one coat of Gelous and one of Seche Vite to smooth the surface of the polish and add a glossy shine.
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| Deborah Lippmann Superstar |
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| Deborah Lippmann Superstar |
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| Deborah Lippmann Superstar |
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| Deborah Lippmann Superstar |
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| Deborah Lippmann Superstar |
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| Deborah Lippmann Superstar |
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| Deborah Lippmann Superstar |
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| Deborah Lippmann Superstar |
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| Deborah Lippmann Superstar |
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| Deborah Lippmann Superstar |
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| Deborah Lippmann Superstar |
Love how that new penny shine from the copper glitters looks so fresh and modern and convivial against the espresso base color! This polish surprised me, I didn't think I would love it like I do. I find it fetching in the extreme. So pretty!
The third and final brown on today's menu is Jewel from Nubar. Jewel has a greyed brown multichrome base densely packed with chunky holographic glitter particles. The base color shifts from a deep reddish golden brown to a bronzey taupe to a greyed purple depending on how the light hits it. The holo particles give the base a speckled look in the shade but pop their rainbow prismatic flair in any direct or indirect light. The aquatic green and blue sparks especially stand out against the base. This polish is a smorgasbord of visual stimulation!
Jewel is a fairly thin polish and needs at least two coats to bring out the richness of the base color. It's fairly opaque at one coat, but looks really washed out. The finish is highly textured due to the size and shape of the holographic particles. They are not flat platelets like you find in most holo polishes. This is real-for-true glitter, square-shaped and chunky at that. It doesn't need a topcoat if you don't mind the gritty texture (not dissimilar to Zoya's Pixie Dust polishes), but a nice thick topcoat brings out the colors more in my opinion.
Photos show two coats of Jewel over two coats of Layla Coffee Love (a linear holo that I experimented with in the middle of the night--don't ever do this!) topped with a coat of Poshe plus a coat of Seche Vite.
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| Nubar Jewel, bottle shot |
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| Nubar Jewel |
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| Nubar Jewel |
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| Nubar Jewel |
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| Nubar Jewel |
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| Nubar Jewel |
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| Nubar Jewel |
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| Nubar Jewel |
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| Nubar Jewel |
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| Nubar Jewel |
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| Nubar Jewel |
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| Nubar Jewel |
This polish sits lightly on the nails and can be regarded as a friendly medium toned neutral. But get it in the sunlight and it explodes with color. I have a lot of love for Jewel, it is one of the most interesting polishes in my collection.
As I was rooting through my collection looking for polishes for this post I actually came across another brown, a linear holo by Australian polish maker Glitter Gal called Belgian Chocolate. I've set that one aside for
Do you ever listen to the CD I made for you, Eleanor? I've got "Don't Worry Be Happy" playing on repeat in my head...
In your life there will be trouble
If you worry you make it double
Don't worry
Be happy
Don't worry be happy now!
love,
Aunt Liz
Elegant and understated, like them all.
ReplyDeleteI'd hoped you would! Let me paint your toe nails with Bourbon on the Rocks next time I visit?
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