Saturday, February 22, 2014

American Apparel Mouse

Mouse was part of American Apparel's foray into nail polish, released with other core polishes late in 2009, and is still part of their line up. It is a medium-light taupe creme, nicely balanced between grey and beige.

I have a small herd of American Apparel polishes in my collection and Mouse is the lightest color I own. It doesn't apply as beautifully as the darker ones, in my opinion, but one coaters are a hard act to follow! The consistency is fluid, light and a little sheer, and so goes on sheerly and a little unevenly. Opacity must be built and I used three coats before I was happy with the coverage. In particular, the self-leveling quality of Mouse was not what I'd hoped based on my experience with other American Apparel lacquers, and part of the reason for needing three coats was to bring my nail ridges into submission. Mouse dries naturally fairly quickly to a glossy finish.

Photos show three coats of Mouse over treatment and basecoat with a topcoat of HK Girl.

American Apparel Mouse

American Apparel Mouse

American Apparel Mouse

American Apparel Mouse

American Apparel Mouse

American Apparel Mouse

American Apparel Mouse

American Apparel Mouse

American Apparel Mouse

American Apparel Mouse

I think Mouse is a particularly well-balanced taupe and works pretty well with my cool-toned coloring. In keeping with the other American Apparel polishes I've tried, the finish is lovely and is enhanced by the addition of topcoat but it is glossy enough not to need topcoat if you didn't want to use it for whatever reason. 

If you're looking for a lighter taupe to balance out some of the darker ones in your collection, I'd definitely recommend this one. It's a nice creamy neutral that's wearable all year round.

love,
Liz

2 comments:

  1. This is a delightful nude! Looks very sophisticated on you!

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    1. Thithi you darling! Thank you, I have a hard time finding pale cool-tone neutrals that aren't too stark. I think I got lucky with this one!

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