ILNP Maiden Lane
Maiden Lane was released by boutique polish maker I Love Nail Polish (ILNP) as part of the Fall 2015 collection. This gorgeous, seventeen-piece collection was available for pre-order in early September before being released for general sale on ILNP's website at the beginning of this month. Whimpering and helpless before so many ravishing polishes, I ended up pre-ordering eight of them, which I will share with you here over the next couple of weeks.
Maiden Lane is classified as one of ILNP's Ultra Holos, linear holos that contain larger-sized shard style holographic flake shimmers in addition to finely milled holo pigment. Creator Barbra describes this one as an upscale charcoal grey with subtle blue undertones. Let me say at the outset that this polish is so packed with holographic goodness and its omnipresent prismatic issuance that it's a little tough to pin down the exact nature of the base color. From what I can tell, it's a gentle chromatic grey along the lines of slate that is silvered into a medium-toned cool storm cloud kind of grey with soft blue shadings that are especially noticeable in bright indirect natural light. The prismatic effects are visible at all times, even in the dimmest of circumstances, with sparkling veils of color slipping over the nail according to the orientation of light and a sweet coppery pink flash under incandescent lighting. The linear flare in direct sun is mind-blowing -- uber sparkly and fully linear with a sharply defined flame-shaped display that twinkles with every rainbow color and floats over a central flash of gleaming, semi-metallic greyish coppery pink.
Incidentally, I really love the name of this polish. It would make a great name for a racehorse.
Application was fabulous. The consistency of Maiden Lane is fluid, light and smooth with a silky glide over the nail and excellent self-leveling properties. A user friendly polish, it's amenable to thin or thicker coats and is easy to manipulate with ILNP's flattened flexible brush. Pigmentation is buildable. The color deepens with each subsequent coat, but the highly light-refractive nature of the abundant holographic components allows for wearable coverage in two medium coats. I used three coats for fullest development of the base color. Cleanup is easy and straightforward, although the shardy holo flakes do like to travel. Maiden Lane dries naturally in good time to a smooth shiny finish. Topcoat does not diminish the holographic effects of this polish in any way.
Photos show three coats of Maiden Lane over treatment and basecoat with a topcoat of Seche Vite.
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There are some incredibly beautiful photographs of Maiden Lane in online reviews of this collection. Two reviews that I'd definitely recommend taking a look at if you're interested are lakkomlakkom and Glitterfingersss -- both with numerous photos that will take your breath away!
This is certainly an in-your-face kind of holo with its powerful, pervasive effects but there's also a certain gentility to be found amidst all the sparkle, which I credit to the base color. Grey has a certain dignified elegance to it and the blue nuances give its formality a little lift. It's inherently transitional, which makes it a perfect shade for fall.
Beautiful!
love,
Liz
This is a perfect grey holo. I think it's quite elegant-looking. I'm not a fan of grey on me, but it looks very nice on you. :)
ReplyDeleteThank you, Melissa. I do love this polish despite the fact that the grey base color feels like it can barely contain so much holographic rowdiness. It's especially beautiful in low indirect light, which brings out a certain aluminum-like reflective quality in the grey. It's a more serious look.
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