Emily de Molly Calibrated

This past August, I featured Emily de Molly Ariel's Realm from the Back to Base Trio here on the blog and mentioned my desire to possess its collection-mate, Calibrated, as well. Calibrated wasn't available at Emily de Molly USA at the time, but guess what? That's right, it is now and I finally have it in my greedy grasping paws. The third polish of the trio, The Rapture, is for sale as well. Like I said yesterday, the shop is stocked!

This trio was released back in December of 2014. All three polishes possess a jelly base bearing multichrome flakie and holographic microglitter components. Calibrated is a Byzantium purple, quite dark but unmuddied and clearly recognizable as purple, especially with its abundance of pink holographic microglitters, which read as magenta through the base and brighten it to a glistening royal purple along the axis of light. Swimming within are also multichrome flakies in blue, green, pink and purple, with the blue being most visible. The components give this regal purple lacquer a shimmering, dimensional countenance with a magenta flash, scattered prismatic sparkle and tiny pops of color that gleam like little jewels when light hits the multichrome flakies just right.

Application was great! The consistency of Calibrated is fluid, light and smooth with easy, self-leveling glide over the nail. The components are by and large very well-behaved, with no stickups or stacking and scant protrusions over the free edge. Pigmentation is excellent for a jelly-based polish, with wearable coverage achievable in two coats. I added a third to ensure fullest color and most even opacity. Cleanup is fairly straightforward, but you may have to chase down some of the tinier components. Calibrated dries naturally in good time to a shiny, gently textured finish that smooths out nicely with topcoat.

Photos show three coats of Calibrated over treatment and basecoat with a topcoat of Seche Vite. For a better idea of the component effects, click on the photos and view the enlargements.

Emily de Molly Calibrated

Emily de Molly Calibrated

Emily de Molly Calibrated

Emily de Molly Calibrated

Emily de Molly Calibrated

Emily de Molly Calibrated

Emily de Molly Calibrated

Emily de Molly Calibrated

Emily de Molly Calibrated

Emily de Molly Calibrated

Emily de Molly Calibrated

Emily de Molly Calibrated

We're without sun today with heavily overcast skies and (more) rain, but I think there will be some nice sparkle action under clear skies with sunlight penetrating that translucent purple base. The component effects in Calibrated are more subtle than its sister polish Ariel's Realm, which I'm guessing is due to the base being more strongly pigmented. It's a beautiful, resonant dark purple, though, with a rich visual texture and maintains its purpleness even in very low light. Nice!

ttyl,
Liz