ILNP Greatness and Glory

Greatness and Glory were both released by Nevada-based boutique polish maker I Love Nail Polish (ILNP) as part of the Fall 2015 collection this past September. Greatness is classified as one of ILNP's Ultra Chrome line of multichromatic polishes and Glory as one of the Ultra Chrome Flakies. They are sister multichromes sharing the same color shift from burgundy/magenta to orange/gold with a far edge of green. I've long wanted to try a multichromatic flakie over a multichrome but just couldn't figure out which to choose from ILNP's abundant offerings until this nicely matched pair came along. 

Depending upon the angle of light, Greatness seems to be happy to stay in its burgundy/magenta range, with the orange/gold colors occasionally providing a flush of warmth and green sneaking in along the edges of the nail. The strongest shifts in colors can be seen at oblique angles. I rather like the burgundy/magenta state of Greatness, the color is rich and glamorous and all you need to do to freak someone out is tilt your nails a bit in direct light. It applies very smoothly and is easy to work with. Sheerness on the first coat disappears with the second, although I added a third to ensure the non-appearance of my nail ridges, always a risk with a metallic finish. Most of the brushstrokes that can be seen during application melt away as the polish dries. I found cleanup to be a bit tricky because this polish contains ultra fine dark particles that are easily swept into the cuticles and sidewalls during cleanup only to reveal themselves later under the macro lens. Ask me how I know. Greatness dries naturally in average time to a smooth, shiny finish.

Photos show three coats of Greatness over treatment and basecoat with a somewhat bubbly topcoat of Seche Vite.

ILNP Greatness

ILNP Greatness

ILNP Greatness

ILNP Greatness

ILNP Greatness

ILNP Greatness

ILNP Greatness

ILNP Greatness

ILNP Greatness

ILNP Greatness

ILNP Greatness

The bazillion flakies in Glory provide an almost infinite number of individual surfaces for the color shift to work through, each at its own specific angle, so more colors present themselves at any given time compared to Greatness alone. I love seeing the tiny flakes abutting one another like a miniature mosaic, each one its own tiny exemplar of multichromatic color-shifting properties. Glory also applies smoothly and is easy to work with, especially if you're applying it over a base. The flakies were startlingly sparse at one coat. Two coats are better, but I didn't get the look I wanted until I applied the third coat, by which time I had quite a bit of polish on my nails, with topcoat still wanting. But the polish compacts as it dries, and I wasn't unhappy with the look. Cleanup is a pain, and I didn't do such a great job with it. Once loosed by acetone, those flakies will go wherever they please and adhere like limpets to skin, cuticle and nail alike. Glory dries naturally in fairly good time to a mostly smooth finish with only the slightest discernible texture from the flakies, easily smoothed with a layer of topcoat. 

Photos show three coats of Glory over the Greatness manicure above, plus topcoat.

ILNP Glory over ILNP Greatness

ILNP Glory over ILNP Greatness

ILNP Glory over ILNP Greatness

ILNP Glory over ILNP Greatness

ILNP Glory over ILNP Greatness

ILNP Glory over ILNP Greatness

ILNP Glory over ILNP Greatness

ILNP Glory over ILNP Greatness

ILNP Glory over ILNP Greatness

ILNP Glory over ILNP Greatness

ILNP Glory over ILNP Greatness

Like I said, I prefer Glory's interesting visual texture of the flakies and their "group effort" multichromatic effects over the gleaming metallic sleekness of Greatness, but I'm sure I wouldn't have the patience to sponge it on to get this look on its own. So I'm glad to have them both. To cut down on the total amount of polish next time, I'll stick with two coats of Greatness without topcoat and apply the multiple coats of Glory over that. I do wish that the flakies in Glory were a bit more dense, but that would probably result in application issues. As it was I had no trouble with stacking or tumbling or even protrusions over the free edge. Creator Barbra is by now a virtuoso par excellence in the behavioral minutae of multichrome flakies, and I bow to her wisdom and formulary skills. 

Shockingly, my two resident critics didn't share opinion of these two polishes and professed their love for Greatness without the untoward addition of Glory's flakies, even in the face of my most eloquent reasoning ("But look! It's tiny flakes!"). Fuzzy finally admitted, begrudgingly, that the flakies did provide a certain amount of "pizazz," but John only gave me a series of incrementally more quizzical looks. When he finally dropped his jaw and rolled his eyes back in his head, I gave up. 

Sometimes it's rather lonely being the only polish enthusiast in the house.

sigh,
Liz