Lacquer Slacker Liz: ILNP Kings and Queens

Tuesday, February 9, 2016

ILNP Kings and Queens

Happy Mardi Gras, people! To celebrate, I bring you Kings and Queens, released by Nevada-based indie polish maker I Love Nail Polish (ILNP) as part of the Spring 2014 collection almost exactly two years ago. Doesn't seem like it's been that long, does it? Officially described as a deep and saturated burgundy, this venerable polish belongs to ILNP's Ultra Holo line of lacquers. I'm going to call the color a rich Mardi Gras purple slightly heathered with silver by superabundant fine holographic pigment. The holo effects are athletic and responsive in almost all circumstances, imbuing the base with fantastic shifting hues of glowing cobalt and deep red violet. In direct sun there's a dazzling linear prismatic flare featuring all of the rainbow colors that shades to a purpled burgundy around the edges of the nail. Cosmic!

Application was wonderful. The consistency of Kings and Queens is fluid, light and smooth with a thin-to-medium viscosity and a silky, self-leveling glide over the nail. This is a user-friendly polish that is amenable to thin or thicker coats and is easily manipulated with ILNP's flattened flexible brush. Pigmentation is outstanding, with opaque coverage in a single coat, but you'll want two for full richness of color and holographic effects. Cleanup is much easier than I expected, with relatively little pigment travel and almost no residual staining. Kings and Queens dries naturally in very good time to a smooth shiny finish. Topcoat does not appear to inhibit the holographic properties of the polish at all.

Photos show two coats of Kings and Queens over treatment and basecoat with a topcoat of Seche Vite.

ILNP Kings and Queens

Though not as glittery as a couple of the Mardi Gras manicures I've done in the past, this fantastic purple linear holo is regal and festive and well-suited to the day. It's supposed to be sunny, cool and breezy in New Orleans today, perfect weather for snagging some beads and partying in the Quarter!