Creator Cassie describes Wicked Always Wins as an emerald holo, particularly accurate given the lush, saturated quality of the color. It's a medium-dark jewel-like emerald green, bold and vibrant with just the perfect breath of blue to it. It is suffused with a bevy of analogous holographically-nuanced hues: jungle, forest, myrtle, pine, teal and shamrock greens enrich and dimensionalize the base color in almost all viewing circumstances. In direct sun, there's a brilliant linear holographic display with a central lick of deep intense cerulean bounded by a sparkling band of bright emerald with a corona of spring green sparks before shading to a deeper forest green around the edges of the nail.
Application was fantastic. The consistency of Wicked Always Wins is fluid, full-bodied and dense with a thicker viscosity and a luxurious flow over the nail. After yesterday's success with All My Failings Exposed, I have a new appreciation for this sort of formula and finally get the "thick in a good way" used by polish enthusiasts to describe it. Wicked Always Wins appreciates a deliberate hand and a well-loaded brush. Self-leveling properties are excellent and pigmentation is outstanding with wearably opaque coverage in a single coat. Adding a second, though, will take fuller advantage of the native richness of the color and its holographic aspects. Cleanup was, as with yesterday's polish, surprisingly trouble-free, with some pigment travel but much less residual staining that you might expect from such a saturated shade. Wicked Always Wins dries naturally in good time to a smooth shiny finish. Topcoat builds the shine to a vitreous gloss, adding to the depth of color without detracting from its holographic nature in any way.
Photos show two coats over treatment and basecoat with a topcoat of Seche Vite.
 |
| Lemming Lacquer Wicked Always Wins |
 |
| Lemming Lacquer Wicked Always Wins |
 |
| Lemming Lacquer Wicked Always Wins |
 |
| Lemming Lacquer Wicked Always Wins |
 |
| Lemming Lacquer Wicked Always Wins |
 |
| Lemming Lacquer Wicked Always Wins |
 |
| Lemming Lacquer Wicked Always Wins |
 |
| Lemming Lacquer Wicked Always Wins |
 |
| Lemming Lacquer Wicked Always Wins |
 |
| Lemming Lacquer Wicked Always Wins |
 |
| Lemming Lacquer Wicked Always Wins |
It's interesting to me that Carrie chose this beautiful emerald shade for her tribute to Zelena (which apparently is the word for green in several Slavic languages). In an interview about Once Upon A Time, actress Rebecca Mader -- who plays Zelena -- said that at least seven shades of green are used to create her green skin. From photos that I've seen, that look is much more virulent and Oz-like than this lush verdant emerald. I haven't seen any episodes of Once Upon A Time beyond the first two seasons, but I'm thinking that there must be certain sympathetic and admirable aspects to her character despite her wickedness. Please correct me if I am wrong!
I am lucky enough to have several great emerald greens in my collection, but I think that Wicked Always Wins is perhaps the most brilliant and complex of them all. Green polish lovers, take note!
ttfn,
Liz
I am woefully behind on my OUAT- but reading this post, I'm inspired to catch up on it again! I'm actually having a hard time recalling Zelena's season, though I do remember her as having little inclination to redeem her wickedness. Though it is not always a bad quality, as this polish proves- your nails look so delightfully and elegantly wicked in the dark, mysterious green of an enchanted forest at midnight ☆
ReplyDeleteAh well, the strength and beauty of this shade is such that I felt the need to hypothesize. Cassie is passionate about color and seems to take a great deal of care when she connects a particular hue with her inspiration, so I wandered as I wondered. ;)
DeleteAn emerald is said to to bestow eloquence upon the wearer -- do you perchance have one of these gems ensconced somewhere on your person? Inquiring minds!
Haha, do they really?? My grandma loves emeralds, and wears a little one always that my grandpa bought her in Ecuador. Myself, I love aquamarine, moonstone, green amethyst, and the like most of all :D Regarding gemstones, I am particularly inspired by J.K. Rowling's goblin-made tiara, wrought of silver and laced with diamonds and moonstones. Were I to make a Harry Potter collection, a tiara polish would certainly make the list!
DeleteYour photos took my breath away! This polish is stunning! Another Lemming beauty.
ReplyDeleteOncers have a lot of love for Zelena - she makes such a delightfully wicked villain! I get the feeling they think that she might, in the end, go for redemption. About everyone has given up on (villain) Rumple/Gold - he always chooses (magic) power (not to mention the lying and occasional killing!) over Belle. Too bad - I have been fascinated with the actor's portrayal of this character since the beginning.
Thanks, Lara! I can't say enough for Lemming Lacqer's holos, the formulas have a degree of translucence that is jelly-like but are very creamy and well-pigmented. They really make the most of a color, and Cassie chooses such great ones.
DeleteI loved Robert Carlyle, the actor who plays Gold, when I saw him in the British crime drama Cracker around twenty years ago (doesn't seem like that long, gosh!) on public television. He played the antagonist, a deranged killer with this intensity that was fantastic! Did you ever any episodes of that show? So good! The three-part epiode with Robert Carlyle in it especially so, critics called it the best of the whole series.
The role of Zelena was actually written for Rebecca Mader, I read. She must be having a ball! The next time I visit my sis and get access to her Roku I'm going to catch up on Once Upon a Time. I love the premise/concept of the show and adore Ginnifer Goodwin (Big Love!) and Jennifer Morrison (House!), so I really enjoyed the first two seasons.