Cirque Colors Meet Me in Montauk

Like Key to Gramercy and Whitney, Meet Me in Montauk was was released at the beginning of last month by NYC-based indie polish maker Cirque Colors as part of the spring/summer addition to Cirque's ongoing Metropolis collection, a series of creme-finished lacquers dedicated to New York City. It's a white-based tint of azure, an Alice blue, so named as the signature color of Alice Roosevelt Longworth (1884-1980), oldest child of US President Teddy Roosevelt and a prominent socialite. Officially, the Alice blue tint is a combination of blue, grey and a touch of green, but it is so desaturated that the complexity is lost. I find this to be quite stark. It is lighter than OPNL's Going Coastal by a shade or two, and has a neon-like glow in the shade. 

Application was impressive, with a formula similar to stablemates Key to Gramercy and Whitney -- just outstanding for a white-based polish. The consistency of Meet Me in Montauk is fluid, creamy and dense with a medium viscosity and a luxurious buttery glide over the nail. It went on best for me in medium coats from a bead-loaded brush, but is quite amenable to thinner coats as well. Self-leveling properties are excellent but not entirely immediate -- give the polish a minute to level out, it will surprise you with its ability -- most helpful for when you need to patch a ding, dent or smudge (ask me how I know). Pigmentation is also excellent. There's a bit of streaking on the first coat but the second evens it all out for smoothly opaque coverage. Cleanup is easy and straightforward with a bit of pigment travel (white) that leaves no residual staining. Meet Me in Montauk dries naturally in very good time to a beautiful glossy finish. Topcoat amps up the gloss and further smooths any lingering unevenness to the coverage. 

Photos show two coats of Meet Me in Montauk over treatment and basecoat with a topcoat of Seche Vite. 

Cirque Colors Meet Me in Montauk

Cirque Colors Meet Me in Montauk

Cirque Colors Meet Me in Montauk

Cirque Colors Meet Me in Montauk

Cirque Colors Meet Me in Montauk

Cirque Colors Meet Me in Montauk

Cirque Colors Meet Me in Montauk

Cirque Colors Meet Me in Montauk

Cirque Colors Meet Me in Montauk

Cirque Colors Meet Me in Montauk

Meet Me in Montauk is nearly white, which kinda pushes the limits of my new pastel aesthetic and makes my fingers and hands appear exceedingly flushed in comparison. However it does give me some insight into the attraction of an all-white manicure... such a clean look and the feel is ultra chic. Like Jackie Onassis on a yacht in the Greek islands chic. A color this pale really accentuates the shape and length of your nails as well. This is a medium length for me, and I don't think it would look as good were my nails much longer.

In any case, this was worth experiencing for the formula alone. Not sure I'll keep it, but glad I got to try it.

love,
Liz