Tuesday, August 23, 2016

Femme Fatale Arrival of Venus

Like Heavenly Raiment, Arrival of Venus was released at the end of July/beginning of August this year by Australian indie polish maker Femme Fatale Cosmetics as part of the Birth of Venus collection, inspired by Early Renaissance Italian painter Sandro Botticelli's The Birth of Venus. Described as a burnt orange linear holo, the color is a softened Spanish orange that is heavily silvered with finely-milled holographic pigment, giving the polish a beautiful shimmering silky look. Holographically-generated hues of red-violet and misty apricot shade and dimensionalize the base color in ambient light, and in direct sun there's a sparkling prismatic display with nicely delineated  arcs in all of the rainbow colors framing a central blaze of bright coppery orange and deepening to burnt orange around the edges of the nail.

Application was amazing. The consistency of Arrival of Venus is fluid, full-bodied and incredibly creamy with an eminently-paintable medium viscosity and a near-effortless, buttery, self-leveling slip over the nail. Really lovely! Pigmentation is slightly sheer but very even and builds quickly to wearable opacity in two coats. I added a third for the photos. Cleanup is easy. Arrival of Venus dries naturally in very good time to a smooth, shiny finish. Topcoat does not inhibit the holographic properties of the polish in any way. 

Photos show three coats of Arrival of Venus over treatment and basecoat with a topcoat of Seche Vite.


Femme Fatale Arrival of Venus


Femme Fatale Arrival of Venus


Femme Fatale Arrival of Venus


Femme Fatale Arrival of Venus


Femme Fatale Arrival of Venus


Femme Fatale Arrival of Venus


Femme Fatale Arrival of Venus


Femme Fatale Arrival of Venus


Femme Fatale Arrival of Venus


Femme Fatale Arrival of Venus


Femme Fatale Arrival of Venus


Femme Fatale Arrival of Venus


Femme Fatale Arrival of Venus


Femme Fatale Arrival of Venus

The color is softer and more mellow than I was expecting in ambient light, although it does brighten up considerably in the sun. The holographic effects in this polish are stunning, and I adore the shimmering silky look they create. Complex holos like Chrysoprase, Ink of the Sea and Ruby Hare were what first drew me to Femme Fatale so I'm happy to see holos in this collection even without the intricacies of the earlier ones. Sophie does them so beautifully.

love,
Li

4 comments:

  1. I am DROOLING! Who knew an orange polish could be so exquisite. Hahah, of course, it's not just orange, though!

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    1. I think this polish would suit you to the ground, Lara. The color is slightly muted and very sophisticated for an orange, and there's a soft pearly shimmer to the semi-metallic finish in person that my photos didn't quite capture.

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  2. What impressed me most about this polish, looking at collection pics, is how much it emulates the unique, gold-washed hues of Renaissance art, all summed up in a single color. A fun polish for late summer, early autumn! None of the other swatches really compelled me, but when I saw it on you I changed my mind. You definitely wore it best!

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    1. You sweet! I was expecting a more saturated color from this polish, but the way it turned out was a perfect homage to Bottecelli's painting. It's quite photogenic -- in person, my pinkage didn't quite do it the justice it deserves. It's probably divine (humor, ha!) on a warmer skin tone, and you're right, it's a lovely one for late summer.

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