Illyrian Polish Vampire Squid

Vampire Squid was released earlier this year by Texas-based indie polish maker Illyrian Polish as part of the Sea Monsters collection. Described as a deep cherry red jelly with red holo glitter, red shimmer and purple iridescence, the color is a deep saturated red-violet that is rich and vibrant despite being dark. Abundant bright red holographic glitters ignite within the base as they catch the light, accompanied by copious purple iridescent microflake shimmers and red shimmers that twinkle brightly in concert, producing a splendid dimensional "galaxy" look on the nail. Gorgeous!

Application was ok. The consistency of Vampire Squid is fluid and dense with components, with a thick viscosity to which I added several squirts of polish thinner at the outset. Thinned, it went on most easily in medium coats from a well-loaded brush, with a considerable amount of tumbling on the part of the components as well as protrusions over the free edge that I guided back onto the nail with a tip-wrapping swipe. No stickups, though! Pigmentation is very good, delivering evenly opaque coverage in two coats. I did most of my cleanup as I went along while the polish was still wet  to avoid the hassle of trying to remove the glitters and shimmers that like to stick once it dries. Otherwise, very little pigment travel or residual staining. 

Vampire Squid dries naturally in good time to a flat, textured finish. For a glossy "glitter under glass" look, I double topcoated using first a dedicated glitter-smoother, allowing it to partially dry before finishing up with a layer of Seche Vite. 

Photos show two coats of Vampire Squid over KBShimmer Love You Strong time treatment and Pretty Serious All Your Base basecoat, finished with a coat of Pretty Serious Plump Up the Volume followed by Seche Vite. 

Illyrian Polish Vampire Squid

Illyrian Polish Vampire Squid

Illyrian Polish Vampire Squid

Illyrian Polish Vampire Squid

Illyrian Polish Vampire Squid

Illyrian Polish Vampire Squid

Illyrian Polish Vampire Squid

Illyrian Polish Vampire Squid

Illyrian Polish Vampire Squid

Illyrian Polish Vampire Squid

Illyrian Polish Vampire Squid

Love this look so much! The color and sparkle are divine! Or, as Fuzzy says, "Wicked!" I've been sitting here doing thumb curls under the lamp just to watch the sparkle. It's mesmerizing.

I wouldn't want to try and apply this without thinner on hand, and even though it's not the smoothest applying polish I think that the end result is worth any trouble it gives. I absolutely recommend using a dedicated glitter-smoothing/gel effect topcoat or double topcoating or whatever your strategy is for making a textured finish smooth and glossy, it really accentuates the polish's glamorous qualities.

love,
Liz