Literary Lacquers Soul Within Me Burning

Like Manna's Majestic Masterpiece, Soul Within Me Burning was part of the April 2016 edition of The Color Box, a quarterly blogger-driven collaboration box that focuses on a single color for each release. The color for April 2016, the inaugural box, was purple. Today's polish was designed by Jen of xoxo, Jen in collaboration with Amy, owner and creative force behind New-Mexico based indie polish maker Literary Lacquers, and was inspired by Edgar Allan Poe's famous and influential 1845 narrative poem "The Raven."

Back into the chamber turning, all my soul within me burning,
Soon again I heard a tapping somewhat louder than before.
“Surely,” said I, “surely that is something at my window lattice;
Let me see, then, what thereat is, and this mystery explore—
Let my heart be still a moment and this mystery explore;—
’Tis the wind and nothing more!” 

Amy and Jen describe Soul Within Me Burning as a "deep vampy purple holo with coppery orange sparkle and shift." The base color is a rich, mysterious byzantium purple with aspects of mulberry, swimming with orange microflake shimmers that read as bright flashes of red-orange and vermilion within the base and create a cloudy, smoldering coppery orange underlay. Abundant finely-milled holographic pigment together with the sparkling shimmers give this polish a twinkling aspect in ambient light, and in direct sun there's a slightly dispersed linear prismatic flare predominated by arcs of indigo and azure, spangled with brilliant orange and red sparks from the shimmers. 

Application was most agreeable! The consistency of Soul Within Me Burning is fluid and full-bodied with a medium-to-thicker viscosity to which I added a squirt of polish thinner. Thinned, it has an easy glide over the nail with a bit of tumbling on the part of the microflake shimmers, but no stickups, stacking or protrusions over the free edge. It's a rather fast-drying polish that doesn't appreciate being overworked. Pigmentation is excellent, nearly a one-coater, delivering even, opaque coverage in two coats. Cleanup is fairly straightforward with some pigment travel and a skosh of residual staining. Soul Within Me Burning dries naturally in very good time to a smooth, shiny finish with a bit of visual texture not discernible to the touch that is completely integrated with a glossy topcoat. Topcoat does not appear to interfere with the holographic properties of the polish in any way.

Photos show two coats of Soul Within Me Burning over treatment and basecoat with a topcoat of Seche Vite. 

Literary Lacquers Soul Within Me Burning

Literary Lacquers Soul Within Me Burning

Literary Lacquers Soul Within Me Burning

Literary Lacquers Soul Within Me Burning

Literary Lacquers Soul Within Me Burning

Literary Lacquers Soul Within Me Burning

Literary Lacquers Soul Within Me Burning

Literary Lacquers Soul Within Me Burning

Literary Lacquers Soul Within Me Burning

Literary Lacquers Soul Within Me Burning

Literary Lacquers Soul Within Me Burning

Literary Lacquers Soul Within Me Burning

Literary Lacquers Soul Within Me Burning

Literary Lacquers Soul Within Me Burning

This tempestuous sparkler is an excellent homage to its inspiration and the poetic, poignant name suits it beautifully. If you've never read "The Raven" out loud, you should try it! The musicality of the meter intrinsically shapes a dramatic delivery, it's really fun!

I was sharing a couple of Roja Dove fragrance samples from Surrender to Chance (a veritable wonderland for perfume enthusiasts) with Fuzzy today when she caught sight of Soul Within Me Burning. "Purple is the new black!" she said happily, giving it her seal of approval. I know a polish enthusiast or two who would most certainly agree, eh Melissa? ;)

Soul Within Me Burning is now available for purchase in Literary Lacquers' etsy shop, or will be once the shop reopens after the 18th of August. 

love,
Liz