Like many of you, I put in my pre-order for a bottle of The Magician with much anticipation and immediately turned my attention to selecting the base color to use with it. Darker colors are the logical choice to best bring out the magical shifting hues of red, orange and green, so black was an obvious contender. But even as I ordered I had in mind a deep blue-purple, specifically Right as Reign from KBShimmer. Described as a deep, bold purple with blue and indigo undertones, the color is a dark, sultry variation of violet that closely resembles the web color indigo in most lights, but in the sun brightens and becomes something much more overtly colorful, sort of like hybrid of resolution blue or navy with French violet.
The Magician is rather unprepossessing in the bottle. At least, is is to me! It's a translucent yellowy/beige-y/off-white color with a silky, creme rinse sort of visual texture and beaucoup sparkly particles shifting between what I think of as opal colors: red, orange, gold and green. Mostly they read as a bright red-orange, but you can see a bit of green in the bottle as well at certain angles in the sun.
It applies beautifully. The consistency is fluid and smooth with a medium viscosity and a fluent, silky-smooth, self-leveling slip over the nail that is amenable to thin or thicker coats as preference dictates and does not run or pool. The colorshifting particles disperse effortlessly and evenly and do not show brushstrokes. I think that under most circumstances, one coat is plenty to see the effects, but I used two for the photos as I wasn't sure how well I would be able to capture this pigment in action, an apprehension that as you will see turned out to be well-grounded. The Magician dries naturally in good time to a smooth, shiny finish. Topcoat seems to intensify the presence and effects of the particles.
Photos show two coats of The Magician over a base manicure of Right as Reign with a topcoat of Seche Vite. I was unable to capture the polish's full nature and range as it appears in person, so my pics are a disappointment in that respect and I apologize if, like me, you find them underwhelming. I harbor a mix of admiration and envy for those whose remarkable photos show all of its colors! But I also believe that there's a certain intimacy to the scope of this magical lacquer that does not lend itself readily to any still image.
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| ILNP The Magician over KBShimmer Right as Reign |
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| ILNP The Magician over KBShimmer Right as Reign |
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| ILNP The Magician over KBShimmer Right as Reign |
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| ILNP The Magician over KBShimmer Right as Reign |
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| ILNP The Magician over KBShimmer Right as Reign |
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| ILNP The Magician over KBShimmer Right as Reign |
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| ILNP The Magician over KBShimmer Right as Reign |
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| ILNP The Magician over KBShimmer Right as Reign |
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| ILNP The Magician over KBShimmer Right as Reign |
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| ILNP The Magician over KBShimmer Right as Reign |
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| ILNP The Magician over KBShimmer Right as Reign |
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| ILNP The Magician over KBShimmer Right as Reign |
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| ILNP The Magician over KBShimmer Right as Reign |
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| ILNP The Magician over KBShimmer Right as Reign |
In spite of my photos, I do love the look of this topper over the rich indigo color of Right as Reign. It reads mostly as a suspended, shimmering mist of red with a very subtle milky quality that I think serves to enhance its mystical, rarefied nature. At very oblique angles to your light source, you can also see orange, gold and finally green, but the red is just gorgeous and displays a beautiful sparkle in the sun.
Probably the most amazing photos of The Magician that I've seen so far are Sabrina's in her review on Nail Art Sakura, where she swatches it over black and purple. I expect we'll get to see many more pics as folks try it out over various colors and post their photos in ILNP's fan Facebook group, ILNP Lovers Anonymous. Not a member? Join! I've found it to be an active, enthusiastic, welcoming place and you get plenty of exposure to all things ILNP, especially exciting when new collections are released. Like now!
love,
Liz
Thank you, Liz, for this post! I am awaiting mine, and I'm SO very anxious - but in the meanwhile I'll drool over your swatches & pictures should that be OK with you?? LOL :)
ReplyDeleteI'm thrilled you chose to swatch it over something other than black! and you are so very right, as soon as I'd finished ordering it I was contemplating which base colour I'd be using when the time came :)
You're so welcome, Cath! Drool to your heart's content!
DeleteFrom what I've been seeing on Facebook, people are swatching this over just about every sort of color and finish. Seems like it does especially well over deep pinks, berries and reddish colors as well as blues and purples.
I also swatched it here over a brighter, less purple-toned blue and while I didn't select that base for the post, it turned well -- the particles had a more pinkish tone than the red you see in my photos, and shifted to gold more readily. One aspect I found especially interesting is that the effects become more prevalent as the polish cures, so reserve your immediate judgment and give it some time to see how it develops.
I wrote this post before I had a chance to see the manicure at night under various kinds of artifical light. It is really something! The glow and color of the pigment is even more intense and the changes it makes to the base color more pervasive than it is in natural light, which was a delightful surpise. Enjoy!