Wednesday, February 14, 2018

Painted Polish The Upside Down

How about some black and red for Valentine's Day?

The Upside Down was released in October 2016 by California-based indie polish maker Painted Polish as one-half of the Stranger Things Duo, two polishes inspired by the American science fiction/horror web television series Stranger Things. This is a black jelly filled with multi-sized bright red hex glitters. The base is well-pigmented for a jelly and pure licorice black. Bright red glitters have an eerie, ember-like glow within it, with an occasional red spark when the light hits a glitter just right.

Application was great! The consistency of The Upside Down is fluid and full-bodied with a thicker viscosity to which I added polish thinner at the outset. Thinned, it had a fluent, easily-controlled glide over the nail with some tumbling on the part of the glitters but no stacking or stickups. Glitter payoff is very good, as is pigmentation. Wearably opaque coverage can be had in two coats, although I added a third to ensure the non-appearance of my nail ridges. I did my cleanup as I went along and had no issues, but those glitters are sticky! The Upside Down dries naturally in very good time to a shiny, textured finish. I smoothed it out as best I could with a generous layer of glitter-smoothing topcoat followed by a layer of quick-dry.

Photos show three coats of The Upside Down over ÜNT Ready for Takeoff peelable basecoat with a topcoat of Girly Bits Glitter Glaze followed by a layer of Seche Vite.


Painted Polish The Upside Down


Painted Polish The Upside Down


Painted Polish The Upside Down


Painted Polish The Upside Down


Painted Polish The Upside Down


Painted Polish The Upside Down


Painted Polish The Upside Down


Painted Polish The Upside Down

This could go either way, pro or con, you know? It works for those who like a little goth with their hearts and flowers, and it works, even better perhaps, for the cynical and romance-weary among us. I love Lexi's interpretation of the toxic, slimy, spore-filled atmosphere of the upside down in the show. Pitch black, with red sparks for danger!

love,
Liz

4 comments:

  1. This is super pretty. The red shows through a lot than I expected since the base is so dark.

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    Replies
    1. I'm glad you like it, Cynthia!

      I was actually a little dismayed by my photos. The light play in this polish is such that while it shows the red similarly to how it looks in the photos, it's a constantly changing look and with every movement the red will show in a new way, so it really feels like you see more of it. You know what I mean? It's just one of those polishes that that doesn't easily translate with a still image.

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  2. Totally! I feel like crying every time my pictures fail to capture a shift that makes the polish so special irl.

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    Replies
    1. I think you do quite well! Your blog photos are beautiful! Some folks just seem to have a knack for capturing shifts, but I'm not one of them. *lol* I love to see them, though.

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