Great Lakes Lacquer So Sweet And So Cold

Like From Darkness Comes Light, So Sweet And So Cold was released in January this year by Michigan-based indie polish maker Great Lakes Lacquer exclusively for members of the Hella Handmade Creations (HHC -- formerly Hella Holo Customs) Facebook group. Creator Mariah describes this one as "a light lilac based linear holographic boldened by holo micro flake and brightened with blue, purple, aqua, and green shimmer."

To my eye, the color here is more of a creamy, translucent, light-to-medium periwinkle gently underpinned by lavender. It's packed with a mix of metallic microflake shimmers in the colors of iridescence -- azure, purple, aqua, green -- that gleam within the base as light travels over them. Azure is the most prominent of these, and creates a glistening sky blue sheen along the axis of light. Abundant silvery holo flakes give the polish a delicately-flecked visual texture and light up in scattered, pasteled prismatic sparks in direct light, where there's a stealthy hint of a linear flare, mostly dispersed by the components.

Application was great! The consistency of So Sweet And So Cold is fluid, light and slightly fluffy with a medium-to-slightly-thicker viscosity and a smooth, self-leveling glide over the nail that went on best for me in medium coats. Pigmentation is somewhat sheer on the first coat, building to wearable opacity in two to three coats depending on how you paint. Cleanup is straightforward. So Sweet And So Cold dries naturally in very good time to a smooth, mostly shiny finish. Topcoat adds a becoming gloss and highlights the presence of the microflake shimmers.

Photos show three coats of So Sweet And So Cold over treatment and basecoat with a topcoat of Seche Vite.

Great Lakes Lacquer So Sweet And So Cold

Great Lakes Lacquer So Sweet And So Cold

Great Lakes Lacquer So Sweet And So Cold

Great Lakes Lacquer So Sweet And So Cold

Great Lakes Lacquer So Sweet And So Cold

Great Lakes Lacquer So Sweet And So Cold

Great Lakes Lacquer So Sweet And So Cold

Great Lakes Lacquer So Sweet And So Cold

Great Lakes Lacquer So Sweet And So Cold

Great Lakes Lacquer So Sweet And So Cold

Great Lakes Lacquer So Sweet And So Cold

The shimmers in this polish are easily visible on close scrutiny and add an unexpected artisanal touch that is both ephemeral and a little exotic. I love the periwinkle color for spring, especially with the additional oomph of the components. The holographic sparkle in the sun is so pretty -- reminds me of Easter!

love,
Liz

Colors by Llarowe Lion, Scarecrow, Tin Man

Lion Scarecrow Tin Man was released last month by Colorado-based indie polish maker Colors by Llarowe (CbL) as one of three custom, limited edition polishes created exclusively for members of the Hella Handmade Creations (HHC -- formerly Hella Holo Customs) Facebook group.

Described as an intense magenta purple holo with deep blue microflakes, the color is a vivid, saturated, medium-dark variation of red-violet with a purple lean, something along the lines of fandango. Holographic pigment gives it a glowing heart of electric violet in ambient light with a stealthy, glistening underlay of reddish steel pink, and enriches the color with nuances of fuchsia, dark magenta and burgundy. In the sun, the violet heart intensifies and there's a sparkling linear prismatic display predominated by azure and bright red.

Application was great! The consistency of Lion Scarecrow Tin Man is fluid, dense and smooth with a medium viscosity and a full-bodied, self-leveling slip over the nail. Pigmentation is outstanding, an unequivocal one coater. I used two like I always do, to fix lines left wanting after the first coat, but it made no difference to the look. There's some pigment travel with cleanup as you might expect from a profoundly saturated color. Lion Scarecrow Tin Man dries naturally in very good time to a slightly flat finish that wants a glossy topcoat to look its very best. 

Photos show two coats of Lion Scarecrow Tin Man over KBShimmer Love You Strong Time treatment and KBShimmer Fillin' Groovy basecoat with a topcoat of Seche Vite.

Colors by Llarowe Lion, Scarecrow, Tin Man

Colors by Llarowe Lion, Scarecrow, Tin Man

Colors by Llarowe Lion, Scarecrow, Tin Man

Colors by Llarowe Lion, Scarecrow, Tin Man

Colors by Llarowe Lion, Scarecrow, Tin Man

Colors by Llarowe Lion, Scarecrow, Tin Man

Colors by Llarowe Lion, Scarecrow, Tin Man

Colors by Llarowe Lion, Scarecrow, Tin Man

Colors by Llarowe Lion, Scarecrow, Tin Man

Colors by Llarowe Lion, Scarecrow, Tin Man

Colors by Llarowe Lion, Scarecrow, Tin Man

Sleek, feminine, dramatic and, I think, wildly romantic on the nail, this polish is the red-violet of my dreams. I can't even tell you how much I love it. Simply fantastic. 

From what I understand, this polish is similar to CbL Courage Brains Heart, so if you missed or can't lay your hands on Lion Scarecrow Tin Man, you could give that one a go. 

love,
Liz

Great Lakes Lacquer From Darkness Comes Light

From Darkness Comes Light was released last month by Michigan-based indie polish maker Great Lakes Lacquer as one of four custom, limited edition polishes for January 2018 created exclusively for members of the Hella Holo Customs Facebook group. Creator Mariah describes it as "a green leaning teal linear holographic with gold to bronze multichrome flake and shimmer that shifts from blue to purple."

The color is a semi-translucent, medium-dark variation of blue-green that is similar to ming from the Xona.com Color List, deep and mysterious. Holographic pigment creates lush nuances of ultramarine, cerulean and misty golden olive that dimensionalize the polish on the nail, over which the blue-to-purple color-shifting microflake shimmers cast a transparent blue-violet sheen. Small multichrome flakes glow in contrasting shades of bright yellow-green and bronze within the base as light travels over them, and combine with the luminous color-shifting microflake shimmers to give the look a rich, tapestried visual texture. In the sun, there's a glorious linear prismatic display, slightly dispersed from the components but extra sparkly because of them, with flame-shaped arcs of ultramarine, azure, yellow-green and reddish-orange.

Application was awesome! The consistency of From Darkness Comes Light is fluid, light and loamy with a medium-to-slightly-thicker viscosity and a fluent, self-leveling glide over the nail. Components go on smoothly and disperse beautifully without stacking or stickups. Pigmentation is very good, delivering fully opaque coverage in two to three coats depending on how you paint. I used three, and thought that it made the most of the polish's intrinsic richness. Cleanup was surprisingly easy, even with all of the tiny flakes. From Darkness Comes Light dries naturally in very good time to a smooth, shiny finish. Topcoat accentuates the presence and effects of the components and does not interfere with the holographic properties.

Photos show three coats of From Darkness Comes Light over treatment and basecoat with a topcoat of Seche Vite.

Great Lakes Lacquer From Darkness Comes Light

Great Lakes Lacquer From Darkness Comes Light

Great Lakes Lacquer From Darkness Comes Light

Great Lakes Lacquer From Darkness Comes Light

Great Lakes Lacquer From Darkness Comes Light

Great Lakes Lacquer From Darkness Comes Light

Great Lakes Lacquer From Darkness Comes Light

Great Lakes Lacquer From Darkness Comes Light

Great Lakes Lacquer From Darkness Comes Light

There's a lot going on in this polish and it all comes together splendidly for an especially luxurious look on the nail. I love how the multichrome flakes and microflake shimmers piece together like a minute, shimmering mosaic within the base to give the polish that rich visual texture -- they glisten like tiny, embedded gems and add an extra sense of opulence to the color, which is already pretty sumptuous. A gorgeous polish with a luxe, almost regal sensibility, it reminds me of Cleopatra. I think she would approve!

love,
Liz

Ellagee Nightspark

Like Heartstone, Nightspark was released this month by Texas-based indie polish maker Ellagee as part of a trio of custom, limited edition polishes for July 2017 created by Laura exclusively for members of the Hella Holo Customs Facebook group. This one is described as "a blurple linear holo with pink shimmer and multicolored iridescent flakes." The base color is a translucent darkish variation of denimy sapphire similar to liberty from the ISCC-NBS Dictionary of Color Names. Swimming within are beaucoup variously-shaped iridescent flakies, sized from tiny particles to relative large shardy flakes, which gleam brightly in rich, metallic jewel-toned hues as light hits them. Abundant finely-milled pink shimmers combine with the base color to give the polish a transparent royal purple glow in ambient light. The holographic properties come to the fore in the sun, creating a dazzling blanket of prismatic sparkle supplemented by brilliant jewel-toned sparks from the flakies.

Application was a deliberate, careful process. The consistency of Nightspark is fluid, full-bodied and somewhat bulky from the components, with a thicker viscosity to which I added polish thinner at the outset. By and large, the flakies go on smoothly and lay flat (I ended up with only one significant stickup), but some of them are quite sizeable, requiring a bit of care to position satisfactorily on the nail, and one or two were so disproportionately large that I quickly brushed them off altogether. Pigmentation is sheer by design, building to wearable opacity in three coats. I did my cleanup as I went along and had no issues. Nightspark dries naturally in good time to a shiny, textured finish, mostly smoothed by topcoat.

Photos show three coats of Nightspark over KBShimmer Fillin' Groovy basecoat with a topcoat of Seche Vite.

Ellagee Nightspark

Ellagee Nightspark

Ellagee Nightspark

Ellagee Nightspark

Ellagee Nightspark

Ellagee Nightspark

Ellagee Nightspark

Ellagee Nightspark

Ellagee Nightspark

Ellagee Nightspark

Ellagee Nightspark

Ellagee Nightspark

Ellagee Nightspark

Ellagee Nightspark

While the base color is an elegant and serene dark blue, the abundance of colorful flakies in concert with the pink shimmers and holographic pigment in this polish give it a certain sense of extravagance and a rich, ornamental quality that is much more complex in person than can be seen in a photo. In ambient light, the effect is kind of like looking at one of Monet's darker water lily paintings, an immersive waterscape of reflectivity and depth within which reside delightful splashes of color, disparate but entirely coherent to the scene.

love,
Liz

Ellagee Heartstone

Heartstone was released this month by Texas-based indie polish maker Ellagee Luxury Artisan Nail Polish as one of three limited edition custom polishes for July 2017 created exclusively for the Hella Holo Customs (HHC) Facebook group. This polish is officially described as "a soft quartz pink scattered holo with aqua blue shimmer and iridescent microglitter." The base color is a delicate, slightly dusky desaturated pink with a silvery aspect and a shimmering, sandy visual texture, both of which make it difficult to pin down the exact shade. It's cooler than champagne pink and warmer than misty rose, with a vibe than leans more to ballerina on the ballerina/princess spectrum. Superabundant finely-milled blue shimmers create a pale silvery blue gleam along the axis of light, and tiny iridescent microglitters twinkle in nacreous hues as light travels over them. In direct sun there's a stunning warm prismatic flush enriched by extra sparkle from the microglitters and a central swath of bright blue spangles from the shimmers, shading to a sleek queen pink at the sidewalls of the nail.

Application was a delicate matter. The consistency of Heartstone is fluid, full-bodied and dense with components with a medium-to-thicker viscosity that I added polish thinner to at the outset. Thinned, it had a fluent, self-leveling glide over the nail with a bit of tumbling on the part of the microglitters, and I found that a light, even touch works best to minimize the tumbling and keep the visual texture of the polish as smooth looking as possible. The shimmers do not show brushstrokes per se -- they are more like a medium with the potential to reflect tiny irregularities, such as a tumbled glitter or other unevenness, in the finish.

Pigmentation is somewhat sheer but bolstered by the components, producing evenly opaque coverage in two coats for shorties and three for longer nails. Cleanup is easy if you do it as you go along. Heartstone dries naturally in good time to a shiny finish with a very delicate discernible texture, easily and completely smoothed by topcoat, which also serves to accentuate the presence of the components.

Photos show three coats of Heartstone over basecoat with a topcoat of Seche Vite. They really don't do justice to the complexity of the polish, which is much more apparent in person. Also, the blue of the shimmers got a little lost in translation -- it, too, is much more apparent in person.

Ellagee Heartstone

Ellagee Heartstone

Ellagee Heartstone

Ellagee Heartstone

Ellagee Heartstone

Ellagee Heartstone

Ellagee Heartstone

Ellagee Heartstone

Ellagee Heartstone

Ellagee Heartstone

Ellagee Heartstone

Ellagee Heartstone

The mix of components gives this polish a layered, complex sort of light play that you don't usually see in a pale, bordering-on-nude pink holo. The look is silvery and ethereal in ambient light, more robust and holographic in the sun. The delicate visual texture of the finish and the transformation of the shimmers from a silvery blue gleam to a mist of brilliant blue sparks are especially remarkable, adding a distinct indie flavor to the feel of the polish.

love,
Liz