Lacquer Slacker Liz: red

Showing posts with label red. Show all posts

Friday, June 8, 2018

Grace-full Nail Polish Angry Pixie

Angry Pixie was released towards the end of last month by Australian indie polish maker Grace-full Nail Polish as part of the Faraway collection, seven lacquers inspired by The Faraway Tree, a series of popular novels for children by British author Enid Blyton (1897-1968).

Officially described as a red jelly with red metallic microflakes, the base color is a brilliant, saturated, medium-dark crimson that's warmed by the red microflake shimmers to more of a glowy fire engine red appearance. Those microflakes also give it a bit of that reflective, semi-metallic quality in ambient light, and create a twinkling, raspberry-colored sparkle along the axis of light in the sun.

Application was wonderful. The consistency of Angry Pixie is fluid, light and smooth with a medium consistency and a fluent, silky, self-leveling slip over the nail, a gorgeous, user-friendly formula that is just what I've learned to expect from the brand. Pigmentation is very good to excellent for a jelly and delivers completely even, opaque coverage in two coats. Cleanup is fairly straightforward with a bit of pigment travel as you might expect from a well-saturated red, and the microflakes do like to stick to the nail. Angry Pixie dries naturally in very good time to a smooth, slightly satiny sort of finish. Topcoat adds a becoming gloss.

Photos show two coats of Angry Pixie over treatment and basecoat with a topcoat of Seche Vite.

Grace-full Nail Polish Angry Pixie

Nothing seems to elicit my exaggerated covet response more powerfully than bright red nail polish. Honestly, I'm like Pavlov's dog for it. The MOMENT I came across the first swatches of this polish on Facebook, I went right to Grace-full's international site and ordered. It just arrived yesterday and I couldn't wait to get it on my nails. I'm delighted to say that it is every bit as beautiful and intense as I hoped it would be, a fabulous, showy, bright red shimmer for all seasons and occasions (and perfect for the holidays -- never too early!). Love!

xo,
Liz

Saturday, May 26, 2018

Girly Bits No Fawkes Given

As of April this year, Hella Handmade Creations (HHC), formerly Hella Holo Customs, has upped its game in a big way. There is now a dedicated Hella Handmade Creations online store, where artisanal offerings by indie polish makers will be available for pre-order for a week-long window each month. You no longer need to be a member of HHC to purchase, and there will be handmade products other than nail polish available. Featured makers sign up for a series of monthly offerings centered around a theme of their choosing. Find out more about scheduled online store openings, featured makers and what products will be offered by joining HHC on Facebook!

No Fawkes Given was created by Pam of Canadian Indie Polish maker Girly Bits exclusively for the April 2018 HHC online pop-up, which ran from 14-21 April. Pam chose Harry Potter as her HHC product theme, and this polish was inspired by Fawkes the phoenix, Albus Dumbledore's animal companion, proxy, messenger and defender. It is described as "a bright red scattered holo with a golden/copper shimmer, and a slight sprinkling of gold holo microglitter."

The base color is a medium-dark crimson that is warmed by the golden/copper shimmers to more of a dense, cedary vermilion or chili red appearance with aspects of copper, flame and persimmon. It is bold, complex and intensely fiery on the nail, where finely-milled holographic pigment nuances it with hues of crimson, rust and fire brick and creates a subtle sparkly flush of orange and gold in ambient light, complemented by twinkling red, orange and gold sparks from the microglitters. In the sun, the look is blanketed with brilliant scattered prismatic sparkle in every rainbow color.

Application was most agreeable! The consistency of No Fawkes Given is fluid and surprisingly light with a medium viscosity and a fluent, smooth, self-leveling glide over the nail, a wonderful, eminently-paintable formula that is a pleasure to work with. Pigmentation is very good, netting completely even, opaque coverage in two coats. Cleanup is straightforward with a skosh of pigment travel and a little bit of shimmer and glitter stickiness. No Fawkes Given dries naturally in very good time to a smooth, shiny finish.

Photos show two coats of No Fawkes Given over treatment and basecoat with a topcoat of Seche Vite.

Girly Bits No Fawkes Given

Cue the heart emoji! First, a round of applause for the name of this polish -- so clever and funny! If that alone isn't enough to generate heartfelt appreciation, the look does it with gusto -- an unconventional rusty red radiating all kinds of lively sparkle and shimmer, absolutely gorgeous! With its holographic effects, shimmers and microglitters, it's a complex, multifaceted extravaganza of fiery goodness. As perfect as it could possibly be!

love,
Liz

Monday, May 14, 2018

A-England Peaseblossom A Fairy

Continuing with A-England's Shakespeare's Fairies collection, today's polish is Peaseblossom A Fairy, officially described a violet red hologram with additional iridescent glimmer. The color is a bold, well-saturated, medium-dark red-violet, a lush, berried purple-ish red shade that's about 3/4 of the way between red and magenta on the color wheel, closer to magenta than red. It's saturated enough to nearly swallow the holographic effects in ambient light, but reveals a beautiful prismatic flush in bright direct light featuring a flame-shaped flare of bright red and indigo sparks.

Application was excellent. The consistency of Peaseblossom is fluid and smooth with a medium-ish viscosity that is slightly thicker than the other Shakespeare's Fairies, and I added a little bit of polish thinner to my bottle at the outset. Thinned, it had a fluent, velvety, self-leveling glide over the nail that was opaque in one medium coat, although I used two like I always do. There's some pigment travel with cleanup but little to no residual staining. Peaseblossom dries naturally in very good time to a smooth, shiny finish.

Photos show two coats of Peaseblossom A Fairy over treatment and basecoat with a topcoat of Seche Vite.

A-England Peaseblossom A Fairy

Adore!! Red-violet polish is always among my favorites for the poignancy of the color and the fiercely feminine, romantic sensibility it evokes. It just seems to have this amazing, almost untamed kind of vitality, making for an irrepressibly lively, dramatic manicure that simply brims with panache. Superb!

love,
Liz

Saturday, March 24, 2018

Zoya Tawny

Tawny was released in mid-October this past fall by Zoya as part of the Party Girls collection for winter/holiday 2018. It's officially described as "a deep, coppery rose sparkling metallic," which I think is quite accurate except that I would add "shimmer" after "metallic." The base is a translucent, medium-dark, rich, rosy Indian red kind of color, a little brighter, pinker and not quite as heavy as rust although it does have a rusty aspect. Superabundant, highly-reflective metallic microflake shimmers read in shades of gold, flame and pink from within the base, giving the polish a finely-grained visual texture with a radiant semi-metallic quality that has a fine, piecey sparkle.

Application was most satisfactory once I'd clipped a few wonky bristles from my brush. The consistency of Tawny is fluid, light and smooth with a medium consistency and a plush, self-leveling glide over the nail. Pigmentation is a little sheer and streaky on the first coat but will build to wearable opacity with the second if you're using medium to thicker coats. I added a third to ensure the absence of any sheer spots in my photos, and the color seems richer and more fiery that way. Cleanup is easy. Tawny dries naturally in fairly good time to a smooth, shiny finish.

Photos show three coats of Tawny over treatment and basecoat with a topcoat of Seche Vite. The polish is darker and more red in my pics than it appears in person.

Zoya Tawny

I think this is gorgeous! The color is uncommon, a fiery mix of red, rose, and flame with a dash of magenta for good measure. It's especially brilliant in the sun where it's alive with fine, twinkling sparkle and a bright swath of coppery pink along the axis of light.

love,
Liz

Tuesday, March 13, 2018

Colors by Llarowe Dirty Diana

Dirty Diana was released in August 2013 by Colorado-based indie polish maker Colors by Llarowe as part of the Tribute to Michael Jackson collection. Described simply as "a magenta holo," the color is a deep purple-berry shade along the lines of dark magenta, with red-violet aspects. Powerfully holographic, it exhibits some sort of prismatic effect in almost all circumstances, and sports the delicious, delicately-grained visual texture common to holos. Rich hues of violet, plum and claret nuance the base in ambient light, with a gleaming, semi-metallic underlay of red violet. In direct light, there's a bold, sparkling linear holographic flare predominated by azure and bright red.

Application was fantastic. The consistency of Dirty Diana is fluid, dense and smooth with medium-to-slightly-thicker viscosity to which I added a touch of polish thinner at the outset. Thinned, it still retained a good bit of body, with a plush, velvety, self-leveling glide over the nail. Pigmentation is excellent. Had I not thinned it, I believe it would qualify as a one-coater for many -- I used two. Cleanup is straightforward. Dirty Diana dries naturally in very good time to a smooth, shiny finish that takes topcoat beautifully with no interference to the holographic effects.

Photos show two coats of Dirty Diana over treatment and basecoat with a topcoat of Seche Vite. It's heavily overcast and snowing here, so my pics aren't as sharp and clear as I would like them to be -- my apologies! But you guys know holos well enough to imagine the potential.

Colors by Llarowe Dirty Diana

Gorgeous!

Back in the day when Dirty Diana was released, great holographic indie polishes like it, while no longer a rarity, were still new enough to provoke amazed delight from polish enthusiasts and bloggers compared to earlier days. Many reviews that I read noted happily the qualities that had been lacking not so very long before, stuff like opaque coverage, smooth application without balding or patching and topcoating without fear of dulling the holo effects. It reminded me of just how much innovation, improved quality and creativity indie polish makers have brought and continue to bring to the practice of nail adornment. I am so grateful! It's a great time to be painting your nails!

love,
Liz

Sunday, March 11, 2018

Tonic Polish Marilyn

Creator Lindsey of Tonic Polish originally developed Marilyn, also known as Promo F17-2, as a special giveaway polish for Polish Con 2017 in Chicago last September, but has now made it available to all in Tonic's online shop.

Described as a "neon magenta with orange shimmer," the base color is a translucent but vivid, medium-dark cool pink with hints of purple, similar to Hollywood cerise. Superabundant, finely-milled orange shimmers read as fiery red-orange within the base and give the polish a luminous, silky visual texture. The dueling intensities of the cool base color and warm shimmers create a near-fluorescent, maraschino-esque effect similar to what you see in pink and red neons, and combine to produce a bold, saturated, glowing electric crimson appearance with aspects of coquelicot or poppy. Stunning!

Application was wonderful. The consistency of Marilyn is fluid, dense and smooth with a medium viscosity and a deliciously creamy, even, self-leveling glide over the nail. Pigmentation is sheerish on the first coat but builds to a wearably opaque coverage with two, although I think that three makes the most of the brilliant color. Cleanup is easy. Marilyn dries naturally in good time to a smooth, ever-so-slightly flat finish. Topcoat adds a becoming gloss and has a sort of cohesive effect, smoothly incorporating the shimmers and accentuating the intensely vibrant, luminous appearance of the polish on the nail.

Photos show three coats of Marilyn over treatment and basecoat with a topcoat of Seche Vite.

Tonic Polish Marilyn

There's a silky "creme rinse" quality to the shimmer effects that gives them a touch of old school resonance, a certain subtle pearliness that is part of the polish's luminosity and hearkens to a vintage kind of vibe, yet the look has an artisanal freshness that is totally modern. I dunno, difficult to describe but I am so digging it. A resplendent creation!

love,
Liz