Lacquer Slacker Liz

Saturday, March 28, 2015

Different Dimension Sagitta

Sagitta was released by indie polish maker Different Dimension as part of the limited edition Shooting Stars series at the end of February 2015. Like Lyra, Sagitta is one of four bespoke polishes in this batch of Shooting Stars that are composed with a melange of multichromatic and sterling silver flakies in a linear holographic base. The base holo for Sagitta is a light silvery violet bearing irregularly-shaped multichrome flakies in a shifting mix of violet, purple and ultrmarine blue shades with an occasional splash of canary yellow plus a liberal pebbling of sterling silver flakes. The silver flakes are especially beautiful in this polish, dappling the darker colors with bright reflective flecks that catch the light like a glistening, delicate net. The overall effect is of a gleaming semi-metallic mosaic of pale violet and silver with accents of analogous colors and a delicious, intricate visual texture. In direct light, the holographic effects come out to play and let me tell you they don't mess around. The entire countenance of the polish morphs into an extra-sparkly linear prismatic flair.

Application of Sagitta was similar to Lyra, with a fluid, slightly gel-like formula that is dense with components but easy to use. It goes in an even, self-leveling manner with excellent component payoff. I experienced a bit more tumbling and stickups of the multrichromatic flakies with Sagitta than I did with Lyra, but the formulas are so alike that I'm chalking that up to user error. Two medium or three thin coats will net you beautiful opaque coverage. I used three coats for this manicure. I can almost guarantee you won't be needing much cleanup with this polish, it's that user friendly, but if you do swipe cuticle or sidewall it will clean up easily if you go ahead and do it as you go along instead of waiting until the polish is dry, when the flakies tend to get sticky. Sagitta dries naturally in good time to a smooth shiny finish with just a hint of texture from the components.

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

Different Dimension Sagitta

Different Dimension Sagitta, macro shot in the bottle

Different Dimension Sagitta

Sagitta is not overly flashy or ostentatious but it has the opulence of an embellished luxury fabric, a luxuriously complex mix of texture and shine woven together with light play and color. It's organic and random, but elegant. I love that about it.

The composition of ultra chrome and sterling flakies in an ultra holo base is a genius innovative take on the ever-popular progression of holo polishes. Missi, the owner and creative force behind Different Dimension, has taken the complex holo to a new level with this Shooting Star series, and her blends of newer, decidedly overt components with a linear holographic base are creative and unusual -- and they work!

Although this Shooting Star series is no longer available from Different Dimension, I've already seen them cropping up in destash sales on Storenvy.com. If you're into these complex holos and shimmolos and holochrome flakies with their mixtures of classic holo bases with added elements, I highly recommend seeking out one or more of the four polishes in this batch of Shooting Stars: Lyra, Sagitta, Agila or Hercules. You won't be sorry!

love,
Liz

Friday, March 27, 2015

Elevation Polish Lake of the Isles

Lake of Isles was released by indie polish maker Elevation Polish as part of the Minneapolish collection in February 2015. This is a perfect medium cornflower blue in a formula that Lulu, the owner and creative force behind Elevation Polish, is calling a gelly. It's a creme/jelly hybrid with a moderate degree of translucence that dries to a glossiness reminiscent of gel polishes. The color is at once vibrant and serene, the kind of hue you see in the reflection of a cloudless blue sky on the still surface of a body of water.

Application was great! The consistency of Lake of Isles is fluid, creamy and smooth, with a buttery flow over the nail and outstanding self-leveling properties. It's quite a user friendly polish, amenable to the kind of finagling I always seem to end up doing with my manicures: evening out edges and dabbing over smudges and such. Because of the translucent formula, the first coat is sheer and Lulu warns of patchiness but I found that it went on quite evenly with a light touch. She also advises to wait between coats, which I did. I've seen this polish provide even opacity in two coats, but I still had some thin areas after two so I used three coats for this manicure. Cleanup is easy and straightforward with little pigment travel and no residual staining. Gotta love a bright blue that doesn't stain! Lake of Isles dries naturally in good time to a slick glossy finish.

Photos show three coats of Lake of Isles over treatment and basecoat with a topcoat of Seche Vite -- sans bubbles (mostly), huzzah! I credit liberal additions of Seche Restore polish thinner with this minor miracle.

Elevation Polish Lake of the Isles

Even though it has an exceptionally glossy, reflective finish, Lake of the Isles has a luminous, porcelain-like translucence that gives it depth and dimensionality. Likewise, there's a certain softness to the color, a milky quality that keeps it from being too sharp. I'd call it a soft bright. It's a lovely, soothing color with a sense of happy possibilities, like a beautiful Saturday morning when you have the day to yourself. Lovely for spring!

love,
Liz

Thursday, March 26, 2015

Different Dimension Lyra

Lyra was released by indie polish maker Different Dimension as part of the limited edition Shooting Stars series at the end of February 2015. Shooting Stars are bespoke polishes that are only released once and are gone for good once they sell out. Lyra and the three others released in this batch of Shooting Stars have holographic bases bearing unusual complex mixtures of multichromatic and metallic flakies. The base for Lyra is a silver linear holo that is packed with a melange of cool, oceanic-toned multichrome flakies as well as sterling silver flakies. The prismatic hues of the holo display are studded by the shardy multichromatic flakes, which gleam in shifting colors of blue and green with flashes of violet, magenta and orange, and the whole shebang is pebbled with the sterling silver flakes, producing a richly textured, gleaming, dimensional tapestry of color and shine on the nail. Stunning and unexpected, this is a breathtaking composition.

Application was awesome. The consistency of Lyra is fluid, slightly gel-like and fluffy with components. It's extremely well-behaved, easy to manipulate with Different Dimension's flattened flexible brush and has a smooth, self-leveling flow over the nail. I experienced a few instances of flakie stick ups, but by and large they went on without undue tumbling and lay flat against the nail. The first coat is slightly sheer, but the polish builds easily to a wearable opacity in two coats. I used three for this manicure to see if the additional coat enhanced the look and I believe it did. Cleanup was easier than I was expecting, just a matter of sweeping away a few escapee flakes. Lyra dries naturally in very good time to a smooth, shiny finish.

Photos show three coats of Lyra over treatment and basecoat with a topcoat of Seche Vite. I recommend clicking on the photos for enlargements to see full detail of the amazing interactions between the holo effects and the components.

Different Dimension Lyra

Different Dimension Lyra, macro shot in the bottle

Different Dimension Lyra

I love the appearance of this polish in indirect light where you can clearly see the random dappling and colors of the components -- for a semi-metallic polish it's very organic. Reminds me of ceramic glazes and crushed gems or seashells. But Lyra is also a staggeringly gorgeous linear holo in direct sun, complete with the full rainbow contingent of colors. The flakies give it extra sparkle in that state and it is really something to see. I drove home from the gym with my hand out of the window in the sun and almost ran off the road. I couldn't take my eyes off of it.

So special!

love,
Liz