Wednesday, May 10, 2017

KBShimmer The Girl is Tiki

The Girl is Tiki was released in March this year by Indiana-based indie polish maker KBShimmer as part of the Nauti by Nature collection. I didn't order this one initially, but the unusual color occupied my thoughts to the point where I had to go back and get it. I'm so glad I did!

Officially described as "an orangy pink leaning peach" holographic, the color is a medium coppery pink with a strong dusky quality and aspects of bittersweet and tea rose, kind of like a coppery tango pink. It's a somewhat paradoxical polish -- the color itself has a low-key, almost neutral sensibility, but abundant finely-milled holographic pigment creates a brightly-gleaming, semi-metallic finish, with a sleek swath of metallic coppery pink along the axis of light surrounded by a shimmering bloom of misty violet. Beyond that, the holographic effects are powerful and ubiquitous, illuminating the polish with a noticeable linear prismatic flare in almost any light. It is, in a word, delicious.

Application was equally delicious. The consistency of The Girl is Tiki is fluid, light and very smooth with a medium viscosity and fluent, silky, self-leveling slip over the nail, a gorgeous formula (just as you'd expect from this brand) that is a joy to manipulate with their slightly bushy, flattened-style brush. Pigmentation is excellent, almost a one-coater, but you'll want two to make the most of the holographic effects. I actually used three, mostly because I simply wasn't ready to stop studying the color but also to ensure the non-appearance of the ridges on a couple of nails, which tend to display a bit of a faceted appearance with semi-metallic finishes. Cleanup is easy. The Girl is Tiki dries naturally in very good time to a smooth, shiny finish. Topcoat does not affect the holographic properties of the polish in any way.

Photos show three coats of The Girl is Tiki over treatment and basecoat with a topcoat of Seche Vite. The holographic effects kind of hijacked the camera here. The look is more integrated in person.


KBShimmer The Girl is Tiki


KBShimmer The Girl is Tiki


KBShimmer The Girl is Tiki


KBShimmer The Girl is Tiki


KBShimmer The Girl is Tiki


KBShimmer The Girl is Tiki


KBShimmer The Girl is Tiki


KBShimmer The Girl is Tiki


KBShimmer The Girl is Tiki


KBShimmer The Girl is Tiki


KBShimmer The Girl is Tiki

I absolutely adore this! Something about the tension between the dusky, softened qualities of the unusual color and the brilliance of the holographic effects makes every tiny detail of the look stand out -- the sleek gleam of copper that graces the finish, the shimmering beauty of the rainbow colors in the flare, the exquisite contrast of the holographically-generated bloom of violet with the rusty/rosy/coppery base. It is super flattering on the nail, too, much more so than you would think from looking at it in the bottle or even swatching it on a palette. Just a gorgeous, graceful holographic creation!

Must have, people! If you love copper for your nails, you will love this polish. If you love linear holos, you will love this polish. If you love ambiguous, unusual colors, you will love this polish. It's like a little bottle of pure nail polish heaven! 

xo,
Liz

2 comments:

  1. Gah! Liz!!
    I've been eye-balling this one since I first saw this collection, and *tried* to tell myself I didn't need it. Just yesterday, I left it on my Wish List (again!) as I closed out my cart at a Canadian on-line polish store. Darn!! Had I seen your post first, it would have fallen off the wish list & into the cart!
    I haven't been able to get this one out of my mind either....and your swatch, pics & description just solidified its future purchase :-)

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    Replies
    1. *lol* I was the same way, Cath! I should know by now that if the color is unusual, I should just go for it, and this one wouldn't let me go until I went back and bought it.

      Let me say that my photos are all about the holo and don't do justice to the way this polish looks in person, where it is sleek and gleaming and coppery. The holographic effects are certainly there, but it's much more compact and cohesive in person, if that makes sense. Very pleasing to the eye and easy to wear, I think it's a great polish!

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