Illamasqua Serenity: A Blue so Bright it Broke My Camera

No, my camera isn’t actually broken, as in I-dropped-it-on-the-floor-and-now-it’s-un-alive.  But this little bottle of blue here was so bright that my DSLR freaked out, forgot how to capture color, and left me to do a bunch of editing.  Yay!

For those of you who haven’t heard, this collection was inspired by the dominatrix rubber boot girls of ’20s Berlin, which tickles me to no end (I should add that I’ve been easily tickled these past few days, leading to multiple new acquaintances asking me whether or not I’m drunk, to which I’ve replied, “Nono, this is me sober.”  I think I worry people sometimes).

I’m also strangely enamored with the packaging, which reminds me of a Gothic church.  Why?  I have no idea.  It has a rubberized cap that’s easy to twist, but picks up dust like an overzealous vacuum cleaner.  I wiped it before shooting, but still spent a good bit of time hiding the dust specks in Photoshop.  Ah, my exciting little life.

The finish really does remind me of rubber.  It’s matte, but with more of a gummy sheen.  I can’t see this type of  finish working with all colors, but it goes perfectly with brights.  See?

Of course, you can always gloss things up with a topcoat:

The formula was lovely, not too thick and not too thin.  It was opaque in two coats, and dried quickly, important since you don’t want to wreck the rubber finish with a fast-drying topcoat.  Unless, you know, you want to use a topcoat and make it all shiny and such.  It also wears like iron; I wore this manicure for five days with minimal tipwear and chipping.  I could have gone longer, but another bottle of polish caught my eye, and I simply had to have it on my nails at that very moment.  I am a fickle creature.

The one thing I have to note about this rubber finish is that it does tend to show every ridge in my nail.  I’d suggest you go out and buy a ridge-filling basecoat, unless you’re ok with showing people the topography of your fingernails (I am).

As I’ve said before, I’m not a fan of matte shades unless they’re glitter, but something about the rubber finish seems more playful, especially coupled with the color selection.  Although I wouldn’t exactly describe this blue as ‘serene,’ I’m in love with its eye-popping vibrance.  A .5 oz bottle retails at $14, and the collection is available for a limited time at Sephora and Illamasqua (online only).

And speaking of all things Illamasqua, the Generation Q products are now online!  Aren’t they gorgeous?  I’m eyeing Gleam in Aurora and the eye palettes.

What’s your opinion on rubber polishes?  Would you wear this blue?

Full Disclosure: The product featured in this post was submitted for editorial consideration and review.  For more information, please see my disclaimer.

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