Nails Inc.: Baker St. + Max Factor: Fantasy Fire

I visited Los Angeles for a few days over spring break and I had a little bit of a hard time trying to figure out a manicure to wear... but then saw this NOTD and felt inspired and so even though it wasn't super glittery, it amused me, especially with the constant sun in California.

I had a hard time capturing the color shift, though. For those that don't know, Max Factor: Fantasy Fire is a weak dupe to Clarins 230 and the other color shifting polishes that are out there nowadays. I do have Clarins 230 but wanted to try out Fantasy Fire, and it was gorgeous. Definitely one of those polishes where you can just... play with your manicure endlessly!

I've had Baker St. forever and it's a gorgeous color -- I need the patience to wear it on its own! Soon...

And I just realized this is a very UK-ish manicure, as both of these polish lines are based in the UK, haha.

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Winmax Light Colour #4 and Fantasy Fire comparison

Today I have another polish from the Japanese 100¥ store Daiso: Winmax Light Colour #4. This one is specifically designed to be a topcoat, and it's a stunner: chunky pink-gold-green multichrome shimmer.

The multichrome it reminds me most of is the magical stuff in Max Factor Fantasy Fire, so I swatched 2 coats of each on alternating nails over a few coats of BYS Matte Royal Blue. Here it is from a few different angles:

L-R: Fantasy Fire, #4, Fantasy Fire, #4.

#4's shimmer is a lot more reflective and has larger particles than Fantasy Fire. The multichrome is more pronounced in Fantasy Fire though, especially at the more extreme angles where it hits a solid green, while #4 is still a more golden shade, even though it's a lovely green in the bottle.

#4 is definitely not a Fantasy Fire dupe, but if you can't get your mitts on Fantasy Fire, this is in the ballpark. And at $2.80, it's a steal!

Max Factor Fantasy Fire

Ahh, the multichrome glory of Fantasy Fire! I've had this one sitting in my collection for a while now, just waiting to be tried, but I couldn't find good underwear for it. Luckily as I was browsing through Gloss the other day, BYS Matte Royal Blue caught my eye. It's a very bold, inky blue - a girl I work with grabbed my hands mid-conversation to marvel at how blue they were! It dries matte, but not very matte, like anodised aluminium.

3 coats of Matte Royal Blue, 1 coat of Fantasy Fire and Insta-Dri anti-chip topcoat:

So nommy! I love that it's not super super sparkly, like Orly Space Cadet, but it's still gorgeous and eyecatching. I kept this one on for a week with just a bit of tipwear, and I was NOT gentle on my fingers - Insta-Dri anti-chip topcoat is amazing, period.

Here's a different angle, where you can see the green:

I took heaps of pictures but unfortunately most of them turned out blurry. But that just gives me an excuse to put it on again, right? :D

THEME WEEK - My Favourite Neon

Ok, so I have a massive thing for corals. Yeah. Bright pink, fluoro barbie hues. It's a bit embarrassing, but hey, it's not the worst skeleton to have in one's closet, right?

I've somehow collected a palette of neon corals, so instead of just swatching one coral creme, I'd swatch a bunch which had "coral" in the name and try to justify why I need (yes, NEED) them all.

L to R:

Kim Nail Polish Miami Coral - This was the first of my corals, so it was obviously justified. I bought it from Cotton On while waiting in the queue, so it was a snap decision. It's a bit too pink though, and dries really slow, and smells like industrial paint.

ulta3 Sunset Coral - I bought this as a less stinky, quicker drying alternative, so obviously justified. This applies beautifully and was $2.50.

Hello Kitty Kawai Coral - I won this in a giveaway so it was basically forced upon me. You can't refuse free nail polish, especially in your favourite summer shade and from a brand you haven't tried yet. Justified.

Max Factor Diva Coral - Bought this in a sale for $0.50. Name brand polish for under $1 is always justified. Sample-sized bottles are always justified. DOUBLE WHAMMY JUSTIFIED.

Forefinger to pinky: Miami, Sunset, Kawai, Diva. For some reason, in the sun they actually all look different, and I think this could almost pass as an ombre mani. But in the shade, it's just a bit embarrassing how similar they all are.

OK, if you held a gun to my head and made me choose one, I'd probably go for ulta3 Sunset Coral (middle finger) - it's neon enough to be strictly summery, but orange enough to not be completely girly. But since that's never going to happen, they're ALL MINE. FOREVER. Yes. Ha. I win! The, uh, coral-collecting race. Yes. :\