Saturday, March 6, 2010

Glitter and granite

Hello ladies,

I am presenting the treasure of the Nubar Fortess Collection, Knight's Armor. This polish is stunning. Silver glitter squares are densely fitted into a black jelly base. Knight's Armor looks like jewelry for a rock star. With a matte top coat, the glitter becomes the shade of minerals or brushed steel. All of the glamour transforms into granite. I am rather fascinated by the shift from high gloss to matte.

It's worth the click to see the enlarged details.






The last two photos show Knight's Armor with one coat of ManGlaze Matte-Astrophe.

Knight's Armor was opaque in two coats and east to apply. When I was painting the first coat, the silver pieces reminded me of the craft glitter I used for childhood art projects. The memory made application even more enjoyable. I am truly excited about this polish! Knight's Sparkle will certainly be returning for funky french looks and nail art variations. This shade has such versatility and promise. I recommend it highly.

Knight's Armor is part of the Nubar Fortress Collection, currently available for purchase at bynubar.com. The bottle pictured was sent to me for review.

I was curious to see how a matte topcoat would alter Knight's Armor. For this experiment, I used ManGlaze Matte-Astrophe. I wore the polish with high shine for several hours and then painted one coat of Matte-Astrophe. I was impressed at how strong of a matte finish was produced. This is not a satin finish. It's a true matte. ManGlaze recommends using their topcoat over dry polish to prevent cracking. I am curious to apply Matte-Astrophe over wet polish to see if I could produce a lasting crackle effect.

ManGlaze Matte-Astrophe was sent to me for review. It's available for purchase from manglaze.com. For a chance to win Matte-Astrophe, Hot Mess glitter topcoat and Matte is Murder black polish, please visit the contest post and enter before the end of the day March 8th.

Happy painting, ladies!


14 comments:

  1. Absolutely stunning! I prefer the shiny version as opposed to the matte. I will be interested to hear how this polish comes off Diana. For a quality polish we have to sometimes endure a tiresome removal! Will it be worth it? :)

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  2. I prefer the shiny version :) How difficult was remove it from the nails? Glitters are so hard to remove...

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  3. I love it even more with the matte topcoat :)

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  4. Seeing Sunshine: Thanks! Matte-Astrophe definitely creates a whole new look.

    Danielle: Thanks so much! I am in the shiny camp with you, but I could not stop staring at the matte version.

    I just removed Knight's Armor. I used white felt squares soaked with 100% acetone. Then I wrapped tin foil around each nail. It looked like a cross between a kitchen or a science experiment, but the polish melted off my nails. I tried a non-acetone remover the same way and that worked too, albeit a little slower. After trying the tinfoil method, I remove all glitter polishes with it. :)

    Cah_nossovicio: Another in the shiny camp! Check out my response to Danielle above. I would say using the foil method, it removes well.

    Silhouette Screams: And to the matte camp! I'm so glad I ventured back outside to photograph the matte version. :)

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  5. Oh WoW! =O
    That looks indeed like granite!
    How awesome! <3

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  6. Thanks Diana! An interesting, yet obviously effective way to remove glittery polish it seems! May try this next time with Ruby Pumps! <3 xx

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  7. OK, I give in - that IS a helluva polish. But the collection as a whole isn't great. Too many dupey greys.

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  8. WOW ! When I first saw it, I was sure that this is a layering product, but when I realized that this is one polish - wow ! It is a stunner !!!

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  9. Gorgeous! I think glitter polish looks amazing mattified!!!

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  10. You know, I still don't have a single Nubar in my collection - but this polish alone has me plotting my very first order. I HAVE TO HAVE THIS. It's absolutely stunning. And I'm on the fence, I love it both ways! I'm glad you showed it matte, because I think it looks really neat.

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  11. gildedangel: Thanks! I knew you would love Knight's Armor! <3

    Thess: Thank you! I was so surprised at the thorough transformation with Matte-Astrophe. It's a neat feeling to have your nails looks like stones!

    Danielle: It's a nail board technique. I love it! Tinfoil will certainly defeat Ruby Pumps!

    jaljen: Knight's Armor is a standout indeed! Looking at the polishes arranged in the packaging, the top row of the darker greys presents some interesting and distinct colors. I am curious to see the variation between the lighter greys once I have a chance to wear them all. I remember finding a lot more distinctions between the Chocolate Truffles as I ventured into wearing them. I will certainly share my feelings as I try each shade. :)

    Tuli: The formula, the color, the application...everything about Knight's Armor is fabulous! <3

    Never Enough Nails: Thanks! Matte top coats and glitter are always a fun pairing. :)

    Nicole: Let me know when you are ready to place your first Nubar order. I can definitely help with colors from the past fall, winter and spring. Would you believe I made the nails on one hand matte for the photo and left the other shiny? I couldn't commit to one or the other for half the day!

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  12. I knew this woulf look fantastic. I'm so happy to finally see it swatched. It's a gorgeous polish. This is one I must get! Love this on you. I prefer it shiny also.

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