New! a-england ‘Heavenly Quotes’ – And the Moonbeams… & She Walks in Beauty

 

If you have already experienced the a-england brand of lacquers, then you understand how it has reached the level of cult status so quickly … for those yet to indulge, allow me to explain this phenomenon: basically, it is because each and every single bottle of varnish comes from the heart and with a story – first created in the intuitive mind of its founder, Adina Bodana, then lovingly brought to life for the rest of us to enjoy. Attention to detail is crucial to a-england’s success, with a synergy that ties all the components together: concept, imagery, shades, and formula. Truly, works of art in liquid form.


 

Joining ‘Beauty Never Fails’ (previously reviewed here) from the Heavenly Quotes series, I present you with the latest additions, ‘And the Moonbeams…’ – a shimmering golden hue, along with ‘She Walks in Beauty’ – an intricate gold & pink glitter confection, both shades inspired by 2 well-known works of poetry. Easily worn on their own, or layered over a base shade for a unique & new colour combination, you are only limited by your own imagination — and your nail polish collection, in how you wear these two beauties.

All swatches are with a-england’s ‘The Knight’ Base Coat and ‘The Shield’ Top Coat



Love’s Philosophy
The fountains mingle with the river
   And the rivers with the ocean,
The winds of heaven mix for ever
   With a sweet emotion;
Nothing in the world is single;
   All things by a law divine
In one spirit meet and mingle.
   Why not I with thine?—
See the mountains kiss high heaven
   And the waves clasp one another;
No sister-flower would be forgiven
   If it disdained its brother;
And the sunlight clasps the earth
   And the moonbeams kiss the sea:
What is all this sweet work worth
   If thou kiss not me?
– Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792-1822)

 

And the Moonbeams… – Have you ever seen dust motes swirling and suspended in a ray of sunlight? That’s the image this shade reminded me of! A pale gold ultra finely ground shimmer base filled with tiny irregular golden glass flecks, and interspersed with slightly larger gold glitter pieces – all in a formula that defines perfection: excellent density, flow, and dispersal of the shimmer. The reflective lemony hue also seems to have an oxidized side, which gives it a greenish glow in some lights. One coat provides good coverage, although a second layer gives a gorgeous translucent effect, leaving behind a brilliant shine and feeling smooth to the touch. Rather quick-drying as well, I was surprised by how painless removal was – although the finer glitter may migrate to the surrounding skin. Coats applied: 3 thin
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And the Moonbeams…


And the Moonbeams…


And the Moonbeams…


 

I knew without a doubt that I wanted to layer ‘And the Moonbeams…’ over ‘Elaine’ (previously reviewed here), a deep byzantium purple crème shade from a-england’s first collection ‘The Mythicals’. Something about purple and gold together just says “royalty” to me, but what I didn’t expect was how I couldn’t take my eyes off this combination – I am totally loving this opulent “baroque” look.
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The following swatches are 1 coat of ‘And the Moonbeams’ layered over 2 coats of ‘Elaine’.


And the Moonbeams… layered over Elaine


And the Moonbeams… layered over Elaine


And the Moonbeams… layered over Elaine



She Walks in Beauty

She walks in beauty, like the night
Of cloudless climes and starry skies;
And all that’s best of dark and bright
Meet in her aspect and her eyes:
Thus mellow’d to that tender light
Which heaven to gaudy day denies.

One shade the more, one ray the less,
Had half impaired the nameless grace
Which waves in every raven tress,
Or softly lightens o’er her face;
Where thoughts serenely sweet express
How pure, how dear their dwelling-place.

And on that cheek, and o’er that brow,
So soft, so calm, yet eloquent,
The smiles that win, the tints that glow,
But tell of days in goodness spent,
A mind at peace with all below,
A heart whose love is innocent!

– George Gordon, Lord Byron (1788-1824)

 

She Walks in Beauty – a highly complex shade, made up of a similar golden base to that of ‘And the Moonbeams’, but with the addition of both small and large rose-coloured hexagonal glitter pieces. The formula here is a mystery to me; seemingly thick upon initial application, it somehow manages to not only stay exactly where it’s placed, but with hardly any effort at all. There was absolutely no issue with glitter dispersal either (no fishing for the larger pieces, or placing them manually) with the final look appearing in turn golden, olive-gold, silver, or pewter depending on the angle and light. Rather quick drying and with a brilliant natural finish, the surface can be a little gritty – nothing that a thicker layer of top coat (or 2) couldn’t solve. Removal, as with all glitter lacquers, requires some elbow grease; that being said, I will soon be posting a fabulous new method that can help with glitter removal. Coats applied: 3 (as thin as possible)
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She walks in Beauty


She Walks in Beauty


She Walks in Beauty


 

The logical thing to do would have been to layer ‘She Walks in Beauty’ over ‘Camelot’ (previously reviewed here), a-england’s rich ebony hue, but I something steered me towards ‘Bridal Veil’ (from ‘The Legend’ Collection – previously reviewed here) instead; I felt that the subtle prismatic particles of this base shade would be the perfect compliment, along with providing a unique depth of tone to the finished look. I absolutely love how it turned out!

All swatches are with 1 coat of ‘She Walks in Beauty’ layered over 2 coats of ‘Bridal Veil’.


She Walks in Beauty layered over Bridal Veil


She walks in Beauty layered over Bridal Veil


She Walks in Beauty layered over Bridal Veil

 

Final thoughts: After taking a few minutes to reacquaint myself with the poems that inspired these two lacquers, I couldn’t help but feel that once again, Adina managed to capture the essence of the words with these shades. The cool lemony-gold of ‘And the Moonbeams…’ feels right, as though that’s exactly what a moonbeam would look like in liquid form. The shimmering glitter of ‘She Walks in Beauty’ made me think of roses and femininity, yet there was strength there as well. I love how versatile these 2 shades are, giving you the choice of either wearing them solo or layered — it’s like doubling up your collection. And now, I’m already looking forward to the next chapter of this continuing story … but not before I try a few more combinations with these beauties!

To order, you can email Adina: hello@a-england.co.uk or feel free to follow her via twitter/facebook for all the latest a-england updates.


 

 

 

*Disclaimer: product samples provided by the company/PR for my unbiased consideration

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