Mysterious. Mythical. Magical. Enchanting…The Firebird lives! For Fall 2011, Rescue Beauty Lounge breathes new life into “L’Oiseau de Feu”, the classic ballet created by Igor Stravinsky. The four captivating new shades that make up this collection, include ‘Pizzicato’ – a delicately soft pink, ‘Poco a Poco’ – a medium rose hue with a twist, ‘Più Mosso’ – a navy with contrasting shimmer, and ‘Fortissimo’ – a deep brown hybrid. Mimicking the tone of this score, which rises to a thunderous crescendo, these four hues form a similar melody for the eyes. All swatches were done with Seche Natural Base Coat, two coats of lacquer (except where otherwise noted), and Revlon Quick Dry Top Coat.
Back in July of this year, and as soon as I received the pre-order email from Rescue Beauty, I wasted no time in immediately placing my order. Ji Baek, owner and founder of the brand, takes a personal approach with all her orders, usually having a hand in their preparation herself, and her incredible attention to detail begins right from the packaging. The four lacquers (above) were neatly wrapped in her signature tissue paper, placed in a bubble wrap envelope, then finally sealed in a mailer box.
A view of the boxes, all neatly arrayed and awaiting to be discovered!
When renowned composer Igor Stravinsky (June 17, 1882 – April 6, 1971) was approached by Sergei Diaghilev to write the score for The Firebird ballet (choreographed by Michel Fokine), he rose magnificently to the task; this was to be his breakout work. Premiering in Paris on June 25, 1910, “The Firebird” is an amalgamation of Russian folk tales, devised around a mythical phoenix-like bird that is both a blessing and a curse to its captor.
The story centers on its hero, Prince Ivan, who enters the realm of Kashchei The Immortal and while there, chances upon The Firebird, which he promptly chases and subsequently captures. The Firebird, begging for its life, agrees to help the prince in exchange for its freedom. In this realm there are also 13 princesses, one of whom Prince Ivan has fallen in love with, but to spirit her away, he needs to destroy Kashchei, whose secret to immortality is that his soul resides in a magical egg. By singing a bewitching song, The Firebird lures the prince’s enemies away, and finding & destroying the egg, all spells are broken, the princesses awaken to real life, and everyone celebrates this victory.
Famed costume designer, Léon Bakst, was commissioned to create the beautifully elaborate and richly intricate costumes for The Firebird. Above, is an original sketch of his vision for the lead role, The Firebird.
Known as the pre-eminent ballerina of her time, Tamara Karsavina (above) wearing the costume designed for her lead role as The Firebird, brought the house down with her ethereal performance.
A rare photo of the first production of this ballet, depicts The Firebird and Prince Ivan, portrayed by Tamara Karsavina and Adolph Bolm respectively.
Trained in classical piano and having taught the instrument for 11 years, the musician in me was instantly and instinctively drawn to this collection. Ji Baek, herself an accomplished and classically trained viola player, perfectly understood the many nuances that make up a musical composition, and she managed to translate the very notes into the following four shade of her Firebird collection. I have included the musical definitions for the names of these four shades, so that you can better appreciate their “tonal” symbiosis.
Pizzicato: a light, plucking staccato sound
Heralding the tentative beginning of the musical journey, ‘Pizzicato’, is a delicate lavender-based, pale rosebud hue, filled with generous amounts of incredibly fine silver micro shimmer. While the formula was a touch on the thick side, it also gave excellent spreadability and was completely self-levelling. While I applied three coats of lacquer for the following swatches, it was primarily because I did not want any visible nail line showing, although two coats were wonderfully opaque as well. The dry time was excellent, and the resulting finish was truly glossy.
A view in sunlight not only emphasizes this shade’s pink nature, but allows you to fully appreciate its subtle sparkle.
Indirect light appears to pull out any grey that might be lurking in its base, lending ‘Pizzicato’ a more subdued and dusty semblance.
Taken into shaded light seems to draw forth yet another tone to this shade: lavender, yet note how the shimmer continues to be in evidence.
A final view with flash lightens ‘Pizzicato’s’ tone and reflects off the shimmer, draping a silvery white cape over this shade.
Poco a Poco: little by little (referring either to an increase or a decrease)
Now beginning to fill out the musical storyline and lend substance to the characters, ‘Poco a Poco’ is a dusty medium pink shade, given an almost duochrome appearance by the inclusion of exceptionally finely-milled pink shimmer. The density and amount of the shimmer gives off an almost coppery iridescence, yet never overpowers the base colour. Two coats were all that were needed for good opacity, bearing the same wonderfully smooth and glossy formula as the rest of this collection.
Seen in full sun, there is a creamy warmth of tone given to ‘Poco a Poco’, with its inner iridescence flashing secretly from within the muted rose base.
When viewed in indirect light, this shade takes on a more greyed-out lavender hue, becoming so much cooler in tone.
Interestingly enough, it is shaded light that gives this shade its warmest appearance, turning the base into a dustier version of carnation pink.
A final view taken with flash displays the full effect of the shimmer, all the while maintaining a delicately feminine yet edgy feel.
Più Mosso: more movement (quicken)
Moving to the heart of the performance and adding depth to the score, ‘Più Mosso’ is the “pièce de résistance” of this collection, bearing the most unique twist on navy blue that I’ve seen to date. A deeply brooding, blackened Prussian blue shade, is made completely original by the addition of coppery ultra-fine shimmer. The is formula was in a word, spectacular. Due to its intense saturation of colour, you barely need more than one coat for full opacity, although I applied two here for swatching purposes. The smooth finish and mirror-like gloss of this shade, are also complimented by the fact that removal was so effortless, with absolutely NO staining left behind.
Viewed in sunlight, the coppery shimmer is seen to reside so harmoniously within the slate blue look of this shade, adding to its unique visual appeal.
I’ve included this closeup view, in order to better appreciate all the intricacies of hue that make up ‘Più Mosso’s’ inner fire…isn’t this stunning?!
Indirect light gives this shade and almost muted, greyed blue appearance, while the shimmer seems to glow with an amber light just under the surface.
A shaded light view gives ‘Più Mosso’ a deeply mysterious midnight blue cast, temporarily subduing the shimmer and drawing out its inner creaminess.
A final view taken with flash, fully showcases the shimmer, that now appears somewhat meteoric against a cosmic denim-blue background.
Fortissimo: very loud
Exhibiting the grandeur and power of the opus’ finale, ‘Fortissimo’ is a deeply pigmented espresso brown shade, given a modern urban edge by the addition of olive green in the base. The formula on this lacquer was the thinnest of the four, yet still gave perfect opacity with just two coats. Wonderfully smooth and streak free (as well as non-staining upon removal), the resulting finish was unimaginably glossy. I have included two photos of the bottle shade here, to provide the best indicator of ‘Fortissimo’s’ true shade.
Sunlight appears to pull out lighter tints from ‘Fortissimo’s’ deeply luxuriant cocoa base, framing the nails with a mossy green touch.
Seen in indirect light, this shade now takes on the semblance of the darkest, most decadent bar of chocolate…and just as smoothly creamy!
While shaded light covers this shade with a black mantle, its deep chestnut leanings give it a more three dimensional depth and keep it from looking flat.
A final view with flash, gives evidence that while a darkling shade, ‘Fortissimo’ can never be mistaken for anything other than the deepest coffee bean hue.
Final thoughts: Once more, Rescue Beauty Lounge has pulled off an amazing coup; the four shades that make up this Firebird Collection offer something for everyone, all expertly housed in her trademark short square bottles. Known for an exceptional formula, they all were effortless to apply, and as though the smooth application were not enough, all four shades bore an utterly brilliant shine. The brush is on the short but totally manageable side, being dense and rather bushy-tipped, although quite flexible, easily fanning out on the nail without any dragging issues. Available now on Rescue Beauty’s site, this not-to-be overlooked collection is a beautiful medley of colours.
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