Rescue Beauty Lounge Pre-Fall 2011 Collection L'Oiseau de Feu Swatches and Review

Rescue Beauty Lounge announces LʼOiseau de Feu, Ji Baekʼs Pre-Fall collection inspired by the metamorphosis of colors brought on by Hurricane Earl.

Here's the inspration behind the collection, straight from Ji:

“During my St. Barts vacation last August, I felt a frantic energy that I had never before witnessed in that familiar, peaceful paradise. There were scattered chaotic rhythms of energy as Hurricane Earl approached. As the storm unfolded, my inner dramatic stage directorʼs heart started to beat to the rhythms of Igor Stravinskyʼs LʼOiseau de Feu (The Fire Bird). The honking brass section mirrored the hysteria on the island and the wind started to howl irksomely, just like Stravinskyʼs French horns and bassoons. I peeked out the door and was mesmerized by the colors of a romantic and moody sky.

I envisioned my first color—Pizzicato—inspired by the gentle tiny taps of rain droplets as they hit the tin roof, reminiscent of plucked strings. A misty white with the faintest hint of lavender, Pizzicato has a shimmer that acts like prisms of light in a sun shower.

When the wind picked up, I saw Poco a poco, “little by little.” This is a shade that changes from moment to moment. Itʼs the stunning, sparkling pink of a fanning cloud when the red and orange rays of the sun are trying to burst through.

Later, the ominous dark clouds bled into the sky with a fast-moving wind. Piú Mosso is an inky, blue-black that shoots through a flash of orange, the last glow of sunlight.

At last, when the light left the sky and the wind started to roar, the sky turned into a shade beyond description—a dark greenish, blackish, brown, leading to a powerful Fortissimo, the finale chord of The Fire Bird.

Although the LʼOiseau de Feu collection was created before I had the chance to observe anything on the runway, I couldnʼt help but notice that my colors go perfectly with the fall 2011 clothes. Yes, the styles are definitely varied—there are graphics, circles, statement coats, the ubiquitous red lips, a sea of winter whites—but what caught my eye immediately was the reformed punk with a touch of luxe grunge, especially in the fur-lined parkas and romantic, gothic silhouettes from Alexander McQueen, Junya Watanabe, Rick Owens, Haider Ackermann and Altuzarra.

Weʼre not out of the woods just yet. Euros and gas prices are escalating wildly. Itʼs an unequivocal time to go shop in your closet and give your clothes a face-lift with some alterations: shorten some old hems, sleeves and rehab your boots. Juxtapose the trend of hard and soft lines; these four new colors will make any wardrobe, old or new, instantly runway-worthy.”

Rescue Beauty Lounge Nail polishes are created with resin and high molecular polymers to improve flexibility, durability and high shine. They contain no harmful or drying Touluene, Formaldehyde, DBP, Formaldehyde Resin and no animal testing. Rescue polishes are exclusively available at www.rescuebeauty.com, the polish sell for $18.00 per bottle.

Wow... I have to say, that paints an amazing picture. The colors tell a story with vivid imagery. On to the colors... but first, how about a little background music (and a little ballet as well) to enhance your swatch-viewing experience?

Pizzicato. The first gently falling rain drops. This shade is a very pale purple, more on the pink-toned side than a strong blue tone like most pastel purples. The base is only semi-opaque, allowing a cascade of delicate iridescent sparkles to shine through. The shimmer particles are fine and flaky, but at the same time rather large and bright. They gleam white and silver but at extreme angles have glints of blue or pink to them.



Poco a Poco. Little by little... the illuminated cloud. This shade has a murky mauve-pink base, a little bit of grey and a little bit of purple. Throughout the polish is a strong pink, orange and red shimmer. The shimmer is very fine and delicate in texture but looks extremely bright and shiny. It really contrasts with the murky pastel base giving it a near-duochrome appearance. It reminds me somewhat of Essie's Demure Vixen- murky pastel base, bright contrasting shimmer- just in a different color palette.




Piú Mosso. The ominous cloud... the disappearing sun. This one is really a stand-out color. It is a dark blue- very dark but still blue, not black. Not really dull like navy but not as vibrant as cobalt. In contrast to the dark, ominous blue base there's some bright shiny red-orange and pink shimmer that glows like embers. Like Poco a Poco, the murky darker base combined with the bright, shiny contrasting shimmer gives it an almost duochrome finish. It doesn't shift colors like a duochrome, but you can distinctly see two different colors all the time.



Fortissimo. The blackened sky, the inescapable storm. This appears black in my photo, but it looks dark brown in real life. It is a very dark brown, though- near-black on the nail, but lighter in the bottle. It has a distinct greyed-out murky look to the creme finish. It's actually somewhat similar to Zoya's Codie- just not as strongly green toned. Fortissimo is more of a wet mud color, Codie is more of a dead leaves color.




The formula on these was mostly excellent. Piú Mosso, Fortissimo and Pizzicato applied smoothly, evenly and without any issues. Poco a Poco gave me trouble- it was runnier than usual and the brush was too soft so I couldn't get an even curve at my cuticle or at the sidewalls. I think it would have been fine if the brush was like it was in the other shades, so maybe I just had a defective brush and the formula on it was fine. Either way, it was worth mentioning. Opacity was good- Piú Mosso was opaque in one coat, Fortissimo and Poco a Poco needed two for full coverage and Pizzicato looked most opaque at three. Drying time was excellent.


Overall, pretty decent collection and again unexpected in true Rescue Beauty Lounge fashion. I saw the colors before I saw the press release and I liked them then... But after I read the inspiration for them, I liked them more, but for a reason other than the colors. The imagery and feel of the collection really appeal to me. A collection inspired by music and nature means more to me than something inspired by runway fashion or celebrities ever will. That's my favorite aspect of the collection.

My favorite of the colors is definitely Piú Mosso, Poco a Poco and Fortissimo are tied for second and Pizzicato is third. I don't think any of the colors are bad at all, but I don't find myself drawn to pale pinks too often. However, the gorgeous shimmer in Pizzicato and Poco a Poco put them a head above the average pastel. I wore Poco a Poco first and I found it to be an extremely flattering color on my hands, very feminine but at the same time interesting because it looks murky and cloudy with red reflections.

(These were sent to me for review.)