Illamasqua Hemlock Limited Edition Nail Varnish Swatches and Review

Illamasqua's first fragrance, Freak, has recently been released, much to my excitement. I had a little preview of it when I reviewed the Theatre of the Nameless collection as it was spritzed on the velvet that cushioned the collection in the box. It smelled amazing. It has notes of Black Davana, Opium Flower and Belladonna, along with Datura, Queen of the Night blossom, Frankincense, Oud, Myrrh, and interestingly enough, Poison Hemlock, the poisonous plant that was used in Roman times to execute prisoners, and the plant that famously ended the life of Socrates.

To celebrate the arrival of Freak, Illamasqua has created an entire collection around the notes of the fragrance. Queen of the Night Pure Pigment, Datura Sheer Lipgloss and Hemlock Nail Varnish. The Hemlock nail polish is a stunning beauty and I couldn't help but take entirely too many pictures of it.


Illamasqua Hemlock. Hemlock starts with a light ecru creme base. It's pale, almost a flesh color, tinted with beige and a tiny bit of pink and grey, similar to the color of cashmere. Atop the pale ecru base is the most amazing duochrome shimmer. The first color you see is a bright electric apple green. It looks like it's glowing, it's so bright and vibrant. When you tilt your nails at an angle or enter a dark area, a pink-red duochrome appears. The pink side of the duochrome is subtle in bright light but really comes out strongly in dim lighting and at night.

The polish can be worn opaque at three coats like pictured above, but it's also a fantastic sheer:

Illamasqua Hemlock, one coat. At one coat it adds a sheer glaze of bright green duochrome and only a very tiny hint of the pink-beige base. It reminds me of OPI Fireflies when worn sheer. It would look even better if my nails weren't stained bright red. You could easily layer one coat of Hemlock over a different color base, maybe black, deep purple or even pale lilac and pastel yellow, to create different iridescent combinations.

The formula on this was good. It's not thin, but it's not very thick. It's in the middle somewhere, thicker than most shimmer formulas but not as thick as Illamasqua's creme formula. It applied evenly and without streaking, though it is sheer until three coats so you can see your nail through it. The drying time was longer than average.

I think this may be my favorite Illamasqua polish. It even tops my love for shades like Rampage and Boo. The creamy, fleshy base with the glowing firefly duochrome is too good to resist. I think they did a really good job on this color, it's very well balanced. The base isn't too thick to let the duochrome shimmer shine, but the duochrome colors aren't so strong that you can't see the creamy base. It looks like mother of pearl. I really, really love it.

Unfortunately, the polish itself, a limited edition shade, has sold out in record time, but you can add yourself to the wait list in case it is re-stocked. The Hemlock polish is still available as part of the Freak gift set, which also contains the Datura gloss and Queen of the Night pigment in addition to the 75ml Freak eau de parfum.

As for US availability, I am not certain on any details. It's not currently available at Sephora. I will find out as much as I can and add information as I receive it.

(This was sent to me for review.)