Here's a quick comparison of the most vibrant blue shades in my stash. Sorry I didn't have this up before the Rescue Beauty Lounge pre-order :(Also, before I get to the comparison, has this happened to anyone else?
I had originally planned on including Illamasqua Force in this comparison because I remember it being an amazing bright blue creme, but when I took it out of its box, I saw this:
It turned a faded, dusty purple creme! WTF? I thought I was going crazy because I clearly remember this polish being blue, but I looked through every Illamasqua polish I have just to double check in case I was remembering the name wrong, but no... It was this one and it used to be blue. I don't know how this could have happened. It's been stored in its box, in a drawer, away from sunlight ever since I last wore it in 2010. Would have been worth comparing if it hadn't changed. Anyway. On to the blues.
Left to right (pinkie to index):Rescue Beauty Lounge IKB:2012, three coats plus topcoat
ORLY Royal Navy, three coats plus topcoat
Revlon Royal, three coats plus topcoat
Rescue Beauty Lounge IKB:2012, three coats plus topcoat
None of these are exact matches to each other, but they are similar. They do come across a bit more bold/crisp/clean in photos than they do in real life- each has a slightly more dusty/soft look to the finish, but they're still very bold.
IKB:2012 has the deepest color and the softest finish. The finish looks dustier compared to Royal, and it's the most opaque of the three. The color itself has a bit of purple to it, like it's so blue that it's just about to tip over into the indigo/violet portion of the spectrum. Out of all three, IKB:2012 has the weirdest application, but I've been told that the final release version will have an improved texture.
Revlon Royal is the brightest, but it's not as bright as something like Nubar Blueberry. It has the sheerest formula (I'd call it a jelly), the runniest texture and the longest dry time. It is an amazing color and if you don't want to spend the $20 on the Rescue polish, I think you'd be satisfied with this one.
Orly Royal Navy isn't really comparable in the sense of being a duplicate, but it does have a similar base color to the other two. Also, if you let your bottle sit without shaking it for a while, all the glitter will settle to the bottom and you'll be able to apply it as a slightly glitter-flecked blue jelly. I had to shake my bottle really, really hard to get this much glitter to show up on my nail. It has a thin but easy to apply formula and the second longest dry time.
IKB:2012 has the deepest color and the softest finish. The finish looks dustier compared to Royal, and it's the most opaque of the three. The color itself has a bit of purple to it, like it's so blue that it's just about to tip over into the indigo/violet portion of the spectrum. Out of all three, IKB:2012 has the weirdest application, but I've been told that the final release version will have an improved texture.
Revlon Royal is the brightest, but it's not as bright as something like Nubar Blueberry. It has the sheerest formula (I'd call it a jelly), the runniest texture and the longest dry time. It is an amazing color and if you don't want to spend the $20 on the Rescue polish, I think you'd be satisfied with this one.
Orly Royal Navy isn't really comparable in the sense of being a duplicate, but it does have a similar base color to the other two. Also, if you let your bottle sit without shaking it for a while, all the glitter will settle to the bottom and you'll be able to apply it as a slightly glitter-flecked blue jelly. I had to shake my bottle really, really hard to get this much glitter to show up on my nail. It has a thin but easy to apply formula and the second longest dry time.
Hi Scrangie, my Illamasqua Force is the same, and the same happened with Smash, but if you shake it well, though in the bottle it looks dusty, it comes out pretty bright on the nail/wheel. At least this is what happened with mine.
ReplyDeleteThank you for letting me know! I wonder if Illamasqua knows that this happens? I'll have to test out my Force and go check my bottle of Smash as well... Yikes!
DeleteI have never before heard of illamasqua polish (no wonder, we only have maybe 4 different brands here...) but I did have some local nail polishes that acted this way. If it's any consolation, in my experience anyway, it was a behavior of a certain color and not of a certain brand.
ReplyDeleteAnd thank you so much for the comparison. Its really encouraging to see that polishes I can actually get here, look exactly the same as others I cannot get here.
I am not feeling too left out LOL
May the force be with you again ;-)
Thank you! I can't recall having this happen with other polishes, so I was really shocked to see it like this! Going to have to check my stash now!
DeleteI had a Nox Twilight polish that shifted from turqoise to grey. The blogpost is in swedish but you can look at the pictures anyway. :) They are a little over a year apart, the turqoise one from 2010 (with Nubar 2010) and the grey one from january this year.
ReplyDeletehttp://mrsdata.blogspot.se/2012/01/nox-twilight-poseidon.html
WHOA. That's crazy! I have that polish, I need to find it and see if it happened to mine too!
DeleteThank you so much for this! I saw the swatches of the Rescue polish, and have been wanting a blue like that, but it's too pricey for me. The Revlon is absolutely PERFECT. yay!
ReplyDeleteCheap, too :D Love that Revlon!
DeleteThank you for the great comparison! Now I want to bring out my Royal Navy again. I love that color, but I had forgotten how much! :-)
ReplyDeleteOne of my favorite blue polishes of all time!
DeleteMy force has always looked like that in the bottle. It's much bluer on the nail but was never even close to any of these ones.
ReplyDeleteMine was definitely a vibrant blue right when it was brand new. Got it when it came out in 2010 and it was a bright Crayola blue, I remember how amazing it looked with Nubar 2010 over it the last time I wore it. Wish it didn't change :(
DeleteLove the bright blues! I've never had a polish fade like that before but if I were you I'd definitely contact the brand and let them know.
ReplyDeleteI think I might have to- have had a bunch of other people say that theirs did this too!
DeleteHave you tried Nails Inc Baker Street? I think it is way superior than these three, although Revlon Royal and the Orly are very nice. The NI is very bright and vibrant, and you can see a pic here, although it's even more vibrant IRL:http://tobywoo2.blogspot.com/2012/03/nails-inc-baker-st.html (not affiliated).
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comparison. Such a cheery color!
I haven't tried it, but it looks like I'm going to have to! I love Tobywoo's nails so much.
DeleteHave you tried Nails Inc Baker Street? I think it is way superior than these three, although Revlon Royal and the Orly are very nice. The NI is very bright and vibrant, and you can see a pic here, although it's even more vibrant IRL:http://tobywoo2.blogspot.com/2012/03/nails-inc-baker-st.html (not affiliated).
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comparison. Such a cheery color!
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteAh, such pretty blues! I've been on the hunt for OPIs Dating a Royal, which I feel is pretty similar to these shades? The Orly with the glitter is pretty amazing, though. :) Eve
ReplyDeleteOh yes, I forgot when I was pulling my bright blues today to pull Dating A Royal - it's a good one. It's bright and blue - so yes, it's in the running with these here.
DeleteDating a Royal is amazing but it doesn't seem to have the vibrancy that these blues do. But still, absolutely gorgeous color, definitely worth having for any blue lover!
DeleteWonder why I always passed with Revlon Royal.. It's such a pretty blue and thank you for the comparison swatches! Will grab those Revlon polishes today : )
ReplyDeleteYou have to get it! It's so pretty, even though the formula is kinda crappy... But seriously awesome color for such a cheap price!
DeleteThank you so much for that comparison, I really need to pick up Royal. And I saw someone mention it in earlier comments, but I have heard of that Nox Twilight polish doing the same thing as the Illamasqua. Must be a weird anomaly in some blue pigments.
ReplyDeleteWEIRD. I have that polish, I need to try to find it now!
DeleteIt's funny... my bottle of Orly Royal Navy has been sitting on the shelf for a couple years (since it first came out) and the glitter hasn't settled AT ALL! I've been waiting for it to drop to the bottom to try it as a jelly, but so far it hasn't budged... haha!
ReplyDeleteI'm thinking mine has been defective right from the start. When I first got it, I didn't even realize it had all that glitter in it. I've never been able to get it to mix thoroughly, it's all stuck in a clump in the bottom lol
DeleteI'm wishing I'd picked up Royal Revlon! It looks like a great alternative. Do you know if it was limited edition, or is it still available?
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty sure it's part of the permanent collection so you should be able to find it easily!
DeleteI'll be doing that- thanks!
Deletethanks for the comparison. i was totally looking for one before the rbl pre-order. i ordered it anyway just because i am a fan of yves klein blue. call me a sucker. :)
ReplyDeleteGood choice... It is really stunning. I think you'll be really happy with it once it arrives!
DeleteI ordered illamasqua 'Force' recently and got the same dusty purple polish . I exchanged it with another one and it was same color. I thought may be the bottles are labled wrong because 'force' is a bright blue color. I even complained the issue to sephora customer service. WOW .
ReplyDeletePlease do a comparision with nails inc 'baker street'. I have ' baker street ' and I can save some money.
I think something must have happened to the pigments over time. When I first got it (when it came out) it *was* bright blue... But now I'm hearing several reports of it changing to the dusty purple version. Kinda sad, it was really pretty.
DeleteWhen you say drying time, approximately how long are we talking? Ten minutes? Two hours? Thanks
ReplyDeleteWith quick dry topcoat, I'd call average dry time about 20 minutes (completely dry, not dentable). Slower than average for me is 25-35, and anything longer than 35 and still dentable or mushy even with quick dry, I call long.
DeleteHow about Essie Mesmorize, would that be similar?
ReplyDeleteIt's bright, but it's not the same type of blue as these, and no jelly finish like these. Great color but not really in the same family :)
DeleteI see. Thanks for explaining, I'm new at this! :)
DeleteYou're welcome! We were all new once :)
DeleteAlso, out of these, Revlon Royal is my fave :)
ReplyDeleteI like them all for different reasons, probably my three favorite blue polishes ever!
DeleteI think I really have to get RLB IKB:2012 after seeing your comparisons here. Thanks so much!
ReplyDeleteI don't think you'll regret it- it is a very intense color!
DeleteThat is insane, what happened to the Illamasqua!!! The rest of the blues look so pretty!
ReplyDeleteIt is! I'm kinda sad about it, it used to be such a great blue!
DeleteGreat comparision! I definitely need Orly Royal Navy in my life stat, its very beautiful!
ReplyDeleteDefinitely! It is even better in person, I love the finish it has!
DeleteI just received a brand new bottle of Force from Illamasqua.com yesterday and it is not bright blue..it is the purple color like yours.
ReplyDeleteThanks for letting me know! So far everyone that has bought it recently says it's the soft purple. When it first came out, my bottle was definitely blue (had some purple to it, but not entirely purple like it is now!)
DeleteForce is really weird - when you put top coat over it, it goes royal blue. Like so: http://polishorperish.blogspot.co.uk/2011/08/illamasqua-force-wtf-polish.html
DeletePretty sure I remember The Swatchaholic doing the same thing!
*sighs* This tells me that IKB 2012 is NOT the ultramarine blue I was expecting, especially if Revlon Royal is similar. Having seen ultramarine blue in person (Go BSU!), I was super-excited when the fan who wanted an ultramarine blue polish was voted through. I've already ordered this color but now, since I own the Revlon, I'm kicking myself. D'Oh! >_< Ah, well. Now I'll have a jelly AND a creme in this color!
ReplyDeleteI think you'll like it once you see it in person! I've never seen *real* ultramarine blue, but I am quite fascinated by pictures I've seen of it!
DeleteI ordered the whole new RBL collection without including IKB:2012 - I really wasn't impressed at all by it and now I am even happier - I already have China Glaze Blue Years Eve, Ulta3 (Aus NZ brand) Blue Marlin (a bright cobalt creme) and Wet n Wild Blue Wants to be a Millionaire on its way - I am sure these will satisfy my "flag" blue cravings. Now I really need to find the right red and the perfect white!
ReplyDeleteEver since your Rescue Beauty Lounge swatches a couple of weeks ago, I have been yearning for a creamy TARDIS blue. I think that I must get my hands on Revlon Royal.
ReplyDeleteMy bottle of Force has gone exactly the same way - a dusty purple shade but it used to be such a vibrant blue! Disappointing!
ReplyDeleteMy bottle of Force has gone exactly the same way and I know it was a very vivid blue originally!
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteAnother wonderful IKB/Tardis type blue is Circle Of Life by Sparitual. I don't have IKB to compare, but you did picture Royal (which I love and have) and I see it's darker looking than IKB; well, Circle Of Life is a bit lighter than Royal...so maybe another good substitute for those who couldn't get IKB? (I don't think it's a jelly, but it is gorgeous!)
ReplyDelete