Cirque Colors Nail Lacquer – The Awakening swatches and review
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Isn’t it an exciting time to be a nail polish lover? Back in the day when I was a budding lacquer lover, we’d be lucky to get a slighty different mauve or peach every once in a while. Now, we’ve got glitters, we’ve got jewel tones, we’ve got holographics! We’ve also got a slew of indie brands doing some cutting edge things. Cirque Colors is at the head of that pack.
The New York based line, with creator Annie Pham at the helm, is making hand-blended nail lacquers with gorgeous pigments and raw materials that are truly original. Take the limited edition Awakening collection, for example. It’s based on the change of the seasons, winter to spring specifically, which Cirque poetically pegs as “the rebirth of mother earth and the revival of the human spirit.” And the results are as pretty as that sentence is.
The five shades are colors found in nature. But don’t expect blue sky and sand, expect Mediterranean sea and rose quartz, electrified by something that they call “sparks,” mica-like bits that are not quite glitter, not quite flakes. The best I can describe them is micro flakes; tiny irregular shaped flashes of metal. They remind me of vintage glittering formica, which is a good thing!
All shades are shown with two coats for consistency and have a uniform formula (not too thin, not too thick, just right!)
New Moon is a medium dove grey with golden silver sparks. They say the shade “symbolizes the vernal equinox and a renewed sense of self.” I say the shade goes with everything and has the perfect amount of edge to it.
If you want to get edgier, reach for Gaia, a jet black with gold flakes (these are bigger than their sparks.) I’ve been reaching for this shade a lot since its arrival, for everything from fancy occasions to just hanging around.
My absolute favorite shade though is Hatch, which honestly surprised me. I am forever on the hunt for a white polish that isn’t chalky in appearance or application. THIS is it, a creamy white with dark grey speckles reminiscent of a wild bird egg. LOVE.
Love Stone is a light, creamy peach with golden sparks. It’s not quite as beautiful on as it is in the bottle, the shimmer gets lost in the base when applied. But even so, it’s a stunning color.
Finally, Qi is a bright blue with gold sparks -the color you’d pick out of the crayon box if you were drawing a globe and its beautiful oceans.
Spring has sprung, are you ready for the Awakening?
Stef is many things. Amongst them: co-editor of we heart this, photographer, condiment connoisseur, Philly girl in the California desert, borderline hoarder and a hardcore beauty junkie.
skin tone: NC 25/30
skin type: oily with a fear of rosacea
favorite beauty product: high end skincare and lip products
This is the first I’ve heard of Cirque Colors and I am very intrigued! Hatch grabbed my attention, too. It reminds me of Easter candy– speckled malted milk eggs! So beautiful.
I get so many compliments on Hatch! It’s a stunner.
Loving the sparks! And nail polish options in general–so many fun shades available these days! :D
Thanks to @turboterp, I now want malted milk eggs. Curses! *shakes fist at the heavens* These polishes are pretty sassy! I especially love New Moon—the sparkle makes it softer than your average grey and thus, awesome for spring. Great post, @stef! :)