Pursuit of Happiness starts with an intensely saturated violet base that when layered with the duochromatic shimmer appears to exactly straddle the base between blue and purple. Only when I finally removed this (after more than a week!) could I definitively decide it was purple.
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| outdoor, bright direct sunlight |
In bright, direct light, the shimmer flares into an absolutely electric blue that makes the base by contrast look even darker, producing that spectacular "glowing from within" look that so many polish nerds swoon over.
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| indoor, diffuse lighting from nearby window + incandescent |
Magically, you do not need special lighting to catch that same glow. The ordinary lighting in my kitchen (above) results in just as deliciously vampy a glow.
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| indoor, bright CF lighting |
This polish arrived with a re-release of 2AM Summer Night, and the shimmer in here appears to have a very similar shift. Pursuit's base is much more opaque and cool-toned, though, meaning the primary shift is from royal blue to royal purple.
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| outdoor, direct sunlight |
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| outdoor, direct sunlight |
And like the vivid electric blue flash on the other end, Pursuit hits a lovely flame of magenta when it goes past purple in angled light.
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| outdoor, overcast daylight |
As pretty as this is in fiery sunlight, as with most all duochromes I think Pursuit shows best in overcast or cloudy light, where the shimmer particles all turn to a smooth chromed finish, colors gradually shifting in curves across each nail.
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| outdoor, bright sunlight |
Pursuit of Happiness was completely opaque for me in 2 smooth coats. I had zero issues with the brush or the formula.
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| outdoor, shady daylight |
I've also recently received a couple of celestial-themed plates, and the midnight sky/fortune teller/mystical vibe from Pursuit was a great match for this one. The stars and moon are stamped in El Corazon Fragrant Mimosa using images from Dixie Plates Isabel's Reverie. There was an equally lovely sun image on my other hand's accent nail, and though I tried filling both in with glow-in-the-dark paint, it didn't work out without a light base to reflect light from. Oh well.
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| indoor, bright CF lighting |
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| outdoor, shady daylight |
Rating: An utterly perfect 5 out of 5 stars, Pursuit of Happiness is a gorgeous color and I have no regrets. Though I'm convinced I have things with a similar shift, this went on smoothly, absolutely does not need black/dark undies to show it best, wore amazingly well (minimal edgewear after a full week)... I have nothing but love for this gem.
Where to buy:
direct from Enchanted Polish, or try one of her international
stockists if it's not in stock from her.
~Michelle
Oh wow this looks amazing :-D
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