Max Factor - Fantasy Fire

I first heard of this nail varnish when one of my Twitter friends sent me a link saying it was only available in the UK. I called every Boots and Superdrug in Liverpool to ask if they had it but I was too late... until Sammy tweeted that she'd found some bottles and I finally got mine. Thanks again to my fellow blogger!

So what makes this polish so special and sought after? I heard it's a Clarins 230 dupe, but can't confirm as I haven't got that one. It's got some of the magic that Nfu.Oh 51 has, minus the flakes, but I can't compare it either.

I will write from my own experience then. This is a sheer, purple base with tiny duochrome particles. I tried it on the naked nail and over a few options before I decided which look I liked best. I ended up going for a-england Elaine as a base. If I had a few spare bottles I'd probably try four or more coats to achieve full opacity, but this bottle is so tiny I don't want to run out!

The name is quite apt, as the red particles have a shimmer which light this product from within. It did remind me of Earth, Wind & Fire's song Fantasy for obvious reasons, but when I described it to my husband I used the words "red, gold and green" and then the song, like the colours, shifted to Karma Chameleon. Now I can't get it out of my head, but that's another story.

Enough with the words, are you ready for some photos? Beware, there are many!

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This nail varnish has become flavour of the month on many blogs. Do you think it's worth the hype?

Brand: Max Factor

Name: Fantsay Fire

Type: Duochrome/Shimmer

Colour: Purple

Pantone equivalent: N/A

Make Up Alley rating: 4/5

Potential dupes: Clarins 230 (allegedly!)

Buy it from wherever you can!

It's very hard to find at the moment but I read somewhere that Max Factor are due to release another batch soon, so it might be worth holding off until then.

I used:

1 x OPI Natural Base Coat

2 x a-england Elaine

2 x Max Factor Fantasy Fire

1 x Save The Nail 45 Second Top Coat

Metadata:

Canon EOS 450D - 50 mm - f/1.8 - ISO 400/200 - indoors/outdoors - no flash - sunshine