Long time, no see. That’s becoming too familiar a phrase around here, isn’t it? This post was originally meant to be up, oh, before Christmas. I think I need to start splitting up reviews of any collection more than four polishes because clearly I cannot handle longer posts! But, I put so much work into this one that I couldn’t not share it with you guys. Also, as of writing this, Deborah Lippmann still has this set available! The Liquid Metals set is a six piece collection of, surprise, metallic polishes! These are not chromes, just good old fashioned metallics. They are in the Gel Lab Pro formula, which for all intents and purposes means you get a paddle brush. It really helps with the appearance of brushstrokes, although the polishes do have varying degrees of brushstroke visibility. It’s a long one and you know how I always have a bunch of pictures, so we really need to get started. I highly recommend listening to the songs these polishes are named after that I have helpfully linked – there are some good ones!
My base coat today is Butter London Horse Power and my top coat of choice, where noted, is MDJ Creations Smooth Finish Fast Dry. All the bits you might see sticking through the polishes are from my poor nails – I had worn a chunky glitter before swatching and removing it shredded my nail beds.
Deborah Lippmann Talk Dirty to Me, 2 coats plus top coat
Talk Dirty to Me is a neutral gold metallic. It has slightly visible brushstrokes so use that paddle brush to your advantage and finish your application with a strong, straight stroke down the center.
Deborah Lippmann Talk Dirty to Me, 1 coat
Talk Dirty to Me is almost opaque in just one coat! It does go on very smooth, but do what I clearly did not do: apply carefully for brushstrokes.
Deborah Lippmann Talk Dirty to Me, 2 coats
It’s totally opaque in two coats, amazing for such a light color! This polish is very reflective on its own, but it looks a lot better with top coat.
Deborah Lippmann Kashmir, 2 coats
Next we have Kashmir, a bronzey metallic that was super hard to photograph. It didn’t want to pull as rich a color as it is in person. I know they named this one after the Led Zeppelin song, but I kind of wish they had picked something else as the region Kashmir is a contentious geopolitical issue between India and Pakistan that has a death toll. Watch out for my new collection coming out soon, featuring the shades Gaza, Crimea, and West Bank 🙃
Deborah Lippmann Kashmir, 1 coat
Kashmir is super sparkly and reflective! It also has a smooth formula and is easy to apply, not runny at all.
Deborah Lippmann Kashmir, 2 coats
Kashmir is completely opaque in two coats. The brushstrokes are not as much of a problem with this one because it has more sparkly bits in it; it’s not just a straight-up metallic.
Deborah Lippmann Kashmir, 2 coats plus top coat under direct lighting
This is as close to color accuracy as I could get.
Deborah Lippmann Crazy Train, 2 coats plus top coat
Next up, we’re going off the rails on a Crazy Train. This one is a pink metallic with the addition of gold flakies that elevates it to something a little more special. It’s not really my favorite, pink not being my color, but I do love me some gold flakies!
Deborah Lippmann Crazy Train, 1 coat
The first coat is very opaque, like the first two were. Crazy Train probably has the best formula of the bunch; the flakies made the formula even easier to control. There are visible brushstrokes.
Deborah Lippmann Crazy Train, 2 coats
Crazy Train is easily opaque in two coats. It is super reflective and sparkly, I could see a lot of people loving this one!
Deborah Lippmann Slam Dance, 2 coats plus top coat
Slam Dance is a lavender purple metallic and the only one of the bunch whose song reference I did not understand! It is a true metallic, no flakies or anything else extra.
Deborah Lippmann Slam Dance, 1 coat
Slam Dance has okay coverage with the first coat. It is a bit more sheer than the other polishes thus far.
Deborah Lippmann Slam Dance, 2 coats
Despite the sheerer first coat, Slam Dance is completely opaque in two coats. The formula is excellent, so you can focus on getting even brushstrokes instead of getting good coverage.
Deborah Lippmann Welcome to the Jungle, 2 coats plus top coat
These last two polishes are my favorites in the collection! First up is Welcome to the Jungle, a delicious muted tealish, jungle greenish metallic. It’s really hard to put my finger on the color, but wowza do I love it.
Deborah Lippmann Welcome to the Jungle, 1 coat
Welcome to the Jungle had a slightly runny formula; be sure to wipe the stem of your brush off well! It was not much a problem to apply to the nail and was super opaque in one coat. I got a few patches and needed a second coat to even out brush strokes.
Deborah Lippmann Welcome to the Jungle, 2 coats
With a second coat, Welcome to the Jungle is completely opaque and for some reason the brushstrokes are not as visible. We’ll take it! This is just a gorgeous color, I could wear this all fall/winter and not feel like I missed out on anything.
Deborah Lippmann Paranoid, 2 coats plus top coat
Paranoid is my second favorite of the collection! It could have been a typical gunmetal metallic, but Deborah Lippmann turned it up to 11 and dumped a bunch of colorful flakies in there – I see pink, purple, green, and blue. Absolutely amazing, it is similar in concept to Queen Bitch and I am all for these typical metallics getting an unexpected update.
Deborah Lippmann Paranoid, 1 coat
Paranoid easily has the sheerest coverage of all the polishes and it unsurprisingly has a thinner formula. I think this is to let the colorful flakies shine through the deeper base. It is a metallic so you will have to deal with some visible brushstrokes.
Deborah Lippmann Paranoid, 2 coats
I thought I got Paranoid opaque in two coats, but I think my pointer finger needed a third. If you use thinner coats like me, do not be surprised if you end up slapping on three coats. But you will not care, it’s so fun to watch this polish come to life on your nails!
Deborah Lippmann Paranoid macro, 2 coats plus top coat
This very poor macro was my attempt to show you those flakies better.
Deborah Lippmann drops some great gift sets and I am definitely happy to have this one. It has colors that could be worn in a variety of seasons, if you’re the seasonal type like me, and has some non-traditional metallics which is what makes the set worth it. Unfortunately, you can only get these polishes in the set, but I am happy to own most of them (Crazy Train is the one I would pass on, but I am a pink-ist). Thanks for joining me in this sparkly trip through 70s and 80s rock!
xx, Ashley
You can visit Deborah Lippmann on their site here, where I purchased my set. Deborah Lippmann are cruelty-free.
short nail swatcher 