I love flakies. They are so unique and never fail to get lots of comments. The last time I wore a basic flakie polish over black, the cashier at REI totally couldn't believe I did my nails myself. She asked where I got them done and when I told her I did it myself she was really surprised.
The Nfu-Oh flakies I have fall into two categories. There are what I call pure flakies. That is, they don't have any shimmer in them and the flakes are usually suspended in either clear or a very sheer jelly. Then there are shimmery flakies, which are pure flakies, but with added shimmer.
The thing with pure flakies is that they aren't very interesting on their own. In order for the flakes to really stand out, it's better to layer them over another polish. So in my swatches, I've layered my flakies over several different polishes so you could see how they look.
First up is #40. This is pretty much clear on the nail. You can't see how cool this one is until it's layered over something darker. I've layered it over OPI Alpine Snow Matte, Orly Country Club Khaki, Wet 'n' Wild Black Creme, and OPI Sapphire in the Snow. I used two coats of the flakie here and I snapped this photo under my Ott Lite.
I also got pictures with no direct light source. I think flakie polishes look best when they are in the shade. I feel it makes the flakes pop out even more.
Here's #44 over the same four polishes as above. I used two coats of #44 for these swatches. I really love this one over black. It reminds me of autumn leaves.
The shade really makes these flakes stand out.
Here's #50, which looks very similar to #40 on the nail. The flakes in this one are a little larger than the flakes in #40. Honestly, if you're going to order some flakies, I wouldn't order both #50 and #40 since they do look very similar. I used two coats here.
And the shady picture.
The last pure flakie polish I have for you is #59, which has a slightly more pigmented base. However, it's still pretty sheer and unless you layer it, you're going to have a very hard time getting rid of visible nail line. I've layered three coats over the white and khaki polishes and two coats over the black as well as OPI Got the Blues For Red.
Here's the shady picture. I chose to layer #59 over a red instead of Sapphire in the Snow. I think this one looks really neat over the khaki polish.
That's all I have for pure flakies. Let's move on to my shimmery flakies. First up is #51. I once wore this one alone and didn't like it. It's way too sheer to wear alone if you don't want visible nail line. Even after four thick coats, this one still shows visible nail line. Again, layering this is a must in my opinion. I used three coats over the white and khaki polishes and then I used two coats over the black and purple polishes.
Here's the shady picture. This polish is truly a rainbow in a bottle.
Here's #52. It's blue in the bottle, but sometimes it's blurple, sometimes it's blue, and sometimes it's green. Very unique! I layered three coats over the white and khaki polishes and then I layered two coats over the black and then Ulta Moody Blues.
Here's the shady picture.
Here's #56, a green. I think this one is perfect for St. Patrick's Day. I layered three coats over the white and khaki and then I layered two coats over the black and CND Green Scene.
The shady picture:
Since I think these look coolest over the black, I did a swatch with just a black base. I layered just one coat of each of the flakies over one coat of Wet 'n' Wild Black Creme. This is #51, #52, and #56 from left to right.
And in the shade. I'd also like to point out that I like Wet 'n' Wild Black Creme so much that I decanted it into the bottle that my OPI Black Onyx came in.
And because this post isn't already picture-heavy, I thought I'd add in one last photo of the above polishes. This is #56, #52, and #51 from left to right.
I hope you enjoyed my Nfu-Oh Flakie Extravaganza!
