Illamasqua Velocity: Pantone Colour of the Year Radiant Orchid-ish Nails!

In a previous post, I've been going through my Pantone Colour of the Year Radiant Orchid makeup items in my stash. And this time round, I'm looking at another nail polish shade - this time it's Illamasqua Velocity!

Illamasqua Velocity: A Pantone Colour of the Year-ish colour!

I already have quite a few Illamasqua nail polishes, but I'm always game for more because the quality is pretty darn good. I've never come across a dud yet, and every Illamasqua nail polish I've tried has been fantastic.

Thankfully, Velocity is also no different. This is a dusty purple creme, a Radiant Orchid-ish colour that maybe leans a tad more blue than the actual Colour of the Year. But I do think that this is one of the closer shades in my stash. I suppose the other polish I showed on my blog, Pretty Serious Atomic Brain, was also not a bad match, but it's not a creme. Anyway, this is a cousin of Radiant Orchid, even if not exactly a sister, I suppose.


Illamasqua Velocity: A muted, dusty purple that's a slightly bluer version of Radiant Orchid.
As usual, Illamasqua Velocity had good texture and application. What you see here is 2 coats for full opacity. Application was a breeze - I always feel like among all the nail polishes I have, Illamasquas and Nails Inc have the smoothest application...sometimes even better than RBL (shhh, don't tell the RBL fangirls, or else they'll come after me with pitchforks). I purchased this from someone who was getting rid of her bottle of Velocity, and I'm happy it's now joining the rest of my happy Illamasqua polish stash!


Illamasqua Velocity: Smooth application, nice brush, and 2 coats for full opacity.
Illamasquas last about 4-ish days on me with base and top coat, so this was no different. I usually get fairly decent wear out of my Illamasquas, so I'm always happy to wear them. I feel like this is also a more purple version of some of the mushroom-y, greige, purply-grey colours that have been popular over the past few years, like $OPI's Metro Chic, Chanel Particuliere, or OPI's Over The Taupe or similar colours. This is also muted and a little murky, but firmly in the purple category. It should also be fairly versatile when it comes to skintones - I imagine both warm and cool tones can wear this, too.


Illamasqua Velocity: A classy, non-boring understated colour that's neutral enough to go with everything.
I have to say, I'm really liking this shade a lot, and not just because of all the Radiant Orchid hype (although you'll know that I do love purple). It's also the fact that this dusty purple is a classy, non-boring colour that's understated enough to wear to office environments that aren't extremely strict, and yet still vibrant enough to add a pop of (muted) colour. I love such shades - on eyes, nails, clothes, accessories, wherever - so of course I'd love this.

Recommended?	Coverage	Application	Brush	Colour	Lasting Power
Yes, a great all-around shade	4/5	4/5	4.5/5	5/5	4/5
The Bottom Line: Great colour, application, and coverage make this a winner. And the colour is a lovely understated purple that's classy and wearable but not boring.