Orly Rage might have been a self-fulfilling prophecy

Are you one to follow the trends as they come and go? I'd like to say I try without feeling shallow, fickle and bandwagon-y. I like to think I'm more of a connector than a maven. Now, that brings to mind the Law of the Few that Malcolm Gladwell talked about in his book, The Tipping Point. He says that there are three different kinds of people that dictate why something becomes a trend and why another doesn't. There's the salesmen who take an idea/product/practice and (un)wittingly make other people want it because of the sheer persuasiveness of their personality. Mostly, without even trying. These are the Joneses of the world, so to speak. Then there are the mavens who are the early adopters of trends. They make it their business to know what the next best and biggest thing is and you can bet your bottom dollar that they'll also be the first ones to have it. Last but certainly not least, there are the connectors, who, with their vast social network, spread the word about this latest trend. There are a host of other factors that contribute to making something into a social epidemic aka trend/fad/whatever else you want to call it that are talked about further in the book, but we'll stop at that for for our purposes. (It really, truly is a great read. If you haven't read it yet, I highly recommend it, along with the rest of Mr. Gladwell's other books.)

So where was I going with that? Well, mid to late 2011, rose gold was such a huge trend. It was everywhere. This sort of makes me wonder if Orly had an inkling it would be so big when they first released our featured polish for today in the spring of 2010. Orly Rage became THE rage.

"A prophecy...that misread, could have been."

The Quick Take

Brand/Name:  Orly Rage
Color:  Rose Gold
Formula: Rose gold microglitter in a clear base
Finish: Foil
Price: $5.00 (for a mini) - $9.50 CDN for 18mL
Seen at:  Trade Secrets, Sally Beauty, Nail Polish Canada, Glowing Beauty, Spa Boutique
Note(s):  Originally released in 2010 with the Foil FX Collection, it is now part of the core collection so this should be easy to get a hold of.


The Fun Facts

Token bottle shot.

Back of the bottle.

Label at the base.

Your typical Orly brush.

Rose gold awesomeness.

Orly really nailed that Foiled FX collection. This is another true rose gold, albeit a tad lighter than you'd expect because of the silver veining from the silver microglitter mixed in with the rose gold particles. This also has a grainy, almost speckled look to it that makes it really interesting and adds a depth to the color. Despite looking textured, this is fairly smooth to the touch and shines like crazy in true foil fashion. On me, it looks a lot like a neutral/nude polish in foil form. So while the color saturation might be understated, the metallic shine more than makes up for it.
***All nail swatches were done with Orly Bonder Base Coat and two coats of Orly Rage unless stated.

Natural light/No top coat/No flash

No mirror-like shine, but still very shiny!

Natural light/No top coat/Flash

Love how the color looks deeper at the edges and brighter where the light hits it.

Sunlight/No top coat/No flash

Sparkletastic!

This is another one of those Goldilocks consistency polishes. Neither too thin nor too thick, it flowed nicely so that application with the brush provided was a breeze. I have to mention that very much like Luxe, Rage can also cause some spotty areas where the coverage may not be completely even. This requires at least two coats although to further deepen the color, I would suggest aiming for three. The opacity for Rage is a tad less than Luxe in that respect. It does dry at about the same rate (slower, of course, with the more coats you use) with it being dry to the touch in about a minute for two coats. Removal is slightly easier than what you'd experience with chunky glitter polishes but this still needs a bit of elbow grease to take everything off. The teeny tiny microglitter will also stick like mad but it's nothing that vigorous hand scrubbing won't fix. Even without the glossy finishing touch of top coat, Rage already sparkles like crazy, so for those on the go manicures, this makes for a great pick.

Natural light/Top coat/No flash

I solemnly swear that I am up to no good this has top coat.

Natural light/Top coat/Flash

Hammie says: Spaaaaarrrrkkkllllyyy.

Sunlight/Top coat/No Flash

Hammie says: I was trying to think of a song to serenade Rage with that had "rose gold" in it but I don't think there's any.. *pouts*

Top coat seems negligible to Rage as it shines alone or without it. I can almost hear the heart of my poor Nubar Diamont breaking to know Rage doesn't need him.


The Lowdown

I'd like to think that Rage is unique but I have seen some pretty similar rose golds that from afar, look almost the same. Almost, but not quite. MAC Champ-pale Soirée is the first that comes to mind. Also released in the same year as Rage, you'll need a magnifying lens to really see the difference. Soirée has more rose in it than Rage does, as well as a dusty quality that bright Rage doesn't have. Looking from afar, both look so similar they can pass for dupes (but I'm not definitely saying they are, so don't quote me on that. I prefer to have them on hand, in a side-by-side comparison before I pass judgement). Also, Soirée is a limited release so if you missed out on that, Rage is still your best bet. Gosh FrouFrou is another that seemed like a good dupe but it's not even twin material. It has more pink and less beige in it. And you'd probably have to stand a good..say, 5 meters before they'd start to look alike (assuming you can still see both from that distance!). The same is true for Kiko 303 so it's neither a twin in that respect. It's also less opaque than Rage. Both FrouFrou and Kiko 303 aren't readily available shades and brands (Gosh is available at Shoppers Drug Mart here in Canada but the variety can be limited.) either. So even with all those other options, and unless you don't own either of the three, I still think that Orly Rage is the better rose gold foil.

I can clearly see why rose gold became such a big deal. It has a delicate quality to it that makes it fairly neutral even though it leans warmer with its pinky-beige tones than your usual yellow-toned gold. While I still don't prefer it when it comes to jewelry (white gold/platinum all the way!), I do love how on my nails, it flatters my skin tone more than either silver or gold does. I can see how this might be office appropriate even with it's high shine. Bonus points for an awesome value for price as you do get more than the usual 14-15mL of polish for more or less the same price.

Hammie, the quintessential sparkle fiend that he is, is completely enamored of Orly Rage (he still can't wrap his little hamster brain around why the rose gold was named Rage while the yellow gold was Luxe and the silver was Shine). He's raving about how it looks great without any visible brushstrokes and he thinks the grainy look of it adds character. He's not overly impressed that you will need three coats for best results as this hamster is all about efficiency and "less is more". So with that, he scores Rage:

9 Hammie Points!

Did you jump on the rose gold trend? Were you wondering with Hammie why they called it Rage (that usually brings to mind red -- fiery red)? Have you read the Tipping Point and did you enjoy it? Happy Monday! Hope this week is kinder than the last!