Max Factor Max Effect #45 Fantasy Fire

Of the new Max Factor Max Effect mini nail polishes recently launched in the UK, Fantasy Fire has generated the most buzz. The wonderfully complex hue was an instant hit, with six months' worth of stock being snapped up in just three weeks, according to BritishBeautyBlogger.

It's not difficult to see why as in the bottle, Fantasy Fire has an almost oil slick-like color shift that literally glows yellow/green/purple at the edges. You can read more reviews of Fantasy Fire on Scrangie, A Vain Woman, Le petit jardin de liloo, Makeup Withdrawal.

Made in France, the bottle is tiny, containing just 4.5ml and retails at £3.99.


The brush isn't the most comfortable to hold as it's relatively short, but it does a decent job of covering the nail in a couple of strokes.

The formula applies smoothly without streaking but it is super sheer. And before the nail polish aficionados start lecturing, yes, I've read that Fantasy Fire is meant to be layered over other shades to bring out its fiery intensity (you can see some amazing examples in the blogs linked above). Nevertheless, I decided to try it on its own first just to see how it performs. The pic below shows one coat applied without any base.

With two coats, the red shimmer starts to become more visible.

And with three coats, the purple base is richer but still semi-translucent. It dries down quite nicely within ten minutes. It's not obvious in these pics but the red shimmer sparkles and dances in the light to mesmerizing effect. Definitely a keeper!

Under different lighting conditions, the purple tint appears darker in tone.