The product: butter LONDON Nail Lacquer in Dodgy Barnett

The shade: Dodgy Barnett, one of the two holo polishes from butter LONDON’s A/W 2012 collection, is comprised mainly of silver holographic shimmer in a clear base.

The shimmer density is quite versatile; one coat delivers a see-though veil, two coats deliver a more solid effect. Three coats are fully opaque, but I think two thin layers is perfect for this one — there’s just a bit of translucence left there, which makes it a bit less intense; a bit lighter (both visually and from a tactile standpoint.) The image at the top of this post is two layers, in case you’re curious!

butter LONDON Dodgy Barnett swatches; 1-4 coats moving from index to pinkie

Possible dupes: Call me a nail heathen, but I generally feel like one silver holo’s the same as the next. Check your stashes for something similar — I know China Glaze and GOSH do silver holos (OMG and Holographic, respectively) that look to be a little more finely-milled, but I’m kind of partial to the particle size of this one. It’s not a “true” holo in my opinion, but more of a holo-glitter cross.

Try something like Milani 3D Holographic in HD for a comparable drugstore dupe — it has chunkier shimmer, but it’s 3-free, permanent (Dodgy Barnett is limited edition) and just under $5. I don’t own HD, but Kelly at Vampy Varnish has some lovely swatches of it!

butter LONDON Dodgy Barnett Nail Varnish – direct sunlight

The formula: This is the first butter LONDON polish I’ve worked with, but can I just say that the formula is (as expected) absolutely lovely? I’m used to polishes that you can just pick up on the fly at the drugstore, but Dodgy Barnett goes on smoothly and quickly, settling easily into an even, streak-free finish. 

Additionally, I find the thin layers dry nicely–no shrinking or super-long wait times,– and the 3-free, paraben-free formula is just a nice cherry on top, rather than the only selling point.

Just one (sheer) layer of Dodgy Barnett

Nail swatches of butter LONDON Dodgy Barnett (two coats)

The verdict?

As much as I love Dodgy Barnett, I can’t say that–as someone who wears nail varnish very, very rarely–I’d pay quite this much for it. I received my bottle from Nail Polish Canada, who have the collection for $17 each (plus free shipping!), which is on par with the butter LONDON site.

All that said & done, though? For my first foray into the lineup, I was quite impressed. I still think the particle size is a bit too large for an intense, solid holo effect, but (shh, it’s an open secret) I actually kind of prefer it.

I’m actually tempted to wear this one around, which is a first — I haven’t done my [finger]nails just because in five or six (or seven or eight) years. For theNotice, yes; for myself, not even once!

butter LONDON Dodgy Barnett Nail Varnish – indirect sunlight

butter LONDON Dodgy Barnett 3 Free Nail Lacquer swatch – flash

The ingredients

Ethyl Acetate, Butyl Acetate, Isopropyl Alcohol, Nitrocellulose, Adipic Acid, Neopentyl Glycol, Trimellitic Anhydride, Copolymer, Trimethyl Pentanyl Diisobutyrate, Triphenyl Phosphate, Stearalkonium Hectorite, Diacetone Alcohol, Citric Acid, Dimethicone, Benzophenone-1. +/- colourants, depending on the shade.

[Note: all butter LONDON polishes are 3-free (free of dibutyl phthalate (DBP), toluene, and formaldehyde) as well as paraben-free!]

butter LONDON packaging

Layered swatches

I’m always curious to see how new (to me) particle sizes will work with other products, so I had to give this one a go. From index to pinkie finger, I’ve swatched Dodgy Barnett underneath a clear topcoat, underneath a matte topcoat, below a coat of Sally Hansen Commander in Chic, & below a coat of Revlon Vixen.

I didn’t love the way it layered (especially not with the matte topcoat — talk about a failed experiment!) but I thought I’d share some photos regardless; maybe save some of you a bit of trouble ;)

(For reference – Commander and Chic & Revlon Vixen on their own.)