Anything "Duochrome" or "Chameleon" can also be found using the tag "Color Shifting"

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Monday, October 10, 2011

Nfu Oh Flakes, Updated

Links checked 12/12/13

10-10-11
I got a lot of feedback from you all regarding what those duochrome flakes were in Nubar and Nfu Oh polishes (and a few other brands) but Nubar and Nfu Oh themselves so far have declined to answer. The other glitter companies I emailed about their own products weren't able to tell me if they were colorfast, let alone duochrome, so I won't be wasting money on a big order.

Without a definitive answer, the possibilities include mica, both synthetic and natural, mica flakes coated with titanium dioxide, mylar and polyester/PET (cosmetic & craft glitter).

I decided to try some of the Nfu Oh flakes (Opal Glitter) made for nail art on the off chance they may be the same type of flake that Nfu Oh actually puts in their polish.  I have no idea if they are "multichromatic" nor if they are colorfast once submerged in polish. I bought them from Fabulous Street but they don't list the ingredients and they aren't listed anywhere else. I purchased two flakes from the "Rainbow Series", Opal Glitter White and Opal Glitter Dark Green for $3.50 each.

Although tracking says delivery will be tomorrow, I'd say there's a good chance they will come today. I mentioned this purchase only briefly in my entry I Have a Project for You so if you don't know what I'm talking about, don't feel like you missed something. As soon as they get here, I intend to test them out so hopefully when I update this entry, I will have positive news, swatches to share and not another entry on my Bleeding Glitter List.

10-11-11
Eh, I didn't realize it was Columbus Day yesterday so the Nfu Oh flakes arrived today, not yesterday as predicted. The results of the bleed test I will save for the end but here are some preliminary pictures.

Indoors Sunlight.

Lamp light.

Opal Glitter Dark Green shown next to a quarter for size.

Lamp light but slightly blurry I know, sorry.

Also under lamp light.

Each container is densely packed full so there's plenty of flake to play around with although it does not have a weight listed. Individual flake size is mixed but small enough to fit easily in any bottle. The flake material itself feels stiff, stiffer than what I expected and I doubt they would lay flat against the nail if the flakes were bigger. Both are iridescent and the Dark Green looks like it might even be a duochrome. As many of you said, they look promising.

showing loose flakes

The bad news is that Opal Glitter Dark Green failed the bleed test within 45 minutes and because it bleeds, I am not going to bother testing Opal Glitter White

Here are the flakes right after I put them in the bottle at 11:14a.
Somewhat transparent but brightly colored, as it should be.

(10/11/11) By 11:54a, what I had was this:

10/12/11, 9:43a

My conclusion? Like all the other bleeders, these flakes are fine if you're the patient type willing to place them on your nails by hand but they aren't going to withstand submersion in nail polish. This was very disappointing but pretty much what I expected to happen. Nfu Oh makes flakes for polish and polish with flakes in it- the two aren't the same, clearly, no pun intended. Another entry for the bleeder list. -MK

Hit the Duochrome Flakes tag for related entries

14 comments:

  1. I looked at the Nfu Oh flakes and the Opal Glitter White kind of looks like the flakes in OPI's "I Lily Love You", which is a nice flake but I would label it iridescent instead of duo/multichrome. I found some glitter flake suppliers online, but aside from having to order a minimum of a kilogram of product, none of them had the duo/multichrome finish I'm looking for. I'm still searching for the ideal flake, I can't believe it is so hard to find! It must be a trade secret or something.

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  2. I refuse to accept no for answer. If this doesn't work, I'll try something else. I'll still be researching too... stubborn persistance can make up for a lot.

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  3. Doh! It is Columbus Day- no mail delivery!

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  4. I can hardly wait! I looked too and hope they are the right flakes. I bought 2 Nfu Oh clear polish with flakes (can't remember the #'s tho), they came the other day, and it all sure looks the same.
    Am waiting on some ozotics. Had checked the mail twice before I realized it is Columbus Day. Double doh!

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  5. Did the flakes disintergrate or did they just loose the green color? They still look irredecent in the pic, maybe the white won't have that problem as they just have the irredecent coating....

    Also you don't have to place the flakes you can sprinkle them.

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  6. Polish Queen- they didn't disintegrate, the flakes are still whole but by now they look like something else entirely.

    I know they could be sprinkled on but my one attempt using glitter that way didn't come out smooth or pretty although those were much smaller hex glitter.

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  7. Hmmm i still think I might get the white opal glitter. I had two probs when I sprinkled some mid sized hex glitter on my nails, that bits of the glitter flaked off and I had to peel/scrape the glitter off with a pen knife, though with the flaking I did wear the mani for about a week. Did you see Cathy's post on the More Nail Polish about the Inglots flakies? The black opal nails were amazing.

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  8. Well, I tried your sprinkling idea yesterday and it just didn't work. Felt like sandpaper and I couldn't wait to get it off.

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  9. Yah, these larger stiffer ones are the so-called Mylar flakes. Flakie searching is quite exhausting... Thanks for sharing your experience though.

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  10. Indeed I was all set to do all kinds of color combos with color morphing pigments when I read your extremely informative post on the subject saved me alot of money and effort and now I have a clearer idea as to what I want to do with the pigments I have.

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  11. ABOP, it is exhausting. I have had to force myself to take a break for a while out of frustration over the lack of a conclusive answer.

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  12. Polish Queen- I have 10 pages of color combos with my Travel To pigments, mixed with polish and/or other pigments. The possibilites are endless.

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