Oh how I’ve been longing to show you this one! Smith & Cult is one of the most interesting new beauty brands. It was conceived by Dineh Mohajer, founder of the 90-s cult beauty brand Hard Candy which was the predecessor of the current crop of indie makeup brands with their blue lipsticks and a rainbow of colours for eyeshadows. So this woman knows a thing or two about creating revolutionary beauty products. This time however, Mohajer enters the luxury segment of the market with an incredibly stylish range of nail polishes.
The name Smith & Cult is meant to express two sides within every human being: “Smith” is the good one, “Cult” is the edgy one. Beautiful, gold-hammered bottle caps reflect this as one side is smooth and the other side is dented. The theme extends to names of each colour – Psycho Candy, Lovers Creep, Ghost Edit… These quirky names make quite an interesting contrast to the vivid colours within the luxurious bottles. At the moment, there are 30 shades that include glitters, bright cremes, delicate sheer neutrals plus top and base coats. All 5-free and cruelty-free – great!
Sounds promising but are the polishes from this range a must-have? Read on to find out…
REVIEW:
Formula: glossy, highly pigmented and fast drying formulation. 5-free and cruelty free. Smith & Cult Dirty Baby is a bit sheer, it took me 3 good layers to get fully opaque coverage. However, Smith & Cult’s cremes are quite opaque, you’ll only need 2 coats for full opacity.
Application: the formula was great to apply but I’m certainly not a fan of the short handle and the thin, soft brush. I wouldn’t say it was difficult to apply the polish but it certainly was not convenient. I guess the shortness of the brush & handle is the price you pay for the remarkably different bottle design but form should always follow function.
Finish/Colour: Smith & Cult Dirty Baby is a super shiny silver glitter suspended an obsidian gelly base. It looks best with 1-2 coats of a glossy top coat.
Nail Art: I’ve also tried some Smith & Cult creme polishes and they are quite easy to use. Smith & Cult Dirty Baby is too sheer to use for nail art details but it would be a great polish for gradient manicures.
Dupes: there are no dupes for the Smith & Cult Dirty Baby colour that I’m featuring today
Wearability: Very long-lasting, it lasted 6 days with a top coat.
Extra Notes: Don’t be scared of the giant gold lid :) the large part lifts off to reveal a smaller cap.
Overall Impression: Smith & Cult is a luxurious nail polish that is also a beautiful decor object. The colours such as Dirty Baby, Birdy Num Num and Psycho Candy are truly unique but the formula and brush are not quite up to the standard of YSL or Dior. So if you have some spare $ to spend on a new polish, get a couple of unusual Smith & Cult for your collection.
Availability: Smith & Cult polishes are available worldwide here, here and here US $18; here – GBP £ 14. In Australia via selected beauty salons.
So, does your inner Smith or Cult compel you to try these polishes?
– Maria, xx
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