Illamasqua, Gamma.

Illamasqua, Gamma. 3 coats.

Blurry; shows accurate color.

I love orange; especially bright neon orange (actually, I love most all shades of orange). One orange I used to highly covet was Essie's Bright Tights. The formula was a pain in the butt but the intensity of the neon was so good you just forgave the bad formula. That is until I found Gamma.

I actually like this shade of neon orange better than the Essie. Gamma is maybe a tinge lighter but more saturated with color. Of course I did have to use 3 coats but the formula was still much easier to work with; the brushes are excellent and the color flows evenly onto the nail. This does dry to a satin or waxy finish; I actually liked it that way but I wanted some added durability so I added a coat of Gelous & then Seche Vite. Dry time was excellent due to the satin/wax finish. I love that about matte/satin/wax finish polishes. At 3 coats I could still see a little bit of visible nail line but it wasn't enough to bother me. I've heard that layering neons over white works well too; I'll have to try it one of these days.

I took some photos outside but my camera freaked out on the color in full sunlight. It totally washed the color out so I went indoors and let some natural sunlight in through the windows for these photos. While they are not the sharpest; they do properly show the color. The 1st photo is a hair lighter but in some lighting it does translate like this. Most of the time it looks like the 2nd photo; a richer shade of orange.

You can find Illamasqua at Sephora stores in the US. You can also buy direct from them at www.Illamasqua.com. You will have to pay Premium Shipping though which is pretty steep. Right now they are having their Summer Sale so I will be ending my no-buy with a big bang! LOL

Here's a little comparison for you:

All 3 coats; Outdoors in overcast weather.

Orly, Melt Your Popsicle is darker than Gamma & Bright Tights. The formula is thin, sheer, and a bit streaky. Dries to a satin finish.

Bright Tights is very close to Gamma but the opacity of Gamma makes it a bit brighter. The formula on Bright Tights is also really streaky as well as thin and sheer. Again, dries to a satin finish.

Gamma is the clear winner for me.

Essie is not cruelty free but Orly & Illamasqua are.