Daphine Polish His Dark Materials Collection Swatches and Review

Disclaimer

I was first introduced to Daphine Polish about a month and a half ago with 2 gorgeous collections and absolutely loved each one.  Recently I received a brand new 8 piece collection to review – and it is just as amazing as the previous shades I have!

His Dark Materials Collection is based off the trilogy by Philip Pullman which includes the books The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass.

Lets take a look at each polish

Dust

Dust is a light yellow-gold shimmer with a touch of scattered holographic effect.  I used 3 thin coats for these photos.

Dust is a metaphysical particle invisible to the human eye. Many of the adult characters in His Dark Materials have spent their lives researching and chasing Dust, trying to learn more about this mysterious particle, whether it be to harness its power or destroy it.

“‘What is this Dust?’

‘It comes from the sky. Some say it has always been there, some say it is newly falling. What is certain is that when people become aware of it, a great fear comes over them, and they’ll stop at nothing to discover what it is.’” The Golden Compass

Egyptian Longboat

Egyptian Longboat is a dusty purple with gold and green micro-flakie shimmer, like sun and moss glistening in murky waters.  I used 2 coats for these photos.

It is inspired by Ma Costa, the leader of a gyptian family, who was Lyra’s nurse as an infant. She and other gypitans have been  secretly watching out for Lyra on behalf of the king of the gyptians, John Faa. The gyptians are a nomadic people,  living in longboats. They call the Fens of East Anglia home, but travel around Brytain through canals and rivers, making their livelihoods through trade.

“In the long narrow cabin, by the light of a lantern on a hook, she saw a stout powerful woman with gray hair, sitting at a table with a paper.” The Golden Compass

Silvertongue

Silvertongue is a silver-blue polish with scattered holo is inspired by Lyra Belacqua, called Lyra Silvertongue by Iorek Byrnison.  I used 2 coats for these photos.

As The Golden Compass opens we meet Lyra, a somewhat uncouth girl raised at Jordan College in Oxford by scholars and servants, allowed to run wild in the streets and on the rooftops. She is brave and full of fight, willing to go off into the wild North to save her friend Roger from the Gobblers.

“‘You tricked Iofur Raknison?’

‘Yes. I made him agree that he’d fight you instead of just killing you straight off like an outcast, and the winner would be king of the bears. I had to do that because—’

‘Belacqua? No. You are Lyra Silvertongue,’ he said.” The Golden Compass

Sky Armor

Sky Armor is a sky blue shimmering base with blue micro-flakies is inspired by Iorek Byrnison, the armored bear.  I used 3 thin coats for these photos.

First encountered in Trollesund, Lyra helps him recover his armor, which was taken from him by the people of the town. Iorek pledges himself to Lyra’s cause and becomes her champion. Lyra’s wits help Iorek defeat the usurper king Iofur Raknison and become king of the bears.

“‘My armor is made of sky iron, made for me. A bear’s armor is his soul, just as your dæmon is your soul. You might as well take him away’ — indicating Pantalaimon — ‘and replace him with a doll full of sawdust. That is the difference.” The Golden Compass

Cloud Pine

Cloud Pine is a taupe light brown shimmer with blue, green, and purple iridescent glitters.  This polish has the most gorgeous sparks of color in it.  I used 3 thin coats for these photos.

Inspired by Serafina Pekkala, the queen of the witch clan, cloud pine is a type of magical tree used by witches to fly. Once the lover of gyptian Farder Coram, Serafina Pekkala allies her clan with the gyptians on their mission to rescue the children from Bolvangar. She rescues Lyra and Roger from the fight at Bolvangar and carries them to safety in Lee Scoresby’s balloon.

“Up! Into midair Lyra and Roger were caught and swept, and found themselves clinging with weakening fingers to a cloud-pine branch, where a young witch was sitting tense with balanced grace…” The Golden Compass

Texas Aeronaut

Texas Aeronaut is a red-leaning orange with strong gold micro-flakie shimmer, inspired by Lee Scoresby.  I used 2 coats for these photos.

A New Dane from the country of Texas, Lee Scoresby is an aeronaut hired by the gyptians in Trollesund on their expedition to the North to rescue the children kidnapped by the Gobblers. He becomes fiercely loyal to Lyra, continuing in her cause even after they are separated on Svalbard.

“[Lyra] looked at this newcomer with surprise. He was a tall, lean man with a thin black moustache and narrow blue eyes, and a perpetual expression of distant and sardonic amusement. She felt strongly about him at once, but she wasn’t sure whether it was liking she felt, or dislike. His dæmon was a shabby hare as thin and tough-looking as he was.” The Golden Compass

“‘Because, Dr. Grumman,…you be aware of this: I love that little child like a daughter. If I’d had a child of my own, I couldn’t love her more. And if you break that oath, whatever remains of me will pursue whatever remains of you, and you’ll spend the rest of eternity wishing you never existed. That’s how important that oath is.’” The Subtle Knife

Knife Bearer

A blackened olive green jelly with strong red shimmer and a touch of scattered holographic effect inspired by Will Parry.  I used 3 thin coats for these photos.

He is first introduced in the second book of the trilogy, The Subtle Knife, a quiet and serious twelve year old boy who has learned over the years how to make himself unnoticeable in order to take care of his mentally ill mother. He discovers a window into another world, Cittàgazze’s world, and there meets Lyra and  becomes the bearer of the subtle knife.

“‘Now,’ said Giacomo Paradisi, ‘here you are, take the knife, it is yours.’

‘I don’t want it,’ said Will. ‘I don’t want anything to do with it.’

‘You haven’t got the choice,’ said the old man. ‘You are the bearer now.’” The Subtle Knife

“…as he picked it up he felt that it was light in his hand and strong and beautifully balanced, and that the blade was not dull after all. In fact, a swirl of cloudy colors seemed to live just under the surface of the metal: bruised purples, sea blues, earth browns, cloud grays, the deep green under heavy-foliaged trees, the clustering shades at the mouth of a tomb as evening falls over a deserted graveyard….If there was such a thing as shadow-colored, it was the blade of the subtle knife.” The Subtle Knife

Cittàgazze

Loosely translated from Italian, Cittàgazze means “City of the Magpies.” This glitter topper in a clear base is inspired by the city of Cittàgazze in The Subtle Knife and the colors of the Italian Mediterranean. With more than 15 different colors, it sparkles enough to attract any glitter-loving magpie!

I used 1 coat of Cittàgazze over Sky Armor.

“…these were tall palms, and they were growing, like the trees in Oxford, in a row along the grass. But this was the center of a broad boulevard, and at the side of the boulevard was a line of cafes and small shops, all brightly lit, all open, and all utterly silent and empty beneath a sky thick with stars. The hot night was laden with the scent of flowers and with the salt smell of the sea.” The Subtle Knife

Overview

This is a nicely done collection.  I had no application issues and there are some shades in the collection that really surprised me!  I originally thought that Knife Bearer and Cloud Pine would be at the bottom of my favorites list, but they both had gorgeous factors to them that made them jump to the top of my list!

Price: $10.00 Each

Where To Buy: Daphine Polish Shop

Daphine Polish Social Media Channels: Facebook | Instagram | Pinterest

What did you think of this collection?  Have you read the books?