Essie Sleek Sticks - So Haute

Essie has a new line of nail stickers out in tons of cool designs. I tried out this amazing red and gold pattern for Christmas.

Unlike Sally Hansen Salon Effects, these do not dry out so you can save your leftovers for touchups or a second mani. While Salon Effects are made with real polish, these are more like thick stickers for your nails. The positive is that they come in some really cool textured designs, plus removal is a breeze (just peel them off). Application is also a bit easier since you just peel them off the cardboard, stick them to your nails, and file away the excess. The major negative is that they can start peeling up off your nails after a day or two (see tipwear on my pointer finger - that happened within 24 hours of application).

These created an absolutely gorgeous mani for Christmas. Doesn't get more festive than this!

Essie - Good as Gold with Gold Glitter Gradient

Essie - Nothing Else Metals

Essie's Mirror Metallics collection = pure love. Here is Nothing Else Metals, a super shiny silvery lilac. I love this color! Proof? After wearing it for 10 days I took it off and then redid my nails with it. Any polish that gets twice in a row treatment from me goes straight to the favorites shelf.

Essie - No More Film

This color really changes depending on the lighting. While coming across as black or navy indoors, bright sunlight brings out deep violet tones. Very unique and pretty. The formula is excellent, can probably get away with one coat if you are careful. 

Essie - Fair Game

Fair Game is a slate blue/gray with a nice shimmer finish (but not too shiny for all you creme fans). The formula is smooth and you get great coverage in two coats. I love this on my toes, though it definitely makes an appearance on my nails from time to time.

Zoya - Wednesday

Wednesday was a color I absolutely had to have. It seemed close to China Glaze's For Audrey, but my bottle of For Audrey is seriously hurting so I was ok with having a close dupe. The color does not disappoint. It might actually be a tad been greener than For Audrey, which I love since my skin always seems to bring out the blue in these colors.

I got a lot of compliments wearing this. My mom even said it was one of her favorite colors on me. She also noted that it didn't look like anything I've ever worn before. My polish collection quietly mocked her.

Photos! There is some slight bling on my ring finger from a coat of Essie's Pure Pearlfection. Cute, but I prefer Wednesday on it's own.

Essie Cocktail Bling with Zoya Maisie

I saw this beautiful photo of Zoya's Maisie layered over Kristen and had to try to recreate it immediately. Essie's Cocktail Bling is a muted gray/blue, and while it might not be as light as Kristen it certainly worked out well.

I've learned the thing about flakies is that they never ever look nearly as good in photos as they do in real life. Pictures make them look more odd and speckled whereas in person, flake polishes give off an awesome iridescent glow. They can look speckled in the shade with absolutely no light hitting them, but the tiniest bit of light makes them sparkle and shine and gives whatever color you layer it over a real boost.

I'm definitely a fan of layering flakies over base colors with similar tones. I really enjoyed the contrast of Maisie's blue/green flecks over the muted gray of cocktail bling. It was really hard capturing just how great this was, so you just have to trust me that this looked even better in person:

And here is Cocktail Bling alone. An awesome muted gray/blue that is just as lovely without a sparkly top coat.

Essie - As Gold as it Gets over Meet Me at Sunset

As Gold as it Gets is an amazing gold fleck polish with fine gold micro shimmer that goes really well with colors in the same family. Here it is over Meet me at Sunset. Certain lighting brings out the shimmer, and then in the shade it has more of a speckled look. Very fun overall !

OPI - Thanks A Windmillion / Essie - As Gold as it Gets

OPI Thanks a Windmillion is an awesome muted sea green. I love that this looks green on me as my skin tone tends to pull the blue out of these colors. 

I added Essie's As Gold as it Gets on the ring finger, it is a pretty combo but I really love Windmillion on it's own. 

Essie - Lapis of Luxury

I recently saw Lapis of Luxury on a coworker and had to have it immediately. This cornflower blue jelly is slightly grayed out in real life, with a subtle hint of lavender that is nearly impossible to capture in a photo. These gray and lavender undertones are what make this polish a complete win for me. The second photo is a bit more accurate color wise.

Here it is with a coat of China Glaze - Black Mesh. This is a fun but I currently love Lapis too much to justify covering it with anything.

Guest Blogger: Krista's take on fast dry top coats

Good news polish friends! Today I have a guest blog post from my friend Krista, who I recently found out is quite a lacquer lover. She expertly reviews various quick dry top coats. As someone who worships the shrine of Seche Vite, it's nice to know there are other options out there. 


Confessions of a Perpetual Manicure Ruiner, OR the Never-Ending Quest for the Perfect Top Coat...

In an effort to be more budget-conscious, I’ve recently forgone professional manicures in favor of doing my own nails at home.  In addition to saving me about $12 plus tip per manicure, this move has several collateral benefits.  One, I can justify my insatiable need to buy bottles of nail polish.  Two, I can satisfy my (self-diagnosed) nail polish ADD without feeling guilty about ruining a pro paint job.  And three, and probably most important of all, I spare myself the inevitable frustration of doling out cash right before chipping/smudging my nails 3 seconds after I walk out of the nail salon.  If there was an award for Worst Maintenance of a Professional Manicure, I’d win, hands down.

This leads me to an important mission, however - finding the perfect quick-drying (because I am NOT a patient person), chip-resistant, SHINY topcoat (not into the whole matte finish look, sorry).  To date, I’ve yet to find my holy grail top coat, the one that will give me at least 5 days of shiny, chipless nails.

In my quest to find the perfect top coat, I’ve conducted both online and hands-on (haha, pun intended) research.

Several top coats make repeat appearances among the beauty bloggers and YouTube gurus that I follow, the most popular definitely being Seche Vite ($8, available at CVS, Ricky’s NYC, and other beauty/drugstores).  My new favorite spa in Hoboken (and the last place where I went for a professional manicure) uses this as their house top coat, and I have to say I was impressed with the thickness and chip-resistance of Seche Vite.  However, online reviewers have often complained of shrinkage and the smell of the top coat.

In the past, I’ve found that good old-fashioned Sally Hansen Hard as Nails (you know, the inexpensive clear top coat in the extremely dated-looking bottle) is extremely chip-resistant.  (Although, interestingly enough, I’ve found that when I use this as a base coat, my nails chip the next day.)

Recently, I’ve been using Essie Good to Go! ($8), which is basically Essie’s version of Seche Vite - a thick, shiny, quick drying top coat.  So far, I’m pretty impressed.  I have noticed a tiny bit of shrinkage, but I’ll take shrinkage over ginormous chips any day.  Also, it suffers from a little bit of an obnoxious odor similar to Seche Vite, but once the nails are dry, it’s not noticeable.  Good to Go! is extremely quick drying, which I love - it means I can paint my nails before bed without worrying about waking up with sheet marks and smudges on the surface of my nails.  I purchased my bottle from Apothica.com, but it’s also available at Target, Ricky’s, and online retailers.

One of my favorite YouTubers, missglamorazzi, raves about Sally Hansen Mega Shine Topcoat ($8), which she strongly prefers over Seche Vite.  It was on my list of products to try out for awhile, when I happened to find it in my local Bed Bath & Beyond for way less than it costs at Target and CVS.  Thanks to my endless supply of BB&B coupons, I ended up paying only $3.93!  (Oh, how I love a bargain).  I used it that night, and my manicure lasted 4 days with VERY minor chippage on my right hand (which is my dominant hand, so no suprise there).  It probably would have lasted even longer, but I got bored with my nail color and had to change it, so a longer experiment will have to be conducted at a later date.

What’s your go-to top coat?

Essie - Sew Psyched

I have been in love with Rescue Beauty Lounge's Diddy Mow since it was announced last winter, so I was really excited to hear that Sew Psyched was a really close dupe. A lovely green/gray with a very subtle shimmer, the color changes a lot depending on the lighting. The polish looks a tad darker in these photos than it is in real life.

Essie - Bermuda Shorts Half Moon Mani

So I had on Orly - Gogo for about 24 hours and decided to dress it up with some fuchsia tips. The tips looked odd so I turned it into a makeshift half moon manicure. It's not perfect, but I love it.

Blurry mirror photo! Crazy tie dyed tshirt!

Essie - Turquoise and Caicos vs. China Glaze - For Audrey

I was really excited to get Turquoise and Caicos in the mail, but when I opened it it looked very much like For Audrey! Actually, Turquoise is more green. That said, I wore a mixed mani with both for 3 day and no one noticed I had two different colors on.

As far as formulas go, both are not perfect. For Audrey is thicker and only needs 2 coats, the first goes on pretty uneven. Turquoise and Caicos is kind of sheer, needing 3 somewhat thick coats for it to be opaque. I found Turquoise to be a little easier to work with.

Here is Turquoise alone (please excuse the the bumps on my index finger, I had some stubborn glitter stuck to my nail!):

And a bunch of comparison shots:

These shots emphasize the difference in color. In low light they seem almost identical. You probably don't need both. So do I get rid of one? Of course not. A girl needs back up bottles of these things!