Go Red For Women 2013: Essie Lollipop

I’ve been long aware of the “Go Red For Women” campaign.  But, admittedly was grossly uneducated on the topic. So as I was preparing for this post, I decided I couldn’t stand behind a red manicure unless I took the time to learn about the issue at hand: women & heart disease.  I challenge you to do the same. I am ashamed to admit that I didn’t realize heart disease was the #1 cause of death among women.  Everyone knows the signs and symptoms of a heart attack, but did you know they present differently in women?  If you’re interested in learning more, please check out the official Go Red for Women website here.

Now, onto the polish! I’ve had this polish since 2009. When I bought the 4 piece cube mini set from Essie’s Winter 2009 collection, I was only interested in Mint Candy Apple. I just wasn’t interested in Lollipop (” yawnnn…another red “) or Rock Candy (“ugh another sheer pink..”) Sadly, I hadn’t tried this polish until today! So much regret!

Lollipop is a bright “candy cane” red creme/jelly hybrid. I the description is fitting, since it was a part of the 2009 Winter collection, but I wouldn’t limit this beauty to winter. It’d be great year round. I can just picture it on my toes this summer! I used two coats and they dried to a perfect glossy finish. The shine factor was actually what caught my attention first.

Luckily, Lollipop is still a part of the standard Essie collection – you can pick it up at Target or Ulta and enjoy it all year long!

If you missed Alli’s Go Red For Women manicure, be sure to check it out here! For another swatch and links to some of my favorite red polishes to date, check below the jump!

Happy Weekend, loves!

 

Finger Paints – Private Collection

Another delight from Finger Paints! It’s been a while since I’ve worn FP and I’m glad I grabbed this out of the drawer. I bought this about a year ago from Sally’s because as is often the case, I decided I wanted a China Glaze Holiday (2010) polish (Frosty) long after the display had been picked over (just like Party Hearty…) – and this seemed similar enough for me to get over my Frosty lemming.

Anyway – Private Collection is a sheer sparkly white – it took 4 coats to get a look I liked – and I do like it very much even though I’m not usually a fan of anything sheer. It’s very elegant and it has a hint of a very subtle pink flash that is really pretty.

Overall – if you’re okay with semi-sheer, this is a great polish to have and even though I usually associate whites with the middle of winter, I think it’d be a great choice in the spring or summer.

Have a great evening!

Essie Over the Top

This is my favorite black polish for many, many reasons. I bought this polish during the 2008 Euro Cup. I was cheering for Germany and decided I needed the perfect black for the occasion. For that reason alone I always liked this polish, but the next Summer this just happened to be the nail polish I was wearing when I met my boyfriend (I realize it’s kind of sad I remember that, but he did comment on my nails! For that reason alone I should have figured out it was meant to be….). Aside from all of that, this is just an awesome polish!

Over the Top is from Essie’s Winter 2007 Pour it On collection and is a very interesting polish. The base is black but it is packed with silver, green and purple microgitter. The silver microglitter gives the polish a metallic finish making it appear a bit like a slightly dark gun metal gray. The green and purple microglitter can really only be seen in the sun.

Application is amazing. The formula isn’t thin or streaky and applied wonderfully in just 2 coats.

My bottle is a back label (so it’s the old Essie formula). According to Essie’s website this is not part of their current permanent collection but this polish is still for sale on the Ulta website as well as Amazon. So it seems this is not a difficult polish to find and is definitely worth hunting down 🙂

Check out the picture below the jump to really see the shimmer this polish has to offer.

 

 

OPI Teenage Dream

Yet another polish from OPI’s Katy Perry collection. I happened to love Katy’s song Teenage Dream, so I was pretty excited to wear this nail polish. Granted it’s pink. And glitter. Which, isn’t completely me, but I wanted to give it a shot none the less. If only for the name.

Teenage Dream is large silver holographic glitter, as well as smaller silver microglitter is a sheer jelly pink base. Formula wise it is very similar to SinfulColors Hottie (which is also most likely a dupe for Last Friday Night from this collection). I used three coats and as you can tell, I still have a very obvious visible nail line. I would not wear it alone, but it will be a fabulous glitter top coat.

I definitely like The One That Got Away more, but I’m not unhappy I picked up the mini set. With Valentine’s day coming up soon, I have a feeling I’ll get alot of use out of this 🙂

As with the other OPI glitter I have in a mini bottle (Gift of Gold), it was a bit difficult to work with the tiny opening and such a thick formula. So if this is a color you really like and would use often, I would recommend picking up the full size.

Essie Damsel in a Dress

I picked this up on clearance at Beauty Brands. I’m not sure why it was on clearance as it is currently still part of Essie’s permanent collection, but alas, I’m not going to complain! This was originally released as part of Essie’s Winter 2008 If The Color Fits collection.

Essie describes Damsel in a Dress as a “oh-so-deep iridescent currant.” That is pretty accurate. It’s a deep reddish purple with this gorgeous silver microglitter that almost seems like it sits on top of the polish.

The formula is a bit on the thin side (to be expected for Essie!). I used three coats but as you can see on my ring finger I have a very obvious bald spot.

The base color is almost exactly the same as OPI Lincoln Park at Midnight but the different type of shimmer makes the polishes different enough to justify (at least for me!) owning both.

Essie Going Incognito

Another polish from the Essie 2010 A Winter’s Tale Collection. I picked this up along with Smokin’ Hot at Ulta.

Essie describes Going Incognito as a deep emerald green creme. That’s a pretty accurate description. It’s a really pretty color. I love that it’s a dark green but not so dark it looks black.

Application was fine. I used 3 coats because the formula was a tad on the thin side. But otherwise no complaints.

I have a couple of greens in my collection that I thought may be similar to Going Incognito. OPI Jade is the New Black is the most similar though it is a slightly lighter color. The other I thought might be similar is Orly Enchanted Forest, but it is MUCH darker than Going Incognito.

So far I’m definitely impressed with Essie’s Winter effort.

Alli

Essie Smokin’ Hot

I spotted Essie’s Winter 2010 A Winter’s Tale collection at Ulta the other day (Essie is currently buy one get one half off) and of course had to pick up a couple. I got Smokin’ Hot and Going Incognito.

Smokin’ Hot is a super shiny dark gray creme. It really does remind me of smoke. Application was just ok. The formula is slightly on the thin side (not shocking for Essie!) so I did use three coats. I had a little bit of a drag issue on a few nails (you can really tell on my pointer finger).

When I picked this up I thought I may have a dupe for it in my collection, but alas, I do not. OPI You Don’t Know Jacques! is a more muddy gray and Nina Ultra Pro Never Glum Plum has more purple.

Alli

Avon Rose Gold

This is one of Avon’s new releases for Fall/Winter 2010. They released 3 gold themed polishes; Rose Gold, Golden Sand and Pale Gold. This was the only one that really caught my eye.

Rose Gold is a gold frosted pale pink. It’s a really pretty color. Unfortunately, the formula isn’t the best. It’s very thin and runny. I used 4 coats to get complete opacity.

These polishes retail for $5 but are often on sale. I really like the color, so the crappy formula is something I’m willing to put up with. But if you’re just kind of lukewarm on the color, I’d skip this polish and get a different color from this line that has a better formula (I highly recommend Jade).

Alli

MAC Dry Martini

MAC and I don’t generally get along. I’m  not a fan of most of their products, I find them to be average at best, which means they are overpriced. So to say the least I’ve never jumped all over MAC nail polishes. Katie (and the rest of the Western world) loved Blue India, but I couldn’t bring myself to pay $13 for a MAC nail polish.

But as fate would have it, I decided to check out the outlet mall that’s (somewhat) near me over the Labor Day weekend. Of course I had to check out the Cosmetics Company Outlet (CCO). They had the entire Fall/Winter 2009 MAC nail polish line. For the most part I was not impressed, but Dry Martini caught my eye. First of all, it’s like nothing I own. Secondly, I’m kind of fascinated with ugly yet pretty nail polishes.

Dry Martini falls somewhere in between olive green and army green. It’s quite the ugly color, but for some reason I find it very appealing. And as a bonus, it looks good against my skintone.

The formula was just average. I needed three coats. One big negative about this polish (and I guess all MAC polishes) is the bottle. I HATE the top. It’s too wide and not comfortable to hold (even though it is rubberized). Due to this it makes it difficult to control the wand.

In the end, I’m glad I picked this up. Polishes at the CCO are priced at $8.50 a piece (which, IMO, is what they should cost in the store…the quality isn’t there for a $13 nail polish).

Alli

Essie Jag-u-are

This is another Essie polish I have wanted for ages. As I mentioned in my butterLONDON British Racing Green post, I have a Jaguar so it’s always fun to have polishes that have some meaning to you. Granted, this is from Essie’s Winter 2006 Collection; Hot for Spots. They were obviously talking about the animal, and not the car. But I’m ignoring this little fact 🙂

Jag-u-are is a cherry red with a subtle gold shimmer. This red is sort of middle of the road; not too blue, not too orange. It would be flattering on both warm and cool skintones. The gold shimmer makes this polish look very shiny. I would definitely consider this more of a Winter red (as Essie intended, of course). I like reds more like OPI Perfectly Red for Summer.

Application was great. I used 2 coats and the polish was opaque and streak free.

Alli