We are fast approaching the end of the summer, but before we bid "Adieu!" to those last warm sunrays...I know, surprisingly we had pretty decent weather here in Belgium...I thought I would show you the couple of polishes I did pick up from this year's Essie Summer Collection.
Now, in my Essie Autumn/Fall Collection 2015 I might have been a bit hasty when I said that I wasn't a big fan of dark and navy blues, since this year I seem to have amassed quite the dark blue collection with Aruba Blue (from Essie's permanent range) and now Loot The Booty! I've gotta say though, I do own a gorgeous matching blue eyeliner which I think is what swayed me (featured here and here).
I also picked up Viva Antigua! which from the moment I saw it mentioned on EssieEnvy's website here, I knew I had to have it! But enough of the chit-chat...swatch time!
Essie - Viva Antigua! (Summer 2016)
Viva Antigua! is a beautiful turquoise polish with a duo-chrome micro-shimmer (or flakes? Not sure how to describe it) in light mint and gold (an unusual combo since turquoise is often paired with silver micro-shimmer). I have nothing quite like it in my collection, the closest polish I could compare it to (see below) was Mojito by BE Creative Make Up (which I got free recently as a B-day gift because I'm a member of Ici Paris XL). But Mojito is solely a cream and it's closer in colour to the light mint of Viva Antigua!'s micro-shimmer than its darker turquoise base.
N°7's Paradise Love, although quite similar to Viva Antigua! when in the bottle, is actually just a turquoise and mint micro-glitter in a clear base. Hence, Viva Antigua! is unique to my collection and I couldn't be happier!
APPLICATION
- 2 coats on top of Orly's glue basecoat for easy swatch removal.
In my original photos you could clearly see the nail length with just 2 coats (removed in Photoshop for a more accurate depiction of the polish). But IRL this polish is fine with just 2 coats, especially if you have short nails. If I was to retake photos on long nails though, I would probably add a 3rd coat to be on the safe side.
WEAR
I've already worn this as a manicure, with such a pretty colour who could resist?! As usual, I apply my polish before bed, so the next day is what I consider to be the 1st day of wear. With Viva Antigua! I got minor chipping on the index and middle finger of my right hand (dominant hand) on day 2; not bad, but not great either.
REMOVAL
To remove polish my technique is usually to hold a tissue soaked in nail polish remover over my nail for approximately 10 seconds and then swipe off. Afterwards I go around the missed edges with a cotton bud soaked in remover.
However, for this polish, removal was a bit trickier. After the first 10 seconds only the turquoise (base) colour comes off, you then need a further 10 seconds with a bit of rubbing as you swipe off to remove the more difficult micro-shimmer. This does also mean your nail surface gets a bit damaged and scratched, but not nearly as bad as with a real glitter polish.
Furthermore, after removing Viva Antigua! my nails were stained! This is the first time this has ever happened to me as usually my nails never stain (mainly because I ALWAYS wear a basecoat under my polishes). But once I washed my hands and used my nail brush cleaner (featured here) my nails were pretty much back to their normal colour.
All in all, a bit of a faff to remove but it's certainly not enough to dissuade me from wearing this colour again...and again...and again! Did I mention how pretty it was?! :P
Essie - Loot The Booty (Summer 2016)
Loot The Booty is a gorgeous royal blue polish with a duo-chrome micro-shimmer (or flakes?) in purple and a lighter blue. Unfortunately, this micro-shimmer is not as apparent on the nail as Viva Antigua!'s but when the bright sunlight hits it, you do get the full effect!
I've compared Loot The Booty to the aforementioned Aruba Blue, which as it is also a royal blue is pretty similar in colour, but the finish is completely different! The latter is a pure shimmer hence it has more of a metallic effect/sheen than the duo-chrome sparser glittery effect of Loot The Booty. I could personally justify owning both, but if it is just the colour you want then go for either; both have lovely formulas to apply. Although when talking about removal (see below) Aruba Blue might be at a slight advantage (easier).
APPLICATION
- 2 coats on top of Orly's glue basecoat for easy swatch removal.
WEAR
I haven't worn this as a full manicure, so couldn't say.
REMOVAL
Because Loot The Booty has micro-shimmer in it like Viva Antigua! I'm suspicious that it probably behaves the same way when it comes to removal i.e. harder than a cream but not as bad or damaging as a glitter polish.
There you have it, my top picks from this year's Essie Summer Collection...for a full collection review with swatches I would always highly recommend Imabeautygeek's posts here.
Which colours did you pick up from this collection?
What are your favourite foods to eat during the summer? This pineapple and watermelon combo might be aesthetically pleasing but it was one Hell of a sticky mess to clean up...suffering for my art people! At least no wasps disturbed me, so always a plus!
I'm off on my summer vacay now, yay!!! I would feel sorry for everyone starting school, but I did my time...and Dobby be FREEEEE!!! Please don't hate me...you'll understand when it's your turn, I promise!
xxxemma