No, you haven’t entered a time warp; I’m posting Essie’s fall collection AFTER the winter collection. Why, you may be asking? The answer is rather simple, really. While I was fully intending to wax poetic over the fall collection, I came across the winter collection at almost the same time and could not resist raving about it before this one! I did not intend to steal the fall collection’s thunder, and as you read on you will see how fabulous this series is as well. I ended up choosing 5 out of the 6 colours; the one I left behind, In Stitches — a duty rose shade — was the only one which did not quite appeal to me as I have never been all that successful with muted pinks of any shade. So, without further ado……..Essie’s Fall 2010 Collection!
Sew Psyched
Sew Psyched (with flash)
Sew Psyched (natural lighting)
Sew Psyched, a dusty green shade, is the shade I was most anticipating, after having followed the promotional hype for some time. This is what’s referred to as sage green; it has a silver-grey cast to it with the barest hint of yellow in the base, and what makes it so unique, is the delicate silvery shimmer in its depths. What I love is that the shimmer actually translates onto the nail, unlike some shades where it basically stays only in the bottle! The application was amazing being almost opaque with the first coat and left no brush strokes at all. This is another one of those shades that alternates between seeming both light & dark, depending on how you look at it, as the pictures show, but that muted green is always present.
Little Brown Dress
Little Brown Dress (with flash)
Little Brown Dress (indoor lighting)
When I first set eyes on Little Brown Dress, ‘chocolate fondue’ is what came to mind, and indeed, it has that decadent & rich melted chocolate look to it. This is one of the best deep brown shades I have come across, being a dark brown without looking black. Even in indoor lighting, you can steel see that deep chocolatey intensity and since it is a creme shade, it has such an incredibly rich depth to it. I wanted to stare at my hands all day! I need to mention that from all the colours in this collection (that I have at least) Little Brown Dress seemed to have the most glossy finish as well. Love, love, love it!
Merino Cool
Merino Cool (indoor lighting)
Merino Cool (alternate view)
Merino Cool (high flash)
Merino Cool was the one shade that I hesitated on, and not because the colour didn’t interest me. Initially, I felt that I had seen quite a bit of this type of shade lately, but I do so love anything mauve and so I couldn’t resist. I’m so glad I picked it up as it has the distinction of not only being a versatile shade but edgy at the same time. Merino Cool was also the hardest to capture on camera as the colour shifted dramatically between mauve & tan, as the pictures show. This is another creme in the collection, being a dusty, muted, and almost ‘dirty’ mauve shade with both lilac and tan hints in its base. It was also the only shade I had slight application issues with, being a touch blotchy with the first coat, but easily corrected with the second coat. I was rather surprised to see how much darker the dried colour looked compared to the bottle shade, but pleased, as I preferred the finished look…a smoky amethyst hue. Another winner!
For all swatches, I used OPI’s Start to Finish Base & Top Coat, 3 coats of nail polish and Sèche Vite Base Coat. Stay tuned for my reviews on the final two I picked up, Limited Addiction and Velvet Voyeur. In the meantime, do drop me a line and let me know which shades grabbed your fancy from this collection!
