Oh, Essie – you had me at Spring, and then these shades come into my life and just like that, it’s amore. The new Spring 2015 Collection from Essie (launching in March), draws inspiration from an abundantly flowering garden, filled with a profusion of colour to reawaken our senses – all of which have probably been in hibernation from this miserably cold Winter. This jolt of colour is so welcome right now, and ∗almost∗ makes the cold weather bearable. At least this collection makes Spring seem that much closer.
It must be said, that Essie listens to their fans/devotees/groupies/addicts (take your pick. Pick, get it? Couldn’t resist including a garden/flower references. Shamelessly cheesy, but cute, no?) and continues to improve the formula. All six crème shades of this collection (not one drop of shimmer in sight) are a total joy to work with, applying in an effortless and self-levelling way, with several that don’t even need more than 1 coat for full opacity. All the swatches below are with 2 coats of lacquer each, as well as added top coat.
Perennial Chic | Described as “tawny tulip”, I say it’s more of a dollskin pink (or even Band-Aid pink), a neutral hue that is nowhere near what I consider tawny. The formula is semi-sheer and there’s a touch of patchiness seen with application of the first coat – normal for this type of shade – although Perennial Chic definitely becomes fully opaque with a second layer. This is a warmer leaning nude (I detect hints of peach in the base) and a colour that should be fairly easy for most skin tones to pull off, although I’m personally on the fence with the way it looks on me.
Picked Perfect | Described as “antique almond peony”, the antique almond part is about right, although I’m not feeling peony – more milk chocolate latte, instead. The formula here is thicker than that of Perennial Chic, but that works in its favour as it stays exactly where placed without any migration into surrounding skin. Picked Perfect applies in an über-creamy way and can almost be opaque at 1 coat if you load up your brush just right – totally surprising & so welcome. An absolutely perfect nude.
Blossom Dandy | Essie sure has the baby blue/mint category down pat, and Blossom Dandy is poised to be one of the biggest hits of this collection. This shade is incredibly difficult to properly capture in pictures; described as “mint crème hydrangea”, I say it’s closer to baby aqua that leans more blue than green, but again, that depends on the light and angle you’re coming from. I found the formula to be excellent and had no patchy issues to deal with whatsoever (unlike Essie’s Mint Candy Apple which always seems to apply rather chalky on me). All I know, is that I’m bsolutely loving Blossom Dandy and its mix of cool and warm tones should make it a winner for all skin tones across the board.
Petal Pushers | Lord, I do love me a good grey and Petal Pushers is pushing ALL my buttons. The formula here has a jelly-esque feel; slightly springy, ridiculously glossy, and leaving that plush look behind. Described as a “smoky stone rose” (how utterly romantic – I love the imagery of that description), I detect hints of blue and some mauve-y purple in the base, which lend this colour depth and keep it from appearing flat and one-dimensional. Perfection, I tell you.
Flowerista | Described as a “passionate plum dahlia”, I would have to agree – except I’d also add magenta in there as well. The formula is beyond amazing and can literally be a one coat wonder (especially if you load your brush up right), with a perfect flow, density and coverage – as well as a high-gloss shine at the finish (you don’t even need top coat, it’s THAT shiny). Once again, capturing all the colour nuances here proved difficult, as Flowerista can appear more purplish at some angles/lighting, or more pink-tinted at others. Either way, it’s gorgeous. Best part? Non-staining upon removal.
Garden Variety | Let’s just take a collective moment to absorb the gorgeousness of this colour, shall we? Sigh. Described as an “exotic teal blue orchid”, Garden Variety is all that — and more. An intense turquoise hue in a hybrid crème-jelly formula, there is a perfect density, opacity, and flow seen upon application, while the glossy finish is nothing less than spectacular. I detect more blue tints in the base, although there are small hints of green that peek through at certain angles (and yes, you would not believe how hard it was to accurately capture the colour in photos here as well – my camera just would.not.cooperate), all of which make this shade universally wearable by all skin tones. While relatively non-staining upon removal (relative to something so pigment-saturated in this colour group), I would not recommend skipping base coat just the same. Love, love, love this shade. Love.
A floral-inspired collection for Spring – how original, right? And yet, somehow Essie has managed to take this ubiquitous theme, shake it up, and then inject some new life into it. It doesn’t hurt that each and every formula of each and every shade is just perfect and make application fun, instead of a chore. With the exception of Perennial Chic (although I am oddly attracted to it, even if I’m not that thrilled with how it looks on me. So weird, that), I adore them all, with a 3-way tie between Blossom Dandy, Petal Pushers, and Garden Variety vying for top spot while both Flowerista and Picked Perfect are not that far behind. Final verdict: this entire collection is 100% win and well worth investing in.
Press samples provided for my unbiased consideration
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