Best Things in Beauty : some new Essence polishes.

in their latest range-renewal Essence has released some very interesting nail polish colours - i think they've made a HUGE improvement with the colour selection which is now probably the most attractive in the drugstore next to Catrice's. i like that the main line, the Colour&Go polishes, come in small bottles with 5ml each since you'll rarely go through the colourful shades anyways. they have a nice wide and flat brush. the consistency is ok. it's rather on the creamy side and i don't like that they tend to get thicker rather quickly when they come in contact to air, so you have to work quite fast to get an even finish. most shades are opaque with 2 coats. drying time is average, also the staying power of about 3 days without tip wear. they only cost 1.25€ each.

i've chosen 3 shades for now:

#77 In Style

is a beautiful shimmery peacock or mallard duck blue. it has a almost metallic finish and a beautiful dimensional glow. it doesn't apply streaky. i thought it might be similar to my Illamasqua Viridian (review) nail polish but it's less green. it's much more apparently teal than Chanel Black Pearl (review), which is more grey.

with flash:

comparison

Chanel Black Pearl - Essence In Style - Illamasqua Viridian

#73 Princess Prunella

this is a brownish purple, it's kind of a duochrome with a chocolate brown base that's infused with lots of purple shimmer. it reminded me of Chanel Paradoxal (review) nail polish, but this one is much more purple and the shimmer isn't as twisted and subtle as Chanel's. also, the shimmer in Paradoxal is more sparkly pink and the base colour is darker.

comparison

Essence Princess Prunella - Chanel Paradoxal

#81 No Doubt

a light cream greige. i only bought it because it reminded me of my latest bias for light warm greys and wanted to bring it home to compare. it's darker than what i prefer these days, which makes it less interesting and rather familiar/common. it's like a darker version of Essie Playa del Platinum (review) with a high content of beige. i find it to be a little bit too opaque with 2 coats, making it look heavy and "cakey" on my hands. with one coat it's not even enough, though.