I have always been an OPI girl–I love the funky-shaped bottles, witty polish names, and the endless array of cool colors. I wouldn’t even entertain the idea of choosing an Essie nail polish at the salon because of my brand loyalty. But when I landed in New York City a couple weeks ago and the first email I received was Racked announcing Essie’s first-ever salon on the Upper East Side, I knew it was a sign–it was time to give Essie a fair chance.
And girl, am I glad I did.
The salon is cute and clean with white walls and pink and purple couches in actual Essie hues. It’s nothing extravagant or out-of-the-ordinary, but it does have 300 freaking polishes to choose from. As if I don’t get enough anxiety when choosing a color at a regular salon.
I mean…it was hard. I thought about going rainbow but I was a little hungover and didn’t have the brain power or energy to choose five colors, so I went for the sparkly accent nail and selected this trio.
From left: Watermelon, Cascade Cool (new summer collection), A Cut Above
Watermelon may officially be my favorite nail polish color of all time. And just like the actual fruit, it pairs well with vodka.
The manicure was incredible. The nail tech was so meticulous and used this rich hand cream that made my skin glow like I’d put it through the Instagram Toaster filter.
Behold: The finished product on the streets of NYC:
And now…THE VERDICT:
I’m a believer, you guys. This manicure has outlasted any other manicure I’ve gotten (with the exception of gel, obvs). As in, it’s been ten days and it hasn’t even chipped. I…know. Maybe the nail tech just had the secret touch, so I’m going to test Essie out at another salon, but I have a feeling the outcome will be the same. And now I’m looking at my large collection of OPI polishes like it’s the last guy I dated–good-looking, but just not up to par. Or long lasting.
I’m kidding (sorta’). I’m not going to dump OPI completely (I’m not that heartless), but we’re no longer exclusive. And for the record, the NARS polish on my toes is still going strong THREE weeks later.
What’s your favorite polish? Let me know with a comment or a tweet!
LYLAS,
Ashley
2nd and 3rd photos by Kelley Hagen