When I got home from work this afternoon, my inner crazy possessed me to inhale half a bag of Trader Joe’s Reduced Fat Cheese Crunchies. After washing off my neon-orange fingers and chewing three Tums (note to file: do not eat half a bag of cheese crunchies in one sitting), I pulled out my Essie Summer 2008 nail polish stash and painted each of the nails on my left hand (and the pointer finger on my right) different colors. This is what too many cheese crunchies can make a woman do.
Essie Summer 2008 contains six shades ($8 each), and I lurve them all.
- Guilty Pleasures — pink strawberry
- My Place or Yours — pink rose
- Escapades — shimmerless red coral
- Risky Business — red with tangerine shimmer
- Secret Stash — fuschia
- Movers & Shakers — bold hot pink
Guilty Pleasures
My Place or Yours
Escapades
Risky Business
Secret Stash
Movers & Shakers
Which of these is your favorite? I can’t decide which one is mine. I need help!
The shade that gets the most votes will be the color I wear the rest of the week.
Aren’t you glad we’ve gotten Monday out of the way? I had a bad case of the Mondays this morning, but things started looking up in the afternoon.
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
For more fun beauty bits, try your luck with my random post generator. Click for a totally random post.🙂
Mariah says
April 28th, 2008 at 8:39 pmOMG I want all of these! I saw these in a magazine, and I seriously can’t decide which I like most. They’re all so damn similar, but also awesome individually! Which do you like best Karen?
Mariahs last blog post..‘Cause EVERYONE is doing it… 😉
Karen says
April 28th, 2008 at 9:01 pmHi Mariah!
You totally nailed it on the head! It’s hard to decide which one I love most, but on first glance Secret Stash was the first to catch my eye. They are all so beautiful though. I can’t wait to paint my toes with these and wear pretty sandals. Hope you are having a good Monday! 🙂
tania says
April 28th, 2008 at 9:29 pmI like both movers and shakers and secret stash. However I’m biased as my fave color is pink. Got a pedi last week and my toes are OPI’s Pompeii Purple (bright pink). Great for spring. How’s the fragrance hunt going?
Karen says
April 28th, 2008 at 9:33 pmHi Tania!
Believe it or not I am so stuck on Bobbi Brown’s Beach Shower gel right now. I just got out of the shower (I worked it *out* at dance class) and now I can’t stop smelling my arm! It smells divine. I might have to pick up the perfume!
I am biased too because I got a big crush on pink polish too!
How was your Monday? 🙂
Armine Abrahamyan says
April 28th, 2008 at 10:13 pmI am also a big fan of Essie Nail Polish collection. The colors in the collection are just fantastic.
I’d love to get this collection myself!
-armine
Jacks says
April 28th, 2008 at 10:30 pmI love all of these colours! I’ve been on a red polish streak for a while now but those pinks are very tempting. Thank you Essie for making a college girl poorer.
Replying from your comment a while back, I’ve just finished my sophomore year as a Chemistry student. Yes, call me crazy lol!
Jojo says
April 28th, 2008 at 11:48 pmThe Risky Business color will look great with your skin color 🙂
Jojos last blog post..THE Gossip about Gossip Girl
Jenny says
April 29th, 2008 at 3:35 amHi Karen!! I’m loving those pinks!! I chose “My Place Or Yours” because the name is so catchy! I had an awful night, but after reading your post and seeing such bright colors, I couldn’t help but crack a smile =)
TUPRNUT says
April 29th, 2008 at 6:06 amHoly Smokes… I love these! I really don’t wear nail polish in the winter so this is the time of year that I start adding to my collection. I love Essie, so I’ll have to check these out soon!
Echidnagirl says
April 29th, 2008 at 6:48 amHow many coats did it take for the photo of My Place or Your’s? I think that’s my favorite but I’m leaning towards Guilty Pleasures as well.
Glosslizard says
April 29th, 2008 at 7:40 amThey’re all beautiful, but I love Guilty Pleasures the best! I think I will snap that one up! 🙂
Megan says
April 29th, 2008 at 8:20 amI only own a couple Essie polishes because they always seem more tame than OPI and not bright enough… but I think there are a couple of those I might have to pick up. I’m still holding out. I went shopping over the weekend and completely avoided cosmetics. Instead I bought some shoes and shorts. Which is okay… because I needed them. 🙂 Right? LOL The boyf thought it was totally justified though because I wore some shoes from last summer to work last friday and they gave me a blister…so he actually went shoe shopping with me :O
Jeanne says
April 29th, 2008 at 8:51 amSo cute! I love “Guilty Pleasures” and “Secret Stash” — those are the two I would choose! (I voted for “Guilty Pleasures”, but now I’m leaning towards “Secret Stash” — so I understand the decision you’re facing!)
I need to paint my nails pink soon (and redo my toes) — thanks for the reminder!
Karen says
April 29th, 2008 at 9:11 amHi Armine,
Yup! The shades are def. pretty!
Karen says
April 29th, 2008 at 9:11 amHi Jacks,
Girl! That’s awesome. I have mad respect for you chem folks! That subject was a struggle for me back in the day (but somehow I got through it).
The pinks in this collection are awesome. I actually meant to remove the crazy colors off of my hand yesterday but couldn’t stop admiring all of the shades, especially the pinks!
Karen says
April 29th, 2008 at 9:12 amHi Jojo,
Thanks for your vote! I agree…it’s going to be so pretty on toes, especially when I get a tan!
Hope you are having a great Tuesday. 🙂
Karen says
April 29th, 2008 at 9:12 amHi Jenny,
Aww, I’m sorry your night was rough. I hope you are feeling much better today and that your Tuesday is making up for it.
I am crushing hard on the pinks too! Where to start, where to start?!?
Karen says
April 29th, 2008 at 9:13 amHi Tuprnut,
Yah, me too! I dunno what it is about winter time but I can barely bust out a bottle of polish when the weather is chilly outside. It’s finally flip-flop and sandal season here so now it’s time to rejoice in some cute nails!
Karen says
April 29th, 2008 at 9:13 amHi Echidnagirl,
That was two thick coats. Essie’s formula is thicker in comparison to Shu Uemura and Laura Mercier so I have a bit more trouble controlling it (so clumsy), so I don’t even try to fight the consistency. 🙂 Gotta say though, Essie’s got crazy mad shine, while I love!
Karen says
April 29th, 2008 at 9:13 amGlosslizard!
Happy Tuesday! I still have Guilty Pleasures painted on my thumb and the more I stare at it the more I love it. These colors really look like yummy Skittles. I kinda want to gnaw at my nails…if only they were fruit flavored.
Karen says
April 29th, 2008 at 9:14 amHi Megan,
YES! You needed them! A girl always needs shoes (and shorts).
BTW, regarding blisters, do you know about the magic that is Moleskin?
Karen says
April 29th, 2008 at 9:14 amHi Jeanne,
You’re welcome! I am so glad you can feel my pain on this. I figure I’ll wait to the end of the day (and hold onto my multi-colored manicure for just a few more hours) to finally decide what color to go with. 🙂
Dao says
April 29th, 2008 at 9:25 amGuilty Pleasure looks like Lola Divine from the Heatherette collection, I dig that color too! My 2nd choice would be Secret Stash since I love pink.
Megan says
April 29th, 2008 at 9:45 amUmm… I know you posted about it a while back…I think it was your guide to a girls night out or something. I’ve seen it at CVS, but never used it. The thing is I knew the shoes were going to be trouble…they always give me blisters. The thing is that my closet that houses shoes is a wreck…fo realz! so I was trying to find some sandaly shoes because it was like our last day of decent weather until like tomorrow…and I was trying to hurry so I could get to work and I could only find one shoe of one pair, and then I found another pair that I wore to death last summer and remembered that the strap broke…so this pair was the only complete pair that I could find both shoes of that matched my outfit…so I went with it. LOL
Karen B says
April 29th, 2008 at 10:22 amGuilty Pleasures all the way!
Karen Bs last blog post..Icon meme
Lilan says
April 29th, 2008 at 12:08 pmMy Place or Yours and Guilty Pleasures are my faves for spring/summer nails – and they both look great against your skin!
I’m glad that we got Monday out of the way too – although it sure was a fun one playing Mario Kart on the Wii with my boy and his brother, LOL!
Happy Tuesday to you!
PeeChee says
April 29th, 2008 at 12:48 pmI love it. I love it! I just spent a bunch at sally’s beauty supply since they had a sale on orly nail polishes. Don’t get me too excited to get these now!!!!
Eru says
April 29th, 2008 at 2:59 pmKaren,
I voted escapade because it looks like a sassy, warm red. But I do like My Place or yours as well. They’re all cute!!
Hope you didn’t wear them all at the same time, it would have been a bit crazy (but fun 😀 )
Hugs! :3
Jen says
April 29th, 2008 at 5:36 pmHey Karen!
I just wondered how you get your nails SO beautiful – I assume they’re natural!? Do you trim/file/shape them almost every day? Regular manicures? A special nail product? OR are you just blessed with good nail genes 🙂
Take care!
Karen says
April 29th, 2008 at 7:55 pmHi Dao,
Been meaning to tell you…I finally got my hands on some Avon Glazewear! I wore Champagne today! 🙂
Karen says
April 29th, 2008 at 7:55 pmHi Megan,
Yeah, moleskin is awesome. I can’t wear heels unless I have them on certain parts of my toes. They are hard to wear if strappy sandals are involved though. Gotta come clean though; there have been many times where my feet have suffered because the only shoes that matched my outfit were the painful ones! You are sooo not alone. 🙂
Karen says
April 29th, 2008 at 7:56 pmHi Karen B.,
Woot! Thanks for your vote, girlfriend!
Karen says
April 29th, 2008 at 7:56 pmHi Lilan,
Mario Kart! I am an old school Nintendo Super Mario Bros girl myself. 😉 My best friend has a wii and she says it’s a ton of fun!
Hope you had a terrific Tuesday. 🙂
Karen says
April 29th, 2008 at 7:56 pmHi PeeChee,
I can’t help it! You have to check out the pink shades at least… they are thoroughly worth getting excited over.
Oh yah, I love Sally Beauty Supply too. When I go to the one up the street El Hub has to drag me outta there.
Karen says
April 29th, 2008 at 7:57 pmHi Eru,
Ha ha! I did have my nails painted all crazy shades today (but it was just the fingers on my left hand and the pointer finger on my right). Nobody said anything, although I could’ve sworn the lady at the bank was kinda looking at my hands funny, LOL! I will paint them the *real* color tonight!
Karen says
April 29th, 2008 at 8:00 pmHi Jen!
Yup, those are my natural nails. The length they are at in the pic is probably their max length without having to put on any special base/top coat. Anything longer then that though, and I’d probably have to use a strengthener or something because when they get too long they start to split. (Plus, I can’t type as fast when they are too talon-esque!). I use a lot of hand cream (cause I’m always washing my hands) and on occasion while I’m watching TV I’ll massage some cuticle oil into my nails. Polish is just usually two or three coats and a top coat if I’m feeling motivated (I *love* Seche Vite.)
Oh yah! I dunno if it’s helping, but awhile back I got this weird tub of cream called Healthy Hoof (LOL). I haven’t been using it consistently so I can’t really tell if it’s made a diff in my nail strength, but it feels nice when I massage it into my nails while I’m watching TV!
Hope this helps! 🙂
Dao says
April 29th, 2008 at 8:22 pmHow do you like it? My Glazewear lipstick is Champagne Glow, is it the same as yours? I love that color, it’s my favorite nudie lipstick atm. What else did you get from Avon? Did you go to the store or order online/ through a rep?
Glosslizard says
April 29th, 2008 at 9:36 pmHappy Tuesday to you!
A line of flavored, edible nail polish would be fun, but then you’d have to develop a line of nasty-tasting polish to combat the resulting nail-biting habit! 😉
Susanne says
April 30th, 2008 at 1:54 amOh, wow, I love the colours. They are not available here.
Kay-TEE says
April 30th, 2008 at 4:21 amHOORAY!!!Essie! me likey dis post,HAHAHA!thnx 4 featuring Essie,Karen! i luh-v their colurs of their collection sooo much!!!but some of d colurs look kinda indentical on ur nails,Karen.oh well,who cares?their fab!oh n r dey jus’ like d ordinary “Essie’s”?i mean,do dey still last long,doesn”t chip or no sticky icky feeling n so on….?i am surely gona buy:guilty pleasures 4 pink n risky business 4 red.if u ask:y dose only??? it’s bec. im short on cash n my rents say i hav 2 spent wisely,so dat means no make-up unless u really need it,but i think i need it…i think.dey said if i can go on like dis/if i finally hav some greens i could splurge beyond my wildest dreams,can u believe dat?! ya da best,Karen!keep up w/ d great info!!!XOXO,Kay-TEE.
Katherine says
April 30th, 2008 at 9:57 amSecret Stash! 🙂
Karen says
April 30th, 2008 at 2:49 pmHi Dao,
Yup, I have the Champagne Glow lipstick. I am wearing it right now w/ MAC Honey B. liner!
So I didn’t know this until recently, but you can buy Avon on amazon.com! This opens up a whole new world for me, cause I have amazon prime (the expediated shipping). Talk about instant gratification!
Karen says
April 30th, 2008 at 2:51 pmHi Glosslizard,
I’ve never been a nail biter. I dunno, I just don’t get any satisfaction from it. I do get TONS of satisfaction from removing my cuticles (gross) and popping zits (sooooo gross). Those are my bad habits that I’ve had to resist!
So Skittles nails all the way!!!! 😉
Karen says
April 30th, 2008 at 2:52 pmHi Susanne,
Aww, that’s too bad, as Essie’s got the cutest lil’ bottles and really great shine. Hopefully someday they’ll make it globally available!
Karen says
April 30th, 2008 at 2:53 pmHi Katherine!
Thanks for your vote! Happy Wednesday. 🙂