The Essie Test - Day One - *Day 10 of the DailyBean*

Ever wondered why I love nail polish, specifically the Essie brand so much?  Because fingers are reliable.  Skin breaks out, hair frizzes and booties expand, making styling products and fashion less gratifying for a quick pick me up.  No matter how bad the hair day or how big the booty, if I do my nails I feel at least four points better than I did before.  Little effort, big reward and low risk of disappointing results.  Plus, unlike make up or that perfect outfit, manicures stick around for a few days.  Low maintenance primping. I'm allaboutsit.  

Because happy nails = a happy Marie, I have quite a collection of polishes.  I love OPI, China Glaze and gel nail products as much as the next girl but when you stack the price, color choice and a few other variables in there, Essie still reigns supreme for me.

Here's are my reasons (some you may not expect):

1. It's got the right amount of elasticity to it, so it doesn't chip and doesn't apply too thick.
2. It has a nice matte shine
3. Great color choices with even better color names (that's a biggie).
4. Square bottles!  They're easy to organize and don't take up as much space as the traditional bottles
5. Small bottle size.  I know it seems like you'd want more product for spending $8 on a polish but those bigger bottles gum up or dry out because as the product is used, the air space becomes a problem.  I've never been able to finish a bottle of nail polish before the formula goes bad so why do I care if there are less oz anyway?  Essie's bottles don't allow as much air space and the product lasts longer.
6. Color is usually the same in the bottle as it is on your fingertips.  Unfortunately I don't adore the translucent colors as much as I do the opaques.  They take a bit more patience in between layers and too many coats then I'm willing to give.  
7. A lot of their colors can stand alone with one coat!  One and done!  

On to the test!
Normally doing my own nails is a mental break for me so I go all out with cuticle treatments, top coats, etc.  but this time, we're testing Essie on it's own.  I've painted my nails with two coats of my current favorite color "Who's The Boss" (used to be my favorite show too, that saucy Mona).  No base or top coats for shine, nothing else but Essie alone. 

Here's how they look now.

*Note to self, get dang date stamp off camera!

Let's see how they hold up against a 2 year old, daily dishes and full contact street fighting.  Ya know, my typical day.

I'll update again on Monday and we'll see how they held through!  (UPDATE HERE)

What's you're favorite polish brand and color?

*Bonus Pic*

Tiny toddler toes!