Collection: Essie Spring 2013, Madison Ave-Hue

These were being cleared out at my local Winners, and a couple of helpful MUAers said they were worth picking up at $3 a pop! I am not usually one for layering polishes, but I’m definitely sold on these.

A few years back, CND (formerly Creative Nail Design) discontinued all their old nail polish (boo!) and introduced their new Colors and Effects polishes. The Colors, I believe, are all opaques, and the Effects are different top coats to layer over the Colors. I picked up Raspberry Sparkle and Jade Sparkle, which are sheer, microglittery opalescents that flash pink (Raspberry) or green (Jade).

Last week I tried out Essie Avenue Maintain, loved it, and then proceeded to stick an Effect over the top. I hemmed and hawed a little over whether to use Raspberry or Jade, but in the end, Raspberry won out, and I convinced myself not to do one hand with each Effect. One coat of Raspberry Sparkle turned Avenue Maintain into a vivid blue with pretty pink flashing microglitter! You could definitely use an extra coat or two to amp up the flash, but I liked the “subtlety” of just one. Here it is: