Essie Essie Sleek Stick, 1 ea

I personally don't have the time or money to get my nails done professionally. But I do like seeing them glisten and I have a number of different brand of nail polishes that are all supposed to last a long time and look amazing. Some live up to that, some do not. The Gel polish innovation, especially for the home user, is big right now and I have tried a couple different brands before essie. The photo does not show how shiny the nails really were. Application: I'm not the best at applying nail polish so I appreciate a product that helps me out and has a smooth application. I was really impressed with the wand and how easily it moved over the nail. The bristles held a lot of polish, even after I wiped some off. They fanned out nicely to distribute the polish around the nail. Bottle design: I really like bottles that I am confident will not easily tip over. Some brands gave me great anxiety because I worried I need to put sand bags around them just to prevent a horrible accident. The essie bottle, with the lovely twist, is very easy to hold. It feels secure and I didn't think the bottle was "tippy", even when I had it on an uneven surface. More importantly, it was easy to grab awkwardly with a hand that had wet nails. Durability: For me the shine lasted 100% for a week and after that, it lost some shine. In addition, after a week I had some light chipping off the ends and sides of the nails. It might not have been noticable if I was wearing clear polish only, but it definitely was with color polish. I did prepare my nails before painting them, and did two coats of the color (step 1) and one of the clear Gel Couture top coat (step 2). I would say I am impressed overall with the essie brand Gel polish set, but it was not the perfect, long-lasting polish I was hoping for. Although the polish, when new, looked very beautiful, I don't think this can quite compare with a salon gel in terms of durability. Since this is a fraction of the cost, I do think it is well worth the price and recommend it on that basis. I received the Gel Couture nail polish and clear top coat for free from PINCHme.com.

Just what I was looking for