Dec 10, 2012

NOTD - Essie Carry On

I actually got mildly upset when L'Oreal bought out Essie and soon after I started seeing Essie retail bottles as well as the L'Oreal polishes with identical colors at drugstores.
I don't really have a rational explanation for my sentiments since Essie still distributes to salons.
Maybe I have seen too many great independent companies got merged into those big global brands, and lost their unique qualities in the end.

Saying all that, I was still glad to find this Essie Carry On retail bottle from a discount store.
I love anything deep and vampy, and this is a purple creme not to mention it was only $3!


Essie Carry On
(Ugh, I hate the Essie retail bottles...)


I was a little disappointed with the color, however.
Please don't get me wrong.
It is still posh and delicious, but on my nails, it looks less purple than from the bottle. I can see there is a good amount of cool brown in it as well.
The color shows up purple under natural lighting (cloudy or sunny, which is quite nice), but it looks borderline black indoors like OPI Lincoln Park After Dark, for example.

It also reminds me of the deep dark chocolate brown color from Essie, Little Brown Dress, which I put on one of my fingers to give you a comparison.


under warmer lighting

Can you tell which finger?
No? 
Ah, you are making me sad... ;-/


This polish is very pigmented and has a great formula that covers nicely after two coats.
I am wearing this with Seche Vite top coat.

Similar colors would be Essie Velvet Voyeur and OPI William Tell Me About OPI.
(No, I don't think you would need more than one of these.)



Join the conversation!

  1. I havent bought an Essie polish in so long but this made me want to indulge!

    ReplyDelete
  2. lol !!!!ure welcome Lena!!

    ReplyDelete
  3. thanks for noticing! lolz
    i have too many of these borderline black polishes in my box!
    must stop buying them. ;p

    ReplyDelete
  4. I'm guessing the pinky since that one is much darker than the other nails. Gorgeous colour, though I can understand why you'd be a little bit disappointed with it if it wasn't exactly what you were hoping for.

    ReplyDelete
  5. i think i would have been 100% happy with the color if it doesn't look so purple from the bottle. lol.
    and i just fished out a color of the very description from my box, which means i need to stop buying these dark purple colors...!!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Your pinky! :)
    Anyway, both are beautiful colors! I love the Seche Vite top coat but Im too scared of its cancerous ingredient :(
    ♥,
    Shari

    ReplyDelete
  7. i think i'd buy poshe again once i use up the seche. i have the same concern although it gives a super duper shiny finish! ;)

    ReplyDelete
  8. Well, the colour looks pretty great I think. I like the deep rich almost black colour, but I know what you mean. xo

    ReplyDelete
  9. thanks!
    you understand! ;)
    i think i am ready to move on to short red nails today, though. need some color!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Really cute and shimmering the color. Looks like red wine is lovely.

    Xoxo

    ReplyDelete
  11. thank you, Raimar! :D

    ReplyDelete
  12. I really like this color but I can see how you feel...the color in the bottle does look a bit more purple!

    ReplyDelete
  13. aww thanks for understanding, Julie!
    nail polishes are tricky like that sometimes. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  14. Pretty dark colors like this are quite perfect for this time of year. Sorry to hear the actual color disappointed you Lena. It's amazing how polish colors can vary depending on the lighting conditions. Is that Little Brown Dress on your pinky? Seche Vite is my fave topcoat :)

    Rowena @ rolala loves

    ReplyDelete
  15. yes, it is on my pinky. lolz ;)
    in real life, nobody can tell the difference..kinda sad..;/
    usually the colors show up darker than on other people's nails..i don't know why..oh well

    ReplyDelete
  16. Is it the pinky? ;) You have pretty nails!

    ReplyDelete
  17. yes!
    thank you, Becky ;)

    ReplyDelete
  18. EEE I need this one!!! I'm sure I have something similar, but there's so much dimension in this one!

    ReplyDelete
  19. it is very deep and saturated. ;)
    don't we all have at least two bottles of vamp? haha
    (like the taupe eyeshadows and red lipsticks...one is never enough)

    ReplyDelete
  20. I can tell! :D

    It looks like my Butter London polish, which it looks like you don't need after all! Look at that! :D :D :D

    ReplyDelete
  21. oh, thanks for telling me that. (i was going to get that gorgeous BL polish ever since your post!!!) ;D

    ReplyDelete
  22. (I think I know which finger!) I feel so out of the loop that I didn't know about L'Oreal buying Essie. Hopefully they still keep the same quality in their polishes! This shade is super pretty, kinda looks like Bahama Mama, but more dark and vampy :)

    ReplyDelete
  23. i love bahama mama!!!! i guess carry one is her darker sister. ;)
    it seems that essie still maintains independence in some way..i wouldn't know what was the deal exactly, though.. i guess l'oreal can use their colors cause i see the same colors now. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  24. I did not know about L'oreal and essie... but maybe that is a good thing for us in my country. Essie was not really that well known and extremly hard to find and then all of the sudden Essie is everywhere... So I am not complaining :$

    Have a great week Lena.

    Btw how do you clean up your nails so pretty after putting polish on.. I am a total spass :S

    artofmi3.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  25. hmmm that is a good point!
    i just hope that the global price stays reasonable since it is now a global brand sorta..

    i don't really do clean up to be honest..i got pretty good at painting my nails after years of practice..lol
    (i suck when i paint others', though. haha)

    ReplyDelete
  26. you can get Essie nail polishes for 3$? that's a good price! we have to pay 8€ and even before it retailed for 13€, @.@
    anyway,this color is beautiful! and once again your nails are perfect!

    ReplyDelete
  27. not from the retail stores usually..so that is why i was happy to pick this up!
    i usually get essie polishes from a salon whose owner is my friend..so i pay $3-4 per bottle which is the price they are getting for.

    thanks so much for your compliment! :)

    ReplyDelete
  28. This is a beautiful colour :)

    ReplyDelete
  29. Love your nails! And the colour is very pretty as well!

    http://mymakeupcompulsion.blogspot.com.es/

    ReplyDelete
  30. the pinky finger!! because the shade is a tad darker than the rest =) this shade is so pretty but I prefer the LBD more...=) you really have such nice nails!!!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  31. you're correct! lolz
    but in real life, it is really hard to tell!

    thanks for the compliment, Janet :)

    ReplyDelete
  32. Ahhh, I LOVE this colour! I'm glad that I have it, though I agree re: strong dislike of the drugstore bottle. Maybe it helps that I don't have OPI Lincoln Park After Dark to compare it to. Though it's more likely that I adore nearly black polishes that still show their "true" colour. :) In any case, I think it looks lovely and dramatic on you, and $3 is quite the great bargain!

    ReplyDelete
  33. right? i don't know what it is..it is just a simple logo print over!
    i think LPAD is darker but it looks more purple for some reason...

    there is a discount store i pop by and every now and then they have amazing deals like this. love it! lol

    ReplyDelete
  34. hmm i know what you mean about dark purple polishes! i've bought a few that looked really amazing in the bottle but when applied it almost looks black.
    and i had no idea L'Oreal bought Essie... thanks for cluing me in! when did that happen?

    ReplyDelete
  35. i think it happened a couple years ago although i started seeing the same colors only recently..
    i stay indoors a lot so i want something would make me happy whether i have sun or not. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  36. is it the pink finger? gosh, it would be close. lena, i didn't know l'oreal took over Essie. that explains the similarities in the bottle. uggggh, i hate that too! this is a gorgeous color!!!
    http://www.averysweetblog.com/

    ReplyDelete
  37. thanks, Kim!

    i think L'Oreal now has the same colors from Essie, like two seasons behind. lolz
    i don't like l'oreal polish formulation so this would improve that. if they are just using the colors, i am not gonna buy them..

    ReplyDelete
  38. dark and vampy and i am also in..i love rich shades like these!

    ReplyDelete
  39. these colors would look beautiful on you, Debi! ;)

    ReplyDelete
  40. I loooove these colours, and I own more than one bottle hahaha~ Black from afar but a mix of purple and brown when viewed upclose. So pretty *sighs*

    ReplyDelete
  41. tell me about it, Blair! boy, don't i have 10 vampies myself! lolz
    maybe i should do a post on vampy polishes..;p

    ReplyDelete
  42. what a beautiful vamp! It looks very similar to Chanel Provocation, I wonder how similar they actually are :D I also like the seche vite top coat, I use Chanel's top coat a lot lately though.

    ReplyDelete
  43. ooh i'd like that if it is a dupe for the chanel polish. lolz
    i never tried chanel top coat. i like Seche except for its shrinkage problem..;p

    ReplyDelete
  44. I totally remember that collection; they totally had a lot of winners in it for sure. This colour is just so perfect!

    ReplyDelete
  45. thank you!
    i really liked this collection as well. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  46. i'll have to remember this one...been wanting an oxblood or similar for my nails. pretty!

    [oomph.]

    ReplyDelete
  47. thank you. ;)
    if you want oxblood, i'd try something like revlon vixen.
    this one lacks red to be a true oxblood although it is deep and gorgeous. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  48. very pretty color. Is it your pinky finger? That's my guess. So close though.

    ReplyDelete
  49. aw thanks for noticing!
    yes, it is the pinky.
    it is quite hard to tell the difference in real life, though.....

    ReplyDelete
  50. WoW, your nails look gorgeous. And the pictures are perfect. :)

    Satu
    Indie by heart
    (ps. I didn't stop following you, I just had to clear up my gfc -list. :D Bloglovin is fully up and running like always x)

    ReplyDelete
  51. no worries!
    thanks for adding me on bloglovin' ;D

    ReplyDelete
  52. I like this color because it's such a deep purple and almost black, like you said. And I can definitely tell the difference between the two colors (your pinky!)
    ♥ laura
    the blog of worldly delights
    the shop of worldly delights

    ReplyDelete
  53. hehe..thanks, Laura!
    i usually buy multiple polishes for subtle difference like that..but i guess i expected more purple in this color.
    it is a saturated vamp for sure. :)

    ReplyDelete
  54. Wow. I love how rich the color is. The nail polish is gorgeous <3

    ReplyDelete
  55. thank you, Gretchen! :)

    ReplyDelete
  56. It IS stunning but I know what you mean - too close to black :s

    ReplyDelete
  57. i think i actually prefer LPAD although it is darker than Carry On. it looks more purple... ;-)

    ReplyDelete
  58. i can!! i think...lol the last pinky finger? its still kinda a beautiful color!! its super shiny!! <33 it! that sucks that it looks black in darker lighting though

    ReplyDelete
  59. wow! .。.:*☆ your nails look just perfect and I'm in love with the color! I'm not a frequent polish wearer but I actually like this color and would totally buy it! it's a pretty and elegant for winter :) Your small finger has definitely and other polsih on it!! it's much browner I think..

    ReplyDelete
  60. thank you!
    i still prefer Carry On over LBD because of the purple hues.
    it is a good classic!

    thanks for your compliment on my nails. ;D

    ReplyDelete
  61. The other shade is on your pinky finger! :D

    I love Carry On - such a gorgeous shade of purple, but I totally agree with you in that it looks less purple on the nails. I love these sorts of eggplant vampy shades though. Gorgeous.

    ReplyDelete
  62. that's right!
    too bad it is not as obvious as in the pictures. -_-;;
    i just fished out more than 5 bottles of the same color family. maybe i should do a post, right? ;p

    ReplyDelete
  63. essie is one of my favorites! the brush really works for me and i love her colors. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  64. Hei! I just found your blog and it is amazing!

    I am following your blog and I hope you will follow mine too!

    xoxo,
    Ana V

    ReplyDelete
  65. hi, Anna!
    thanks for finding me.
    following you as well. ;)

    ReplyDelete

© Lenallure. All Rights Reserved.