Karen

UPDATE: The contest is closed, and I’ll be notifying the winners shortly. Thanks for entering!

What do ya get when you mix sassy red with nude pink, add a dash of Smurfy blue, and pour in *lots* of cream?

Answer: a recipe for Essie’s spring 2009 color collection.

From left to right: Mesmerize, One of a Kind, Status Symbol

From left to right: Eternal Optimist, Flawless, Lacquered Up

The six sweet and spunky $8 nail colors go on sale next month, and aren’t they cute?

Compared to winter’s dark purples and deep reds, these nudes and classic reds (and the surprise blue) have spring written all over ’em, and I dig the vibe. It’s dreamy and playful — like a warm, lazy afternoon in the park.

I’m new to blue — nail polish (aka Le Club du Blue). Creamy, royal Mesmerize caught my eye because I don’t have anything like it in my nail polish stash. And for some odd reason when I look at Mesmerize I feel patriotic, go figure!

I can see it looking great well into summer. Could you imagine having her on your toes and wearing a pair of cute, strappy sandals? Hot!

Status Symbol, a creamy and bright pink coral, looks like food. By that I mean it looks good enough to eat, LOL! It makes me want to suck on my fingers, as if I’m sporting strawberry-flavored candy nails, and like Mesmerize it should look great worn well into August.

I think many of the collection’s other pinks and reds look somewhat similar but have subtle differences.

The creamy reds — One of a Kind and Lacquered Up — could be twins! But a hint of orange makes One of a Kind just slightly warmer.

And Lacquered Up looks more like a true red to me. I like both of these crimson divas, but I think I prefer the way One of a Kind cooperates with my skin color.

Creamy Eternal Optimist a peachy-brown and pink, looks warmer than her sister Flawless, a cool and pale pink.

I think I’m drawn more to Eternal Optimist, though. She just seems a little more natural, but it’s a tough choice. Flawless is one of those sweet pinks that pops!

Despite the nudes that make this feel like a traditional spring release, I love how the collection adds some funner shades to keep things interesting, particularly Mesmerize and Status Symbol. They’re my favorite stars of the show.

The Essie Spring 2009 Giveaway

Are your current nail polish colors giving you the blahs? Get a fresh nail look this spring. Enter the Essie Spring 2009 Giveaway!

You can enter to win by signing up to receive my updates by email or by leaving a comment on this post (or both!). If you’re already signed up for the updates, you don’t have to do anything else to be entered to win — you’re already entered — but you can double your chances by also leaving a comment on this post (a comment about anything at all).

The Prize

Four lucky winners will slip into new nail colors this spring with a complete set of all six polishes Essie’s Spring 2009 collection ($48 value).

How to Enter

There are two different ways to enter, and you can do both of them to double your chances.

1. If you haven’t already signed up to receive Makeup and Beauty Blog daily email updates, then enter your email in the pink box below (or click this link).
2. If you have already subscribed to the email updates but want to double your chances, add a brief comment at the bottom of this post (be sure to use a valid email address). 🙂

Enter your email address:

I’ll choose the four winners at random from among the people who enter by 11:59 PM PST on Saturday, January 17. The contest is open to all US and international readers. Good luck!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen