It happens every year. May rolls around, I get the first whiff of warm summer air, and I just can’t stomach the thought of putting on another cardigan, no matter how cold it is in my office. Summer is my very favorite time of year. Summer is my happy place. Nothing fills me with more peace than sitting out back on my patio under my pergola, watching my lil guy play in his sandbox, and watching the sun set. Sunset in summer is the most amazing part of the year.
You know what else comes with summer? Sun-kissed skin (even if it’s from a bottle) skirts, (more) flip flops (I do live in Florida, after all; there aren’t too many months that don’t include flip flop weather) magazines by the pool and summer nail polishes. When I’m planning my weekly manicures, it’s sort of like planning my outfits; dark greens, red and blues are like cardigans and I just can’t bring myself to wear them, either.
I have three really beautiful colors to show you today to get summery on your digits. The first two are courtesy of Nikki, a very sweet Instagram shop owner I’ve been getting to know and ogling her store! She is always running specials on her Essie stash, so if you’re a fan of nail polish, FOLLOW HER!
Nikki is going to be my very special guest this summer for a series on thrifty style, but she’s also a nail polish (ESSIE!) addict and sent me two gorgeous colors to try out: Essie Jamaica Me Crazy and Essie Turquoise and Caicos.
First up, Essie Jamaica Me Crazy. WOW, I loved this one.
Essie Jamaica Me Crazy is a bright fuchsia color with a slight shimmer and gorgeous shine. I knew from the first stroke I was going to be in love with this color. I told Nikki I loved glitter and shimmer polishes, and somehow she knew this one was for me. I love the way Essie Jamaica Me Crazy applied, too: it was almost a one-coat manicure, but I added two for good measure and topped it with Seche Vite.
Next on the list is my current obsession, turquoise, presenting in Essie Turquoise and Caicos from last year’s Resort Collection.
This? Is like a trip to the beach in a bottle. Maybe it’s the name, maybe it’s the color (a light, fresh creme turquoise) but I can almost feel the ocean waves. Essie Turquoise and Caicos has a pretty good application, but the formula was a little light to me and needed two coats…probably could have used three, because there were a few streaky patches. However, Essie Turquoise and Caicos lasted a week with just a few chips! This is two coats topped with Seche Vite.
Last but not least, we have Julep Kaylen.
Girls, does this not SCREAM summer to you? Julep Kaylen was in my March Maven box and I haven’t tried it yet because honestly the mood hasn’t struck me. I’m not really an orange person unless it calls to me, and last night, Julep Kaylen called me! The color is a bright, almost neon, orange creme. It dries almost matte. Now, this one was kind of a pain in the butt to apply. What you see above is four layers, not including the base and top coats. I used e.l.f. White (just white; I guess I bought it before they were “good” at nail polish because it’s OLD) as a base to make the orange pop more. Of course, white is notoriously streaky, so I had to apply coat after coat after coat of Julep Kaylen before I was happy with the result. It was overcast this morning, so I didn’t get to see it in full sun, but I know it’s going to be fab! I think this would also look amazing with a little glitter on top.
What are your go-to summer nail colors?
