Thursday, May 9, 2013

Swatches and Review--Essie Madison Ave-Hue

What a spoiled little brat! No, I'm not talking about a person, but a nail polish. You know how sometimes a kid is a maddening little person who acts up and does whatever they want and drives you crazy, but they are so cute that you love them anyway? That describes my experience with Essie Madison Ave-Hue.
*I purchased this polish with my own money and I am not affiliated with nor compensated by any brand mentioned in this post.*


Our relationship started out just fine. I was shopping with my brother's girlfriend at CVS, buying boring stuff like deodorant. When I went to pay, my receipt printed out with $5.00 of Extra Bucks (the loyalty/reward program at CVS)! I turned right around to look at the nail polish to see which one was coming home with me for $5.00 cheaper than usual. 


I have been on such an Essie kick lately, further fueled by the giant display that our CVS added to the front of the store, basically in my face the second I walk in. I browsed and finally decided on Madison Ave-Hue, which I had previously picked up and put down on several other occasions in favor of my more beloved greens and blues. 


In the bottle, Madison Ave-Hue appears to be a medium, purple-leaning pink with subtle but dense silver shimmer. Those things are still true when on the nail. However, this little diva wants so badly to be neon purple that she almost makes you believe that she is. 


The formula was thin, but not difficult to apply. It was difficult for me to get even coverage, though, so I ended up with three coats over  Orly Bonder base coat. She seemed like she was going to cover evenly, but no. I'm pretty sure she laughed at me for having new hope on each nail for even coverage. One coat of Poshe was my top coat.


Madison Ave-Hue is very pigmented. Once I had finished my three coats, I was surprised at how much deeper and brighter the polish was on my nails versus the bottle. I thought it was pink, but now started to wonder if it was closer to purple. And almost neon as purples go...strange, but pretty. This observation was under artificial light. I was thinking of how difficult it would be to capture the right color on camera. It ended up being five times more difficult than I anticipated; see how she is turning out to be high maintenance?


The day after application, photo day, I was sitting in natural light indoors. Now the polish looks on my nails like it does in the bottle--what a moody lady! Still so lovely, though...


Outside in the bright sunlight, Madison Ave-Hue mostly looked pink again. But she leaned purple again if I changed the angle at all. How am I supposed to accurately portray this polish on the blog? It's so beautiful that it wouldn't be very nice of me not to share, but it took hours to color-correct all the photos in such a way as to show you what my eyes saw.



So I get completely frustrated applying the polish, taking the photos,and editing the photos, but I can't stop smiling and staring at the pretty polish. This must be how women make men feel.



After all that, she has the nerve to chip on the day after application! I don't ask for a long-wearing polish; I change my polish all the time. Two days should not be too much to ask.



Yes, it's 'just nail polish', so my story is overly dramatic. But here's the bottom line: Is Essie Madison Ave-Hue worth the confusion and the trouble? For me, yes. I loved her different personalities and she's so cute! The dense but subtle shimmer adds something special. I think that Madison Ave-Hue is a good shade both for spring and for summer, if you pay attention to seasonally appropriate things.
*I purchased this polish with my own money and I am not affiliated with nor compensated by any brand mentioned in this post.*

What do you think? Do you have any beauty products that you have a love/hate relationship with? Seche Vite top coat is another of mine.


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