Review: Essie Pink Parka

This nail polish is an interesting story.  After getting my nails done with a neon pink Essie a week or so ago, I was craving for a neon of my own.  I stumbled across Essie Pink Parka and it looked so vibrant in the swatches that I had to have it.  Well, none of those swatches mentioned that it was a MATTE.  Yep, a matte nail polish.  Apparently something about the pigment used in neon polishes makes the finish matte.  Ugh.  I strongly dislike matte polish.  It makes my feel like my finger nails are dirty and gross.  I am not a fan.  However, there is a somewhat happy end to the story, so keep on reading.


Pink Parka is from Essie's Fall 2009 collection and is apparently discontinued.  However it's very easy to find on eBay and Amazon.  I got it for about $7 with shipping, and since Essie is $8 in stores it was a pretty good deal.  It is a straight up neon pink creme.  So neon that it actually glows in the dark (well not really, but I'm pretty sure it could if it wanted to).  These pictures were taken out of direct sunlight on a cloudy day, and that's how bright Pink Parka is.  There is actually no way it could be brighter or more neon.

As for the application...ugh.  Matte nail polishes dry very, very quickly.  This means that if you pick up a normal amount of polish on the brush, half the nail will be dry before you finish painting the other half, and your nails will end up looking chalky and streaky.  You need to pick up a lot of polish on the brush and paint as quickly as possible to get an even coat, and you're still going to have to do at least 2 and probably 3 coats.  And then it has a very matte finish that can only be remedied with 2 coats of a super shiny top coat, like Seche Vite.  The one plus side to the whole matte thing is that this polish dries SUPER fast, and the matte finish can be defeated with some top coat.

So what's the verdict?  I'm going this polish a B.  I love, love, love the color, but the matte finish is a killer and the application is a pain.  I think the wear time is going to be average--on day 3 I have slight wear around the edges.  So all in all, this color is worthwhile if you want something truly neon and have the patience to deal with the finish and application.