I really have no clue as to why Essie would tamper with their most popular shade but not only that, take away what made it so unique in the first place! I was able to find out that the following red cremes are part of Essie’s core collection (without counting the Gel couture and Expressie shades):

You can clearly see in this picture that Handmade with love contains a lot more orange than Fifth avenue, Geranium, and Lacquered up. Geranium and Fifth avenue are both described as orange-reds by Essie, but Geranium is slightly more orange. Although I love both Geranium and Fifth avenue, you definitely won’t need them both unless you’re really into orange reds. Lacquered up is a warm-toned red, but compared to Geranium and Fifth avenue, it’s more of a classic red. Comparison of Essie Fifth avenue, Essie Too too hot, Essie Russian Roulette and Essie Really redIn terms of formula, I was really amazed by Lacquered up. It was basically opaque in one coat, but I had to do two coats to cover up the visible nail line on some nails. It was really easy to work with, and it is so shiny that it almost looks like I’m wearing gel nail polish! This post is basically just a warning that Fiji is no longer what it use to be and get hunting for some original bottles, I know I will be!

Essie calls ‘Aperitif’ an ‘ appetizing creamy red polish‘. I had no clue what to expect. They don’t mention anything about undertones, or whether it is a dark or lighter shade of red. Now that I have actually seen this shade and worn it, I can tell you that it is a slightly cooler toned red creme, that covers in two coats. It is a bit darker than Russian Roulette and Really red, but not a lot. The shade was opaque in two coats, but it also has a jelly formula, so if you have longer nails you might have to use three. The shade was originally released around the year 2000 in a drink-themed collection. Based on the number this color used to have in the US (362), I estimate that this color is from the Winter 1999 collection, which is indeed the drink-themed collection called ‘The Essie Vineyard’. Other shades in the collection all had drink-inspired names such as Cognac and Vermouth. This shade is probably very difficult to find in the US, however, in Europe, it should be easy. Essie Nailed it Essie Nailed itI just pulled out the shades I thought were the closest and were the most difficult to tell apart. Reds are always super difficult to compare, so I hope you can forgive me if the comparisons are not 100 percent clear. Essie handmade with love compared to Essie Fifth avenue, Essie Geranium and Essie Lacquered up Looking for a high shine gel finish? Try essie’s two-step system ‘Gel Couture’ which works without a base coat and a UV lamp. Needing a break from harsh nail treatments or simply in need of some TLC? Try Treat Love & Colour, our colour and care formula which delivers stronger nails in just one week, 65 percent less peeling and 35 percent less breakage †. Whether you need soothing oil for dehydrated cuticles, a strengthener for dry, brittle nails, or a long-lasting top/base coat combo, essie has the perfect nail care treatments for you. This shade should still be available everywhere: ‘Russian roulette’. Essie calls Russian roulette ‘a fiery, exciting classic bright red cream polish with subtle orange undertones‘. To me, Russian roulette looks like a neutral bright red with a bit of orange. The formula is not as creamy as Fifth avenue but more a jelly, it is, therefore, a bit less opaque. However, it was still very nice to apply. On my shorter nails, I needed two coats for full opacity, but on longer nails, you probably need three. This shade did stain my nails after I removed it, so doubling up on basecoat would be a good idea! In case you are wondering about Russian Roulette’s original collection: Russian roulette is apparently so old that I couldn’t even find the collection! It was probably released early 90’s or late 80’s.