Monday, August 3, 2009

Essie Loves Diamonds by Judith Ripka

This collection is a set of three "Diamond Dust"-infused polishes with a hidden twist- a chance to own a valuable gemstone. Here's what Essie says about it:

Essie Cosmetics and Judith Ripka Hit the Diamond Mine

Introducing Essie Loves Diamonds by Judith Ripka

A Nail Color Collection Infused with Diamond Dust and Hidden Gemstones

How do you wear diamonds? Prep nail and polish. Essie Cosmetics and Judith Ripka – two iconic luxury brands – joined forces to create the ultimate luxe accessory. Introducing Essie Loves Diamonds by Judith Ripka – a limited-edition collection of 3 nail colors infused with genuine diamond dust.

In this collaboration, nail polish and diamonds come together to create a new ‘woman’s best friend.’ Essie Cosmetics, the go-to nail color authority, worked with award-winning jewelry designer Judith Ripka to develop a collection of polishes that would give women the best of both worlds – fashion-forward nail colors with the decadence of diamonds. The alluring sparkle of diamonds dust has been infused into three wearable shades, each with a unique name and slight-glimmering color.

To celebrate the launch of this collection, Essie and Judith Ripka are offering 3 lucky winners the chance to find and own a genuine precious gemstone. A sapphire, emerald and diamond will each be hidden separately inside three different polish bottles. The lucky finders will become owners of these stunning stones.

“Judith Ripka is a visionary brand with stunning jewelry pieces and they are the perfect partner for this collection,” says Essie Weingarten, Founder/President of essie. “With Judith, I created this collection for every woman who loves diamonds – the colors are chic and classic.”

When you buy any of the three polishes, go to www.essie.com and www.judithripka.com and enter the UPC code on the bottom of the bottle for additional discounts and promotions.

Essie Loves Diamonds by Judith Ripka launches in spas, salons and beauty destinations worldwide in August 2009. SRP $15 per bottle.




Let's have a look!

Heart my JR Jewels. Deep brown creme with diamond accent. This is a really fall-like vampy red-brown creme. It has barely-perceptible sparse silver glitter- the Diamond Dust part of the formula.


Put A Ripka Ring On It. Pale pink creme with diamond accent. This is your standard milky pink Essie creme, but with a small, hidden amount of silver glitter. I put a little too much of this one on and didn't wait for it to dry- please forgive the thickness of the polish in these pictures.


Queen of Hearts. Bright classic red with diamond accent. Another traditional classic shade, this time bright clean red with the same subtle silver diamond dust shimmer.



You will have to view the images full size to see the diamond dust shimmer. It's almost invisible on the nail, but you can see it more clearly in the bottle:


As you can see, the diamond dust sparkle is very, very subtle. Little tiny flakes and flecks of irregular-shaped silver glitter.

The formula on these was really good. I had zero application problems. Opacity was good as well, they really only needed two coats, but I did three to see if I could get the diamond dust to show up better. Drying time is also very good.

The Diamond Dust in the descriptions had me totally intrigued. I was envisioning sparkling, gem-like shades with flecks of glassy shimmer, or even better, holographic shades. After all, OPI Designer Series claims to have diamond dust as well, and they're holographic! That is sadly not the case with these. The diamond dust is extremely subtle and you might not even know it was there unless someone pointed it out ahead of time.

Not a bad collection, but not too exciting either. These are all safe, reserved, classic shades- red, brown, sheer pink. If you're into classic work-safe shades, you might really love these. Personally, I was hoping for a lot more shimmer and was somewhat surprised that the diamond dust was nearly invisible in the polish formulation. I guess I'd call these cremes with a little extra- a hidden surprise. A surprise that you can only see when you hold your hand up to admire your (Judith Ripka?) rings! :)

26 comments:

  1. Deceived too... I was thinking it would be some great thing like OPI's diamond dusts but I just don't see the slightest sparkle. Sigh... I want glitters, sparkles. :"(

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  2. I was excited about this collection but now I am not. I figured that it would be like the OPI as well but I can't even see the sparkle in these! Don't get me wrong the colors are pretty but if its not noticable on the nail then I will pass on these.

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  3. I was all excited about these, and they look pretty, but nothing noteworthy. Thanks for showing them :)

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  4. Definitely a dissapointing collection for sure. Shame on you Essie you just want people to buy your products in hopes of finding a jewel!

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  5. When I read the part about diamond dust, I was picturing holos ala OPI Designer Series as well. Sort of a fail for me.

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  6. When I was reading the promo info, I could feel myself getting excited to see the polishes. I scrolled down and... wow, I'm totally underwhelmed. This is really a let down.
    Thanks for the info!

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  7. thanks for swatching these, but i gotta say this collection is boring!!!! sorry essie, OPI DS takes the cake over these any day!

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  8. Thanks for swatching these, Scrangie, but what a boring collection! Yawn.

    Sorry essie, OPI DS takes the cake over these.

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  9. YUCK!! Not only are the colors crap but I STILL didn't see any sparkle and that ain't your fault :( Big thumbs down. That's a gimmick if I ever saw one. Pitiful promotion for something with NOTHING special about it. I could go on but I think you get my point. YUCK!!

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  10. These colors kind of look like Judith Ripka's personality. Zzzzz. I'll admit it... I (occasionally) watch QVC and when she's on, it's a good time to get in a nap.

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  11. So are the gemstones that you might win inside the bottle all covered in nail polish? weird. haha!

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  12. I see clouds in the reflection of the queen of heart nail polish... is that normal? I can't remember

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  13. When we heard the promo about the gems that would be hidden, I figured we'd get a blue & green (sapphire & emerald, makes sense, right?). Obviously I overestimated Essie.

    Lovely swatches, as always, but *yawn*.

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  14. False advertising on their behalf. Wow.

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  15. I may be the only freak to worry about this, but isn't diamond dust super abrasive? wouldn't it hurt the nailbed when taking the polish off? like, if you swipe a cotton ball on the nail, the diamond dust sands the nailbed?

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  16. Haha, the diamond infusion into beauty products seem to be everywhere lately! Last time I was at the salon my stylist washed my hair with shampoo containing diamonds and cashmere (I have no idea how this could possibly improve the condition of my hair). Much like that shampoo, I don't see a difference between these polishes and those without diamonds...except the price.

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  17. These colors are so boring (predictable)...not even yewels will convince me to buy these. Even if it was one in every bottle. Too bad!

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  18. I'm disappointed with this collection.The colours are nice but not spectacular.Meh.

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  19. Nice swatches! I was wondering about the diamond dust and am a little disappointed - holographic would have been cool!

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  20. Not only is diamond dust abrasive, it's black, and definately not glittery. (To be technical about it.)

    Thanks for the photos, Scrangie, but YAWN to Essie.

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  21. I LOOOOOOVE that brown!

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  22. Judith Ripka's jewelry features some really pretty gems like raspberry garnets, sapphires, olive green quartz...So I don't get these colors at all.
    -DanaCerise

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  23. Sorry, but this is such a gimmick. A secret jewel hidden in one of the thousands of polishes? I'm glad you reviewed them as they are nice, but nothing too noteworthy.

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  24. Hi!

    Do you know when Essie will launch the Fall 2009 collection? I think the name is Cuddle with Color Collection.

    Cheers, Ana.

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  25. Thank you for taking the time to swatch these.

    Just when I start to love Essie they do something lame like this. I sees no diamond dust Essie! Shame on you guys lol

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