Guess who’s feeling productive!!! Let’s see how long that lasts!!! And let’s see if I can finish up a couple more posts before it’s December already (when the heck did that happen how is it already more than halfway through November, make it stop). I’m rambling because I surprisingly don’t have a paragraph to start you out with. Who am I? I blame Daylight Savings.

So let’s get right into the polish! Today we’re looking at another Essie collection (they’ve been busy this year). This is the Game Theory collection, and it was released this fall time, right before their Fall collection. I finally gathered up all the shades and it’s time to talk about em! All the shades are still available on 8ty8beauty.com, where I purchased them. I’ve also seen them now popping up in a new display in CVS, so hey-o suddenly popular again!

This collection has 6 shades all with a matte velvet finish. I’ve been loving all of the matte finish polishes that have dropped this fall and winter, and JUST GIMME ALL THE MATTES. I love any sort of matte finish on a polish, and especially shimmery polishes like these ones. I’ll stop blabbering and just let you see how pretty these are already. Let’s get into the swatches now!

Up first we have ‘Call Your Bluff’. This is the lightest shade of the bunch and is a shimmery champagne gold. This had a good 1st coat, but did have some nail line peeking through. It was easily opaque with a 2nd coat, and was so smooth to paint on.

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Up next, we have ‘Going All In’. This is a cool-toned pink base with subtle lavender shimmer. This one feels a little bit more thinner and more watery, but it still glided on the nails and was easily opaque in 2 coats.

I love that shimmer in it, it gives it a lovely dimension and I ended up loving this one more than I thought I would!

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The first of the 2 burgundy shades is the namesake of the collection. This is ‘Game Theory’ and it’s a deep wine red shimmer. This had a fantastic formula and was basically opaque in just 1 easy coat. I ended up doing 2 to smooth out any ridges I had in my nails, but so easy to paint on the nails, and this would be perfect for a quick nail look!

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And the deeper and vampier of the two reds is ‘Ace of Shades’. This is a super deep cool-red bases with gorgeous bright red shimmer. This one had another gorgeous formula and was easily opaque in just 1 coat. I did notice that it can skip a little on the nails if there wasn’t enough polish on the brush, so definitely don’t be afraid of thicker coats. It’s easy to control and won’t flood the cuticles.

So stunning, and it was worth hunting it down.

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Moving right along, we have ‘Wild Card’. This is a bright medium blue shimmer. I found this one to be the most pigmented of the bunch, and had another stunning formula. Beautiful and easily opaque in just 1 coat.

This does need a little more precision because of how pigmented it is, but it doesn’t dry so fast that you can’t work with it. I ended up loving it.

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Last but certainly not least we have ‘Hold ‘Em Tight’, a deep royal purple shimmer. This one was the most uneven of the bunch, so I recommend thicker coat to make sure it goes on smoothly. This was 2 easy coats, and even though it was a little more uneven, it was nothing crazy, and as you can see was still pretty easily smoothed out. Another lovely vampy shade.

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And that’s the Game Theory collection! I can’t complain about a single formula in the bunch – they were all easily opaque in 1-2 coats, and so smooth on the nails. You won’t go wrong with any color that strikes your fancy in this collection.

I’ve absolutely loved all of the matte finish polishes that have been released lately, and I always love seeing mainstream companies experiment with different finishes and formulas! I can only hope Essie comes out with more shades in this formula and finish!

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Upcoming Posts
Nails: Lights Lacquer GRL PWR collection • Orly Holiday 2019 Collection • China Glaze x Sesame Street Holiday 2019 Collection • Sista Chic Lacquer Holiday 2019 collection

Makeup: BH Cosmetics Fairy Lights Palette • Colourpop California Love Palette • Revolution Pro All That Glistens Palette

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Instagram: @GingerlyPolished

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Other Essie Posts
Essie Fall 2019 Collection
Essie Rocky Rose Collection
Essie ‘Gorge-ous Geodes’ Collection