Essie red creme comparison

With the holiday season around the corner, I always feel attracted to red nail polish. There were 11 Essie red cremes in my drugstore’s Essie display, and then I’m not even counting the reds in the Gel couture and Expressie displays! I decided that it was time to do the ultimate Essie red creme comparison. At home, I was able to find out that there are even more red cremes in Essie’s core collection! The core collection differs a bit between North America and Europe, but they are mostly the same. It also differs a bit between stores.

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):

• Handmade with love
• Geranium (US only)
• Fifth avenue (EU only)
• Lacquered up (Discontinued in the US, EU-only now)
• Russian roulette (Discontinued in the US, but still easy to find, EU-only now)
• Really red (Discontinued in the US, EU-only now)
• Aperitif (Discontinued in the US, EU-only now)
• Not red-y for bed
• Forever yummy
• A list (Officially discontinued in the US, but often still easy to find)
• Maki me happy (Discontinued in the US, EU-only now)
• Fishnet stockings
• Bordeaux
• Berry naughty
• Wicked
• Lieblingsmensch (EU only)
• Nailed it
• She’s pampered (Discontinued in the EU, US-only)

It’s quite a list actually! And spoiler alert: some shades are extremely close, and you don’t need them all! Considering I’m living in Europe, some of these shades were quite challenging to find, but I’m happy to report that I now own all of these shades. I’ve swatched most of these shades below, but I will be updating this post over the next coming weeks with the shades that I haven’t swatched yet! You can immediately skip to the comparison if you don’t want to see the individual swatches!

Essie Handmade with love

This is Essie’s most recent addition to their red collection. The color was part of Essie’s Handmade with love summer 2022 collection but will become part of Essie’s permanent collection. The color is definitely the most orange out of all these shades, and I personally think of it as coral, but Essie has added it to their red section on their website. The shade is described as a ‘bright coral red with blue undertones’.

The formula is very easy to work with, and I only had to use two coats for full opacity. You can find Handmade with love currently on Amazon over here (affiliate link).

Disclaimer: This blog post contains affiliate links. Meaning that if you buy a product through one of these links, I might receive compensation at no additional cost to you. I marked all affiliate links clearly with the label “affiliate link”, all other links are regular links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Essie Geranium

Essie Geranium belonged to the first 130 Essie colors ever produced, and is still part of the permanent collection in the US. To me, that says everything you need to know about this shade! It’s a true classic that will look great on (almost everyone). Sadly, it got discontinued in Europe, but it was shortly available as part of Essie’s Advent calendar for 2022.

Essie calls Geranium an orange-red. In terms of orangeness, it sits between Fifth avenue and Handmade with love, but it leans more towards Fifth avenue. I would argue that if you own either Fifth avenue or Geranium, you probably won’t need the other, unless you’re really into red-oranges. Geranium’s formula is truly amazing. It’s already opaque in one coat if you’re painting carefully (but of course I did two for the pictures).

Out of the ‘brighter’ shades of this comparison, Geranium is probably my favorite! If you’re looking for a summery red, this would definitely be my recommendation!

Essie Fifth Avenue

Essie’s official description of Fifth avenue is: ‘a creamy red orange blend lacquer’. If I keep Handmade with love and Fifth avenue next to each other, Handmade with love is definitely much more orange. Compared to Geranium, I would say it is almost the same shade. Maybe Fifth avenue is a bit more red than orange, but that’s about the difference. The formula of Fifth avenue is amazing. It has a very nice creamy formula and is pretty much opaque in one coat on shorter nails (although I’m wearing two). It’s definitely time that I buy a larger bottle of this! The shade is actually already an oldie, because it was first released as part of Essie’s Spring 2003 ‘Central park’ collection (you can find my swatches of that collection over here).

While researching this shade, I found out that Essie discontinued Fifth Avenue in the US! If you really want to own this shade, it might be time to plan a trip to Europe! I posted a complete review post of Fifth Avenue over here.

Essie Lacquered up

Lacquered up is called a ‘crimson red’ on Essie’s website. According to Wikipedia, crimson is a deep red color inclining to purple. I would absolutely NOT describe Lacquered up like that! To me, Lacquered up is a red with quite a bit of orange undertones, but not as orange as Fifth Avenue or Geranium. It was originally released in a spring collection, which probably explains the orange undertones, but I honestly would wear this polish any season. Compared to Russian Roulette and Really Red, the orange undertones are more obvious in Lacquered up, but I will admit that the shades are pretty close.

In 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!

Lacquered up is still available in selected stores in Europe (not every store sells this shade, as far as I know). It has sadly been discontinued in the US, but it should still be easy to find on eBay or in discount stores.

Essie Russian Roulette

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.

This shade is still available over here on Amazon (affiliate link).

Essie Really Red

Nope, this is not another picture of Russian roulette, this is a different polish. This is Essie ‘Really red’. It is very similar to Russian roulette, but it is missing the orange undertone and is definitely more a neutral red. The formula is again a jelly. In the pictures, I am wearing two coats, but people with longer nails might need to use three coats. Again, this shade also stained my nails. Really red is even older than Russian roulette, it was part of the first 100 colors Essie ever released back in the 80’s!

Upon investigating this shade, I found out that it is already discontinued, or might get discontinued soon in the US. There are still some bottles left over here on Amazon though (affiliate link).

Essie Aperitif

 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.

A reader on Instagram pointed out to me that this polish is actually very difficult to find in North America. It’s still in production in Europe.

Essie Forever yummy

Essie calls ‘Forever yummy’ a creamy tango red lacquer. I must admit that before I was researching Essie’s red shades for this review, I was never really paying attention to Forever yummy. I never really noticed this shade to be honest. Forever yummy is indeed a creme polish, and it is darker and cooler-toned than Aperitif and Russian roulette. Where Aperitif and Russian roulette had a more jelly formula, Forever yummy is definitely a creme. I know that Essie often includes it in Essie Christmas mini sets, and to be honest, Forever yummy is indeed a great Christmas red but I would be able to wear it any time of year. It is opaque in two coats on my nails and probably also for longer nails. Just a fun fact: Essie Forever yummy was originally released as ‘Forever young’ for fall 2008, this might explain the fact why I had never heard of Forever yummy!

Forever yummy should be easily available everywhere. It is for example available over here on Amazon (affiliate link).

Essie A list

Essie just calls ‘a list’ a “classic creamy red“. Essie’s description absolutely doesn’t do this shade justice. The shade is a deep red with pink undertones, darker than Forever yummy but lighter than Bordeaux (coming up next). I had no clue about this before I saw the color in real life because on the website of my drugstore it looks more like Russian roulette. The color is a jelly, and therefore I had to do three coats to get the same color as in the bottle. In my opinion that’s absolutely worth it though! It gives the shade a candied apple finish. I’m so glad I picked it up after all.

A list should be available everywhere. It is, for example, available over here on Amazon (affiliate link).

Essie Maki me happy

Essie Maki me happy is described as a “dark red nail polish“. Maki me happy was released as part of Essie’s Fall 2016 collection. It is part of Essie’s permanent collection in Europe, but it is discontinued in North America. I must admit, I can understand why. Maki me happy looks a lot like A list. The shades are so close that they are very difficult to tell apart. Maki me happy leans a bit pinker than A list and is not a jelly, it lacks the juiciness of A list. In return you will get better coverage; it was opaque in only two coats.

Sadly, I wasn’t able to find Maki me happy on Amazon anymore, but I think Essie A list is a good alternative (see above).

Essie Fishnet Stockings

Essie Fishnet Stockings is my most recent Essie red. The picture is made in my new lighting setup, but it’s very close to ‘A list’ and ‘Maki me happy’, although the pictures look like it is closer to really red and aperitif. Fishnet stockings is described as ‘a spicy dark, creamy red’. It has a creme finish (as opposed to A list with the jelly finish), and it browner leaning than Maki me happy and A list. Fishnet Stockings was originally released in 2000, together with the famous shade Mademoiselle. It’s still part of Essie’s permanent collection, both in Europe and the US. It might be a bit more challenging to find since not every store carries it though!

You can find Fishnet Stockings over here on Amazon (affiliate link).

Essie Bordeaux

Essie Bordeaux is probably one of the first Essie shades that I purchased. I fell instantly in love with the color, it is dark, but never that dark that it looks black. Essie describes the color as ‘a deep red wine‘. It definitely leans a bit brown, but that’s what I love Bordeaux. The formula is something we need to talk about. It’s very jelly. The negative side of this is that the first two coats look very streaky, but when you get this polish completely opaque, it will have the same depth as a candied apple (similar to A list). I always curse this polish when I’m applying it, but I just love how it looks on the nail. But would I have been disappointed if this would have been my first Essie polish? Yes, maybe a bit. I needed three coats to get it to cover evenly. Bordeaux was apparently part of the first 100 shades that Essie ever released! Can you believe that it is still around?

Also, Bordeaux should be easily available everywhere, for example over here on Amazon (affiliate link) or over here on Beyond Polish (affiliate link).

Essie Berry naughty

Until I tried Berry naughty, I thought Essie Bordeaux was my favorite dark Essie. I actually like Berry naughty much better! Berry naughty is about the same darkness as Essie Bordeaux, but it does not have the same brown undertones as Bordeaux. The shade is also slightly jelly, so I did need three coats to get rid of the streakiness, however, it is not as jelly as Bordeaux. The color dries very shiney, and is quite a vampy red but never looks black.

Essie Wicked

Ahh, Wicked. I feel like this is such a famous Essie color. When I was just starting my nail polish journey, I thought that the name ‘Wicked’ belonged to the color that Bordeaux is. I was very surprised to find out that Wicked is very dark and almost black. However, if you keep it next to a true black shade like ‘Licorice’, you can indeed see that Wicked is a red. The formula is again a bit similar to Bordeaux. In the first two coats, you can see that the shade is red, but the color is very patchy. I definitely had to use three coats to even it out. I really love the end result, this type of almost-black color will always have a special place in my heart! Essie released Wicked in 1994, one year after the release of the movie Pulp fiction, which made almost-black-but-not-quite nail polish shades popular!

I had some trouble finding Wicked in a store myself (everybody seems to be hoarding this shade for Christmas), but it is still available on Amazon over here (affiliate link).

Essie Lieblingsmensch

Judging by the name and the lack of American Instagram posts about this shade, I’m going to say that this is a EU-only color. ‘Lieblingsmensch’ is simply described as a red on the German Essie website, but it definitely looks more like pink in my opinion. The formula was very easy and creamy and the shade covered well in two coats. The shade was released a couple of years ago, as an update to Essie’s Celebrate moments collection. At least here in Europe, this collection is part of Essie’s core collection in most stores.

This shade is probably very difficult to find in the US, however, in Europe, it should be easy.

Essie Nailed it

Essie ‘Nailed it’ is also part of the celebrate moments collection. However this one, as opposed to Lieblingsmensch, should be available internationally. On Essie’s website, it is described as a ‘deep burgundy red‘. If it was up to me, I classified this shade as a berry, like “Bahama mama” and “Swing of things”. For the sake of completeness, I swatched the shade anyway. The formula is very good, the shade is a creme and two coats were enough for complete opacity. This was the most liked shade out of all these reds on my Instagram, and I must say, I also really like it!

The shade is available over here on Amazon (affiliate link), but also over here on Beyond Polish (affiliate link).

Comparisons

I 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.

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.

My camera did not pick up the differences between Essie Fifth avenue and Essie Too too hot very well: Essie Fifth avenue is definitely more orange while Too too hot contains more pink. Essie also officially classifies Too too hot as a coral and not as a red (hence why I didn’t share it in this review). Essie Russian roulette is a shade darker but still leans a bit orange. Essie’s Really red is a bit cooler and a bit darker than all the other shades.

Essie Geranium is clearly the most orange from all of these shades. Lacquered up is a red with a bit of orange. While Russian roulette also contains a tiny bit of orange, it is slightly cooler toned and darker than Lacquered up, but the difference is really subtle. Essie Not Red-y for Bed is very cool-toned and contains the most pink.

I was looking forward to this comparison the most, especially since I absolutely could not tell Really red and Aperitif apart when I did swatches on my entire hand. I must admit, I did see some differences in real life when I was doing this comparison, but they were very small. Russian Roulette was clearly lighter and more orange. Really red is a bit lighter than Aperitif, but it is really close. Forever yummy is clearly darker and does not have the translucency that the other shades have.

I don’t know about you, but all these shades look pretty similar to me! Fishnet stockings is the darkest of the four and leans a bit more brown, whereas Maki me happy and A list lean pinker. Fishnet stockings also seems to be slightly darker than the rest. Forever yummy is kind of close to Fishnet stockings but is quite a bit lighter.

Essie Forever yummy is the lightest of these shades. It’s clearly lighter than Maki me happy and A list in real life. Essie Maki me happy and A list are super difficult to tell apart. Maki me happy contains a little bit more pink, but that’s the only difference. In terms of opacity, Maki me happy is a bit more opaque, while A list has more of a jelly formula. Essie Bordeaux is clearly the darkest of the shades, darker than A list and Maki me happy.

Finally, the comparison of the dark reds. As you can see, Berry naughty and Bordeaux are extremely close. In real life, I’m able to see that Berry naughty is a bit cooler and Bordeaux has brown undertones. Both are jellies though. Essie Nailed it has a creme formula and contains more pink than both Berry Naughty and Bordeaux. Finally, Wicked is the darkest shade.

Conclusion

Personally, I definitely found some new favorites while working on this comparison. I would have never picked up ‘A list’ and ‘Nailed it’, if it wasn’t for this post, but I absolutely love them now. This post also reminded me of how much I love Wicked and Bordeaux, especially this time of year.

I’m a bit less excited about the trio ‘Aperitif’, ‘Really red’ and ‘Russian roulette’. The Essie section in my drugstore is very limited, I don’t understand why they added three shades that are this similar. I know that they are slightly different and that it is just a very popular color, but I rather had seen that they would have used the space to create a more diverse core collection. In North America, all three shades seem to be discontinued, although some are still easy to find! ‘A list’, ‘Maki me happy’, and ‘Fishnet stockings’ are also very similar and I don’t understand why they have kept all three (although in the US ‘Maki me happy’ seems to be discontinued).

As stated, I will be adding the remainder of the shades soon! Essie’s core collection seems to always be changing, for example, I believe that ‘limited addiction’ was recently discontinued. Shades like ‘Handmade with love’ and ‘Not red-y for bed’ are quite recent additions. I will try my best to keep this comparison up to date!