Finally loading up a new swatch from my haul from a few weeks back. This is the Essie Playa del Platinum. Sorry for the really messy cuticles and dents. I got too lazy to clean up my fingers and quickly fell asleep soon after application. I got this along with the Essie Lapis of Luxury for about $9 something each. Expensive, but yes then again, the cheapest Essie that I can find here.

Formula: As I’ve said before, all of the Essies seem to apply fairly easily and evenly. In the pictures I have 3 coats on each nail, but I essentially only needed 2 each to achieve full opacity. When I applied the polish, there were some ridges because I accidentally made the layers a bit too thick, but it smoothed out when drying.

Drying: So as stated before, it dries very evenly. But along with smooth drying, it dried really quickly as well. I only had to wait around 2 minutes for complete drying before applying the next level. The only problem that I noticed that when you don’t allow for the polish to fully dry and you apply another layer, the brush tends to “erase” some spots of lacquer and causes bald spots.

Durability: I didn’t wear this color for anymore than about 4 days before I removed it to try out another color. During that period of time, no chipping or further denting occurred. So basically the way you see them in the pictures is the way they looked 4 days after application.

Color: A gorgeous taupish light gray. I can’t really explain the color that well, but it appears to have a slight yellow undertone that makes me think of sand or beige colors. I wanted to try Sephora’s Metro Chic, but that grey was too dark. Since then, I’ve been on the hunt for the perfect grey shade and this one appears to be the one.

Removal: The polish came off really easily with a couple of swipes of nail polish remover. There was no residual staining and I didn’t have any hard time removing the polish from the nails near the area of the cuticles.

Extra: For the price of $9 a bottle, it is a little bit expensive. Then again, I pay around $10-11 for my OPI’s so I can’t really complain. Other than that, I think I’ve covered everything.

Overall: A, not A+ just because of the price. If it weren’t so expensive, I would have given it an A+. I really recommend this color for anyone looking for a gorgeous neutral shade for spring, but doesn’t want to try nudes or is sick of pinks.