A while ago now, I shared Essie Jackie Oh My with you. Jackie Oh My is a long discontinued sheer white Essie with shimmers, but a lot of people are still obsessed with it (including myself). The combination of the white base and delicate shimmer was just so pretty, that I started wondering if there were any current-day Essies with a similar finish. I asked around on Instagram, and I actually got a lot of answers. That inspired me to create this post! These are definitely not dupes for Jackie Oh My, but they are pretty much all recent sheer Essie shimmers that I could find! All have their pros and cons, but all are so pretty!
Essie Lace is more
Lace is more was originally released in Essie’s Sheer silhouettes collection in late 2018/early 2019. Originally it had a very cute lace design on the cap. I’m not sure whether that collection was originally released in Europe, but last year (2021), Lace is more was suddenly introduced as a ‘new’ polish in Essie’s core gel couture collection in Europe. At first, I wasn’t very interested, it seemed like a regular sheer to me. However, when I asked for shimmery sheers on Instagram, someone recommended me this shade.
Lace is more looks like a sheer pink in the bottle, but on my nails, it leans white. It has a very subtle gold shimmer running through its base, which you only see if you look really close. I’m wearing three coats in the picture, it’s not completely opaque yet, but that’s how it’s supposed to be. It reminds me a lot of the finish that Essie Ballet slippers also has, it’s not quite sheer, but also not entirely opaque. With one coat, I found it to be too streaky, but you can definitely also wear it with only two coats if you want a sheerer look.
Lace is more is still very easy to find in both North America and Europe. It is for example, available over here on Amazon (affiliate link).
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Essie Picture perfect
Picture perfect was released in the Essie x Reem Acra wedding 2018 collection. It is officially discontinued, so the shade might become more difficult to find. Picture perfect is actually extremely close to Lace is more. Picture perfect leans a bit whiter in the bottle, but it has a similar gold shimmer.
I’m wearing three coats in the picture and you can clearly see that the polish is sheerer than Lace is more at three coats. The gold shimmer is slightly larger than in Lace is more and stands out a bit better. I would say that Picture perfect is slightly more streaky than Lace is more, but the final result is very elegant.
Essie Sheer luck
This is Essie Sheer luck. This shade was released in the ‘Love moments’ collection in 2019 but is still a part of Essie’s permanent collection. Sheer luck is a very pale pink with an extremely fine pearl shimmer. It is so subtle that you almost cannot see it. It does give the polish some more depth, and I do have the feeling that it helps with applying the polish.
Sheer luck was not streaky at all. I’m wearing three coats in the picture, but you can definitely also wear one or two coats for an even sheerer look. Sheer luck is probably the least spectacular shade in this post, but it is nice if you’re looking for a subtle sheer. The final result was extremely pretty!
Sheer luck should be very easy to find. It is still available over here on Amazon (affiliate link).
Essie Vanity fairest
Essie Vanity fairest is a true Essie classic. It was originally released in Essie’s Spring 2005 Bare necessities collection and has been a part of Essie’s permanent collection ever since. You know that if a shade stays around that long, it must be a good one! Again, this is a very pale pink with very tiny silver flecks. You can see them quite well in my picture, but they are even more subtle in real life.
I really like how healthy Vanity fairest makes my nails look. They look very healthy and glowy. I’m wearing three coats in the picture. With one coat it mainly gives a nice shine, but it looks already very pretty with two coats.
Also Vanity fairest should be super easy to find. It is still available over here on Amazon, for example (affiliate link).
Essie Hello world
This is Essie Hello world. If you’re thinking now that you never heard of this polish before, you might be right: this is a European-only shade. It’s probably the most spectacular out of these sheer Essie shades, but also the one that is the most opaque. Hello world contains a gorgeous iridescent shimmer that flashes from blue/green to pink/purple. It reminds me a lot of these loose unicorn powders that you can use for gel nail polish. From a distance, it kind of gives a pearly vibe, similar to Essie Pillow talk-the-talk or Essie Pretty in ink.
Hello world is a bit streaky on the first coat, but you can definitely already wear it with two coats for a sheerer look. I’m wearing three in the picture. The only downside that I could think of is that you can see some brush strokes because of the shimmer.
Hello world should be easy to find in Europe, since it’s part of Essie’s permanent collection. If you’re living in North America, you might want to book a trip to Europe, or find a European friend, who is willing to ship this pretty one to you!
Conclusion
It’s not easy to give one conclusion of which is the best of these five shades; it all depends on what you’re looking for.
If you’re specifically looking for a shimmery sheer Essie, Vanity fairest and Sheer luck, although pretty, might be a bit too subtle. However, if you’re looking for an easy to apply my nails but better shade, both Sheer luck and Vanity fairest are extremely good options. They both are not streaky and do look extremely nice!
Lace is more is probably the closest to Jackie Oh My, if that is what you’re looking for. There are definitely some differences, such as the gold shimmer, but from a distance, they look the most similar out of all these shades.
Picture perfect and Hello world definitely have the most pronounced shimmer. Picture perfect was a bit difficult to apply though, and your best option might be to layer it over a white base coat or to combine it with another sheer. Essie Hello world is very pretty, but you must be into the pearl finish that it has.
I think these are pretty much all sheer shimmers that Essie currently has in their collection. There used to be more, such as Pink a boo and Secret affair, however, they are all currently discontinued. I don’t have one favorite, all of these shades are extremely pretty in their own way!
