I got Baptiste as a gift from my very dear friend and loved it instantly. Essie Sexy Divide has been one of my favorite purples for a long time. How do they compare?
Let's see:
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Very different in the bottle: Baptiste has a distinctive red undertone; and Essie features a strong blue one.
Let's look on the nails now, shall we?
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/don't forget you can click to enlarge/
Not so different, huh?
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I have SD on my pointer and ring fingers; Illamasqua on middle and pinky.
They are definitely not dupes; but Essie is a very acceptable substitute, even by mine "buy-all-dark-purples-ever-released" standards.
I prefer Baptiste application-wise. Other than that, they are really close. Difference? Illamasqua has this strong, dense glow to it; Essie shows more of a sparse, star-like sparkle.
PS: Please excuse my deformed pointer. I had a bad cooking accident back in September, when I chopped off a big part of the nail bed; it's still in recovery.
Let's see:
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.

Let's look on the nails now, shall we?
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.

Not so different, huh?
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.

They are definitely not dupes; but Essie is a very acceptable substitute, even by mine "buy-all-dark-purples-ever-released" standards.
I prefer Baptiste application-wise. Other than that, they are really close. Difference? Illamasqua has this strong, dense glow to it; Essie shows more of a sparse, star-like sparkle.
PS: Please excuse my deformed pointer. I had a bad cooking accident back in September, when I chopped off a big part of the nail bed; it's still in recovery.