I haven’t seen many posts about Shleee polish on here, so I’ve decided to give reviewing a try. I bought three shades: Vertigo, Gemini Moon, and Spite (pictured above in order). I used Essie “Here To Stay” (1 coat) as a base and Essie “Gel-Setter” (1 coat) as a top coat, and I used three coats of color for each swatch.
TLDR: Indie brand with cool colors. Some swatches can be misleading but the products are high quality. Polishes typically cost $14 USD and are released weekly in small batches.
Vertigo
My favorite of the three, and one of my favorites in my whole collection. Vertigo applies like a dream. The formula is thin but not runny, and there is enough pigment to be opaque in two thick coats. The color is slightly darker than the product photos, but not different enough to be bothersome. My only complaint is that the blue shimmer shift shown in the product photos and in the bottle is almost nonexistent on my nails. Still, I’m almost tempted to buy a second bottle, because I can already tell I’m going to wear this constantly.
Gemini Moon
This was the first of the three shades I tried on, and by far the one that disappointed me the most. While the color is beautiful, it’s not what I expected based on the product pictures. Of the eight photos/videos posted on the Etsy listing, six of them depict a blue with intense teal sparkle and a vibrant purple shift. The last two photos are more accurate to the nail polish I received — a dark denim-y shade with a slight purple shift and a dull silvery sparkle in most lighting. Under direct light, the reflective teal glitter looks stunning, but the polish still looks much darker and flatter than most of the product photos.
Despite being very different from what I expected, it is still a lovely color, perfect if you want a galaxy look. The application was not streaky or clumpy like some jelly glitter polishes I’ve tried in the past, and it smoothes nicely with a top coat. It is a thin formula and pretty runny, so it requires some extra patience to work with, and it took an unusually long time to dry.
Spite
A pretty color, but not quite what I was expecting. In the bottle, it looks fairly close to the product photos, but on my nails it looks much duller. Under direct light, the red/pink shimmer pops nicely, but most of the time it looks more like a super dark burgundy. I’d love it if I didn’t already own Emily de Molly’s “All the Rage,” which is fairly similar but with a stronger shift and a nicer formula. Like Gemini Moon, Spite is a bit runny, but it dried down quickly and was opaque in two thick coats.
Final Thoughts
Overall, I’m happy with my purchase, despite a few surprises. Would I recommend purchasing from Shleee? It depends on how comfortable you are with a bit of gamble. The polishes will likely be high quality, but there is a chance they will not be the color you anticipated — especially if you have a different skin tone than the only swatcher they use (who I believe is the owner of Shleee). Personally, I would only purchase from Shleee with the expectation that the actual polish colors will likely be darker and less saturated than the product photos.
(For transparency’s sake: I have no personal or professional connections to Shleee or any other nail polish brands, and I bought these polishes with my own money.)
by Que-Sarah-Sarah
5 Comments
Thanks for posting, /u/Que-Sarah-Sarah! A quick reminder: If this is a **nail image**, you must provide a complete product list within 6 hours of posting. **This includes any posts with broken nails or if you’re seeking advice.** Posts without a complete product list will be removed after 6 hours. [Product List Requirements.](https://www.reddit.com/r/RedditLaqueristas/wiki/rule2faq)
If the nail look shown was **NOT created by you**, you ***must*** flair properly. If this is a **text post**, flair properly. Be sure to follow all of the above to avoid post removal!
[Consider joining our Discord](https://discord.gg/redditlaqueristas) – Get questions answered in realtime, get notified for releases and deals, post your manis, and more! **This is a new server as of 5/7/24!!**
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/RedditLaqueristas) if you have any questions or concerns.*
For reference, here is an official swatch for Gemini Moon (not my nails)
https://preview.redd.it/2im02hpthl9d1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a9527ed169fc4f6271ac407c0bae3eab59138c16
I bought one schleee polish. It was a gray base with a red shimmer. In the online swatch photos the red shimmer was very very intense and beautiful. In person the polish was very muddy and only had a shimmer in bright sun and even then it was not bright. I wore it once and probably never again. The formula consistency was fine. For the price I wouldn’t buy again because I know i can get polishes from other indi manufacturers that have accurate swatches at a lower price point.
Reddit won’t let me edit my post, but I want to add:
The product description for Spite includes a disclaimer which reads “The shimmer effect will NOT be as visible if viewed in dim/indirect lighting, or worn without a shiny topcoat.” This disclaimer is not currently present under the listings for Vertigo or Gemini Moon.
I’ve bought a few from Shleee and I think I’m done. Like you, I got some polishes that I still liked despite misleading photos but they were not as incredible as the photos. The quality is very nice and I think it’s possible for any maker to select some unrealistic photos now and then but when it’s every single polish, it becomes manipulation.
It seems to also be a trick to post very unrealistic photos, sell out the stock, and then change the photos after getting called out without any accountability to everyone who bought based on questionable photos. That happened with at least 2 polishes I bought.