Essie Hard to Resist Strengthener

My nails were in average shape after taking off shellac. I was hopeful that this nail strengthening polish would help make them stronger, especially with all the hand washing and sanitising i do with my job. However after only one shift the essie Hard to resist had already chipped off almost half of my nails. Tried reapplying, but the same thing happened the next day. Pros: Easy to apply, don’t need to be precise. Clear coated with pleasant slight pink tint. Cheap price. Cute packaging. Cons: Chipped easily after one day of work. Smelt quite strong on application. Moderate dry time.

I love this product it really has helped with strengthening my nails. It is great as it drys so fast so can carry on with daily activities and it has helped ensure my nails don’t break as easily. I would recommend this. I would purchase.

I’ve trialled this product shortly after removing gel polish from my damaged nails, and it felt like this product really helped to keep them strong and protected while they grew out. I did get a few chips and breaks but given the state of my nails, I think it would’ve been worse without the product on. Easy to apply and made my nails look clean and healthy with a slight pink tinge. Would definitely buy this product!

So I just want to start by saying I wish I had a bit longer to trial. The product claims results in three days though so after a week of using here we go!

I’ll begin with the packaging, a typical Essie style bottle, perfectly pretty. The pink formula looks really pretty in the bottle too, it’s quite bright in there! I love the Essie polish brushes and this one stays true to their style. Nice and thick, slightly flat, super easy to use for application.

The polish formula itself is nowhere near as pigmented as it looks in the bottle, it’s very natural looking and mainly just a gloss. It goes on smoothly with a pretty normal consistency. It did take a little longer to dry than I would like, but I am very impatient!

As for the results - the product claims your nails will feel stronger instantly and after three days will be less brittle, healthier and smoother. I can’t claim to have noticed an instant difference but I would say that after three days my nails did feel stronger. I haven’t noticed them being smoother but that wasn’t a primary issue for me. My nails split, that is my biggest concern. So I have decided to cut them back short and use this product while they grow. I do have high hopes that as a longer term product this will be a useful tool, but I will have to come back to update on that one!

Let me say that this is a fab little product!

I normally have pretty weak nails and was really impressed with how strong my nails were with this product on...after doing the bend-y nail test of course. I used HTR with coloured nail polish as a base and top coat and was impressed that my nails lasted couple of days without chipping. Normally they wouldn't last past a day or night.

The polish on its own also adds a nice natural sheen to your nail if you wear alone. Definitely recommended!

I like this product. Initially I was mostly interested with the idea of covering yellowed nails which I sometimes get after wearing deep coloured polish. The purple tint did seem to help. I actually used it as a base coat (which it isn’t) and it sat well under other polish but when removing left more colour than a good base coat. Nails haven’t broken since using and look good. I’ll keep using this.

For this review, I used 00 Glow & Shine. It came in a generic white box, with instructions that said to apply two coats, with no instructions on how often to reapply, so I thought I'd reapply weekly. Apparently nails would be strengthened in three days.

The formula itself is quite a nice red, in a signature Essie bottle with a cool holograph label. It's quite watery, and has a really strong polish smell. Luckily, the smell doesn't last long on the nails. You do have to be very careful when applying it, and wipe excess off in the bottle, or it will drip.

Coverage on the nails is pretty good, because it is so watery and thin, you don't need a lot on the nails. It dries super fast, and leaves a nice pink sheen.

However, I did find the formula chipped and peeled off easily just doing normal day to day things which was quite annoying. I had to flag my thoughts of applying it once a week to every couple of days because it could literally start peeling within a matter of hours.

But, does it work? I haven't noticed my nails being stronger, they're just as bendy as ever. So I can't comment on the 3 day thing. But a huge problem for me was my nails breaking really high up, horizontally, which could be both painful as well as extremely annoying. I've used the formula for a couple of weeks, and this hasn't continued. So in my personal experience, I have noticed a difference. However, just because it chips and peels so quickly, I don't think I'd repurchase.

I had gels on prior to using it and it helped strengthen my nails after the removal and not feeling brittle or fragile straight away. It definitely helped protect the nails and have had no breakages. It gives a nice shine to the nails with a slight pink tint. The nails look healthy and have been able to help them grow without any breaking. Will continue to use and recommend to others too.