Battle of the Essie Baby Pink Nail Polishes

I can’t believe I’ve gone this long without doing a full nail polish swatch and compare post! Today, I’m going dive deep into Essie’s light pink nail polish shades, and find out which one is the best.

All of the swatch photos show 2 coats of polish, and no top coat.

This post may contain affiliate links, which means I’ll receive a commission if you purchase through my links, at no extra cost to you. Please read full disclosure for more information.

Beachy Keen

Essie Beachy Keen came out in June of 2020 in the Sunny Business Collection. This is definitely the odd polish of this group. But, I wanted to compare the tones of the all the polishes against multiple variations. So, I wanted to include a more peach shade.

While this isn’t my favorite polish, it’s more of the tone on me specifically that I don’t ‘love.’ However, it is a beautiful polish, and it’s still widely available.

French Affair

Essie French Affair came out Spring 2011 as part of the French Affair collection, and is still available to purchase on Beyond Polish. This polish has a more purple undertone to it, making it a beautiful color for spring. Something about this polish makes me think of Mother’s Day.

When I got this polish years ago, I was not a fan. But, when swatching it, I found that the formula has thickened up and it is no longer on the sheer side. While it’s still not my favorite, I do like it more than I used to. So hopefully I will get more use out of this shade in the future.

Peak Show

Essie Peak Show was released as part of the Winter 2015 collection. This is a beautiful color, and if you like the original Fiji shade, then this one is right up your alley. It’s definitely the palest of the polishes in this post, but it still has a distinct pink tone to it.

You can get Peak Show on Beyond Polish and Amazon.

Ballet Sneakers

Essie Ballet Sneakers came out in the Originals Remixed collection in the spring of 2020. If you don’t know what that collection is, Essie took some of the most popular shades and gave them a twist. Ballet Slippers, one of the most iconic shades (and the one The Queen wears!) was given a matte finish and became Ballet Sneakers. The collection also included a new limited edition brush top for Ballet Slippers (called Ballet Slippers Remixed). You can view the full collection here.

Fiji

Oh, Fiji. I used to say that this was the best light pink Essie nail polish. But, in 2013, this polish was reformulated, and the shade became less neutral.

When you read a blog, watch a YouTube video, or anything else polish related, and Fiji is mentioned, it’s important to note which version is being discussed (though, it probably is the new version). Every Essie bottle has a number for the polish on it- it doesn’t matter which bottle style you have (the salon style or retail style). Knowing the number is the easiest way to distinguish these two polishes apart.

Original Formula

The original formula was polish #152. I have been unsuccessful in purchasing it since the reformulation.

The old formula was streaky and inconsistent. You absolutely needed to use a minimum of 3 coats to get it fully opaque. In the swatch photo below, I used two very thick coats and even then it doesn’t look great (in my opinion- but I also know I’m very picky about these things). A lot of people say that the old formula was very thin and hard to work with. But, I had the opposite experience. My bottle has always been very thick, and I typically use a polish thinner before using it to make things easier.

New Formula

The new formula of Essie Fiji (#348) was released in 2015. At the time, there were tons of nail bloggers that were comparing the two versions. For the most part, people were appreciative of the formula change, but they hated the new shade.

In the swatch photo, you can see it is distinctly more pink as opposed to the original’s more neutral tone. The very wearable tone of the original is what made it the most popular of all the Essie light pink nail polish colors.

Which version of Essie’s Fiji do you like more? Keep reading for a side by side comparison!

Comparisons

New Fiji vs. French Affair

First up, I swatched the new version of Fiji and French Affair. While these polishes are not dupes, they are similar. I don’t hate either of these shades, but I just don’t love them either.

Left: Fiji (new formula), Right: French Affair

Original Fiji vs. New Fiji

If I didn’t know the shade of these two colors, I would guess they are different shades. Yes, technically they are different shades, and even have different polish numbers. But why not just rename the new version and discontinue the original?

After swatching them side by side, I noticed that the new version has a more watery formula, and you can see in the photo that it is not fully opaque. Personally, I would not purchase the new version, unless that color specifically is your favorite shade to wear.

Left: Fiji (original), Right: New Fiji

Original Fiji vs. Ballet Sneakers vs. Peak Show

I was determined to find a dupe for the original Fiji when planning this post. While Ballet Sneakers and Peak Show are different colors, Ballet Sneakers is the closest dupe that I own. In the bottles, they look identical, but on my nails you can see that Ballet Sneakers is more pale. Until comparing these three together, I though Peak Show was a very similar shade, but it turns out, this polish could go into a comparison of neutral shades.

Left: Fiji (original), Middle: Ballet Sneakers, Right: Peak Show

Do you follow me on Pinterest? Follow me now and check out more polish comparisons and nail art ideas! In the swatches section, you’ll see a ton of comparisons by Essie Envy, who has been one of my favorite nail bloggers for years. Unfortunately, her site is no longer up, and I’ve found that a lot of her swatch photos are being used by other bloggers without giving her credit.

If you’re looking for a new nail blogger to support, check out Brandi from Liv with Biv.

The Best Essie Light Pink Nail Polish

Which of the polishes do you think is the winner? What do you think I’m going to pick?

If you told me you were only going to purchase 1 of these polishes, I would say Ballet sneakers is the best one. Color-wise, it is as close to the original Fiji. but doesn’t have the formula issues. Plus, it has a ‘fancy’ design on the brush cap and has the new wide brush that comes in Essie polishes. My #2 spot goes to Peak Show.

No matter which polish from this post you buy, make sure you head to Beyond Polish! They have so many brands, shades, tools- I’m like a kid in a candy shop when I shop on that website! And, the prices are amazing!

Do you agree with my ranking? Let me know in the comments below! Head here to read my thoughts on the Best Fall Nail Color and see swatches and comparisons!

This post may contain affiliate links, which means I’ll receive a commission if you purchase through my links, at no extra cost to you. Please read full disclosure for more information.