Spa News: Essie Announces Nail Art Contest, The Essie’s

Jan 6th, 2016

Hosted on YouTube and on essie.com, the essie’s will award nail art superstars.

Image: essie

Nail brand essie recently announced its nail art contest, the essie’s, taking place from January 2016 through June 2016. Hosted on YouTube and essie.com, the contest will feature a series of nail art challenges to discover the next great nail artist. Beginning on January 6, 2016, essie fans and up-and-coming nail art superstars will have the opportunity to partake in the four-phase competition for a chance to win the grand prize: a $20,000 partnership with essie, a spot at New York Fashion Week with celebrity manicurist Michelle Saunders, and much more!

The final two winners – one (1) grand prize winner and one (1) fan favorite winner – will be determined through a combination of online fan votes and essie’s panel of experts, including:

Carolyn Holba – General Manager, essie worldwide
Jenny Fox – founder and vlogger behind Jenny Claire Fox, a top nail art and beauty YouTube channel
Katie Rodgers – artist and creator of Paper Fashion
Michelle Saunders – essie celebrity manicurist
Rebecca Minkoff – essie Global Color Designer and industry fashion leader

The essie’s will be broken into four phases, including:
Phase 1: Qualifying Challenge (January 6, 2016 – February 22, 2016)

Qualifying submissions will open to all participants. Contestants will be required to upload two videos to essie.com, including an “All About You” video and a “Show Us Your Skill” video, creating any nail look using essie nail and care products. The first 1,000 entries will receive essie’s gel.setterkit and the creators of the top ten videos, as selected internally by essie, will move on to phase two.

Phase 2: Spring Trend Challenge (February 22, 2016 – March 28, 2016)

In this phase, the top ten contestants will receive essie’s spring 2016 collection and be challenged to create the ultimate spring trend-inspired nail art look. Videos will be uploaded to YouTube.com, where online fan votes will determine the top six semi-finalists moving to phase three.

Phase 3: Dream Getaway Challenge (March 28, 2016 – May 2, 2016)

Six semi-finalists will receive an essie branded polish rack filled with 90 shades, and be tasked with creating a nail art look inspired by their dream getaway. The top three finalists, as chosen by online fan votes, will move to the last phase.

Phase 4: Blank Canvas Challenge (May 2, 2016 – June 6, 2016)

The three finalists will be flown to New York to film their last video in YouTube’s studio. For this challenge, they will be given a blank canvas and challenged to get expressive. Essie’s expert panel will select the top two winners who will be announced on June 1, 2016.

The Prizes:
ONE Grand Prize Winner – chosen by the judging panel

$20,000 partnership with essie
Featured as essie’s nail art ambassador in how-to videos, a behind the-scenes experience with Michelle Saunders during New York Fashion Week, and so much more!

ONE Fan Favorite Winner – chosen by the public voters