essie wicked VS licorice

essie licorice swatch and bottle on left, essie wicked swatch and bottle on right with spider webs with text overlay essie licorice vs wicked

Updated 2024.10.02. This page contains affiliate links and this site earns from qualifying purchases made through these sponsored links. 

essie is an easy-to-rely on nail polish brand that can be very affordable.

Of the essies that exist, which are thousands at this point, two colors always come to mind when thinking about halloween nails - licorice and wicked.

These colors are also commonly shared alongside each other as being perfect for fall.

Today you will see images of both to compare and contrast the differences and similarities yourself.

Overall, licorice and wicked are similar in that they are both:

• Two coat opaque cream polishes

• Dark nail polish colors

• essie original formula colors (as opposed to gel couture or expressie)

essie licorice (720), is an essie classic black nail polish.

It is one of their earlier shades and dries shiny on its own, giving it an almost patent leather look without a top coat. It goes on thick when applying, so you do need to give it time to dry, though it levels out nicely.

essie wicked (352) is the perfect dark red nail polish for fall. 

wicked can look almost black, dark red or deep warm brown, all depending on the lighting giving it a mystique.

It’s a chameleon, shade shifting in different lighting situations and for this reason alone, it is a unique color.

Below you’ll find two essie licorice swatches and two essie wicked swatches.

licorice is on top and wicked is on the bottom.

essie licorice swatch

essie licorice swatch

essie wicked swatch

essie wicked swatch

As you can see above, the primary difference between licorice and wicked is that licorice is a pure black cream nail polish, whereas wicked is a dark red, almost brown cream nail polish.

While wicked can look black in certain lighting, licorice is black any way you slice it.

On the first coat (not shown), licorice is grayish black and on the second coat (shown) it sets up to a full black nail polish.

wicked starts the first coat (not shown) as a red, and on the second coat, it sets up to a deep dark red, near-brown nail polish.

essie licorice swatch and bottle on top, essie wicked swatch and bottle on bottom with spider webs with text overlay essie licorice vs wicked

All in all, these are both pretty fall colors.

If you’re looking for a polish that is what it is - a shiny cream black nail polish every time, get essie licorice. If you’re looking for a versatile dark, mostly a dark red, perhaps brown, but sometimes black color, depending on lighting, get essie wicked.

All swatches shown under LED daylight bulbs. In natural sunlight, essie wicked may appear blacker in hue.

Other Articles You May Enjoy:

• essie now or never Review

• OPI Black Onyx VS Lincoln Park After Dark

• OPI Lincoln Park After Dark Review And Swatches

• Black Nails

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