For quite a while now I've been neglecting my nails. When I started at college in 2011 I slowly started to stop painting my nails because whenever I did (as I was dancing and handwriting so much) they were chipped and looked awful the next day. As I finished college a few months ago I began to notice that my nails have improved (they are longer and stronger with no horrible snapped off bits) and thought now I have such nice canvases it would be a shame to leave them looking so dull.
I went into my shoe box full of nail varnish to discover there weren't really any colours I wanted to wear. Some of the polishes I'm almost certain I've have since I was 10 (such as the 'Wicked Witch peelable glow in the dark nail paint' I hold in the picture below), so I went onto Amazon (as it was around 3AM) and had a little browse.
I came across quite a few different brands such as China Glaze, and OPI, but I didn't want to spend too much considering there's no guarantee I'll keep up with it. So I decided I'd go with a few of the Gelly Hi Shine Nail Paints by Barry M as they were a very reasonable price and I'd seen a few of my friends posting about it on Instagram. The retail price for this product is £3.99 (although I paid a little under that as I got them off Amazon).
I wanted to choose some pretty colours as before I would only really wear Red, Black, Pale Pink, or a metallic Turquoise; though sometimes I'd 'spice' it up with some black crackle effect over the top.
I decided I'd first try out 'Prickly Pear' as I'm still LOVING pale and pastelly colours, and I have to say I am impressed! I applied this colour on Saturday and it is now Tuesday night, I can see no chipping or areas of wear whatsoever - the only imperfections are due to me being unsure of the best application method (tried doing very thin coats at first but then realised it was looking a little streaky and uneven so continued with thicker layers). As for the colour I absolutely love it! It's the perfect pale purple shade and it really does have a 'Hi - Shine' to it which looks gorgeous! (and dare I say more expensive?!) I also couldn't help but notice the texture and feel of the nail paint; it seems very solid but doesn't seem to harden the nail in any way, and it also has a lovely smooth finish to it.
Over all I am very pleased with my purchase and can't wait to try out the other two colours! I would recommend this product to anyone looking for a brilliant nail polish at a reasonable price! I expect to be picking up a few of the other shades in the near future (as well as throwing out most of my existing nail varnish collection!)
