2 May 2016

Barry M // Gelly Hi Shine Nail Paint in Black Pistachio



I've always had a great affinity for emerald. I even have a pair of velvet emerald trousers! Green is my favourite colour and I'm always looking for ways to incorporate it into my beauty routine. Green is just a hard colour to get right, I think, especially in eyeshadows where they often apply patchy or the hue doesn't show up. Must be something in the pigments.

So until that perfect eyeshadow comes along, I'll settle for a green nail varnish! I had heard great things about Barry M nail polishes, so I thought I'd try it out. It applies a touch darker than the colour in the bottle — it appears almost black, but when you look closer that deep emerald shade comes through. Not exactly a spring colour, but something that is totally up my alley. I love dark nail colours.

The texture was nice and thick and applied well opaque, but at the same time it was a bit liquidy and moved across the nail fairly rapidly. I was very impressed by the thickness without being gloopy, and I think you can really get away with only one coat. I put two out of habit, and it might have caused me problems later on...

I went to a concert that night, nails looking nice. But somehow I got a little nick in one of my nails — I don't remember it happening, but it was the type of nick that moved (or pushed) through the layers of polish, leading me to believe I may have put on too many coats or applied them too thickly. (It should be said, I am rubbish at nails. This is a review by a true amateur!) So that could have been my bad. BUT THEN, sometime during the concert, dancing and singing along to We Are Scientists, I got a huge chip on my right index finger. I didn't touch anything except my cup full of hard cinder! It had peeled right off. I have no idea how it happened.

Nevertheless, I think it's a great drugstore option, and I love that name, Black Pistachio. Perfect description. Definitely check and see if you're good with only one coat or need two. The formula is creamy and the brush is excellent — it's one of those wide, flat brushes, not the skinny, round kind I despise. I would definitely buy more of these.

Check out my other nail polish review of the Ciaté Paint Pot in Iced Frappe here!

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