I mentioned on my homepage that I am a qualified beauty therapist, so I have worked with a couple of great nail products on a professional level over the years. I have a few favourites and I like different brands for different reasons.
My first Saturday job in the industry worked with Jessica, so I think I am slightly bias because I use to spend all my wages on colours and I guess it was my first love! I love the variety that Jessica offers and I also find the names of the polishes really fun and easy to remember! If you point out a colour that you like.. I can probably name it for you! Jessica polishes seem to last quite well I have a few polishes that are still going from my first Saturday job- so that's about 6-7 years, however, I have stored them properly and kept the lids tight, they aren't perfect but you can still use them! If painted correctly with the brilliance top coat, they can last about a week still looking good and with a shine.
OPI is another high contender that I've used, again they have cool, quirky names for their colours but my favourite thing about OPI is the brush. I find it so easy to use and gives a perfect result with little effort!
Orly is a product that my college where I work use and we train the students with. It's slightly cheaper than the other two brands I've listed but still a good quality product. I find that these don't last quite as long, but this could be because they are in high use at the college. My favourite thing about this product is it's application, it leaves a beautiful layer ghat only ever needs two coats, sometimes with Jessica, I have to do three applications to get the coverage I desire but Orly gives it almost instantly.
There are obviously lots more products out there, the three that I've mentioned are ones that I have used A LOT and feel comfortable recommending. I have heard great things about Essie but I have never used it, so I can't give my opinion.
The only polish that I have bought from a luxury brand is Chanel, I do love this but I have only used it a couple of times and although I love the result it gives (and the way it looks on your dressing table) the handle on the brush isn't the best for a perfectionist. Barry M and Nails Inc are cheaper brands that I have used in the past. These are great for in-style tecniques. They are always bringing out new products that do different things, for example, crackle, textured and Caviar techniques.
So I have touched on some of my favourite brands, I now use Gel polish, mainly because it lasts so much longer than a normal paint, its ability to dry instantly and The way it keeps it's shine until removal, but if you have different occasions and need to change colour a lot then I always revert back to my Jessica polish!
Hope you've found this helpful in your quest to find in your perfect colour 😉
Below are a few of my favourite colours!
Love life,
Emma xxx
P.s. Talking of polish, Christian Louboutin have just released their first varnish collection today at Selfridges- I ordered mine today so I'll let you know what I think if it when it arrives!