It's no secret that Barry M are my go-to polishes, they're cheap (and nearly always on offer somewhere!), the colours are great & the formulas are superb - the Gellys are my absolute favourites - so whenever they release new polishes, I'm all over them!
Their newest releases are easily identifiable by the black & white chequered lids, a nod to the new Speedy Quick Dry formulas & there are 9 new shades, all pastel hues. Two colours in particular caught my eye, this one, In A Heart Beat, a soft coral pink & Stop the Clock, a rich vanilla ice cream shade, which I'll review in a day or two.
Unfortunately, I have mixed feelings about this polish. I adore the shade & I think it's perfect for spring (although it feels a bit odd wearing it now!) & yes, it really is very fast drying. But......it's very streaky & took 3 coats to get an even-ish coverage but to be honest, it could've done with an extra coat for the perfect finish.
I started, as always with my China Glaze Strong Adhesion base coat & then applied the 3 coats of colour. Although there was a sheen, I prefer the high gloss finish of the Gelly polishes so I left them for 10 minutes to see how they dried & then applied a coat of Seche Vite top coat (not how you're supposed to apply this btw!) In the 10 minutes before I applied the top coat, they felt totally dry to the touch although I'm not sure they would've passed the handbag or toilet test at this point!! (You know, delving in your bag or doing up your jeans after the loo without damage!!)
10 minutes after the top coat though they were well & truly hardened & dry so it still only took around 30 minutes to dry totally. Although the manicure itself took longer with the extra coats..... Having said all of that, pale shades are notoriously bad for coverage so next time I might try it with a base of opaque white, which usually helps.
Longevity wise, I'm only 2 days in to the manicure & am already getting tip wear & a couple of tiny chips, which is a tad disappointing. So while I love the shade & will use the polish, I much prefer the gelly polishes so will stick to those - I hope Barry intends to release more of those shades very soon!! It'll be interesting to compare this with the other shade I've bought.
What do you think, is this your sort of shade?
Wow, such a gorgeous color on you....It looks so professionally done! You have obviously got a very steady hand.....I can always do one hand, then make a complete mess up of the other one, so have slightly given up on trying to do my own! Helen xx
ReplyDeleteThanks Helen, that's many years working in a salon that's given me a steady hand!! ;) xx
DeleteHelen is right Sarah - it's a gorgeous colour and see it's not only me who admires your manicure jobs! I'd definitely wear this shade in Spring! xx
ReplyDeleteLovely isn't it? I can't wait to try the other shade out :) xx
DeleteI love Barry M varnishes! This one is a fab colour for Spring, I may have to give it a whirl! xx
ReplyDeleteI've been using Barry M since I was at school (when everyone wanted their Dazzle Dusts!!) & I still think they're fab! I really hope new gelly shades are brought out soon :) xx
DeleteThat is such a pretty colour! x
ReplyDeleteLovely isn't it? I've got a post coming tomorrow with the other new shade which is bloody gorgeous! X
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