This magnetic nail polish trend seems to have really taken off. I was really excited about it when I first heard and couldn't wait to try it. So many brands are launching their own version I wanted to try as many as I could to let you guys know which was best value.. so far I've tried two and I thought I'd share some pictures and my experience so far...
17 Magnetised in Gun Metal £5.99
&
Nails Inc Magnetic Polish in House of Parliament £13.00
I would like to point out I bought my Nails Inc polish from BuyaPowa last week in their deal. It ended up going for £7.00 so I paid 46% less than the RRP.
Here are some pictures of my nails...magnetised....
Ok... now you've seen them I have some thoughts I'd like to share. Firstly...Magnetic nail polish... not easy! It looks like it would be a piece of cake, right? Like the simplest nail art ever... not so! It is really really tricky to master. I've only done it twice and I can tell you that one formula was definitely easier than the other but I haven't perfected the application just yet. I haven't read anything about how the polish actually works but if I had to guess I would say it contains tiny iron particles (like the games you got as a kid where you could move the guys hair around... remember?) so when you hold a magnet over-top it draws those particles to the surface. I had a real tough time with the 17 version, You have to get the magnet (in the detachable lid) very close to your nail to draw out the pattern and I was convinced I was touching my nail and messing up my polish but it turned out the polish was touching the magnet... not the other way around...
From what I can tell the thickness has a lot to do with this. This is where it gets really tricky. You really only have one chance to get a full coverage per nail and you're advised to use a generous coat of polish but I think that's a mistake. The thicker the coat of the polish the more the iron particles lift toward the magnet and smudge your nails. Unfortunately if the application is too thin the magnet wont pick up any pattern at all. This is where the two brands differ. The 17 version needs a couple of coats or one really thick one if you're going to get an opaque finish, the Nails Inc is a one coat job. It's so difficult to explain in a blogs post which is why I have a video review in the works but I hope you don't find this totally pointless.
You can see from my pictures the Nail Inc polish gave me much better results.. the 17 was smudged due to the lifting problem I experienced. I have seen lots of positive reviews about the 17 version so don't think my review is the be all and end all... it's just my opinion. Perhaps these people have laid down one thin coat first and then another coat which they've gone on to magnetise.. I don't know. I will keep at it and once I've perfected it I will do my best to produce a How-To, right now I just wanted to share my experience so far.
Neither brand made this an easy effect to achieve and both chipped quickly which was very disappointing given how long it takes to apply. I like the effect, it changes depending on the lighting, the angle, allsorts. It's very unusual but I don't know whether it's worth all the effort.
Have you tried any magnetic polishes yet?
Thoughts?
I bought the nails Inc one from buyapowa and applied it as soon as I got it, I absolutely love it, it's lasted since Wednesday and the effect is amazing. Keep at it as the results are fabulous, had so many compliments on it.
ReplyDeleteM x
I really want to try this, but think I'll stay away from the 17 one! The Nails inc one looks fab though! x
ReplyDeleteLooks very effective tho!
ReplyDeleteI dont know if I will rush out to buy it.... Hmmmm.....
xx
I love the idea of these and the looks of them, but if they are so fiddly I dont think I can be bothered. I think thats why crackle appealed so much it’s a way of getting design easily!
ReplyDeleteI thought they were both exactly the same - same bottle, same formula just a HUGELY different price tag! I've not tried the Boots silver one though, but the green was exactly the same as Houses of Parliament.
ReplyDeleteTo get an opaque finish I used a coat of a similar normal colour before the magnetic polish, so you can use less of the magnetic polish but still get an opaque finish.
Mine chipped quickly too, but I ran out of top coat so hopefully now I've got some more next time it'll be better. If you look at my latest blog post there's pictures of the pretty green 17 polish :)
Hx
This looks so cool! I'll definitely have to try some
ReplyDeletehmmm im yet to try it but im not convinced, your experience has put me off a little, i like the effect but for me a just want a quick, easy and smart manicure that lasts, if it chips quickly it will annoy me :(
ReplyDeletewww.missmathful.blogspot.com
The nails inc. one looks really lovely, but I'm not sure I can be bothered with all that fiddling around, especially if it doesn't last very long.
ReplyDeletebeautifulsmudges.blogspot.com
@michelle
ReplyDeleteI am all about BuyaPowa now lol. If I'd bought it full price I may have been less favourable with my review. I will definitely try it again though 'cause it was 100 times easier to apply than the 17 version.
@BristolBeautyBlog
Don't let me put you off altogether, it may be my application and I will try again and see if I can make it work but if you can afford that bit more and really want to have a go the Nails Inc version is a lot less frustrating.
@claire
well stay tuned next week I might be all over it haha. I've been known to jump to a review too quickly and change my mind later.
@discoveringbeauty
if it was as easy as I find the crackle it would be amazing.. then again some people just can't do the crackle polish. Maybe I'm one that just can't do this!
@Helly
I will persevere with the 17 one for sure 'cause I hate to say that the more expensive version really is the better one lol but in this case I just found it so much easier to use.
@KarleneA
The effect is amazing, like nothing else I've tried.
@MissMathful
I'm with you there but there are those of us that don't mind repainting every day... this might be more for them lol
@Chrissy
I was actually expecting to like the gunmetal shade more but the Nails Inc one had so much more depth, really beautiful
I agree that it's tricky to get right. I also bought the Nails Inc HoP from BuyaPowa. This is the third time I have tried it and it still looks as though a 12 year old painted my nails!
ReplyDeleteI did two coats each time, I think I will just try one coat next time, it might be more subtle.
Loving the new look of your blog, BTW.