Why Pay More - The Nail Polish Edition

I am a creature of habit, boring (and ridiculous) in one aspect but on the plus side it does mean that I more often than not have several dupes for one product. It was only a few days ago that I spoke about my love for Chanel Frenzy Nail Polish but my affections don't quite expand to the formulation. Luckily I have great readers (seriously you are the BEST) and the recommendations for a great dupe came flooding in. With that in mind I rummaged through my nail polish stash and realised that I have a good few dupes for all my favourite hues. Whoops. On the plus side a new series was born - why pay more, why indeed! 

So lets begin with Chanel Frenzy Nail Lacquer at £18 (find it here via Debenhams) it is far from cheap. Why did I splash out? Well it is an uber chic shade that is one of the few neutral hues that looks great on almost everyone. I personally like that it goes with every outfit choice, life situation and despite being a grey toned beige (greige?) it looks more than okay on my toes. Chanel Frenzy Nail Lacquer makes me feel like a lady, a real grown up if you will - one coat gives a polished but carefree look, two coats gives an opaque adult world ready wash of colour. Yes I love the shade but the fact that it chips within hours not days is not okay in my book, not at £18 a bottle. Enter Rimmel Salon Pro Nail Polish in Oh, Mr Darcy (thanks to everyone who commented that this is a stellar dupe) - so close in shade that you would swear it is identical. The main difference between the two is that Oh, Mr Darcy is slightly warmer and more taupe than grey but it is so minute that you could claim it was Chanel Frenzy and no one would dare question it. At £4.49 Rimmel Oh, Mr Darcy is the better choice in terms of bang for your buck, it also doesn't hurt that it less prone to chipping! You can find it here via Superdrug - link.

Another favourite polish of mine and perhaps a cult shade has to be Nails Inc Baker Street (find it here on offer). My love for this bright cobalt blue hue knows no bounds but I must confess the formulation is not all that. Sure it applies beautifully, two quick coats and you are good to go but man oh man does this chip easily. So easily. Within half an hour of application I often detect chips and peeling. Initially I thought I had a dud bottle but three purchases down the line it is still the same story. Well what if I told you that NYC Expert Last Nail Polish in Hudson Breeze is pretty must identical? What if I told you that you can find it at Superdrug for £2.49? A complete snip. The main difference is that Hudson Breeze is ever so slightly lighter and leans a little more lilac in tone but other than that they are pretty much the same hue. Despite only being £2.49 NYC Expert Last Nail Polish in Hudson Breeze is a stellar polish, two coats and you have full opaque coverage and I get around two days of chip free wear without a top coat! You can find it here - link. Another good call is Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine Nail Paint in Blue Grape but it is noticeably deeper in tone.

One of my most worn polishes of the Summer has been Tom Ford Nail Lacquer in Coral Beach which annoyingly was limited edition (you may still find it on certain counters). This dreamy, light coral come peach really compliments a tan and is just such an easy shade to wear. Well the good news is that Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine Nail Paint in Papaya is almost identical. In my opinion what sets the polishes apart is that the Barry M choice is slightly more orange toned opposed to the more obvious pink tones of Coral Beach but at £3.99 a bottle I guess I can't complain, you can find it here -link. The point of this post was to find cheaper alternatives and although Clinique A Different Nail Enamel in Really Rio is around £6 cheaper it isn't quite budget friendly at £12 a bottle. On the plus side Clinique Really Rio is almost identical to Tom Ford Coral Beach, the Clinique version is just slightly brighter. You can find it here - link.

Do you recall two Summer ago (or was it Spring?) when all that was on everyone's nails was Essie Bikini So Teeny? It is still a personal favourite of mine, I have a weakness for cornflower blue shades especially when it comes to nail polish. Essie Bikini So Teeny (you can find it here)isn't the easiest polish to purchase especially if you live in a small town like myself. If you haven't already gave in and purchased Rimmel I Love Lasting Finish Polish in Fancy a Dip do it, do it now. Okay it is not an outright dupe for Bikini So Teeny but the colour is pretty similar. I would go as far as saying I prefer Fancy a Dip - it applies beautifully and is a little brighter in tone too. Oh and who can argue with a £2.99 price tag? You can find it here - link.

Hopefully this was somewhat helpful?

I really need to stop purchasing almost identical nail polishes!

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