I came across these when I was looking for a nail varnish to wear on a night out. I had very specific ideas of what I wanted to look like and when I get like that I won't make do with anything less than the perfect colour. I'd looked round near enough every shop in town and was just about ready to give up on finding the right colour when I spotted some fantastic shades hidden in the corner of Superdrug. The Barry M range has an amazing range of colours to choose from and are very reasonably priced at just £2.95 a bottle. I found the perfect shade of green that I'd been looking for, and also ended up buying a rich purple and a bright yellow one at the same time, I just couldn't resist.

The colour ranges from neutral everyday colours through to very vibrant and some would say wacky colours like the bright yellows and oranges, and plenty of fun colours in between like purples, blues, and greens. Some of the colours are just a plain matte finish, some a plain satin finish, others have a pearlescent or metallic finish, and some even have a kind of two tone effect. So whatever look you're after you can be sure to find something suitable in this range.

The nail paint comes in a dinky glass bottle with a black lid. As with all nail varnishes (I think!?) the brush is attached to the inside of the lid. The nail paints are supposed to be quick drying and they are suitable for both natural and acrylic nails. Before using them you should always apply a base coat to stop your nails from getting stained. You need to shake them before use to make sure the colour is mixed properly and you will hear the little ball rattling around inside the bottle mixing up the varnish.

Use them the same as any other nail varnish by applying 3 strokes on each nail. Do the middle first, then one at either side. If you use this straight from the bottle without wiping some off first you will end up with too much, you need to wipe the excess of the brush on the top of the bottle before you start. You may need to experiment with exactly how much you need on the brush as this is not the same for everyone or even for each of your nails as they are all different sizes.

Once you've got the right amount on the brush it's very easy to use. It glides smoothly over the nail leaving a nice smooth line of polish behind, and when you do the whole nail it doesn't leave any streaks. It doesn't start to dry so quick that you end up with lines between the strokes, but you do need to be careful that you've removed all the excess from right the way down the brush handle or it does tend to suddenly come down onto the brush and you end up with a big blob of varnish that you didn't want.

It's best to do 2 or 3 coats with this, I usually do 3 to make sure the colour is strong enough but if you're using one of the more neutral colours or don't want such a bold effect then you could get away with just one or 2. It only takes about a minute for it to be dry enough to add another coat, and between 3 and 4 minutes for it to dry completely.

The effects these give are great. The yellow one I have is a plain satiny finish which after 3 coats is really striking. The green one is a shimmery one which looks almost pearlescent when it's dry and shimmer is nice and subtle, not full on glitter. The purple one I have is probably my favourite though, it's the most gorgeously intense deep purple colour with just the slightest shimmer to it, and it looks amazing especially after 3 coats.

The colour usually lasts me about a week without chipping or fading if I'm not doing much with my hands. If I'm doing a lot with my hands like washing up and stuff it does start to peel quite quickly, but I usually only wear it for nights out and special occasions anyway so it's not a problem. When you come to take it off it does come off easily and quickly with a good nail polish remover, but it does take a while with cheaper ones.

Whichever colour I wear of these I always get people asking me where I got my nail varnish from so it's not just me who loves it. Go on, go buy some!