The Search for the Perfect Mint Nail Polish

photo of Mint nail varnish for spring and summer
photo of Mint nail varnish for spring and summer
Revlon and Barry M Mint Nail Polish
Photo of Revlon Minted Barry M Mint Green Mint Nail Polish
photo of mint nail varnish swatches

After the #bbloggers Twitter chat last night about autumn trends and product releases, the sad reality that summer is coming to an end started to sink in. I know people rattle on about 'oversized hoodies, hot chocolate and cosy nights in front of the fire' but lets be real people- autumn here in the UK generally just means 'chapped lips, muddy puddles and endless grey drizzle.' I'm well aware that I'm quite hard to please when it comes to the weather; I'm not a sun worshipper but I hate the cold too, in fact there's a very small window around spring time that I'd consider the weather to be truly to my tastes. Typical British complainer, but hey it's what we do best! Pretty soon I think a lot of us will be retiring our pastel and neon nail colours until next year in favour of deeper autumnal shades; I do prefer lighter nails but there are some gorgeous plum, red and berry shades that have been abandoned over the last few months that I'm looking forward to wearing again. Not that trends should dictate our choices, but I for one quite enjoy getting on board with seasonal colours! (even if I really don't like the seasonal weather changes- booo).

I mentioned in my last nail post that I think most of us go on the hunt for the perfect mint polish when spring and summer rolls around- you definitely know the warmer months have arrived when people start Instagramming their nails wearing Mint Candy Apple by Essie! I don't own Mint Candy Apple but I do get a lot of wear from the mint shades in my collection. Minted by Revlon is the newest addition but one I've worn a lot recently; the colour is so pretty and the formula of the Nail Enamels in general is spot on. Barry M's Mint Green was one I wore a lot last spring and summer, and I think will be something of an old faithful each year. I know that the textured nail trend is practically ancient history by now but I still happily wear the ones I own, the finish is quite subtle and Ridley Road by Barry M is easily the nicest colour of the four. I really wish Barry M did this exact shade in their standard or Hi-Shine formulas because I would be allll over that. Smarty Pants is slightly darker than the others, but an ideal budget mint polish. I do really like George cosmetics, if you've previously turned your nose up at the thought all I can say is don't knock 'em til you've tried 'em!

All of these are opaque in two coats and last for around the same three or four days until there's noticeable tip wear; longer if you're feeling particularly patient and apply a top coat. Of the four I do tend to gravitate more towards Revlon's Minted, but would highly recommend all of them if you're in the market for a new mint polish!

What's your favourite mint nail polish? Have you tried any of these?
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