I’ve been searching high and low for it, getting more and more disheartened each time I sloped into a Boots or Superdrug and saw an empty row where it should be before miserably shuffling out again, my purse crying out to exchange a bit of it’s contents for a bottle or two of Instant Nail Effects.
When I was in town yesterday, I’d almost given up – I went into Accessorize looking for the new stuff, but they had none of the makeup range in there at all. I didn’t feel like being disappointed twice in one day so I almost didn’t do my regular Barry M check. Thank the lawd I did – I checked both Superdrugs to no avail, then on my way to the train station nipped into Boots, clinging on to a little thread of hope.
My god, it actually felt like the crescendo of a beautiful song or the bit where a rollercoaster flings you into top speed after a excruciatingly slow ascent. The skies parted, a beam of light shone down on the Barry M stand and the angels chorused ‘Hallelujah’… well, not really, but there were two bottles there and I grabbed them both with animalistic abandon.
Barry M Instant Nail Effects over Illamasqua Obsession, Illamasqua Jo’Mina, Sleek Turquoise, China Glaze Passion
I already had a few polishes in mind that I really wanted to try it over, after weeks of poring over blog posts, so that’s the first thing I did when I got home. I was actually squealing with delight as I watched it crackle before my little eyes!
The directions specifically say not to overlap when you apply your coat of this over your polish, and from the above photo I learned there is actually a knack to applying it. Not overlapping isn’t just a suggestion, it’s essential, and also the thickness of the layer you apply is important. You can see that on my index finger, I applied it a little too thin on the left hand side so the crackles are really tiny, whereas on the ring and pinky fingers I applied a little too heavily resulting in large, bulky crackles. The middle finger turned out best, I think. I removed my little test run and slapped on a full manicure with Obsession.
This is SOOO freaking cool. I’m not even going to apologise for posting about it when I know everyone else already has. It’s THAT amazing. Once you get it, you’ll understand. :3
P.S. Sorry for my recent absense on Twitter and boring blog posts, have been really ill :( I’ve actually lost my voice now! Am hoping to perk up soon, though, I hate to be a disappointment to you guys!
