Barry M Venus Sunset – Magnetic Sparkle Red

Hello everyone! If you didn’t see my message on the Imagination In Colour Facebook page, I am back from my holiday on the island of Barra, at last! I didn’t manage to post as much as I’d like to have done while on holiday due to a problem with uploading photos, but I’m back now!

I arrived back to a lovely surprise – three of the new Barry M Magnetic polishes on my doormat! I had already bought four of the five new ones before receiving the PR samples so some are samples, some are my own. The five are: Barry M Venus Sunset (Magnetic Sparkle Red), Barry M Super Nova (Magnetic Sparkle Multi), Barry M Moon Dust (Magnetic Sparkle Gold), Barry M Cosmic Glow (Magnetic Sparkle Green) and Barry M Neptune Sea (Magnetic Sparkle Blue).

Before I start, I wanted you all to know that the new magnetics are vastly improved in terms of formula, and they all have a sparkly-glittery effect which makes a wonderful change from what’s been in the UK market in terms of magnetics in the last few months.

So here we have a pretty amazing silver and gunmetal chevron design with a LOT of red and silver microglitter – looking at the close up the microglitter is of irregular shape and size, which I actually think is very pretty. This magnetic polish is very vampy and will definitely be one for Halloween! I love it. It looks very 3D in person and really knocks the socks off the first four magnetics released by Barry M.

Application:

It is important that you shake the bottle before you apply it – many people have thought their magnetic polish is not working when in fact the magnetic particles have just fallen to the bottom over time. You definitely need to have at least one plain coat of the polish on before adding the layer you will magnetise, as the polish is more sheer than the previous magnetics. The photos here show 3 coats – the 3rd coat was the one I magnetised, but you could get away with 2. The polish itself applies like a normal polish with a fairly thin consistency (which I wholeheartedly applaud – my main issue with other magnetics has been the thickness of the polish!) and dries to quite a pretty finish even without the magnetic effect – see photos below. As with all Barry M Magnetics, the magnet is on the top of the square lid complete with a curved lip to help with positioning. The square lid removes to reveal a normal Barry M bottle and brush.

I will be creating a how-to video on how to apply magnetic polishes successfully – it took me a fair while to get to grips with it but I think I finally have grasped the technique! For now, here are some basic instructions (loosely based on those on the side of the bottle!):

Shake the bottle.
Apply one or two coats and allow to dry (like a normal polish).
Apply the next coat to a single finger, replace the brush and as quickly as possible position the magnet about 3-5mm from your nail. If you have quite a curved nail bed, as I do, I find it helps to very slightly tilt the magnet to either side of the nail, without moving the curved lip from its original position (so as not to spoil the pattern). Hold the magnet in place for a good few seconds before removing.
Repeat the process for each nail.
If you do choose to use a topcoat, ensure it is a thin topcoat rather than a thick one (which will drag the particles and spoil the design). The best thin topcoat I have found is Barry M All in One Basecoat Topcoat and Nail Hardener, but you can use any.
Leave to dry as with any normal polish!

I did take a photo of the polish as it appears before the use of the magnet – I actually wore my nails like this for a full day before adding another coat and magnetising it.

The red particles are more obvious here – they create a very pretty effect. And the finish is certainly planetary, I really like it!

Of course you can use any nail polish magnet with this (and all other) magnetic polish, so if you own more than one magnetic polish you can mix and match the design.

What do you think of this? I am a thousand times more in love with the new magnetics than I was with the first set, for formula, finish and also for the unique-ness of the new five (in terms of the UK market).

Barry M Magnetic nail paints are available at BarryM.com at £4.99 each, and from Superdrug, where they are currently on offer for 2 for £8.

Disclaimer: This product was sent to me for review purposes. However all opinions expressed are my own and are not in any way affected as a result of being sent this product by the brand.