Nail polish: how to choose

How to choose nail polish

The quickest way to narrow the choice is to decide how you want the polish to set. Gel formulas need a UV or LED lamp and give a smooth, glassy surface that holds its depth; air-dry formulas brush on and dry on their own, which suits a coat applied between other tasks. Our Quick-Dry Matte Nail Polish air-dries without a lamp, while Matte Klein Blue Gel Nail Polish, our cat-eye gels and the 6-Piece Solid Color Gel Polish Set are made to set under a lamp.

Shade is where a manicure meets the rest of your wardrobe. Nude neutrals sit quietly beside tailoring and denim; wine, red and black carry an evening outfit; silver, gold and grey read as metal and pick up jewellery; pink, purple, green and blue allow a single note of colour. Hold a bottle against the back of your hand in daylight, since cool shades such as silver, blue and purple tend to sit well with cooler undertones, while gold, green and wine suit warmer ones.

Then consider format. Single bottles suit someone building a small, deliberate shelf, while sets suit a shared household or a gift: our 6-Piece Solid Color Gel Polish Set arrives in a gift box with six 7ml bottles. Sizes across our pieces run from 7ml and 8.5 g/ml to 10ml and a 20g bottle of Colorful Nail Polish. If you wear gel, plan the removal too, with a cream such as Sticky Cream Nail Polish Remover.

Formulas, finishes and shades

Gel and air-dry formulas behave differently, and that matters more than the shade name. Gel settles to a glassy, plump surface once set under a UV or LED lamp, which suits a manicure you want to keep for a while; air-dry polish is thinner in the hand and dries in minutes, which suits a quick change. Within gel we carry several formats: Removable Gel Nail Polish in matte, frosted, glitter and diamond flecks with soft Morandi and macaron tones; Nude Neutrals Soak Off Gel Polish with one-stroke colour and a sticky gum texture; and the 30-Shade Cat Eye Gel Nail Polish, a liquid gel built on natural resin in 10ml bottles.

Finish changes how a shade reads. Glossy reflects light cleanly and keeps colour looking bright; matte flattens the surface so the pigment looks denser. Matte Klein Blue Gel Nail Polish is a clear example: a deep, saturated blue that sets to a soft, velvety matte under a lamp, with pigment that stays rich rather than turning flat, and a gel texture that lifts away in one piece when you want a change. For matte without a lamp, Quick-Dry Matte Nail Polish sets to a smooth, flat finish and brushes on in a thin layer; its eleven shades include wine red and positive red.

Glitter, shimmer and metal bring movement. Reflective Glitter Gel Nail Polish suspends fine reflective glitter in a glossy gel base, so the surface shifts as your hands move and levels as it settles under the lamp. Diamond Cat's Eye Gel Nail Polish uses fine diamond-like flecks that catch cool flashes rather than flat glitter, so the nail looks deep rather than decorated. For metal, Mirror Finish Silver Nail Polish builds in two or three sheer passes to a crisp liquid chrome, while Liquid Mirror Metallic Nail Polish is a thinner, water-soluble silver paste that layers into a mirror. Across our pieces the colours run through silver, gold, grey, black, white, red, wine, pink, nude, blue, purple and green.

How to apply and wear them

Good wear starts before the first brushstroke. Begin with clean, dry nails and push back the cuticles, then shape and lightly buff the bare nail so the surface is even. Wipe with cleanser and let it dry completely, since any oil or moisture left on the nail will shorten how neatly the colour sits. If you use a base coat, keep it thin: a thin layer grips better than a thick one and gives the colour something even to hold on to.

Shake the bottle well before you begin, so colour and glitter are evenly blended; in our silver polishes a small steel ball sits inside to mix the silver paste back into suspension. Brush on a thin layer first, then a second for depth, because two thin passes give a more even surface than one heavy one. Gel colours need their lamp step to set, while air-dry shades such as Quick-Dry Matte Nail Polish dry on their own. With glitter and cat-eye finishes, thin coats also keep the flecks sitting evenly rather than gathering at the tip.

How you wear them is mostly a matter of length and shape. Short, rounded nails carry a matte or nude shade neatly; longer nails suit a bold blue, a chrome silver or a cat-eye. A thin pass of colour across the free edge of the nail helps seal the tip, and a topcoat over glitter keeps the surface smooth to the touch. Let each layer dry before the next, and keep hands out of water for the first hour or so after a manicure.

Hygiene, storage and shelf life

A little care between manicures keeps bottles usable. Wipe the neck of the bottle and the inside of the cap with a tissue after each use, so polish does not dry in the thread and seal the bottle shut. Do not leave the brush standing out of the bottle, and close the cap firmly each time. Keep your tools, including any clean-up brush, washed and personal to you.

Store polish upright in a cool, dark place, away from direct sunlight, radiators and the warm shelf above a cooker, since heat thickens a formula faster than time does. A drawer or a closed box works well. Shake each bottle before use, and if a gel looks separated, roll it between your palms to mix it gently before shaking.

Shelf life varies by formula, so check the product page for the piece you are considering: our 30-Shade Cat Eye Gel Nail Polish, for example, lists a shelf life of two years. As a general guide, a bottle that has thickened beyond a workable texture, or one that no longer shakes back into an even colour, has reached the end of its useful life. Removal deserves the same patience as application: spread Sticky Cream Nail Polish Remover over the nail, give it a moment to soften the colour, then wipe away. Work in a ventilated room, and if you notice persistent changes in your nails or the skin around them, speak to a professional.

Standout pieces

• Matte Klein Blue Gel Nail Polish: A deep, saturated Klein blue that settles into a soft, velvety matte under a UV or LED lamp, with a gel texture that lifts away in one piece when you want a change.
• Mirror Finish Silver Nail Polish: The lacquer pours noticeably thinner than most polish and builds in two or three sheer passes to a crisp liquid chrome, with a stainless-steel ball inside the bottle to keep the silver paste even.
• 30-Shade Cat Eye Gel Nail Polish: A liquid cat-eye gel built on natural resin, offered in 30 colours in 10ml bottles with a listed shelf life of two years.
• Nude Neutrals Soak Off Gel Polish: Nude neutral tones laid down in a single stroke, with a dense sticky gum texture and a soak-off format in 8.5 g/ml bottles.
• Sticky Cream Nail Polish Remover: A thick, sticky cream that sits on the nail rather than running while it softens gel colour or polish, in a 15ml bottle that tucks into a manicure kit.