Swatch video:

Superdrug - Extravagant & Signature

Boots - Opulent & Bittersweet

Pros:

- Great colours choices for the holiday season, would make a good 'going out' set for holiday/new years parties

- Good formula on both the polishes and lip paints

- Extravagant is a unique colour to my collection

- Packaging is lovely, I would nail polishes that come in boxes hehe

Cons:

- Unable to buy, only available as a free gift

- The colours in the sets are the not the exact same shade, I would perfer if I could have my nails and lips identical shades

- The red and purple shades seem a bit 'samey', Barry M seem to always lean towards those two colours around the holidays... It would be nice to have maybe a gold or green instead (and yes, I would totally wear green lipstick)

WOTB?

I personally prefer the Superdrug kit, the polish is a unique burgundy/brown shade with purple shimmer (something I don't already have in my collection) and the lip paint is a lovely shade is a pretty but not too dark. If you prefer more traditional red polish and darker lip shades, then the Boots kit is probably the way to go for you.

For years I have been using Solar Oil as my go-to cuticle oil, I have brought more bottles than I can count and only over the past couple of months have I decided to branch out and try some other cuticle oils. These are my thoughts on the cuticle oils I've tried out so far...

CND's Solar Oil

Price: £8.99

Smell: Quite a strong marzipan smell, not too overwhelming, but definitely not my favourite smell. (plus my husband hates it hehe)

Formula: I love the formula of this cuticle oil, great consistency, absorbs/rubs in well. 

Overall Thoughts: This is a great cuticle oil, definitely worth the price if you enjoy the smell and does a great job keeping cuticles moisturised. A bit too expensive for my liking. 

Barry M's So Cute-icle! 

Price: £3.99 

Smell: This cuticle oil has a lovely suitable coconut smell, I don't like strong smelling things so this is perfect for me. 

Formula: A much thinner consistency than the others on this list, which I really like, it absorbs well.

Overall Thoughts: I adore this cuticle oil, for the price it is totally worth it, good formula, lovely scent and a great cheaper alternative to other oils. 

Essence's 3 Phase Nail Care Shake

Price: £2.30

Smell: This has a quite an overwhelming bubblegum smell, which some people would probably love. Unfortunately I don't, I don't like sweet smells and bubblegum is one of my least favourite smells. 

Formula: I also don't like the formula on this cuticle oil, the 3 parts which you shake to mix together creates a very thick and greasy and leaves my hands feeling super sticky. 

Overall Thoughts: Not a fan of this cuticle oil, I'm sure some people would be, but I would much rather buy other ones on this list. Plus it's a bit of a hassle to shake it so it mixes together.

Essence's Nail Repairing Oil

Price: £2 

Smell: This also has a sweet/citrus (almost sherbet like) smell. I don't particularly love the smell, because I don't like sweet smells, but I don't hate it either. It's not as overwhelming as the 3 phase shake. 

Formula: This has a great formula, not too thick or too thin, absorbs well, and doesn't feel greasy. 

Overall Thoughts: If you like smells on the sweeter side, then this is a great cuticle oil option, it's super cheap and has a fantastic formula.

Essie's Apricot Cuticle Oil

Price: £8.99

Smell: I love the smell of this cuticle oil, a nice apricot smell, not too sweet or too strong.

Formula: Good consistency, absorbs well, does leave hands a little sticky but this does go away after a few minutes once it's fully absorbed. 

Overall Thoughts: I nice cuticle oil, nothing special, and in my opinion a bit too expensive for what it is. 

Essence's Studio Nails Cuticle Remover Pen

Price: £2.50

Smell: A lovely citrus smell, not too strong.

Formula: A thinner oil, but the applicator only allows a small amount of product to be applied to the cuticle. 

Overall Thoughts: I love this!! Although not technically like the rest on the list. This is the perfect cuticle pusher and oil combo to leave in your handbag or on your desk to always have handy when you need it. (I leave one in my handbag at all times). 

WOTB?

If you are looking for a high quality and are willing to pay a higher price then I would go with CND's Solar Oil.

If you want something more budget friendly then I would go with either Barry M's So Cute-icle or Essence's Nail Repairing Oil depending on your scent preference! 

If you are looking for an oil that you can take with you out and about then I would go with Essence's Studio Nails Cuticle Remover Pen. 

I personally plan to stick with the Essence's Studio Nails Cuticle Remover Pen as my handbag oil and go back and forth between Essence's Nail Repairing Oil & Barry M's So Cute-icle oil as my main oils.

Would you recommend any other oils that are not on this list? Leave a comment or tweet me @nimynails letting me know what your favourite cuticle oil is.

*WOTB: Which One To Buy? 

I recently tried 2 of Essence's Metal Shock chrome powders. This is my first time trying any kind of chrome powder, so I haven't tried any other products to compare these too. 

I really enjoyed playing around with these powders, although they don't create a completely 'mirror' finish, it is a really pretty and shiny finish. The 2 colours I tried: Mirror, Mirror On The Nail and Be My Little Mermaid, are both beautiful. I prefer the colour of the teal powder, but I prefer the application of the silver. Pros: - Price, they are only £3, so for a fun experiment they are not too expensive. - Good pigmentation, with good application or 2 coats. - Good colour selections (although I have only tried 2). - Beautiful shiny finish. - Top coat dries quite fast. - The excess washes off easily with soap and water. Cons: - Messy, this will get glitter dust everywhere. - Patchy if to applied perfectly. - The top coat is too thin of a formula for my liking, pools in the sides. - Some apply better over clear polish, some better over black polish. Tips: - Apply with finger, doesn't work with eye shadow brush. - Only works on gloss polish, does not apply onto a matte base. - Do more than 1 coat for full coverage. - Prepare for the mess, lay down some paper or something and avoid touching too many things before washing your hands.
You can buy the powders for £3 each and the top coat is also £3, both from Wilko.