Primark and MUA Nail Polish – Are Cheap Nail Polishes Worth It?

Primark and MUA Nail Polish

Pound Polishes – Primark and MUA Nail Polish

I’ve never been very brave in branching out to new nail polish brands. I love Barry M, Bourjois, Rimmel, Sally Hansen etc… the main high street nail polish names. I’d only ever looked at getting more expensive polishes to add to my collection but thought I should start looking at cheaper alternatives! I’ve bought £8 or more polishes in the past and sometimes been surprised how quickly they chip with that price tag. If a cheaper polish can last and has a good shade then why spend more?

I recently bought MUA Nail Polish Amaretto Crush after spotting that they are only £1 in Superdrug! I was pretty amazed at that price and since pinks and pastels are fantastic at the moment I thought I would have to give it a go. If I am honest I cannot tell the difference between this polish and one that cost 4 times the amount. MUA is often understocked in UK Superdrugs and doesn’t always have the same range in colours but if you spot a shade you like then this is worth trying. Like most polishes it needs 2 coats but drying time is very quick. I’ve worn it on my nails for 2 days now with no chips which is pretty amazing for me. I love having a lighter girly shade on my nails as they are so short atm (they are still recovering from having acrylics on at Christmas :/ )

mua nail polish

Second cheap nail polish that I would recommend is in the Primark Beauty range. I recently went shopping on a blogger meet up in Hull and had never tried the range before but was easily persuaded too! I chose their spotty polish as it was reduced to £1. It is a very pale purple grey colour and has large and small grey spots in it. Again I was impressed, often glittery polishes let you down, you can’t get an even amount of dots, the polish dries uneven/bumpy or it is all clear polish and no glitter. I applied two coats and it gave an even amount of dots without me trying, very easy and effective.

MUA Nail Polish Amaretto Crush

Have you tried these cheaper polishes or have any recommendations?

34 Comments

  1. 2014/03/24 / 09:17

    I’ve purchased the MUA nail varnishes countless times, they’re such good quality for the price! I also have the same shade as you but I’ve not yet tried it so I’m reassured that it’s good!

    haylxy.blogspot.co.uk

  2. Porcelina
    2014/03/24 / 09:39

    I’ve never tried the MUA, but am willing to give it a go after this review! I’ve tried Geoge at Asda nail polishes, cheap and cheerful, but they don’t have much staying power to be honest.

  3. 2014/03/24 / 09:58

    I think the MUA nail polishes are amazing! x

    pearlsandsparkle.blogspot.com

  4. Mia Salazar
    2014/03/24 / 11:01

    the spotty nail polish <3

    _emsalazar
    themiasalazar { life | thoughts | pictures }

  5. 2014/03/24 / 10:27

    I have never heard of MUA until your post, thank you =) but I am a huge fan of Bourjois, Rimmel, in nail polish, and Make-up, I’ll have to a dmi, I have not polished my nails in MONTHS!

  6. Jessica Whitbread
    2014/03/24 / 15:19

    I absolutely love the MUA polishes, I have hunted down all of the shades now! I haven’t tried the Primark ones though!

    makeupbyjesswhitbread.blogspot.com

  7. jenny
    2014/03/24 / 16:26

    I’m not a fan of MUA’s polishes and find that nowadays, I prefer to buy fewer, more expensive polishes as I hate long drying times and the drying effects certain brands’ polishes have on my nails!

  8. 2014/03/24 / 15:49

    I’ve never tried MUA’s polishes, although I do like their make-up. The bottle is very Essie looking. Might have to pick one up next time I’m in Superdrug.

  9. Megan
    2014/03/24 / 19:19

    I wish they had MUA in Canada! Its a brand I really want to try.

  10. tracey bowden
    2014/03/24 / 19:21

    I don’t have many MUA polishes but I got my daughter the 1D one for her birthday. I’m not a fan of Avon or Miss Sporty ones. I have found Rimmel, which are my favourite in pound stores and Revlon ones

  11. SimplyCharlotteB
    2014/03/24 / 19:34

    I am a big big fan of MUA polishes :D Not tried Primark yet though…. Never been grabbed by a colour, have to admit with near 100 nail varnishes I am finding it harder and harder to buy new ones :| . Just ordered 2 of Avon’s soon to be released gel ones today though super excited about them (cosmo have given them really good reviews, can’t wait to try them myself!! :D) x

    • 2014/03/24 / 22:04

      oh let me know how you get on with them. might be a purchase in the future.

      • SimplyCharlotteB
        2014/05/09 / 07:08

        The Avon ones seem pretty good over all, they apply nicely, and have pretty good lasting power, they definitely last longer than your average polish (5 days ish). I also recently forked out for some of the Revlon Parfumerie ones such pretty bottles!! They do smell as they are supposed to for a day or so, but so so hard to apply and chipped in a couple of days :(
        I wrote a full post on the Avon ones here :) – http://www.simplycharlotteb.blogspot.co.uk/2014/04/avon-gel-polishes-verdict.html
        x

  12. carley
    2014/03/25 / 05:01

    great read! love finding out that cheap products work just as well as more expensive options

  13. Geukje
    2014/03/25 / 06:37

    Too bad they don’t sell MUA in Belgium. I did however tried a Primark nail polish (a crackling one) and I really did not like it… It was supposed to be silver crackling, but it turned out ‘correcting pen white’ on my nails… So after that one I didn’t dare to try another one.

  14. John Hartil
    2014/03/25 / 10:31

    Yes some of the cheaper products are great value but it is nice to have some expensive ones for those special occasions

  15. Neelam
    2014/03/25 / 13:24

    There’s a store called Beauty Base here in the UK that sells nail polish for 99p. I find their lasting power is much better than Rimmel’s lasting finish nail polishes. You should give them a go too! :) I think I may just try out the MUA nail polishes! Great post xx

    newgirl49.blogspot.co.uk

  16. 2014/03/25 / 18:50

    That MUA one is the most gorgeous colour! I’ll defo be looking out for it.

    wendylovesblog.blogspot.com

  17. mills charm
    2014/03/25 / 21:19

    Great info I will deffo be checking out the MUA xxx

  18. Annie
    2014/03/25 / 22:14

    I’ve been really impressed with the MUA nail varnish. I always chip my nails and this has lasted! xx

  19. Carey Boyle
    2014/03/29 / 19:36

    Barry M is so good, and that is quite cheap. Their glitter nail varnishes take forever to remove though!

    Something about Carey

  20. Jade Morriss
    2014/04/08 / 15:09

    I own a few MUA nail polished but not this one – I like it! I keep hearing about Primark’s new beauty range but have yet to try any of it for myself, hopefully I will some time soon.
    :-)
    Bits & Bobs

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