Either you can’t stand the smell or you need half the bottle to get rid of your favourite red nail varnish and then it just seems to end in a mess. We try out seven different nail varnish removers that will give you strong, healthy or just plain clean nails.
Sally Hansen
This brand specialises in feet, hands and nails and actually has four different types of nail varnish removers. I opted for the strengthening one as I suffer from keyboard syndrome, meaning weak and thin nails. And I must admit after using it a couple of times, I noticed a slight difference and figured the price tag isn’t that bad if you consider that you’re getting a 237ml bottle containing a special blend of Pro-vitamin B5, Vitamin E and Hydrolysed Wheat Protein. Oh and most importantly, it didn’t smudge!
Price: £3.34
Guinot – Masters Colours
Definitely the classiest of the lot with it’s glass bottle but this is Guinot. A strong smell but it really makes up for it in quality as it had my red varnish disappearing right before my eyes in seconds without even a trace of it on my fingers. And I didn’t have to use that much. Packed with Vitamin E and F, it’s also perfect for those of us with weak nails.
Price: £5
Elegant touch
I only discovered this brand when I was doing the research and was intrigued firstly by the cute packaging and secondly by the promising label, that states: Nail Whitening Formula. I had to give it a few attempts to establish whether or not this is just another marketing scheme but guess what? It actually did work! The shine it leaves on the nail immediately after applying is more apparent but so is the brightness you notice the next day. Ideal for slightly stained and dull toenails.
Price: £2.50
Colour Of
If you are lucky enough to have strong, healthy nails evidently ridding you of the hassle of having to buy expensive varnish removers, Colour Of is exactly what you’re looking for. I must admit, I was pretty amazed with the results of this cheap brand with a very unflattering packaging. The smell was quite strong even though it states Acetone Free but it got rid of my chipped nail varnish in no time. It doesn’t give you any promises just good old fashioned nail varnish remover.
Price: £0.62
Supra
Again a cheap supermarket brand but apparently a popular one as most of my friends use it and one even refused to try any of the others. I must say that this one had the strongest smell of the lot and I was told to leave the room when testing it but red nail varnish was no problem for this brand and it didn’t even smudge into the side of my fingers.
Price: £0.92
Avon
Avon calling! I love saying that. Anyway, this nail enamel remover doesn’t come cheap for an Avon product but you do get quite a bit of it in a 150ml bottle. I wasn’t very impressed with the results as I needed to keep reapplying it to the cotton wool but I must say, the Honeysuckle scent had me wanting to apply more. A conditioning, acetone free, Keratin and Panthenol formulated nail varnish remover. Well worth it!
Price: £5
Seventeen
I don’t really suffer from dry hands but if I did, I think I would probably be looking for something like this one to wipe away my varnish. It contains a conditioning formula with extra lanolin and boy, could I see and feel it. Extremely oily but to be fair it does specifically say on the back you should wash your hands after using it. On the plus side, it has a very pleasant smell and did manage to rid me of my red varnish.
Price: £2
