Leighton Denny Nail Varnish Review!

I have tons and tons of nail varnishes. Probably like most of you out there! I have a few that are cheap and the rest have been presents, some which would've been fairly expensive normally. One particular varnish of mine (which was a gift from my sister) is by Leighton Denny. On the Leighton Denny website their varnishes generally retail at £11.00 each, which is rather expensive from my point of view! This then led me to wonder whether the varnish is actually value for money. So I thought why not review it :-) 

Hanky Panky

No I'm not just saying it to be immature! I kid you not, this is actually the name of the nail varnish colour that I own. It is a bright metallic orange colour, and their varnishes in general are described on the bottle as being: "high performance nail colour. Easy to apply, longlasting and chip resistant. Apply two thin coats and allow to dry." But before that last bit, let's look at the bottle!


Well here it is! I've taken a couple of photos because in flash and without flash the varnish colour looks rather different. It's more like the top photo though. It is an orange colour that is quite vibrant, but not quite as vibrant as this top picture. In real life the intense colour of the varnish is toned down by the very fine glittery sheen that is within. This is what gives it its metallic edge.









I have no idea why this colour is called 'Hanky Panky'! Why orange has been associated with that phrase is just a mystery. Maybe it's just to be bold. There's nothing about hank panky that's orange . . . I'M NOT EVEN GOING THERE.




The picture is more to show the name of the brand. This one was taken without flash. I feel so bad saying this, but the colour in real life is a mixture if the two pictures!

This is the brush. I was quite surprised to find a brush in this £11.99-per-pot nail varnish that is just like most other varnishes out there. Even stupidly cheap varnishes have this brush! I was expecting a brush that was tapered for quick and accurate application, like the Bourgeois nail varnishes. Quite a disappointment on this front for me.

And here is the nail varnish on. It has a nice sheen to it, and it is a nice colour. However with the microglittery shine stuff you can end up a 'marbly' kind of effect which I don't like, because it means that you can't get just one nice shiny 'smooth' looking nail. But anyways.












It takes a fair while to become totally set and fully dry (i.e. you can press it with a fingertip and it won't have fingerprint imprinted on it, and your nail won't make a massive dent) but it takes no longer to dry than the average nail varnish. However this is another disappointment. I was expecting a fast drying polish to sort of try to justify the high price, but no luck.

Don't get me wrong, this is a lovely coloured nail varnish with a beautiful sheen. It lasts longer than others (i.e. doesn't chip as easily as long as it's fully dry etc). But for £11.99 per bottle I was expecting a faster drying product with a better quality brush, and the ability to create a smooth finish without the microglittery elements 'pooling' together to create a 'marbly' effect. Overall a good nail varnish but SOOO not worth the RRP! I would pay £4.00 for this personally, oooooh :S

See ya soon xxx