Rimmel Lycra Pro nail polish - Coral Romance (317)

Pleasantly surprised by this budget polish - this is one of the most vibrant red-coral shades I've seen in a long time.

The consistency was great and it went on easily - however I only applied two coats and as you can see it really would have taken three to get complete opacity. It lasted quite well before chipping - well, about a day or so, which is quite good in my book! The fat brush made application quite easy too.

This is kind of similar to Revlon's Red Hot Tamale which I reviewed here, though the Revlon formula is far superior, and I must confess the make up snob in me has an irrational dislike of cheap nail polish however decent it may be or how nice the colour. For me make up is about luxury, pampering and things that look pretty on my dressing table, so I have to admit that 'drugstore' make up doesn't usually cut the mustard!

However if anyone who is less of a make up snob than me is looking for a vibrant coral, you'd be hard pushed to find a better budget buy than this!

Rimmel (yes Rimmel!) Rich Moisture Lipstick - Amethyst Shimmer (84)

I was at a wedding a couple of weeks ago, and despite having already planned my make up look to go with my brown satin dress (brown sparkly eyes, nude lip), at the last minute I decided I might look a bit too tree-trunky (brown from head to toe) and decided I needed a fuchsia lip! It was about 8pm on a Thursday evening and the only store left open in Chesterfield (don't ask!) was Superdrug - so a drugstore lippy it was. After an aisle sweep Dale Winton would have been proud of, I emerged with Rimmel's Amethyst Shimmer lipstick. I actually thought it was a Maybelline (obviously paying attention!) and have to admit to having a slightly upturned nose when I realised I'd bought Rimmel - I'm not really a fan of drugstore cosmetics in general but I have a particular loathing of Rimmel, due in no small part I think to the vile, deeply unflattering Coffee Shimmer that every 13 year old girl seemed inexplicably to covet back in the day (and which I indeed owned and wore!). Very ironic, as there is actually a Coffee Shimmer in the Moisture Rich line..  I'm guessing the very same one (though hopefully the formula has been updated in the last 20 years!)

Long story short - pleasant surprise! The quality of this seemed really good, and it is indeed quite moisturising - rare to find a product that actually lives up to it's name. Of course I didn't actually wear it for the wedding (and I'm glad) but I did try it on in the safety of my own home and it really lasts. And the colour? Very punchy, very now (eg quite 80s, is that trend EVER going to die?), perhaps a tiny bit frostier than I'd normally wear and also a touch on the cool side (for me) but I may well whip this baby out on New Years Eve - it's a great party colour and I think it also plumped my lips up a bit - bonus! I may even return to Rimmel to investigate more colours... Can't remember how much it was but definitely under £5.