REVIEW: BYS Graffiti nail enamel

OK, I'll admit my ignorance up front -  I really wasn't too familiar with the concept of graffiti polish when I received these BYS bottles to try.  Of course they piqued my interest straight away - I didn't know just how they were going to work and what the effect was going to look like so I was on a mission to find out...

The shades L - R:

 (each comes with its own bottle of graffiti activator)

 Grab The Loot, Banksy Blue, Violet Vandal, Stick It To The Man

According to BYS the whole idea is to make nail art fuss free as one shade of polish transforms into a two-tone mani of your own design with the help of the clear graffiti activator.  You begin with painting your nails the desired base shade, wait a few minutes for it to dry, then paint whatever design you wish over the base using the graffiti activator.  The design appears on the nail after a few minutes as the polish darkens where the activator has been applied.

I applied two coats of each shade so I could compare how each polish performed.  The colours are all rather pretty foils and appear more vibrant and distinct on the nail than in the bottle.  My personal favourite was the silvery green Grab The Loot because it had the smoothest, most metallic finish.

Before L - R:

 Stick It To The Man, Violet Vandal, Banksy Blue, Grab The Loot

Now this is where I went ahead and did some slapdash application of the graffiti activator. The activator brush has a very fine tip, obviously suitable for intricate designs but it took novice me a few attempts to figure out the best way to work with the runny formula and the brush.  My first nail (Grab The Loot) involved generous haphazard drops of activator and this looks more rustic green leopard print than dotticure! I had a failed attempt at some sort of diagonal gradient on my second nail (again because of excess activator on the brush) but figured out to let the excess product run off the brush by the third nail and was able to create a not too terrible fishnet design! 

Now, PLEASE don't judge me on my nail art skills (I have little to none!) but do check out the impressive colour changing effects in my after shot:

After:

Key lesson learnt:

  Drip all the excess activator off the brush before painting your design!

So, how does it work?  I can only guess from my own observation because I couldn't find anything on the interwebs.  It appears that the activator contains a type of solvent as it seems to dissolve some ingredient in the base polish, breaking it down to create a darker shade.  Not a very scientific explanation but anyway, I've tried my best! The change in colour is really very noticeable and here's a closer look at the individual colours:

Grab The Loot

Banksy Blue

Violet Vandal

Stick It To The Man

What do I think? It's a bit tricky at first because the graffiti activator's a bit like writing with invisible ink - you really don't know exactly where you've applied until it starts to react with the polish.  And, you have to be careful of not flooding the nail with the activator but that's easily overcome if you drip off the excess before you apply to the nail.  

I really liked how effectively the contrast showed up against the base.  I was also pretty happy with the fishnet design I managed on my ring finger after the first two practice attempts, although I'd probably try these polishes again using stencils or french tip guides for a more precise result.  Alternatively, I could just paint over my ring finger with the activator for a contrasting accent nail.

There are 6 shades in the BYS Graffiti nail enamel range.  BYS polishes are available from discount stores nationally or may be purchased online from FashionAddict.

Until next time.

Vita :)

 (These products have been provided for my consideration.  All comments and opinions are my own.)