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Buying nail polish is one of those perfect little pick-me-ups. You know those days when you have the urge to spend but don't have the coin to do serious damage? We've all been there.

But there's no sense in buying junk. So if you've ever wondered if designer brands are any better than their drug store counterparts or if those long-lasting, quick-drying,tough-as-Teflon promises actually deliver, read on.

In an effort to find the best polishes, we put a group of the most popular brands through some rigorous testing. We took two high-end brands, two long-lasting brands, two quick-drying ones, two salon brands and two regular drugstore brands. Here's the list:

• Chanel
• Nars
• Sally Hansen New Lengths with Teflon
• Maybelline Ultimate Wear
• L'Oreal Jet-Set Quick Dry
• Revlon Super Top Speed
• Absolute Spa (a West Coast Salon Brand)
• Prestige
• Revlon

We painted each nail with a different brand and wore them for 7 days (our hands looked like rainbows!). And of course, we followed a manicurist's advice; starting with a base coat, two coats of polish and a topcoat.

Daily life is already tough enough on our nails - water is your nails' biggest enemy(moisturize moisturize moisturize!). But we upped the ante: in addition to gardening and washing dishes, we also went rock climbing to see which brands stood up best.

The result? We're convinced that some drugstore brands perform just as well as some designer brands. Furthermore, long lasting don't always last any longer than regular polishes. Even a quick drying brand can outlast it!

Of our list of ten we chose three favourites: Sally Hansen with Teflon was the most chip resistant. Channel's shine definitely endured and L'Oreal Jet Set was good overall.

So are there any tricks to making your polish last longer?

• First off, file your nails in one direction. This will help prevent chipping.


• Also, "edge" the nail with the brush - add a horizontal brush stroke across the top of the nail. This acts as a sort of sealant.


• To really keep nails looking fresh, apply a new top coat every couple of days and stay away from nasty housework. Water and chemicals will lead to faded and chipped nails. Invest in indoor and outdoor work gloves and save money on your manicures!

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