But first! I want to whine about topcoats. When I first started using quick-dry topcoats, I thought Seche Vite was the end-all, be-all. I could even overlook how it would get all gloppy in the middle of the bottle. But then it started causing shrinkage of the underneath layers of polish, usually within just a few hours of application. So I moved on. Quick-dry topcoats I have tried:
Poshe - Meh. It works as well as Seche with less shrinkage, but the brush is weird and awkward.
CND Air Dry - This is probably my favorite, really, but it's expensive and difficult to find (for me.. the only place I've found it here is at Trade Secret and it's like $9, and I go through a LOT of topcoat).
Orly In A Snap - This sucked. Only after I purchased it did I realize that only the topcoat itself dries quickly. It does NOT dry the polish underneath.
Sally Hansen Insta-Dri - Same as In A Snap. Don't waste your time.
Currently I am using Out The Door. Even though CND Air Dry works better and makes my nails shinier, the cost is prohibitive. I actually bought the huge ass bottle of Out The Door at Sally Beauty Supply because it was like $9 and is 2.5oz compared to $9 for probably .5oz (I threw the bottle out, apparently, so I'm unsure of the size) of CND Air Dry. Out The Door doesn't shrink my polish, but it also doesn't dry quite as quickly as Poshe, Seche Vite, or Air Dry. However, it works well enough and is cheap, so it's my current favorite.
What's YOUR favorite quick-dry topcoat? I'm open to trying new products that work well that I haven't already tried!
Anywho, here are the OPIs I promised! I believe I used two coats of each of these. I may have used three coats for the glittery ones.
Flit A Bit - A medium orange that I actually LIKED on me! I never like oranges on me!
Flower-to-Flower - A nice bubblegum pink with some silver shimmer in it. I didn't like this one as much as I was anticipating -- it was actually the color from this collection I thought I'd like the most.
Wing It - Ok, this was a weird color. It shifts from pink to orange and has all that glass fleck-y sparkle in it, but the color is kinda butt ugly.
Catch Me In Your Net - I like this, but I already own Zoya Charla, so I'd never buy a full size of this. I have seen several bloggers point out that Charla and CMIYN are dupes, so I'll spare you all the comparison. If I didn't already have Charla, this would be the one full-size I'd HAVE to have. Since I do already have Charla, I didn't buy any full-size polishes from this collection. :)
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I thought I was the only one who thought Wing It is ugly. I love glass flecked but ugh- I hate that shade for some reason!
ReplyDeleteI use Out The Door. I think it dries pretty quickly. I tried Seche Vite first because I read tons of people loved it but I couldn't stand the shrinkage.
ReplyDeleteI loveee Flit A Bit! Oranges are fun :D
I like the Catch Me In Your Net. I'll have to hunt for that color! :)
ReplyDeleteI've also read that CMIYN and Zoya Charla are dupes for Halley's Comet from the new Orly Cosmic FX line.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite quick-dry top coat is Sally Hansen Insta-Dri...I think it dries my polish very well, and it doesn't dent in my experience.
ReplyDeleteSo far Essie Good to Go works the best for me but it's too expensive ($10) for the amount of topcoat that I go through. Seche and Poshe are horrid for me. They both cause major shrinkage and are almost unusable after I've used about half the bottle because they become super thick and the Poshe actually forms strings going from the bottle to my nails! blech. I haven't found a great topcoat in my budget yet either. I've tried all of the one's that you've tried except for the CND with the same issues.
ReplyDeleteFlit a bit is my fave on you in this batch of swatches.
ReplyDeleteI too bought (and for the most part like) the fat round bottle of Out the Door topcoat. I have to say I really like the large brush because it makes application quick.
I've recently started using something called Quick Slicker, which was randomly given to me, and I'm liking it - dries faster than Out the Door, not as fast as SV, but to a nice shiny non-brittle finish. Have been using it for almost two weeks so may post a review on my blog at some point.
I love all these colors on you! I am one of the many bloggers who bought both Zoya Charla and OPI CMIYN... I bought the Zoya first and I had to buy the OPI, for the great pro-wide brush, I love that brush! LMAO! :)
ReplyDeleteI use seche and air dry. I get Air Dry from a professional's nail supply for $5.50 for .4 or .35, not sure I know it's not a regular full size. It's my fave but it's pretty chippy on me. I use OTD sometimes but i feel like it takes FOREVER
ReplyDeleteI've been using the Revlon Quick Dry Topcoat (I believe that's the name - it isn't in front of me right now) in the frosted bottle and have been happy with that lately. It dries all the polish quickly and has a nice shine. It's available in drug stores and you can get it on sale. I buy it in a Revlon outlet for $2.35 a bottle.
ReplyDeleteHope this helps!