It's really the basecoat that's key to preventing chipping. And honestly, it's different for each person. My current combo is a-England The Knight as bc and Essie Good to Go for tc and when I can be bothered to keep my mani on for more than a couple of days I get a good 5 days out of one. Also, wrap your tips!
What is the BEST Base & Top Coat Polish?
- Thread starter Cheryl
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I agree that the base coat is key, and definitely wrap your tips!
I've been using the Butter London base coat and top coat for several months now and I'm still loving it. I get great wear no matter what polish I'm using in between. It's the perfect combo for me right now. I must say though, you might have to do some testing to figure out your perfect base coat / top coat, because something that works for others may not work for you! Hope you find something that works for you.
Agree about base coats being key. I like to use CND Stickey as my base, then for top coat I use Seche Vite or Sally Hansen Insta-Dri in the red bottle. I have had HITS Apolo (dark blue holo polish) on my toenails for 3 weeks now with zero chips or peels, using CND Stickey as my base and Seche Vite as my top coat.
I use Chanel base coat, followed by 2-3 coats of color, followed by Zoya Armor top coat (it removes streaks in whatever is underneath it, without dragging the polish - love that), followed by Dior top coat (super fast drying time with a smooth shiny surface - dries faster than seche vite and doesn't cause shrinkage if you reapply it, like SV does).
I get NO chips and no tip wear even though I use my nails for scratching.
I get NO chips and no tip wear even though I use my nails for scratching.
Has anyone had the chance to try Lumos Top Coat. Lumos is a fast dry top coat, it dries in 10-12 minutes, dry enough to put shoes on after a pedicure!!! It goes on evenly and smooth and has a beautiful shine!!!! Lumos also will not get thick in the bottle, it lasts to the end.
You should try it, ask your nail professional to get some for you from Famous Names !!!
You should try it, ask your nail professional to get some for you from Famous Names !!!
Polishes never seem to last longer than a day or two on my nails... 
...irrespective of the brand... so I am always on a quest to find a perfect BASE COAT and TOP COAT to make my mani last just that little bit longer!
So far I've tried (rating out of 5):
1) CHANEL protective base - I find it to be a really good base for preventing yellowing of the nail bed as a result of using dark, rich colours. However, it does not help my mani to last longer. The polish still chips within 1-2 days. Rating: 2
2) ORLY Bonder - i believe this to be one of the better base coats from all the reviews I've read. Prolongs polish wear to 2-3 days. Orly claims this base to allow polish to stay on for up to 2 weeks! This is not my experience. Not even close. Rating: 3
3) ORLY Won't Chip Top coat - extremely fast drying! I never used to be able to do my nails before bed as I would always wake up with bed sheet "imprints" on my polish. However, this top coat has certainly changed it for me! It dries in a matter of minutes and provides a fantastic gloss finish to my nails - nails look almost acrylic! However, if I put a thick coat on, it will start to crack and chip very quickly as it dries as a rigid layer of clear plastic. Rating: 4+
Any other positive/negative experiences with top and base coats that someone is willing to share?
...irrespective of the brand... so I am always on a quest to find a perfect BASE COAT and TOP COAT to make my mani last just that little bit longer! So far I've tried (rating out of 5):
1) CHANEL protective base - I find it to be a really good base for preventing yellowing of the nail bed as a result of using dark, rich colours. However, it does not help my mani to last longer. The polish still chips within 1-2 days. Rating: 2
2) ORLY Bonder - i believe this to be one of the better base coats from all the reviews I've read. Prolongs polish wear to 2-3 days. Orly claims this base to allow polish to stay on for up to 2 weeks! This is not my experience. Not even close. Rating: 3
3) ORLY Won't Chip Top coat - extremely fast drying! I never used to be able to do my nails before bed as I would always wake up with bed sheet "imprints" on my polish. However, this top coat has certainly changed it for me! It dries in a matter of minutes and provides a fantastic gloss finish to my nails - nails look almost acrylic! However, if I put a thick coat on, it will start to crack and chip very quickly as it dries as a rigid layer of clear plastic. Rating: 4+
Any other positive/negative experiences with top and base coats that someone is willing to share?
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Seche vite is pretty good. I've been using it for years and my manicure is glossy and doesn't chip until at least day 4. It looks good until about day 6, when I start to want the fresh gloss back! The topcoat can't be reapplied days after though, it will just lift the polish off your nails and curl the edges upward.
I'm on a quest too for a good one!
1) China Glaze Strong Adhesion Base Coat:
I like this one. Provides a smooth base for nail polish to go on - I've noticed that some streakier colors (i.e. whites) go on better when I use this base coat. Dries quickly. I still get some staining from stronger blue and red polishes though. I *think* polishes stay on longer but I'm hard on my nails regardless so I can't make a fair assessment on that front.
Rating: 4/5
2) China Glaze Fast Foward Top Coat:
This one is okay. I'll usually only pick it up when ULTA or Sally's has a buy 2 get 1 free deal. It has a very strong smell, I'm not sure what chemicals are in here?! It does dry fast but I've noticed that my polish tends to flake off at the edges and after a day or two some polishes get hairline cracks throughout the whole nail. Nails don't stay glossy for more than 2-3 days.
Rating: 3/5
3) Revlon Quick Dry Top Coat:
This one is better than CG Fast Foward, but not by a huge margin. It dries quickly and is REALLY glossy. It stays glossy for close to a week. My nail polish doesn't seem to crack as often as it does with other quick dry top coats and I usually don't notice any flaking. It does pull/streak colors though, so I wouldn't use it on nails with multiple colors.
Rating 4/5
1) China Glaze Strong Adhesion Base Coat:
I like this one. Provides a smooth base for nail polish to go on - I've noticed that some streakier colors (i.e. whites) go on better when I use this base coat. Dries quickly. I still get some staining from stronger blue and red polishes though. I *think* polishes stay on longer but I'm hard on my nails regardless so I can't make a fair assessment on that front.
Rating: 4/5
2) China Glaze Fast Foward Top Coat:
This one is okay. I'll usually only pick it up when ULTA or Sally's has a buy 2 get 1 free deal. It has a very strong smell, I'm not sure what chemicals are in here?! It does dry fast but I've noticed that my polish tends to flake off at the edges and after a day or two some polishes get hairline cracks throughout the whole nail. Nails don't stay glossy for more than 2-3 days.
Rating: 3/5
3) Revlon Quick Dry Top Coat:
This one is better than CG Fast Foward, but not by a huge margin. It dries quickly and is REALLY glossy. It stays glossy for close to a week. My nail polish doesn't seem to crack as often as it does with other quick dry top coats and I usually don't notice any flaking. It does pull/streak colors though, so I wouldn't use it on nails with multiple colors.
Rating 4/5
seche is the best topcoat ive used for shine and durability and quick dry, and if you reapply every day it works even better, i also hear others have alot of luck with that sally hansen quick dry in the red bottle but seche has worked better for me. and i swear by cnd sticky base coat(if your just looking for longevity), best one ive tried and ive tried quite a few
Totally agree on CND Stickey base coat and Seche Vite topcoat...I was about to post those two myself until I saw that you had already posted them lol. I also like the Sally Hansen topcoat in the red bottle, but I think Seche Vite has a bit more shine to it than the SH does.
Another here that uses CND Stickey as base coat and Sech Vite for topcoat. Before putting on CND Stickey, I use Nailtiques Formula 2 Nail Protein because I have terrible luck with CND Stickey taking my peely nails off when the polish chips.
Recently I have been using the "Elmer's Glue" trick as a base coat since most of my polishes seem to be the hard-to-remove glitters. This works exceptionally well if you don't mind changing your polish every 1-2 days. When I want my polish to stay longer I use the top combo.
Recently I have been using the "Elmer's Glue" trick as a base coat since most of my polishes seem to be the hard-to-remove glitters. This works exceptionally well if you don't mind changing your polish every 1-2 days. When I want my polish to stay longer I use the top combo.
I am using the same thing. The glue has made my life so much easier. No more rubbling acetone and cotton on my nails endlessly.