What is the BEST Base & Top Coat Polish?

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#151
I've tried a lot of brands so far what worked for me were Poshe's base followed by Nubar's Diamont Seal and shine topcoat then topped by Poshe's fast dry top coat. Unfortunately Poshe causes polish shrinkage, so I tried Essie's Good To Go which is also ok but still lacks the shine I'm looking for. Cult Nail Wicked Fast is also good and do make my polish last longer. Color Club (from pre-base to the fast dry top coat) is also ok especially if use together but polish wear is just so-so.

China Glaze Strong Adhesion base coat followed by No Chip top coat then Fast Forward top coat is a good system to follow. I got good polish wear using these three together. But lately I've discovered Dazzle Dry (3 step system) and my polish last for a week with minimal tip wear and very high shine finish. So if you could get your hands on it, go try it out.
 
#154
Current Base Coat:
ChiChi Base Coat- Really good as far as keeping polish on my fingers, but I've realised it dries my nails out like crazy! It has never thickened or bubbled on me and it's very cheap. But I'm over peeling nails after using it :sad: Works with all brands.

Current Top Coat:
OPI RapiDry Top Coat- awesome as far as longevity and it is dry to touch literally 30 seconds after application but 2/3 of the way down and it's goopy and useless now, and I'm too lazy to buy polish thinner :shame: Works with all brands (OPI, Essie, Chanel, Dior etc.).

I'm planning to buy both Chanel BC and TC now I'm out of my current ones.
 
#155
I use the combo of Cult Nails Get it On base coat and Wicked Fast top coat. By far the best and most long-lasting base/topcoats I've ever used.

Orly Bonder did nothing for me...I've had chips the next day from it.
Seche Vite is okay but I'd prefer a toluene-free product, and usually it makes my polish peel off in one big piece after a couple days. It also gets goopy so fast :(

I just tried out HK Girl topcoat, and was really really disappointed. It smells terrible and it seemed to have all the problems I've had with Seche Vite, only worse, including shrinkage.
 
#156
ButterLondon........perfection for me and works with any polish. Base and top coat are awesome. My second favorite top coat is Out the Door. Essie Good to Go is pretty good for top also. But BL is my favorit....EVER. Its just so expensive and we all know half way thru the goopy thickness sets in.
 
#157
Maurie97 said:
ButterLondon........perfection for me and works with any polish. Base and top coat are awesome. My second favorite top coat is Out the Door. Essie Good to Go is pretty good for top also. But BL is my favorit....EVER. Its just so expensive and we all know half way thru the goopy thickness sets in.
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Totally agree! Butter London's duo is my favourite as well and Out the Door is second! :tup:
 
#159
mja0375 said:
Cult Nails Wicked Fast..it has changed my nail polish life! haha
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OMG Absolutely THIS.

ALL other quick-dry topcoats I've tried either 1. cause horrid shrinkage or 2. stay soft and dentable for AGES.

I'm currently testing how Wicked Fast wears. If it makes my mani last 4 days or more I'm seriously stocking up on it!
 
#160
I use opi nail envy as a basecoat and seche vite as my topcoat. I've tried different topcoats but always seem to go back to SV. I don't have any problems with peeling and have minimal shrinkage if any. I usually get 5 days out of my manicures w this combo.
 
#161
Like a lot of you, I've been trying different things over the years. I think the best combo I've found so far is Deborah Lippmann's Rehydrating Base Coat and her Hard Rock top coat. I also use her 2-Second Nail Primer every time. I think using the primer is key to my whole manicure lasting about 7 days. I can re-apply Hard Rock every day or every other day and it still dries super fast and super hard. Some top coats kind of build up and then they won't dry completely which ends up ruining my nails mid-week. I've also found that some of them crack all over the top of the nail after 2 or 3 coats. This one doesn't do any of that and it's really shiny. 2 other top coats that I liked before this were Sally Hansen Mega Shine and the OPI start to finish which is the one you can use for a base and/or top coat.
 
#163
I like Essie Good to Go for topcoat - no shrinkage, great wear, great shine. Although it takes about 10-20 minutes on me to really get dry enough to do anything with my hands.
For a base coat, I'm using a random Sally Hansen Hard as Nails strengthener that I found in my house :p. I'm not sure it's intended to be a base coat.. but it works really well and treats my nails well so I'm considering buying another when this one runs out. Also interested in Essie First Base because I've heard good things about that.
Need to check out this Wicked Fast stuff everyone raves about too!


ETA: I also tried Essie's No Chips Ahead and while it is terrible for applying over wet nail polish (takes forever to dry, not very glossy), I do like applying it over already-dry nail polish. I'll use it to freshen up my nail polish after 3-5 days of wear, and it really prevents those little tip chips from happening. If the nail polish underneath is already dry, a thin coat will dry in less than 10 minutes.
 
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