Review: Revlon Quick Dry Top Coat

Top coat overload

I know, there is a plethora of quick drying top coats out there, it's hard to choose! I've tried a few: Seche Vite, Out the Door, Poshe, OPI RapiDry, China Glaze Fast Forward, Nubar Diamont, you name it. They all have one thing in common: there's something about them I just don't like. Serious shrinkage, lack of shine and luster, toxic, horrible smell, lousy formula etc etc.

The last couple of months I have been using a top coat that isn't getting that much love yet: the Revlon Quick Dry top coat. It claims to set in 60 seconds to a 'hard lustrous finish' and to protect polish from nicks and chips. And what a great find it is!

Formula

One of the best aspects of this top coat is the formula. It's not thick, rather thin actually, but this allows smooth application, without brush strokes or dragging the colour around. There is NO shrinkage like we get with Seche Vite, but it does have Seche Vite's awesome shininess. The drying time is a fraction slower than Seche's, but the polish still dries within a minute to the touch. Not rock hard in 60 seconds as it claims, but it's still fast enough for me. Revlon Quick Dry top coat doesn't get goopy quickly either.
My polish doesn't chip that much as it is usually, and Revlon is doing a pretty good job to keep it that way!

Cruelty Free & non-toxic

Revlon is cruelty free and non-toxic, which is all good in my book! I've received my initial bottle for review purposes, but as I'm on my 3rd bottle as we speak, consider me hooked!

Revlon Quick Dry Top Coat costs 8.95 EUR or appr. 5.75 USD for 14.7ml/0.5 Fl.Oz. Available at your local drugstore (DA Drogist in The Netherlands) or online at www.revlon.com

Review: Lush - Smitten - Almond Icing Hand Cream

Lush Smitten

Hi guys! For today I have a review about Lush's one of their hand creams. The reason why I'm reviewing it today is it's discontinued but still available! I already reviewed and really liked Handy Gurugu, do I like this one just as much? Read on to find out.

Like almond icing

According to Lush, Smitten is a protective, almond scented hand cream. It's a lighter hand cream with the same fragrance as the famous Snowcake soap. "Smitten is made with natural oils, calming chamomile and beeswax to protect the hands from extreme weather or nourish them when they need it most. Use it regularly for nice soft mitts. Chamomile is anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, bactericidal and sedative. Aromatherapists have used it to treat bruises, allergies, stress and depression. It is helpful for sensitive skins."

Kind to mitts?

Smitten has a very creamy texture and is definitely moisturizing. I do feel like the effect is quickly evaporated, but I still like it. The smell is famous, and while it does reminds me of almonds, I immediately thought: Play Doh! I thought I was crazy for thinking it smelled liked Play Doh, but a quick Google search showed me I'm not alone! So, Play Doh.. I think it's quite a funny smell, and it makes me a bit nostalgic, at times I love it, at times I hate it. The scent does wear off after an hour or so.

What's in it?

The ingredients look rather nice, Chamomile, Almond and other nice oils. I love the fact Lush is cruelty free, if you're vegan you can't use Smitten though, as it contains lanoline and beeswax. The one thing I don't get is why a company like Lush still uses parabens, but okay.
Overall, I quite like this product, even though I haven't decided on the smell yet. It's a good cream to take with you on the road, since it's quite light and quickly absorbed. For a more thorough moisturizing effect I'd recommend Handy Gurugu over this though! If you want to get this cream, get it fast as it's discontinued!

Ingredients

Chamomile Matricaria Infusion (Chamomilla recutita), Almond Oil (Prunus dulcis), Marigold Infusion (Calendula officinalis), Cold Pressed Flaxseed Oil (Linum usitatissimum), Glycerine, Stearic Acid, Cocoa Butter (Theobroma cacao), Cetearyl Alcohol, Cold Pressed Wheatgerm Oil (Triticum vulgare), Cold Pressed Avocado Oil (Persea gratissima), Coconut Butter (Cocos nucifera), Lanolin, Beeswax (Cera alba), Benzoin Resinoid (Styrax benzoin), Rose Absolute (Rosa centifolia), Cassie Absolute (Acacia farnesiana), Perfume, Triethanolamine, Methylparaben, Propylparaben.

Lush Smitten costs € 11,75 / 100g, or $17.95 / 3.5oz. Visit www.lush.com for more information.

Review: Essence Studio Nails - Nail Fashion Stickers

Essence Nail Stickers

Hi guys! With the change of seasons Essence likes to update their collection with tons of new colors and cool products. This September they added Essence Nail Fashion Stickers to their selection and I was really curious about them. I've tried the Incoco appliques before, and those really knew how to impress me. However, these Essence stickers are much less spenny! There are 14 different designs available and I picked up 3 of them: So hot!, Drama Queen! and Hollywood! (they sure shout a lot over at Essence).

Application

Before applying these you need to clean your nails first. I removed my polish and thoroughly cleaned them with alcohol. After that you select the correct size for each nail and place them on your nails. Some rubbing should remove or reduce wrinkles. Gentle file off the excess of the sticker and you're good to go! As you can see these are nothing like the appliques by Incoco, as they are made from actual polish. Essence Nail Fashion stickers should last up to 5 days. If you'd like you can seal them with a top coat.

Let's not sugarcoat this, these aren't exactly right for my nails. The sizes were pretty okay, but they were still a little bit too small and I don't have the broadest nails in the world to start with. I tried applying these as neat as I could but my nails are just too curvy, so I ended up with wrinkles everywhere.

Wear

So, these should last five days? Nuh uh. I applied top coat on one hand to see if it would make a difference but after an ordinary shower, the stickers decided to curl up around the edges, on both hands! It looked like a big mess so they didn't even make it through the day.

Overall

Considering the price (1.99 eur) these are not that bad. They're not fantastic either. I do love the designs, I think they're fun and the finish does remind me a bit of Minx Nails. I bet someone with flat, small nails would rock the hell out of these. It would have been great if there were more sizes to choose from! The wear isn't like they promised at all, but these would make a nice manicure for a party.

I'm not sure where these stickers are being sold, but you can buy Essence products at Kruidvat (NL), Rossman, Muller, DM Drogist (DL), Ulta (USA) and Shoppers (Canada). For more info check www.essence.eu

Review: Fast Forward with China Glaze

China Glaze's Quick Drying Top coat - Fast Forward

The perfect quick drying top coat. I haven't found it yet. I've tried some, but I didn't really like the finish of OPI RapiDry, the cracking "David" caused, the shrinkage I got with Seche Vite and Nubar Diamont is clearly having an identity crisis because it isn't behaving as it should be. So, I decided it was time for some fresh meat!

The good.. and the bad?

I realize I'm a bit overly critical and picky when it comes to a top coat, that's probably why I haven't found my perfect match yet (Gee, this reminds me of why I'm still single). Anyway..! I want my top coat to be quick drying, manageable, glossy, smooth as glass and chip resistant. Fast Forward actually scores quite good in these departments. It dries fairly quick (not as fast as Seche but still FAST). It does an awesome job at leveling, I'd really recommend using this over gritty glitters and stuff like that. The finish is the thing I love the most, it's glassy, stays that way too and it just feels very smooth. I haven't experienced unusual cases of chipping, cracking etc. But, is it all that and a bag of crips?

Application

Application is super easy. It isn't thick or thin, it's easy to handle and almost applies itself. I'm not even halfway the bottle though so I don't know if Fast Forward tends to thicken up after a while. Also, it doesn't get streaky or bubbly, sounds good right?
There is one thing though and that's the smell. I don't mind strong smells but if you do, this is not your guy! The very strong smell of Fast Forward reminds me of peppermint candy with acetone icing. While Fast Forward is b3f, it still smells like a chemical explosion.
Unfortunately I have experienced some shrinkage too. Yup, it's there. Not always, it depends on the polish you're painting over, but yes, it can happen.

Overall

I'm really happy with this top coat and if it wouldn't cause shrinkage, I'd be in love. It's glassy, sexy smooth and stays put rather well. I'm pretty sure the smell will be a problem for some, but if you can handle it and you're still looking for a decent top coat you might want to give Fast Forward a shot!

You can get this top coat at eBay, TransDesign, Head2toebeauty and other etailers. Prices may vary - starting $3.

How to: get velvety hands

Hi guys! Due to all kinds of crazy busy-ness, just a quick little tip for today: how to get smooth and velvety hands. Ages ago I got an excellent tip from Kirsten from TheDuchNailBlog: scrub your hands with sugar or salt with vinegar oil. By doing this you get rid of dead skin cells thus making your hands a whole lot smoother. If oil dries you out, finish with a rich handcream and you won't stop touching your own hands, I promise!

Clumsy?

If you're clumsy, like me, you'll be happy to know there are several pre made hand scrubs available. I tried the P2 - Ultra Clean Hand Peeling and let's see how I like it!

First thing I noticed was the smell, it's quite fresh but strong, reminding me of pomelos or grapefruits. You're supposed to use this several times a week, by taking a little, massage your hands with it and wash it off. The texture is really grainy, which makes sense, because it has a lot of sugar in it. I like how the sugar leaves me with smooth hands, but I hate how it gets under my nails. It's easily washed of and you won't end up with oily hands. I don't find this scrub to be very moisturizing on its own so I like to use a handcream afterwards, and with this routine I get the softest hands ever.

Ingredients

Sucrose, Helianthus annuus [sunflower] Seed Oil, Caprylic / Capric Triglyceride, Isopropyl Myristate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glyceryl Stearate Se, Silica, Sodium Lauryl Sarcosinate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Fragrance, Water, Propanediol, Eclipta prostrata Extract, Propylene Glycol, Hibiscus sabdariffa Flower Extract, Lactic Acid, Phenoxyethanol, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Ethylparaben, Butylparaben, Isobutylparaben, CI 26100, CI 47000th

Conclusion

I really like this scrub, it does a good job at exfoliating, I like the smell and how my hands feel afterwards. This product costs only 2.45 eur for 100 ml, but it's not easy to get (DM in Germany). Good news is, like I mentioned before, it's very easy to make your own scrub!

Review: Orly Bonder

A while ago I asked everyone to let me know their base coat recommendations. Nailtek Foundation II and Orly Bonder were the ones that stood out from the crowd. I had the chance to order Bonder so I went at it. I've been using it for some months now so I figured a little review wouldn't hurt!

According to Orly:

"This exclusive rubberized bond grips polish to the nail surface for adhesion that lasts. Prevents nail color from peeling, chipping or wearing off for up to two weeks."

let's see about that!

Extending wear, good application, creating a smooth canvas, protecting my nails from peeling and staining, are all things I find really important when it comes to a base coat. And I have to say...

...Orly Bonder scores very well if you takes these criteria into consideration.
Orly claims that manicures will last up to 2 weeks, which I find a bit daring to say. This all depends on your body chemistry, nail polish and top coat you will use, and don't forget about your daily activities. I noticed I can wear manicures around 4 or 5 days when I use Bonder, which is quite impressive, to me. But nowhere 2 weeks! It also applies easy peasy, and it dries pretty fast, allowing me to apply my first layer of nail polish almost immediately.

Is it all that?

Bonder leaves a rubber-y layer on your nail, I guess this helps a lot when it comes to chipping, since it adheres very well. I've heard some people experienced peeling and splitting nails, but I haven't, and I've been using it for a few months now.
But, yes there comes the but, preventing stained nails is a huge factor to determine wether I really like a base coat or not. Well, Bonder isn't that good at this. I've noticed that my nails stain horribly when I use nail polish with a lot of red in it, somehow Bonder isn't capable of fighting these devilish red pigments off.

Conclusion

I grew quite fond of my Orly Bonder. I love the way it applies, the rubber cap, the brush, the way it prevents chipping.. But that staining has got to go! So for now, this is definitely one of my favorites, but I'm still on the lookout for that one base coat that will steal my heart forever. I might give Nailtek Foundation II a spin after finishing this one. How do you feel about this base coat?

Orly Bonder costs 7 USD for 18ml (prices may vary depending on where you buy). You can get Orly Bonder from Boozyshop (starting tomorrow) or find a store near you using the Orly Store locator.

Review: Gosh - Fix Base Coat, just as good as Nfu Oh Aqua Base?

Hi guys, maybe you remember my review on Nfu Oh's Aqua Base? Nfu Oh Aqua base is a base coat especially designed to go under hard to apply holographic polishes. I'm really happy with this base coat because it works absolute wonders. When it comes to applying, but also extending the wear majorly.

Some weeks ago I got an email from Marte, she told me about the Gosh Fix Base Coat and how it should have a similar effect! Ironically I've had this base coat for ages, months before I even ordered the Nfu Oh Aqua Base, but I never tried it beneath holographic polishes.

Nfu Oh vs. Gosh

Marte was right, these two base coats are really similar, the have the same structure and almost an identical smell, but do they both work...?

My answer is yes! I tried it with Nfu Oh holos and the notoriously hard to apply Gosh Holographic nail polish and they went on sooo easily. You'll get better coverage, which allows you to use less product for the same end result. Both these both coats work really nicely with matte and suede polishes as well.

Conclusion

So, if it's hard to get your hands on Nfu Oh, or you don't like to order online and have access to this brand, definitely give the Gosh Fix Base Coat a shot! Thank you so much, Marte, for the great tip!

Relatively the price is quite a bit higher than the Aqua Base (9.10 EUR for 18 ml) though. Gosh Fix Base Coat costs 6.95 EUR for a bottle of 7 ml.

Thank you all for stopping by and have an awesome day!
- Michèle

Review: Entity Cuticle Oil

Cuticle oil

Even though I'm happily married to Mister L. Flutter, I like to try out other products as well. NailXL was extremely kind to offer me this cuticle oil by Entity, so I went ahead and tested it for a couple of weeks, all on its own.

For me, one of the biggest disadvantages of using cuticle oils, is the mess they can create. Since this oil comes with a pipette, it's real easy to use! The oil also absorbs fairly quick, another major plus. The scent is quite pleasant, even though I think it smells like a mixture of acrylic powder, avocado and apricots. I think it reminds me a little bit of beauty parlors, which is a good thing!

Unlike the last cuticle oil I tried, this one isn't filled with crappy, cheap, mineral oil. The ingredients are actually pretty decent, score!

Ingredients

Carthamus Tinctorius (Safflower) Seed Oil, Persea Gratissima (Avocado) Oil, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Oil, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Chamomilla Recutita (Matricaria) Flower Extract, Cannabis Sativa Seed Oil, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Prunus Armeniaca (Apricot) Kernel Oil, Fragrance (Parfum), Linalool, Citral, Citronellol, Limonene, Violet 2 (CI 60725), Red 17 (CI 26100), Green 6 (CI 61565). Miscellaneous: T ocopherol, Propylparaben

Oil or balms

I've used this everyday and maybe it's just me, but I think oils just aren't right for my hands. It wasn't bad at all, but creams and balms seem to moisturize my cuticles better. Somehow, my cuticles always end up a bit dryer than I'd like after using cuticle oil for a while.
But, if you're someone that prefers oils over anything, I'd totally recommend snatching this one up, because it was one of the better cuticle oils I've tried so far!

You can order Entity Cuticle oil for 8.50 EUR (15ml) at NailXL. NailXL also carries an impressive range of Nfu Oh, CND, Konad and other products, so make sure to take a peek!

The product in this post was provided to me by NailXL for consideration - for more information please read my disclaimer

Review: Essence Nail Art Pens

Essence & Nail Art

Essence is really getting into nail art recently. They now have an entire line of glitters, decals, special nail art base & top coats and also these six Nail Art pens! Nail art can take up a lot of time, especially if you're into freehand stuff. Will these pens make your nail art life easier?

Essence came up with these pens in six different colors, the packaging actually reminds me a lot of markers. They're fairly easy to use. Give them a good shake, press on the tip until the polish comes out and you're all set. I played around with these and they're pretty neat when it comes to drawing, thanks to the pointy tip.

Swatches

I swatched the colors over black and white, to show you how they're holding up against a bold background.

• Cool Black is really awesome, it's very opaque and applies pretty nicely, allowing to make neat tight lines (which I obviously didn't - damn caffeine!).
• Silver Star is another winner, very opaque, easy to handle.
• Then we have Silver White, in the picture it looks nearly the same as Silver Star but it's not, I was expecting this to be a solid white, but I got a pearly sheer white instead, not a fan of this one.
• Next in line is Deep Purple, I love this color but it has an extremely watery texture, so it's almost if you're making a water-colour painting with this one.
• Same goes for Juicy Orange, sheer, watery, I don't like it.
• Last but not least we have Spacy Pink. Spacy pink looks a LOT lighter than its deceiving packaging, but because it's a very well pigmented color, I liked it nonetheless.

Conclusion

Overall I'd say these are nice, but not perfect. I would recommend getting Cool Black, Silver Star and Spacy Pink and that's about it. And luckily those make up for a great color combination! You can also use top coat on these without smudging your lines, I was pleasantly surprised!

I got these at Dutch drugstore Kruidvat and they were €1,99 each.

Review: Burt's Bees Tin Trio

Hi everyone! Sadly, the weekend is already over, so let's kickstart this week with a fresh review. I picked up this cute trio a while ago, I had heard so much good things about Burt's Bees.. I just had to. The package contains 3 small tins, each good for 8.5g or 0.3oz. I love how Burt's Bees products are 100% natural and cruelty free. They're not vegan though, as they contain bees wax.

Burt's Bees - Beeswax Lip Balm When I have dry or chapped lips I always reach for a lip balm. Before using the Burt's Bees lip balm I was using brands like Blistex and Purol. The thing that bothered me most about these, was the fact I had to reapply throughout the entire day. Not with this bad boy. It really lasts long, leaving me with soft lips! It isn't greasy and I love the tingling sensation. It smell like mint, which I adore, but if you're not into mint you'd best stay away from it. I also have this in tube form, and I must admit I like that one better, because it applies easier.

Burt's Bees - Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream I've mentioned this product before, and I think it's really good. It's more a balm then a cream though. It's my second favorite cuticle moisturizer after Lemony Flutter, and that means something. I love that it goes on quite transparent, but you do have to rub hard to get some product out. The effort definitely pays off since it does a mighty fine job at moisturizing. The smell is lovely too, it's best described as the smell of Napoleon candy or lemon cake, yum!

Burt's Bees - Hand Salve Well, this is a tough one. What I don't like about this product is that is a real solid salve, so again, you've got some work to do if you want to get some out of the tin. It melts down to an oily substance, therefore it's really greasy. Icky-greasy. It's best to walk around like a zombie because you do not want to touch things with your sticky fingers after you've used this salve. So yeah, that kinda sucks. But, it does work. And pretty good actually. My hands were really soft after it finally absorbed. I think this is best to be used at nighttime, especially in winter. It has a strong smell that reminds me a bit of herbal, medicinal stuff with a touch of eucalyptus, which I happen to like a lot.

Depending on where you're from you can order this trio at Boozyshop for €12.95 or at Sephora for €14.95

Review: Zoya Remove +

Zoya Remove Plus Nail Polish Remover

"Zoya Remove Plus is an award wining, gentle, yet highly effective 3-in-1 nail polish remover, nail prep and nail conditioner. Longer nail polish wear starts with Remove Plus.
Polish remover is just the beginning of what this wonder 3-in-1 formula achieves. Clean and prep nails while moisturizing, nourishing and fortifying the nail plate for guaranteed extended polish wear. Nails are left without a trace of nail lacquer, without streaking or staining, hydrated and ready for a base coat."

Zoya Remove +

I received a mini bottle of Zoya's nail polish remover "Remove +" as a gift with an order and holy crap, I think I love it. There's not much in the bottle, only 2oz or 60ml but it was enough to suck me in.
I'm surprised that a formula with litte acetone in it does the job so well. It removes polish super fast, without a weird residue.

The thing I like about it the most is the fact that I can use this and my cuticles stay intact. They don't turn white, wrinkly or dry. No, they stay exactly the same. Normally, I can't swatch 12 polishes in one go because my fingers WILL start to decompose. Not with this. I'm being super thrifty with it, because I don't want to run out already!
It also takes pretty good care of glitter. I Remove + on OPI's malicious Absolutely Alice and it didn't take me hours.

Have all that and smell nice too!

If it works this good, it probably smells like chemical waste right? No, not at all! It's pleasantly fragranced, it smells like lavender, but not too strong.
Zoya Remove + comes in different sizes, besides the small one I got ($5.99 for 60ml) they also have the handy Big Flipper bottle ($9.99 for 240ml), that one has one of those nifty dispensers. They also have a big refill ($25 for 960ml).

What's not to like?

For me there are only two disadvantages, the availability and the price. Zoya isn't available in stores around here, so I'd have to order online, and I go through a LOT of remover. It isn't really cheap either compared to other removers I've been using. But if I could get my hands on this high quality product easily, I'd just suck it up and get it all the time. If you swatch a lot, I'd say it's absolutely worth it.

Ingredients

2-Propanone (Acetone), Water (Aqua), Glycerine, Fragrance, D and C Violet #2

Visit the Zoya Website

Review: Nfu Oh Flower Oil

Ingredients

Nfu Oh Cuticle Flower Oil packed with nourishing botanicals and aroma essential herb oil. Real flower provide the great fragrance to your nails and cuticles. Nfu Oh Flower Oil filled enriched with Vitamin E and aroma esssential oils. It has mositurizer for penetrate deeply and quickly, softening into skin for healthy, growing natural nails.

Mineral oil, Aroma Essential Oil, and Dried Flowers.

Eye candy

For today I have a review on Nfu Oh's cuticle oils, named Flower Oil. Let me start off by saying these are hands down the prettiest cuticles oils I've come across so far. The oil is contained by the 'regular' Nfu Oh bottle we all know and love. The cap is shaped like a corset, and the bottle is a draped skirt with scroll and floral details, just as you'll find on the cap. On the bottom of each bottle you'll find dried flowers floating about which makes it incredibly cool to look at. So, when I placed a Nfu Oh order a while ago I just had to try these out. I got the Banana scented one and my mom chose the one that smell like Jasmine.

Is it all that?

I'm afraid the praise has to end here. While the smell is nice, this product isn't really doing anything for me. And my mom isn't a big fan either. It just doesn't feel like it's moisturizing at all. After some research online (the label doesn't list any ingredients), I found out what I already suspected: the main ingredient is mineral oil. Now the opinions are divided on this, but mineral oil (basically just baby oil) to me is pointless as it cannot penetrate the nails or skin. It can work as a sealant, so maybe it could do any good if you apply this after you rubbed in some Lemony Flutter.

Final judgement

I don't really understand why a brand with such great packaging and normally high quality products, would want to sell cheap ass oil that doesn't do jack. It isn't cheap either, depending on where you buy it you'll have to pay 8.55 EUR or 12.50 USD for 17ml.

Available Scents:

Vanilla Banana

Sun Flower Mango

Orange Rose

Strawberry Plumeria

Bubble Gum Lavender

Peppermint Jasmine

Review: Hema Matte Top Coat

Hi guys! Today's post will most likely only interest you if you're from The Netherlands or Belgium.. A while ago the Dutch store called Hema released a matte top coat. I know a lot of people prefer buying from brick and mortar stores, so I can imagine a lot of people were very delighted with the arrival of this top coat! I did a comparison of matte top coats a while ago, but today I will discuss this particular one.

How about it?

What's really making me happy, is the price. This top coat costs only €2.50 for 11ml. The price is comparable to the P2 Matte Top Coat. But I think it's so much better! Where the P2 top coat leaves a satin finish, the Hema top coat does a great job at mattifying. It still isn't as matte as China Glaze's Matte Magic or Essie's Matte About You, but it's definitely more matte than satin. And not totally unimportant: the application is superb, it's easily applied since it's not thick or streaky. I even prefer it over Matte Magic, since that one thickened up so fast. It will start to wear down around the edges after a day or 2/3, but for this price, I'm not complaining!

The transformation from gloss to matte isn't as fast as I'm used to, but it's doing a great job nonetheless. In the picture below you can see the effect the Hema Matte Top Coat has on several types of finishes. Not bad huh?

Hema cosmetics are also cruelty free, big plus. I don't even know if Essie's Matte About You still is, since Essie is owned by L'Oreal these days..
This top coat will be in stores till the 4th of October this year, so if you're planning on picking one up, please make sure you do this before this date!

Have you tried this top coat? What are your thoughts?

Review: Sally Hansen Nail Quencher Hydrating Base Coat

Hi everyone! I'm sorry for another review, I'll be posting nail polish again very soon! But I'm in dire need of some advice so I'll start off with this review about Sally Hansen's Nail Quencher Hydrating Base Coat.
Please note: this product is discontinued so maybe this review isn't relevant for everyone, however I found some places where it's still easily available, so I figured, why not?

Sally Hansen Nail Quencher

I actually got this product because I had heard many many ravings about it, it's a holy grail base coat for a lot of nail polish junkies out there! In the first weeks of using it, I thought it was pretty ok: my nail polish didn't chip right away, and it prevented staining rather well.

But after a few weeks it became painfully clear: I don't like it. At all. And I think it's safe to say that, because I finished an entire bottle!

It goes on pretty thick due to its gel-like substance, I figured this is why my nails weren't as stained. But it bubbles, like crazy. And honestly, I don't want a base coat that leaves my nails looking like a moonscape.
The emptier the bottle, the thicker the base coat got. It even got stringy on me, and therefore highly unmanageable.

The drying time wasn't great either, I actually had to wait a good 5 minutes before I could get on with the rest of my manicure. Another disappointment was the brush, it's small. I don't want to spend too much time on applying something exciting as a base coat, so I need at least a medium sized brush and something that dries quickly.
So overall, it's safe to say, this base coat is not working out for me.

Please help me!

And that brings me to the following question:
What base coat do you use or would you recommend? So far I've tried OPI Natural Base Coat, OPI Ridge Filler and the Sally Hansen. Please help me out!

Thanks so much for stopping by! -
Michèle

Follow up

Hi everyone, I did a quick follow up because you were all so incredibly helpful!! Thank you all so much for sharing your experiences with me. After reading all your comments I think I'm going to give either Nail Tek or Essie's Protein Base Coat a try. Of course I'll review these at some point for those who haven't tried these. Wish me luck and thanks again!

Your recommendations

Review: Lush Handy Gurugu

Hi guys! Maybe it's just me, but when I'm in love with a product, things often go wrong.. My favorite hair mask: discontinued. My favorite veggie salad: not so veggie anymore. My favorite hand cream: they changed the formula. Can you believe this? I'm not kidding! But in a way I'm glad, because in the search of the next perfect hand cream I found a match. In fact, I love it even more than the previous cream I've been using.

Lush Handy Gurugu

First of all, Gurug..what?! Hell, I don't even know what it means but I do know Lush's Handy Gurugu is something special. Lush did this lovely writeup on their website:

You'd think because this hand lotion has such a light and fluffy consistency it would be lightly moisturizing, but Handy Gurugu is a rich cream that sinks in quickly and really goes to work on dry, sore hands. We mix in a multitude of butters including fresh Shea butter, purchased fairly from women who whip it up by hand in a village in Ghana (they're really strong - trust us we went and tried to whip it up ourselves and let's just say our arms were quiet puny compared to theirs)

And, as far as I'm concerned, they're not lying! Handy Gurugu is fabulously fluffy and light yet really moisturizing. It's quickly absorbed and doesn't leave my hands greasy (as with Smitten, which would be great for extremely dry winterhands), which is a major plus. I love the smell too. The scent is very strong though, I think you'll either hate or love it, it's definitely not for everyone. It reminds me of a giant herbal explosion; it smells extremely earthly. The smell lingers for a long time too, I can smell it almost throughout the entire day. If this makes you feel a bit reluctant, I'd suggest a little batting of the eyelids and ask for a sample to try it out!

For some people the packaging could be a downside, because it's in a tub you'll have to stick your fingers in it. If you don't want cream under your nails, use your knuckle to get the product out of the tub, I do this with day creams as well!

I love how Lush uses only cruelty free and fair trade ingredients. This is most likely bustin the price as well, but I don't mind paying a bit more for a good cause. The price of Lush products vary a lot depending on the country you live in, here in The Netherlands a jar of Handy Gurugu retails for €12,95 for 100gr (or $16 for 3.4oz)

So in conclusion, I found a new love in Handy Gurugu, if you ever happen to stumble upon a Lush, I'd say at least ask for a sample!

Ingredients

Rose Water (Rosa centifolia), Fair Trade Organic Shea Butter (Butyrospermum parkii), Glycerine, Stearic Acid, Organic Almond Oil (Prunus dulcis), Triethanolamine, Fresh Lemon Juice (Citrus limonum), Vanilla Absolute (Vanilla planifolia), Rose Absolute (Rosa centifolia), Chamomile Blue Oil (Matricaria chamomilla), Organic Evening Primrose Oil (Oenothera biennis), Organic Peanut Butter (Arachis hypogaea), Organic Pumpkinseed Butter (Cucurbita), Organic Cashew Nut Butter (Anacardium), Organic Almond Butter (Prunus dulcis), Tincture of Benzoin (Styrax benzoin), Cetearyl Alcohol, *Benzyl Salicylate, *Coumarin, *Geraniol, *Benzyl Benzoate, *Farnesol, *Limonene, *Linalool, Perfume, Chlorophyllin, Methylparaben, Propylparaben.