I'm just going to say it: The best topcoat I've used is Butter London Hardwear Topcoat, and I've used a bunch. (I know I said before that the Sally Hansen one was better, but life goes on, minds change. After I used the Butter London more, I realized that this one is shinier and easier to apply, so it has the edge.) The brush is nice and it's super shiny and it dries really quick and doesn't shrink or bubble and it levels and the bottle doesn't get goopy especially fast, etc. It's pretty much flawless. But it is FUCKING EXPENSIVE. $19? Fuck right off. There's no justifying that. I got it magically once in a set that included two Butter London polishes and this topcoat for $15. It was a miracle, never to be repeated. And I have been considering using a $10 Amazon gift card that I have to replace it now that my bottle is empty . . . but seriously, even $9 seems like a lot for topcoat.
I don't think that it is better because it is expensive: I think it's just a fluke. There is probably something just as good out there for less, but I haven't found it. In an attempt to find it, I bought Nubar Diamont Seal & Shine Fast Drying Topcoat, because I read a rave review of it on a popular nail blog. And it's $6 on Amazon. But I'm not blown away.
It dries really fast, which is a must in a topcoat for me. It's shiny. But it bubbles a little. Just small bubbles that probably are only noticeable to me, but they're there, and they bug me. They're unnecessary. The worst part is that even if I wait a few extra minutes before I paint on this topcoat, some of the nail polish transfers from my nail to the brush. I'm not sure why. I have never had that problem with a topcoat before. I don't know if it's the shape of the brush, which seems to flare a little at the bottom, or what. It scrapes off some of the polish, though, usually just from the first nail, and I worry about it getting into the bottle. Maybe I should wait longer before I use it, but waiting kind of defeats the purpose of quick dry topcoat.
Has anyone else had this problem with it? Did I get a bad bottle?
So, meh. I've heard that NYC has a good topcoat for 2 or 3 bucks (not this one), so I'll look for that before I decide if I'm going to cave and get more Butter London. But without a gift card, I would definitely opt for the Sally Hansen topcoat before I would ever spend $19 on clear nail shit. It's a little better, yes, but not enough to be worth its weight in fucking gold.
What's your favorite topcoat? What's the most you'd pay for one?
