My Guide to Clear Top Coats and Shiny Nails

For years I've been dodging the top coat on nails because I'm lazy but actually it's time to admit that they really do make a difference to the longevity, and the appearance of a nail polish.  Let's face it we all want our polish to last for days and shine so much that we can see our reflection in them - right?  

In addition, a good top coat will contain all sorts of ingredients to strengthen nails and protect them from splitting, you only have to check out the Sally Hansen aisle to see that there are a lot to choose from and they all do different things.

Today I've chosen three of my favourites to share, predominantly for shine but I find that they all leave my nails feeling stronger as well.

O.P.I RapiDry

First up is RapiDry, cool name huh?  What's great about this is that not only does it give a lovely shiny top coat to your nails, it's also very quick to dry (hence the name).  It also means you don't have to sit with your fingers outstretched for ages not touching them or doing that flicky thing we do to 'air dry' them!  Anything from O.P.I. is going to be good though, as they are a really good brand and used most places I've been for a manicure?  I would definitely buy this again though I can't remember how much it is I guess it's in line with most of the O.P.I. range.

Avon Gel Shine 

The Avon Gel Shine top coat is part of their Gel Shine range (although this is called Mark now having been re-branded in 2017).  The purpose of the top coat is to give the gel polishes that extra bit of shine and I can say that it really does!  

The gel polishes by themselves seem to be hard wearing, giving a great shine without the top coat but it's worth popping a bit of top coat over it to give them that extra pazzazz and also it helps with the longevity.  They last several days with no chips at all  but there's no problem taking it off with ordinary nail polish remover.  It's very reasonably priced as well and is very often on offer in the brochure and online.  It obviously works beautifully on the Avon Gel Shine polishes but I've used it on others and it does a great job.  So all in all a super product for a very reasonable price of about £7.00.

Revlon ColorStay Gel Envy Diamond Top Coat

I got this as part of my Glossybox subscription last year.  The Revlon ColorStay Gel Envy has got an unusual brush whereby the bristles are quite thin and are arranged so that the liquid covers the edges of your nail then you brush inwards, thus covering the entire nail.  Whilst this polish is designed to go on top of the ColorStay Gel polishes it does work well on other brands too.  

Perricone MD No Make Up Foundation

So, I'm on the plane on Wednesday and the announcement goes out about duty free coming round, would we like anything?   Ooh I think, yes I would.  After a little bit of dithering I decide to get the Perricone MD No Makup Foundation SPF 30.

It was in the brochure as being recommended by Harpers Bazar (good, I think, they don't make mistakes) and is infused with 'Alpha Lipoic Acid' which  ...

"minimises the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles and enlarged pores over time"

Benefits are ...

• Instant sheer coverage with a natural no-make up texture and finish
• Corrects and evens skin tone
• Broad Spectrum SPF 30

Doesn't it sound great?  Read below the photo to find out what I think!

I've worn it a couple of days now.  The first day I wore it with a primer like I always wear foundation.  Mistake.  The No Foundation Foundation is SPF 30 and therefore has a sort of sticky feel to it.  It does not glide on very well if you're primed!

The second day I did not prime first.  Went on much better.

The first day I put too much on.  The second day I did fewer drops.  Went on much better.

The first day I couldn't see the difference between my face and the 'no make up make up'.  I know that  is the point but you still want it to look like something don't you?  It's slightly unnerving at first because it does look very tan colour in the bottle and if you're pale like me you automatically think you're going to end up looking orange, luckily that didn't happen, it takes on the base tone of your natural colour (which is what it said it would do!).

The second day I asked my mother in law (who I am on holiday with) to observe whilst I put it on.  She said she could definitely see the difference but it was a fresh glow.  Later that day I gave it to her to use and when she'd finished you could tell.  It just gives a very healthy, even tone to your skin.  Result.

The truth is that had it not been for the fact that this was reduced in price because it was Duty Free I wouldn't have bought it, I'm not in the habit of spending too much on a foundation that might not even suit me.  But it was a gamble that paid off because I really like it and I'd definitely recommend it.  It will probably also last quite a long time because you really don't need as much as I was putting on at first.

I have since been on the website for more Perricone MD products ...