Which is the best base coat and top coat?

I'm sure this has been discussed many time before, but I'll still ask again.,

I'm new to nail polish and was wondering which brand(s) of base coat and top coat dry fast and make the polish last longest?

What do you think of the new Sephora X combo kit with cleaner, base and top coat, plus you pick one nail polish..its only $26 with my 20% coupon, that seems like a good deal.

No suggestions?

I love' Seche Vite base coat' or ' Sally Hansen double Duty strengthening base and Top Coat.' For polish I love O.P.I, Essie, Illamasqua and Revlon brands. For topcoat 'Sally Hansen Insta Dry Top Coat.' To maintain the polish throughout the week I apply Naitique Formula 2. Hope this is helpful in your nail journey!

I'm kind of obsessed with Butter London's Nail Foundation (it smooths out my ridges better than anything and I think it keeps things from chipping longer than others I've tried, plus I just think it looks kind of pretty) and my fave topcoat is Wicked Fast by Cult Nails. I have a pretty big collection of top coats and that one has the best thickness/dry time combo for me.

I second the Butter of London Foundation. It's the best base coat I've ever used.

Thirding the Butter London basecoat. I keep coming back to it, no matter what else I try to use.

Quote: Originally Posted by AgathaLaupin /img/forum/go_quote.gif
  I'm kind of obsessed with Butter London's Nail Foundation (it smooths out my ridges better than anything and I think it keeps things from chipping longer than others I've tried, plus I just think it looks kind of pretty) and my fave topcoat is Wicked Fast by Cult Nails. I have a pretty big collection of top coats and that one has the best thickness/dry time combo for me.


Quote: Originally Posted by Reija /img/forum/go_quote.gif
  I second the Butter of London Foundation. It's the best base coat I've ever used.


Quote: Originally Posted by DragonChick /img/forum/go_quote.gif
  Thirding the Butter London basecoat. I keep coming back to it, no matter what else I try to use.
Thanks for this info.  I've been eyeing it up at Ulta, I might have to pick it up next time I make a purchase.  Do you have any experience with the BL top coat?  

Quote: Originally Posted by luckyme502 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 



Thanks for this info.  I've been eyeing it up at Ulta, I might have to pick it up next time I make a purchase.  Do you have any experience with the BL top coat?  
Yeah, it's kind of on the thin side for me. It's not bad, just not my favorite. It does dry quickly.

If you're interested in trying both, I suggest grabbing the "On Stage" kit. It's the foundation, top coat, their polish remover, a file, and a nail color for $44 bucks. It's really a nice deal since the base/top would be almost $40 on their own. I got On Stage through Nordstrom's a while back while they were having a GWP so I ended up with a free lacquer on top of all that.

Quote: Originally Posted by Milah /img/forum/go_quote.gif

I love' Seche Vite base coat' or ' Sally Hansen double Duty strengthening base and Top Coat.' For polish I love O.P.I, Essie, Illamasqua and Revlon brands. For topcoat 'Sally Hansen Insta Dry Top Coat.' To maintain the polish throughout the week I apply Naitique Formula 2. Hope this is helpful in your nail journey!
Yeah, I saw the reviews for the Seche Vite quick dry base coat were good, I'll probably start with that since its only about $6. Opi natural base coat, that also had good reviews, I suspect Butter London is more expensive, but I'll check, maybe I can find a deal..

Has no one tried the Sephora Formula X?

amazon has the butter london foundation basecoat and PDQ top coat set for $29,  is that a good set?

I have not tried the Sephora X brand.  I haven't tried any of the ones mentioned here yet either.  I change my polish almost every day or every other day so longevity isn't an issue for me.  I love Seche Vite for it's quickness and I am on my 3rd bottle since May.   I just got a cheap alternative which is NYC Grand Central Station quick try top coat (it's 1.97 at Walmart).  For base coat I use Essie All In One Base or Beam Up.  I don't use base coats often but when I do I like those.  I know some products work differently on each person.  I go for speed.  

Quote: Originally Posted by AgathaLaupin /img/forum/go_quote.gif
  Yeah, it's kind of on the thin side for me. It's not bad, just not my favorite. It does dry quickly.

If you're interested in trying both, I suggest grabbing the "On Stage" kit. It's the foundation, top coat, their polish remover, a file, and a nail color for $44 bucks. It's really a nice deal since the base/top would be almost $40 on their own. I got On Stage through Nordstrom's a while back while they were having a GWP so I ended up with a free lacquer on top of all that.
 I found the kit, its now only $29 at nordstrom, you get a lot more with this kit than on amazon, no wait, you do not get a nail polish with it, just the top and base coats, file and remover, that's why the price decreased

Quote: Originally Posted by suenotto /img/forum/go_quote.gif
   I found the kit, its now only $29 at nordstrom, you get a lot more with this kit than on amazon, no wait, you do not get a nail polish with it, just the top and base coats, file and remover, that's why the price decreased
Oh yeah, I forgot about that. I think it was like that on Macy's website too. I think they just don't have the site built to where you can select the polish you want to go with it so they do it that way. If you get it on butter's website you do select the polish to go with it for $44 and I think it was like that on b-glowing too (you left the polish you want in the comments). Can you tell I was stalking the internets looking for the best deal when I was in the market for On Stage? LOL

I picked up OPI natural base coat and Seche Vite quick dry top coat but even when I use both and 2 coats of polish my right hand starts to chip after a day or so..It doesn't seem to matter what brand polish I use (I've tried several). I drag the top coat over the front edge of the nail in hopes that will give some chip protection, but it doesnt seem to do anything. Any ideas?

Butter London's PDQ topcoat is a good one and I'll use it if I'm being lazy - it does dry quickly, and is on the thin side, but I've settled on Glisten & Glow's HK Girl Fast drying topcoat as my fast dry of choice. I've been using it for a couple of months now and have seen none to minimal shrinkage after a few days of wear with it. I know Llarowe sells it, or just google it for their site. As to my non-fast drying topcoat of choice, it's now Glossy Glam by Rica. I'm still rocking BL's Nail Foundation as my go-to base coat, or should I say, that's the one that works the best for me and the one I keep reaching for.

I like the seche topcoat--it's amazing how quickly your nails dry. I've heard that the sally hansen one is just as good, though, if not better--so I might pick that up when I run out of seche! (I'm already most of the way through the bottle in about a year--which is super super fast for me :x

I love Nail Tek Foundation 2 ridge filling base coat.  My nails are prone to peeling and this stuff has helped a lot, it also smooths my nail surface really well.  For top coat I really like the Sally Hansen Insta Dry in the red bottle.  It dries just as fast as Seche Vite and I don't get nearly as much shrinkage as with Seche.  It also doesn't seem to get thick and goopy as quickly as Seche does.  With this base/top coat combo I've been getting about 5 days wear out of my manis, which is really good for me.  I used to get 2-3 days before I had major chips.

Quote: Originally Posted by Bikerchic /img/forum/go_quote.gif
  I love Nail Tek Foundation 2 ridge filling base coat.  My nails are prone to peeling and this stuff has helped a lot, it also smooths my nail surface really well.  For top coat I really like the Sally Hansen Insta Dry in the red bottle.  It dries just as fast as Seche Vite and I don't get nearly as much shrinkage as with Seche.  It also doesn't seem to get thick and goopy as quickly as Seche does.  With this base/top coat combo I've been getting about 5 days wear out of my manis, which is really good for me.  I used to get 2-3 days before I had major chips.
I've been using the red SH as well for top coat. I used SV for a while, and I just couldn't get past the shrinkage and gloopiness. For base coat, I've been wearing a SH that's blue in color. Eh, it's okay. It's cheap, and seems to work. I really like the ACI Growth Spurt base coat from Sally Beauty. That stuff wore like armor for me, and I feel like I got less chips.

I have the sephora formula x infinite ombre kit. I guess they are cool and unique polishes, but I prefer opi and sally hansens. I sometimes love china glaze but sometimes they are hard to apply. Also check out my youtube for nail tutorials and swatches! (link removed)