Review: Basecoats for Holos

Hey-hey!

Today I inadvertently ended up crafting a post... (I never plan these things.  Whaddaya think I am, a pro?  ;-)  I'm on vacation, so I've been fussing around all day with a myriad of projects I've had circling around in my head, just waiting for some time to do them.  

Trying it out basecoats for Layla Hologram Effect Nail Polish in 08 Flash Black was not one of them.  Anyhoo... I ended up doing just that.  

Wanna see who won?  ^_^


For the record... I have several holos from different manufacturers (Butter London, Color Club, KleanColor, Layla, O.P.I., etc) and I have never had any problems with them.  I slap on some Essie All In One or Orly Bonder and topcoat with Seche Vite.  They look gorgeous and I move on with my life.  

My process... I applied one coat of basecoat and waited for it to dry thoroughly.  Then I applied one coat of Flash Black, waited for that to dry (it was superfast, by the way), put on a second coat, waited for that to dry and ending with one coat of Seche Vite.  

The Line Up:

(From Left to Right) 

Pinkie : Essie Fill The Gap! (mini bottle)

Ring : Layla Hologram Effect Nail Polish in 08 Flash Black (2 coats, no basecoat, no topcoat)

Middle : Kawaii Lacquer Let It Shine (1 coat, no basecoat, no topcoat- just for fun)

Index : Barielle Natural Nail Camouflage 

Thumb : Zoya Get Even Ridge Filling Basecoat

(a.k.a. The three nude-colored basecoats I happen to own.)

My process... I applied one coat of basecoat and waited for it to dry thoroughly.  Then I applied one coat of Layla, waited for that to dry (it was superfast, by the way) before putting on a second coat. I waited for those to dry before I topping it off with one coat of Seche Vite.  


(ALL-CAPS) THE FAIL :  Essie : No, this was every nightmare about holo application you've ever read/heard about.  It streaks and repeated brushstrokes just remove the polish instead of evening it out.  It got better with a second coat of the Layla, but not by much.  I didn't even bother to put topcoat on this one. 


(normal) Fail : Zoya : The application was spotty and streaky, but not as bad as the Essie  was. What I dislike the most is that I can easily see all this patchiness thru two coats of polish, and topcoat.  So really-- why bother?

Note how the holo effect is scattered... 

(normal) Winner : Barielle : Clear winner here.  This basecoat dried very flat and matte, almost rough and I think that's why 'Layla liked it best' (so to speak).  The first coat was a little patchy, but not too bad and the second coat covered just fine.  When I first applied the topcoat I noticed it did dull the holo effect.  But once the Seche dried, the holo was full-on again.  Granted, if I hold my nail up against the sun and try and look "thru" my nail (so to speak) I can see patchiness.  But you have to look for it and know what to look for.  There's no way anyone else will see this.  Another thing I liked is that Barielle fills in my ridges and that makes the Layla look nice and glossy smooth.  

...but here the holo effect remains linear.  Interesting.

Honorable Mention : Kawaii Nail Lacquer Let It Shine : This is a Spectraflair topcoat which I got from Jamie's Etsy shop. I've has it for near a year and had yet to try it.  It's utterly lovely.  Just one coat gave me the most charming, subtle holo sparkle.  If I was a bride I'd top off my wedding day manicure with it.  It would make for some spectacular pictures. 

I hope you found this helpful... and let the Summer holo season continue! ♥ 

~*Ari