Matte Top Coats – Let’s Compare

Love it or hate it, Matte Nails are the big trend for Fall. With all the matte nail polish collections coming out, it will be a hard style to ignore. If you’re not ready to jump in feet first, why not try a matte top coat instead? Using them to mattify any polish in your arsenal makes it a more versatile and budget friendly way to embrace the look. Give your tried and true shades an update with a new finish. From flat to satin there are a plethora of choices in the non-glossy top coat realm and I’ve tried them all so you don’t have to. Check out the results after the jump!

First things first. There are certain things you give up in using a matte top coat.

1. These are not fast drying products so you have to be willing to put in the time to get the look.
2. The more matte the top coat, the more unforgiving it is. Brush strokes or unevenness can plague you if your application isn’t perfect. As with all new things, practice, practice, practice.
3. Matte top coats absorb oil and water as you go about your daily routine so the finish will become more satin over time.

Essie Matte About You ($10, essie.com) and Rescue Beauty Lounge Matte Top Coat ($18, RescueBeauty.com) are the most mattifying top coats I’ve come across. If you desire that truly flat finish this is your best option. The cloudiness does lighten the shade a touch but not significantly.

Nubar V For Men Matte Finish Nail Protector ($8.99, ByNubar.com) comes in a close 2nd to Essie and RBL in terms matte-ness and I love that it’s more forgiving in terms of application. It applies smooth and even every time.

Now for those wanting a satin style nail, the next three options are ideal. They take down the gloss giving a more buffed look. Orly Matte Top Coat is actually discontinued but still available on Head2ToeBeauty.com for $4.95 so get it while supplies last.
Orly Nails for Males ($6.99, SallyBeauty.com) performs similarly to the Matte Top Coat in spite of its dark appearance.

Finally, Barielle’s Matte-inee Top Coat will be launching soon on Barielle.com.

I received quite a few questions regarding InStyle’s June issue. One of the tips in the Summer beauty section was about matte nails. They suggested using “your base coat as a top coat to remove the shine from your lacquer.”

Here’s my problem with that. They showed ="font-weight: bold;">butter London’s Nail Foundation ($18, butterLondon.com) as an example yet they neglected to explain that only ridge filling base coats dry matte. Using your clear or tacky base coats won’t achieve that look. Overly opaque or shimmery ridge fillers won’t get it done either.

Nonie Creme of butter London used her Nail Foundation over Yummy Mummy backstage at Alexander Wang to matte down the shine and in this instance using a base coat totally worked. She even sent me a pic from her iPhone to share with you (above).

However when I used it over my test shade, OPI No Room For The Blues, it didn’t turn out as well. The nude pigmentation in the base changed the color drastically. If you don’t mind that, it’s a simple mattifying solution but I still prefer a matte top coat.

So did this clear up a lot of your questions reagarding matte top coats? Which do you prefer… matte top coats or matte polish? Or do you wish this whole matte thing would just go away already? Sound off Fanatics!