Essie Gel Setter Top Coat Polish

As a big fan of Essie products, I purchased Essie's Gel Setter top coat in 2015; when I initially tried it, I didn't love it, and didn't think it was any better than others (Essie's Good to Go top coat has always been a favorite). I've kept it with my nail polish supplies, however, and have tried it periodically. Fast forward to late September 2017, when two minor changes to my nail polish routine have COMPLETELY changed my mind about this top coat, which is rapidly becoming my new favorite! With this new routine, I find that I can regularly get a full 7-10 days out of my manicure with no (or nearly no) chipping; this is especially true if I reapply the top coat 4-5 days after my initial manicure. It really does do a great job of mimicking a shiny salon gel manicure, without the damage and removal hassle that can come with gel polishes. So what's my routine? 1. After my cuticles are pushed back/trimmed (I love the CND CuticleAway Gel for this) and my nails are filed/buffed, I wash my hands thoroughly with soap and water, scrubbing with a nail brush. 2. After drying my hands, I use acetone or alcohol to clean my nails, ensuring that there's no soap or lotion residue on the nail surface. 3. I apply one quick coat of OPI's Bond Aid to my clean natural nails; this dries almost instantly, and is a huge help with polish adhesion. 4. I apply one coat of Essie's Grow Stronger Base Coat to my nails, and let dry for about a minute. This is the first of the two changes I made recently, and changing to this base coat has made a world of difference in terms of preventing chips. 5. I apply two coats of regular Essie polish (in whatever color suits my mood - generally, it's Mademoiselle if I'm going light, or Wicked or Carry On if I want a darker color). I wait about 30 seconds between coats. 6. I finish my manicure with one coat of Essie Gel-Setter Top Coat. 7. I then let my nails air dry - NOT UNDER A DRYER - for about 15 minutes. This is the second change I made to my routine. If my nails are not dry by this time, I then use a standard nail dryer fan (with UV lamp) for regular polish (not a gel dryer) to finish drying my nails. This gives the polish layers some time to cure, and ensures that bubbles don't form. I've attached a picture of my most recent regular manicure (I am wearing Essie's Mademoiselle) using the routine described above, taken after four days of wear. I have not reapplied the top coat. It's maintained its super shiny finish, and so far, I have no chips or lifting - and I've been using my keyboard constantly, and have done dishes and used antibacterial wipes and other cleaning products on various surfaces (with no gloves). Hope this is helpful! I paid FULL price for this product, and have not been given any discounts or incentives in exchange for leaving my review.

I would leave 10 stars if I could. THE best shine and wear. Dries in a snap. Just make sure your polish is well dry before applying. PERFECT nails.

Me enviaron un producto viejo o usado. La consistencia no es como el qeu normalmente compro en tiendas, es demasiado espeso por lo que no se puede aplicar una capa muy delgadita y esto provoca que quede demasiado gruesa la capa y se desprenda a los 3-4 días con el esmalte.

I use this top coat frequently and am always impressed. It goes on easily and keeps nails looking fresh, shiny for days. I appreciate that it dries fairly quickly as well. Its effect reminds me seche vite but without the harsh smell and it doesn’t dry out as quickly in the bottle.

I was thrown back in to home-manicures due to the pandemic. I had been getting either acrylic tips, gel polish, or powder dip color for 15 years. I don't even recall why I started because I was always able to grow my own. At any rate, after soaking off my last powder dip in mid-March, I spent few weeks with clear coats just getting my nails to grow healthy again. Once I started painting them on my own and recalled what days of pushing papers and typing can do to your color. So I grabbed a bottle of this Essie top coat for a try. It's great. It gives a thick, hard, shiny salon-like finish to even the cheapest drugstore polish. It's long-lasting to the point that I actually see it grow out like a gel manicure before it actually wears off. And it dries super quickly to boot. I venture to say, I wouldn't use any other topcoat at this point. However, my one gripe is the bottle gets thick super quick. I bought a bottle in April, had to discard in early July with at least a third of the bottle still left because it got so thick that it was drying in strings as I dipped in and out of the bottle and no longer spread nicely when applying (it dried with ridges). Now, early October, I am ready to discard the bottle I bought in July already, again about a third of the bottle left, for the same reason. Now, I do paint my nails pretty much weekly, but the bottle is always closed tightly and stored away from heat. I could add a little acetone, and I may try that this time, but I fear it will lose some of it's merits by thinning it. We'll see. I know Essie is not the MOST pricey polish, but it also costs enough that it shouldn't dry out and waste a good portion of each bottle in doing so. I will still continue to use, but just be aware it thickens up pretty quickly.