Essie Matte About You Matte Finisher Review and Swatches

Nail polish and shiny go together hand-in-hand. Who knew there was anything other than shiny nail polish? Who knew that anything other than shiny nail polish would look good?

But along came the matte nail polish trend. You can buy matte nail polish colours or matte top coats to mattify any nail polish colour.

I picked up Essie's Matte About You matte finisher to try out the trend.

You simply apply Matte About You as you would a top coat. Within a few seconds it clouds over, mattifying your colour. It's a lot of fun to watch!

Here is Butter London's Wallis on my nails, pre-Matte About You.

And here is my manicure after applying Matte About You. Cool, right? I love how antique a colour Wallis becomes with the matte topcoat. 

More photos. 

I'm completely smitten with the effect of Matte About You. Matte nails look a little cooler, a little edgier and they definitely set you apart.


Check out some of the cool effects you can do with a matte top coat here. 


However, as a top coat, Matte About You fails for me. It doesn't really prolong the wear of my polish at all. 


Who else loves matte top coats? What creative manicures have you created with it?


C.

butter London Wallis Review and Swatches

butter LONDON has become my favourite nail polish. I've eyed Wallis for awhile, it intrigued me but I'm not one for warm nail polish shades so I didn't think it'd suit me. But it called my name over and over so I bought it.

Wallis is named for Wallis Simpson, the American socialite and double-divorcee who scandalized the UK by falling in love and marrying the crown prince Edward. Edward abdicated the throne of England in order to marry her and his younger brother George became King. If you've seen the recent film The King's Speech, you know some of the story.

butter LONDON's Wallis is described as a tarnished, metallic olive gold, as mysterious and regal as its namesake.

And here it is on my nails. I used three coats.

Wallis surprised me. I loved the colour. It's as it's described but it's got flecks of red and gold (click on the photo above to see) and quite a bit of depth.

Like the other butter LONDON polishes I've tried, Wallis goes on very smoothly and dries quickly. I could have gotten away with two coats, but went for three for the perfect finish.

However, after a day or two of wearing it, I decided that the gold flash of Wallis wasn't to my liking. I'd  been meaning to buy a mattifying top coat so I did and applied it to my manicure.

Here's what Wallis looks like mattified. I LOVE it. It makes it look even more antique.

Anyone out there own Wallis? Do you love it? What do you think of it with the matte top coat? Yay or nay? Or do you prefer it with its own lustre?

Any other butter LONDON fans out there?

C.