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Hello!
Did you know that
Sally Hansen has recently added a
matte topcoat to their Miracle Gel line?
If you don't already know about the Miracle Gel line, the concept is it's longer lasting polish that cures with sunlight rather than needing a special light the way gel polish normally does. You just need two coats of a Miracle Gel color (no basecoat), and then Miracle Gel topcoat. Up until now, there's only been one topcoat option--shiny. But now you can choose between
shiny and
matte.
Matte looks are so en vogue right now, I was really excited to try this out and see how it worked. I can't do gel polish because I have to change my polish so often, but when I am able I do like to get a couple of extra days with Miracle Gel, and having the matte option is a cool possibility...so let's take a look and see how it works!
They sent me six colors to test the topcoat with--to be clear, these colors are all shiny on their own, so any matte effect we see will be due to the topcoat only.
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| Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Matte Top Coat |
So let's take a look! First up is
Sally Hansen Apollo You Anywhere, a bright coral creme:
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| Sally Hansen Apollo You Anywhere |
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| Sally Hansen Apollo You Anywhere |
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| Sally Hansen Apollo You Anywhere |
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| Sally Hansen Apollo You Anywhere |
Coverage: Two coats, plus Miracle Gel Matte topcoat. If you have ridges, you might need three coats.
Application & Formula: This is the only color I tested that I had a little bit of pull and less-than-smooth application. But, the topcoat made all of the residual stuff disappear.
This color is so bright IRL, it's nearly neon! If you're a coral/salmon lover, this is the one for you. :)
Next is
Sally Hansen Beet, Pray, Love, a dark mauve creme:
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| Sally Hansen Beet, Pray, Love |
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| Sally Hansen Beet, Pray, Love |
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| Sally Hansen Beet, Pray, Love |
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| Sally Hansen Beet, Pray, Love |
Coverage: Two coats plus matte topcoat. You might need three if you have deep ridges.
Application & Formula: Gorgeous, with really good dry time.
This is a great looks-good-on-everyone, goes-with-everything shade, and it looks so chic with the matte topcoat!
Next we have
Sally Hansen Can't Beet Royalty, a gorgeous maroon creme:
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| Sally Hansen Can't Beet Royalty |
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| Sally Hansen Can't Beet Royalty |
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| Sally Hansen Can't Beet Royalty |
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| Sally Hansen Can't Beet Royalty |
Coverage: Two coats + matte topcoat; you may need 3 if you have deep ridges.
Application & Formula: Excellent!
This color! THIS COLOR! So vampy and sexy, and the matte just makes it even more so! Love.
Then we have
Sally Hansen Mauve-olous, a light mauve-rose creme:
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| Sally Hansen Mauve-olous |
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| Sally Hansen Mauve-olous |
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| Sally Hansen Mauve-olous |
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| Sally Hansen Mauve-olous |
Coverage: Two coats + matte topcoat. You might need 3 if you have ridges.
Application & Formula: Good, with a little pulling that evened out on the second coat.
(Is it weird that I hear Billy Crystal everytime I look at this name??)
This color is almost a neutral--definitely a very wearable pink. Pretty and feminine.
Next is
Sally Hansen Out Of This Pearl, a champagne shimmer:
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| Sally Hansen Out Of This Pearl |
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| Sally Hansen Out Of This Pearl |
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| Sally Hansen Out Of This Pearl |
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| Sally Hansen Out Of This Pearl |
Coverage: Two coats + matte topcoat
Application & Formula: Excellent.
OMG, I love how this looks with the matte! Very classy. I'm going to wear this all summer long...
And last but not least, we have
Sally Hansen Wine Stock, a deep wine purple creme:
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| Sally Hansen Wine Stock |
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| Sally Hansen Wine Stock |
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| Sally Hansen Wine Stock |
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| Sally Hansen Wine Stock |
Coverage: Two coats + matte topcoat; you might need 3 if you have deep ridges.
Application & Formula: Excellent.
Ohhhh yeeesss. Vampy and gothy and darkly sexy, this polish brings out my inner rocker chick. Love this so hard!
But most importantly, what do I think about the matte topcoat? I'm really impressed by it. I have no time for matte topcoats that only give a slight matte look, and I'm happy to report this gave hard-core matte finish in no time flat, knocking off one step if you want Miracle Gel staying power with a matte finish.
Not only that, but I also tested this over regular polish, and directly over stamping (I'll show you these looks next time) and I didn't have any problems--no streaking, fast dry time, full-on awesomeness.
So how long does the Miracle Gel mani system keep you mani alive? For me, I get an extra couple of days when I use Miracle Gel than when I use regular Sally Hansen polishes. So I do feel this is a good option when you want a bit more wear, as well.
These are on sale now, anywhere you by
Sally Hansen products, and of course on Amazon. :)
Big hugs,
M. xoxo
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