shine bright like a diamond.
Seche Vite’s signature top coat was a serious godsend. It dries millions of layers of polish fast, with a shiny and slick finish. But it has its problems. Nail bloggers constantly share stories of annoying shrinkage, smearing, and peeling. The hazardous compound also has a chemical-laden stench and is infamous for turning gloopy and unmanageable as it ages. Eager to try out a new top coat with more pros than cons, I came across Invincible II Fast Dry Top Coat, which happens to also be made by Seche Vite. Could this come-up perform as well as its predecessor while cutting out the crap?
Makeup Alley says that the upgraded formula is guaranteed non-yellowing while provided the most glossy, durable, and fastest drying formula. Trashing some of the nasty toxins, this incarnation is free from formaldehyde, nitrocellulose, and toluene.
“Invincible is unmatched as a top coat,” the description reads, “leaving the nail silky feeling, stronger, more durable, absolutely will not chip & creates the highest gloss of any product on the market today. Apply thickly, get a nice bead on the end of the brush, then set softly down on the first nail painted & watch how Invincible flows over the wet nail polish, self levels, and will not drag or streak the underlying manicure.”
I was surprised, and pleased, to learn that Invincible is definitely a superior product. The application was as smooth as promised. Invincible’s thin texture was easy to use, but that made me nervous it wouldn’t deliver the same drying properties. I used it with a pretty mint creme from Julep to test it out, since creme nail polishes tend to give me fits. (I feel like they’re tough to perfect since their lack of shimmer shows flaws so easily.) But the less viscous formula did its job and I couldn’t stop gazing at my gleaming mint nails, absolutely in awe that I was able to get them so gorgeous. My weekend plans already included heading to a local amusement park, the perfect test of durability. Invincible kept the chips to a minimum and my manicure was intact from the first rollercoaster to the last bite of ice cream at dusk. — Casandra Armour
