Top 5 Matte Nail Polishes This Year – Check Out These Ultra Stylish Manicures

Here’s How To Create Beautiful Matte Nail Designs

When I think of a nice manicure, my mind immediately sees well-maintained, shiny nails. After all, isn’t that why we all use top coats? But even though I absolutely love that look, sometimes I just need something different. Something edgier yet still sophisticated.

Bring on the matte nail finish. This polish is completely devoid of shine, seeming to suck the light inwards. Stylish, unusual and definitely eye catching, matte is here to stay.

But there are a couple of tips to make the best of this softly chic look.

• Matte polish tends to chip faster than gloss varieties, and longer tips are more likely to get knocked quicker. Trimming your nails with nail files at or below the tips of your fingers with make your mani last longer!
•  On its own, a matte topcoat isn’t the most durable way to rock this trend. It tends to wear off after a day or so. For the longest-lasting look, use a polish and a topcoat in the same finish.
• Matte polishes dry almost immediately, so they don’t have time to settle down into a silk smooth finish. Apply one coat, then wait for it to dry completely before you add more layers to get a smooth, opaque look.
• Finish off your mani with one brush of polish across the tip of your nail.  It creates a neater look and helps to prevent chipping.

Always eager to get in on the super cool matte action, I’m off to test out the best matte polishes.

1) Beetles Matte and High Gloss Polish Set

What Makes It Great

This is an excellent idea – a set of polishes that contains both high gloss and a beautiful rich matte. Available in a whole range of colors, I really like that you can have either depending on how you feel. Both polishes went on well, and lasted easily into three weeks, with the matte keeping its light-absorbing qualities perfectly.

Where It Could Be Improved

Although advertised as low odor, there is a definite polish whiff with both these bottles.

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2) OPI Matte Gel Polish

What Makes It Great

OPI’s clear matte top coat turns any color into a matte polish, so has an infinite variety of uses, for example, stenciling matte onto gloss for an unusual textured look. This goes on smoothly with a nice flow, and lasted nearly three weeks before I noticed the first, very tiny chip.

Where It Could Be Improved

It took several soaks to remove every trace of this top coat, but I can live with that.

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3) Beetles Matte Gel Polish

What Makes It Great

This matte top coat comes in a decent sized bottle, and although Beetles claim it’s tough enough with just one coat, I went for my usual two, and it worked perfectly. Durable and seemingly scuff resistant, it remained pristine for over two weeks.

Where It Could Be Improved

Whether it’s because I used two coats, this gel polish remained stubbornly stuck in place until it finally gave up and dissolved.

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4) Sally Hanson Matte Top Coat

What Makes It Great

This polish is mean, mysterious and gorgeously matte. It flowed beautifully, covering my nail in a silken sheet of satiny smoothness. With industrial-strength tenacity, it kept its flawless good looks for over three weeks, and I only had to remove it then due to nail growth.

Where It Could Be Improved

The acetone aroma is quite strong when you first open the bottle, but after a few moments, it fades to a comfortable level.

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5) Lavender Violets Gloss and Matte Top Coat Set

What Makes It Great

This set allows you to mix matte with glossy top coats to produce some really stunning effects, and having both bottles in one set, gives you versatility in your colors – every polish looks different depending on the top coat’s finish. On my nails, with everyday wear and tear, it remained chip and peel free for ten days.

Where It Could Be Improved

If you try and use this polish with gel, the effect isn’t as smooth as it could be, and with a matte finish, it needs to be smooth, so I recommend avoiding a gel base coat.

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