Review: Milani High Speed Fast Dry Nail Lacquer in Pink Express

Press Sample 

Continuing with Milani & Jordana Week here on the blog, here's the second new-for-2013 shade of High Speed Fast Dry Nail Lacquers in this series (click here to see Quick Teal). Let's take a closer look at Pink Express:

 Milani High Speed Fast Dry Nail Lacquer in 28 Pink Express

(retail: $4.99, 0.45 oz)

Three Free formula and made in the USA

Just like with the other polishes in this line, the brush is flat and wide, but not as wide as the Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure or Rimmel Lasting Finish Pro polishes (which should come as a relief to those who feel those brushes are too wide to work with). The edge of the brush is cut cleanly.

Three coats, no top coat:

Light pink cremes and I rarely get along. Not because I don't love them (oh how I love my pinks) but because so many light pink creme nail polishes seem to look chalky and/or go on super streaky. I usually look at a light pink creme and immediately think "hot mess in a bottle."  But this one wasn't too bad, and for that I'm thankful.

The formula of Pink Express is a little thick but not difficult to apply by any means. I needed three coats to get the coverage you see above, but you can see still a few streaks if you look closely. Dry time was true to the label on the first coat (dry in about 60 seconds) and it only took a few minutes for the second and third coats to become dry to the touch. The finish is very shiny on its own, but I think I would still apply a good top coat after you're done because I noticed I got a few dents and marks on a few of my nails, even after letting three coats dry for several hours. So I would apply a good top coat just to seal everything in.

FINAL VERDICT: Not a perfect polish, but then again I've yet to meet a perfect light pink creme that is opaque and streak-free in one coat (or even after two sometimes). So that said, this polish yields good but not perfect results at three coats and the bubblegum pink color is fun and girly. I also appreciate that it's dry to the touch within minutes, even after three coats. If you pick this one up, just be prepared to apply three coats (unless you're super skilled at applying streak-prone polishes, in which case you might be able to get away with two). And be sure to apply a good top coat afterward to avoid dents/marks.

I've heard from some of you that you've spotted counter displays for the new High Speed Fast Dry Nail Lacquers at CVS over the past month or so, but I'm not sure yet if these new shades have made it to the permanent display yet. If you've seen them in the permanent display, please leave a comment and let us know (and thank you!). You can also purchase this polish via the Milani website.

Do you own any High Speed Fast Dry polishes? If so, what shades do you own and how do you like them?

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