Nail Polish Wars! OPI vs. China Glaze vs. MAC

[gildedangel]

What do you wonderful ladies think about how these nail polish brands stack up against one another? Which one do you think is better? Worst? What are their best products in your opinion? What are their best colors? Which ones do you have? Is there another brand that you think should rank up with these? Share please!

[claralikesguts]

OPI is definitely the best. i love the pro wide brush! it makes doing my nails easier + faster. and i love their formula i don't have much experience with MAC np, i only have one (Love and Friendship) and i love it to death! the formula is perfect. a little sheer, but perfect in two coats. the brush is alright. and it's definitely overpriced for the amount you get, and it's a bit awkward to hold. ChG is okay. great color selection, great price, sometimes good formula.

[TISH1124]

I love OPI polishes...I'm not a fan at all of MAC polishes they streak/chip too bad on me...I also like CG but not as much as OPI...OPI last longer and keeps my nails healthy IMO

[Suffragette]

I love OPI and especially the pro-wide brush, but China Glaze has really set the standard imo with color innovation and selection. I find that a lot of MAC polishes require several coats to get a true to bottle finish.

[elongreach]

I prefer OPI. I am willing to buy others, but most of my collection is opi. I think it dries quicker and that's very important to me. China Glaze has top notch bright colors, but I think it's sticky which makes it take forever to dry. That doesn't stop me from buying them, but I have to plan my nails so it doesn't take long to dry (half nail weeks)

[NutMeg]

I don't like MAC polish, as far as application and wearing time it just doesn't hold up.

OPI is unquestionably the best of the three as far as formula goes, it is easy to apply and the drying time is awesome. It tends to chip a bit on me, but with my current manicure routine it isn't a huge issue because I like to change my polish a lot.

That being said, China Glaze is my favourite of the three. Application can be tricky, expecially because they have been tweaking their formula to get rid of the so called Big 3 chemicals. This leads to slightly goopy polish, and that weird thick and thin at the same time texture. Adding some thinner helps, but it is still a question of getting used to the formula. Drying time is not great, but managable with Seche Vite. With my manicure routine it lasts pretty well, a few chips after several days and thus far I haven't had a huge problem with peeling. The thing that puts them in the forefront for me is the selection of colour, finish, etc. No other easily available line has as many polishes that excite me, and they are more affordable than OPI.

Just for informational purposes, I usually wipe my nails with vinegar to remove oils, do one coat of ChG Calcium Gel Fortifier, one coat of CND Stickey, however many coats of polish are needed, another coat of CND Stickey, and then a coat of Seche Vite. I find this gives me rock hard polish that dries quickly, and doesn't chip or peel (unless I do the dishes without gloves or something like that).

[IDontKnowMomo]

I love OPI and China Glaze AND Essie.
Mac colors are very pretty, but the formula sucks.

[MAChostage]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Suffragette

I love OPI and especially the pro-wide brush, but China Glaze has really set the standard imo with color innovation and selection. I find that a lot of MAC polishes require several coats to get a true to bottle finish.

My thoughts exactly!

[Thistle702]

I've never used MAC or China Glaze and OPI was my favorite UNTIL I found Essie. For some reason, my nails don't get discolored like they did when I was using the darker OPI colors (especially my toes), and Essie seems to have more of the lighter "pinkish" colors that I'm into for my fingers. The price of the OPI and Essie are comparable at about $7-8 a bottle.

[n_c]

Another vote for China Glaze love ALL the pretty colors.

[purrtykitty]

I make my purchases based on color, so I really don't have a brand preference. All polish chips on my nails, usually within a day or so...my fingernails just won't hold the polish. My toes, on the other hand, the polish looks the same on day 30 as it does on day 1.

Anyhoo...I digress. Of all the brands I use (MAC, Chanel, OPI, Essie, China Glaze) I love the brush on OPI.

[gildedangel]

What are some of the best colors from OPI and China Glaze?

[purrtykitty]

I'm really of no help in picking best colors...but by far the best collection OPI ever put out was the Russian Collection. I loved just about every single color. The France Collection is also up there in terms of great colors.

[darklocke]

I actually prefer China Glaze to OPI because of the wide brush. My fingers and nails are slender and narrow, so that stupid wide brush makes a lot more mess than a regular brush like CG's.

[xSharon]

Definately OPI! i'm addicted to the pro wide brush

[ashleydenise]

I think i'm the only one ever who likes MAC polishes, even though they're not true to bottle color with one coat, they last me like 3 days if I use with a mac basecoat! I mean i love OPI and China Glaze also, but when them I have to repaint everyday cause my nails will not hold color =[

Either way, OPI, China Glaze & MAC the only 3 brands I religiously buy. I've also have 1 Essie, and I like it, but I can't find it online for cheap and am not willing to buy it for $8 a bottle at Ulta. 2 Finger Paints, but i'm not impressed with the formula at all, and 1 Piggy Polish, I have the Wicked Fun color which I love, but it has formaldehyde in it and it discolored my nail =[

[pinklips1207]

Quote:

Originally Posted by elongreach

I prefer OPI. I am willing to buy others, but most of my collection is opi. I think it dries quicker and that's very important to me. China Glaze has top notch bright colors, but I think it's sticky which makes it take forever to dry. That doesn't stop me from buying them, but I have to plan my nails so it doesn't take long to dry (half nail weeks)

I totally agree!!!

[trincess]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gildedangel

What are some of the best colors from OPI and China Glaze?

To my opinion, best CHG colors I own are:

Fifth Avenue
IV
Atelier Tulle
Sneaker Head
Ruby Pumps
Emerald Sparkle
For Audrey
Shower Together
Outta Bounds
Rodeo Fanatic

[capmorlovesmac]

Quote:

Originally Posted by IDontKnowMomo

I love OPI and China Glaze AND Essie.
Mac colors are very pretty, but the formula sucks.

And ZOYA and Orly. I love ZOYA, China Glaze, Essie, Orly and OPI in this order.

Quote:

Originally Posted by darklocke

I actually prefer China Glaze to OPI because of the wide brush. My fingers and nails are slender and narrow, so that stupid wide brush makes a lot more mess than a regular brush like CG's.

I hate this wide brush too. My nails are narrow too and this brush is too wide for me.

[Shadowy Lady]

for me personally I prefer OPI in terms of ease of application, opacity, formula and how long it lasts on my nails. My second pick would be Orly (not on the list). I really like China Glaze too as they have great colours. But the formula is much more inconsistent (sometimes too think sometimes too thin), it takes forever to dry and chips easier. I haven't had good eperience with MAC sorry. Their nail polish is too expensive for the size of the bottle and quality :/

Still, after OPI, most of my stash is ChG

[Shadowy Lady]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gildedangel

What are some of the best colors from OPI and China Glaze?

My favourite OPI's
- Cozu Melted in the Sun
- Russian Navy
- An Affair in Red Square
- Dutch Tulip
- Parlez vous OPI?

My Favourute CHG's
- Bahamian Escape
- Strawberry Fields
- Rose Amongst Thorns
- Admire
- Entourage

I tried to pick 5 for each, very hard for me, I'm a nail polish whore! lol!

[cupcake_x]

From those, OPI.

[Lndsy]

Definitely China Glaze! Colour selection is fantastic and it wears for days on me, which is huge because my work is very hard on my hands, and most other brands wont last through a shift.

OPI is good too, but sooo expensive and it does not last as long, colour selection is pretty good, but the price is what drags it down for me.

Just getting into Zoya, as I finally found a place in Edmonton to buy them, and they seem to wear pretty well too, better than OPI but not as good as ChG, with the price being right in the middle.

I like MAC colours, but their bottles are small, prices are high and the formula is shit.

But like Shadowy Lady said, I am also a nail polish whore and I will buy it all anyway!!

[MAChostage]

Quote:

Originally Posted by trincess

To my opinion, best CHG colors I own are:

Fifth Avenue
IV
Atelier Tulle
Sneaker Head
Ruby Pumps
Emerald Sparkle
For Audrey
Shower Together
Outta Bounds
Rodeo Fanatic

I absolutely have to agree on these bolded ones, I also have them and they're just gorgeous!

And while there are just too many beauties from both OPI and China Glaze, IMO, one OPI color that I just adore is Dutch Tulips, which I've seen mentioned here already.

[Juxtapose]

OPI is absolutely amazing--the best, in my opinion. The quality of the formula and application is like no other I've tried. My absolute favorite color of all time has got to be Pompeii Purple. So gorgeous, I highly recommend it.

I recently tried a couple China Glaze colors, and I will say, the one thing I like about the line is the unique colors they have. I love Turned Up Turqoise-the color looked fantastic on my nails. The application is just no match to OPI though.

<sigh> ...I love you MAC, I do, but I was supremely disappointed in their nail polish. The only 2 I have are the grey Hello Kitty one and Peppermint Patty. Again, these were chosen for their unique color, and I do love them both in terms of that. The application is horrid. I was surprised that I could get them looking smooth by the time I was done painting my nails, because the thickness of the formula kind of threw me for a loop. I think the colors are brilliant, but the one setback of having to actually apply it to my nails makes me hesitate to wear them enough.

All around, I think OPI delivers in color, formula, application much more than China Glaze or OPI. The price is well worth it, although, I do remember being able to purchase them for $6 or $6.50 way back when. Oh well.