Mavala • Barrier Base Coat • Top/Base Coats

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sweetvixx on 2/6/2012 5:32:00 PM more reviews by sweetvixx

Age: 25-29   Skin: Combination, Medium   Hair: Brunette   Eyes: Brown    

The best base so far for my ridged nails. Let last my nail polish for days, no chips or break whatsoever. And they grow health and strong! Thank you switzerland for giving us Mavala!

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*TOP REVIEWER* Caty_23 on 1/26/2012 6:01:00 AM more reviews by Caty_23

Age: 30-35   Skin: Combination, Fair, Neutral   Hair: Blond, Wavy, Fine   Eyes: Green    

I picked up this product as part of my eternal search to find the perfect base coat that will not dry out my nails, yet will still prevent staining and chipping. To be honest, this does extremely well on all of those counts, so much so that I wanted to give it 5 lippies, except I have one minor issue with it, but more on that later.


Mavala Barrier is a milky white shade in the bottle, but when applied on the nails is looks clear. It dries pretty fast, although I usually give it 5 mins before I apply my first coat of polish. When my polish is on, I find that it lasts around 4 days without chips (if I apply an extra layer of top coat each night), which is the maximum wear time I've ever got from a polish, so I feel like Barrier does increase the lasting power. When I remove my polish, my nails look pink and healthy, and it definitely keeps my nails from drying out when I wear it as a base.


So, back to my one problem with it - although I love my opaque, coloured nail polishes, I do love the look of pales and sheers every so often too. But, every time I have used Barrier when applying a sheer or semi-sheer polish, it makes my nails so streaky, as if the milkyness of Barrier has sort of bled into the polish. Whilst I do have some ridges on my nails, I have always been able to wear sheers over clear base coats without any problem, and they have always hidden my ridges, so I know this is not a problem with my nails themselves. I have experimented a bit to try and solve this problem, and a coat of another clear base coat does help to minimise the problem, but it still isn't perfect.


Although that disappoints me, I would still repurchase this product, as I do love the moisturising effect it has on my nails, and no other base coat I have tried comes close to this. When using sheers, I just use an alternative base coat and then go back to Barrier on my next manicure, although I guess the search for my ultimate perfect base coat continues!

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bardsley on 11/16/2009 12:22:00 PM more reviews by bardsley

Age: 56 & Over   Skin: Normal, Fair   Hair: Blond, Wavy   Eyes: Blue    

This is probably the best base coat I've ever used and I will definitely buy it again. I have problem with splitting and peeling nails and I had been used Mavala Scientifique for that (will write a review on that too). But while my nails were peeling I just couldn't keep polish on at all. I tried several other base coats and still the polish would peel off, usually taking another layer of nail with it. I was so impressed with Scientifique that I bought several other Mavala nail products. This Barrier Base, the ColorFix Top Coat and MavaDry are excellent. Some of the others not so much for me.

One thing about the Barrier Base though, you definitely have to put a coat of polish or top coat over it. Some base coats can stand alone like a clear polish, but not this one. First time I used it I put on a coat of Barrier Base intending to do my polish later. A couple of hours later I took a shower and the Barrier Base just peeled right off. Once you seal it with a coat of polish it does exactly what you'd hope for a base coat.

4 out of 4 people found this review helpful.     Was this review helpful to you? Yes   No

*TOP REVIEWER* georgia21 on 6/6/2009 12:49:00 PM more reviews by georgia21

Age: 56 & Over   Skin: Dry, Fair-Medium, Warm   Hair: Red, Wavy, Medium   Eyes: Brown    

Barrier Base Coat really works for dry and delicate nails. The first ingredient is water, which is moisturizing. It doesn't contain drying isopropyl alcohol as do other base coats.

My thin and delicate nails were in bad shape after I removed my acrylics and this base coat helped to restore them.

The color is milky white in the bottle, but it goes on clear. It's a thin base coat, so unless I used a ridge filler on top, I applied two coats under polish.

This is an excellent base coat for nails that are dry and brittle and need moisture.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.     Was this review helpful to you? Yes   No

limwc on 6/5/2008 5:39:00 AM more reviews by limwc

Age: 30-35   Skin: Combination, Fair-Medium   Hair: Black   Eyes: Brown    

This base coat gives a light pearly sheen. Prevents yellow nails and it holds colour pretty well. I can see that my nails are not so yellow anymore although I tend to stick to lighter nail polishes. It's better than most base coats that I have tried including Sally Hansen.

3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.     Was this review helpful to you? Yes   No

*TOP REVIEWER* tobacco_flower on 5/31/2005 6:40:00 AM more reviews by tobacco_flower

Age: 19-24   Skin: Combination, Fair-Medium, Warm   Hair: Black, Straight, Medium   Eyes: Black    

This is a great base coat: it never discoloured my nails unlike the other basecoats I've tried: worth its price (quite expensive in Singapore). It dries fast too. It was my HG to save my embarassing nails, which were infected by some sort of fungus (caused by years of nail-biting). But I won't be buying again since I've stopped painting my nails and there is still a lot in the bottle to go.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.     Was this review helpful to you? Yes   No

monik on 3/17/2004 5:42:00 AM more reviews by monik

Age: 19-24   Skin: Combination   Hair: Brunette   Eyes: Green    

This product is ok, not fantastic. It keeps the polish from staining my nails, it's thin so it doesn't take long to dry, and (with the colorfix top coat) it keeps the polish on my nails very well. However, the reason I chose this above the 002 Protective Base Coat is because I hoped it would keep my nails from splitting - and it doesn't. Maybe I was expecting too much, I don't know. Currently trying the Scientifique Nail Hardener instead! The packaging is ordinary, the price is reasonable, I'll probably buy it again, or maybe the 002 instead next time.

3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.     Was this review helpful to you? Yes   No