Ridge Fillers: Which One's the Best?

I have horribly ridgy nails. I've read it's due to a vitamin deficiency so perhaps I need to pop some Flintstone's but let's face it, at 43 I don't think my nails are going to go perfectly smooth with tons of One-a-Day +Iron.

My nails in their natural state. Love the acetone stains!

I've been using CND Ridge-Out since All Lacquered Up mentioned it on her blog a few years ago. However, being the polish hound I am, I've branched out. I have four different ridge fillers and on Friday afternoon, while "The Sweetest Thing" was playing in the background (darn it, my Tivo'd version didn't have "It's Too Big to Fit in Here." The song's wicked dirty and totally hilarious!), I tested them so you don't have to.

Here's the line-up of all the products used:

Zoya Remove+ for nail prep, the fillers, Orly's Frolic, and Seche Vite

Each nail on my left hand received two coats of the following:

• Pinky: CND Ridge-Out
• Ring: Bridge the Ridge from Sally Beauty
• Middle: Orly Ridgefiller
• Index: Essie Fill the Gap!
• Thumb: Nothing

Here are my thoughts:

• Pinky: CND goes on smooth and dries fairly quick. CND decreased the amount of product though, from .5 fluid ounces down to around .37 fl. Ticks me off because it cost more for less product and more glass. It dries to a semi-matte finish.
• Ring: Bridge the Ridge's brush is all sorts of sprung out. It dried to a matte finish quickly, the matte-iest of all the fillers. The brush didn't affect the finished nail so don't be afraid to buy it. .5 fluid ounces.
• Middle: Orly gives you the most porduct for your money but I don't like as much. It seems to take longer to dry and if you're not careful it'll puddle at your cuticles It never dried to the matte finish that I was expecting. .6 fluid ounces.
• Index: Fill the Gap the best bang for my buck because I picked it up for $2.00 at a Trade Secret clearance!!! It's easy to apply and dries to a semi-matte finish fairly quickly.

You can see the Orly on the middle finger, all white and stuff. Ugh!

Polishing went fairly well with all four products. But putting polish on my un-treated thumb nail was interesting. It seemed like the brush dragged on my nail instead of flowing on smoothly. I used Orly's Frolic since it's a creme and I thought it would show the differences the best. Best thing about Frolic? It's a one-coater!!!

Taken before any clean-up.



Can you see the ridges on the right? I didn't realize it would be so blurry.

My overall thoughts?

• Orly Ridgefiller: It's okay. You get a lot of product for your money but it's not as easy to work with as their polishes are. Found at Sally Beauty, Ulta, and some CVS stores. Rank: #4
• CND Ridge-Out: It's the priciest for what you're getting. Plus you might have a hard time finding it locally. I can only find CND at my local Blooming Beauty Supply. Rank: #3
• Bridge the Ridge: I love how this dries to a matte finish so quickly. In my mind that lets me know my nails are ready for color. But the brush was wonky and sprung out. Found at Sally Beauty which is everywhere! Rank: #2
• Essie Fill the Gap: Even at the full retail price of what, $8.00, I think this provides the best base for color. Goes on smooth, dries quickly to a semi-matte finish, great brush. Now that Essie is found everywhere it's probably the most accessable filler around. Rank: #1!

I'll continue to alternate my fillers but I wish I could return the Orly. Sally's given me grief when I tried to return a crap polish since it touched my skin (HORRORS!). Due to the decrease in product I won't buy CDN again. I could trim the rogue bristles on the Bridge the Ridge brush but I'm not that worried about it. But I love Essie's Fill the Gap! I'm glad I took a chance on it. And if I run out I know I can buy it at Wags, Target, wherever I happen to be!