Beauty Product of the Week: Color Quick Fast Dry Nail Pen

What is it? Sally Hansen's brand-spanking new Color Quick Fast Dry Nail Pen is a "new fast dry nail color formula packaged in an easy-to-use, take anywhere spill-proof pen! Just click to dispense color, brush on and go! Handy application makes it easy to use anytime, anywhere. Great for pedicures, too! Available in 8 beautiful shades. No DBP, Toluene or Free Formaldehyde." Available at drugstores for less than $7.00.

What did you think? I love the idea of this product: a quick, simple to apply nail color in that comes in a handy pen shape that's easier to store than a glass bottle of traditional polish. Applying nail polish is a tedious task that I'm not always good at, so I was anxious to give this a try.

My first complaint is the packaging. Yes, this product comes in "8 beautiful shades," but they're boxed in a way so that you can't see the actual color of the polish. You have to go by the little color swatch on the box as your guide. I don't like that because I can't tell from a swoosh of color how shiny the product is, if it has glitter in it, and what it's true shade is. And the 8 beautiful shades? Meh. They range from clear to black, from blue to a boring red. There isn't a whole lot of variety with this product, and the colors they do have are uninspired.

I chose Sheer Pink and applied it according to the directions. Now here comes my next complaint: I hate the brush applicator. It seemed messier than it should have been. You click the top of the pen to get the color to flow through the bristles, but I had a hard time controlling how much product I was getting with each click. As a result, some nails had too much polish on them, some not enough.

It may have just been me, but I had a hard time applying the color evenly. I should have stopped at one coat, but I applied a second coat which resulted in my nails looking overly gunked up. I felt that the final result lacked the shine and durability that a top, clear coat would have provided. I also felt that the layers of paint on my nails were too thick.

As a final complaint...and this is a stupid one...I had a tough time clicking the top of the polish pen with my left hand. I guess I am not as ambidextrous as I thought!

The final verdict? Maybe I didn't use this product correctly. Next time I try it I'll stop after the first coat. However, the color selection is anything but beautiful (who really wants to have orange nails?) and the brush was awkward to use. I say skip this product and instead use Sally Hansen's Natural Shine Instant Nail Finish...it's a much better product!