Ahhh freshly painted nails. Typically I have nice, strong, long nails, but I broke both thumb nails recently and since they are hard as steel - when they do break - they break - there is no give - I was lucky this time, no blood was involved, LOL! So the rest got lopped off and I decided since they are so short I'd paint them.
I love painting my nails - I HATE waiting for them to dry. I don't care how "quick dry" polish says it is ... its not. I painted them and they were completely dry after 45-60 minutes. I multi-tasked and got caught up on some tv.
Here's something you probably didn't know: I was a licensed manicurist for several years. I only worked for 1-2 years, but I maintained the license for a long time in case I wanted to go back to it. So when I paint them ... they will be perfect and shiny. There will be no brush streaks, bumps, divets or oopsies. It might take me 30 minutes to paint them - especially since I am right handed, painting the right hand is always challenging. But I'll take the time because any imperfections will drive me NUTS and cause me to remove the polish from the offending nail (which also includes my right thumb and index finger as collateral damages) and I will do it again ...
I always do a base coat, 2 coats of polish and a top coat. Overkill? Maybe, but I can't do it any other way.
Did you know your nails have natural oil in them? The base coat helps the colored polish adhere, also it protects your nails from the polish discoloring them (some polishes can turn your nails yellow). If you fine polish peels and chips a lot for you, try going over your bare nails with nail polish remover first, it'll dry them out a little and help the polish stick. And the top coat - well its super shiny and protects your polish. Sometimes I put another coat on after a couple of days - I've been able to maintain polish for up to 2 weeks doing that.
Did you also know that if you go in just a hair from the sides of your nails with the polish that you'll reduce chipping? Your nails bend a lot through the course of any daily activities - polish typically is not as pliant ... keeping the polish just a hair inside keeps it adhered to parts of your nails that don't bend as much and it'll resist chipping. And you never, ever want to paint over your cuticle ... that's just asking for it to peel off sooner. And nobody will notice unless your finger is 1/2" from their eye ball ... and if that's the case I'm sure your polish is the least of their concern.
I picked up this lilac the other day at the grocery store, when I went looking for my base and top coats I came across neon green and gunmetal (I've got a lot of crazy colors) - I was torn, but really wanted to try this new one out, plus - HELLOOOO it matches the blog! So I guess I'll just have to paint them again in a couple of weeks - I'm really thinking gunmetal :o)
4 comments:
Love the lilac!!! And very cool abt the manicurist! As a child I loved nail polish. Could care less abt make up but oh the polish! I always had my nails done up until I had my son. Then they sort of went by the wayside..... However when I do my nails (most often my toes than my hands) I do the base coat, two coats of color and a top coat for all the reasons you said! And no it's not overkill. If you're going to take the time to do your nails, you might as well do them right and make them last!!
The lilac must be a trending color because I saw somebody else wearing that same color over the wknd. Again, great color and your nails look wonderful!
Thanks for the mani tips. I did NOT know your polished past! Love when my nails look great. They are SUPERSHORT now and the polish stays on …..
pretty well.
my cuticles are DYING drying this winter
Pretty color! It's says spring MUST be on the way.
I don't usually polish my nails, but I love, love, LOVE having a pedicure and getting some interesting color or a nice French paint job. ;-)
Oooo that's awesome information. I love anything to help me keep nailpolish on! I never give them enough time.
Post a Comment