Sloppy edges and I left the right hand plain, but testing out my new brush!
Shynk!
Feb 19, 2011
Playing Around
Just playin' :)
Sloppy edges and I left the right hand plain, but testing out my new brush!
Shynk!
Sloppy edges and I left the right hand plain, but testing out my new brush!
Shynk!
Feb 18, 2011
Fixing the Damage
I'm still growing out my damaged nails and it takes time, but you can see they are already growing out nicely.
Some things I am doing to help: keeping the cuticles healthy with daily moisturizing, filing the nails gently and keeping them short, and applying a strengthener.
I was using Nutra Nails and it worked fairly well, but I switched to Orly Nail Armor because it truly makes my nails so much stronger!
I also apply a protein bonder first because the damaged part of the nail is so weak and thin that anything applied to it will bend and chip off.
Protein bonder is supposed to be for nail enhancements like acrylics - it helps bond the acrylic to natural nails - but it really makes your polish or treatment stick. You rarely get chips if you use the protein bonder first. It's expensive though, around $10 for this little bottle.
Shynk!
Some things I am doing to help: keeping the cuticles healthy with daily moisturizing, filing the nails gently and keeping them short, and applying a strengthener.
I was using Nutra Nails and it worked fairly well, but I switched to Orly Nail Armor because it truly makes my nails so much stronger!
I also apply a protein bonder first because the damaged part of the nail is so weak and thin that anything applied to it will bend and chip off.
Protein bonder is supposed to be for nail enhancements like acrylics - it helps bond the acrylic to natural nails - but it really makes your polish or treatment stick. You rarely get chips if you use the protein bonder first. It's expensive though, around $10 for this little bottle.
Shynk!
Feb 17, 2011
Feb 16, 2011
Kitchen Spa!
It's a snowy day and my hands are a bit wrecked. I hate how they look like granny hands! So, I pampered them with two kitchen spa recipes.
First one is a simple milk bath :) Milk has lactic acid which acts as an exfoliant. It basically dissolves the "glue" that binds dead cells to living skin cells. Usually I use powdered milk because it stores easier, but all I had was condensed today.
Just mix it in warm-to-hot water and soak for about five minutes. Don't use soymilk - you have to go with regular cows milk for the lactic acid.
After the milk bath I used an easy sugar scrub recipe from kitchen ingredients. You take a Tupperware and put in sugar (I used brown because it smells so yummy, but regular white will do). Then add oil until it becomes a slushy consistency. All I had was vegetable oil, but olive oil works a little better. If you want to get real fancy, you can use almond oil.
Then add some drops of essential oil. I put in orange extract today. Yummy :)
Voila, sugar scrub! After soaking my hands in their milk bath, I scrubbed off all the dry, dead skin with the scrub. The oil leaves hands soft, but you can moisturize afterward for extra smoothness :)
Shynk!
First one is a simple milk bath :) Milk has lactic acid which acts as an exfoliant. It basically dissolves the "glue" that binds dead cells to living skin cells. Usually I use powdered milk because it stores easier, but all I had was condensed today.
Just mix it in warm-to-hot water and soak for about five minutes. Don't use soymilk - you have to go with regular cows milk for the lactic acid.
After the milk bath I used an easy sugar scrub recipe from kitchen ingredients. You take a Tupperware and put in sugar (I used brown because it smells so yummy, but regular white will do). Then add oil until it becomes a slushy consistency. All I had was vegetable oil, but olive oil works a little better. If you want to get real fancy, you can use almond oil.
Then add some drops of essential oil. I put in orange extract today. Yummy :)
Voila, sugar scrub! After soaking my hands in their milk bath, I scrubbed off all the dry, dead skin with the scrub. The oil leaves hands soft, but you can moisturize afterward for extra smoothness :)
Shynk!
Feb 15, 2011
Feb 14, 2011
Sweethearts
Some shorter nails today - those blue ones were waayyy too long!
I used Pure Ice in a pretty gray and grayish pink (called Kiss Me Here and Taupe Drawer)
Oh and the puppy wanted his paws photographed too :)
Aw!
Shynk!
I used Pure Ice in a pretty gray and grayish pink (called Kiss Me Here and Taupe Drawer)
Oh and the puppy wanted his paws photographed too :)
Aw!
Shynk!
* Seeing Stars *
One of my new O•P•I colors Catch Me in Your Net.
Some silver stripes and stars...
And some rhinestones *
Shynk!
Some silver stripes and stars...
And some rhinestones *
Shynk!
Feb 13, 2011
Valentines Nails!
The Bf saw my eyes light up over O•P•I polishes today and was so sweet, he got them for me :)
So I used the prettiest one to make Valentines nails.
It's called Wing It! with Pearl of Wisdom stripes outlined in silver.
Reminds me of old lady hard candies. (Which is better than some lame-ass hearts, I think.)
The Wing It! is a very pretty orangey-pink with a purple sparkle to it. Photos don't really do it justice, unfortunately.
Have a good Valentine's Day ! :)
Shynk!
So I used the prettiest one to make Valentines nails.
It's called Wing It! with Pearl of Wisdom stripes outlined in silver.
Reminds me of old lady hard candies. (Which is better than some lame-ass hearts, I think.)
The Wing It! is a very pretty orangey-pink with a purple sparkle to it. Photos don't really do it justice, unfortunately.
Have a good Valentine's Day ! :)
Shynk!
Feb 12, 2011
Sunny Day
Sun is shining, the weather is sweet...
Felt like celebrating a sunny Saturday with some happy sunflowers :)
Shynk!
Felt like celebrating a sunny Saturday with some happy sunflowers :)
Shynk!
Feb 11, 2011
Update:
So I looked up a bass clef and it's more like this:
But the old bass clef that was used up until the 70's, looks like this:
So that gives me more ideas for some musical symbols for nail art :)
Shynk!
Bass clef ?
Soaked off my Axxium gels tonight and then proceeded to apply:
Protein bonder
2 coats thickener
2 coats Orly Nail Armor (with ridge filler and silk fibers, which annoyingly stick out over the free edge)
2 coats Bullet-Proof Strengthening
Then a pretty sheer Mulberry Street color by N.Y.C.
Started a design but it's almost 2am so I kinda got lost on it and ended up with this funny looking swirly dot thing. The bf says it looks like a bass clef, whatever that is?
Mehhhh. Goodnight :)
Shynk!
Protein bonder
2 coats thickener
2 coats Orly Nail Armor (with ridge filler and silk fibers, which annoyingly stick out over the free edge)
2 coats Bullet-Proof Strengthening
Then a pretty sheer Mulberry Street color by N.Y.C.
Started a design but it's almost 2am so I kinda got lost on it and ended up with this funny looking swirly dot thing. The bf says it looks like a bass clef, whatever that is?
Mehhhh. Goodnight :)
Shynk!
Feb 10, 2011
Love her nails!
Check these out...
Laquerized!
Her nails are literally *perfect*
And now I realize I need much more practice and better camera :)
Laquerized!
Her nails are literally *perfect*
And now I realize I need much more practice and better camera :)
Feb 7, 2011
Art Tools
Some tools I've been using for nail art:
Stripe Rite polishes are pretty neat. The brush is the perfect length and thinness. The polish itself is perfect - not too thin, not too thick, just right!
Nail art brushes! Found at Sally's.
Double-sided dotting tools!
And a nail polish corrector pen (because I get polish all over the place still)
Shynk!
Stripe Rite polishes are pretty neat. The brush is the perfect length and thinness. The polish itself is perfect - not too thin, not too thick, just right!
Nail art brushes! Found at Sally's.
Double-sided dotting tools!
And a nail polish corrector pen (because I get polish all over the place still)
Shynk!
Feb 5, 2011
Wild Green!
Winter in the high desert is so dry, my hands were looking haggared! So I added baby oil to warm water and soaked them for about five minutes. Then applied cuticle oil and hand cream before polishing. It's good to remember to dip a q-tip in acetone or alcohol and wipe any oils from the nail before the base coat. This keeps the polish on longer and helps prevent chipping :)
Polish tonight is zebra stripes over lime green. Turned out pretty wild!
Right hand is a little sloppy but I'm still working on my ambidextrous skills ;)
Shynk!
Polish tonight is zebra stripes over lime green. Turned out pretty wild!
Right hand is a little sloppy but I'm still working on my ambidextrous skills ;)
Shynk!
Feb 4, 2011
Snap crackle!!
I love love love the idea of crackle polish! O•P•I has a crackle polish I've been eyeing, but haven't nabbed it yet. Today I was at Dollar Tree and saw a double pack polish and one was a crackle! For a dollar! Hollar!
I did a 2 tone of bright orange and pink then a layer of crackle
All these polishes were under $2 each so score for being thrifty :)
Turned out pretty neat after a coat of Speed Dry top coat. Next time, though, I think the pink and orange would show better with two coats instead of one.
Shynk!
I did a 2 tone of bright orange and pink then a layer of crackle
All these polishes were under $2 each so score for being thrifty :)
Turned out pretty neat after a coat of Speed Dry top coat. Next time, though, I think the pink and orange would show better with two coats instead of one.
Shynk!
Feb 3, 2011
Nail damage :(
This is what happens after pulling/chipping off nail enhancements with a nipper. Nail damage!!
I was getting anxious to have the acrylics off so instead of soaking them off like a smart person, I chipped them off with nippers. The tech who originally put them on used an electric drill to "buff" the natural nail and create more adhesion with the acrylic. This is bad! What it really did was file off too many layers of my nails. Now you can see where the normal outgrowth from the cuticle drops off into the valley of too-thin.
...the weak natural nail tore from my nail bed creating this nasty and painful dent :(
Lessons to be learned from my mistake:
1) Do not allow your natural nails to be filed with an electric file! ouch!
2) Always soak or gently file off nail enhancements - never chip or pull them off
So I'm trying out Nutra Nails to help protect my damaged nails until they grow out. The damaged parts will never fix themselves; there's no amount of anything you can apply to make the nail repair itself. Your nails are dead like your hair. What you can do is protect the nail from further damage and keep the cuticles healthy.
I am trying 2 coats of Thickener to add some layers back on the thin nails, then a coat or 2 of Strengthener to keep the nails from breaking. I'm also keeping the nails very short so the damaged parts will not catch and split up further on the nail bed.
So far, the Nutra Nails has been awesome! It's easy to find (Walmart) and inexpensive ($4), plus it really does the job. With it applied, my nails are flexible enough not to snap, but still thicker and strong enough to protect the weak natural nail underneath.
Some polish and design, then Speed Dry Top Coat! (I love this stuff - it dries quickly so you don't have to worry about smudging)
Black n Yellow, black n yellow... Rawr!
Poor nails. I may have to apply soak off gel so I can keep changing paint while the damage grows out. While nails are still dead, I'm afraid that changing polish too often will dry them out and make them worse. With a gel overlay, the acetone cannot penetrate the gel so I can keep changing polish :) And the nail surface will be smooth and even - no more of this weird drop-off into bad nail valley.
Shynk!
I was getting anxious to have the acrylics off so instead of soaking them off like a smart person, I chipped them off with nippers. The tech who originally put them on used an electric drill to "buff" the natural nail and create more adhesion with the acrylic. This is bad! What it really did was file off too many layers of my nails. Now you can see where the normal outgrowth from the cuticle drops off into the valley of too-thin.
...the weak natural nail tore from my nail bed creating this nasty and painful dent :(
Lessons to be learned from my mistake:
1) Do not allow your natural nails to be filed with an electric file! ouch!
2) Always soak or gently file off nail enhancements - never chip or pull them off
So I'm trying out Nutra Nails to help protect my damaged nails until they grow out. The damaged parts will never fix themselves; there's no amount of anything you can apply to make the nail repair itself. Your nails are dead like your hair. What you can do is protect the nail from further damage and keep the cuticles healthy.
I am trying 2 coats of Thickener to add some layers back on the thin nails, then a coat or 2 of Strengthener to keep the nails from breaking. I'm also keeping the nails very short so the damaged parts will not catch and split up further on the nail bed.
So far, the Nutra Nails has been awesome! It's easy to find (Walmart) and inexpensive ($4), plus it really does the job. With it applied, my nails are flexible enough not to snap, but still thicker and strong enough to protect the weak natural nail underneath.
Some polish and design, then Speed Dry Top Coat! (I love this stuff - it dries quickly so you don't have to worry about smudging)
Black n Yellow, black n yellow... Rawr!
Poor nails. I may have to apply soak off gel so I can keep changing paint while the damage grows out. While nails are still dead, I'm afraid that changing polish too often will dry them out and make them worse. With a gel overlay, the acetone cannot penetrate the gel so I can keep changing polish :) And the nail surface will be smooth and even - no more of this weird drop-off into bad nail valley.
Shynk!
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