Mixing Gel Polishes with Regular Polish

Let's talk about something all brands advise you NOT to do: cure nail polish under UV lamps. Or seal nail polish with gel topcoats. Or whatever you want to call it. It can be done! 

When experimenting in the realms of traditional nail polish and UV gel curing polishes: tread lightly. This is a new and temperamental science. But who wants to replace their 300+ polish collection with the expensive gel counterparts? I sure don't. For those looking for a long lasting mani using your regular polishes and a gel UV systems, shiny and durable... Here are the steps I've gathered to far...

What you need: 

File (for natural nails) 180 or more grit, fine 

A UV or LED base coat

A (traditional, air drying) polish

UV or LED topcoat/sealer 

91% (preferred) isopropyl alcohol or any cleansing liquid that came with your gel system

Any cuticle oil

UV or LED nail lamp

Here's how to do it:

1. Remove any nail polish or gel using acetone NPR or a soak of method.

2. Rough up the nail bed using a natural nail file, fine, 180 or higher to be safe.

3. Push back cuticles for maximum lasting mani.

4. Prep the nail bed with any cleansing liquid or alcohol.

5. Paint a thin coat of UV base coat and cure duration of your brand of lamp and base cost.

HERES WHERE THINGS CHANGE:

6. After curing, use alcohol or cleansing liquid to remove tacky layer from cured base coat covered nails.

7. Paint a thin coat of any traditional nail polish. Continue until desired opacity. 

8. Let AIR DRY as you normally would.

9. If you think your nails are dry, they're not. Let dry another 5 minutes.

10. Paint a thin layer of UV or LED topcoat on, cure. 

11. Wipe off tacky layer with alcohol or cleansing liquid. 

12. Apply cuticle oil. 

13. Voila!!

Getting Closer to Halloween Gothic Stamped Blacks

 

As Halloween approaches I decided to goth-up my almond acrylics and paint them jet black. My boyfriend didn't like it. I used 3 coat of Visually Slimming by SPOILED, and can tell it's not the blackest of blacks. It almost looked like the darkest grey in the bottle, but I thought I'd give it a try. I got it from CVS a while back and it was so runny and watery, I thought after a year of sitting in my drawer it'd thicken up, but to no avail- three watery coats to full opacity. They look like press on nails. I tried to spice it up by stamping on gold ivy from BM plate 309. It will do until I repainting this Sunday. Hopefully I'll be more inspired to do Halloween nails next week.

Paradise Blue Cheetah and Gilty Gold Zebra

 I'm attempting to paint my nails as often as possible during my break from piano. I raided my roommate Ashley's np stash and found two new favorites: "Paradise" by Sinful Colors and "Gilty Pleadure" by Sally Hansen Complete Manicure. Paradise is a bright creamy sky blue which I can only imagine is even more beautiful in the daytime. I sit here admiring it in artificial light and can't wait for the sun to come up. I'll have to update you all with a daytime pic soon. It was two coats to full opacity. The first thin coat was streaky and I almost started to doubt my decision on picking a Sinful Colors polish out of her stash instead of a higher quality. But I was thankfully reassured by a thicker 2nd coat which brought the color to a dreamlike consistency. Gilty Pleasure is a champagne gold I used to make a couple streaks in my last post. I love it and it's so perfect on any skin color. Again it's two coats to opaque but with a light color like this, three should be perfect. I don't like to do three coats because, frankly, ain't no one got time fo that. 

I was a little disappointed in myself for not thinking outside the box and reverting to animal print. I promise my next post won't be something I've done a thousand times over. Hope you enjoy!

Welcome Back! Almond Acrylics in Fall Colors

Hello, my darlings! I am back and super excited to be blogging again. After nail school I went through a tremulous move back to Oakland and wasn't able to blog for a while. So here's my first set back: an almond shaped acrylic set with three base colors: OPI Don't Pretzel My Buttons, Essie School of Hard Rocks and  OPI Over the Taupe. I added a 1mm rhinestone to the DPMB and SHR and on the OTT I did 3 slashes of Sally Hansen Complete Manicure in Gilty Pleasure and a black art polish. I'm going to try really hard to blog more often- I've missed all of you and thank you so much for visiting during my hiatus!! See you soonsies <3 

Full Sets At School :)

OMG you guys, I've been such a bad blogger!!!! Ironically, it's because I've been super busy with school- I've been taking the manicuring course at Paris Beauty College in Concord, CA and I haven't been able to finish my fall challenge or blog at all! Here are a couple of pictures of the acrylic full sets I've been doing at school the last few weeks. I don't know if I'll have a chance to blog again before school is over but I'm trying to continue to snap pictures if I can! 

This set is my hand model Chrissy's hands. She gets almond shaped nails because she's a vet tech and she wears gloves and has to pick up kitties by their necks and such. She loves 3D nail art of course and got tiny white bows on a few of her nails and clusters of multi colored half pearls on the rest. 

These are DUCK FEET nails. My first set of duck feet actually on someone else. In the beginning of school, I did a full set of duck feet on myself, but these were much better. Also, the girl that got these nails was going to homecoming that weekend so it made it super fun for me to do. I used forms instead of glue on nail tips to get this flared out look.

These are just fun two toned funky french acrylics with cut out stars embedded in the acrylic. I finally had to bring my drill to school because I think I'm getting RSI from hand filing. Sad, but it's so much fun doing acrylics at school. 

That's all for now, you guys, so hope I can get back to blogging once my busy busy schedule dies down a bit! 

Fall Nail Art Challenge Day 3: Fall Gradient

Well, I picked two colors that I thought were suitable for fall: Mink Muffs by Essie, a cool chalky light brown, and Meet Me On The Star Ferry by OPI, a brown purple shimmer. I painted on two coats of Mink Muffs and then used a makeup sponge to dab MMOTSF on the tips and working toward the nail bed. Even though it is a purple brown shimmer, it came out looking a little gold and I'm pleased with the end result.

Fall Nail Art Challenge: Day 2 Autumn Leaves

This one was so tough! I thought I had a stamp that had maple leaves, but I guess I just have the almond shaped ones from BM-19. I tried to make the leaves stamp change colors but I guess I'm not that advanced at stamping yet. I painted on OPIs Bling Dynasty (über pretty gold) and then in a bottle cap mixed neon orange and Bling Dynasty/green and Bling Dynasty) to make the gold turn colors a bit but stay the same kinda shimmery metallic. I lightly with a dry brush tapped random spots on the nail with my orange and green mixtures to give it an antiquey, messy feel.

Then stamped on the leaves in an old Sinful Colors black that's gone thick.

::phew!:: a lot of retries, and finally Day 2 is over!