The Polishment Polish Party this past Friday was a blast! My friend Kim, aka “FancyPants” really outdid herself with the decor.
Crudite platter... fresh fruit, fresh flowers, fresh Trader Joe's... She truly is a FancyPants! I loved it!!
The point of the polish party was technically to try out some new Texture Coats I’ve been meaning to experiment with, but we got a little sidetracked.
I brought some of la creme de la creme of my Stash.
My set-up at Kim's table was tres professional.
FancyPants even had some task lighting at the ready. We were very official.
It was a little nerve-wracking to paint other people’s hands, I have to admit! I do a lot of my own painting by feel, so to work on someone else’s fingers was tough for me! I also didn’t get to drink much wine, since I needed steady hands, lol.
Lady drinks were always close at hand, chilled to perfection. So close and yet so far away... truly tantalizing.
Here's my friend Sandy, wearing "It's Time to Rock" by Sephora. A really gorgeous shade; metallic charcoal with tiny flecks of turquoise and fuchsia.
Miss Jill, wearing Essie "Mint Candy Apple" with dots of Essie "Pretty Edgy." Her inspiration was peacock plumage.
The always-glamourous Bubbles, holding — what else — a bottle of bubbly, her fingers adorned with "Trout Pout" by butter LONDON.
Kim requested tiny watermelons on every fingertip. She played art director, though later expressed some reservations about her juicy look. Perhaps the combination of Essie "Pretty Edgy" with Orly "Hot Shot" was more sour than sweet.
You may recognize these hands from the Snow Globe manicure months ago. It's my pal, Whiskey! She chose Essie "Splash of Grenadine" with "Amethyst Texture," a new Texture Coat shade from Nicole by OPI. I think the tone-one-tone glitter looks awesome as an accent nail!
I would love to do another Polishment Polish Party again, so if I get any new victims, I’ll be sure to share.
In other news, I’m working on this week’s nails even as I type this. I’ll give you a clue: “Sweet Pea.”
getreadyforsomeglitter,Francesca
Just a sneak peek of the aftermath... polish parties are no joke.
And then….THE HORROR….of Gloss’s Chic Prints by Sephora, which came off only after a few hours of wear (while sleeping). Ugh.
Never fear!
~begin promotion~
Tried and true are Sally Hansen’s Salon Effects nail stickers. Furthermore, they are way cheaper than the other options.
Gloss has tried them, I’ve tried them, and honestly, I have nothing bad to say. Now, I have heard some people talking badly about these nails stickers, but I don’t understand it. I haven’t had a problem with them, and they always look fantastic!
~end promotion~
I’m home for the holidays and I have one mission….to paint my family’s nails.
Needless to say, I have been very busy.
I bought my sister Sally Hansen’s Salon Effects in Laced up, cracked open a bottle of champagne, and while she finished baking some chocolate chip cookies, I placed these beauties on her nails.
First off….look what my lovely and very generous boss gifted me for the holidays:
(Salley Hansen Nail Art Pens)
I guess my nail polish obsession is apparent. I will be using one of these for the following tutorial……
My inspiration for this weeks nails?…… a painted antler.
A bit of a weird piece, I realize, but I just loved the simplicity and the colors.
So, why not create this same pattern for my nails?!
First paint your nails in Finger Paints’ Tiffany Imposter
(I LOVE this color!)
Then, using tape, tape off the center of each nail.
*I have been having a lot of trouble with scotch tape lately, often pulling off the color below it. So, this time I tried blue painting tape. It still caused the same problems. I think the best thing to do is paint with your base color, wait a full day, then tape as necessary. Still working on perfecting this step.*
Then paint remaining portion of nails in Sephora by OPI’s Already Famous (one of my most favorite colors!). Make sure to do two coats here so the base color does not peek through.
Once dry, carefully pull tape off.
*The good thing about this is that if you pull the tape off and the base color comes off with it, as it inevitably will, then it is super easy to fix. Just grab your base color and do a quick swipe for a touch-up. I totally had to do this on at least four nails *
Let dry.
Then, using Salley Hansen’s Nail Pen in Black, draw the following print on each nail as seen in pic:
Let dry completely. And when I say “completely,” I mean totally and fully, there is not chance that it will every smudge, dry.
*These Salley Hansen Nail Art Pen’s are tricky. You think they are dry, you have been sitting patiently for a couple of hours, then you go to wash your hands or paint a top coat and they smear all over the place. Very frustrating.*
Make sure to coat your nails in a healthy top coat, to seal in the nail art pens and give your nails a nice shine. The top coat makes a world of difference on these nails; don’t forget this step!
(Up close like this you can see the smudges these pens make)
All in all, I really like this pattern and these nails. Just wish the pens and tape didn’t give me so much trouble. If you follow this tutorial, I say plan this out over a couple of days, so that you do the base color one day, the tape and second color on the next day, and the nail pens and top coat on the following day. Let me know how it works out for ya!
You pay for what you get, as the saying goes. Usually, the old adage is true *except* when it’s Christmas time! Oh, I do love a good gift set. (As you know.)
What a spectrum! There's a little bit of everything.
Eighteen mini bottles — nice! I am of two minds when it comes to mini bottles.
On the one hand (pun intended), I love that they’re less expensive, so you can load up on way more options than you could if you were buying full-size bottles.
On the other hand, I find that the little bottles dry up pretty quickly. You can always invest in some actual, legitimate nail polish thinner (yes, it exists… and NO, using nail polish remover as a thinner is not recommended by true purists such as myself). Alternatively, you can just embrace the fact that this is a one-time or two-time polish and make the most out of it.
If you’re a big fan of Sephora by OPI, note that many of the colors in this set are some of the line’s most popular shades, so you may end up with dupes if you’ve got a stash already going.
At $48 for the set, this breaks down to ~$2.50 a bottle. This would be an awesome gift for a young lady in your life who’s just beginning to develop her very own nail polish stash — and would be just as perfect for that special someone who’s already obsessed with polish. And if that “someone” is YOU (nothing wrong with a little treat for yourself)…
My recommendation is finding two or three friends and going in on the polish together so that you can all get your favorite shades! If all of you seem to be liking the same shades (uh-oh!), I suggest this “grab bag” method:
Putting all of the little bottles in a bag or box — however you’d like so that the drawing is blind
Roll a dice or do rock / paper / scissors to see who grabs first, then take turns grabbing until all bottles have been distributed
Then, it’s up to each girl:
Keep what you grabbed, or
Discuss trading options on a bottle-per-bottle basis
Hey, nail polish distribution is serious business, okay?
I’ve tried the Sally Hansen Salon Effects nail polish strips before and really, really loved them. That’s why, when I was doing my annual self-indulgent birthday shopping spree at Sephora back in September, I had to try Sephora’s version. What I immediately noticed was that the patterns were more fashion-forward than what Sally Hansen was offering. Oh, and also the price. Quite a bit more expen$ive. In the name of research, I succumbed.
First of all, the pattern in real life is awesome. It’s not pixilated at all; it looks like a work of art on your nails. Some called the print “wallpaper-like” but I think they meant that in the very best way possible. Ahem. I did get tons of compliments, for what it’s worth!
Despite the name “Chinese Blossom,” the pattern did not strike me as overtly Asian. When I hear “chinese blossom,” I think “cherry blossom,” which are very distinctive flowers. Sephora’s Chinese Blossom Nail Patch Art looks more Victorian to me. You be the judge!
Traditional "cherry blossom" Chinese art
Anna Sui clutch
A Victorian black floral tray
Okay, okay, this is an Oriental fan. Perhaps these are true "Chinese Blossoms."
And now, some pictures of my experience.
The usual supplies. I didn't end up using the base coat, though.
Hmm. Deceptively simple description on the Sephora site. We'll see about this!
8 sizes to choose from, 16 strips total. Same number as Sally Hansen Salon Effects...
Patches are trimmed and ready to be filed! If you look closely, that's a Franken-nail.
Ready for a top coat! I just love the way this looks.
Oof. The aftermath. Not as bad as it looks, I swear.
Oh dayum, mah nailz are so FLY.
And now onto the nitty gritty.
Application — Relatively easy.
These seemed slightly thicker than the Sally Hansen Salon Effects, so they weren’t as flexible and easy to stretch. A friend of mine recommended blasting each strip with a hair dryer for a few seconds to warm it up, and then it’ll be more pliable. (Thanks for the tip, Kelsey!)
Shapes & Shaping — Not too good, not that bad.
The sizing seemed a little off on these. I think Sally Hansen offers a better array of pre-cut sizes. I found myself making Franken-nails by creating thin strips out of the excess of the patches I’d already applied, so that I could literally “fill the gap” on the sides of a few nails. With a busy pattern like this, it wasn’t too noticeable. Still a bit of a hassle, though.
The shaping of the nails was a little troublesome, too. The directions read, “Remove surplus by folding nail sticker under the nail: the excess tears away easily.” But it’s just not that easy. I ended up using nail clippers to trim away the overhang of the patch, so there was no extra material and it lined up exactly with my already-filed nail. Then I gently filed & smoothed away any weird angles…
To Top Coat or Not to Top Coat? — Oh, you know it. But beware.
I love a glossy finish. I used a top coat when I tried out the Check It Out (houndstooth) Sally Hansen Salon Effects, and it took the look to a whole new level. When I used a top coat on the Girl Flower Sally Hansens, it ate away the pattern a little bit and turned what were once bright flowers into a pastel bouquet. I knew I was playing with fire when I decided to add a top coat to these Sephora Nail Patches.
But I did it anyway, and I payed the price. The top coat shrunk my perfectly trimmed patches, leaving a thin white line (my real nail) at the tips. Grrr.
S.O.S. (N.P.A)!! — In case of emergency!
This called for an emergency tactic. I used my trusty Sally Hansen Black Heart and carefully sealed the tips of my nails, covering the exposed white. The black polish blended perfectly with the black background of the pattern. Problem solved!
Wear & Tear — Typical for a nail polish sticker.
I wore these for a week with minimal chipping. Keep in mind, these were my Thanksgiving Nailz, so I was helping out with lots of cooking & cleaning. They began to get little chips on the seventh day, but considering what they’d been through, I was impressed.
The one thing that drives me crazy — and this is an issue with nail polish strips / stickers in general, not specifically Sephora’s — is that you quickly develop a “ridge” between the top of the patch and your cuticle as soon as your nails begin to grow. And what’s worse than looking at that ever-growing space? Washing your hair and feeling individual strands get stuck in (or worse, UNDER the) ridge. It’s… eugh, omg, I can’t even talk about it. Chills. Chills down my spine. Gah.
Recommend? I think so.
I would advise using the Sally Hansen Salon Effects nail polish strips if it’s your first time, since they’re easier to use, have more of an assortment of sizes, and are less expensive. I’ll stick with Sally Hansen for my nail polish strip needs… unless Sephora comes out with a new, gorgeous pattern like Chinese Blossom that I can’t get anywhere else, in which case, game on.
BONUS! The package is genius in that Sephora provides a piece of magic silver tape so that you can reseal your leftovers! One of the biggest bummers about the Sally Hansen Salon Effects is that it feels like such a waste; you throw so many away! I am sure the sooner you use the Sephora strips you’re able to save, the better, but it was still a nice gesture of them to provide some way to at least tryto entertain the possibility of using them up completely.
Ooh, so THAT's what that little silver tape is for!
Save my extrees? Don't mind if I do!
xxo, GLOSS
P.S. I was in St. Louis for Thanksgiving, hence the pic of the Gateway Arch. Livin’ large!
That's not an airplane, that's the Arch. And it was c-c-cold!
First of all, there were formerly three colors of nails inc. Magnetic Polish; a plum (Houses of Parliament), a pewter (Trafalgar Square) and a gold (Big Ben). The gold was recalled, I think because it just wasn’t magnetic enough; the design was not very noticeable. Sephora very recently released a new third color, a deep and beautiful teal (Whitehall Teal). Although one magnetic polish is probably enough for my Stash, the new shade is verrry tempting.
I did a little research and learned that pewter (“Trafalgar Square”) was probably my best bet. The darker the color is, the more noticeable your magnetic design will be.
I also watched this video tutorial, featuring Thea Green, the founder of nail inc. I highly recommend it. First and firstmostly, it does a great job explaining the basic technique. Second, the VO is so charmingly British, and unintentionally hilarious because whoever’s reading these lines is intense. Whoa! Or, as a Brit would say, “Bloody ‘ell!”
(Note: Both the Sephora site and the nails inc. video say there’s an “outer cap” and an “inner cap,” and you use the “inner cap” to apply the polish. I cannot imagine a weirder way to describe the bottle. It’s really this simple… There’s a chunky “overcap,” similar to Chanel’s Le Vernis, that you pull up and off. There’s a magnet built into the overcap. When you pull off the overcap, suddenly the polish looks like any other bottle of nail polish. What they’re calling an “inner cap” is really just the handle of the brush that you unscrew, as per usual. I think calling it an inner cap is confusing.)
Despite my prep… I still had many, many questions before I got started:
Is this best as an overlay, a la Crackle?
How thick do coats need to be?
How fast does the polish really begin to dry?
What happens if you move the magnet around over the wet polish?
I’m a two coat kind of girl. Does it even make sense to use this expensive polish for both coats, as the directions instruct one to do?
If you decide to use a different color for your first coat, what happens if you use:
Black?
White?
What about a neon? Neon red!
Or neon green!
Or maybe a similar color to the magnetic polish that you already own?
I needed to experiment. More accurately, I needed someone to experiment ON. But who would just be sitting around? I needed someone unlikely to engage in any physical activity (such as chores, working, etc.), to guarantee that no damage would come to the testing nailz in their delicate drying stage.
The answer was in front of me all along. My significant other just got SKYRIM, a brand-new video game. He was planning on sitting in front of the TV for hours anyway! All I needed to do was slap a little paint on ‘im.
Meet my new hand model. We shall call him Whiskey.
And so the experiment begins! From left: pinky is white, ring finger is black, middle finger is one "normal" coat of TF, index finger is a *thick* coat of TF. Thumb (not shown) is MAC Rain, the closest shade to TF that I had in my Stash.
Second step. From left: pinky is TF over white, ring finger is TF over black, middle finger is two coats of TF, index finger remains unchanged, still just one *thick* coat of TF.
Here's Whiskey's thumb: one coat MAC Rain with one coat TF over it. Gorgeous cuticles, Whisk!
Now for something different. From left: index finger is a thick coat of TF with the magnet turned at a 90 degree angle. Middle finger is two coats Orly Hot Shot, a neon red. Ring finger is a thick coat of TF and I moved the magnet around in a slow circle. Pinky is two coats China Glaze Kiwi-Coolada, a neon green.
See the dot in the ring finger swirl? I glopped so much polish on — the magnetic particles became so strong that the polish stretched up and away from my nail like a stalagmite. I lifted the magnet a little higher and the nail polish settled down, but left a dot. Watch out for that when you’re applying thick coats.
Here you can see the nice swoop on the index finger. Middle finger is one coat of TF over Hot Shot. Ring finger remains unchanged. Pinky is one coat TF over Kiwi-Coolada.
Ubiquitous nail polish blog pose. Whiskey's a pretty good hand model. Minus the mysterious scratches and occasional raggedy cuticle.
Pinky is a softer version of the stripey look, thanks to the white base coat. Black on the ring finger resulted in the nail with the greatest contrast. Middle finger's fine, not significantly better than index finger. Thumb is not noteworthy either.
... aand, back to Skyrim.
This is kind of cool; I held the magnet against the bottle and lines developed beneath the glass! I wonder if I have any other polish lying around that may react to the magnet?
Essie Ridge Filling Base Coat. <3
One coat OPI Alpine Snow.
Two coats OPI Alpine Snow. So glossy! Great coverage.
I applied a slightly-thicker-than-usual coat of TF to my pinky and held the magnet very close to my nail for 15 seconds.
Now that is some nice striation!
Lighting's really weird and 70s here, but here's the complete set.
On my way to work; this is natural light.
Still driving! This is Trafalgar Square in beautiful Los Angeles morning sunlight.
Last pic! There's just something enchanting about the sun lighting up my magnetic particles here. This is science? This is MAGIC.
TO RECAP:
Is this best as an overlay, a la Crackle? SURE! Make sure you do a nice thick-ish coat, though, because you will see streaks from the brush if you’re not thorough.
How thick do coats need to be? A typical, thin coat for your first coat. For your second coat… slap it on.
How fast does the polish really begin to dry? I don’t think it dries unusually fast for a polish. What I do know is that you must move quickly; the more liquid the polish is when you first place the magnet over your nail, the better the design will be.
What happens if you move the magnet around over the wet polish? When I turned the magnet sideways, I got a weird sort of swoop-curve. (See above). I recommend placing the magnet over your nail as soon as you’ve applied your thick coat of polish, and then hold steady for 15 seconds if you want a high-contrast design. For a slightly more subtle, softer look, apply less polish and hold the magnet ever so slightly father away from your nail.
I am a two coat kind of girl. Does it even make sense to use this expensive polish for both coats? Well, if you’re unlikely to let anyone borrow this polish from you (you wicked thing) then just go all out. Thin first coat, thick second coat. If you really want to conserve this polish, then by all means use a different color for the first coat.
If you decide to use a different color for your first coat, what happens if you use:
Black? High contrast striation!
White? Very glowy undertones; troublesome tip-wear.
What about a neon? Neon Red! Spiderman!
Or neon green! Not recommended!
Or maybe a similar color to the magnetic polish that you already own? A wise decision.
You may have guessed from the title that my favorite season is Summer. I just love everything about summer, the heat, the sun, beaches, bikinis, and a pretty umbrella in my refreshing cocktail! With that in mind, this manicure was created in remembrance of my summer and all the fun times it brought.
This is a light and fun manicure that is understated and easy to do! Although it is now fall and I am supposed to be thinking of jewel tones, it is incredibly simple and elegant, making it appropriate for any situation or season….
Step 1: Coat your nails in a base coat. I used Sally Hansen’s Double Duty, because it works as a base coat and top coat…and that is just plain efficient! However, any base coat you prefer will do.
Let dry completely.
Step 2: Double coat your nails in Essie’s Topless and Barefoot. This color looks alright in just one coat, but the second coat is quite fabulous!
Let dry completely.
Step 3: Using regular scotch tape, tear off 5 strips approximately 1 and a 1/2 inches in length. Then cut each of the 5 strips in half, lengthwise.
Now you will have 10 strips of tape, 1 for each finger.
Step 4: Place one piece of tape approximately 1/3 of the way from the tip of your finger nail. I suggest you start by placing the tape directly to the center of the nail (as opposed to the side), which will help you get a straight line all the way across your nails.
Once the tape is straight across your nail, fold down any excess around your fingers.
Also, just start by taping only one hand, as two taped hands will make the painting process cumbersome.
This is not necessarily meant to be a french tip, rather slightly larger than the tip of your nail with more of a straight line. Play around with it and see what works for you.
Step 6: Once your tips are dry, slowly and carefully pull the tape off each of your fingers.
Depending on what kind of tape you use, you may have a sticky residue left on your nails. If this happens, don’t worry! Just carefully wash off the residue with soap and warm water before you begin with the next steps.
Step 7: Complete steps 4-6 on your second hand.
Step 8: Using the same base/top coat (Sally Hansen Double Duty), polish your nails off with a thick top coat.
*
