Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 23, 2015 16:26:01 GMT
I am so not a girly girl. I am horrible at applying nail polish to me or anyone else. I do have a 10 year old girl who really wants me to paint her nails more often, so I am trying. LOL
My biggest problem is that my nails smudge quickly no matter how long I let them dry. I think I need better polish. (I am trying Jamberry, too, but only want to wear it as an accent nail.)
So...what is a good, but not ridiculously expensive polish to get? Yes, I have been know to buy polish that costs less than $2, so maybe I'd better stop doing that.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 23, 2015 16:32:46 GMT
You need a quick-drying top coat. All of the nail polish companies make them. I prefer Sally Hansen's, but a lot of people like Seche Vite (*I stopped using it when pregnant because it contains embryonic mutagens).
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lizacreates
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Post by lizacreates on Sept 23, 2015 16:43:10 GMT
I've been using Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Top Coat (red bottle) for years and been pleased. It really dries quickly and protects your nail color.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 23, 2015 16:46:05 GMT
Hmmm...I've tried top coats...still smudges. LOL I must really be bad at this.
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Post by gar on Sept 23, 2015 16:47:58 GMT
Also don't apply too thickly.
When you dip the brush in the polish remove a little from one side of the brush against the inside of the bottle. Place the brush first a few millimetres away from the cuticle and then gently nudge the colour towards the cuticle then it won't be so likely to flood it.
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Gennifer
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Post by Gennifer on Sept 23, 2015 16:51:38 GMT
Are you using a quick-dry top coat, and not just a regular top coat? They are two different things. My favorite is an indie one called Glisten & Glow. I paint two coats of polish and then one coat of the G&G. Don't wait between coats. By the time I finish my last finger, the first one is dry to the touch. I generally sit for another 30 minutes or so to be safe, but as long as you're not going directly to washing dishes or digging in the garden, you're usually good. |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 23, 2015 16:52:20 GMT
Hmmm...I've tried top coats...still smudges. LOL I must really be bad at this. I did my nails before bed last night: bottom coat, 2 coats polish, SH top coat. Went to bed 30 min later and my nails are perfect this morning. I am careful when I fall asleep to make sure my nails aren't mashed into sheets, though! |
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Post by gar on Sept 23, 2015 16:53:55 GMT
OP - are you preparing the nails properly? If your nails are greasy with handcream/soap/natural oils the polish won't adhere to your nail correctly. You need to wipe over them with polish remover first.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 23, 2015 16:54:36 GMT
Are you using a quick-dry top coat, and not just a regular top coat? They are two different things. My favorite is an indie one called Glisten & Glow. I paint two coats of polish and then one coat of the G&G. Don't wait between coats. By the time I finish my last finger, the first one is dry to the touch. I generally sit for another 30 minutes or so to be safe, but as long as you're not going directly to washing dishes or digging in the garden, you're usually good. Do you use any other products from this company? I had cuticle oil years ago that I liked and have never found anything else I like as much. |
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Post by kernriver on Sept 23, 2015 16:59:02 GMT
QUICK DRYING topcoat. Its a whole new ballgame with this stuff. Seche Vite is one brand you can get at CVS. But all the nail polish companies make them. Just make sure it says 'quick drying'
Also, get OK with the fact that nail polish now costs about $10 a bottle. Its miles and miles better than the old stuff. I remember putting on thick globby Revlon in the '70's. The nail polishes of today is thin but you get full coverage (unless you select a sheer polish). It glides on so nicely. You'll get the hang of it in no time. Watch a few youtube videos. You can pick up some technique there.
plus doing someone else's nails is even easier than your own because you don't have to use your left hand.
Have fun playing nail salon!
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Gennifer
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Post by Gennifer on Sept 23, 2015 17:03:11 GMT
Also, the polish brand shouldn't make a big difference in drying time. One of my favorite polishes that is INCREDIBLY forgiving is the Pixie Dust line by Zoya. It's a textured (but not rough at all!) glitter polish. My absolute favorites are the original 12 18 (Original Pixie Dust, Summer 2013, and Fall 2013), which are a really fine glitter that looks like sugared gumdrops. SO PRETTY. If you smudge or chip, you can just dab a little bit more on and it will settle into place and look fantastic. They are officially discontinued by Zoya, but you can still get them on their website or places like Amazon. Here's a couple of my photos of it... It's super awesome, but it's hard to make it look as good in a photo as it does in real life! The two darker purples and the solid dark grey are the pixies.   |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 23, 2015 17:03:16 GMT
Thanks for all the tips! Guess I need to do some shopping for some new/better polish.  |
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Gennifer
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Post by Gennifer on Sept 23, 2015 17:04:33 GMT
Are you using a quick-dry top coat, and not just a regular top coat? They are two different things. My favorite is an indie one called Glisten & Glow. I paint two coats of polish and then one coat of the G&G. Don't wait between coats. By the time I finish my last finger, the first one is dry to the touch. I generally sit for another 30 minutes or so to be safe, but as long as you're not going directly to washing dishes or digging in the garden, you're usually good. Do you use any other products from this company? I had cuticle oil years ago that I liked and have never found anything else I like as much. I haven't tried anything else from them, sorry. |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 23, 2015 17:04:24 GMT
Gennifer...that is beautiful! The glitter would be right up my daughter's ally!
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 23, 2015 17:05:54 GMT
Do you use any other products from this company? I had cuticle oil years ago that I liked and have never found anything else I like as much. I haven't tried anything else from them, sorry. No prob! Know you are a polish expert so thought I'd ask LOVE your manis above! |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 23, 2015 17:08:29 GMT
I know I don't HAVE to get better brands, but what are some good ones (and where are they sold)? I do have a Sephora.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 23, 2015 17:15:01 GMT
I love polishes from L'Oreal, China Glaze, Sally Hansen, Color Club, Sinful Colours, Orly, OPI. OPI tends to be my least favourite, usually; I think the brush size/shape and formula just isn't best-suited for my nails. I don't spend a lot on nail polish; one of my bests was from the dollar store.  |
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scrappert
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Post by scrappert on Sept 23, 2015 17:25:08 GMT
I have been using zoya since there was discussions on here about their sales. I love them. Like Gennifer says, the pixie dust is the most forgiving. And they are so pretty. I get a lot of compliments when I have them on my nails. |
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Gennifer
Drama Llama
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Post by Gennifer on Sept 23, 2015 17:25:54 GMT
I know I don't HAVE to get better brands, but what are some good ones (and where are they sold)? I do have a Sephora. My favorite, by far, is Zoya. Of the 300+ polishes I have, Zoya is at least 200 of them. OPI is next (maybe 50?), and Essie and China Glaze are the ones I have the fewest of, with maybe 10-15 each. I also have a bottle or two of a few different indie brands, Sephora brand, etc. mixed in. You can buy Zoya at Ulta, but they don't keep the whole line in stock, so I buy them directly from their website: Zoya.com. I think it's down this morning, which I've never seen happen. I can't pull it up. |
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Gravity
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Post by Gravity on Sept 23, 2015 17:36:23 GMT
I know I don't HAVE to get better brands, but what are some good ones (and where are they sold)? I do have a Sephora. You can buy Zoya at Ulta, but they don't keep the whole line in stock, so I buy them directly from their website: Zoya.com. I think it's down this morning, which I've never seen happen. I can't pull it up. Zoya tweeted saying their offices and customer service are closed today in observance of Yom Kippur. I'm not sure if that affects their website too. |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 23, 2015 17:37:31 GMT
My husband will NOT thank you. LOL So pretty! Starting a wish list now. Apparently I am a closet nail polish person.
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keithurbanlovinpea
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Flowing with the go...
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Post by keithurbanlovinpea on Sept 23, 2015 18:03:01 GMT
Also, the polish brand shouldn't make a big difference in drying time. One of my favorite polishes that is INCREDIBLY forgiving is the Pixie Dust line by Zoya. It's a textured (but not rough at all!) glitter polish. My absolute favorites are the original 12 (Spring and Summer 2013), which are a really fine glitter that looks like sugared gumdrops. SO PRETTY. If you smudge or chip, you can just dab a little bit more on and it will settle into place and look fantastic. They are officially discontinued by Zoya, but you can still get them on their website or places like Amazon. Here's a couple of my photos of it... It's super awesome, but it's hard to make it look as good in a photo as it does in real life! The two darker purples and the solid dark grey are the pixies. Curiosity is piqued about Pixie... is it hard to remove like other glitter polishes? |
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RosieKat
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Post by RosieKat on Sept 23, 2015 18:26:01 GMT
"Test drive" just a bottle or two of Zoya, maybe that you buy locally, such as at Ulta. Tons of people love them, I love their colors but they are extra chippy with me. I've found a particular combo of base and top that work OK, but they're kind of fussy for me.
I'm actually loving the Sally Hansen "gel" polish that they sell. (The one that does not require a special lamp, it's just normal application and removal.) You do have to use it with their top coat (it dries pretty quickly), but you can apply a quick dry top coat over that if you want. The best other brands for ME seem to be Nails Inc. (at Sephora) and A-England (not sure where you can buy it now).
In addition to using a quick dry top coat, there are also sprays and drops you can use. When I do my 9-year-old's nails, I'll use the quick dry top coat AND the quick dry spray. My favorite is the OPI spray, but there are several brands. Essie, Zoya, OPI all make the drops - I just find them kind of messy, but they do work.
If you get a quick-dry top coat, be forewarned that they often get thick or stringy in the bottle pretty quickly. You can get additional solvent or nail polish thinner for that - just a couple of drops at a time, and it'll thin back out. I usually have to get that at a place like Sally Beauty Supply, but I have seen it at Ulta before, and of course, online.
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Gennifer
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Post by Gennifer on Sept 23, 2015 18:26:15 GMT
Curiosity is piqued about Pixie... is it hard to remove like other glitter polishes? For me, the problem with removing most glitter polishes is the larger-sized glitter, which gets stuck and shreds the heck out of your cotton pad. The original 18 (I lied earlier!) pixie dusts have such a fine glitter that it's not really a problem. They are comparable to taking off a darker colored polish: It comes off, but does take a bit more work to make sure you get it all. Traditional glitter polishes fall into the "I'd rather get a root canal than try to remove this" category for me. Does that answer your question at all? (Side note, if you use gauze pads instead of cotton pads, all of your polish will come off much easier, and it doesn't leave fibers like cotton sometimes does.) The later ones, called "Magical Pixie Dust," have large glitter along with the fine. Stick to the first 18 if you're going to try it. The colors that are the original formula are: Dahlia, London (grey from above), Chyna, Vespa, Nyx, Godiva, Solange, Beatrix, Destiny, Miranda, Stevie (the lavender in my photo above), Liberty, Arabella, Carter, Chita, Dhara, Sunshine, and Tomoko. My favorites are Tomoko (silvery-gold), Dahlia (black), London (grey), Stevie (lavender), Arabella (fuchsia), Destiny (coral), and Vespa (lt. green). |
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keithurbanlovinpea
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Post by keithurbanlovinpea on Sept 23, 2015 18:38:48 GMT
Curiosity is piqued about Pixie... is it hard to remove like other glitter polishes? For me, the problem with removing most glitter polishes is the larger-sized glitter, which gets stuck and shreds the heck out of your cotton pad. The original 18 (I lied earlier!) pixie dusts have such a fine glitter that it's not really a problem. They are comparable to taking off a darker colored polish: It comes off, but does take a bit more work to make sure you get it all. Traditional glitter polishes fall into the "I'd rather get a root canal than try to remove this" category for me. Does that answer your question at all? (Side note, if you use gauze pads instead of cotton pads, all of your polish will come off much easier, and it doesn't leave fibers like cotton sometimes does.) The later ones, called "Magical Pixie Dust," have large glitter along with the fine. Stick to the first 18 if you're going to try it. The colors that are the original formula are: Dahlia, London (grey from above), Chyna, Vespa, Nyx, Godiva, Solange, Beatrix, Destiny, Miranda, Stevie (the lavender in my photo above), Liberty, Arabella, Carter, Chita, Dhara, Sunshine, and Tomoko. My favorites are Tomoko (silvery-gold), Dahlia (black), London (grey), Stevie (lavender), Arabella (fuchsia), Destiny (coral), and Vespa (lt. green). Makes sense. Godiva and Dahlia are the ones catching my eye. Thanks! |
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Gennifer
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Post by Gennifer on Sept 23, 2015 18:55:24 GMT
Godiva and Dahlia are the ones catching my eye. Thanks! Godiva is very pretty, just not for me with my skin tone. It's perfect as a nude on my sister! |
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Post by cmpeter on Sept 23, 2015 19:16:37 GMT
I use the Essie Good to Go quick drying top coat. Love it. You can get it at Target, Ulta, etc.
I have a few of the Zoya Pixie Dust colors. I think they look fab and don't find them that difficult to remove. But, I do find the tips seem to wear off more quickly than regular polish. Almost like the texture is acting like fine grit sandpaper. They also look cool with a coat of clear on top, more like a very fine glitter polish.
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Post by hop2 on Sept 23, 2015 19:28:36 GMT
It's all in your base and top coat. I just did 10 days in a $1.49 sinful colors polish! I had to take it off due to nail growth at the back.
Just get a good base coat and a fast drying top coat.
Here's what I do:
Push back my cuticles, trim, file,whatever
Wipe my nails with alcohol wipe
Base coat currently nail savvy 'gripper' base coat
Color lately it's been $1.49 sinful colors or $3 china glaze
( sometimes a layer of polish w confetti )
Fast dry top coat currently seche vite
Last glue on any accents if you have.
It VERY important to watch the jamberry video and follow exactly or they will peel right off. It takes me as much time as liquid nail polish to do right ( heating every piece before and after ). But once done ypur good to go right away.
Good luck!
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Post by cbet on Sept 23, 2015 19:29:07 GMT
I actually am a big fan of Wet-N-Wild Megalast, which is only about $2 a bottle. It has a very wide brush, though, which might make it tricky to use on a 9-year-old's hands.
NYC makes a quick-dry topcoat in their "New-York-Minute" line; I believe that it's called "Grand Central Station" and it works really well. My absolute favorite is the speed dry topcoat from Nina Ultra Pro - you can get it at Sally Beauty for around $4 a bottle and it doesn't seem to have the issues of getting thick and stringy like the Seche Vite.
I'll admit that I'm a fan of inexpensive polish, because the expensive stuff doesn't seem to last any longer than the cheap! So my idea of premium isn't as "premium" as most. I love Fingerpaints (Sally Beauty's store brand), China Glaze and Orly, as well as the Wet N Wild and Sinful Colors.
A couple of hints for removing the gritty, glittery colors without shredding your cotton balls: soak the cotton ball in acetone polish remover, put it on your nail and wrap aluminum foil around it to hold it in place. Some of those rubber finger things from the office supply store (you wear them on the tips of your fingers to help flip thru stacks of paper without licking your fingers) work even better than the aluminum foil, if you can find a size that fits over the cotton ball and holds it tight. Let the cotton sit on your nail for 5 or ten minutes, then grab the foil and cotton ball all at the same time, by kind of pinching your finger and pressing down against the nail and sliding the foil/cotton ball off), and most of the polish will whisk away with the cotton. This way, you aren't scrubbing at the glitter, trying to get it to come off, and scratching your nail with the loose glitter that's now on the cotton.
You can also use pieces of felt instead of the cotton.
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Post by hop2 on Sept 23, 2015 19:33:41 GMT
Oh for glitter polish I use the sally Hansen peel off base coat and never worry about getting it off. I get 7 days out of it and that's fine for me.
I also use the little tiny jars of polish remover w a sponge in them. So no pads of remover. The big jars are too big and clumsy but the little ones are perfect. Only issue is they only seem to be available at Sally Beauty supply. Those used to be very where!
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