Showing posts with label gel manicure. Show all posts
Showing posts with label gel manicure. Show all posts
More March Beautification!
Went out last night and celebrated the first day of March with some sweet friends of mine. March Beautification is turning out to be my favorite holiday season.
The great weather is still holding out so that is also nice.
So, as I mentioned in my last post, I am full on trying to come up with the ultimate at-home manicure. Based on recommendations from friends and the world wide web, here is what I have so far (from the base of the nail up):
1. Develop 10 Calcium Treatment (to try to strengthen my sad, peeling, weak nails)
2. Orly Bonder (rubberized base coat). This go around, I didn't wait for the Bonder to dry before putting the color on. I read that it worked best that way. We shall see.
3. 2 coats of Orly Galaxy Girl (dark purple with sparkles!)
4. Seche Vite Quick Dry Top coat (going to do a layer of this every day to protect).
WELCOME MARCH!!!
Goodbye to the two worst months of the year (with the exception of a few birthdays of some important people in my life).
To usher in the new SPRING season and MARCH BEAUTIFICATION, I purchased the darling Toms Wedges above. Once I break my feet in (bc they have gotten soft, being pampered in socks all winter), these will be oh, so comfy. I love them!
As much as I love getting my nails done with Gelish, I just don't have the time to run by there every other week. So, I am trying a combo of Develop 10 Calcium Gel (to presumably strengthen my nails) and Orly Bonder which is a rubberized nail polish that is claims to make your manicure last TWO WEEKS. Which, as you may remember, is the same claim that Gelish and all the other gel nail polish make.
I would take pics, but its raining here. Not enough light. I painted them Friday and they still look good.
HAPPY MARCH BEAUTIFICATION EVERYONE!!!!!!!
How does OPI Axxium Stand Up?
So, TOTALLY in the interest of science, I went to Venetian Nail Spa at the Summit to try the OPI Axxium gel nail color. Just to compare it to Gelish and see how it stood up. See, right after I took the picture in the previous post, my nail broke and my polish chipped. I finally peeled it off on Friday. That's when I went to Veneitan to try the competition.
Venetian doesn't have the 20 second LED lights that L'Amour has. They use the 2 minute UV version, thus the manicure took about 45 minutes. Somedays, I wouldn't mind lazing around in a nail salon for an hour, but today I was kind of in a hurry. The painting process took alot longer too. I think the color I chose (Black Cherry Chutney) was about out and she was kind of scraping the bottom of the jar for it - so that could have been part of the problem. Another drawback, the fancy Venetian treatment was $15 more than the L'Amour mani. For me, this is a great deal of money to spend on something so frivolous. That is a HUGE strike against it.
Now for the upside. This picture was taken today (Tuesday) and there is nary a chip or even any wearing to this manicure. In fact, I don't think a nuclear missile will remove this stuff. The tips of my nails would wear within a couple of days with Gelish (which I just chalked up to the laws of physics), but this mani looks EXACTLY like it did when I left the salon. The only exception is the grow out at the bottom. No chips. No rub off. I am amazed. What is in this stuff?
The verdict? Still out. The price is an issue for me. However, if this mani REALLY lasts 3 weeks instead of the nearly two from Gelish, it could be worth it.
A new Gelish Manicure, layout and necklace
I forget the name of the color. Nine days later, no chips, still shiny and looks great. Yay Gelish!!! I have gotten several of my friends hooked on it too. Did some scrapping over the holidays. Here is one of the ones I made. I'll WOW you with the other ones later on this week.
Hope you all had a fun Thanksgiving and have lots to be thankful for!!!!
Escape Artist, Christmas Presents and a Manicure Update.
Here is a picture of my wrapped Christmas Presents. Yes, Dear Readers. I am COMPLETELY done. No more gifts to buy. No more presents to wrap. I hope this will let me enjoy the season a little more this year. Probably not, but at least I can hope!
I really can't blame Gelish for this one. The formerly indestructable fingernails I had in my youth are gone and have been replaced with peeling, splitting, paper thin nails. Thus, one of the reasons I wanted to get regular manicures. Not only are my natural nails unsightly, but they had gotten so damaged, they actually hurt. So, two weeks in, they are no longer perfect, but its not Gelish's fault. I still consider it a success.
Posted by
Katie Burnett
In:
gel manicure,
gelish
Almost 2 Weeks and Still Going Strong
Nary a chip on these nails. They are not splitting or peeling (as they usually do) and they are even GROWING. It's nice. I'm going to see if I can go all the way to the 3 week mark. We shall see. Amanda got one too!
As for the layouts on the last post, why, yes Mrs. McElveen - you did spy some Junkitz on that layout. Good eye.
Been wrapping Christmas Gifts like a madwoman. I will photograph them soon and post. Went with a purple/gold/orange color scheme this year. Yes, it's loud and it borders on tacky, but I dig it.
Gelish nails - Day 4 plus RayLa and some layouts!
Today is the 4th day of wear on the Gelish manicure I got Saturday. I have nothing but positive results. Peeps are amazed that it still looks completely fresh 4 days after the fact. I haven't babied the manicure either. I do all the same stuff I've always done - wash dishes, clothes, kids, work, etc. Not a chip. No fading. Sometimes I think they start to feel a little sticky when I wash my hair, but once I get out they are still glossy and unflawed. I'll keep you posted.
Went to see Ray LaMontagne at BJCC last night. He is an amazing performer. He sang songs I don't like on the CD and I could have listened to them for hours. The opening act, Secret Sisters (two actual sisters from Muscle Shoals, AL) were phenomenal. I am going to download some of their stuff from iTunes. Levon Helms, who apparently is some kind of godfather of Rock & Roll, was also there. I think he was a last minute addition and he was all of a sudden the headliner. I can't complain - the concert was FOUR HOURS LONG.
I would have liked about 3 and a half of Ray and 30 mins of the Secret Sisters. I do respect all that Mr. Helms has done for music. I also respect he's been married to the same woman for a really long time and that he is a cancer survivor. However, I really was not wanting to see him in concert.
Also, we sat directly behind the Alabama version of Heidi and Spencer Pratt. They kept kissing and giggling during Ray. And Spencer had a bad, stale laundry odor. ick.
Did some layouts this weekend. They feature my favorite semi pro ball player! I finally got into the "banner" trend on the Throwing layout. I like the result, if I do say so myself.
Have a wonderful day!
Gelish!
Since my nails won't grow past the tip of my finger without splitting or peeling, I am hoping this will allow me to grow some nice, natural nails. I did the gel fill nails for a while and they left my nails in a very sad state. Plus the fact they would crack and I have an unnaturally serious fear of nail funguses (I think it's the Lamisil commercials with the cartoon fungus), I just couldn't do it anymore.
Since I have a renewed commitment to blogging, I will keep you all posted on the status of the Gelish Manicure.
Because there has to be pictures, here are some pics of some layouts I did this week. These are both a combo of the "Sweet Sue" and "Dear Diary" kits from Noel Mignon. All pictures courtesy of the ever brilliant, Virginia.
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