Seven Years of Wedded Bliss

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Hello Loves.  Today is Monday, which is usually a Nail School Chronicle post, but seeing as I haven't been in class for the past two weeks and today is my 7 year wedding anniversary, I decided to change it up a bit.  ;)

First things first, here's my Anniversary Mani.  I know it's not your typical Anniversary design, but there's a story behind it.  I'll get to that in a minute.  First, let's talk details.

The base for my mani is OPI DS Pewter.  DS Pewter is a black base that is loaded with silver shimmer and glitter.  I've had this one in my stash for a few months now but am just getting around to wearing it.  This one is a little on the thick side, but it only took two coats for opacity.  I found it easy to work with, which surprised me considering the consistency.  Sadly, it is very hard to photograph with all the shimmer.  Trust me on this one, this is one OPI you need in your stash if you love blacks and silvers.  :)

The musical note stamps are from Pueen 62 from the Buffet Collection.  I still love this set beyond words!  The ring finger is stamped using an image from a Fing'rs Stamp It Nail Art Kit.  I couldn't find a link to it, but I picked it up at Walmart.  :)  The stamping polishes are Mundo de Unas White and Mexican Pink.

Total side note, but please excuse my crazy orange skin.  Go ahead, ask me why I decided I needed to try a sunless tanner in January.  I promise I won't respond with a blank stare.  Ok, that's a lie.  I might.  I have absolutely no clue what possessed me to try it, but I definitely stained my hands in the process.  Oompa Loompa looks good on me, no?  lol

Ok, now for the fun stuff.  Why musical notes?  Well, seven years ago today, I married a musician.  Trust me, I know...mamas everywhere advise their daughters not to marry musicians.  But, you see, I come from a family of hunters.  So a man who packed a suitcase and moved 5 hours away from home on whim to sing in a band seemed like a catch!  Nevermind that Daddy corrupted him and turned him into a hunter a few months after we started dating.  By then, it was too late to kick him out.  ;)  Since Keith loves music and I love nails, it just seemed like the perfect combination to celebrate our Anniversary. 

Let me tell you, I married one hell of a man.  Of course he has his faults...all men do...but he's a catch for sure.  Case in point, just over a year ago we got into an argument about the amount of time I was spending on my nails.  At the time it was just a hobby, but I was spending hours upon hours playing with techniques and such.  How did I respond?  By starting a blog.  lol  What can I say?  I'm stubborn like that. 

Now, most men would have completely flipped their lids.  Keith, on the other hand, gave me a defeated look and became the best support structure a blogging wife could ever ask for.  I'm not kidding, y'all.  The man hates my obsession with gel polish and all things nails.  Hates it with a passion.  But he lets me test gels on him.  He walked around with bright pink nails for a week for me to see if the polish would fade.  He also shows my art to his friends and coworkers.  Yep, he's a keeper and begrudgingly my biggest fan.  lol

Now he's sitting here tapping his foot waiting on me to get in the shower so we can go out to a movie and dinner to celebrate (I'm writing on Sunday, of course).  So I'm going to call this one a wrap.  But before I go, allow me to share a short video of him pickin' and grinnin'.  Ok, ok, he's not pickin' and grinnin', but he is playing and singing.  Yep, my baby is now YouTube famous thanks to his sneaky little wife.  ;)  Not sure how he's going to feel about that.  lol

Check back on Wed for swatches of the new Pink Gellac colors available through Chickettes!

~Michelle

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Cute Little Dot Bunnies with OPI GelColor (Updated)

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Hello Loves.  I decided to revisit OPI GelColor now that I have a Robart Paint Shaker to see if I like the formula better once really shaken.  So I borrowed a few colors from a friend and gave them a whirl for this Easter mani.

To create this mani, I started with a base of OPI GelColor Funny Bunny and added large dots of Suzi Says Feng Shui and Strawberry Margarita.  I then used a smaller dotting tool to drag the color up from the dots to form the ears.  Once the bunny shapes were cured, I used my small dotting tool again to add two smaller dots under the heads for the bow ties and pulled the corners down to form slightly triangular shapes.  So simple, but the result is adorable.  The other dots are, well, random dots with the smaller dotting tool. 

So back to my new-found appreciation for OPI GelColor.  I can honestly say that the Robart Paint Shaker made all the difference in the world in these polishes.  In the past, I have found OPI to be very difficult to apply with major shrinkage even after shaking them well by hand.  After a minute in the Robart, they went on much smoother, and I think I actually like the brand now!  Want to see the swatches of the polishes I used for this mani?

The base is OPI GelColor Funny Bunny.  Funny Bunny is a milky white with a blue pearlescent sheen that I couldn't capture to save my life.  It is very pretty, but subtle.

The blue dots and bunnies are OPI GelColor Suzi Says Feng Shui.  This is a teal leaning blue cream that is right up my ally.

Finally, the pink dots and bunnies are OPI GelColor Strawberry Margarita.  This is a classic, medium pink cream.

So, I now retract my previous comments that I am not a fan of OPI GelColor.  If you have any that you find to be a pain, shake the life out of them and see if you change your mind too.  Oh, and I am completely in love with my Robart.  It makes a world of difference with Gelaze too!  While made for hobby paint, it works really well on polish and was highly recommended by several of my online friends who also use gel polish.  I'm so glad I finally broke down and ordered it!  My previous polish shaker, aka my husband, was starting to complain.  ;)

Edited to Add:

By request, here's the video of the polish shaker in action that I shared on Instagram :)



~Michelle

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Tips and Tricks: Using Regular Polish with Soak Off Gel

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When people ask me about soak off gel, there are several reasons I am given most as to why more people don't make the switch from regular polish.  1) "I have a large collection of nail polish.  I would hate for it to go to waste."  2) "I can't commit to a color for that long.  I like to change it up." 3) "I like to wear bold colors on the weekends, but I have to keep it conservative for work."

My answer to all of these reasons is usually something along the lines of "Ok, but why is that stopping you?"  One thing many people don't realize is that there are several ways to use RNP with SOG.  I'll list them now and elaborate on each in a few moments.  1) You can apply RNP over a SOG manicure.  2) You can sandwich RNP between layers of gel.  3) You can use RNP for nail art.

1) If you have a dress code for work or simply can't commit to a color for longer than a few days, you can still get the strength and protection of SOG without giving up your ability to change your nail color.  I wear RNP over my gel on a regular basis.  And the best part is you can apply and remove RNP without damaging the gel underneath!  Simply use non-acetone remover and you're good to go.  Plus there are added benefits to layering SOG under your RNP.  First, the RNP dries much faster over gel.  Second, the gel hides any ridges or imperfections.  This is awesome for metallic polishes that tend to show every flaw in the nail.  Third, the gel adds strength and protection to your nails to help reduce the risk of breaks.  Last but not least, RNP tends to wear longer without chips over SOG. 

I'm wearing this complete SOG manicure at the moment.  The color is OPI GelColor Bubble Bath.  It's a great, office friendly nude. 

But what fun is that?  So I've applied Sally Hansen Insta-dri in Jet Set Jade on top of my SOG mani.  Excuse the poor application.  I was in a bit of a hurry so I just slapped on a few coats and ran out the door.

I took a few quick pictures as I removed the polish from my index finger to show the pristine SOG mani under the RNP even after removal. 

So, in summary, you can wear RNP over a SOG mani and remove it non-acetone remover without damaging the SOG. 

2) If you have a bottle of RNP that you simply love but can't find a SOG alternative, no problem.  There are many types of polish that simply are not offered in SOG.  For example, linear holos.  I don't know why there isn't a SOG holo on the market, but I assume it has to do with the gel being too thick of a base for the holo pigments.  Either way, I love my holos and I love that I can still wear them without giving up the strength from the SOG mani.

When I wear my holos and other special RNP, I could layer them over the gel and use a RNP top coat, but I often want them to last even longer.  So I sandwich the RNP between gel layers.  Also, I should note that I can't wear RNP by itself.  I have tried every combination of base, color and top coat I possibly can, but it always chips within 24 hours.  I am simply too rough on my hands.  SOG has been a God send for me. 

Here are the steps to doing a successful RNP sandwich.
1) Begin your gel mani as usual, following your regular prep and cure the base coat.  Be sure to cap the tips, allowing a bit of gel to overflow onto the underside of nail as I show in this post.   
2) If you're using a semi-sheer RNP that needs undies, apply a coordinating gel color and cure.  If your RNP is opaque, you can skip this step.
3) Apply your gel top coat, cure as usual, and remove the tacky layer.
4) Apply your RNP as you usually would, allowing each coat to dry before adding the next.  Cap the tips, but be careful to leave a bit of the gel showing on the underside of the nail where you allowed it to overflow when you applied your base.  Having the gel that extends past the RNP on the underside of the tip gives the top coat something to grab. 
5) Finish with a RNP fast dry top coat if desired to protect your color until it has time to dry completely.  I usually wait at least 4 hours before continuing to step 5.
6) Give your nails a quick scrub with a nail brush and an oil cutting soap without moisturizers to remove any oil that may have come in contact with your nails while your RNP was drying.
7) Swipe the nails with isopropyl alcohol or dehydrating prep (as you would before beginning your SOG mani). 
8) Apply two coats of gel top coat, curing each as directed.  Be sure to cap the tips and wrap the top coat as you did the base in step 1 so that it extends past the RNP layer and completely encapsulates the RNP in gel. 
9) Remove the tacky layer, moisturize with cuticle oil, and you're done. 

This is the same gel mani pictured above (OPI GelColor Bubble Bath), but I have added two coats of Color Club Halo Hues Cloud Nine and topped it with a coat of Gelish Top It Off.  Sadly, my photography skills didn't capture it in all it's glory.  However, you can clearly see that the SOG top coat didn't hurt the holo effect.  Another added bonus: if you wear holo polishes, you know they often don't last long.  Sandwiching a holo is the perfect solution.  And the gel hides any imperfections that holos tend to accentuate. You also don't need an aqua base when using SOG. 

3) You can use those RNPs for nail art either on top of a SOG mani or sandwiched between gel layers.  I use RNP for stamping nail art as well as dotting and striping.  Actually, I have found that you can't really stamp with SOG polish.  If you can get it to transfer, it doesn't give crisp lines.  I have a number of stamping polishes, but I also found that most of my RNP stash will stamp. 

4) If none of the uses above appeal to you, then there's always one more way to use RNP.  Pedicures.  Though I do tend to use SOG on my toes as well.  ;)

As you can see, there are many ways to combine RNP with SOG.  You can use it to spice up a boring work appropriate SOG mani (or to hide a non-work appropriate SOG mani).  You can sandwich RNP between layers of gel for lasting wear.  And you can use RNP for nail art on SOG manis.  So if you're already using SOG, break out your old RNP stash and use those babies!  Or grab that new RNP that caught your eye at the drug store but you passed up because you only wear gel.  And if you're avoiding SOG due to one of the reasons I mentioned at the beginning of this post, I hope I have helped you put your fears aside.

~Michelle

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Weekly Mani: Peace, Love and OPI

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This week's mani is a dark one.  What can I say?  I'm in mourning.  Ok, fine...that's a bit dramatic.  The truth is, I needed to take the length down a bit as they had gotten so long I could barely unfasten my son's straps to his car seat.  So I started filing.  I should mention that I hate filing my nails.  I always end up taking off too much on one and having to fix the others just to over-file another.  It becomes this horrible cycle that continues until I have lost way more length than I intended.  That is exactly what happened last night, and I ended up losing 5mm of length when I was aiming for 2mm.  Now they feel like nubs, and my fingers look short and fat.  Since I tend to do this every time I try to take down the length, I have started defaulting to dark colors when it happens.

The good news is I have the awesome Peace, Love and OPI that I have swatched but haven't actually worn.  Of course, even though it's an incredible polish on it's own, I couldn't leave it "plain" so I stamped it.  Details below.

I had a hard time capturing the shift this time.  I have no clue how I managed to do it before.  A happy accident, I suppose.  So I'm going to show you two different shots.

Base: 2 coats of OPI Peace Love and OPI over 1 coat of Couture Little Black Dress
Stamping Polish: Mundo de Unas Black
Stamping Image: XL Y from Ali Express

Here's the original swatch picture that captures the shift much better.  You can also see why I layered it over a black base this time.  (Oh how I miss that length!)

That's all for today.  I have a ton of swatches to edit from today, so look for those later in the week.  Oh, and I also have 6 polishes from the IBD Just Gel Mad About Mod collection headed my way, so look for those some time next week.  I plan to swatch them as soon as they arrive.  :)

~Michelle

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Sometimes You Just Feel Like Going Nude

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Today, I have a few nude polish swatches to show you.  But first, a warning.  In preparation for today's post, I decided to Google "nude polish."  Little did I know, Google does not differentiate between "polish" and "Polish".  So here's your Google search lesson for the day:  when searching for nude polish swatches, it helps to be very specific in your search terms.  And even then, be aware of anyone standing behind you when you press enter!  ;)

Onto the swatches.  I actually don't have many nudes in my collection, which surprised me a little.  I guess I need to do something about that.  However, I do have a few and I swatched them for you.

First up, ASP Golden Opportunity.  ASP Soak Off Gel is a new addition to the SOG offerings available at Sally Beauty Supply.  They had some nice color offerings, but I resisted the urge to buy them all and picked up just one to test out.  It applied quite nicely.  I haven't tested the wear yet, but I will soon.  This one is extremely hard to photograph.  The base is a pinkish nude but it is loaded with golden shimmer.

The next nude on my list is Gelish Forever Beauty.  I have a fair number of Gelish polishes in my collection, but you likely won't see many of them swatched on this blog.  It's not that I have anything against Gelish.  It's simply that I have so many other brands and polishes to share and Andrea at Chickettes has covered Gelish beautifully!  With that said, Forever Beauty is a peach toned nude cream

My final nude swatch for today is OPI GelColor Bubble Bath.  Bubble Bath is the color I chose for my first Soak Off Gel experience and is the reason I got hooked.  It's such a soft, gorgeous pinkish nude.

~Michelle

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OPI GelColor: Random swatches

I admit it, I couldn't think of a good title for this post.  But believe me, it's worth a peek!  I have three OPI Gelcolors to show you today.  Two new, one old.  These three really challenged my photography skills. 

First up, the older OPI GelColor Thanks a Windmillion.  This is a gorgeous cool green with blue undertones.  And it wreaked havoc on my camera. I had to play with the lighting some to get the color right, so it completely washed out my skin.  Also, please excuse the dust on the bottle.  This one has been in my stash for a while. 

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I admit, I'm usually not a fan of OPI GelColor.  Traditionally, application has been a nightmare.  Lots of shrink back at the tips.  However, I'm happy to say that OPI has apparently fixed their formula.  Thanks a Windmillion is the old formula and I had to flash cure each finger to get good tip coverage.  The next two, on the other hand, applied like a dream with no shrink back and no need to flash cure.  Yea!

Up next is My Favorite Ornament from the Mariah Carey collection.  This is a gorgeous, dense champagne glitter.  I was a little unsure of the color when I ordered it, but I'm so glad I did.  The light bouncing off the glitter makes it appear more silver in some places.  The shadowed portion of my index finger is the best representation of the true color. 

And finally, the one everyone has been waiting for.  Peace, Love and OPI from the San Francisco collection.  This is the first really amazing duo-chrome I've found in a soak off gel.  Well done, OPI!  It shifts from a greenish blue/grey to purple.  Very hard to capture on film.  This is the best shot I could get.  Three coats offers great coverage. 

You may notice that it looks a bit sheer on my index finger.  I should note that I had to play with my lighting again to capture the shift.  The lights are set low and angled up, so they are shining directly through the nail on that finger.

I'm very pleased that OPI has changed and improved their formula.  I would love to see them go back and fix some of the earlier releases.  Although it may be the worst thing ever for me.  My collection is already getting out of control.  ;)

That's all for today.  Hopefully I'll have a few of the new Essie gels to share with you next week.  :)

~Michelle

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