First of all, I try to never pay full price for nail polish. You can find a sale, somewhere, almost all the time. If you're on a site and spot a good nail polish selection, google that websites coupon codes. Sometimes you'll find nothing, but I find most of the time, I can find 10-20% off. Or websites like Ulta and drugstore.com have specials on nail polish, like buy 2 get 1 free, or I know drugstore.com has occasional 20% off of their beauty department. Even though no one likes meaningless emails, sign up for emails at some sites you find good nail polish and you will most likely get a coupon or an email about a sale within a few weeks.
Okay, now let's get down to business.
I will start off with nail prep. I make sure I take off every spot of my old nail polish. If there's still bits of it near the cuticle, I push my cuticles back and that process usually takes care of the leftover polish. Even if your nails are completely clean, always push back or remove your cuticles or buy a cuticle remover gel. This will ensure you get a very professional manicure and it will be so much easier to get a beautiful, even coat of polish that doesn't get stuck on your cuticles. The other prep steps are taking a buffing nail file and smoothing out the ridges on my nail bed. This will ensure that the polish adheres to your nail better, meaning less chips. I then wash my hands thoroughly and to get every bit of oil off of my nails, I quickly swipe just the nail bed with a cotton ball with rubbing alcohol on it. This will also ensure the polish stays on longer.
Okay, finally onto base coat! Now, I used to be hooked with the OPI Ridge Filler. I liked it because it dried super fast, left your nail completely smooth, and it's a whitish color so it made my nail color much more vibrant, and helped lighter colors show up better. But, I recently found a gem. If you do your nails even semi regularly, this is well worth the money! It's the Orly Bonder- Rubberized Base Coat. I never dreamt of a base coat that works as well as this one. It's literally rubberized so it's hard to tell when it's completely dry so I tend to wait about 4 or 5 minutes. It drags the first coat of nail polish off the brush and onto your nail so beautifully and evenly. My first coats of polish never looked so even, so smooth, and so pigmented because it's so so easy to get the perfect thickness. This makes the second coat so easy and immediately looks very professional.
Now, when it comes to brands, I almost exclusively buy Essie, OPI, and recently Orly. I've tried China Glaze. It seems to chip sometimes within the first couple hours of being on my nail. Also, a pastel coral color (Peachy Keen) I got from China Glaze ended up drying much brighter than the original color, which disappointed me. I've found basically every other brand around the same price point or cheaper just aren't worth your money. They tend to chip and fade so much more easily.
Here are some of my current favorite colors: Orly Frolic, Orly Cotton Candy, Orly Lollipop, Orly Mirror Mirror, Orly Artificial Sweetener, Essie Limo-scene, Essie Beyond Crazy (great ring finger only color, the sparkle covers all color underneath in one swipe), and China Glaze Re-fresh Mint (this is one China Glaze color I'm obsessed with).
For nail art, I've been loving the Revlon Nail Art Expressionist. The brush is super skinny so it's very easy to do polka dots or hearts (for hearts I just do a thick V shape). I also just tried out a trick that works like a dream. Take a piece of parchment paper and nail polish that you'd like to make shapes out of for your nails (I get the cute shaped paper punchers in the heart and star shape). Put down a good sized layer of the polish and wait for about 5 hours (it's takes a long time to dry for some reason). When I did this, I put down several patches of nail color so I just keep the piece or parchment paper in a place where it can lay flat, or you can cut the each patch out for an organized swatch layout. Most nail polishes will need a second coat to get a good even color. Wait another 5 hours (patience!) and all you have to do is punch out the shape of your choice. Now, once you punch it out, the parchment paper almost always separates from the polish shape. Now, the dried nail polish is very fragile, so handle carefully. I just wet my finger a bit and your fingertip can lift off the nail polish shape. I place it carefully on my nails soon after my second coat (I punch out the shape before I start my nails or after my first coat so it's ready when the step comes). The shape will stick right on your nail, so once it's on, it's on. After the second coat dries completely, it's time for topcoat!
Orly Mirror Mirror with China Glaze Re-fresh Mint star
I've used several topcoats until they were basically empty and never knew that there were fast drying, high shine topcoats that were actually fast drying and high shine! I've gotten good results with the OPI RapiDry TopCoat, until I heard about Seche-Vite topcoat. Oh my goodness, the Seche Vite one dries sooo quickly and gives me the best shine and 4-5 days of no chipping, very little to no fading at the tips. I will definitely be sticking with this amazing topcoat for a looong time. It really does work wonders.
By the way, you will get more days out of your nail polish by cleaning your painted nails with soap and water the day after you paint them. This removers oil and allows you to apply a second coat of topcoat. This helps protect from the color fading off your nail tips.
Orly Frolic, day 4
Let me know some of your favorite colors, or any tips or products you can't live without!
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