Guide: Manicure Bubble Prevention

Don't you hate those pesky bubbles you sometimes get when doing a manicure? Like this perhaps?

Thanks for the bubble pic Jen :D

Well here are some things you can do to help prevent that:

1. Start with a clean, dry nail plate. Always swipe with remover before polishing even when you don't have polish to remove to remove any residue, oils, or moisturizer.

2. Use thin coats instead of thick coats of all polish, including base, color, and top. I know, the first coat looks awful when it's thin. Deal with it. It will help I promise.

3. Don't shake the polish bottle!

Tilty swirl it

Or roll it between your palms gently

This will prevent bubbles from getting trapped in the polish from the bottle to the nail.

4. Make sure your polishes aren't too thick. They can thicken up with age. Add some thinner, not nail polish remover, a couple drops at a time until it looks normal again before using.

5. Don't try to dry your polish too quickly using air. I think some light blowing on your fingers is fine, but using a fan, polish dryer, or aerosol dryer increases the risk for bubbles.

6. Wait until each coat is a little bit dry, or dry to the touch, before applying another coat. Dry to the touch is when you can very lightly touch it without messing it up. At this point you can still mess it up easily if you try to dig for your keys in your purse or anything like that. It really doesn't take long at all if you use thin coats - like a minute for each coat.

7. Wait a couple minutes after your final coat of color before you apply your top coat. If you're using a quick dry top coat, they're usually applied over polish that is not totally wet but still tacky.I have noticed that some quick dry top coats, applied at the first sign of bubbles, can stop them in their tracks!

If you have anything to add to this guide, please email me or comment here and I'll add it!!

Playing with Icicle Lights

I started doing a mani with Funky Fingers Icicle Lights, and after 3 coats I could still see visible nail line. So I decided to play with it and see how it went...

Left to right: FF Icicle Lights over silver, FF Icicle Lights over FF Kenyan Sunset, FF Sugar Plum 3 coats (no vnl and more opaque in person), FF Icicle Lights 3-4 coats with vnl

FF Icicle Lights over silver - totally the best

FF Icicle Lights over FF Kenyan Sunset - Pretty but takes away from the Icicle Lights I really wanted to see. And it so didn't look matte in person.

FF Sugar Plum 3 coats (no vnl and more opaque in person)

FF Icicle Lights 3-4 coats with vnl

Polishes I need to layer normally piss me off, but not so much with glitters. And never if it's worth it like this one so is :D.

Funky Fingers for All!

That's right! I went to 5Below, which is only located on the east coast, and picked up loads of polishes for my partners in crime, including a few for myself. If you're not already a part of our awesome nail polish Facebook chat group, join here!

We'll start with my own personal part of this haul :).

 

Funky Fingers Fashion Addict,  Funky Fingers Icicle Lights, Funky Fingers Manic Flamingo, Funky Fingers Sugar Plum, Funky Fingers Kenya Sunset, WetNWild Prancer

 And a few individual bottle pics:

 Red glitter of different sizes in a clear base

 Translucent purple/pink base with red, green, and light pink glitter

Back off ladies, there was only one

 Hot pink jelly polish with pink and blue glitter that shines in different shades of each

Medium-dark purple with scattered holo shimmer

For Parlevous Ongles:

Funky Fingers Golden Coast - Translucent gold base with green, pink, and gold holographic glitter

Funky Fingers Sand and Stilettos - Translucent silver base packed with small silver super holo glitter

For Sarah Eubanks:

Funky Fingers Golden Coast, Funky Fingers Icicle Lights, Funky Fingers Fashion Addict, Funky Fingers Sand and Stilettos, Funky Fingers Kenyan Sunset

Funky Fingers Icicle Lights -Translucent purple base with red, green, and purple small glitter with flashes of silver

And I promise Fashion Addict is more holoy than it looks in the pics.

For Kati Pietilainen:

 

Here is a closeup of the awesome shimmer in Rockstar

 

LA Girl Rockstar - Black polish with purple microglitter that flashes purple, gold, and green

It's a bit like Orly Space Cadet or Catrice I Wear My Sunglasses at Night

For Michelle Holmes:

For Tamala Stuckley:

Funky Fingers Fashion Addict - Lilac polish with some medium-serious scattered holo

Same as Color Club Fashion Addict? I know these are made by the same company. 

For Karin Ruiz:

This is a dark blue jelly (more blue than in the pic) with holographic microglitter

For Jeanie Barbee:   *cough*

Mood Struck color changing polish "D. Pink Gl to L. Pink Gl"...stupid names, 5 Funky Fingers Sand and Stilettos, 4 Funky Fingers Golden Coast, 2 Funky Fingers Fashion Addict, LA Girl Crowd Surfing, LA Girl with no name sticker, 4 Funky Fingers Icicle Lights, 4 Funky Fingers Melted Popsicle, Mood Struck color changing polish "Lt Pink to Lt Gold"

Yes Jeanie has a problem. But we all do. That's why we're here :D. 

Epic freaking haul no? I don't even want to THINK about how much I spend. For the record, each one is actually super cheap. If you didn't get in on this haul, message me on Facebook, or email me at itsrainingstars13@hotmail.com. Make sure the subject is something so I won't delete it as junk lol :P.

Do You Do Nude?

Do you like nude polish, sheer or opaque? Does it need to match your skin tone, just go with it, or just be pretty?

Zoya is releasing the new Touch collection in June including three new opaque nudes.
From Zoya:

Minka (ZP561) - latte beige cream with a metallic kiss

Shay (ZP562) - desert rose sand beige cream with a metallic kiss

Pandora (ZP563) - mauve beige cream with a metallic kiss
I think they're all beautiful but if I had to pick a favorite just from what I have seen so far it would be Shay.

I'm wearing a Zoya nude right now actually, and will blog about it next. I found my perfect french color. Thanks Zoya!

The ABC's of Me!

Want to know some random things about me? You should fill it out too, it's fun! Feel free to blog about it and leave your link in my comments or just fill it out and leave it in the comments if you don't have a blog.

A. Age:
I just turned 22!

B. Bed Size
Queen, I think...I never really know.

C. Chore I hate:
I freaking hate doing dishes...eew and cleaning the shower because of all the loose hairs.

D. Day
The day my boyfriend comes home from deployment will be the best day ever!

E. Essential start of your day:
Gotta have my coffee and breakfast! I drink Folgers with skim milk and Splenda :P.

F. Favorite Color:
Green, then red, then purple.....I totally have a hierarchy.

G. Gold or Silver?:
Silver for sure, or any silver-toned metal like platinum and the like.

H. Height:
5'5...barely

I. Instruments:
I used to play the piano regularly for years but not so much anymore. I play classical piano like Mozart and Betthoven.

J. Job Title:
Recreational Therapist (still in school so not yet certified, but I have two jobs) usually working with children with multiple developmental disabilities

K. Kids
I have wanted babies for like years. We've talked about the possibility of starting as early as most of the way through my final semester of college (spring 2012). I hope to be married to my love by then. The earlier start is because he will be on shore duty when he gets home for three years, which means he won't be deploying. I don't want him to miss his child's first year of life.

L. Live
Virginia, originally from Tennessee

M. Mom's name:
Vicki

N. Nicknames
Meg, or Meggie Leigh as my mother calls me lol

O. Overnight stay at hospital:
Not so far!

P. Pet Peeves:
Chewing with your mouth open, people using inappropriate words describing people with disabilities

Q. Quote from a movie:
"FFRRRRRRREEEEEEDDOOMM!!!!!!!!!!!!!" - Braveheart, my favorite movie

R. Right or left handed:
Right

S. Siblings
1 older sister who is a meanie-head

T. Time you wake up:
Errr lately pretty late because I don't work till 2pm and have been staying up horribly late at night...like 11-12

U. Underwear:
Bikini or boyshort style, cute and patterned. I hate thongs and only wear them when my outfit choice requires it.

V. Vegetable you hate:
Not many, I even like brussel sprouts. I'd say....radishes.

W. What makes you late?:
Trying to paint my nails in a short period of time then daintily getting my things to get out of the house because my nails are still wet....why do I do this?

X. Xrays you've had:
Mouth of course for wisdom teeth which I had out, and chest for what I believe now is costochondritis and feeling a bit better.

Y. Yummy foods you can make:
I just made mushroom spinach manicotti and spinach artichoke dip the other night...I also make a lovely white chocolate raspberry swirl cheesecake.

Z. Zoo:
I actually used to volunteer at the Knoxville Zoo for years when I was younger and still love going to the zoo!

What's Your Polishing Ritual?

What do you do when you polish your nails, from start to finish? What products do you use right now and what have you found that's best?

1. Remove polish with Zoya Remove+
2. Put on cuticle remover and leave it on while I file nails
3. File nails gently with one of my many files, though I really need to get a glass one
4. Push back cuticles with my awesome metal cuticle tool from Sally's and wipe off excess cuticle remover
5. Lotion up hands and cuticles very well with Bath & Body Works Lemon Vanilla, massaging into cuticles
6. Trim hangy cuticles with cuticle nippers if I have to, as a last resort
7. Apply Sally Girl cuticle oil alone lower and side cuticles
8. Let sit on as long as I feel like I have time for to let it all soak in better
9. Swipe Zoya Remove+ over nails well so that all lotion and oils are removed from nail plate
10. Apply base coat of Orly Nailtrition
11. Wait 2 minutes after first nail was painted
12. Apply first coat of color rather thinly-medium
13. Apply second coat of color without much waiting between this and first coat, because time has already passed while you painted all 10 nails, maybe 1-3 minutes
14. Repeat for third coat if necessary
15. Wait at least 5 minutes before topcoat of Orly SecNDry or Seche Vite to help prevent bubbles, polish should be dry to the touch
16. Clean up around the edges wile polish is still not fully hard if possible, using Zoya Remove+ and a very small stiff paint brush

This Bath&Body Works lotion is really the most moisturizing one I have used.

Zoya Remove+ is by far better than cheap non-acetone remover or pure acetone. I use it even for cleaning up the edges after polishing because it doesn't dry out my skin like the others do.

Orly SecNDry is just as quick as SV, but dries thinner and is less finnicky when it comes to shrinking.

Anything better out there?

Before I even got to use them....

Yes, you're seeing the sad death of Zoya Cassi and Zoya Savita. They were from my Earth Day promo, which I got the very day I left to go to my best friend's funeral. I just got back only a couple of days ago and still haven't had a change to use them. Cassi was actually going to be my first choice :(.

I took some polishes over to a friends house, left them in the car overnight since we didn't end up polishing, then when I opened the car the next day I smelled nail polish. It was hot in my car, which I didn't expect. I suppose they burst from the heat? I don't really understand this, as I had many others with my and they were fine. Needless to say the polish got freaking everywhere....

I did manage to salvage the beauty of most of the affected bottles, surprisingly. I thought remover or acetone would take the writing right off, but that was most usually not the case. Really the only one that was damaged from having polish on it was my Teez Cool blue holo from Kati....which is probably one of the nicest ones I have.

 Before, with polish all over it /\ /\ /\        After removing the polish \/ \/ \/

All I can say is sad freaking day. I hadn't even used them yet! I'm actually quite depressed about it. I don't know what to do. I want them so badly, but I don't know if I can bare to spend even more money on them and buy them again, you know what I mean? Is this something I should try and contact Zoya about? Maybe their bottles are susceptible to heat or something....I don't know. I just want my Cassi and Savita :(.

WetNWild Hannah Pinktana

WetNWild Hanna Pinktana - Lovely formula, somewhat thin which isn't bad, soft powder pink with holographic microglitter. This is two coats over one coat of Areej.

I was kind of nervous about her application and still having visible nail line, so I went ahead and layered her over Zoya Areej. I honestly think now it would have looked nicer just as itself.

It really is more holoy than it looks, but it's very scattered and chill. Holo glitter is just so pretty. And these pics were a couple days after wearing it as well. 

To Marian!

‎"Never take your freedoms for granted and every chance you get let the ones you love 

know that they are indeed loved." ~ Marian Curtner

My best friend died in a car accident last week. We have been friends since I can remember. My mother and her mother are best friends as well and have worked together for 20+ years. We used to call them "our moms" when we were out together - like my mother and her mother, but it sounded like they were partners and we had lesbian moms :P. We always used to laugh about that. The vast majority of our friendship was spent hiking together - we both love being in nature. She was a wild child, a free spirit, a hippie, just like me.

Her funeral was this past Thursday. I had brought a black dress and cardigan, not really knowing what to wear. Once I got to my home town and visited her parents before the funeral, we all decided that we should wear what she would have liked - bright colors, flowy skirts, and just be normal. I borrowed a skirt from my mum and wore this to her funeral, along with a large blue flower in my hair, and a bright and groovy manicure:

The service was in Tellico Plains up near the mountains and back in the country. It was absolutely gorgeous and just what she would have wanted. Sharon, her mother, said she hoped she had lots of flowers, and I can't even describe to you how many there were. If I could guess, there were about 50 things of flowers. So many people showed up to pay their respects, say goodbye, and honor her memory...there must have been 200 in this small church. Even the standing room around the walls was full. I didn't get to see her, as they closed the casket a few hours before the funeral, but her Aunt and I had a moment together and she told me she was just beautiful. The funeral director was a lovely woman and said she painted her nails for me - our favorite color, green.

I at first, like with my outfit, didn't know what to do for my nails. After a while I decided to go a little wild with them and just do what she would have liked. This is two coats of Barielle Decadence (thanks Jeremy :D) with one coat of Essence Hello Holo holographic medium sized glitter in a clear base.

Just check it out in the sunlight! It's a bit blurry to accentuate the sparkle. It really does look like this in person though, it's just difficult to capture in a photo.

Even in dim indoor light it's just amazing. This is what it looked like at the funeral as well. I was so pleased that it was still stunning indoors. 

Here it is when it isn't looking that holo-y and you can just see the silver glitter. 

And a little bit of just the Barielle Decadence.

Please excuse my awful nail shape. My corners have been breaking off multiple times a day, so I'm trying to find a happy medium where they look good but don't break as much. And I brought very little with me on my trip, so I didn't have any cleanup tools.

Here's one to Marian! May she rest in peace and be remembered for all the beautiful things that made her Marian, my best friend, my sister.

November 13, 1989- May 7, 2011

My First Borghese!

Can you believe I found Borghese at Ross? I freaking love Ross! I have picked up Borghese polishes 10 times and not purchased one because they're about $8 and I didn't know if they were any good. Well I'd gladly pay $5.99 for three polishes!!!
I ended up getting the left set because in the top set the clear was just clear. It wasn't like a nice top coat or anything. The top one is a lovely rosey pink mauve, the middle is a very bright nearly neon pink, and the last one is a dark dark blurple that looks like a dupe for Zoya Pinta. Fun!

Now which one to try first?

Spa Day - Alzheimer's Association

We had a Spa Day at Our Lady of Perpetual Help, the elderly residential facility I interned at. We had massages, facials, and manicures available in exchange for a donation to the Alzheimer's Association. I, of course, did manicures! The amazing Color Club was of course very popular!

And I don't know what it was about the french manciures that day! One person got one, then the next person said "I want what she had" lol...and so on. Candy Girl from Color Club was the go to french color for sure. 

And again, we have my lovely hand model from OLPH, Dee!

She loves her peachy, natural, and neutral colors. Don't they look nice on her? She is such a Color Club fan! Honestly I think it was french manicures for most of the time. I did have someone request China Glaze Bare if You Dare from my stash, but of course I forgot to take a picture of that!

Go go Color Club, and thanks again for your amazing donation to OLPH and the ladies there!!!