Free Zoya Nail Polish!

Sorry about the late add but I just stumbled upon this deal today. The nail polish normally costs $8 a pop but now you can snag it for the cost of shipping and handling - $10. I actually snagged this deal last year and I will warn you that shipping is INCREDIBLY SLOW. So order, forget about it and be pleasantly surprised in about a month's time. Head to Zoya.comhttp://www.zoya.com/ before midnight tomorrow and enter code ZOYA2013 at checkout.

DIY Polka Dot Nails

Polka Dot Nails are an easy fun way to bring some whimsy and attitude to your nails. You don't need an expensive dotting tool, all you need is a pin and a piece of paper.

First choose 2 contrasting shades of nail polish, one for the base and one for the dot.  After applying base coat, apply 2 coats of the color for the base.

Place a little dot of the contrast color nail polish on a piece of paper (I tend to use an old piece of mail or a business card I don't need anymore). Carefully dipping the end of your pin into the contrast shade place dots on your nail as desired.  If the contrast nail polish starts getting too thick, you can just place a new dot and continue for both hands.

Once nail polish has set, finish off with a clear top coat.  Voila - polka dot nails to take you on your way.

Nail Art Fun with CND Shellac

Erin and I have written about CND quite in a bit in the past, so by now you're probably familiar with the long lasting Power Polish manicures.  I recently had the pleasure of attending CND Shellac SpaSanctunary and preview event, where I got to check out the new fall colors and learn about all the fun nail art that can be done with Shellac.

My favorites from the fall collection - Midnight Swim, Sugared Spice & Vexed Violette.

CND (Creative Nail Design) is a professional nail polish and a partner for many runway shows like The Blonds, Nicole Miller, Behnaz Sarafpour, and Rachel Antonoff.

CND nails at Rachel Antonoff Fall 2012

Founder Jan Arnold's Comme des Garçons inspired nails

CND Shellac collection has grown over the past couple of years, and with additives (pigment powders, shimmer, glitter, foils, etc) the possibilities really are endless.  For my last manicure, AstroWifey created the custom orange for me with CND's pigment powders.  The nail art details like glitter or painted designs go on right before the last top coat.

At the event, I choose a teal colored polish as a base and asked the nail tech to create an ombre effect with red and dark silver glitter.  The glitter manicure was already cool enough, but lucky me, AstroWifey was working the event and she added mini records to my nails.

I used to rarely treat myself to manicures because they felt like a waste of money with how quickly they would chip, but my last few experiences with CND have really changed my mind.  Two consecutive Shellac manicures and CND's SolarOil have done wonders for my cuticles and nails.  My nails are the longest they've ever been, and they look so healthy!  I've now made it a part of my evening routine to apply SolarOil.


For more information or to find a salon with CND products, visit cnd.com.

Nail Artist: AstroWifey

Photo courtesy of AstroWifey

Last week I was in the Dominican Republic for a wedding.  The Sunday before my trip, I ventured to Jefferson Park to visit manicurist and nail artist AstroWifey for festive "no chip" manicure.

I came to AstroWifey with a few ideas in mind, and I could not be more pleased with how she brought the "his & her" theme to life.  It may be a bit hard to tell from these pictures, but she even drew different style eyeglasses.  Yes, she hand painted each of those designs!  Amazing right?

This manicure has been one of the best manicures of my life.  It's been 10 days and I literally have just one chip, and this is after a hell of a lot of activity - traveling, carrying DJ equipment, swimming, playing in sand, zip lining, horseback riding, and biking.  AstroWifey uses CND Shellac.  You may remember Erin's writeup about it awhile back.  The shine really does hold up!  And CND has some new powders, so your manicurist can custom make colors like this bright orange by AstroWifey.

I had such a great experience and her prices are very reasonable.  I highly recommend it!  It can be a bit of a trek from the east side, but if you live off the blue line, it's actually super easy to get there.  To view her price list and book an appointment, visit her page on StyleSeat.

CND Shellac–18 Days of Near Flawless Nails

I first tried CND Shellac last year and loved the long lasting, super shiny formula that was ready to go the instant it's completed with no additional dry time required upon exiting the UV lamp.  I had a chance to get a complimentary manicure at a press event recently and was loving all the new colors that had been introduced.  During my first round there were only 12 colors in predominantly classic shades.  The collection now consists of 30 colors and is available in new fashion forward shades.  With the ability to layer and build color through layering the color possibilities are are endless. Shellac is 3-Free with no formaldehyde, toluene or DBP.

I previously tried the super sophisticated and deep color Fedora.  This time around, I decided to have fun by layering 2 layers of the pearlescent mermaid green tone Hotski to Tchotchke with 1 layer of the subtle holographic glitter shade Mother of Pearl.

The photos speak for themselves, can you believe my nails were done 18 days ago? Aside from minor chopping on my right index finger and ever so slight edge wear you can only tell by how far my nail has grown from the nail bed in 2.5 weeks.  Perhaps because it is a lighter color and pearlescent instead of matter there are no signs of even surface scratches or dulling.  I even was painting furniture and I found a leaky bottle of nail polish during this time that I had to clean up during this time.  Nothing except time ruined my polish.

After spending the weekend out of town, I need to hit up a salon to get the polish removed using special nail wraps.

Shellac manicures are great if you don’t have time to do your nails often and want to get the maximum look for minimal salon effort.  It’s also great if you’re headed on vacation and won’t have access to a salon.  Use the Salon Locator to find a Salon near you.

Buy: NCLA Nail Polish

Last month I had a chance to try out and review NCLA nail wraps.  With the fashion forward designs that are easy to use and don’t dry out, NCLA nail wraps are an easy affordable way to make a big statement.

As of today, NCLA is expanding into a brand new nail polish that not only features amazing colors but are guaranteed to be 5 Free - No harmful carcinogens such as DBP, Toluene, Formaldehyde or Camphor. Plus nothing is tested on animals!  Way to go  NCLA for raising the bar in health while still pumping out beautiful colors in super cute and clean looking rectangular bottles.

The colors are all inspired by all things LA and I have to admit that I was completely enamored by pretty much the entire collection.  From the bright purple to Pick me Up at Melrose Place to the bronze tone Bel Air Trophy Wife to the serene blue of Santa Monica Shore Thing I was hooked.  Also for an unexpected modern color - light grey concrete Downtown Dollface is pretty perfect.  I also loved Hollywood Hills Hot Number’s chunky glitter look that will add plenty of fun-fetti over any color or a bold statement after several coats on it’s own.

Each bottle will be retailing for $16 a pop at select fine retailers.  Check out ShopNCLA.com for more info.

Product Review: Nails Inc. Magnetic Nail Polish

I first read about magnetic nail polish a few months ago and have been wanting to try it ever since but never bothered importing it from the UK.  Fortunately Sephora recently started carrying Nails Inc Magnetic Polish in 2 different colors.  My roommate recently picked up the purple toned Houses of Parliament and soon our entire apartment had excitedly applied the polish.

Application of the nail polish is quite easy. It brushes on like regular nail polish.  On the 2nd coat – that’s when you have to switch up the process.  Instead of moving on to the next nail, you hold the magnetic lid over each wet nail immediately after painting to reveal the design.  The lid features a ridge that sits on your cuticle but it is a little difficult to tell when you are going to hit your nail so I would recommend holding it at a slight angle, not parallel to your nail.  I tried to get really close to the nail but unfortunately since the lid is a bit clunky, I misjudged the distance and ruined one of my nails.  Also try to hold the lid for at least 10/15 seconds for optimal stripped effect. You can see that my index finger is not as distinct (learning curve)

I have been painting furniture so I was a bit rough on my nails but the 2nd day I could already see signs of wear at some of the edges and sides.

By the 3rd day a few of the nails definitely started to chip, not only on the edges but deeper into the nail bed too.  My nails though looked in much better shape than my roommates who had not remembered to apply top coat.  I guess it’s a bit similar to the delicate nature of OPI Suede.  It dries rather quickly and is a little thicker than regular polish but it wears down faster.  Make sure you use Top Coat to get it to last longer than a couple  days.

By day 5 while my left hand did not look so horrible, my right hand looked pretty awful and I knew it was time to change the polish.

I do have to say the nail polish was really fun to apply, it almost feels like a bit of nail magic.  Also, the effects were subtle enough to be appropriate even in a conservative office environment. It still is noticeable enough though to get compliments from strangers on your morning subway ride. Although at $16 for a small bottle it may seem a bit pricey, if you want something different but not in-your-face magnetic nail polish is easy to do and even more fun to look at. The stripes kind of remind me of tigers eye in a very hypnotic kind of way.

ps. If you pick this up remember to get the Sephora Friends and Family code for 20% off your online order.

Product Review: NCLA Nail Wraps

As you may have already figured out I am something of a nail polish fanatic - I have been known to at time freak people out because I recognize the OPI color name.  Truthfully though my nails go from deplorable where I try to hide them for weeks to well manicured.

So when I was offered the chance* to try out one of NCLA, Nail Couture LA, nail wraps I couldn't turn it down.  I have previously tried Sally Hansen peel and stick nail polish and wondered how it would differ.

For one thing there are a greater variety of designs especially those featuring more intricate design and a more sophisticated sense of color. I tried a digital looking design called Mission to Mars from the Boogie Nights collection.

With the Sally Hansen, you have to use up all the designs once you open a packet or else they dry out. NCLA nails will keep for future use if kept in an airtight container.  NCLA nails require a coat of clear polish beforehand to allow the polish to adhere.  NCLA nails are slightly easier to apply because you simply peel and stick instead of snapping and peeling off an additional layer of protective film.  They both require the application of clear nail polish after to seal in the polish.

My nails were completed super fast and they looked good with the exception of my index finger that I had to redo.  Perhaps it was my inexperience but I managed to get a couple air bubbles that I couldn't smooth out nicely.  I think if I had liberally applied more base coat from the get go it might have adhered better.

Over the next few days I got plenty of compliments.  My one complaint is that the edges after doing some of my typical everyday things started to get jagged and rough feeling.  Upon reading additional instructions I learned that for perfect edges, NCLA recommends trimming your nails with a clipper.  I tried this on a few nails and it definitely helped.  Perhaps my next time I try this out I’ll trim and file my nails after applying the wraps.

By the time day 7 rolled around they still looked pretty good and could have stayed on for another couple days but I was in the mood to try something new with my nails and although I probably shouldn’t I peeled the wraps off fairly easily in a few big swoops.

While each design of nail wrap costs about $16 you get enough wraps to do your hands about 4 times.  So at $4 a pop that will last you more than a week it’s really quite affordable. If you were ambitious I’m sure you could trim them down to fit toes and do nails & toes together 2 times.

*full disclosure: I received 1 complimentary wrap design to test