Anyway... For my first post, I thought a good start would be twelve nail things I can't live without, plus one bonus extra. These are the things I'm finding myself to be in a tizzy over if I run low on or run out of. Being in a tizzy sucks, so I need to make sure I have a full supply of everything that I adore. I think that's a good idea, no? Let's get started.
Seche Vite Quick Dry Top Coat
I seriously cannot live without the stuff. It's been my go-to product ever since I first bought it and I always repurchase it. Yeah, sometimes it shrinks my polish or makes whites go yellowish over time, but I don't care. It dries fast and penetrates all the layers of polish that I'm too lazy to wait to dry. I buy mine at Sally's Beauty Supply, but you can get it at all kinds of places from Amazon to other e-sellers. (Price varies per seller)
Orly Bonder Rubberized Basecoat
I don't know what my nail life was before I used this stuff, but it's changed ever since it was introduced to me by my favourite nail tech Melissa Baxter from Honeybee Esthetics in Hamilton. She used this on me once and when I saw how long my polish lasted without chipping, it was love at first...use? I don't quite know. It feels kind of strange when you first apply it, like it's never quite dry. That's just the whole rubberized effect. Again, I buy mine from Sally's, but it's available at any place that sells Orly products, I assume. (Price varies per seller)
Sephora Crystal Nail File
There was a time where I made the error of using emery boards or metal files on my nails. My nails can break quite easily even though I drink lots of water and use nail oil to keep them both flexible yet strong. The previously mentioned files just made everything worse. Then I heard about glass files, and I went to my nearest Sephora to buy one. Well, my full sized one broke because I kneeled on it. My bad. Now I own a mini size which is just fine for me. It works beautifully, and you can easily keep it clean. I've had mine for about two and a half years-ish. Plus the case it comes in keeps it from breaking should you be clumsy like me. Obviously, you can purchase it at Sephora stores in either pink or purple. Though I don't think the mini size is available anymore. (Full size file: $12.50 CAD)
ASP Light-less Gel, Supernail Swiss Silk Wraps, ASP Light-less Gel Cure
I'm including these three products as one whole product for the reason that they save my nails as a whole when breaks happen. I can keep them on for weeks, repatching when the gel lifts or breaks off from wear to help tears grow out nicely. The one drawback of this whole system is the gel cure spray stinks. It is one of the most revolting things ever, so do this in a ventilated area. There are a couple tutorials on Youtube on how to patch your nails using this method, and it's way stronger than the nail glue and tea bag way. Yeah, it costs a bit at first, but I've had my products for almost two years and I've only had to replace the gel cure spray once. I snip the silk patches to size which extends the life of them by a ton. Also, you will need a brush to apply this and some acetone or brush cleaner. I use an old L'oreal quick dry bottle which has a brush with plastic bristles. The silk wraps, gel and gel cure I purchased at Sally's. Pictures are from the Sally's website because my products are haggard and terrible looking. (Wraps: $4.49 USD, Gel: $8.99 USD, Gel cure: $7.99 USD)
Beauty Secrets Nail Polish Thinner
This stuff has been a life saver for me. You have no idea. So many of my polishes have gone goopy over the years (coughSallyHansenGemCrushpolishescough) and I refuse to let them die. This stuff has rescued them. Not only has it saved those, but it's also helped thin out my Seche Vite when it gets thicker over time. Saves me from having to buy a new bottle so fast. I got this at, surprise surprise, Sally's. I'm sure there are other brands of thinner out there, but this was cheap and while it's my second bottle, it lasts quite a while. I also use it instead of acetone to clean polish off my nail art brushes. ($4.29 USD)
Winstonia Professional Nail-art Liner Set + Striping Brushes (5 PCS)
Speaking of brushes, these are my nail art brushes of choice. Excuse their appearance. They are often and well used. I love these brushes to itty bitty pieces. I saw them recommended in Nail It! magazine and also by nail artist JauntyJuli on Youtube. The price is great for this set and the quality of the brushes is incredible. They're a dream to work with when you're using acrylic paint or polish. At the time I'm writing this, they're unfortunately not available at the Winstonia store. But I'm certain they'll be restocked eventually. ($5.95 USD)
OnyxPro 100% Acetone & Equate Non-Acetone Nail Polish Remover
Who said you need extremely expensive removers? I bought both of these at Walmart and they work surprisingly well. Especially the non-acetone remover. I use the acetone for clean up when I mess up around my cuticles and the non-acetone for polish removal to make it less harsh on my nails. I find myself repurchasing these quite often. The downside to the non-acetone remover is that it leaves a gross smell behind for a while, but just wash your hands and you'll be good. ($2.48 USD & $1.98 CAD)
Girly Bits Border Patrol Latex Barrier
I only bought this a few months ago and I'm already in love. Now, for those of you with latex allergies, I can't recommend this product. It is 100% latex based. My only gripe with this product is that since it's white, there's no colour indication that it's dry like some other products. Simply Peel and Liquid Palisade are two products that change colour when dry. However, the price is way better than both those previously mentioned products and it works amazingly well. It comes off in one thick peel without an issue which is what you want for a latex barrier. This has saved me from clean up hell when I do gradients and I know I'll be buying more in the future from Girly Bits. ($5.00 CAD)
Girly Bits pH Plus Pre-Polish Nail Treatment
In the past, I'd been using a nail dehydrator before applying my base coat. Terrible idea. I have no idea what made me do that. I saw this on Girly Bits and decided to take a peek. I was convinced enough to try it, and bought a bottle when I got my latex barrier above. I'm so happy I did. This stuff helps keep my polish on longer. It's described on the site as follows: "Girly Bits pH Plus is a pre-polish nail treatment used to raise the pH level of the nail plate, which will improve the adhesion of any nail polish or gel polish to the natural nail. It is especially helpful if your nails are naturally oily, or you frequently experience chipping or peeling with nail polishes." I can definitely say it does that for sure. A bottle will last forever, too. I've barely made a dent in mine! ($6.50 CAD)
Beauty Secrets Cuticle Remover/Pusher & Stainless Steel Cuticle Pusher/Remover
Why do I have two cuticle pushers? Because I bought the stainless steel one first from Bornprettystore and thought I lost it. So I went to Sally's to buy the other one. Turns out I now use both. The one from Sally's has a nice little trimmer doodad that's great for getting rid of hangnails, and I use the bladed side of the metal one when I'm doing cuticle removal treatment. Gently, of course. Plus that blade is helpful in getting polish and paint off of my paint palette. ($2.79 USD & $1.99 USD)
Double-ended Dotting Tools
Shock! Something else I didn't get from Sally's! I got these from Bornprettystore and I use them not only for doing dotticures, but for mixing paints together or even mixing in nail polish thinner into polish that's been sitting in a well on my palette for a while. They're very multi-purpose tools. I'm sure I'd just use toothpicks for them otherwise, but it's nice to have a set of dotting tools in all different sizes. I don't have any regrets in buying them, and I use them almost all the time. ($4.74 USD)
Cuticle Oil
Ahem. Well, I can't tell you where exactly this oil is from, but I'm just gonna say oil as a general thing. This was given to me when I mentioned off chance that I didn't own any cuticle oil and it's lasted me ages. But really, any form of cuticle oil would be essential in my nail care kit. It's the only thing I use other than hand cream to care for my nails. I even use it to help with cuticle removal. You can't beat a good nail oil. So I suggest you go and find one.
Bonus Mention: Acrylic Paint
I had to throw this in as a special mention because I use these all the time in my nail art, pretty much. It's very rare that I don't use acrylic paint lately. You can buy paint anywhere, just don't buy it from the dollar store. I learned that the hard way. I bought mine from Walmart, and the ones in the tubes are from Bornprettystore. I use both. But you can get acrylic paint of good quality from craft stores, too. When it comes to those fine details, acrylic paint is the best stuff to use. ($2.49 CAD & $7.19 USD)
Very good start Lynni! Lots of valuable info!
ReplyDeleteWell done!
Great starter tips for anyone!
ReplyDelete