Winter essentials

It's been extremely cold the last few weeks in Vancouver, and it's only just begun. A few days ago we had a windstorm that caused power outage in about 50,000 households. I personally experience severe dry skin on my feet, legs, and hands. It could be from the insufficient amounts of water I drink but the cold is a huge factor. I would transit from and to work and arrive with hands so dry they actually ache. So what are some ways to battle some of the winter chills to keep your hands and feet nice and polished for the winter holidays? Here are some solutions.


1. Hand lotion
My favourite hand lotion is Herbacin Kamille found at your local drug stores. It's quick absorbent and is not too oily. It lasts pretty much most of the day depending on how often  you have to wash your hands. I just however, washing your hands often especially if you're in public places to avoid catching any flu viruses that might be going around.

2. Cuticle Oil

OPI's Cuticle Replenishing Oil is great to keep your cuticles hydrated throughout the day. A little goes a long way and until you use it really makes a difference in how your hands look! If you're too busy scrambling to finish all your Christmas shopping, forget putting on a polish, simply brush on some cuticle oil and you'll be good to go!

3. Gloves

Not only are gloves great for keeping your hands warm during the cold but they can also be used to seal in that hand cream you just applied on.  I recommend leather gloves with cashmere lining as they're durable, light weight, yet still warm enough to battle the cold.

4. Petroleum Jelly

Good 'ol petroleum jelly can be used for so many different things. It's great for removing eye makeup, lip balm, and also cracked feet. Even though our feet are more exposed during the summer, winter's dryness can also cause dry/cracked feet as well. A simple solution is to apply a thick lotion or petroleum jelly to the heels of your feet before you go to bed at night. To lock in the moisture, wear cotton socks that allow your feet breath. I also glob on a ton of petroleum jelly on my lips before bed as well. Best bang for your buck.

The list can go on with all the things you need for Winter but in terms of nice and hands and feet you'd be well prepared with these basic essentials. 

Friday Fix

In order to get back into the routine of blogging, I've decided that every Friday the blog will feature interesting nail news or simply nail related topics that are trending. Here is the first post.

Merle Norman Lip and Nail Colours in "Hussy"

The new shade was inspired by the Merle Norman family in the 1930s. The deep cherry red infused with magenta shimmer resembles resembles the car's custom paint job. The colour is not available online so you would have to go to Merle Norman stores for one.

New CND Shellac colours

These polishes are not your average nail polish. They last up to 14 days without chipping or scratching and remains shiny! This month CND introduced 6 new shades to their collection.

Tomorrow I'll be watching my first live Hockey game. Even though it's preseason I'm still excited to see the Canucks play in person. Stay tuned for my Canucks nails!

credit: Solessence

Huffingtonpost

crackle market blow up

Since OPI's launch of the Katy Perry line which includes the infamous Black Shatter, the crackle polish market has blown up, almost overnight! Smaller companies have massively launched a variety of crackle polish taking a grasp on the fact the OPI's crackle polish only comes in black. The photos below are crackle polishes from companies such as CND and Mia Secret.

This shattering effect has become a hit because every nail is uniquely transformed by the cracking of the polish. I've tried the above brands and the consistency and shattering effect does not stand up to OPI's quality. 

There has been updates that OPI will be launching more coloured shatter polishes. This is just the beginning of the trend! 

classic

For times when you don't know what your outfit will be for the next event or family dinner, the classic french manicure will never be a "wrong" choice. This simple yet elegant look will never fail to match your day-to-day activities to the most special occasions. Whenever bride-to-be get their nails done I always recommend a french manicure. It's simply to refrain from ever having the moment when you look back at those photos and "wish you did something different" or wonder, "what was I thinking?"

If you're someone who likes to be a little different, you can always dress up a class french manicure by changing the white to a different colour. Usually a bright, vibrant colour would be best. You can also add designs or even a glittery thin line at the top of the white line.

For this french manicure, I used two coats of OPI Alpine Snow with OPI Passion applied to the upper nail bed without going over the white.

crackle crack

Finally got my hands on the OPI Black Shatter polish... it seems the market for the crackle nail polishes has just exploded! Other nail companies have quickly launched their version of the crack effect nail polish to meet market demands. So if you're looking for this effect keep in mind that OPI isn't the only brand.

Currently I have OPI Black Shatter, white shatter, red shatter, and bright orange shatter from various brands.

I think companies have tried to launch these shatter polishes so quickly into the nail market that anything goes! Packaging and nail brand goes out the window as long as colour variety out beats leading nail supplier, OPI.

1.

First I used a based coat on my alcohol clean nails. 

I've found that if you clean your nails well with either acetone or (rubbing) alcohol prior to putting any nail polishes on, the colour stays on longer. This is because your nails naturally have oil on them so without prepping them before hand, the polish chips off easier.

2.

After the base coat, I applied a coat of OPI DS Extravagance. You can choose whatever base colour you like! Play around with it, this will change the end results.

3.

Apply your shatter nail polish. In this case I used OPI Black Shatter. Finally, finish with a clear top coat and voila!

Normally after the polish dries, apply cuticle oil to your cuticles, NOT on your nails! This will help moisten dry cuticles from the alcohol.

crackle

OPI's latest Katy Perry Collection features the latest buzzed about nail polish, Black Shatter.

This collection includes five featured colours, Last Friday Night, Teenage Dream, The One The Got Away, Not Like the Movies, and the highlight of it all, Black Shatter. The effect created from this black polish is somewhat a cross between giraffe spots and shattered glass. It's definitely a quick way to add a little more spice to your routine solid colour! However, maybe not something you'd like to wear to an office environment.

Can't wait to get my hands on these!

spring fever

This is my first tutorial post. I tend to forget to take step-by-step photos as I get carried away with my work,  I'm quite the girly girl when it comes to creating new designs. Without secondary inspiration the nails always end up looking... pretty!

1. apply and glue on natural tips

cut and file the tips to make an even surface

2. apply acrylic colours desired (the sample above has two tones)

create 3D nail art with acrylic powders on the nail bed

3. seal the flower and coloured tips with clear acrylic powder

finish with UV gel

Two tone Young Nails acrylic colours with embedded 3D nail art completed with OPI Finishing Gel