The Nail Thread

[seela]

Black Twist reminds me of this great color I had that I can’t find a replacement for. It had a multicolored shimmer with a black base. Like a peacock Tahitian pearl.

I remember that color! I was pretty.

It's annoying not being able to find replacements.

 

[seela]

Christmas nails! Mavala Red vinyl.

 

[MeekMe]

As requested.

 

[gracie920101]

As requested.

Oooh! Pretty!

 

[seela]

As requested.

That’s pretty and sparkly! Is the accent color easy to remove? What is it, I know you’ve said it before, but I’ve forgotten already.

I removed my Christmas nail polish yesterday. It was in strangely good condition, I’d only had to retouch the tips a little.

Aaaaand then I totally managed to cut off one nail when I was cutting flowers. I don’t know how I did that. Unsurprisingly, it was my middle finger, because that nail always seems to rest ruined. So now I’m thinking about cutting the other nails short, too. That’ll be my big project for today.

 

[Justadesperatewifeandmom]

Not boring! What do you use to get the lines so even?

Wow, I am behind. I used painters tape. I sometimes use nail striping tape for thin lines, but using masking tape. I will even cut it into waves or designs with my cricut.

Looking for this year's Christmas season polish.

In a gingersnap. I still have to clean the edges, but it's a pretty fun color.

Nice. so do you really clean the edges, or do you just live your life, washing dishes, etc? When I say I need to clean the edges, I mean I need to but I won't, and it is ok because it will all have come off in a day or so.

II finally managed to do the manicure yesterday. It was about time.
I changed my mind on the black and went with red.
https://i.imgur.com/ek4yYYO.jpg

Red is always a classic.

Christmas nails! Mavala Red vinyl.

It is the season. That is just a hair vampy too.

As requested.

Fun. I like the accent.

That’s pretty and sparkly! Is the accent color easy to remove? What is it, I know you’ve said it before, but I’ve forgotten already.

I removed my Christmas nail polish yesterday. It was in strangely good condition, I’d only had to retouch the tips a little.

Aaaaand then I totally managed to cut off one nail when I was cutting flowers. I don’t know how I did that. Unsurprisingly, it was my middle finger, because that nail always seems to rest ruined. So now I’m thinking about cutting the other nails short, too. That’ll be my big project for today.

oh that sucks. I don't enjoy doing my nails near as much when they are short. what did you end up with?

 

[Orchidea73]

Black

Nothing fancy. I did it myself at home on 31st.
https://i.imgur.com/aGPbeVP.jpg

I want to do something particular. Idk...I like geometric designs but I'm not sure what I want. Anybody of you has a link or something where they give you some ideas?

 

[Justadesperatewifeandmom]

Well I have missed two months, which means I haven't shared four of my manicures.

Mid November. Challenge was pick a letter. I picked L. Started with a polish in a limoncello. Added a liquid silver line art, lattice work type thing, masked off an L shape, add leaves with hints of lavender, lime, and light rain. then some glitter and luster dust.



Then there was early December, challenge was Ombre or gradient. Didn't turn out as well as I had hoped, but that is usually the case, still it works.



Then Christmas nails. Challenge was holiday treats. I bake Christmas cookies. I suck at decorating Christmas cookies, so I focus on candy canes, christmas trees, stars, and snowflakes, because I can dye the dough, then just do stripes, dips, or flood fill, which are the only things I can kind of do better than a 5 year old. Then kid tosses some sprinkles or colored sugar on top. so candy cane lines, something like a flood fill, then tossed some shiny snowflakes on top. I do love shifty holographic polishes.



and todays. Challenge was dots. The base colors are color club, and I took a picture before the art, because shifty halos. (yes, messiest painter ever)



Then I went a too far. I really wanted to do stripes and pin wheel, then the new challenge was added so added dots. I had fun, well with the left hand anyway. The stripes and pinwheel were taped off, so not a problem, but the free hand dots were a real challenge using my left hand.



and that is what my nails have been wearing for the past 2 months.

 

[MeekMe]

Oooh! Pretty!

That’s pretty and sparkly! Is the accent color easy to remove? What is it, I know you’ve said it before, but I’ve forgotten already.

Fun. I like the accent.

Thank you. The accent color (A Cut Above) is hard to take off. That’s why I only put it as an accent.

 

[seela]

Well I have missed two months, which means I haven't shared four of my manicures.

Your nails are always so intricate!

I like the stripes and dots. What do you use for the dots?

I ended up cutting my nails. I painted them with Sinful Colors Supernova which is one of my all time favorites and wish I could replace. There’s still some left, but I’m already weeping at the thought of running out of it soon enough. And when I say I have to clean the edges, usually I do get rid of the biggest messes at least. Shower does the rest. I should always take a pic of the nails the day after.

So I painted them and in a moment of crazy decided that just dotting them up would be a good idea. Not so. They look awful, but I haven’t removed the abomination yet. I should have just stuck with supernova.


Meeks, I thought it might be a pain to remove. I like it, but maybe I’m not giving something like that a try, no matter how cool it looks. My glitter toe incident last summer was bad enough! I couldn’t get rid off all the glitter polish on my toes, but apparently I managed to loosen it up. So when I just gave up and decided to continue later, put on socks and shoes, went out and came back, the glitter had migrated from my nails and taken over my entire toes and a good part of the feet too. It was impossible to get off, sower only seemed to make it more mad too. I threw away the socks, I was too worried that washing them with other clothes would spread the glitter issue.

 

[Justadesperatewifeandmom]

Nothing fancy. I did it myself at home on 31st.
https://i.imgur.com/aGPbeVP.jpg

I want to do something particular. Idk...I like geometric designs but I'm not sure what I want. Anybody of you has a link or something where they give you some ideas?

I am always a fan of triangle based, though they can be created with tape easily, so that may be why I am partial. I have this page bookmarked, I have tried modifications of the easier ones, but there are some others I'd like to use as inspiration.
https://www.cuded.com/40-geometric-nail-art-ideas/

on my list is https://imgur.com/a/ID9jvzp

Your nails are always so intricate!

I like the stripes and dots. What do you use for the dots?

I ended up cutting my nails. I painted them with Sinful Colors Supernova which is one of my all time favorites and wish I could replace. There’s still some left, but I’m already weeping at the thought of running out of it soon enough. And when I say I have to clean the edges, usually I do get rid of the biggest messes at least. Shower does the rest. I should always take a pic of the nails the day after.

So I painted them and in a moment of crazy decided that just dotting them up would be a good idea. Not so. They look awful, but I haven’t removed the abomination yet. I should have just stuck with supernova.


Meeks, I thought it might be a pain to remove. I like it, but maybe I’m not giving something like that a try, no matter how cool it looks. My glitter toe incident last summer was bad enough! I couldn’t get rid off all the glitter polish on my toes, but apparently I managed to loosen it up. So when I just gave up and decided to continue later, put on socks and shoes, went out and came back, the glitter had migrated from my nails and taken over my entire toes and a good part of the feet too. It was impossible to get off, sower only seemed to make it more mad too. I threw away the socks, I was too worried that washing them with other clothes would spread the glitter issue.

Thanks. My nails are like my arts and crafts project, hence liking to try more intricate things, but then I don't end up with a ton of poorly done crafts lol

I actually have a $5 brush/tool set from amazon that includes a few dotting tools, though they aren't necessary. Before the internet, I remember my nail product box also contained a couple restaurant tooth picks, a sewing needle or two, a pencil, a dead pen, a couple brushes from empty eyeliners

Hopefully you find more or a close color and yeah, you win some, you lose some, but I am sure it is still good enough to let it ride. I quit water marbling attempts, because I never win.

I don't trust myself working with acetone while wearing polish. At least, My drying method increases the speed at which polish comes off the skin though. I rinse with cool water and spray my finished nails with oil sheen (ethnic hair conditioning and shine sprays). It helps dry them, prevents any pet hair from sticking to anything still tacky (which was my primary reason), helps prevent smudging, but the moisture and mineral oil is quickly absorbed by the skin, and the polish just falls off the skin when I rinse a few minutes later. I know some people prefer cooking spray, but I think this works better. It is cheaper, I think the alcohol makes it dry quicker, and the lack dimethyl silicone and lecithin means it won't mess with the finish, feels less greasy, and the skin absorbs it better hence the polish coming off. Plus I also use it on my hair so it is around.

The glitter story, sorry I laughed. I actually like glitter polish because of the durability. I expect a minimum of two weeks on a mani and month on a pedi. If I am shooting for longer, glitter will be in.

 

[seela]

^You put so much effort into your nails that it makes sense to make them last. For me it’s a 10 minute job.

I should try water marbling again. I remember it being very annoying but also kinda fun when it worked out. Vacation project!

 

[HotBrand]

^You put so much effort into your nails

Agreed. Every photo of your nails is just beautiful. It really, truly is so eye-catching.

I should try water marbling again. I remember it being very annoying but also kinda fun when it worked out. Vacation project!

I hope you do. I struggle with marbling when baking so the idea of doing that with your nails is ... mind-blowing ... but I bet you'd do such an awesome job.

... ahem. Nails can be so pretty.

 

[seela]

I hope you do. I struggle with marbling when baking so the idea of doing that with your nails is ... mind-blowing ... but I bet you'd do such an awesome job.

... ahem. Nails can be so pretty.

I did, infact, not do an awesome job. My hit and miss record with water marbling is about 50/50. This time was a miss.

 

[HotBrand]

I did, infact, not do an awesome job. My hit and miss record with water marbling is about 50/50. This time was a miss.

I can't even manage feathering properly so I think 50/50 is a great ratio.

Looking forward to the next attempt and I LOVED the last photo (red nails) that you uploaded. Sooo pretty!

 

[seela]

I can't even manage feathering properly so I think 50/50 is a great ratio.

Looking forward to the next attempt and I LOVED the last photo (red nails) that you uploaded. Sooo pretty!

Here are two quite succesful marblings from past.

Red
Blue

 

[HotBrand]

Here are two quite succesful marblings from past.

Red
Blue

Same URL for both, cariad. No red

That blue is GORGEOUS though. That's like what I want my chocolate brownies to look like on top.

I hope others will back me up on this. You *nailed* it. Literally.

Pun intended.

 

[seela]

Sorry, fixed the link now.

They are really nice when they work out, but like mentioned, it's very hit and miss for me.

 

[Justadesperatewifeandmom]

Agreed. Every photo of your nails is just beautiful. It really, truly is so eye-catching.



I hope you do. I struggle with marbling when baking so the idea of doing that with your nails is ... mind-blowing ... but I bet you'd do such an awesome job.

... ahem. Nails can be so pretty.

oh water marbling is so much worse. In baking, you start with consistent ingredients. You know the properties of what you combined, and you have more than a couple seconds. With water marbling polish, the basic premise is polish getting polish to float due to the surface tension of the water, spread a little to create a pattern, but not spread too much. You don't mix but not repel too much either. The problem is nail polish can contain upwards of 40 different ingredients, vary wildly, and are rarely listed. So now, not only do you have to predict how they will interact with each other, without having the basic facts, but you also have to predict how they will interact with water, so like don't drop from too high for that polish or it will break the surface tension and everything will sink, don't drop too low or it will stick together or mix. Plus, these ingredients react differently at different temperature so water temperature is a factor. Polish in general thickens and hardens faster in cooler temperatures, however as the temperature of a liquid increases, surface tension decreases. Thus the exact same combo may work one time and fail another because your water temperature changed by a few degrees. And you have to correctly do all of this correctly, with several polishes, in seconds, because if it starts to dry, when you try to marble, it all just sticks to the tool. The worst part isn't failing, it is that it is so hard to isolate why you failed, so you can't improve on it. That is why it is my most hated nail technique. It really is mind blowing that some people manage to have consistent success.

I did, infact, not do an awesome job. My hit and miss record with water marbling is about 50/50. This time was a miss.

50/50 isn't bad. And it probably wasn't as bad of a fail my last attempt, when a drop of polish fell to the bottom, ate through my cup, and leaked all over my counter and floor. yeah, I quit lol.

I have been meaning to try silicone marbling/fluid art. Hopefully that will be more successful.

Here are two quite succesful marblings from past.

Red
Blue

I love the color choices in the blue one.

 

[Orchidea73]

I am always a fan of triangle based, though they can be created with tape easily, so that may be why I am partial. I have this page bookmarked, I have tried modifications of the easier ones, but there are some others I'd like to use as inspiration.
https://www.cuded.com/40-geometric-nail-art-ideas/

OMG! Thank you so much.
There are some beautiful design there. It will be hard to choose. I am loving the first pastel one, but I think my favorites are these three:
https://www.cuded.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Geometric-Nail-Art-41.jpg
https://www.cuded.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Geometric-nail-art.jpg
https://www.cuded.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Geometric-Nail-Art-4.jpg

on my list is https://imgur.com/a/ID9jvzp

I'm loving the first and third.

So many great ideas. I think I might start with the black and white.
Thank you again so much.

 

[seela]

Marbling turned into this weird, patchy thing that’s impossible to take a pic of. It’s kind of cool, if you don’t look up close it looks like liquid metal, but it’s certainly not what I was aiming for.

 

[HotBrand]

It really is mind blowing that some people manage to have consistent success.

That was such an epic description. You're right. I'm surprised anyone has success at all - and you're the most consistent I've seen so massive kudos!

Marbling turned into this weird, patchy thing that’s impossible to take a pic of. It’s kind of cool, if you don’t look up close it looks like liquid metal, but it’s certainly not what I was aiming for.

It reminds me of liquid mercury!

What'd you reckon, seela? Hit or miss?

 

[seela]

More in the meh category than hit or miss. Definitely not a hit, though, considering it looks absolutely nothing like what I aimed at.

 

[MeekMe]

I don’t remember posting on mobile being as difficult as it sometimes these days. It’s definitely changed how I respond here.

1. I wore Essie not just a pretty face and unfortunately my picture was taken after a day of cleaning and washing dishes so they’re looking worn.

2. The color I’m wearing now is also Essie and it’s more sheer than I expected. I was hoping for a different look. It’s embarrassingly named Sugar Daddy which feels like the first time I’m ever feeling uneasy with a name.

1. https://m.imgur.com/a/JSqiZXX
2. https://m.imgur.com/a/oYlf5Xp

The 2nd color is a bright, sheer pink. The photo doesn’t really show off the color very well. Pink seems to be my go-to look lately. It’s just so easy to wear.

 

[Justadesperatewifeandmom]

More in the meh category than hit or miss. Definitely not a hit, though, considering it looks absolutely nothing like what I aimed at.

Well, sometimes we get pleasantly surprised by the unexpected, usually not, but at least good enough is good enough.

I don’t remember posting on mobile being as difficult as it sometimes these days. It’s definitely changed how I respond here.

1. I wore Essie not just a pretty face and unfortunately my picture was taken after a day of cleaning and washing dishes so they’re looking worn.

2. The color I’m wearing now is also Essie and it’s more sheer than I expected. I was hoping for a different look. It’s embarrassingly named Sugar Daddy which feels like the first time I’m ever feeling uneasy with a name.

1. https://m.imgur.com/a/JSqiZXX
2. https://m.imgur.com/a/oYlf5Xp

The 2nd color is a bright, sheer pink. The photo doesn’t really show off the color very well. Pink seems to be my go-to look lately. It’s just so easy to wear.

They are pretty, and sorry, I had to giggle at the name thing. I am going to assume you don't use any Sweet & Sour Lacquer products. I swear they just try to make up uncomfortable names, so I am immune at this point. Some of the current names are Pacifier Suck, #eyeroll, Aunt Flo, Bone Daddy, Hey Diddly Ho, I'll be in my room, Totally Groovy Leg Warmers. Main staples are things like Saucy Marbles and Smicky Sauce. Ok, I am still bothered by the name Smicky Sauce, no idea why, I just don't like the word smicky. Point is Sugar Daddy is better than Pacifier Suck. Though sometimes run a really awesome deal where all their different top and base coats are 5cents with any purchase polish, and all they are very nice is you like thick polish, so you can get a lifetime supply of top and base coats for like $15. Downside is them saying my favorite base coat is Smicky Sauce.