her juvenescent elixir

Starting with the positive. It’s an absolutely divine color.  I’ll describe it as a warm coral or a salmon with more orange than pink. I can imagine that it would look good on anyone of any complexion, even those who are salmon colored. :)  It’s also a cream. Loves the creams!

I don’t know if it’s the age of the polish [an older collection] or if it’s just the formulation but the awesome color is where the good stuff ends.

The bad. It’s extremely thick, but it take three layers to really get the true color.  Why?  Because of the drag. You paint one layer and it pulls off the previous layer of polish. I’m going to add some thinner and see if it will solve that problem but right now, it’s a pain in the azz! I decided to just keep it on for a few days and see how long it lasts. Last bad thing, it’s not the same color as it is in the bottle. It’s more orange and is a deeper hue. I wanted it to be a little bit paler.

Please excuse the picture, I hadn’t cleaned up the edges just yet.

If you’ve been wanting–no–desiring the Urban Decay Deluxe Shadow box, here’s a little incentive. For any online order over $35, you will get their summer nail colors for free. With colors like ID and Baked, your tootsies will be bright, happy, and ready for the summer. To redeem enter ‘POLISH’ at checkout.

Offer expires July 22nd.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I literally stepped out of the house from 11:30pm until 12:10am. I kissed my friends and went back home. good times. I’m old.

I did a New Year’s Eve face, and as usual, it’s all about the eyes. I didn’t spend a lot of time or thought with this one, it shows a little with the eyeliner and blending, but it served it’s purpose. The video for this one is at the bottom.

[A nail polish review under the hood.]

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7tTips for perfect manicure from Nail Aid.

Press a cosmetic cotton pad saturated with nail polish remover onto the nail, wait for 10 seconds, then draw the pad to the nail tip with a 1-way stroke. Rubbing back and forth will leave stains on skin & cuticles.

2. How to create nicely shaped nails.

After filing your nails straight with a regular file, use a low grit buffing block to smooth out uneven edges to give your nails a finished look. Buffing the edges seals the open layers of filed nails to prevent breakage or chips. Use the buffing block just like the way you use your file.

3. How to remove dry, ragged cuticles quickly.

Once a week, apply a cuticle remover at the cuticle line and wait for 5 minutes. Use a cuticle wood stick and scrape back & forth at the cuticle line to remove dead cuticles- dry skin bits that cling to the base of the nail. Rinse nails with a soap gel. Use a nipper and nip - don’t pull – cuticle bits that stick up and hangnails. If your live cuticles are too thick and you want to have them trimmed, have a manicurist trim them once in a while. Frequent trimming will make them harder and thicker. Avoid trimming your own live cuticles. Use cuticle oil daily. Fast absorbing Cuticle Cure softens hard cuticles and ragged, dry cuticles and makes nails stronger and flexible, which helps reduce nail breakage. Keep Cuticle Cure in your purse or at your desk to keep cuticles looking moist after washing your hands each time.

4. Washed and dry nails.

Apply nail products, whether nail color or nail treatments, to nails that are washed and dry, free of any oil or lotion. Nail products will peel or chip when applied to dirty nails. Dead cuticles have to be removed first. If a nail product is applied over dead cuticles, it’s going to lift.

5. How to build hard, strong nails.

Always use nail care and nail treatment products that are free of toxic chemicals. Besides harming your health, formaldehyde, toluene & dibutyl phthalate cause nails to dry, yellow, and become brittle. Even if you don’t wear nail color, wearing just a nail treatment alone will prevent your nails from breakage and protect them from the drying effects of water and harsh cleaning products. Always apply a nail treatment base coat before applying nail color. When applying a nail treatment, cover the sides and the corners of the nail. These areas are where the breaks start. For fast nail growth use Grow Tougher for thin nails & slow growth nails and Nail Recovery for repair of ripped nails & peeling nails, after the removal of artificial nails. As a nail hardener and nail thickener, Brush on Wrap for splitting nails is uniquely formulated to provide an instant manicure for its sheer white tint will give your nails a clean, polished look.

6. How to have a long-lasting manicure.

After cleaning and drying your nails, apply your base coat. Applying a nail treatment base coat first helps grip nail color to the nail. Always allow one coat of nail treatment to dry to the touch before applying another coat. Besides nourishing your nails, a treatment base coat will help prevent nail color stains on your nails. Apply Fast Dry Top Coat every 3 days for protection from nail color chipping and nail color peeling and to provide a high gloss shine. When applying a nail treatment or color, wipe the brush inside the bottle to remove excess. Then, put a little stroke near the cuticle line to remove a little more product before placing the brush as close as possible to the cuticle line. This method will give you thin coatings for long wear.

7. Some final do’s and don’ts.