The "Française"

The French Manicure….

This has got to be the most classic “design” ever. Works for various nail lengths and types (acrylic, gel, natural). Matches everything…and is, weirdly, LOVED by so many men. (I would love for men to explain to me why they love it so.)

It’s refined and, when done well, “finishes” any hand beautifully.

Even, I, with my extreme love of color, can’t deny that the French….. is the crème de la crème.

It will never get old.

Not sure when or by whom it was created… but it’s incredible.

my nails at the beginning of growing back out

Mommie’s nails… she allows a french manicure, but no other color whatsoever
NYC Quick Color “Little Italy” & Sally Hansen Insta-Dri “Petal Pusher”

Angela’s gorgeous (and practical) American Shellac (CND)

Angela is a very successful and busy dentist (Healthy Smiles), and one of my dearest and closest friends. She washes her hands probably a billion times a day.

She introduced me to paraffin dips nearly 20 years ago. (Is there any question that she’s a REAL friend?! Smile ) Those things are amazing for moisturizing and soothing!

Shellac is a wise decision for her to maintain a finished look on her hands despite her total “manicure-hazardous” career. lol.

Though this is called an “American”…. it still looks really French to me. haha And is still so very classic and works well for any fashion look.

my nails growing out
NYC Nail Color “French Tip White” & “Love Letters”

I used to paint my white tips freehand, after a basecoat.
Now I take a page from the nail shop. I skip the basecoat, and I straighten the lines of my white tips with an acetone-dipped art brush. Mistake free every time. woo hoo!

The French Manicure will always be in my manicure rotation. Its beauty is timeless.

Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Colors

Nov22 by Cheryl Cheryl

As you can well tell, I’m a Sally Hansen fan! They really have a good thing with their polish formulations. And they have been around FOREVER. I remember my grandmother using the Sally Hansen hardener in the rounded bottle with the pink tint when I was really young…. and that was eons ago. lol. So this brand has staying power. And that stuff is still widely used.

When I was willing my nails to grow and retain length earlier this year, I happened upon the Insta-Dri line of polishes. TIMESAVER! It fulfilled a few goals: 1)pretty nails 2)super low time-commitment 3)frequent change.

It took about 5 minutes for me to manicure my nails from start to finish with these polishes. The very wide brush applicator covers nearly the entire nail, so in just a few sweeps of color you’re done. And it dries within a minute. Smudge possibility: minimal! I generally use two coats, but the polishes have great coverage, so it’s very possible to only need one coat.

When my nails are at their "working length" I chip polish off the tips almost daily…. so I’m consistently changing the polish. Plus, I constantly pick at the polish from the cuticle side of my nails (very bad habit, you should not do this), so my polish never has a huge chance of survival… :-/. The quick-dry feature of this polish solved the issue of not having time to do my nails. Now there is no good reason not to polish your nails.

And this line has a broad range of colors to choose from. Something for everyone.

You have 5 minutes to spare?? Polish your nails!

“Racey Rouge”

“Jade Jump”

“Mint Sprint”

“Snappy Sorbet”

“Snappy Sprinkles”

("Snappy Sprinkles "over OPI "I’m Not Really A Waitress" in right pic)

“Blue Streak”

“Quick Sand”

BURBERRY

Nov18 by Cheryl Cheryl

Inspiration.

At the end of the day, that’s what keeps you moving forward. When you find something that motivates you, you can get it done. You find the energy to give it effort…regardless.

As tired as I was after working a 14.5 hour day at work… Burberry moved me. lol. And I wanted it on my nails. This was my first attempt. But trust me, I’ll be practicing this again until I get straight lines, and a better aspect ratio. :-). I will post update pics after I re-do this a few more times….

but I had to share… Flaws and all.

I started with the neutral peachy tan Sally Hansen Insta-Dri color "Quick Sand". Matches pretty closely to the classic Burberry base.

Then I added some white stripes with white nail polish; tried some free-hand black and red stripes with acrylic paint…. top coat….. and "almost" Burberry :-).

I’d have a huge "Thank You" for whomever wanted to present me with that hot Medium Leather Tote!! (<–link)

Will try again as soon as I have some time, and will update photos!

Stay Inspired!

*****UPDATED PHOTOS!!*****
Mon – 11/21/11

My lines are getting straighter, and I think the aspect ratio is improving. I like it better, but I think I will have to take a break from practicing it right now because I’m getting frustrated that it’s not coming out exactly how I envision it.
So, I’ll pick it up again in the future Smile

I used all polish this time. Base color is OPI Malaysian Mist, white and black lines were created with Color Club Nail Art Lacquer stripers, and the red lines created with MAC Frost Asiatique

OPI–Wocka Wocka (Muppets Collection)

Nov13 by Cheryl Cheryl

Irresistible….. Had. To. Purchase! This is a stunning red. It’s gorgeous. Very creamy “bold statement” red, with a shimmer. OPI at its best. Ridiculously similar to OPI’s “Im Not Really A Waitress”… Still beautiful. Still purchased.

OPI “Wocka Wocka” with Sally Hansen Hard As Wraps as basecoat and Sehce Vite Dry Fast Top Coat

BFF – Bland for Fran, my bff

Nov10 by Cheryl Cheryl

More than anything, I know with certainty that my best friend Fran, HATES a neutral color palette for her nails!
So I was searching for a wonderfully bland, neutral, non-stimulating color just for her! LMAO.

I actually found an absolutely beautifully finished and gracefully delicate and classy color in my Sinful Colors stash. Out of This World
(My SDA-friendly polish lovers –>this is definitely one for you)

. . . . But then I got distracted, in my normal “polish ADHD” fashion, and had to swagggg that polish out. I layered a couple of coats of Sinful Colors Queen of Beauty on top. Luv it! The glitter in this polish has great coverage but the finish is smooth like no glitter exists. This is good polish right here!

Sinful Colors – Out of This World

(left – Out of This World) (right – w/Queen of Beauty)

the results:

I like the look of my nails better in everyday life than photos with the bottle of polish. You can see the detail of the glitter in this pic from my cab ride on the way to work. Almost looks like aluminum foil 🙂

Sinful Colors Haul–Walgreens .99 cent sale

Nov9 by Cheryl Cheryl

Randomly, I found out from a twitterfriend (@TXgirl512) who found out from a twitterfriend (@candicebeauty) who found out ( Smile ) that Walgreens was having a nationwide sale on Sinful Colors nail colors the week of October 24. I checked the online circular, saw the sale….. raced right on over to Walgreens, made a beeline to the cosmetics department… and…… voila!

19 new Sinful Colors nail colors to add to the 9 bottles I already owned! #winning

I passed the info on to my facebook friends….. Wasn’t sure if anyone would indulge…..

but….

Dee Dee my “partner in nail polish crime” made out great! She even slipped a beautiful Essie “Chinchilly” in there. ha! Can’t be mad at an Essie polish. especially a smooth gray like that one.

And this GORGEOUS display, with some absolutely beautiful color choices, was sent from one of the sweetest friends I know, Charlyce :-). I didn’t even know she had heard about. or was taking advantage of this .99 cent sale! Such a pleasant surprise to know of our “polish persuasion”. lol

I definitely should have gone back for more colors, as I barely scratched the surface of Sinful Colors’ collection. However, I got too excited and anxious to use the colors I had already purchased and never went back to check for more.

Needless to say, there will be a ton of Sinful Colors posts in the near future.

**Infotip: Sinful Colors is a nail color line created by Mirage Cosmetics which was acquired by Revlon in March 2011…. and apparently NOT an OPI manufactured brand, as rumored.

it’s time…… for a polish blog

Nov7 by Cheryl Cheryl

I guess it’s BEEN time for this… but I’m finally doing it Smile

This polish was a special request from one of my dearest and closest friends and former Roomie, Kimberly.

She loves fuchsia, so…. I found this Sinful Colors “Dream On” in my polish stash.

I really hate this polish. It’s matte. And I love a good gleaming shine… Of course, that’s easily acquired with a brilliant topcoat. So, technically, problem solved.

Matte:

There are definite advantages to this matte polish. It dries very quickly. This one has decent opacity. But I still find it challenging. The polish easily swipes “off” while you’re polishing. That’s all bad. I managed through the application though. *sidenote: I AM giving this polish away immediately. I don’t want to use it again. I have to find another fuchsia.

Even though it’s not a favorite… it turned out decent.

Matte:

TopCoat Shine: Sally Hansen Insta-Dri TopCoat

Hello world!

Nov6 by Cheryl Cheryl

polish.
polish.
and more…

polish.

Now I’ll have all of it in one space… Polish2times.

Join me on my polish adventures….

it’ll be fun.

I got the “Blues”…..

Nov2 by Cheryl Cheryl

In search of a loveable “blue” for my blue-hating friend Debbie….. I found two vibrant, and eye-catching beautiful blues from Sinful Colors.

“Love Nails”

{this blue made me do a double-take in the mirror when I saw my hand!! Pretty! – but Debbie “thumbs down-ed” it. She’s obviously blind. lol}

“Midnight Blue”

You can’t deny the midnight blue. GORGEOUS is an understatement. That’s the prettiest blue I have ever viewed. Even Debbie has to agree that’s a damn good-looking blue right there. lol