Beauty

[juperier]

 @chiclet Nope, you're not alone. I didn't start consistantly applying polsih till I retired just over three years ago. It depends on the polish, but I now frequently only have minimal tip wear and/or chipping after 2-3 days. I could probably easily patch it and get another day or two. But by then I'm past bored and ready to change. I find that my nails actually do better wearing polish, probably because I'm more aware of doing the other things that help (lots of oil, avoiding prolonged water contact, etc).

[juperier]

@NJgirl 1205 Thanks for chiming in. It sure looked very doable to me even tho I've never tried it. It has to have a much quicker learning curve than stamping or watermabling (and I'm not even going to think about what the result would be if I tried any kind of art work).

Anyway, I'm more inclined to go for navy. Maybe something along the lines of Zoya Dream matted with the tip done with a matching blue with a glossy finish?

[MrsCat21]

---

@SurferWife wrote:

I've been getting professional manis/pedis for 25 years. It's just a part of my beauty routine. This is my vacation manicure. We just spent two glorious weeks in the Virgin Islands.

---

WOW, SurferWife, Love it!!!  Is that shell a decal??  Cant tell for sure but it looks puffy!

[NJgirl 1205]

---

@juperier wrote:

@NJgirl 1205 Thanks for chiming in. It sure looked very doable to me even tho I've never tried it. It has to have a much quicker learning curve than stamping or watermabling (and I'm not even going to think about what the result would be if I tried any kind of art work).

Anyway, I'm more inclined to go for navy. Maybe something along the lines of Zoya Dream matted with the tip done with a matching blue with a glossy finish?

---

Don't worry about getting a matching shining polish!  ANY clear, shiny topcoat applied to the just tips will give you that nail look.  Also you may want to stay with a cream rather than shimmer/sparkle to get the full effect.

[juperier]

@NJgirl 1205 Actually, I was contemplating the different effect that would be created and thought the contrast between the matted glitter and shiny solid might be kind of interesting.

[SurferWife]

@MrsCat21...the seashells are stickers. I have CalGel nails and they last 4-5 weeks.

[fitfuninformed]

---

@juperier wrote:

@fitfuninformed I rather like the definition I found on the google search page (I was having a hard time finding the right words):

"Black-tie formal wear: What it actually means. Black tie is a dress code for social functions that start after 6 p.m., and basically translates to “this party is fancy and men should wear tuxedos.”"

---

The term I needed explained was "floating on the top coat" , NOT 'black-tie' - but thank you anyway.

[juperier]

@fitfuninformed Oops, my bad. I should have read my entire post rather than stopping at the first potential term that I saw. 

First, just to be really clear, UV cured top coats are a whole different thing. I'm only talking about when using top coats like Seche Vite that don't require a lamp for proper curing. What I mean by "floating" is that you have a decent amount of top coat on the brush and more or less float a layer of it over the nail. Not enough where the top coat is running onto the skin surrounding the nail. But enough so the bristles of the brush are just barely touching the nail surface, maybe even staying just the tiniest bit above the surface.

Does this help? If not, please let me know.