Features
“What’s On Your Nails?” with KarlaSugar
 What’s On Your Nails? is a series focusing on my fellow beauty bloggers and industry insiders, their favorite nail polish and other hot nail topics.Fanatics, let’s welcome back WOYN? After a little summer break, the series is back and what better way to kick it off than with “The Arm” herself, Karla from The Next Best Thing to Going Shopping Yourself. If you’re not familiar with Karla’s blog (and you should be) it’s seriously one of the best makeup swatch sites on the web. Karla spends her time testing every new makeup collection to hit the counters and photographs the products on her now-famous arm. She even shows nail polishes on “the arm” using the ingenious technique of polishing on tape.
For WOYN? Karla broke form by showing us her actual nails, which are totally swatch-worthy. Check out her blingtastic manicure and learn more about her after the jump! |
The Arsenal – Prolana Quick and Slick Top Coat
I get a lot of questions and comments regarding the tools and treatment products I use to keep my nails healthy and in tip top shape. Since my routine changes as I test new products, I’ve launched, The Arsenal, to share with you the items that are “must haves” in my nail kit.
For as long as I can remember, Seche Vite and Poshe have been staples in my top coat collection. When it comes to quick dry, they are the gold standard BUT (and that’s a very big “but”) the major complaint has always been the thick, tricky-to-apply consistency that only gets thicker as you work your way down the bottle. Sure that’s what Seche Restore is for but what if there was a product that worked just as well without that issue? Fanatics, I’ve found it! Prolana Quick & Slick.
My uber-fab eyebrow waxer recommended this top coat to me a while back and I bought a bottle on the spot but let it sit in my to-be-tried box for way too long. I finally cracked it open a couple months ago when I was short on time, low on Seche Vite and not in the mood to add Seche Restore. Well color me impressed!
Quick & Slick is 3-Free, non-yellowing and quick drying. It leaves a high gloss shine and the thin, self-leveling formula applies like a dream I’m about halfway through my bottle and there’s not a sign of those telltale strings from thickening when I pull out the brush. In my opinion it’s pretty comparable to Lippmann Addicted to Speed except it’s less than HALF the price!
You can purchase Quick & Slick directly from the Prolana.com website for $7.95. There’s even a trial size for $2.95. I’m sure if you search online you’ll find other e-tailers but I purchased mine at John Robert’s Spa in Mayfield Heights. p.s. if you’re in Cleveland and looking for a waxer/esthetician see my girl Abby. She’s phenom!
Have any of you tried Quick & Slick before? What do you think of it?
A Twist on the Ombre or Gradation Manicure
 Have you seen the ombre manicure that was featured in InStyle Magazine? In my post on multi-colored nails we saw CND’s version for the Kai Kuhne runway last February that they called a gradation. Either way I think it’s a fun play on the concept of a gradated manicure and much easier to replicate at home.
You may remember that I wore a gradated CalGel manicure at NY Fashion Week last season and while I loved the style, it’s not exactly DIY friendly. So I put my twist on ombre multi-colored nails with, what else, a green version. Check it out! |
Products and Tools: Tips: Note: Because this is a demo I only mixed colors for my middle and ring fingers and left my thumb out. You will want to mix three shades for a full manicure. Ring finger mix: Start with 7 drops of Milf and add 1 drop of Orbis Non Suficit. For me, the color was darker than I wanted so I added one more drop of Milf.
The idea here is to custom blend varying shades of the same color, working across your hand from lightest to darkest. However I went a different route than the method suggested by InStyle. Rather than combine pure white polish into a dark lacquer, having to create 4 separate mixes, I chose a light green and a dark green with similar color traits and blended them to create the mid-tone hues. I selected Illamasqua Milf and RBL Orbis Non Suficit because they both have a slightly grayed, dusty quality to them and I wanted a muted look.
Illamasqua Milf Nail Lacquer
Rescue Beauty Lounge Orbis Non Suficit
Acrylic pigment jars (easily found on eBay or at craft stores)
Toothpicks (for mixing)
Clean nail polish brush. I used one from an empty polish bottle I bought for frankening.
*Have your nails prepped with base coat applied before beginning.
*Apply the polish as soon as it is mixed. Exposure to air will cause it to thicken quickly and dry shortly after.
*Mix the lightest color first and apply immediately before moving on.
*Clean your brush with remover between colors to avoid streaks from previously mixed polishes.
*Regarding my formulas below, I remove the brush from the bottle without wiping it against the sides and the amount that drips off equals one drop.
Middle finger mix: Use an equal amount of both lacquers. 4 drops each of Milf and Orbis Non Suficit.
What I love about this look is that it’s much softer than the “Skittles Nails” I’ve worn in the past. It’s not as bright and in your face. In fact you could make the variations much more subtle by choosing polishes that are even closer in tone. Or if you follow the InStyle method, adding white polish, your nails could vary by a single drop.
So what do you think of this look? Is this something you’d be willing to try at home? If you’ve done a similar manicure, what shades did you use? I actually received a message from a reader, Sarah, who blended a gorgeous grayed purple version using OPI Siberian Nights and China Glaze Agent Lavendar. Share your creations in the comments!
The ALU Archives – China Glaze Dorothy Who?
 The ALU Archives focuses on older, beloved shades from the All Lacquered Up stash.
Last night I went to a screening of the Wizard of Oz with the winners of my giveaway courtesy of China Glaze. In select theaters across the country the film is being shown in Hi-Def to celebrate its 70th Anniversary. Being that I had never viewed the film on anything larger than a 27″ TV it was a thrill to see Judy Garland singing on the big screen. In lieu of the standard previews they showed a whole package about the making of the movie with casting info (I never knew Buddy Ebsen was the original Tin Man) and cast interviews. It was really cool. If you can find a screening in your area I highly suggest going. Of course such an event requires a WoO themed manicure and naturally Dorothy Who? was my pick. Check it out along with a fun pic of me and the giveaway winners after the jump! |
You guys I can NOT WAIT until the Wizard of Ooh Ahz collection returns. Mainly so I can stop using my old bottle of Dorothy Who?. I love the old gal but she’s not in the best shape. I’d like to preserve her as is without attempting to add thinner. As you can see Dorothy Who? is a glitter packed gem.
Similar to Ruby Pumps the blue and silver glitter is suspended in a sheer electric blue base. It does dry with texture so you need a thicker high gloss top coat (ie Seche Vite) for a glass like finish. I just wish my camera could capture how truly magical this shade is. There is a fire and brilliance that the camera just doesn’t see. 
Here we are pre-movie. Julie even wore sparkly red heels to match her Ruby Pumps manicure. Though talk about a small world. I’ve known Julie via Facebook for a couple years now though we met for the first time backstage at Fashion Week and Julie did Gena’s nails for prom. I love those kind of random coincidences.
So who else is dying to see the new Wizard of Ooh Ahz polishes?? It’s got to be one of the most anticipated collections of the year. I just know it will be a sensation.
Lace Nails – The Next Big Nail Trend?
 With the Konad nail art stamper fad still going strong (who would have guessed?) and Minx becoming a strong celeb nail presence where do we go from here? Well if Celebrity Manicurist Elle has anything to say about it we’ll be heading to the fabric store. You see Elle has taken nail art to a whole new level with the latest celeb trend, lace nails.
See who she’s been lacing and vote yay or nay on the look after the jump! |
A week or so ago I received an email from a reader asking about Blake Lively‘s nails from a Fashion’s Night Out event. I immediately scoured the web to get a peek and as soon as I saw the intricate lace pattern I knew my gal Elle was involved.
You see that’s her handiwork in the shot above. She created the look during an editorial shoot using our All Lacquered Up collection colors. Since she regularly works with Blake, I knew she’d have the scoop.
For the looks below on Blake and Jennifer Lopez (for the VMAs) Elle used Parisian lace. She brushes on a nail adhesive, lays down the lace, applies another coat of adhesive and then trims off the excess. For added strength you can add a layer of clear gel but she didn’t do that here.
Now I know that there are Konad wheels that have lace patterns but can it really mimic the look of real lace? I’d love to hear from my Konad loving Fanatics. Is this something you’d attempt to do at home or is it best left to the pros for special events? I’d love to hear your thoughts on this fun and funky new nail look.
image credit: Barielle and Celebutopia
Lisa N.
Ms Meatballhead
Birdie
Spa pediccure chairs
