Tips and Tricks
Deborah Lippmann on Martha Stewart
So I was getting my morning Martha Stewart fix and I was so excited to see Deborah Lippmann as a guest, discussing holiday nail trends and winter manicure maintenance. I’ll admit, I wasn’t the biggest Martha fan but I started listening to her daughter’s talk show on Sirius radio and seeing her through Alexis’ eyes intrigued me. Realizing that she’s not always perfect, just a real person with flaws like the rest of us (except with a ton more money), made me a Martha fan. Knowing that she’s also Deborah Lippmann fan makes me like her even more.
Deborah was wearing fall favorite Pump Up The Jam on her tips, which were appropriately short, while she gave her best tips for keeping up your manicure during the cold winter months. It’s nothing we haven’t heard before but certainly something a LOT of women fail to do.
Use a base coat – Why people skip this step, I have no idea. The oils on your nail will destroy your mani right quick!
Use a top coat – I know a lot of polishes dry shiny but think of it like waxing a car, you’re sealing and protecting the color while giving it shine.
Hydrate your cuticles – What’s the point of having an amazing paint job if the frame (your cuticles) are tore up? Put a mini cuticle oil/balm/cream in every purse you own. Your skin will thank you.
Wear gloves when cleaning – All the chemicals in cleansers are damaging, protect your skin and nails so you don’t end up with leathery hands by the age of 40.
In regards to color trends Deborah talked about dark nails like the color she was wearing, Pump Up The Jam, a dark berry shimmer. She also gave a great tip for punching up your holiday manicure. Those of you who have read my post, Frankenpolish and The Art of Layering are already familiar with layering but I really loved her idea of popping a wash of red over a sparkly silver to give your tips a jelly, candy apple red look.
Of course, I had to try the look for myself. I picked out a couple reds, including Holiday from Deborah’s holiday collection, to test. I layered them all over Fingerpaints Easel Come, Easel Go!, a foil like silver shimmer.
As you can see in the lower “After” image, having silver underneath really upped the glitz factor. With the creme I chose, Rescue Beauty Lounge Chinoise, the effect was subtle with little hints of glitter peeking out like stars. I think because RBL’s cremes are so pigmented (think one coat red), a more sheer creme would give more bling.
Did anyone else catch Deborah’s Martha segment today? What are your favorite holiday layering combos?
Fashion Forward with CND
The ribbon cutting to signify the official start of New York Fashion Week is less than 24 hours away. The backstage madness is about to begin for all the models, makeup artists, hair stylists and nail techs. And this season yours truly will be joining them to report the upcoming nail trends straight from the tents, as they’re happening. That’s right, I’ll be at Fashion Week!
So to get an idea of the kind of preparation and backstage frenzy that surrounds Fashion Week, I had a nice little chat with Roxanne Valinoti, CND’s Backstage Nail Team Manager. An accomplished nail artist who has worked with countless celebrities, Roxanne is an International Educator for CND who has been part of the Fashion Week team from the very beginning. During our talk, we not only discussed Fashion Week but also CND’s Spring trend forecast and manicure techniques.
Fashion Week
Last September, CND ascended on New York Fashion Week with a team of 20 artists to tend to more than 37,000 fingers and toes at 62 shows in only 10 days. Now that’s a lot of polish!
So what goes into the planning and preparation for taking on such a venture? Two months prior to show time the CND team starts working with the fashion designers to plan the right nail look to showcase their collection. And at the two week mark, a team of three artists get to work in CND’s production suite creating pre-made tips.
The creative process is a collaborative one between the designers and CND Co-founder and Style Director Jan Arnold. Even though each designer has a specific look they want to convey, Jan is always at the ready with ideas for different nail styles, designs and colors. When needed, colors will be custom blended to match a pantone or fabric swatch. Last season there were custom blended shades making their way down the runways at 3.1 Phillip Lim, Akiko Ogawa, Benjamin Cho, Costello Tagliapietra, Karen Walker, Malandrino, Ports 1961, Three as Four and Twinkle.
Then there are the designers that really take it to another level with custom designed nail tips. For example, when Kimora Lee Simmons announced the Russian theme for her Fall 2007 Baby Phat show, Jan showed her handmade badges she brought back from Russia. Kimora wanted them on every nail of the models hands but production for that would have taken months. In all 40 badges were made from a mix of liquid and powder that were then painted and embellished before being attached to each model’s thumbnail. Last season, L.A.M.B. had reverse french tips, Renee Larc requested a pink and white moon manicure and the Snoopy For Fashion charity show featured Peanuts characters. They were all created in advance and applied with a nail shield that peels off to prevent damaging the nailbed.
Trends
When it comes to nail trends, CND doesn’t follow them, they set them. And this is what they see for Spring 2008.
Healthy, clear pastel tints, like lip gloss for the nails
CND’s spring collection, Plexi Pop is filled with sheer, glossy shades, resembling lucite. They were shown on the models at BCBG, Behnaz Sarafpour, Chaiken, Chris Han, Douglas Hannant, Luca Luca, Peter Som and Rachel Roy just to name a few.
Bright pops of hot pink
Brights including pink popped on the runways at DKNY (Hot Pop Pink and Hot Pop Orange), Lyn Devon (Passsionfruit Poppy) and Pegah Anvarian (Studio 54, Burn and Orange-a-Peel).
Dark nails are the new classic for dressed up events
Chic dark tips and toes graced the scene at Badgley Mischka (Fedora topped with Decadence), Marchesa (Nail Noir), Max Azria (Limited Edition) and Proenza Schouler (Moroccan Ruby).
Techniques
Working in such a fast paced environment takes poise, patience, skill and the right products. Roxanne shared with me some of her favorite products and techniques for surviving the backstage insanity.
- 5-6 designers requested a matte finish. To achieve the look wait for you top coat to dry and hit it with the gray side of the girlfriend buffer.
- When it comes to mixing polishes, be careful. Roxanne suggests you stay within the same brand to avoid any dangerous chemical reactions.
- CND Air Dry is the preferred top coat for its shine and drying time even though Speedy is faster.
- CND Serenity is the backstage basic nude and all around go to color for a clean polished look.
So now that we’ve seen what Spring has to offer, I look foward to bringing you with me as I go backstage to see what Fall 2008 will be all about. Stay tuned!
Nail Tip Of The Week: Fake A Pedicure
I was doing my daily blog reading when I came across Baze’s post over at the Glamour Beauty Insider about getting pedicures in the winter. Even though it’s freezing here, when holiday party season hits I still love to pull out my favorite special occasion peep-toes. And in my opinion, that means your nails and feet gotta look good. But you don’t always have time for a full pedicure during the shopping, wrapping, cooking, baking madness of the season. So I say FAKE IT!
In general I’m not a fan of fake anything; acrylics, stark white french manicures, costume jewelry, etc. but in this case I make an exception. I never thought I’d share this with the public but if it helps a fellow nail gal, it’s worth it.
A couple weeks ago my company held their holiday party. Cleveland was snow free so I felt it was safe to wear my black satin peep toe slingbacks. Problem was that my toe polish was chipped and my heels were looking rough from padding around barefoot on my hardwood floors. With the clocking ticking and me running late as usual, I had to rely on my quick fake pedi fix.
I do my fake pedi about an hour before I step in the shower.
- Try on your peep toes and see which toes show, even partials count.
- Remove toe polish.
- Quickly file the nails that will show (if needed). Don’t bother with buffing. No one is getting that close to your feet.
- Slap on two quick coats of color to the toes that will show. Keep an orange stick on hand to remove any wet polish that hits your skin.
- Apply quick drying top coat (Seche Vite, Poshe).
- Wait 30-60 minutes and hop in the shower with your foot file. Scrub scrub scrub your heels.
- Immediately after showering, remove any remaining polish mistakes from your skin/cuticles with your orange stick. The water and steam will soften the skin and make removal a breeze.
- Moisturize your heels with a non-greasy lotion. You don’t want to be slipping on the soles.
- Hop into your shoes and off you go.
No one will know the difference and you’ll feel so much better knowing that your feet look pampered. And no matter how much those cute shoes hurt, DON’T TAKE THEM OFF! There are some secrets you need to keep to yourself.
Nail Tip Of The Week – Filing
As I was sitting down to change my Dashing Diva manicure from my trip to New York City, I thought about how much I labor over filing my nails to get the perfect shape. Filing takes up the majority of my manicure routine. It’s just my nature to be anal about having smooth edges, symmetry and uniform length. So for your Nail Tip Of The Week I thought I’d share my filing techniques.
File Angle: The angle at which you hold your file makes a huge difference in the results you get. I hold my file on a 45 degree tilt under the nail. And even though the old rule is to only file in one direction, I’m not going to be a hypocrite and tell you the same. I file in both directions, I just do. I guess I’m not satisfied doing it the “proper” way.
Shaping: I find that shaping is so much easier when you have polish on your nails. It makes your nail edge more visible. An added bonus, when you remove the polish you’re also cleaning away any dust or nail shavings. No need to dry out your nails by cleaning them twice.
As far as actual nail shape/length goes, it’s all a matter of preference. I like to keep my nails short and in a squoval (squared oval) shape. A good rule of thumb is to mimic the shape of your nail bed along the cuticle. Of course if you’re a freak like me and have differently shaped edges (some rounded some flat) I think squoval is your best bet.
Snags: Have you ever finished your manicure to end up discovering snags after the fact. Sucks doesn’t it? I always make sure to run a nail under each edge to check for any cling-ons and I flick them off with my file.
Sealing the edge: When I am completely satisfied with the shape and length and have removed any snags I seal the edge by running the file, at an angle, down the edge of my nail (as pictured). This seals the edge to prevent water from damaging the nail and gives you a soft, clean finish.
FYI: I have Dashing Diva Black Diamond on my tips.
Nail Tip Of The Week: Pedi Socks
There is nothing worse than getting a gorgeous pedicure during these cold winter months and then leaving the salon to have your feet turn into icicles. And it’s not like you can put your regular shoes back on without biffing the paint job. Not to mention what that dry, brisk air does to your freshly scrubbed and moisturized skin.
My solution, Pedi Socks. These adorable toeless socks are perfect for keeping your feet warm and your toes perfectly polished. Plus, they keep your feet from sliding around on your flip flops. I know I’m not the only one that has nearly taken a tumble due to greased up soles hitting smooth sandals.
OK I know what you’re thinking, toeless socks and flip flops are a fashion “don’t!” This is one time I’m telling you to throw the rules out and forget about looking a fool. You think you look fab now, leaving a salon in the dead of winter, traipsing through snow in bare feet and thongs? It’s time for practicality and warmth.
You can buy a pair of pedi socks from Original Pedi-Sox, Tweezerman or BeBeautiful, where the darling pink stripe socks (below) come from. However, being the frugal fanatic that I am, I just make my own. I picked up a pair of cute Valentine’s Day socks from the Target $1 bins last winter and sliced myself a set.
Lisa N.
Ms Meatballhead
Birdie
Spa pediccure chairs
