What follows is a brief cautionary tale…
Neglect your mani/pedi long enough, and your fingers and toes may turn to eagle talons. It’s true. I speak from experience. I’ve neglected my nails to the point where I could carve hearts in trees, bluh!
Enter the Lori Greiner by Orly Manicure Keeper Nails Necessities Kit ($18), a handy (ha!) three-piece set of goodies designed to make at-home manicures easier. You get a bottle of Rubberized Basecoat to bump up the wear time of your polishes, a bottle Smudge Repair to smooth over any nail polish mistakes (I always make at least one) and a small bottle of Fast Dry Drops to cut down the drying time of polished nails.
Is that an apparition in the corner or just a tabby who won’t sit still?
Available online at QVC.com.
Zzzz…
[BIG YAWN!] I’m still a sleepy sheepy over here on this fine hump day mornin’. For some reason I couldn’t fall asleep last night until about 1 a.m. I swear — if they ever make caffeine illegal I’m in deep trouble!
So what’s on your to-do list today? I’m not sure what’s on mine yet, but I sure hope there’s room for a nap.
Have a good one today. 🙂
Your bleary-eyed friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
Hmm.. is it worth the $18?
I just took it for a test drive last night. It’s a’ight as far as nail products go (really nothing revolutionary here), but if you’re the type who likes to get kits it might be worth it. It breaks down to about $6/bottle (sans shipping if you order it online), which is a good, but not great bargain.
BTW, Zoya has a kit for $48 which I LOOOOOOVE called Color Lock. It seems expensive at first, but you get six items which breaks down to $8 each, and everything lasts a long time. Plus, it really does help extend the life of one’s mani/pedi. I’ve been using it for months and it’s great:
http://www.zoya.com/content/38/item/Zoya/Zoya-Color-Lock-System.html
I might be more into this, even thou it’s more expensive. I don’t have the talent to do my own nails. But extending my mani/pedi, now that I can do!
That sounds better!!! I’ll have to look into it! THanks!
This looks great! Esp the Renew Nail Polish Rejuvinator. What a great idea!
I’d really like to try that basecoat, but I will probably skip the rest. My usual basecoat destroys my nails — hmm, do I want stained nails or paper-thin, flaky ones? I hate throwing away half a bottle of anything, though, so it will be a while.
I feel you on the zzzs today. I have really been struggling all week. Yesterday I went to the restroom just so I could close my eyes for a few minutes. Are we sure it’s only Wednesday?
Heh, I used to do the same exact thing at my old gig… I’d sit my bum on the pot, lean my head against the stall door and ZZZZZZZ.
What basecoat are you using now?
We have a ‘quiet room’ that you can hang out in if you’re sick (or pumping, for new mothers) and some days it is so tempting. I force myself to think about the fact that it probably never gets cleaned!
I’ve been using OPI Start to Finish. The weird thing is that it doesn’t seem to work well with my Essie polishes — I pretty much have to skip it if I want them to dry, even with a quick-dry top coat.
One of the law firms that I worked at had one of those. It was designated as “the nap room.”
Honestly, I think people would be much more productive and happier if we were allowed to take quick cat naps in the middle of the day.
Regarding the base coat, I haven’t tried that one yet. When you finish it (you’re so good), another one to consider is Essie’s First Base. I use it and like it — it works with a lot of different polishes across the board.
I’ve never had much luck with Orly, especially their basecoat. It never seems to go on evenly and always seems to stay “tacky” forever. It may just be me though. Along the lines of what Amber said, keeping anything on my nails for too long makes them dry and discolored, so I usually only wear polish for special occasions.
Hi Kim,
I hear ya. It happens to me when I use darker shades, especially.
Rubberized Basecoat ? Hmm…
It sounds kinda neat, right? Like tires.
I use the rubberized basecoat and really like it. I do alot of at-home manicures (the recession is forcing me to back off at the nail salon a bit) and this product definitely helps keep the polish intact. I use that first, then Nailtiques Formula 2 as both my base and top coat. With 2 applications of polish, it’s a lot of layers, but I’ve found that I can go without chips for at least 6-7 days with this process. Granted, I’m using nude nail colors, which are hella more forgiving than dark ones.
i haven’t tried that top coat yet. Does it have a nice high shine to it?
sounds interesting! does the smudge repair really help?
I, too, am struggling to stay awake. I took my dog for a walk and then hit the gym. I need to work on a poster I’m presenting next month, but I’m procrastinating 🙂
It actually does. I tried painting my toes last night in a dark bathroom without my glasses on (um, BAD IDEA), and had to use it a bunch of times and it worked.
What did you do at the gym? I need to do cardio today.
sounds like a nifty product!
I walked another mile, after walking my pup a mile. then did some ab and leg exercises. I’m trying to take it easy with the cardio because I think I pushed myself too hard a few weeks ago and now my knees are cracking a lot 🙁
I’m sorry that you’re so tired! I was up late too, my brain saved all of my stress until I got to bed and I just laid in bed with my eyes wide open stressing about life. Yay for coffee!
This looks interesting, but I’ll stick to my Sally Hansen Mega Shine top coat, it dries polish in 3 minutes, leaves a really glossy finish, and extends my manicures for a week 🙂
I know that feeling very well, it’s like stress is a new name for the monster which I believed was hiding under my bed when I was a kid 😀
I will need this because I always nick or smudge more than one nail whenever I do my nails.
I am not cat person – but that pic on top showing just Le Tabs’ chubby paw is awesome. I’m sure it’s a great illustration of the quiet elegance that is Tabs.
Halfway done w/ humpday here …. and cannot wait to get on home. The hubs and I are planning a staycation for next week and I cant wait! 🙂
If I took my nails and toes more seriously than I do (im so neglectful of them) … id be all over that set. 🙂 Anything to keep a mani/pedi on longer is a good thing!
That base coat looks and sound a lot like Orly Bonder (which I am currently using and love). I generally stay away from drying drops as I find that “quick dry” methods and products means “quick chip.” Now the Smudge Repair top coat – that sounds interesting… I wonder if I can get it by itself.
My to-do list? My mom and her husband are out of town, so I’m charged with checking up on the house, watering plants and feeding the cat. My favorite part is the “kitty cuddles” and eating all of their food. Oh, and they have an above-ground pool if I feel up to it.
So, yeah, going there is on my to-do list. 😉
I like the smudge repair. I always get impatient when painting my fingernails. Hope you were able to work in that afternoon nap!
awwww look at tabs feet!! 🙂
i think i’ll pass on this one since u dont seem completely wowed. i think ive come to accept that polish doesnt really last on my nails. im ok with that. i never like to have to same color that long anyway.