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11.13.2009

Weekend Getaway Project - Give Yourself a Manicure

Our Treat Girl always has lovely nails...something the rest of us aspire to but never quite reach.

I realized, looking back through my photos, that she spent a significant amount of time on this task for herself and others:

While watching a movie:



While we were sewing:



And an all out early morning girlfriend manicure session!



Every master has tools of the trade, and here are hers:



She suggests that Sally Beauty Supply is the best spot to begin to accumulate your own secret weapons. She also sat down and demonstrated all the steps so we could all replicate this at home for a fraction of the cost of a salon manni.

How to Give Yourself a Professional Manicure at Home

Step 1: File
Step 2: Soak
Step 3: Apply a thick cream, like Burt's Bees Wax Cream
Step 4: Push back cuticles (use the sharpish tool to the left of the file for this)
Step 5: Trim cuticles (use those tiny scissory things at the bottom for this)
Step 6: Clean under your nails (with the other end of the cuticle pusher thing)
Step 7: Go over your nails with nail polish remover to prepare them to take the polish
Step 8: Apply base coat
Step 9: Apply two coats of polish (she recommends Essie Madmoiselle for a natural , everyday look)
Step 10: Apply topcoat

She recommends plowing through these coats of polish, one right after another, not waiting for each to dry, before applying the next. Then, wait for about 10-15 minutes and go shopping!

I'll take you on our shopping field trip tomorrow...see you and your bad-ass nails then!

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5 comments:

  1. Really? You don't have to wait for each coat to dry? I don't have any luck with nailpolish. It always chips and looks horrible after about 24 hrs. I actually like my hands and I have great nails (if I don't say so myself) but us DIY'ers have a bit difficulty in this area I dare say. The only "nailpolish" I am sporting right now is the white oil-based paint that is stuck under my nails. How is that for bad-ass?

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  2. I'm so glad you wrote the steps down for me. I was wondering how I was going to remember them all. It really looks like a professional manicure!

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  3. I'll have to treat myself and my girls to a nice manicure!

    Thanks for coming by Rook No. 17. You asked about the pumpkin butter: The USDA discourages people from canning pumpkin because of its density. We always eat it so quickly that I've never worried. I typically tell my friends to use it within two weeks, just to be on the safe side.

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  4. You are a total hoot!!!! I didn't even get yours...it dawned on me as I was speeding down the turnpike trying to keep up with you on the way home!! :) Next time you'll have the first appointment!

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