OPI infinite shine?
- Thread starter ncch
- Start date
I asked hubby for the Butter London Patent Gel set for my birthday which is tomorrow 
I am doing a mani tonight for my birthday tomorrow so he gave me the present early 
artyhat: Can't wait to try. Will report how it goes!
I am doing a mani tonight for my birthday tomorrow so he gave me the present early artyhat: Can't wait to try. Will report how it goes!I asked hubby for the Butter London Patent Gel set for my birthday which is tomorrow
Happy Birthday!! Your nails are gonna look fabulous!
Can't wait to know what color you're gonna sandwich!
Wow! You get impressive wear with those polishes! I have a couple of CNDs and the top coat but haven't worn them yet. I'm going to have to pick up BL patent gel duo. I get great wear with BL so it should be even better with the new base and top coat. Thank you!8 full days:
I haven't experienced peeling or chipping yet, but I have seen cracking. Usually after they crack, they chip or peel along that line, but it never gets worse for me. I actually have a crack in my right thumb nail right now, BL tops and tails with a BL color. Noticed the crack yesterday, and today is day 6.
Earlier in this thread I talked briefly about my process. I'll lay it out (I may miss a few details- I'm not the best writer). Yes, I spend a significant amount of time prepping, but I take it seriously because if I'm gonna spend $$$ on a nail product I'm wanna do it right. Plus, I've been painting my nails for over 20 years, I've always loved nail polish! Of course my technique has evolved greatly over the years. Did any of y'all use whiteout when you were a kid? Ah, the memories.
Ok, here goes:
I paint my nails before bed time to let them cure undisturbed while I sleep. Dry and cure are two different things. Paint is usually dry in 10 mins, but it isn't fully cured, that takes several hours. You will know they are cured when they stop off-gassing (when the paint smell is minimal). I make sure all the important things around the house are done before painting. I do my nightly beauty regimen- wash and moisturize my face, floss and brush my teeth, before painting. Like I said, I don't want to disturb the curing process.
First I shape my nails with the old paint still on, because the natural shape of my nail bed will skew my judgement. After that I remove the old paint.
Then I soak, scrape back, and clip off cuticles before every application. About once a month I use a chemical cuticle remover.
Next I buff my nails, just a little bit, to get rid of new-growth ridges and sometimes I get a bit of nail peeling/blemishes from the removal and soaking process. This also roughs up the nail to make paint stick- like sanding a piece of furniture before paint.
Last, I always make sure my nails are super clean before painting. Handwash with a nail brush and then rub with alcohol (lately I've just been using the scrub fresh). I apply the alcohol with a foam wedge make-up applicator so there aren't cotton strands stuck to the nail. I'll take one wedge and cut it into about 8 tiny pieces and use one piece soaked in alcohol for all my nails- of course all the foam cutting is done before starting the cleaning process.
Finally the fun part, polish application!!!!
I try not to paint my cuticles, it looks sloppy and it may cause peeling or chipping over time. And I keep the bamboo stick that I scraped my cuticles back with to clean off any paint if I color outside of the lines- remove asap while it's still wet, very carefully. There is a technique to this and it can only be learned with practice. (There are youtube vids too). Now, if you get paint on your skin, from coloring outside of the lines, you wont be able to remove all traces, do not worry, it will come off your skin the next day. The important thing to remember is that you want to break the seal between nail and skin, and scrape off as much as you can from the skin.
I do take breaks and moisturize between these steps, but NEVER break or moisturize between cleaning and painting.
Hope that helps!
Earlier in this thread I talked briefly about my process. I'll lay it out (I may miss a few details- I'm not the best writer). Yes, I spend a significant amount of time prepping, but I take it seriously because if I'm gonna spend $$$ on a nail product I'm wanna do it right. Plus, I've been painting my nails for over 20 years, I've always loved nail polish! Of course my technique has evolved greatly over the years. Did any of y'all use whiteout when you were a kid? Ah, the memories.
Ok, here goes:
I paint my nails before bed time to let them cure undisturbed while I sleep. Dry and cure are two different things. Paint is usually dry in 10 mins, but it isn't fully cured, that takes several hours. You will know they are cured when they stop off-gassing (when the paint smell is minimal). I make sure all the important things around the house are done before painting. I do my nightly beauty regimen- wash and moisturize my face, floss and brush my teeth, before painting. Like I said, I don't want to disturb the curing process.
First I shape my nails with the old paint still on, because the natural shape of my nail bed will skew my judgement. After that I remove the old paint.
Then I soak, scrape back, and clip off cuticles before every application. About once a month I use a chemical cuticle remover.
Next I buff my nails, just a little bit, to get rid of new-growth ridges and sometimes I get a bit of nail peeling/blemishes from the removal and soaking process. This also roughs up the nail to make paint stick- like sanding a piece of furniture before paint.
Last, I always make sure my nails are super clean before painting. Handwash with a nail brush and then rub with alcohol (lately I've just been using the scrub fresh). I apply the alcohol with a foam wedge make-up applicator so there aren't cotton strands stuck to the nail. I'll take one wedge and cut it into about 8 tiny pieces and use one piece soaked in alcohol for all my nails- of course all the foam cutting is done before starting the cleaning process.
Finally the fun part, polish application!!!!
I try not to paint my cuticles, it looks sloppy and it may cause peeling or chipping over time. And I keep the bamboo stick that I scraped my cuticles back with to clean off any paint if I color outside of the lines- remove asap while it's still wet, very carefully. There is a technique to this and it can only be learned with practice. (There are youtube vids too). Now, if you get paint on your skin, from coloring outside of the lines, you wont be able to remove all traces, do not worry, it will come off your skin the next day. The important thing to remember is that you want to break the seal between nail and skin, and scrape off as much as you can from the skin.
I do take breaks and moisturize between these steps, but NEVER break or moisturize between cleaning and painting.
Hope that helps!
