So you just saw some ultra hip Katy Perry nails being featured in a popular magazine. You love it to bits and think faster than a bullet that it will also look good on you. It is without a doubt that regular manicures and pedicures can make you feel a little better about yourself. Beyond the superficiality of the cause, there is something endearing about painting one’s nails. One is that it can add elegance and sophistication, and to a career-oriented woman, some sense of professionalism and charm. Of course, it can also be relaxing to visit the nearby salon for that needed R & R but with prices going up these days, you are almost entirely left to feign for your own. But before you make that giant leap, it is imperative that you learn some things about painting nails on your own.
Why Coating is Essential
Never skip two essential steps, the base coat and the top coat, when doing your own nails. There is a reason why your local salon does this to your nails when you go in for treatment. Skipping these two steps will greatly affect not just the look and wear of the polish but it can also diminish the protective factor that both brings to your nails and to the polish per se. Putting a coat at the base of your nails helps prevent staining the nails and causing it to go brittle. The base coat acts as a barrier in between the polish and the natural nail. This also allows the polish to stick better thereby delivering an even texture as a result.
The top coat, on the other hand, ensures that the polish applied is sealed, locked and protected from harsh elements your hands come in contact with on a daily basis. Aside from it preventing your polish to easily chip and crack, its ingredient nitrocellulose also adds a beautiful finish and shine to your claws.
How Many Strokes to Perfect a Polish
Looking at Beyonce nails elegance, you might be wondering how to do it on your own, that is, to apply perfectly even coats of polish to your nails. Practice makes perfect and if you are keen on observing your nail buddy at the nearby salon, it takes only three strokes to guarantee a perfectly polished look. After putting in the base coat, simply dip the intended brush into the bottle. Try to get an adequate amount of polish. A tiny bead at the brush’s end is all it takes to give your nail the color it so craves. Place a dot at the base of your nail and spread it upward from the left, then to the right, and finishing off at the center. Balance the area where the brushes meet and finish off with a top coat. Not hard to get, right? You might even consider repurposing an old lip brush to aid in your DIY manicure and pedicure. This can help clean up the polish that often goes out of the line. Simply swipe it into a nail polish remover and swipe gently around your nail tips to delete the unnecessary.
The Right Color
Painting your nails is not just about the idea of painting per se. You need to choose the right shade, too. One important thing to consider when choosing a nail polish color is your skin tone. For women with fairer and medium skin tones, dark colors can prove to draw attention to the hands. Lucky are those with darker complexion though as they can carry just about any color. This must be one of the reasons why Beyonce and Rihanna can change their nail styles anyway they like and still look elegant.
Of course, your complexion is not the end-all of choosing your nail polish. You also need to consider your outfit, the occasion, your make-up and the season. Your nail polish should complement with your outfit to deliver a complete look. The same goes to your make-up. Can you imagine wearing a red gown, wearing orange make up and yellow nail polish? Unless you want to look outrageous, keeping an elegant look requires some hawk-eye precision. The occasion and season are two other things to consider. Going to a dinner meeting with your fiancée with a blood red nail polish will scream sensuality but, try wearing one when presenting a report in a board meeting. Trust me, you will draw more feedback to your nails than to the meat of the meeting. Though, many believe that seasons do not affect one’s choice of nail color, the other half begs to disagree. Summer and spring means relaxing bright colors with pastel and fun neon leading the pack. During winter, shades come from opposite ends of the color spectrum. It can either be super-mod white or must-wear dark shade. Colors during autumn, like bronze or gold and russet, lend a sense of elegance though.
If you are in for the right way to paint your nails, it is best to ditch the quick-dry nail polish, too. Not only can this dehydrate the nails, it can easily chip and crack, too. The next time you want to copy Beyonce’s or Katy Perry’s nails, keep this trick of the trade in mind. Just add a little glitter to your nail polish to make it last longer.