At Home Nail Care 101: Everyone is doing it

Economy is tough for pretty much everyone.  As someone who used to get her nails done at a salon for about 10+ years; nowadays that seems more like a think-twice splurge than a bi-weekly "I deserve it" luxury.  Gladly, with the vast array of brands with products catered to at-home nail care and at very affordable prices, you can have pretty nails all year long; not only on special occasions.

I'm not a trained manicurist, but while blogging I discovered a whole world of articles, videos and photo tutorials that have helped me take care of my nails and hopefully after reading this, you will be inspired too. :)

Prep & Prime

Before painting your nails, you want them (and your hands) in the best shape possible.

Hand cream:

Keeping them moisturized and soft will make your manicure stand out even more.  There is no need to spend a fortune.  There are a lot of good and inexpensive hand creams in the market, there are even some specialized in helping moisture and nourish your nails and cuticles.  Choose a cream depending on your necessities   If you are outdoors a lot, consider a hand cream with SPF.  If you are going through menopause or suffering from hypothyroidism  you might be having issues with itchy / dry skin; in this case a cream with coconut oil, cucumber extract, Shea Butter, lavender or oatmeal will be great.  This step is easy because for most of us is part of our daily routine.
If on daily basis you use harsh chemicals or have to get your hands constantly in water; using gloves will reduce the damage to your nails and hands.

Clipping, filing and cutting

Cuticles: Unless you are a trained tech, don't cut your cuticles.  You could end up with a deep cut and an infection could occur; this is specially dangerous for diabetics.  Instead, use a cuticle remover cream (Sally Hansen has really good ones) or just submerge your hands in warm water for a couple minutes and then push them back with a soft cuticle pusher - mine are from Walgreens and cost less than a dollar! Other products used to maintain cuticles: cuticle oil or balms.

For your feet: You can do pretty much the same to remove cuticles and calluses.  If you don't own a foot spa, just fill a plastic tub with warm water, add your favorite liquid soap, add 1 or 2 cups of vinegar or lemon juice and soak your feet for a while.  Its acidity will soften dead skin and will be easier to remove.  Use a pumice stone to remove dead skin.  After that you could use a foot scrub to make skin feel even smoother.


Nail Files:  When purchasing nail files, ask or choose the ones with a fine-grit (240/180 grit); designed for natural nails.  Coarse grit files are for artificial nails because their material is really tough.  Since natural nails are softer and delicate, using a file with a coarse-grit grade or a metallic one with damage them.

Filing: Many techs recommend to file your nails from the edges to the center and in one direction, not in a saw motion that could make them prone to peeling.

Buffing:  Buffing is good, but in moderation. Buffing will help getting rid of ridges, imperfections and if you don't want to wear nail polish at all, using a 4-way buffer you will have natural shiny nails.

Base Coat

Base Coats protect you nails against daily wear and if you decide to paint them, helps like a bonding agent between your nail and the polish, also helps with a smooth application.

There are tons of base coats in the market and I'm sure you could find something that might look like it was designed specially for you!  Whether your concern is making them stronger, getting rid of yellow stains, ridges, make them grow faster or stop peeling or biting  there is a base coat for that.  Again, Sally Hansen has a wide array of product for this matter.

Top Coat

Top Coat ads extra shine to your manicure and helps it last longer.  Again, as base coats; there are many types and brands of top coats.  You can choose the one you like based on their efficiency, price or if the product offers any other extra benefits, like strengthening.

NOTE: sometimes, nail peeling isn't just due to improper care.  It could be attributed to factors like: changes in weather or climate, nail infections,  medications, dietary problems or a disease.  I have peeling issues due to dietary & thyroid issues.  If you try an over the counter product for peeling nails and you don't see improvement, I recommend to consult your physician.

Fine Hair Care Tips

Because my hair is wavy and has volume; its looks thicker; but it have always been fine and have become thinner overtime.

Fine hair is difficult to manage because is prone to breakage.  While dealing with thinning hair, breakage and loosing it; I've found and tried some ways to work with it and take the best care possible.

I'm no expert, but I want to share with you what have worked for me and might work for you ass well.

Detangling: 

• Start doing it from the ends and then work your way out to the roots.

• Detangling hair while is wet is not the best option, but if you have to; I recommend using conditioner to the length of your hair.

• Use a wide tooth comb or a Wet Hair brush.

Styling it: 

When holding your hair in ponytails, is recommended to use fine-hair-friendly elastic bands like blax or bungee bands, or any other band that is covered in soft fabric to avoid pulling your hair while taking it out.

When taking out the elastic bands do it carefully and gently.  breakage from pulling elastic bands in a unruly way can take up to 2-4 inches of hair, causing a line of short hairs [angel hair] to show up.

Wide barretes are other option to hold your hair: they are easy to put on and to take off.

If possible, avoid teasing and backcombing. 

Breakage can also occur when using too much heat.  When using hot tools, try to do it it on the lowest heat possible, avoiding super close or direct contact. Depending on how healthy your hair is, use hot tool no more than 2 times weekly in combination with heat protectant products.

Other Tips:

When washing it, don't put shampoo at your ends because what really needs to be cleaned are the roots.

  

Opt for mild shampoos and conditioners that won't remove volume.

because fine hair tangles easily, avoid piling your hair up while washing it.

Trim your hair regularly to get rid of split ends.

Recomended Products:

• Henna Hair Dye
• Heat Protectants
• Mild Shampoo, Conditioner and Hair Moisturizers with Sunblock
• Shampoo and Conditioners specially designed to fine / thinning hair
• Protein Hair Masks
• Volumizing Mousse and Gels

Final Note:

At times, fine/thin hair can be product of an unhealthy diet, stress or health problems - I've always had thin hair, but t have gotten thinner and start to loose it thanks to hypothyroidism -. In that case, consulting with your physician would be a great add to your hair care routine :D

Helpful info on beauty blogger photography

Hi gals!

I want to share with you two great post from Beauty's Bad Habit in which she gives invaluable tips on how to take better product pictures for your blog and how to tweak your camera settings.  This is one of the areas I'm working to improve and I hope you find her posts has helpful as I did.  Also I recommend you follow her blog, she is very talented :)

Beauty Blog Photography 101

My Product Photography Area

Give some luv to your flat iron!

Hi lovelies!
Today I want to share with you some tips I found here on how to take care of your flat iron.  This article came to me a little bit late, but better later than never.  I've had my Remington Wet2Dry flat iron for about 5 years.  She is my trusty baby, I love her, I really do. But sadly, have to admit that I (and my mom, sister in law, my bf, cousin, aunts) have used and abused her. After almost a month without getting my hair pimped, last week I decided to give it some love.  It was painful to realize that my flat iron...is freaking dying on me! It turned off by itself at least 4 times and takes forever to heat.  What it usually took me 25 min, became an hour. 

If you really love your flat iron, be good to her and follow this tips as you find them true and useful:

1. After using, once is cool; clean the blades. This avoids hairstyle products and natural hair oils build up.  I always did this, even more because I was not the only one who used it.

2. Warning: store it in a heat resistant bag. - I usually let it cool and store with with my blower and hair brushes

3. Another warning: beware of where you put your hot flat iron! they recommend to use a mat for your counter top. Luckily I haven't burn or melt anything :)

4. Do not wrap the cord around the barrel - I always do that, maybe that's why she is dying on me.

5. Lastly, turn it off while not using it - this nor only for safety reasons, but to save energy too :)

If you have other tips on how to take care of you styling tools; share it in the comments. Also, recommendations for a good & affordable flat iron will be well received!

how to take better pictures

Some time ago I was reading MissChievous blog and she made reference to an article she posted on Spectra.net about How to take better makeup pictures with your camera. It was written in 2006 and cameras have changed since then, but I think most principles remain the same and that you can find equivalents in you camera settings. I tried it with my old cam and I've seen a great improvement on it.

Last week my mom got a new camera and it was driving me crazy because I couldn't take closeup of my new mani. I remember this article and voila! problem solved. I'm going to take some pictures tomorrow on natural light to make further adjustments. I highly recommend you to check her tutorial, is super useful! :)

the beauty of reuse & recycling

As beauty junkies we are always re-organizing, re-a ranging, depoting and what not. Sometimes the products we buy come with tools that we trow away because they seem useless.  Other times "necessity is the mother of invention" and in times of need something that seemed useless becomes a $$$ and time saver. Not least important: reusing our beauty tools and containers helps reducing waste :)

Some ideas:

- sponge tip applicators: I used to trow them out but when I'm traveling or don't want to mess a brush with a cream product they are great to apply cream eyeshadows, specially those that tend to stain or brushes or to apply product to small areas.  They also work great to apply or smudge eyeliner / eyeshadow on lower lash line. I've even use them to blend lip liners.

- brushes: I use the brushes that come with some blushes to brush away fall out. Smaller brushes are good to apply wet pigments because they tend to be a little stiff and pack color nicely. I even use the smaller ones to clean my laptop keyboard, small spaces / corners on my makeup table and clean the edges of my nails after doing a mani.

- mascara wands: After your mascara have dried or expired you can wash; disinfect it to use it on your brows, to remove powder from your hair line. I had a mascara that had a terrible brush but a great formula; instead of trowing it out I exchange the brush because it fitted perfectly in the tube. 

- lipgloss wands: after washing; disinfecting I've use them to create my own glosses when mixing pigments with clear gloss or to apply a sheer layer of lipstick

- foundation: A foundation that doesn't match your skin tone? In case you can't return it or give it to someone else, it might work as concealer, eye primer or to swatch other products. It it turns out to be too dark, you could try mixing it with your favorite moisturizer and create a custom tint moisturizer.

- containers with a pump or spray nozzle: After you use all the original product in it, rinse it well and you can reuse it store polish remover, foundation, moisturizer, hair products and more. These are ideal for travel because some products comes in big containers that take too much space or have messy dispenser  methods.

- gift set boxes & baskets : You can use them to store jewelry, makeup or bath products. I use this box from a Juicy Couture gift set to store my fantasy bangles. If you glue some cardboard strips vertically it would be nice to store small / medium eyeshadows / blushes / palettes.

- rolls and rolls of tape wondering around?: I tried to swatch nail polishes on a piece of tape and it worked really nice; specially on tape that has a matte finish.

- nail polish gone bad? You can empty the bottle, clean it well with acetone and use it to create your own "franken" polishes. If you got a big size cuticle oil or base / topcoat bottle you can use smaller bottles to put some of it there so its easier to use or even gift a little of it to a friend or someone you are doing a swap with.

I would love if you could share some of your tips to reuse beauty tools! :)

Tip: for cracked heels and calluses

Maybe this tricks are not new, but they have worked for me and wanted to share; "sharing is caring" =D

If you have problems with cracked heels or your toes  got dark while tanning, You will need:
- bucket or a feet tub [something big and comfortable enough to sink booth feet in]
- water
- vinegar vinegar
- pumice, foot file or something similar to a PedEgg
- moisturizing cream of your choice

First, boil enough water to put on the bucket and cover booth feet. Check water temperature prior to sink your feet in, make sure its not going to burn you.
Once happy with how hot the water is, add half bottle [more or less depending on how hard your skin is] of white vinegar, revolve with your hand or spoon.
Sink your feet in the water.  The hot water and the vinegar will help to "tenderize" calluses and the cracked skin on your heels, make it easier to remove it with the pumice or the foot file.  It also helps to leave skin smoother and to clarify the skin. After you finish scraping the cracked skin, dry your feet and apply moisturizing cream.

Another trick that was told was to at least 3 times a week apply Vick's VapoRub to heels, cover with gauze and sleep with socks on. The ointment with the help of your natural body heat will release a warm moisture to maintain skin smooth and humected.  Guess the use of the gauze or the socks are to avoid a mess of the ointment while you sleep hehehe