Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Twinsie Tuesday: My Nail Care Routine

We're doing something a little different for this week's Twinsie Tuesday. Rather than sharing manis, we'll be sharing our nail care routines!

As I was writing out my whole routine, I was afraid I kinda sounded like a complete crazy lady, detailing all of the different steps I do and products I use. But it's a ritual that I enjoying doing and while it might sound like a lot of work, it's also very relaxing for me. I use it as a way to decompress and take some time for myself. So without further ado, here's how I take care of my nails!

A few of my nail care favorites: Essie Feed Me, Deborah Lippmann 2-Second Nail Primer, Barielle Nail Strengthening Cream, Seche Vite & Deborah Lippmann Cuticle Oil

Polish Removal & Nail Upkeep

First thing's first: removing my old manicure. For remover, I recently bought my first bottle of Zoya Remove+ and it absolutely lives up to all the hype! It works wonderfully but doesn't leave my nails feeling as dry and stripped as traditional removers do.

A few times a week, I follow up with Develop 10 Nail Whitening Scrub. I have some bad staining on my nails from polishing them so often and one of my nail care goals this year is to whiten them up. I've only been using this scrub for about two weeks, but there has been a visible difference so far! I know getting the stains to go away will be a gradual process but I'm encouraged by the initial results I've seen with this scrub.

 My essentials for cuticle removal: Blue Cross Cuticle Remover and a Sally Hansen cuticle pusher

As needed, I'll also use a cuticle remover after taking off my polish. My favorite is made by Blue Cross. You can get a jumbo bottle for super cheap at Sally Beauty. After applying my cuticle remover, I use a metal Sally Hansen cuticle pusher to get everything looking nice and tidy. I like this Sally Hansen pusher because the other end of the tool is designed for cleaning underneath your nails, so it's a two-in-one.

Prepping For Polish

Once or twice a week, I'll give my nails a good buffing and do some light filing, all with my Deborah Lippmann Smooth Operator 4 Way Buffer. I'm working on an in-depth review but in short, this is a great buffer if you're like me and tend to get a little overzealous. Deborah designed it so that it won't damage your nails, even if you like to put some extra pressure on.

After buffing, I massage Deborah Lippmann Cuticle Oil into my cuticles. This is one of my absolute nail care must-haves and I'm obsessed with it! Lush Lemony Flutter is another favorite cuticle rescue product. At this point in my routine, I may also slather on some Lush Handy Gurugu Hand Cream if my hands are feeling dry or rough.

Then I apply some Barielle Nail Strengthener Cream. My fellow Twinsie Lakeisha kindly provided me with some of this cream to try and I'm hoping it will work wonders for me like it did for her! My right index and middle finger nails always seem to peel or break and Lakeisha recommended this as a remedy. I haven't been using it for too long but so far, so good!

Next, I usually go mess around on the computer or watch a show or something like that, just to give all the creams and oils time to really sink in. When I'm ready for my actual manicure, I bust out my Deborah Lippmann 2-Second Nail Primer. This is a newer addition to my routine and I thought it sounded like kind of a gimmicky product at first but now that I've been using it, I really like it! What it is, is a primer that you brush across your nails to dissolve any grime and oils on the nail surface, ensuring you have a smooth, clean nail to help your polish go on easier and stay on longer. It's the same general concept as applying primer to your face before putting make-up on and it's a handy little product to have around.

Polish Time!

When I first started getting really into polish, I never wore--or even owned--a base coat. I only started wearing one after I got a free bottle of Seche Clear as part of a promo at Sally. Of course, now I know it's important not to skip base coat, both to lengthen the life of your manicure and to prevent staining. I haven't really committed to a base coat, but two of my favorites are Essie Feed Me and Deborah Lippmann Fast Girls. For glitter manis, I can't live without Nail Pattern Boldness Glitter A-Peel.

Current base coat go-tos: Glitter A-Peel & Fast Girls

As for top coat, I have tried several different ones, but I always seem to wind up back with the ever-popular Seche Vite. It has its annoying quirks (thickness, shrinkage, etc.) but I can't deny how shiny it makes my nails and I love how quickly it dries.

So yeah, that's about it! This is a much longer post than I'd originally anticipated but hopefully I didn't come out of it looking too cray-cray. My personal routine has definitely changed and evolved over time so I'm looking forward to hopefully learning about some new products and tips from my fellow Twinsies' routines!

Alaina at The Little Canvas
Amanda at Amandalandish
Chelsea at Nailed Blog
Elizabeth at Did My Nails
Kelly at Tuxarina
Lakeisha at Refined and Polished
Marisa at Polish Obsession
Rachel at Top Coat It
Róisín at Cuti-CLUE-les
Stephanie at A Little Polish
Traci at DrinkCitra

20 comments:

  1. I'm always interested to know what oil and cream products people use, and when they apply them. This winter has been doing a number on my cuticles, but I just got a little bottle of cuticle oil as a freebie in an order, and I think I may be hooked on that step! Also, I don't think you sound crazy at all.

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    1. That's the same exact way I got hooked on cuticle oil! I bought Deborah Lippmann Lara's Theme off Ebay and the seller included a bottle of her cuticle oil for free as a surprise. I didn't think I'd use it much at first, but I quickly became obsessed with it! It's crazy how much of a difference cuticle oil really makes. And thanks, I'm glad I don't sound nuts. :)

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  2. Your routine puts mine to shame!

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    1. I'm a total product whore, so I'm always trying all kinds of new stuff and adding new steps to my nail routine. I can't seem to stop finding nail things I want to try! And there's nothing wrong with a simpler approach--you have beautiful nails! :)

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  3. I like reading what routines people have for keeping their nails healthy. You definitely do not sound crazy. The only product I have from this post is the Blue Cross Cuticle Remover, which is pretty awesome. I haven't used mine in a while but I loved how it seemed to melt the cuticles away. I need to pull out my bottle and give it some attention.

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    1. Thanks Melissa! :) The Blue Cross remover is awesome! I tried the Deborah Lippmann cuticle remover recently, wondering if I'd see a difference between a cheaper and more high-end cuticle remover, and while it's very nice, I think Blue Cross actually works just as well!

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  4. Great routine! I really hope the Barielle cream works well for you.

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    1. Thanks Lakeisha! I am enjoying it so far and haven't had a break on my two problem nails since I started using it, so fingers crossed! I will definitely be picking up another tube once this one runs out. I'm so glad you introduced me to it!

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  5. I am totally going to look for that whitening treatment!

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    1. I'm really liking it so far! I definitely recommend taking a "before" picture for reference, because that's how I was really able to notice just how much the scrub was helping. It's cheap--mine was about seven dollars--plus it comes with a nice quality brush so you can really go to work with the scrub!

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  6. I have never heard of that blue cross remover; I may have to go check that out!

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    1. It's good stuff! I've had my big bottle for over two years and there's still a TON left in it, so you get a lot of bang for your buck too.

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  7. SV is the best. Well for me too anyway.

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    1. I go back to it time and time again. It can be kind of a diva sometimes but I have yet to find anything that really compares! Deborah Lippmann Addicted To Speed is the only other top coat I've tried that truly gave SV a run for its money, but I still think SV has the upper hand overall!

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  8. Nice routine. I don't think you sound crazy either. I'm always switching up my base coat.

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  9. Awesome routine! omg Zoya Remove+ has become a holy grail to me haha.

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  10. Oooooh Lemony Flutter! I want to try that stuff so bad! I've heard nothing but wonderful things about it!

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  11. I just received the Barielle cream to review! Hopefully it works out as well as we've heard!

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  12. Love lemon flutter! Its my favorite!

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  13. Love this post!!!! Great routine! :)

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