Fake Konad Products

If you have bought a Konad Nail Stamping system

& cant seem to get the design to transfer

on to your nails or onto the rubber stamper

then you may have a fake.

There are ways to prevent buying fakes.

But, there are also ways to get your 'fauxnad'

to work. 

First I will share with you this video that gives

a lot of insight into the Konad fakes.

Its really interesting !

Trouble Shooting for Fakes : 

In order to get the polish to transfer to your rubber stamper 

you should buy a rough nail file and buff at it until it looks

a bit distressed. This helps a lot ! 

If its still not working buff at it some more. 

The only problem with this is that eventually 

your stamper will be buffed all away. 

Buy the real thing at : 

http://www.konadnailart.com/

Also check out this blog for awesome

konad nail art designs :

http://konaddict.blogspot.com/

Oh & by the way - I also own a fake Konad system.

Im planning to buy a real one soon.

I got a set from Korea . . . should have known : ) 

Here is an old video of me using my fauxnad. 

If you dont own a Konad Nail 

stamping system 

I totally recommend it.

It makes life a lot easier

especially if you have trouble 

doing nail art with your non-dominant 

hand. There are soo many

plates with endless designs

to choose from. 

Awesomeness  I tell you. 

Happy Stamping ! 

opi top coat VS seche vite

Its official that Seche Vite is the most popular

freakin top coat out there at the moment.

Either you own it or want to own it. 

If you are into nail art that is...

But what about OPI ? 

The Start to Finish was my favorite for the longest time.

We dont have Seche Vite here but we do have OPI.

But, as soon as I bought some in NYC , I 

quickly abandoned my old OPI.

Why ?

Well, Seche Vite is a thinner formula - it dries the

polish thoroughly.It seals in the polish giving it a

glossy protected covering.

It does not dry polish as fast as people exaggerate

on youtube but it surely does set the polish 

amazingly well. 

Now, OPI top coats do not take that long to dry itself.

Much better than those cheap drug store ones.

Those take FOREVER to dry. I hate most of them ! 

But, OPI's do not really aid in the setting of the polish.

Mind you - Im talking about polishes other than OPI.

If you are using OPI Nail Polish and then a

OPI Top Coat there will be no problem

as OPI Nail Polish dries relatively fast anyway.

OPI Start to Finish is thicker than the Seche & actually

kind of 'reconstitutes' the polish in a way

(for lack of a better word) 

what the heck is the opposite of 'set'  ?   >.< 

Basically if your polish is dry to the touch and you

place OPI top coat over it it will become kind of wet again. 

If you touch something you may get smudges. 

But - this is also a plus. 

If you are doing nail art with rhinestones usually

you paint your nails, put on a top coat and then place

the stones on the wet tacky top coat.

But, seche vite is so thin and sets the polish so well 

that you dont have the time to carefully place your stones

one by one. It dries up - does not get tacky and doesnt allow

you to push the stone right down into the polish 

like you can when using an OPI top coat.

Side Note: 

I lovvve Sally Hansen Diamond Strength for a base coat

But I havent used a drug store top coat for years. 

Thats why Im comparing these 2 pricier 

ones if you were

wondering. 

I hope you get what I mean...haha.

Basically both are good for different reasons.

Overall I prefer Seche Vite but its crap for

applying rhinestones.

So, in the end I still need my OPI ! 

: ) 

Nail Dont #1

One important thing to remember is when using

 a 4 sided nail buffer or filer - try not to buff the top of your nail.

The first side of the nail buffer usually says

'Nail Edge' & thats all you should use that part for.

The other sides are less abrasive and are okay to use but be gentle.

The reason is that once that part of the nail grows out

and becomes the nail tip it will be brittle and weak because 

most of the top was buffed away.

The nail does not grow in thickness only length.

So what ever is buffed away from the top is just gone.

This is why I don't get gel nails often - because I would be 

using my natural nails, they buff away like crazy to the top

and then do all the lovely design.

But, once I removed the gel my nails looked like hell &

kept breaking until I got them to a stable point. 

Tip: When using a 4 sided buffer use each side 10 times for each nail

going in the same direction not back and forth 

P.S -  I have twitter now : www.twitter.com/xkawaiinails

Lush Love

Omg ! 

Im in love.

IN LOVE !

Lush : 

Lemony Flutter Cuticle Butter

=  Amazingness

Ahhh. 

Its so moisturizing 

So good for the skin

Perfect for cuticles , elbows, knees, lips

Anywhere that needs to be refreshed and softened.

The ingredient list has shea butter, mango, avocado

etc.  All natural, vegan & HOME MADE ! 

My boyfriend cut his finger almost clean off

& I applied this to his finger a couple times

and he said it was starting to heal up

as if we are applying ointment or something on it 

Its just great ! 

You have to try it ! 

$13.25 

www.lushusa.com 

Some people dislike the smell of it

But, I dont mind it at all.

If you dont like it you will probably get used to it. 

The smell does wear off.

What does it smell like ? 

Well.. Lemons mixed with that Health Food Store smell. 

Kind of.

: ) 

Compared to Burts Bees Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream

its way way thicker and has a moisturizing quality

which surpasses my dear old Burts.

However, most people prefer the smell of the 

Burts Bees Cuticle Cream. 

Tips for Rhinestone Application

So many people often wonder the best way to apply

rhinestones & how to keep them lasting long. 

So , heres what works for me. 

To get rhinestones to stick well you should

use a top coat  on top of your nail polish and place

the rhinestones on.

Make sure you push the rhinestones in so that

they are basically in between the polish and the top coat.

That way they are sealed in. 

Then what you should do is add a high

shine top coat to seal them in even more. 

If you are using Seche Vite which works well, 

make sure that it doesnt dry before you place it on. 

Nail Polish doesnt completely set 

for several hours normally. But, with Seche Vite

the process is sped up so make sure the stones are

right in there before it dries.

If you want long lasting rhinestones you can 

use a nail glue. Nail Glue does not harm your

nails as its on top of the polish or 

base coat, usually.  

For me to remove my rhinestones using nail glue - 

I actually put my nail horizonatally

in my mouth and actually pull off the entire layer 

of rhinestones.It sounds horrendous but it works 

like a charm ! Its hard to remove

them when they are stuck on with glue ! Haha ! 

To apply the rhinestones I usually use a regular 

old match these days. 

I have found that its the most effective way. 

I dip it into a small bit of base or top coat which

allows the stones to be picked up more

easily. 

Most Top Coats create a cloudy finish to rhinestones

so make sure you test yours out first. 

The only way to have rhinestones that last for a 

super long time is to basically have Gel Nails. 

However, with these tips you should be able to get 

about 5 days out of your nail look with rhinestones. 

If you are deco-ing with rhinestones then you 

should use a clear epoxy glue that doesnt dry instantly. 

This gives you time to move things around. It also

prevents that cloudy look to your stones. Some

super glues give off a strange finish. 

I have a couple places where I purchase my

rhinestones and deco pieces.

For bigger more detailed pieces , esp deco pieces : 

fullmoon07xxx.ocnk.net

For generic rhinestones:

www.ebay.com

Just search '1 mm rhinestones' or '2 mm rhinestones'

You will find lots of cheap ones from Asia etc !

If you dont want to get them online you can try your local

pharmacy or Beauty Supply. I know pharmacys have 

the basic silver ones by Sally Hansen. 

I use those too : )

Love your nails ! Keep them Healthy !

Have you tried to cut your own hair by your self or

bite your fingernails?

Hair and nails are made of the same protein that is 

called keratin. 

It has a very strong structure which is why you 

need special tools to cut them properly. 

Nails are a part of your skin & they protect the

fingers from  injury.

Nails grow on top of the fingers & toes, and healthy nails

are usually pinkish. Pink nails means the body not only

has a rich blood supply, 

but also it's in good health. 

Nails should not be bitten but trimmed neatly 

about once a month. Do not let them grow too long.

Many people suffer from brittle nails that break easily.

You should eat high-quality protein foods

such as nuts and seeds.

To keep healthy nails, people should keep in mind that

proper nutrition and adequate

vitamins and minerals guarantee smooth and firm nails.

Shapes & Peeves

Everyone has a naturally different nail shape. 

It is determined by the width or length

of your nail bed.  But no matter what you can 

always buff and file your nails into a desired shape.

There are even nail polish tricks to make your nails

look a better shape. Google it.  

No matter what nail shape you choose please dont be

ridiculous and have super long nails. 

They will get in the way not to mention look horrid. 

Haha ! 

“Squoval” Nails seem to be most popular right now.

As you can tell by the name the nails are squared off

but not harshly.

The edges are a bit rounded off.

They look clean cut and modern and not tacky.   

Speaking of tacky...

Can people PLEASE get over these kinds of acrylic nails?

 

Hello ?! 

How much more fake can they look ? 

Yes, a lot of the nail designs on various acrylic nails

is well done...but the length and shape of the actual

fake nail always looks so hideously tacky.

Its so easy to grow nails out to the perfect length.

In one month you could have a good length nail.

Why pay for ghetto-ness..

P.S - Im also over the classic french manicure.

Im sorry , I just am ! 

Okay, I feel better now : ] 

Ooooh You know who always has nice squared off

wonderfully polished nails ?!

Miss Chievous - Youtube Guru 

She buys Nail Polish from the following sites:

http://8ty8beauty.com/

http://head2toebeauty.com/

http://www.transdesign.com/

Now I shall leave you with this :

Disturbing Nail Photo Du Jour

How to prevent/get rid of yellow nails

First - We have to examine what makes nails go yellow

Its either one or a combination of the following things:

-Using a dark colored nail polish often esp with no basecoat

-Smoking

-Vitamin Deficiency (try some iron or zinc tablets)

-Fungal Infection (they will look thickened and crumbly)

-Liver Problem

So, If its not a medical problem

The following instructions will tell you the best way to brighten your nails.

If you think you might have a medical condition

such as something wrong with your liver, please go to

the doctor.Your nails are a very good way to measure

your bodily health.

1) Go to the pharmacy and buy some denture tablets

specifically for making teeth whiter

Now take a bowl of warm water put in a couple tablets

and let your nails soak for as long as possible.

Watch tv or something while you wait.

Try and keep them in for at least 15 mins.


When you get tired of them being in there take them out and

squeeze some lemon juice all over then nails.

Let this soak in for at least 10 mins.

Wash your hands

Take your 4 sided nail buffer that I mentioned in my

earlier post on nail care

Now put on some cuticle cream

( I recommend Burt's Bees Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream)

& also put on a nice hand lotion.

You should give your nails a break from nail polish every now

and then esp if you are trying to brighten your nails.

If you must wear some - use a couple coats of basecoat & light colors.

Also - It will definitely benefit you to take a Iron

vitamin in general but esp. for this problem of 

yellow nails.

REPEAT THIS EVERY OTHER DAY UNTIL YOU SEE IMPROVEMENT

if you never see improvement - you might have an

underlying medical condition. Seek help accordingly :)

--------------------


[Nails grow at an average rate of 

3 millimeters a month ( 1/8 inch)

Fingernails require 3 to 6 months 

to regrow completely ]

Be patient and eventually your nails 
will whiten and/or fresh 

new nails will grow out. 

& now that you've changed your habits 

they will be a normal color 

& little by little you can cut off the yellow part.

Good Luck !