Monday 9 September 2013

Manic(ure) Monday - tools of the trade

Why does Monday always come round so quickly? In order to brighten up the most dreaded day of the week I'd start a little nail polish series, featuring my favourite shades and brands. Before getting to the pretty stuff however, I thought I'd start with the basic tools I use in order to get my nails into tip top shape for painting.

Leighton Denny Small Crystal Nail File
I've been wanting this for so so long, and finally caved last week when I had some spare ebay profit lying around doing nothing. I'm incredibly fussy when it comes to nail files, I'd rather gnaw my fingers off than put an emery board near them, and my cushioned file had just died a death on me. The texture took a bit of getting used to as I was expecting it to be uber smooth, but it's so quick and easy to use. A couple of swipes over your nail and you're done. And all it needs to keep it in perfect condition is a quick run under the warm tap :D

Boots 4 way buffer
This is the handiest thing to achieve neat and shiny nails in an instant. One side is the dreaded emery board, which is obviously ignored. Side 2 gets rid of ridges, while side 3 creates a smooth finish, and side 4 buffs your nails to subtle perfection.

Cuticle care
Depending on time (and generally laziness) I use either my No7 Nourishing Nail and Cuticle Care cream, or my Avon Green Tea Nourishing Cuticle Pen. Both products work to soften and neaten the cuticle before pushing it back if necessary.

Cuticle pusher
This particular product is no longer available in Boots/Superdrug, however there are a million similar pushers out there. I prefer ones with rubber tips as you can see, but you can also buy wooden hoof sticks - I think the rubber just feels a bit gentler on the cuticle.

No7 Stay Perfect Nail Base & Top Coat
I bought these ages ago when I found myself with several No7 vouchers to my name (does anyone else find the thought of just not using them utterly horrific??) and they work really well. I've never had my nails turn yellow from my nail polish when using this base coat, and top coat keeps them chip free for days - especially if you're a bit obsessive and do several coats over those few days :D


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