Hello there! It's almost the weekend and we could all see the rainbow at the end of the tunnel. *big wide smile* How about picking up a tips or two for home manicure / pedicure pampering?
We were supplied with a basic start-up kit as above which consist of;
- Nail Clipper
- Cuticle Nipper
- Cuticle Pusher Double Ended
- Orange Woodstick
- Nail Files / Buffers
- Fake Nail Display (for practice)
It is important to at least understand the basics about how to take care of our hand and nails before beautify them with nail lacquers.
First step is to remove any current nail polish if there is any. It makes it easier to remove when you place a piece of cotton pad soaked with nail polish on top of your nails for a few seconds before rubbing it to remove.
Second step is to soak in warm water / salt soak for a short while, say about 1-2 minutes to sanitize and also soften the skin, cuticles and nail for easy cutting and clean up later. Once soaked, just gently pat your hand on the towel to dry it up.
Next, clip your nails with nail clipper into the shapes that you desire. We were introduced to about 10 shapes (oval / squared oval / rounded rectangle / square / round / flat top / edge / diamond / point / almond) and the most popular ones are almond and point fingernails as they portray an elegant image. My favourite all the time is the rounded rectangle because I can never keep them really long as they keep chipping. Once done with cutting, file them nails with nail files / buffer. The coarser surface followed by the finer surface, from inwards to outwards at about 45 degree and in one direction all the time.
Fourth step is to apply on the cuticle softener so that we can remove them easily. Shape and clean up the corner of the nails by pushing it with the Orange Woodstick / Cuticle Pusher Double Ended.
People whose hands are in constant contact with soaps and harsh chemicals like me will tend to have sidewall hangnail and visible cuticles by the edges on our nails and skin. It is not hard to clean up the hangnails and visible cuticles with the cuticle nipper.
Fifth step is to exfoliate your hand with mild scrubs and apply mask to improve the condition of your skin and nails. Rinse after.
For ease of the steps above, there are also Mani/Pedi spa packs available. Voesh New York Pedi ina Box Deluxe available for purchase at The Touch. The 4 steps in the pack are; Sea Salt Soak + Sugar Scrub + Mud Masque + Massage Cream.
It provides you with safer skincare with no parabens, no phthalates, no mineral oil, no synthetic Sulfate, no triethanolamine and no gluten.
Now all nails are clean and neat and all it's left is to beautify them the way we like it.
Sixth step is to apply the nail polish base coat, followed by 2 layers of colour nail polish and lastly the top coat.
Once it is dried up, clean up any unwanted stained edges. To keep your hands and nails in good condition, always remember to moisturize your hands and apply cuticle oils.
For nail colour application, it is important to first apply a base coat to keep our nail paint / design stay longer and also protects our nail from other less favourable ingredients of nail lacquer paints.
We were taught 2 nail art designs; Shattered Glass and Ombre / Gradient which looks like they need to be done at nail salons but in actual fact, can be done easily at home.
The shattered glass nail designs look best with dark shades as background. I have chosen a dark Maroon as base colour and it looks as if black from some angle. Once left to dry for a few minutes, we will apply on a top coat and sticking on the cut out triangle shattered paper (iridescent paper) on top randomly while the coat is still wet. Mix the placings with two different colour shades to make it more interesting.
As for Ombre / Gradient Nail Art Design, Choose 2 or 3 colours which can pair well with each other. Either in the same range such as warm colours / cold colours or colours with different shade. Being less ambitious, I tried it on with a different shade of green. One really light as a base and the other really dark for the ombre pattern.
First up, paint the nail with the lightest colour. Wait to let it dry before the next step; paint the make-up-sponge with both shades on it accordingly as to how you want the design to be. Make sure it is not too wet on the sponge. Place the side of the sponge with the nail lacquer on the nail pressing it rolling from one side to the other to create the pattern on the finger. Roll it a few times to create a nice gradient and walla, we're done!
Nature Inspired which was founded by Tam Chia Li and Elle Chin carries these two brands of nail lacquers which are Sheswai Lacquer and Lacc Laquer.
Sheswai Lacquer is not only formulated free from formaldehyde, toluene and dbp's, making it less toxic but it is also a brand close to the community at heart. Sheswai has their caps made from sustainable woods by volunteers at a non-profit organization which provide jobs to adults with development disabilities, do not test on animals and donates a portion of its profits to organization that helps to sustain our planet.
Lacc Laquer on the other hand is 10-free, skipping 10 common chemicals as ingredients which are;
- Toluene
- Dibutyl Phthalate (DBP)
- Formadehyde
- Formadehyde Resin
- Campor
- Xylene
- Phthalates
- Paraben
- Fragrance
- Animal Ingredients
I have personally tested these two brands on my nails as your can see and I absolutely love them! They are amazingly smooth and also fast drying in comparison to the conventional nail lacquers which are mostly available at drug stores locally.
Thank you Nature Inspired and The Touch for hosting this working! I have definitely learned a lot more about the proper ways to take care of my nails and also prepping up my nails right at home for any events!
The Touch
a: The Touch, Level 5, Commune, Sunway Velocity, Cheras.
t: 016-756 5990
Nature Inspired
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