NAIL CARE + [MINI REVIEW] Orly Nail Defense Protein Enriched Strengthener

Hello there! As you can tell from the title, this is going to be my nail care routine post plus my little quick review on Orly's Nail Defense Protein Enriched Strengthener. Before I get started however, I have to give y'all a little run down on my nail history! Currently, my nails are in the recovery stage. During last year, (2012) I had acrylic nails and gel nails on and off up until around November where I started working at Tory Burch whom require a natural make up, hair, & nail look. Therefore, my nails aren't 100% perfect, but the fact that I got them to recover this quickly, I feel the need to thank Orly! 

[Disclaimer: Everything said here is my own opinion, I am NOT being sponsored at all by any companies to say these things. I am also not a professional, therefore, these are just tips I've gathered base off my own personal experience, and cannot guarantee 100% success] 

BEFORE                                                                                               AFTER
The first picture, the one with Hello Kitty, is just with buffing and no Orly Nail Defense, basically after step 1-4! Sorry I don't have a picture of before reshaping and stuff, for you guys to see the difference!

NAIL CARE ROUTINE.

1. Gently remove all nail polish, dirt, etc. from your nails with nail polish remover. 

Personally I prefer the "cotton pad + aluminum foil" technique, especially if your using a stronger polish such as gel (shellack) nails. Here's a link to what I mean. This is especially useful when you have glitter nail polish on because we all know what a hassle that is to remove!!

2. Wash hands with antibacterial soap, thoroughly. 

3. Cut nails to desired length, leaving a just a tid bit room for filing and reshaping. 

When cutting your nails, always leave room to cut more or at least file. You can always cut it down some more, but if you cut one nail too much, you can only cut down the other nails, you can't resurrect that nail. Its never fun to have nails too short for your liking.

4. File & shape nails as desired, then BUFF for a smoother surface, and to bring up some natural oils!

Personally I prefer my nails to be more rectangular, with a slight round around the edges. I feel like it allows my fingers to look better and longer! 

5. Apply Orly Nail Defense Protein Enriched Strengthener, or your preferred nail strengthener.

When I want to let my nails just breathe and grow, I reapply another coat and then I stop here, and allow the strengthener to dry, then apply a hand cream to rehydrate the area around my nail bed.

6. (optional) Apply a layer of base coat, especially if the nail polish color you'll be using is darker hued.

Nail polishes that are darker color have more pigments and tend to be more likely to stain your nails. YES, you have the Orly on the bottom already, but its created to strengthen your nails and not to protect your nails, so a base coat is still a good idea. I like using the OPI base coat.

7. Apply a nail color, thinly, layer by layer.

Applying the nail color in a thin layer, allows you to better control the color and how your finished look will look. You want them to look more natural and to be even amongst all ten fingers. So always keep a light hand, especially on the first layer!

8. After a few minutes of dry time, apply your preferred top coat. 

Top coat is really important, I really find that it helps maintain the life length of your manicure, if you don't apply top coat, your nails are more likely to chip faster and require reapplying, which means doing all these steps over, which means lots of chemicals to your nails ): which is bad for your health and increases your chances of cancer........ (speaking exaggeratively of course). [IF you have a matte polish, and don't wish for shiny top coat, you can always buy a matte top coat like Esse's Matte About you.]

9. (optional) Apply one more, THIN layer of Orly Nail Defense. 

I like to apply another layer, because on the bottle it says that you can apply this over nail varnish, and it asks you to apply a layer every few days! So I thought its best to start with day one. However, one thing to keep in mind is, make sure the bottom layers are semi dry before reapplying this last layer. One time I didn't wait enough time and I ended up getting little air bubbles on the surface of my nails. 

10. After your nails are completely dried, wash hands and apply a nice amount of hand cream, especially around the nail bed area. 

ORLY NAIL DEFENSE PROTEIN

ENRICHED STRENGTHENER. 

Original Picture, taken by my iPhone4s, via LINE Camera. Sorry for the sad quality, I didn't have any room in my camera, nor the time to sort through the 600+ pictures & videos. Plus I really wanted to get this post up to y'all seing as I haven't posted a post in a long time and my horoscope says that I should write this month!

Top 3 Reasons Why I Like It.

1. It is clear and can be worn as just a clear coat of nail polish when I just want my nails to breathe and regain health. It makes my nails look nicely polished and groomed, whilst helping my nails to recover from all the harsh chemicals its been through. 

2. It applies smoothly and it dries quickly. Therefore you don't have much excuse as to why your nails aren't well groomed at all times, even when there's no color on them!

3. IT REALLY ACTUALLY WORKS. I found that my nail surface, which was all scratched up, un-smooth, rigidity, and dented from all the drilling, began to smooth out more and more, and regain its healthy hydrated look. When I first stopped with acrylics, my nails were so flimsy and soft and now their healthy, stronger, and just full of color and liveliness. 

Buy ORLY NAIL DEFENSE at your local drugstore that carries Orly products! 

Hope you guys found this interesting! 

I know its nothing new, but hopefully you guys found out something new!

Until Next Time!

xoxo,

Shannon Marie

fashion-impossible.blogspot.com