Comments on: Manicure 101: Polish Application

By: Christina

Christina — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 23:46:45 +0000

Hi Christine! Thanks so much for your response to the Seche Vite - it's one of those things that you read in a lot of places, but I didn't have the medical background to be more in-depth about my research.

Thanks again! I'm probably off to buy a bottle as soon as my current top coat runs out.

By: Shannon

Shannon — Sat, 18 Jun 2011 21:22:28 +0000

Thanks! I'm heading to ulta (birthday gift card in hand) so I'm going to pick up some supplies. I'll let you know how it works!

By: Christine

Christine — Sat, 18 Jun 2011 16:53:12 +0000

I've had this happen a few times as well, and the problem seems to be from a few different things.

First, I've had it if the plate of my nail is not very smooth or my cuticle hasn't been pushed quite enough down the nail, making my nail surface too bumpy. I take care of this by using the buffer on my nails, though if I'll be applying polish I do NOT use the last step for shining, that will make the surface too slippery and polish will slide right off. I also try to make sure I've push all of my cuticle down and used a cuticle remover about once a week.

2nd I've had it with some polishes that are non-leveling. This is kind of a trial and error thing to work with.

Either problem can be helped quite a bit by a thick top coat like Poshe or Seche Vite, or you could go for a top/base coat helper product like Gelous.

Let me know if those work!

By: Shannon

Shannon — Sat, 18 Jun 2011 10:17:48 +0000

Hi Christine,

I'm just now getting into nail polish, but everything I paint my nails I end up with tiny dots...they look like the polish has sand or glitter in it, but its brand new, sand-free, glitter-free polish. This happens with most of my polishes and when it looks so uneven I end up getting annoyed and remove it. Any advice on what I might be doing wrong?

Thanks!
Shannon

By: Christine

Christine — Sat, 14 May 2011 00:11:08 +0000

I got it from head2toebeauty.com, though it's also at other nail supplies like transdesign.com and sometimes Sally's

By: Andraea Lynne

Andraea Lynne — Fri, 13 May 2011 23:36:33 +0000

Christine, where did you get that massive bottle of CND Stickey? I'm already a third of my way through my .33oz bottle and I've had it for a month -_-"

By: Christine

Christine — Thu, 12 May 2011 03:11:00 +0000

I'm not sure why toulene became one of the "big scary chemicals" in nail polish. When I look in Pubmed (the government's database the searches the medical and scientific literature) I get 17 references that come back and only 1 of them seems to really look at toulene. something about monkey behavior after exposure to gases, part of a US/USSR collaborative look in the 70's. So, nothing really about nail polish.

I think the main reason most of us ignore it in nail polish is that your nails are dead protein, and don't really absorb anything. As well, if it's in your top coat you usually have a couple of layers of base and color between your nail and the top coat, and it won't leach down to get into your system. As well, you can check out this page from the FDA confirming that it is safe.

If you're still worried, and really it's fine if you are, you can check out this post from my friend Michelle over at All Lacquered Up. She's broken it down by brand, showing who has what ingredients.

By: Christina

Christina — Thu, 12 May 2011 02:48:13 +0000

Would you recommend any Seche Vite alternatives? I keep reading it has toulene, and that makes me nervous, though I understand for some people it's not as big of a deal.

By: Christine

Christine — Wed, 11 May 2011 22:37:06 +0000

Hi Melissa-
Shrinkage is a good point, I should have brought it up. Many of the Quick Dry top coats such as Essie Good to Go, Poshe, Seche Vite and Out the Door are known for shrinking on the nail once full dried, creating what looks like tip wear only a few hours after the mani is done.

It doesn't seem to be something that happens for everyone, and personally I've never had shrinkage from any of the top coats I've just mentioned. Some people say it's a "personal chemistry" thing, though we all have the same composition for our nails, what is different is what combination of products we're using and how we're applying that are different. Wrapping the tip does seem to cut down on this.

In my use of Out the Door, the results are just as shiny but my wear seems to be 1-2 days less and dry time is a little bit longer with OTD compared to SV. If you're happy with OTD though, then I'd stick with it. If it works, don't fix it! :D

By: Melissa

Melissa — Wed, 11 May 2011 21:33:54 +0000

I have never tried Seche Vite, but I have heard that it sometimes causes shrinkage???

My go to is Out the Door. Do you know if there is a decidable difference between the two?