Recently in Nails Category

With the flue season at full swing, anti-bacterial has become my new best friend. I feel like I'm using it ever 10 minutes. But like many best friends they aren't perfect. The anti-bacterial is wreaking havoc on my cuticles. They are so dry its unsightly. At first I was just carrying a jar of True Blue Spa cuticle cream, which works well, but is so inconvenient. Opening the jar, scooping the product, stumbling to put the lid back on without getting the cream everywhere. Then I saw this cuticle pen at Sephora and thought it was worth a shot. Let me tell you, this is the easiest and cleanest way to keep my cuticles nice. It puts the product exactly where I want it and my hand doesn't feel greasy from the excess product I have to wipe away. I just click, swipe, and then toss it in my bag. Sephora Brand Cuticle Care Pen at Sephora for $12.

If you have never tried NARS Orgasm blush, this is a great time to do so. This kit comes with the Orgasm blush, Laguna bronzer, and an Orgasm nail polish. This kit is great because everything complements each other. The bronzer helps contour with a sun-kissed look and the blush gives you this illuminating morning after glow. And the nail polish is so pretty too. It looks just like the blush, a peachy pink with glimpses of shimmer. This kit is so versatile, it is flattering on almost all skin tones. This kit is now on sale at Sephora for $35. That's like pay $2 less for the blush/bronzer and getting the polish for free!

I am addicted to dark polish right now.  Have OPI's Black Cherry Chutney on today and I feel very vampire-ish-- really like how it makes my skin look pale and flawless.  Am very excited about the launch of CHANEL's "Noirs Obscurs" this month.  CHANEL does amazing dark polishes (remember Vamp!?!?) and shadow quads but I don't know about the black lipstick.  Ahead of her time as an arbiter of style and color authority, Mademoiselle Chanel recognized and revered the color black as a symbol of luxury, modernity, sophistication and seduction.

Today, Peter Philips creates a tribute to black with an avant-garde collection of trend-defining eye, lip and nail shades, uncovering the many nuances and undertones of this iconic shade. Not many of us can carry off an entire face of rouge noirs, so we suggest choosing one feature to focus on the face to go with the dark nails. All at CHANEL.com (Jump for colors and prices!)

I love OPI polishes, very edgy and they last for weeks. I have been using Domestic Goddess (the matte purple/grape shade) all summer and am now ready to go back to Metro Chic (a gray purple tint) for fall. I'll also be using this limited edition 212 color, inspired by the lights of the Big Apple. I saw it at Sephora (where you'll find me standing in the corner next to the OPI stand painting every fingernail a different color for fun on the weekends with my friends and their daughters) and fell in love with it immediately. It looks almost black but has gorgeous flecks of gold and other colors that resemble sequins for the nails. Very chic for evenings! OPI for Sephora $9 here.

What about you, what fall shades are you obsessing over?

I'm so over neons and bright summer colors. Don't get me wrong, they were fun while they lasted, but summer has come to an end and it's time to get dark and glitzy! Lippmann Collection is celebrating their 10 year anniversary this month and to celebrate Deborah Lippmann has created a limited-edition collection of three glitzy shades ($35 for set of 3). I'm obsessed with the flecked Ruby Red Slippers shade -- so fabulously over-the-top -- I could totally see the models in Dior's Haute Couture show rocking this shade! If drama isn't what you're looking for two of essie's new fall shades ($8 each) -- Chinchilly (granite gray) and Mink Muffs (smokey taupe) -- are more wearable and slightly softer (though darker than they appear in the images below), than the grays and taupe we saw all over the place last season -- just be careful if you're pale like me because too many coats give these colors a muddy/clay look! For a creamier gray, Orly has got Mirror, Mirror ($7.50) out for fall. They've also got a fab shimmery blue called Pixie Dust and a deep green (green is SO going to be the new black), called Enchanted Forest (both retail for $7.50).

What fall nail colors are you excited for?
From left -- Orly Mirror, Orly Poison, Orly Enchanted Forrest, essie Chinchilly, essie Mink Muffs 

It's difficult to carry off a micro mini, skin tight jeans and waist length hair after a certain age but you are never too old (or young) for fun nail polish! I was just looking for fabulous new shades for Fall and here comes CHANEL with the 'Jade' collection in a crisp green color named 'Jade' and a cool pink named 'Jade Rose'. This is the best green nail polish I've ever seen, most greens look moldy and rotty but this one is light, bright and gorgeous. If you're hesitant about green, go for the pretty pink shade-- both colors will look amazing with the shades of fall ready to wear!
Peter Philips, Global Creative Director of CHANEL Makeup, created the Jade Nail Collection for the CHANEL Ready-to-Wear Autumn/Winter 2009-2010 runway show. These mineral-inspired shades transform the nails into genuine gems and recall the jade jewelry and the pink knit and pistachio tweed of the fashion collection.
"For the nails, Karl wanted a green shade to evoke the jade notes of the collection. I worked with our laboratories to offer him a monochromatic palette of 10 green shades. We chose the color that most resembled the green tweed skirt suit from the collection," explains Peter Philips.

The CHANEL Jade Nail Collection debuts on September 10th at the CHANEL Soho Boutique in New York City in celebration of Vogue's Fashion Night Out. Starting the 11th of September, The Jade Nail Collection will be sold for limited time exclusively at www.chanel.com, CHANEL Makeup Studios and CHANEL boutiques for $25.00.

Swimming, beaching, hiking, biking-- great fun summer activities that wreak havoc on your manicures and pedicures! If you can't get to the nail salon weekly don't fret, there are many ways to keep your fingers and toes fresh and pretty. You don't have to invest in expensive scrubs or lotions either. I rely on a mixture of olive oil/sugar/lemon juice and a tube of Aquaphor-- it is a miracle balm for both hands and feet and will keep your cuticles hydrated until you can get to the nail salon.

Directions: Mix 1 tablespoons of olive oil with 1 tablespoon of sugar (enough for hands and feet) and a few drops of lemon juice in a bowl (if you squeeze fresh lemon, use the remaining lemon rind on your elbows, knees and heel to exfoliate the rough skin patches there).  Step into tub and scrub feet and legs first.  Apply the balance of scrub to hands, scrubbing gently around cuticles.  Rinse well with water.  Your hands and feet should be silky smooth and oh so soft!

Optional: Rinse nails off with a little soap and water to remove oily residue.  Apply clear coat of polish and voila, insta mani/pedi! 

* Beauty Tip:  Apply Aquaphor daily to hands and feet-- even while traveling and especially before diving into pool to protect the cuticles from drying out and the polish from yellowing.

Aquaphor $5.99 here

All images from people.com or instyle.com


Sephora Brand Midnight Blue $5 -- Sephora brand products are grossly under-rated. They have about a million eye liners to choose from and while they may not be quite as soft as ones from YSL or Estee Lauder, for $5 there is no better eye liner deal to be had. If you're not into a frugal find however, Yves Saint Laurent Easy Liner for Eyes Automatic Eyeliner 3 Easy Blue($32) won't disappoint.

Want more blue? Jump for some fabulous finds!

It's always exciting when Chanel launches a new collection. I know my friend Kari Schlegel will be at the Chanel counter the minute she reads this, a true beauty snob, she has snatched up every Chanel Beaute collection since high school! This Fall, Chanel is inspired by romantic city of Venice. As a city built on water, Venice was a source of great intrigue for Gabrielle Chanel. She saw it as simultaneously dramatic and fragile - qualities she herself possessed. With the imagination of the CHANEL Makeup Studio, Venice comes to life in a palette reflective of the city's shimmering facades and mosaics, and the sparkling aquatic colors of its lagoons.  I love the new Gondola nail polish above right in a rich shade of red, very vampy and sexy! 

The Gel Cream eye shadow quad is CHANEL's latest makeup innovation. It puts glowing new emphasis on the eyes with a gel-cream texture that blends from sheer to intense. The subtle luminous sheen has a surprisingly and decidedly sophisticated effect. $65 at Chanel.com (Jump for complete details)