Nailed It!: Dry Ice Rapid Nail Lacquer Dryer

Have plans to do your nails this weekend? You might want to read this first…

Here’s a quick review on the Color Club Dry Ice Rapid Nail Lacquer Dryer. “Holy Grail” item? Quite possibly!

I like painting my own nails, especially when I want to change colors or designs often. However, I have a tendency to either put on too many coats of polish or layer a coat too thick so my nails can never dry properly and I end up with lines, dents and even pillow marks. Ughh.

Having a busy schedule doesn’t always allow me the time or patience to let my nails dry thoroughly.  I’ve tried various nail drying sprays and the results do not compare to the Dry Ice. This product may just be the miracle people like myself have been waiting for.

My friend (who is also a beauty addict named Liz) recommended this product and let me borrow her bottle, because that’s what friends do! ♥

She said she heard about it from the  Z100 morning radio talk show, “Elvis Duran and the Morning Show” (if you haven’t heard of these guys, do yourself a favor and check them out on iheartradio).

I have not purchased a bottle personally, but this stuff seems to be pretty amazing and I am definitely making the purchase this weekend (thanks, Liz!).

What makes this product so ideal is it does exactly what it claims to do: Rapidly dry your nails. It’s also very easy to use. Mess free, pain free. I can’t complain.

The bottle design is an opaque, foggy glass with an eye dropper instead of a brush. Brilliant, because if you have the tendency to sabotage your nails upon adding the top coat, you know the last thing you need is to drag a wet brush over partially dried polish.

The bottle also notes that it is free from chemicals such as DBP, Toluene and Formaldehyde. Sound like some kind of scary cocktail Frankenstein might use? Well, it is kind of bad for you and here’s a great guide on the “toxic trio” from The Daily Green.

How to use it:

Mind you, I decided to try this out late last night and was in a rush to get to bed. So this made it the perfect challenge to see if the Dry Ice could work some magic.

I did not use a base coat and grabbed a bottle of Sinful Colors in the shade, “Outrageous“. I layered two coats of this polish.

I let the color dry for about three minutes and then used the Julep Freedom Polymer Top Coat. This is my favorite top coat at the moment.

I let the top coat dry for another minute or so and then I tried the Dry Ice. I was excited to use the dropper, like I was conducting an experiment!

My overall impression was very positive. I am impressed that a product worked so well, so easily. I grade it as an ‘A’ for product design, formula and application. Whether you’re painting your own nails or going to the salon–bring this with you!

I’m not sure if this will work by layering the Dry Ice after each coat but I will try this once I get my own bottle.

Check out a quick demonstration of the Dry Ice here:

{Color Club Dry Ice Rapid Nail Lacquer Dryer}

Available: Color Club

Retail: $11.00 USD per bottle

{Julep Freedom Polymer Top Coat}

Available: Julep

Retail: $18.00 USD per bottle ($14.40 USD for Julep Mavens)

Have you tried this product or something similar? Let me know your thoughts! #Elizabethology

Nailed It!: Essie Sleek Stick Nail Appliqué in ‘Oh My Gold’

{Essie Sleek Stick nail appliqué in ‘Oh My Gold’}

Out of curiosity I’ve purchased a few nail appliques/wraps/decals from various brands and they’ve just been chilling out for a while. I have a few events coming up and thought now is a great opportunity to start dressing up my nails and see what these have to offer.

First up is the nail appliqué stickers from Essie.

I love the simple, fun design and sophisticated color of the ‘Oh My Gold‘ pack. The dots are actually hexagons with a gold outline and silver interior. This two-tone look makes it much more interesting and versatile for how you pair this design with nail polish or match your outfit.

It’s kind of a sassy reptile, geometric metallic confetti effect. It’s essentially a party on your nails.

 This kit comes with a set of:

• 18 appliqués so you can select the best fit for each nail
• A plastic orange stick to push back cuticles
• A small file to remove excess material
• A booklet of instructions

The directions are pretty straightforward: You need to prep the nail area, find the right size for each nail, line up, apply, press firmly and file off the extra.

Overall time to prep, apply and finish took me 8 minutes. This was my first time trying these out, so I could probably reduce the time to 5 minutes one I get the hang of it.

I quickly prepped my nails and decided to paint my ring finger white (using Essie’s nail polish in Blanc) and make this my accent nail. White + Gold is modern, clean and classy.

Tip: To make any nail color pop, especially neon shades, paint one layer of white nail polish first. Just like adding a white color to your eye lids before applying darker shades, this helps to make a striking base for more vibrant color payoff.

Once I started with the first two fingers, it was fairly easy to breeze through the rest of the nails. The appliqué can be re-adjusted so long as you only place it on the nail and not press down. I did have to re-adjsut a few times to make sure the design wasn’t crooked.

Once you have it placed, press down firmly from the cuticle toward the end of the nail to remove any bumps.

Tip: When you are removing the appliqué from the film, try picking it up from the end facing away from the middle (where the two strips line up). This is the end that will be filed off anyway so it won’t matter as much if you damage this part when you take it off the film.

And for the final look!

{My thoughts} Worth it. I’m not confident that this will last me more than three days, especially with typing, cleaning and whatever else I might need to do this weekend. But that’s fine. I think the Essie appliqué is perfect for a special occasion or for any time you want to make your nails look super unique.

{Value} The great thing about this particular set is that it comes with everything you need. The file and orange stick can be re-used–in fact I have it in my purse as part of my travel nail kit!

{Removal} Day two and my nails are still looking pretty fresh. I have not tried to remove these yet, but it should be as easy as peeling off a sticker. No polish remover should be required.

{Application} Very easy, clear instructions.  I suppose you could also use these on your toes. Not sure if layering would work.  I actually enjoyed applying these and was excited about the results. So easy that you could probably do this on the go, right before an event with no drying time, during your lunch break, in the cab…you get it. Very simple for the nail chameleon or anyone who is impulsive or indecisive!

I hope you give these a shot and let me know what you think. Happy nail decorating!

Available: Target

Retail Price: $9.99 – $11.79 USD per kit

{Liz}

#Elizabethology

Nailed It!

Nail Looks I’m Loving…

Here’s a round up of some of my favorite nail art and trends. You can find more on my Pinterest Board!

Take a look and let me know which ones YOU love.

{Best Color Trend:White}

{Best Accent Nail}

{Best Pattern}

{Best Concept}

{Best Minion Nails!}

{Liz}

#Elizabethology