AWESOME media today!

Hey guys - I think "men wearing nail color" might be reaching a tipping point, and poised to take off in a big way!

Just today, the New York Times posted this column: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/13/fashion/manly-manicures-end-in-color.html

Then, I saw this from Yahoo! Shine - also posted today: http://shine.yahoo.com/beauty/manly-manis-men-now-requesting-color-shellac-nails-214300474.html

And, finally, this tweet from "The VIEW": https://twitter.com/theviewtv/status/345198269703536642

If The View discusses this tomorrow, or in the near future, I think a whole lot of women will be suggesting nail color to their men... and we'll be seeing it more often.

My thoughts on this should be obvious (I AM a male nail blogger...) but for the sake of those who haven't read back, basically this:

•  It's REALLY just paint - reserving it for one gender only, makes as much sense as applying a gender exclusion to hats... or sweatshirts.. or painted cars. 
•  It looks good, it has the ability to improve the look of one's nails - and generally, men's nails need the most help in the appearance department. 
•  It has no magic powers - it can't "make" me anything, or change who I am, or define me in any way. It does convey some information about who I have always been - committed to gender equality, intolerant of sexism and prejudice, and defiant of "herd mentality" (where people blindly follow customs that they assume to exist based solely on observation of others blindly following them). 
•  In a society that is dedicated to equality, what is OK for anyone is OK for everyone. 
•  Some people see my nail color and make assumptions about me - but I know they are wrong, and I know that their inaccurate assumptions do not define me. 
•  I wear nail color as a man - I do not consider this "crossdressing" in any way, nor is it "an expression of my femininity" (I do not see any inherent femininity in a bottle of paint) - and as I see it, if my masculinity was so weak that it would be threatened by a few drops of paint (or dependent upon the opinions of strangers), then it would be too weak to carry a "man card". 
•  Nail color is fun - mine has inspired many interesting conversations and interactions with people, which has enriched my life in many ways.

Snakeskin Nails! & Snakeskin Redux

Snakeskin Nails

OK... I've been wanting to try this for a long time. There are a bunch of youtube tutorials out there about creating a faux snakeskin look on your nails - basically, they all involve sponging accent colors over two different sizes of mesh. I used a piece of tulle (fine mesh, to simulate the scales (OK, they're not really scales like fish have..)) and a piece of woven (macrame?) mesh like is used for laundry bags, to create the color patterns.

I used a base of OPI "Alpine Snow", then sponged Sally Girl "Grape" (really, a light tan) over the tulle mesh, then alternated CG "Hook and Line" and Essence "Chic Reloaded" (an AWESOME green duochrome with maroon flash) with the sponge over the coarse mesh

I'm not totally happy with the outcome, but it was my first attempt. I will definitely try this again with my airbrush instead of the sponges. Anyway, here is the result:

  

  

 

Also, my toes have been rocking CG "Flying Dragon" for about a week. I think it's my favorite purple... And, I just love these shoes. Men's sandals are always so bulky, they conceal the foot way too much.Flip-flops are more revealing, but I hate the sound they make, and the feeling like they could fly off at any time. These shoes are women's thong flats, with an enclosed heel and ankle strap, $20 at Payless, and I think they look great!

Snakeskin Redux

I said I wasn't quite happy with the outcome above, and I would try again with my airbrush. After wearing that for a day, I was almost content with the thumb, but seriously annoyed by the rest. So, I wiped it all off, and tried again. This time, I skipped the fine mesh tulle, I left off "Hook and Line", and I used the airbrush thru the coarse mesh. After the base white, I sprayed the whole nail, all 5, with Sally "Grape" (it's a TAN!!), removing the mesh from each to dry. Then, I mixed up some "Chic Reloaded", realigned the mesh on each finger, and sprayed some highlight areas. I got a kind of ombre effect, but in shapes - a couple of chevrons, a couple of lengthwise stripes. (This mani would have been much easier if I had two airbrushes set up, one for each color, to avoid realigning the mesh patterns on each nail.) Finally, I removed the mesh and VERY LIGHTLY dusted the whole nail with the "Chic Reloaded" - not enough to darken the tan or white parts, but enough to get a little duochrome flash on everything. What you can't see in the photos is the gorgeous, shimmery maroon flash from the "Chic Reloaded", which really makes this look like a snakeskin.

(I had considered "Just Spotted the Lizard" instead of "Chic", but "Lizard" is a bit more foil-ey or flakey - I was worried that larger flakes might not pass well thru my airbrush.)

I am much happier with this version - THIS is why I own an airbrush!!:

Camouflage Nails

I'm way overdue on this post - sorry - but I finally have time to share an awesome camo mani I did!

I did this freehand with the regular polish brushes, plus a fine tip paintbrush I have, and also a pin. A real dotting tool would have been better, but I don't have one yet. The colors used were:

• OPI "A-Taupe the Space Needle" (tan - base, then a few details)
• OPI "Get In The Expresso Lane" (dark - details)
• China Glaze "Westside Warrior" (olive - details)

I think that more than 3 colors starts too look too "busy", especially on such a small canvas, so I stayed with three. The secret here is layering - put a little more of the olive on than you like, then a little too much of the dark, then cut in with some tan, revisit the olive, and touch up the dark.

What you don't want with this design, is little islands of olive or dark, floating on a sea of tan - so try to bridge the gaps and break up longish runs of any color. Beyond that, there is no "wrong" shape for camo - it's supposed to look random... so if you find yourself wondering if it's "too much [this]" or whatever, know that others won't see it that way.

Anyway, this is what I ended up with...

If you look closely at my ring finger, you can see a "river" of tan from side to side and tip to 80% back - a screaming defect to me, but if you didn't notice until I mentioned it, that proves my point about not sweating it too much.

I didn't get a lot of compliments on this one, because I think people just couldn't see them (camo... get it? ;)
No, seriously, this was very well received, and I was very pleased with the result!

I never wear black. But today, nothing else will do.

I promised that this blog would be my "adventures with nail color". To me, that means the good and the bad. Today, I am absolutely despondent about the outcome of yesterday's election. I'm not too upset that I lost my race for the Ohio 14th Congressional District - I had a campaign budget of $85, which covered the filing fee - but the outcome of the Presidential race, and the whole lying, stinking, foul, corrupt process that led up to it, has me literally beside myself with grief. It turns out that "HOPE" is a finite resource, and I feel like my hope has been taxed to extinction, to be redistributed to those who support Mr. Obama. I see no way for America to avoid fiscal emergency and a prolonged, painful period of economic catastrophe and unnecessary decline. And, I believe that as the problems worsen, as the promises CAN'T be kept and people's hardships increase, they will increasingly look for MORE impossible, illogical promises from Uncle Sam for their salvation.

I am in despair. And, the only color that fits my mood, is black.

I wanted to wear my ManGlaze "Matte is Murder", but I had given it away last Summer when I was feeling particularly hopeful. So, the best I could do on short notice was NOPI "Razzle Dazzler". I wasn't happy with the application, it was a bit thick and hard to apply evenly - but I've had this one untried for about a year, so it's probably just age. Anyway, here it is:

Also, on Monday, I ripped off half of the tip of my index (pointer) fingernail, right own to the quick - bleeding and everything. Sorry for the uneven length.

Anyway, if you're happy with the election result, congratulations. If you're unhappy about it, know that you're not alone, and that nothing lasts forever - this too shall pass.

NOTD - CG "Electric Beat" (fingers), Gradient (toes)

Hello friends!

Just checking in to share my latest mani & pedi..

First, on my hands, I'm wearing CG "Electric Beat", with an accent of Ludurana "Magnifica" holo. The CG went on smooth, covered in two coats. It reminds me of Zoya "Breezi" but just a little less saturated, which makes it feel more "Fall-ish" to me. For the accent, I applied one coat of the Magnifica, then when it was completely dry, I buffed with Layla's special pink/white buffer, then applied a second coat of Magnifica. No top coat on these, but I'll update this if I add a topcoat. I'm also toying with the idea of adding Orly "Glowstick" to this to make a gradient - if I do, that will be a new post.

On my toes, first I wore CG "Beach Cruise-r" for about a week.Then, I decided to do a gradient, so I sprayed a blue (Zoya "Breezi", I think) at the nail root. People have asked if there's a lot of overspray from the airbrush, so I'm posting before and after cleanup photos so you can see for yourselves. This is very much like the last gradient I did on my hands, but that one used grey on the roots instead of blue. (I think that next summer, I'll try a "Bleach Blonde" gradient - yellow with a thin brown root.. ;)

Not too much overspray here - and when I use the airbrush, I start by putting Chapstick or another brand of lip balm all around the nails, so the overspray peels right off.

Cowspots and another gradient

Ok... I know I've been lazy, and I'm sorry!

Today, I have two manis to share. I did the first one on Tuesday for Wednesday's "Chick Fil-A Appreciation Day". I went there to support the First Amendment and to protest the mayors who threatened official retaliation for what was an exercise of First Amendment rights. This is what I wore:

This was cute, but a little busy for me. I used OPI "Alpine White", then just dabbed on some random splotches of Sally Girl black. No close-up here, because I was in a hurry and a little sloppy. I got a few nice compliments though, and the CFA crew loved it!

Saturday, I got tired of cowspots, so I tried a new gradient.This one was inspired by Lindsey at "Neverland Nail Blog" - look at how gorgeous her nails are!

Pink is not my color. But I thought this would look good with purple, so I picked up CG "Flying Dragon" and OPI "My Pointe Exactly" and fired up my airbrush. I learned something with my last gradient - I was painting the whole nail with the root color, then spraying on the tip color. When I got tip wear, it made a super thin line of root color right on the tip, which I didn't like so much. Touchups on a gradient are terribly difficult too. So, this time, I painted the tip color 2/3 of the way to the root, then sprayed the root color on top, then sprayed a final thin dusting of tip color. After a clear topcoat, here's the result:

I would ask whether you like mine or Lindsey's better - but I think there's no contest, her mani is what I think angels wear in Heaven! I like mine, but I love hers! Then again, I've said before that Lindsey can do absolutely no wrong with her nails - I'm simply in awe of her skills and her gorgeous hands!

Another Gradient

Today, I fixed my airbrush... the old hose had split, so I had to find a new one. Of course, each airbrush maker uses a different size fitting, so Iawata hoses aren't compatible with Paasche airbrushes, etc... bigger pain in the butt than it should have been....

But I got it done!

To celebrate, I did another airbrush gradient. This time, I used OPI "Here Today, Aragon Tomorrow" over China Glaze "Entourage". Here's the result:

If you haven't tried an airbrush, you really should - this is such a cool look!