Mosaic 2- or What to do when the press on nails get pithy at the cuticles

I really was hating the way these nails were looking after 4 days wear. It only happens with press-ons with french tips. The "naturalness" of the nail bed on these french tip nails get dried out. That's the best I can describe it.

Broadway Fashion Diva "Boa"

They start to look "pithy" at the cuticle edge and I can't stand it. Instead of removing them though, I decided to paint over them.

Two coats of white polish. OPI Alpine Snow

I saw online that white polish acts as a primer and will make bright colors "pop". Thanks Robin Moses for that tip! I needed 2 coats to cover the boa/notes artwork on the french tips.

Polishes Front Row L-R: Sinful Colors Queen of Beauty, Sinful Colors Dream On, Wet n Wild Fast Dry Teal or No Teal, LA Colors (no name) Orange, Wet n Wild Fast Dry Sage in the City, Kiss Nail Art Paint Black, LA Colors Bright Orange, Sinful Colors Neon Melon

Each nail got a dab of each color, except the glitter.

I used the LA Colors Bright Orange to fill in the wee gaps that the polish brushes were too big to go.

One coat of Sinful Colors Queen of Beauty glitter polish over all.

Inspiration: Stained glass floral night lite

And here is the finished look!

I painted black lines dividing each color to make the mosaic, stained glass look.

Wait a few minutes after painting the black lines. 

Apply quick drying top coat and you're done!

Notes on a Scale -or- Broadway Fashion Diva "Boa" Review

I wanted to wear french tip nails but something with a design on them. I found these in my shoe box of goodies.

The kit comes with glue and an orange stick. No nail file.

Nails inside of box

The nails are short length with a slight beige tint to the nail beds. They have music staffs and notes  and a thin line of sliver polish on each white french tip. Some of the nails have rhinestones.

I sorted out what nails would fit my nails. The tabs are excellent handles to hold the nails to the natural nails, while the glue takes hold.  I used the glue that came with the Kiss Everlasting French Tip Salon UV Gel Effect kit.  I like the consistency and tint to this glue better than the Broadway glue. It looks more natural under the glue on nails, to my eye.

I used a lot of glue. Maybe a little too much but I wanted the glue to form a curve with my flat nail bed and the arch of the glue on nail. Some of the glue seeped out but it comes off easily once dried, with several applications of cuticle cream and hand lotion.

I couldn't take a decent left hand picture outside to save my life.  I also forgot to file the edges of the nails where they meet the cuticles on my thumbs.
However, I believe the Kiss Gel glue filed in the gap on the sides so it's not noticeable at arms length.

Rhinestones on left hand ring finger

When I got home, I discovered one of the rhinestones was missing from my right first finger. I applied clear polish over all the nails. Hopefully the other two on my ring finger won't disappear.

These are really cute nails. The opaque nail base + the pink gel nail glue disguises my short nail beds.

I really love how they look on my hands. And they passed "the acid test" for me which is how natural or at least how professionally done do they look inside a store with those awful fluorescent lights that expose every flaw.

Rainbow Nails Using Broadway Fashion Diva Nails Short Length

I won this box of nails in a contest.

Now they are short length which is a nice size for me, BUT I've got short nail beds.

 In this picture, I'm trying to show you how my natural nail edge would show through these nails, even though they are short in length. The Painted tip and design just doesn't come down far enough to cover my natural edge.  And unfortunately, I lost most of my nail growth during the Great Desperate Phone Call of last Sunday. Our daughter was in NYC for the first time, she was lost, and it was after midnight.

I reverted to my old coping mechanism of chewing on my nails. By the time she was directed by my husband to where she was supposed to be, I had one nail left. Egggadddsss!

Anyhow, I decided to do something other than file down the bottom of all these nails, losing most of the curlicue design along the nails.

I took most of the colors in this Wet n Wild Nail Pail, and painted a line on the backside of the nail, below the french tip. The Broadway nails bases are clear so the polish shows through.

I thought I took a picture of them before I applied them but I guess not.  I selected the nails, held them on my natural nail to determine where my natural nail edge was and how much nail polish to brush on the underside of the glue on nails. The tabs on the glue on nails made it easy to hold and paint with the polishes. Each nail was painted a different bright color.

After the polish dried, I glued on the nails. I painted 2 coats of clear glitter polish over the nails, followed by a coat of quick drying top coat.

Natural light shots

I'm pretty happy with the way they turned out.  I like the length. 

They are short and don't get in the way with typing.