As much as we love nail art, we’re better at admiring designs than coming up with them ourselves. That’s why we’ve enlisted Anna Norman, the smarty pants behind Glitter, She Wrote, to be a regular contributor. Every Monday, she’ll be sharing her latest lacquer inspiration—you won’t be satisfied with plain ol’ polish again.
Regardless of whether you wear glitter year-round or stick to neutrals, if there’s any time to kick up the glitz, it’s New Year’s Eve. The New Year’s Ball in Times Square is covered in 2,688 Waterford crystals and is illuminated by more than 30,000 LED lights—talk about sparkle. Here are three simple ways to get eye-catching, sparkly nails for the big night.
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As much as we love nail art, we’re better at admiring designs than coming up with them ourselves. That’s why we’ve enlisted Anna Norman, the smarty pants behind Glitter, She Wrote, to be a regular contributor. Every Monday, she’ll be sharing her latest lacquer inspiration—you won’t be satisfied with plain ol’ polish again.
As my calendar starts to fill up with holiday parties, I’ve been looking for different ways to add sparkle and shine to my nails. I love a good glitter polish, but I’ve been in the mood to try something new. My latest obsession? Loose glitter.
Applying loose glitter to your nails is more time intensive and a bit messier than using regular glitter polish, so it’s not the most practical manicure for every day of the week—but the results are twice as sparkly, and much for festive for the season. I’m using a kit from Nails Inc., but you can create a DIY version just as easily. Here’s how to get the look:
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As much as we love nail art, we’re better at admiring designs than coming up with them ourselves. That’s why we’ve enlisted Anna Norman, the smarty pants behind Glitter, She Wrote, to be a regular contributor. Every Monday, she’ll be sharing her latest lacquer inspiration—you won’t be satisfied with plain ol’ polish again.
Do the changing seasons have you stumped? If you’re not sure what color to choose for your nails right now, you’re not alone. Lucky for us, Pantone’s Fall 2012 Color Report is here to help. These 10 shades will be showing up all season in clothes, makeup and of course, polish.
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Based in Washington D.C., Ayren Jackson-Cannady is so savvy that we wished she lived closer to NYC so that we could swap products with her. This beauty writer knows what’s up (she’s written for Fitness, Glamour, and Gloss Daily) and we’re excited to have her sharing her know-how and multi-culti beauty expertise as a contributing editor.
The scallop mani is a fresh take on hiding chipped ends (left); graphic styles make a big impact with a single polish color (right).
You know those fashion features that are always in glossy magazines: “7 Ways to Wear a Blazer,” “One Little Black Dress Worn 50 Ways,” “365 Days of the Peplum Blouse”? I’m obsessed with those stories. I’m also obsessed with nail polish, so I thought I’d combine the two for you today. Here, celebrity manicurist Julie Kandalec helps get our creative juices flowing. Grab your favorite neutral polish (I’m really into Deborah Lippmann Nail Lacquer in Waking Up in Vegas) and get painting.
Look #1: Galaxy
Add a silver hologram top coat (try Nails Inc.’s Nail Jewellry in Diamond) over your neutral base for a gorgeous flash. “The hologram will reflect whatever colors you’re wearing so it stays universal,” says Kandalec.
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As much as we love nail art, we’re better at admiring designs than coming up with them ourselves. That’s why we’ve enlisted Anna Norman, the smarty pants behind Glitter, She Wrote, to be a regular contributor. Every Monday, she’ll be sharing her latest lacquer inspiration—you won’t be satisfied with plain ol’ polish again.
Pink, light pink, beige, cream, tan…are you bored yet? As much as I love a classic business-appropriate pink manicure, it’s time that we rethink our definition of neutral or acceptable nail polish shades. While lacquer sales have skyrocketed (627 new colors debuted last year!), only 10 percent of those sales in 2011 were pink. Here are my picks for this season’s new neutrals—no matter your age, job, or style.
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As much as we love nail art, we’re better at admiring designs than coming up with them ourselves. That’s why we’ve enlisted Anna Norman, the smarty pants behind Glitter, She Wrote, to be a regular contributor. Every Monday, she’ll be sharing her latest lacquer inspiration—you won’t be satisfied with plain ol’ polish again.
French manicures have been a nail salon staple for ages. The traditional pink and white look isn’t quite a fashion faux-pas, but it can still feel pretty dated, especially for the style-minded gal. Here are a few ways to pay homage to the classic design while adding a fun, modern twist.
Saturated Statement Colors: There’s nothing stuffy about a French mani in edgy, on-trend shades. You can use a circular reinforcement sticker to create a perfect line, but I like to go freehand. For better control, try creating several short vertical lines across the tip of the nail rather than one long horizontal stroke. I turned to the Fall 2012 Pantone Color Report for seasonal inspiration, settling on two coats of Kure Bazaar Afrika with a cobalt blue tip in Nails Inc. Baker Street.
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Operations associate, Loren, has a thing for nails- and we can’t blame her. We love reading about new finishes and fun techniques, so we thought we’d give her a weekly slot on our blog to wax poetic about all things manicure (and pedicure!) related. Check back every Thursday for Nailing It, Birchbox’s dedicated polish series.
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Images from All Lacquered Up
Even though we have nail art out the wazoo lately, we’re still loving this new discovery: magnetic nail polish. Apparently it’s possible to include iron powder in polish and when you hold a magnet over freshly painted nails, create a ripple line or pattern effect. Fashionista alerted us to this trend yesterday but it’s actually not a new idea. Several years ago Lancome and L’Oreal released limited editions of Le Magnetique collections to American and European customers respectively. It never really took off but now LCN, Essence (only available in Europe as far as we can tell), and Nails Inc. (to be released soon), are carrying magnetic collections. Given the nail art fervor right now this may have more staying power this time around. Different magnets allow you to create different designs so we could see some creative girlies integrating this into their routines.
All Lacquered Up gave the LCN polishes a try a few weeks ago and they’re definitely fun but may require too much patience (and steady hands!) for us. Will you be snapping these up?
-Lorelei
Shop our favorite nail polishes in the Birchbox Shop.
![(Photo: beautyhigh.com)
Sky-high Hair at Chanel Pre-Fall 2013, Pizza Hut’s Fragrance, And More
For pre-fall 2013, models at Chanel got tall, teased, Elizabethan-style ‘dos and crazy-cool graphic black liner. [Beauty High]
How to choose the right concealer for your skin tone. [Beautylish]
Nails Inc. is bringing leather-textured manis stateside with their Bling It On Black Leather & Skulls nail set. [SheFinds]
Thanks to enthusiasm from social media, Pizza Hut is launching its own pizza-scented perfume. [Fashionista]
Gold leaf nails are a major trend right now. Here’s how to create your own gilded mani with foil from a craft store. [BellaSugar]
—Hallie
Once you’ve found the perfect concealer, be sure to use the right technique! Here’s how to use Benefit Cosmetic’s concealers to hide all your skin woes.](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_melkq11oGu1qbz3xno1_1280.jpg)
