Nail Products | Beauty and Fashion Tech

Dec 28, 2012

Best Beauty Products of 2012

December 28, 2012 By Carleenp 4 Comments

2012 is almost at its close and it is time again for the annual best of the year awards. The list below are my favorite products that I covered in 2012. Click through the links to read the original reviews.

You can also see previous years here:

Urban Decay Naked Skin, with the Urban Decay Optical Blurring Brush: Naked skin wears incredibly well and, when applied and buffed with the optical blurring brush, it gives a flawless airbrushed look. It has become my all time favorite foundation.

Lorac Unzipped: This was the best of the nude/neutral palettes this year. A perfect selection of matte and shimmer shades.

Laura Mercier Artist Eyes Palette: A wonderful all around palette with shades perfect for just about any occasion.

Fyrinnae Eye Shadow: This indie company offers unique blends of high pigment micas and oxides for stunning shadow looks. Try their Pixie Epoxy for making super glittery shadows stay put!

Urban Decay Vice Palette: Who can resist a palette full of new UD shades? This one was a winner all around.

Nars Lahasa: Simply a beautiful purple dark taupe. Love it!

MAC Nail Lacquers: I love MAC nail polish and was glad to see them make a number of shades part of their regular collection.

Urban Decay Smoked Palette: Another winning palette from Urban Decay. This one offers all that you need for sultry smoky looks.

L’Oreal Infallible Eye Shadow: High pigment lightly pressed shadow at decent prices and readily available. Great for those who love pigments but want to save a few dollars.

Skin79 BB Cream: My favorite BB cream this year. It covers well and wears wonderfully.

Darling Girl Eye Shadow: Another indie brand with great pigment and a silky smooth formula. I like their base formulation quite a bit for a loose shadow. I also found a taupe that I am in love with among the samples that I ordered.

Cinderella Palette: A surprisingly good eye shadow palette that is more grown up than you would expect. Nice shades in an attractive package.

Lorac Pro Palette: Another wonderful all around eye shadow palette with a great selection of useful shades.

Essie Luxe Effects Top Coat and Bikini So Teeny: Bikini So Teeny was my favorite polish shade of the year, and a Luxe Effects top coat looked great over it!

The Balm Shady Lady Vol. 2: The Balm is seriously underrated in my opinion. The Shady Lady Volume 2 was one of their palettes that I tried this year and I found it to be super pigmented, with little fallout and long wear.

Youngblood Creme Powder Foundation: A very nice cream foundation that very well might have become my new favorite if Naked skin hadn't come into the picture. I still wear this one a lot too, especially when I want something more portable.

Silk’n Flash and Go: The hot new product in permanent home hair removal. This one can be used on the face. See our comparison to the Tria for decisions on which to buy (I love the Tria too).

Smashbox Masterclass: A super palette of shadows, blush, lip products, and highlighters. It is all that you need for any look with quality products.

Disclosures: Beauty and Fashion Tech at times reviews products provided by a representative of the company. When we do so, we specifically state so. We also use affiliate links. For more, please see the disclosure page

Filed Under: Eyeshadow, Face Products, Foundation, Hair Care, Hair Removal, Makeup, Nail Products, Palettes and Collections, Shopping lists, Skin Care Tagged With: Best of Lists, Essie, Fyrinnae, Home Laser Hair Removal, L'Oreal, Laura Mercier, Lorac, M.A.C., Makeup, Nars, Sephora, Skin 79, Skin Care, Urban Decay

Dec 19, 2012

5 Ways to Create Interesting Holiday Nail Looks This Season

December 19, 2012 By Carleenp 3 Comments

The Holidays are a fun and festive time of year. What better way to celebrate the season than with stylish nail designs? Here are a few ideas for unique and flirty holiday nail looks that are easy for anyone to do.

1. Shatter or Crackle Nails. Select a base color and crackle polish that will contrast well against one another. A lighter or brighter holographic or glitter base color works well. Apply the base color evenly and allow to dry. Once the base coat has dried, apply the crackle polish. One coat should do the trick and the shatter effect should take place instantly. Once the crackle polish has had an opportunity to dry, apply a clear top coat for a glossy finish.

2. Holiday Appliques. Appliques are tiny stickers that can either be left on the nail or painted over and then removed. Try painting a green base color and allowing it to dry. Then apply a Christmas Tree applique and paint over it with red. When the applique is removed, a green Christmas Tree will be popping through red polish. Apply a clear coat or shimmer coat for added holiday flair.

3. Imaginative Designs. Professional looking designs are not as difficult as them seem. Simply apply a base coat such as gold or silver. Then, take a toothpick and dip it into burgundy or forest green. Drag the toothpick over the nail diagonally one direction and then again in the opposite direction to make a simple plaid pattern. Alternatively, use the same method to make polka dots or stripes. With a little imagination, holiday nail designs can be playful and fun.

4. Holiday Colors with an Added Sparkle. Red and Green are trademarks of the holiday season, but several other colors are emerging on the holiday scene, such as deep purple, gold, silver, brown sugar, forest green and burgundy. Simply paint a couple coats of the chosen holiday color and then top it off with a shimmery or sparkle finish for a holiday look that can be dressed up or dressed down.

5. Traditional French with Holiday Elegance. For a holiday event, there is nothing more classy than a traditional French manicure. Jazz up those white tips this holiday season by adding a gem or by adding a thin line of holiday color just below the white. A thin line of red or silver polish looks fantastic.

With these great ways to create interesting and fun nail looks, there is no need to pay for professional nail styles this holiday season. Grab a bottle of polish and let the fun begin!

Filed Under: Holiday Items, Nail Products Tagged With: Holiday, Nail Polish, Nails

Dec 7, 2012

Five Simple Holiday Nail Polish Ideas

December 7, 2012 By Carleenp 1 Comment

The social calendar is planned and the outfits are already picked out. The only thing left is to figure out something festive to do with those fingernails. There is nothing wrong with wearing traditional nail colors during the holidays, but every once in a while it’s good to be creative. Want to kick that manicure up a notch? Do it with these holiday nail polish ideas.

Crushed Peppermint Candy Tips

The day before the holidays, take some peppermints and crush them up. Paint the nails the color of your choice. Red or midnight green works well with this idea. Coat the tips of the nails with clear polish and sprinkle the crushed peppermints on them. Cover the candy tips with a clear coat of nail polish. This will provide a protective barrier to keep the candy from melting or getting sticky.

Glittery Topcoat

Adding a glittery topcoat to a solid nail color can enhance its beauty and give the nails a festive feel. To achieve this look simply paint the nails with a favorite holiday nail color and let it dry. Once the color is dry, add a coat of clear glittery polish over the top of the nails. The picture above uses Essie Plumberry and A Cut Above Top Coat.

Rhinestone Tips

Add a shimmery twist to the traditional French manicure by using rhinestones on nail tips instead of white polish. Don’t be afraid to experiment with color. Try using red, green or gold rhinestones in combination with the clear ones to add a splash of holiday color.

Candy Cane Stripes

Wearing fingernails painted like candy canes is the perfect way to let everyone know the holidays are here. To achieve this look, paint the nails with white nail color. After the white polish dries, use red polish and a thin tipped brush to paint candy cane stripes on each fingernail. Covering this design with a coat of glittery nail polish will add to the festive feel.

Holiday Pictures

What better way to bring fingernails to life than by painting pictures of such things as pumpkins, snowflakes, mistletoe and peppermints on them? Painting pictures on fingernails can be hard to do. Those wanting holiday designs on the nails may need to enlist the help of a skilled nail technician.

This holiday season, break the monotony of “plain Jane” nails. A combination of glitter, festive colors and holiday inspirations can help anyone come up with creative holiday nail polish ideas and add a festive flair to manicures.