Garlic for Nails: The Dominican Beauty Secret

May 17, 2013 By 7 Comments

Of all the worries that one can have in this crazy world, I now have to stress about my nails – which my manicurist says are very weak and fragile. So, my nails now need some serious attention. My nails! Seriously!

garlic-nailsAnyway, what needs to be done, has to be done! I was telling my dilemma to a friend from the Dominican Republic and she spilt the beans about this traditional beauty treatment that all her countrywomen swear by to make nails stronger: Add a little bit of fresh, chopped garlic to a bottle of clear nail polish and let sit for a week; then polish your nails with this concoction.

She actually had a bottle on hand and insisted on applying it for me, despite my phobia of chasing people away with the garlicky smell. Know what? The smell actually disappeared in just 10 minutes. And my nails haven’t chipped once since I applied this “polish” 5 days ago – which is truly a rarity! I now have a pod of garlic marinating in OPI’s Natural Nail Base Coat. Will report back on the long term results soon.

In the meantime, tell me what’s your go-to nail remedy? And how often do you actually give your nails some serious love and care?


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Out of nail polish remover? Use perfume

May 14, 2013 By 6 Comments

Yesterday I was swatching Chanel’s new summer nail polishes (posting them soon) when hubbie calls and says we have to go for a formal dinner. And then I realise there is not a single drop of nail polish remover in the house.

So, nails covered in 4 different colours that needed to come off ASAP, it was time to risk this really strange tip I had once heard backstage at Paris Fashion Week: spritz some perfume on a cotton ball and use it to wipe away the nail polish. And know what, it took a couple of minutes of wiping but the nail polish came off completely!

Apparently, perfumes contain ethyl acetate – which is also a key ingredient in most nail polish removers. I used Giorgio Armani’s Acqua di Gioia though you can pick and choose from whatever takes your fancy :) Wouldn’t recommend this as a daily regimen though. Not only is perfume more drying than most good nail polish removers but the latter also cost a lot less!

What’s your secret remove-nail polish-in-a-pinch tip?

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Weird beauty tips that work wonders

May 5, 2013 By Leave a Comment

After three years of the Oscars, five Cannes red carpets, eight Paris Fashion Weeks, four Milan Fashion Weeks, four New York Fashion Weeks, 18 Mumbai and Delhi Fashion Weeks, 64 film shoots and an inestimable number of magazine beauty, fashion and cover shoots, I have learnt that makeup artists and celebs turn to the strangest of things to keep looking flawless hour after hour, day after day. These are the weirdest beauty fixes I have seen in action, which actually give proven results.

1. An ultra-deep nail polish has left that dreaded stain on your nails, which refuses to go away despite repeated swipes of the polish remover? Dip a lemon wedge in  baking soda to scrub your nails squeaky clean.

weird, beauty, DIY, home made, jello, lipstick, curls, hair, honey, nail polish, makeup remover2. ‘Tis the season for red lips but maintaining them all through the night is a pain. Make it easier by rubbing a bit of cherry Jell-O powder directly onto moistened lips before applying your lipstick. For maximum precision, apply with a Q-tip or clean lip bush – you really don’t want a red ring around the mouth! Even when the lipstick begins to fade, your bold lips will appear to be intact for hours due to your Jell-O primed pout.

3. Have unmanageably curly hair? Skip the generic towel and use a simple cotton tee to dry your strands after a shower. A bath towel actually increases frizziness by roughing up the hair cuticles, while a smooth cotton-knit fabric soaks in excess water without disturbing the natural ringlets.

4. Any facial moisturizer can do double duty as a makeup remover in a pinch. Simply pour onto a ball of cotton and wipe across the face to remove makeup, then rinse off with warm water. Or, apply on a Q-tip and use with a light hand to clean up smudged liner and flaky mascara.

5. Cold sores? Ultra-dry lips? Dab on a little bit of honey – it is excellent for repairing dry and cracked skin, while simultaneously warding off bacteria.

weird, beauty, DIY, home made, jello, lipstick, curls, hair, honey, nail polish, makeup remover

Have you tried any of these tricks-of-the-trade? What are your secret beauty fixes that work wonders?

Filed Under: Beauty, Celebs, Hair, Lips, Makeup, Nails Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Get The Nail Polish From Oscar De La Renta’s Fall 2013 Show

February 15, 2013 By Leave a Comment

You can score a look from Oscar de la Renta’s Fall 2013 collection right now. And without breaking the bank. Well, at least part of a look – the nails! The designer’s second line of nail polishes, inspired by his Fall 2013 fashion collection and mixed up specially for the runway, went on sale immediately after his New York Fashion Week show yesterday.

oscar nail polishThe three limited edition shades – Asphalt, an edgy yet sophisticated charcoal grey with shimmer; Dare, an island-inspired teal; and Covet, a rich mulberry – can be ordered at oscardelarenta.com for $22 each. I have a feeling these lovely lacquers will be flying off the site super-fast, so click-through to buy yours right now. After all, it’s never too early to get your cool weather colour combinations squared away!

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Hand Over the Diamonds. And the Lego.

February 12, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Remember when jeweller Azature released that $250,000 black nail polish made from 267 carats of black diamonds? Understanding that not everyone is keen to spend a quarter of a million dollars on a nail polish, they have paired it with a more obtainable version that contains pretty sparkles instead of decadent diamonds. And they have now brought out a whole range of colours for spring, which shimmer and shine in pretty sunshine hues. Priced at $17 each, they double up as twinkling accessories in themselves. I would love to see how the yellow one plays out against summer-tanned skin!

azature diamond springIf that’s still a bit too sparkly for your taste, two of my favourite brands have just joined the nail polish bandwagon and both offer standout alternatives to your regular enamel.

First up is Crabtree & Evelyn, whose 21-piece lacquer collection includes some gorgeous colours, from neutrals to lights and darks to brights, along with a clear top coat. Plus, they are formulated without camphor, dibutyl phthalates, formaldehyde or toluene. And did I mention that they’re only $6 a bottle? Which is something to be thankful for, since I want them all! I hope Crabtree does multi-shade sets with these nail polishes, like they do with those gorgeous hand creams. Somehow, I feel less guilty buying 2 sets rather than 20 individual polishes. Don’t worry about understanding the logic… I just do!

crabtree nail polishAnd then there is Physician’s Formula, the brand known for its hypo-allergenic beauty loot and quirky packaging. Their genius addition? Stackable nail polish. The 21 shades, which range from nude to a trendy emerald green, come in packs of three and snap together like Lego blocks. Each shade of a trio can be worn alone or layered over one another. The bottles are small (everybody knows small = cute), so you’ll have plenty of room to stock up. And stack up. Plus, there are nail art ideas printed on the side: with three shades at your disposal, you might as well get creative! And like most of Physician’s Formula’s other products, the Endless Color Nail Trios are formulated sans gluten (good news for everyone who loves a tasty nail lacquer) and the yucky toxic chemicals found in most brands. At $10.95 dollars per pack, this one definitely gets you your’s money’s worth!

physician formula

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