Category: Daily Living
So I've always been a nail-biter. I remember when I was a toddler, I was riding shotgun with my dad, and I thought I saw him picking his nose, so I called him out on it: "Daddy, why are you picking your nose?" His reply: "I'm not." Thinking he was trying to pull a fast one on me, I persisted, whereupon he proceeded to explain that he was biting his nails. And of course, since I was such a daddy's girl, I had to do it, too.
I've tried everything--no bite, Band-Aids, acrylics, quitting cold turkey. Well, my boyfriend (or should I now say ex-boyfriend)'s brother got married in September, and Jordan and I were both in the wedding. Megan, the bride, took me on a nail date, because school had just started and my nails looked terrible. (It also didn't help that Jordan had downloaded episodes of BBC Sherlock onto his tablet for us to watch on the drive from Texas to Colorado, lol.) After seeing how well my nails looked in one week, Jordan stubbornly resolved to paint them every week when I'd come home from school, which was a labor in love because he has full use of only one hand. His reasoning? He didn't have to worry about me getting Staph, and plus they were pretty (I suspected he liked my playing with his hair, haha). I only had one relapse one weekend in early October when we didn't have time to redo them, but I've since done really well. He got me a tiny travel nail kit as a surprise last week before we unexpectedly split (totally unrelated), and I've been experimenting with it. But what I want to know, blind girls, is do you paint your own nails? I mean, not with color, obviously, but I have nail hardener here, and just attempted it, and though my nails don't look awful, I sure made a mess and would like some pointers, if there are any to be had that is. *Wink*
Mel
I quit trying to paint my own nails when I lost too much vision to do so confidently. If I have an occasion where I'll be dressed up and want to make sure I look really nice, including my hands, I'll spring for the cost of a professional manicure. The rest of the time I just use a buffing system someone gave me years ago. I do it once a week, and my nails are so smooth and shiny it's as if I have clear polish on them. I also file them regularly rather than try to cut them.
You might be able to get away with hardener, if you even need it, but it doesn't sound like you do. It's clear and I don't think it shows up much if at all if you mess it up. It also doesn't go on as thick so it's a little less likely to clump. Takes a while for the excess to come off your fingers, though, hahaha.
Yeah, I think I'm going to just file them every week or so. (Gaaah, I hate scratching things! I'm so not used to it!)
I only bite mine when I'm nervous. I have an obsession with getting my nails done, having the solar nails. they are expensive but they last long, don't fall off, and the color never fades. but when I don't have them on like now. ,I do paint my own nails. not too easy I amit, but its possible. I have allways payed attention to the brush strokes in how the women paint my nails in the salon. one down the middle, then I'll place a napkin right under my nail, on the side of my finger and then do my side strokes. I'll do this twice for every finger. then let them dry. before I let it do that completely just to be safe the napkin gets dipped in nail polish remover, and i rub it on the edges all around all my fingers. my sisters say I do a good job and have me do their nails. so my technique must work lol
I paint my own nails too. I can tell where the brush is by the timp of it. It is a bit cold and I do the same like the one above, down the middle then the sides. I don't have a lot of problems with messes. Just get a cheep kind and practice over and over and you'll get the hang of it soon.
I paint my own nails with whatever colors i wish. i am totally blind. i often get comments on how good they look. folks think that i have them done. of course, i can not do any designs on them but, that's fine with me. i would suggest putting the nail polish in the frig so that is nice and cold at first. that way you can feel where you are going with the brush better. also, after they are good and dry go do dishes or take a shower and the bits that you got on the skin will peel right off. have fun and remember, if you mess up, you can just remove and start over.
Oh wow this is great, I will try this method myself and see if it will work better than the way I have been doing it.
Putting your nail polish in the fridge is actually quite an affective technique. Another thing that has been suggested to me, though it does waste some of the polish, is using cue tips instead of a brush. the tip is a lot firmer, so you can control it better. But of course, it absorbs a lot, so if you paint your nails often, it might not be the best option.
I used to do away with nail clippers altogether and just file them instead. But lately, I haven't had the patience. I should get back to that, though.
I don't use it much, but I have a nail pin. It's a little more expensive than regular nail polish, but is easier to navigate. In general appearance, it looks like a marker or thick ball point pin. The brush is at the tip, and there is a button at the other end that despenses the polish. In general I've found it's easier to control, and I can usually paint my nails with out a problem. Maybe I should try to paint my nails more to stop from biting. I've never really thought about that.
I hate filing--I'm so tactilely defensive--but it must be done. You should have seen some of the faces I made the first time Jordan filed my nails. I felt like a cave woman come to civilization I hated it so much and felt so...outdated, ish? IDK. Will try that stroking method, and if I get it down I'll start doing it with colors. Thanks, ladies!
And ah yes, Jordan told me about those nail pens. We wondered if they would work or not, then forgot about them entirely.
I don't paint my nails anymore because I do massage and have very little nails but here is what I use to do. I went to Sally's beauty supply store, they have these stickers that fit around the top of your finger and only expose your nail. Just paint your nail and the excess will end up on the sticker. Just take it off when you are done and you have really nice painted nails. These stickers are used for professional acrelic nails but it works beautiful for painting.
Oh wow that is neat! :)
I will try this sticker method. I do like the method I wrote above, since it works well for me. my problem is perfection, and I am very careful and precise in how I stroke. with the stickers maybe I won't have to be so cautious. and the pen marker, I find don't work for me. I am pretty hard on my nails so to speak. I am always cooking and cleaning. Many of the basic things I do daily I end up wearing out the nail polish from that pen. it will only last a day on my nails. does it last longer for you sapphire?
the only way to get rid of tactile defensiveness, is to take the bull by the horns so to speak, and do whatever it is in question. am I saying it'll be easy as pie? no. however, it can be done.
Haha, I like all these ideas, thank you.
I used to paint my nails a lot when I was younger. I would use three strokes per nail. If you attempt to do this, use a good brand of polish, one that won't have a rough finish. Some of the cheaper brands don't apply as smoothly. Always shake up your polish, and use nail polish remover to take the natural oil off your nails beforehand. Push your cuticles back before you paint them, as this will give you a good mark of delineation. If you screw up, let the polish dry before you remove it. use a q-tip to remove the mistakes. Place paper under where you polish. If you can, try to use lighter colors, that way if you miss some polish it'll be less noticeable.
Now, if I'm going somewhere special, I'll have my niece paint my nails. Hth.
I was wondering about this very thitg the other day. I think I'll try some of these tips. :)
I offen get them done. but the tips sounds pretty nice. i will try the nail pen. and see how they come out.
Since we are talking about nails here, I was wondering if any of you do the rhinestone work on your nails. If you get them done that is, I will be doing that this saturday and wondered if they are a good idea.
These are some interesting ideas for polishinging your nails. I will try them out. I can cut my own nails though I prefer to go have them cut at the salon…they shape them a little better than me.