Nutra Nail Gel Polish Remover "No Mess Express" - Review

Nutra Nail was kind enough to also send me their "No-Mess Express" Gel Perfect Remover packs. This box has 5 individual packets.

 The packet looks like this and you just tear across the top.

 It's got a thick pad inside soaked with the acetone and moisturizers. It's psychedelic neon yellow. :)

 The instructions state to stick your fingers inside facing the pad and make sure there is good contact.

 I grasped the outside of the packet with my other hand so that it made contact with each nail. You sit like this for 2 minutes (although I noticed that it already worked well after just 1 minute), then you gently massage the nails against the pad to remove the polish. I rubbed each nail a bit from the outside of the packet and then slowly wiggled each finger out. For the most part it removed ALL of the polish. I just had a little bit here and there on the sides of my nails left. That came off with just a gentle swipe of the pad. 

I then took my other hand and placed my nails against the opposite side of the pad and it was saturated enough to take the polish off them as well. 1 packet works to remove the polish off all 10 nails.

 I was a little worried about the cyanoacrylate in the Gel Perfect Polish Activator damaging my natural nail... Do you remember the cracks I mentioned in the gel polish after a few days of wear? These cracks were still visible on my nails after all of the gel polish had been removed. It's not like it's a crack through the entire thickness of my fingernail, but I'm afraid it looks like it did affect the topmost layer of my nail.

No Mess Express Gel Polish Remover 

(Priced at $7.99 for a box of 5 packets)

Pros:

1. "No Mess" is correct, the packet allows you to keep the gunky removed polish contained within.
2.  Works on multiple nails at once. The packet states 5 nails at once, but I was only able to fit 4 nails in at once. I couldn't figure out a position to put in all 5 of one hand.
3. One packet works on all 10 nails.
4. Contains aloe and lanolin to condition as it works. My nails and skin were not dried out when I was finished. 
5. Makes for a great alternative to the "foil method" of removal of glitter polishes!

Cons:

1. Some people might feel like $7.99 is too pricey, but I'm fairly neutral about that. $1.60 per packet isn't too terrible...
2. The harsh smell might be too strong for some people. However, it's no stronger than the smell of acetone.

So there you have it! Thanks again to Nutra Nail for supplying me with these products to review. I do not seeing myself buying Gel Perfect polish, but I really do like the No Mess Express remover! What do you think? Have you tried these products? What was your experience like?

More about → Nutra Nail Gel Polish Remover "No Mess Express" - Review

Gold X's

I was feeling pretty uninspired about my ultra-short nails last week...and I have a "thing" about dark polish on super-short nails (I don't like it). So I decided this glittery gold color would work for a light fall color. I started with 3 coats of Sinful Colors "All About Me".

Then I put a black dot in the center of each nail, and used that as the central point for a large "X"...was I crossing out my short nails, I wonder?

And as you can see, I decided gold rhinestones would work nicely to give my edgy/rough X's a little flair.

I've been using Avon's nail corrector pen recently to clean up the edges...and unlike most remover pens, it really does work. I'm quite happy with the results.

It's very odd how the flash makes the gold polish look translucent...it really was quite opaque.

Not the prettiest manicure, but I thought it was kind of edgy, and it reflected my short-nail angst at the time. Do your nails reflect your mood?

Next week, a lovely lavender mani with stenciled purple bows for something a little more "girly". Until then, happy polishing!

More about → Gold X's

So Not Groovy...Suncoat Polish Removal

First, let me just say that I love the Suncoat eco-friendly polish remover. It does a great job, gently, on almost every nail polish I use.

Except Suncoat polish.

Last night (Sundays are my manicure nights), I spent just over 2 hours - 2 hours - trying to remove the Suncoat water-based polish from my fingernails. This was the result when I finally gave up, and "medicated" my frustrated self with brownies and a romance novel:'Twas a work night, or I may well have gone for something stronger in a glass. Those scrapes/nicks you see on the tops of my nails are the result of my scraping the barely softened polish off after the first hour and a half, when it wouldn't come off with cotton balls.

I tried everything. I held soaked cotton balls on my nails for 5 minutes at a time, I actually soaked my nails in the polish remover, and still ended up using the blunt end of a plastic nail file to scrape away most of the polish after it was softened, but still wouldn't come off. As you can see, I still have several tips to get the polish off of tonight, and some buffing to smooth the tops again. Arg!

My three bottles of Suncoat polish are going in the garbage. With any luck, I'll finish the removal job tonight, and finish with a nice new pink french manicure that will come off when I want it to next week. I'm still in a pink mood, for some reason.

Tune in tomorrow for the results...

More about → So Not Groovy...Suncoat Polish Removal

Suncoat Natural Polish Remover

I ordered this at the same time I ordered my natural nail polishes awhile back, as well as the PeaceKeeper Eco-Friendly polish remover. There’s only two differences between these two “healthier” nail remover choices, and one is the sugar beet vs. soy based formula. I have to say, after using both of them, I prefer the soy based Suncoat remover. It works much faster, and is just as easy to use.

Like the PeaceKeeper, it doesn’t hurt if you get it in cuts or scrapes, which is a bonus that you’ll never find in a regular polish remover. I had just cut one of my fingers somewhat deeply on an apple slicer last Sunday, but didn’t feel a thing that night when I did my weekly manicure, using the Suncoat remover.

And of course the other difference is packaging – the Suncoat comes in a glass bottle, which is far more eco-friendly than the plastic bottle for PeaceKeeper.

I like the Suncoat remover a lot, and definitely plan to order more when I run out. I do wish the neck of the bottle was slightly smaller, but it still works fine as is. It’s made in Canada – you can order it from their web site. I plan on trying the polish very soon (I have it, just haven’t tried it yet).

I see they also have more natural beauty products – anyone tried these?

More about → Suncoat Natural Polish Remover

New Moodies & Suncoat

These polishes came in last week, and I was just too lazy to post them until now. But I’m looking forward to trying them out soon!
First, the new Nubar Moodies (click to enlarge). I got three: Turquoise to Blue (#M105), Hunter Green to Gold (#M106), and Seafoam Green to Honeycomb (#M112). I went with lighter colors here, but I plan to get brighter, bolder versions for summer later. They all should be fun, I think. They used to sell these in the drug store when I was in high school, I might have to see if I can find them locally. They were cheaper from Lotion Source than straight from Nubar though.
And secondly, my order from Suncoat, another water-based nail company. These polishes are numbered rather than named, and I got the bright pink, a white (thinking of a French manicure, though the pink is much brighter than I thought it would be, so maybe a reverse instead), as well as a clear top coat made to go with these polishes. I also bought a small bottle of their soy-based remover to try, we’ll see how that does as opposed to the sugar-beet Eco-Easy remover.

So a few more new things to add to the “to try” list. Now I’m trying to decide whether to do a Moodies mani next week, or try out that chrome polish Brook sent me…

More about → New Moodies & Suncoat

Paint Me Stunning

I had high hopes for this water-based polish: "Paint Me Stunning" from PeaceKeeper Cause-Metics (flash photo above). It’s basically a plastic polymer in a water-based solution that cures through evaporation (no quick-dry option here). It doesn’t have any of those really nasty chemicals in it, so overall, it’s healthier for you – though I must say, the alcohol smell is pretty bad. The formula is really dreamy to work with – smooth, easy to control, it’s the cleanest mani I’ve done in a long time with minimal cuticle clean-up needed afterwards.

But alas, every one of my nails “bubbled” as it dried. I love nail art, but hate bubbles with a passion, so that was most disappointing. I'll have to try again later with a different room temperature. No-flash photo:
This polish boasts that it needs no base or top coat, so I thought I’d see if it would hold a few stones in on its own. I had some bows or butterflies (I couldn’t decide what they were) that match the polish perfectly, so I used just a few to see how they held up. I did this manicure on Sunday night, and since I had Monday off of work, I spent most of the day cleaning. As you can see, I lost one stone on my left hand, and I lost both the stones on my right index finger (not shown). So far, the others are still solid, so we’ll see how long they last with no topcoat holding them on.

I’ve gotten a little tip pull on all fingers…but I think that’s probably to be expected since it cures through evaporation, and I didn’t wrap the polish over the tips.

The main test, of course, is whether or not this polish will last without chipping or “wear” until next Sunday. It warns that the polish should be removed after 1 week, because the longer you wear it, the harder it is to remove. So we’ll see how the durability turns out next week.

I wanted to add a caution on the Eco-Easy Nail Polish Remover I reviewed last week. I thought I’d use a cloth to remove my Valentina mani last weekend. Seriously – just say no! Use cotton balls! With the cloth, the lovely red Valentina got all over my fingers, making a huge mess, and leaving me “red-handed” for the better part of yesterday. Not a great fashion statement.

Next weekend I’ll be trying out the soy based nail polish remover, so stay tuned. Later this week, pictures of my new Nubar Moodie colors, as well as more water-based nail polishes.

More about → Paint Me Stunning

Eco-Easy Nail Polish Remover

I didn't have time to get another picture of this today, but you can see my bottle of Eco-Easy Nail Polish Remover from Peacekeeper Cause-Metics pictured in this post. Not only is this polish remover supposed to be easier on the environment - it's completely devoid of any synthetic or petrochemicals, and 100% biodegradable - it's healthier too, with just five ingredients:

- ethyl lactate (from sugar beets)
- glycerin
- water
- Spearmint leaf
- Rosemary

It says right on the bottle that this remover takes a little time to work. And it's true - you need to put it on your nails (with a cotton ball or cloth), and let it sit for a while before you start rubbing. The bottle says 30 seconds, it was more like a minute or so for me before it started working. But once it starts, it's really not much different than using regular "chemical" polish removers in that you just rub your nails, and it dissolves the polish.

There are a few things though that make this polish really worth the extra time and money for me. The first is that it isn't drying at all on the cuticles & skin around your nails. the oils and glycerin make it soft and soothing to dry skin, so it's conditioning. The second is that it gets *everything* off without any harsh rubbing or digging with a q-tip. With chemical polish removers, I always end up having a hard time getting the polish off the very sides of my nails by the skin, and sometimes I have to get a q-tip to really rub in those creases, especially with dark polish. This remover just dissolves everything, leaving a perfectly clean nail bed with no "elbow grease" needed. I didn't have to work at getting the rhinestones off either - they just popped right off with no problem.

I also was impressed at just needing 2 cotton balls for all 10 nails. With chemical removers, I need at least three per hand, as they get really soaked with "old" nail polish as I remove it. This remover really seems to just dissolve the polish - I don't know where the color goes, but one cotton ball did an entire hand with no problem. It doesn't take much remover either - I put remover on one cotton ball, swiped each nail on one hand, let it sit, then used the same cotton ball to clean all 5 nails, repeated for the second hand. It seems like with chemical removers, I'm constantly needing more remover as it evaporates so quickly - Eco-Easy doesn't evaporate (or at least not so fast).

And of course there's the smell. Zoya's polish remover has a nice fragrance, but this Eco-Easy remover smells great, like a light mint. And the fragrance is natural, so no worries about inhaling alcohol or chemical fumes either.

The only downsides to this remover in my opinion are that it takes a little extra time, it comes in a plastic bottle, and it's $12.00. Really though, the price is not bad at all considering how little is needed for each use. I'm sold - and I think I'll be switching to this from now on.

I do have one other eco-friendly polish remover to try...it comes in a glass bottle, which is better, but the ethyl lactate is derived from soy, and it does have a chemical in it that I need to look up. I'll post a review on that later.

More about → Eco-Easy Nail Polish Remover

New Polishes!

Many thanks to Brooke of Getcha Nails Did for the Mirror Finish Maybelline I received in the mail today! Your handwriting is incredible, by the way. Thank you so much for this polish...I can't wait to try it out! Check out Brooke's blog for her Valentine's Day Giveaway (at least go look at the nail polish roses...seriously).

I ordered a couple different brands of water-based nail polish to try last week, along with eco-friendly polish removers. Today I got my order from PeaceKeeper Cause-metics in the mail, and I love the look of "Paint Me Stunning". I'm really curious as to how this will wear, and how it will come off. I'm always interested in healthier products, so here's hoping this will be a good one!

Stop back on Tuesday for my Valentine's Day Manicure...

More about → New Polishes!