The Nail Files

On Thursday, I went to go get my nails done before our big Brussels trip. I searched high and low for my favorite go-to manicure nail polish (Essie's Gucci Muchi Puchi) and could not find it anywhere. Upset and running out of time, I settled for second best (Essie's French Affair).

Gucci Muchi Puchi

French Affair

Despite my love of manicures, I have always had problems with my nails. My nails tend to break easily and they don't seem to hold polish well. No matter the brand I try, my nails will chip after a few days. (Although I will say that for some reason, Rimmel London polishes have chipped the quickest on me.) Also, I am not one of those pretty, careful girls, so try as hard as I may, I always without fail, smudge at least one nail right after I leave the salon. This did lead me to try Shellac and Axxium manicures, and honestly, I was not a fan. I appreciated the staying power, but could not deal with the peeling. Also, I swear they made my nails more brittle. My nails have never broken so much as they have with those types of manicures.

When I left the salon, I of course, smudged a nail. Go figure. By the time we got to base (about a 10 minute car ride), I looked down at my hands and realized my nails looked AWFUL. Every single nail had a smudge on it and what looked like little bubbles in the polish. I was beyond upset. 19€ down the drain. I did not have the time or money to go back and get another manicure, so I figured I would go home, take the polish off, and see what I could do myself. When we got home, I was in my bathroom looking for nail polish. I keep all of my polishes in a little plastic container on my windowsill. I picked it up and it was HOT! I was looking through it and finally found my beloved Gucci Muchi Puchi. Except it was no longer the gorgeous pink shade I loved. Instead, it looked like this:

I did know that sunlight and heat can affect nail polish like this, but I guess it can. I wonder if keeping it in pretty much direct sunlight is what caused my French Affair to get all goopy? Take this as a word of advice, find a different place to store your polishes. I wish I didn't have to learn this lesson the hard way.

Also- can we just talk about the fact that a basic manicure with cheap polish costs 19€ over here? I was so excited when I saw that the salon had OPI polish and wanted to get a manicure with one of their colors. Then I saw the price list. A manicure with OPI polish costs 29€. Umm holy heck. OPI doesn't even cost that much per bottle in the States! (By comparison, it's 16€/bottle over here.) On that note, if anyone reading this can please get me a bottle of OPI's If You Moust, You Moust, I will be eternally grateful and will repay you in chocolate and other goodies when it cools down a bit. (Can't order nail polish over here, sadly.)