Beauty Find & Share: Martha Stewart Living (July 2011 issue)

Jul 5, 2011

Krystal C.

I never would have thought to find beauty articles in Martha Stewart's magazine, but I did! This month's magazine had great recipes, but an even better article on at-home manis and pedis. Some of these tips and tricks are great to keep in mind for at home spa-time, but keep in mind you can change it up to fit your needs or styles.

Excerpt from Martha Stewart Living - July 2011 issue
Noteworthy Nails (page 44) (I couldn't find a link to this article online so I'll word-for-word it below)

Nail an at-home manicure or pedicure
You may think you know how to polish properly, but the rules have changed. Make these tweaks to your routine to achieve professional-looking manicures and pedicures that last.

STEP 1: SOFTEN SKIN
Old Tip - Soak hands and feet.
New Trick - Soak feet only.
Placing your fingers in water will cause nails to retain moisture, which makes polish take longer to dry and leads to more chips and peeling, says Kimmie Kyees, a celebrity manicurist. Feet usually get ample time to dry (you don't use them to dig around in your purse), so soaking isn't an issue. Place them in warm water for 10 minutes to soften calluses, making it easier to scrub them away with a foot file or a pumice. Avoid callus shavers or graters, they can tear skin or take too much of it off, and they make calluses grow back faster.

STEP 2: CUT AND FILE
Old Tip - Shape with clippers.
New Trick - Clip nails straight across, and shape with file.
Clipping into the sides of nails at an angle can cause hangnails or in-growns, Kyees says. Instead, clip straight across for length only; then use a file to shape and smooth corners. "File from the outer edges toward the center; sawing back and forth may cause weak nails to split or peel," Lippmann says.

STEP 3: CARE FOR CUTICLES
Old Tip - Use a cuticle clipper.
New Trick - Apply a cuticle and stain remover.
Nippers can be tricky - it's common to accidentally take off the viable, protective skin instead of only the dead, dry parts. Cuticle solvents soften the hardened skin and gently loosen the excess that needs to go. Because they're meant to exfoliate, some may also lift stains and whiten yellow nails, which result from wearing dark polish without a base coat.

STEP 4: HYDRATE AND PREP FOR POLISH
Old Tip - Apply lotion to hands before polishing.
New Trick - Massage in moisturizer; clean nails with polish remover.
Hand cream smooths skin and is key for protecting cuticles from peeling and looking ragged, Lippmann says. But any moisture left on the nail will prevent polish from fully gripping, making it more likely to peel later. Instead of washing hands to remove residue (which will rinse away freshly applied lotion), soak cotton swab in remover and use it to wipe down the nail, Kyees says. Avoid cuticles so you don't dry them out.

STEP 5: POLISH
Old Tip - Apply in two strokes.
New Trick - Paint on in three strokes, and seal the edges.
Apply thin layers of base coat, polish, and top coat, using this technique: Hold the brush close to, but not touching, the cuticle in the center of your nail, and swipe to the end; then apply on each side. Next, lightly run the brush across the tip of the nail so the polish wraps over the edge. This will help protect it from chips, Kyees says. Apply two coats of lacquer. After top coat, let your nails dry for 15 minutes. "Polish dries from the top layer down, so even if the surface doesn't fell sticky, you can still get nicks," Kyees says. 

Jul 5, 2011

Barbara S.

Martha has been adding Beauty tips in her magazine for a little over a year. Started with a small mention but it keeps growing. I am going to guess that she did a market study and found that readers of REAL SIMPLE enjoy the Beauty information. And they are probably readers of MSL too. Her first big Beauty column was dedicated to the products Martha uses everyday.