Nail Care Routine

In the spirit of the new year and the fact that many of us are currently being snowed in, I have decided to share with you my nail care routine. I am currently regrowing my nails practically from scratch due to a habit of picking at them. This routine can be applied to both fingernails and toenails. It is essentially the same routine with a few tweaks.

The first thing you need to do is remove any excess nail polish. I only had a treatment on so this didn't take very long.

Bare Nails

L-R Essie Millionails Strengthener, Butter London 

Horse Power Nail Fertilizer,  OPI Nail Envy

These are my favorite nail strengtheners. OPI's Nail Envy is probably the best overall. There are several different types you can get. I have the one for soft and thin nails. I usually prefer the Butter London Horse Power Nail Fertilizer. The only thing is that for an intensive treatment, this has to be reapplied daily for 7 days, completely removed and starting over every week for one month. You can see why I wouldn't do a full manicure with this although it says you can use it as a basecoat or topcoat. Essie Millionails Treatment is also very good and is also the most affordable.


When it comes to polish remover there are two different types, Acetone and Non Acetone. Acetone polish works wonders for removing last weeks manicure quickly but it dries out your nails. If you only have a clear coat, treatment or bare nails, I highly recommend using non acetone to prevent unnecessary damage. Keep in mind that Acetone polish remover often comes in different types too, ones for natural nails and ones for acrylics. Please use the one for natural nails (unless you have acrylics) as the acrylics version will dry out your nails too much and cause peeling and brittleness. I am using non acetone polish by Equate. The Beauty Secrets brand is my favorite but I ran out.

Equate Non Acetone Nail Polish

If you need to shape your nails, do so before soaking them. Trying to use a file on softened nails can damage them. This is not necessarily the same for toenails, you can soak them first and make sure you use a straight edge nail clipper to prevent ingrown toenails. Since I am growing my nails out, there wasn't much for me to shape yet.

Files and Nail Clipper

Next, soak your fingers in warm water for a few minutes. I usually mix a bit of soap or lotion into the water. This will help soften the cuticles and make it easier to push back.

Nail Brush and Pomegranate Cleansing Sugar Glow

Be Natural Cuticle Eliminator and Butter London
Melt Away Cuticle Eliminator
and Orange Wood Stick

After I soak them I use cuticle remover. Let it sit for about one minute, then use a cuticle pusher or orange wood stick to push back the cuticles, yes, even on your toes. Wash your hands (or toes) thoroughly to remove the cuticle remover and clean under the free edge of the nail. You can also use this opportunity to scrub your hands and nails to get any extra dead skin off. You can use a hand or foot scrub, a nail brush or even just a towel.

Toe note: If you don't have a foot bath or large bucket, apply cuticle remover to your toes, let it sit and get in the shower. Use a foot scrub and once you get out, push back the cuticles and apply a foot cream. My favorite one is the Julep Mint Pedi Cream.

Le Couvent Des Minimes Soothing Night Hand Cream,
Butter London Cuticle Oil, and California Mango Cuticle Oil

If you are doing both your toenails and fingernails, start painting your toenails first. That way you won't risk ruining a fresh manicure. Apply cuticle oil and hand cream to your hands for this process. If you are just painting your fingernails, it might be better to wait until the polish is on and dried but that is more of a personal preference. Keep in mind that you should swipe your nails with more polish remover right before you apply polish, especilally if you applied cuticle oil or hand cream. This keeps the polish on longer. And use toe separators!

Please excuse the poor polish job, it was late

Apply polish. I used Butter London's Nail Foundation Base Coat, Hardwear P.D. Quick Top Coat and the color Yummy Mummy on my fingernails. On my toenails I used Butter London's Horsepower Nail Fertilizer as a base coat and the color Queen Vic. Use base coat, two layers of polish and the top coat. If you are a sloppy polish painter, like me, you can use a small brush dipped in polish remover to clean up around the edges. You could also use a cotton swab but beware of ill behaved cotton pieces! ELF's small concealer brush works great for this. I put this brush aside specifically for nails; do not use a brush you use on your face unless you plan on never using it for makeup again.

ELF Concealer Brush

Butter London Polishes L-R
Top: Queen Vic Polish, Hardware P.D. Topcoat
Bottom: Nail Foundation, Yummy Mummy Polish

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             

Finally apply (or reapply) hand cream and cuticle oil. This is an important thing to remember in order to keep your hands and nails healthy and moisturized. Especially during the winter months.

And you are done! 

This is my fresh manicure! I would love to see pictures of your new manicure. I have links to my facebook and twitter accounts on the right.

Butter London Yummy Mummy Polish Swatch

Well that was my entire nail care routine. I would love to hear recommendations on anything from products to any tips or suggestions you may have.

Butter London Polishes are available at Ulta, Sephora and Butterlondon.com.
I recently bought this cute Butter London gift set that includes mini versions of the base foundation, quick dry top coat, matte top coat, nail strengthener, cuticle oil and cuticle remover. This is perfect if you want to try everything and those products are expensive full size!

Disclaimer: None of the links above are affiliated and I am not getting money by you clicking on them. They are for convenience only.

My Top Fall Nail Polishes

Yet another reason that Fall is the best season ever! It has everything!  The best weather, the best makeup, the best pie (yay pumpkin!), Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate from Starbucks, and of course the best nail polishes! So without further delay, here are my top  must have nail polishes for Fall!

The first one is a staple for fall. I have so many taupes but I had to narrow down to my all time favorite, which is OPI's Berlin There Done That. This is my favorite because it is not too brown or purple.

Butter London's Old Blighty
This is a really pretty smoky brick red creme. A real fall classic. Comparable to Julep's Claudette.

OPI Every Month Is Oktoberfest

OPI's Every Month is Oktoberfest
This was my first ever OPI polish. I just love the color! It is a beautiful deep, almost coppery purple wine color. It seems more blue based but with purple, red and gold shimmer. I love colors like this and the is my favorite out of all the ones I own with a similar color.

OPI's Nein, Nein, Nein, OK Fine!
This is a nice dark neutral color. It is a dark grey that has a bit of a greenish hue.

Julep Trina
This is a shimmery eggplant purple color with purple shimmer. I think it is quite similar to OPI's Suzi and the 7 Dusseldorfs but it is warmer.

OPI's Vampsterdam
When I was younger I had a polish very similar to this but it was darker. I have since thrown away the bottle and long forgot what the brand or the name was. This polish reminds me of that other one. Even more so when layered on top of OPI's Black Onyx. I just do one coat of each and the effect is stunning.

Butter London All Hail the Queen

Butter London's All Hail the Queen
This color is a taupe with holographic glitter. I love it because it gives an elegant twist to a basic nude color.

Essie Stylenomics
I bought this during IMATS on a whim. I didn't expect to love it as much as I do. It is a very dark greyish green and really unlike any other color I have seen.

Julep Boris and Nicole
This is a beautiful frosty autumn leaves color. It is a warm reddish brown that just screams fall.

Revlon Raven Red
This has been my favorite red for years before I even had OPI's Got the Blues for Red (see honorable mentions). It is a tad lighter but it is still a beautiful blood red.

Butter London British Racing Green

Butter London's British Racing Green
A beautiful hunter green with subtle shimmer. I love dark greens but they can be hard to find. This one is a real winner!

OPI's Suzi and the 7 Dusseldorfs
I actually bought this one because I saw my Cosmetology teacher wearing it on her toes and it looked so good! I later realized that it is nearly an exact dupe for China Glaze Draped in Velvet. The only difference is that Draped in Velvet has more of a chunky shimmer and OPI's Suzi and the 7 Dussel-what-its (it's a long name) has a much finer shimmer and seems a bit darker because of it. I love both but the OPI does not chip as easily on me. Out of the two I definitely prefer the OPI polish.

Honorable Mentions

All of these are either discontinued or hard to find.

My classic red for fall is definitely OPI's Got the Blues for Red. It is a dark vampy blue toned red. However I cannot find it for sale other than amazon or drugstore.com.

OPI's Skyfall Collection
This was a limited edition collection that came out for the new 007 movie, Skyfall; which by the way, was awesome! My favorites from this collection are On Her Magesty's Secret Service, Live and Let Die and The World is Not Enough. The last two come in the mini's collection if you can find it on amazon.

Julep Hoch
I love this polish but sadly it was limited edition. However Julep's Emilie seems to be a decent dupe for it. The Polish Jinx here on Blogger did a post comparing them. Check it out HERE!

Finger Paints Harvest Hues
I tried to find a color like this for years before I finally stumbled across this one. It was also limited edition and it has mostly been replaced with Butter London's British Racing Green, though they are not really a dupe for each other. It is a beautiful blue toned dark green with some silver shimmer. Very Slytherin!



Nail Polish Safety Specs.

Essie is 3 free. There is no DPB, Toluene, or Formaldehyde.

Julep is 5 free and vegan friendly. There is no Formaldehyde, Formaldehyde resin, DPB, Toluene, Camphor, or animal ingredients or byproducts.

OPI (green label) is 3 free. There is no DPB, Toluene or Formaldehyde.

Revlon is Formaldehyde and Toluene Free.

China Glaze (black label) is 3 free. There is no DPB, Toluene or Formaldehyde.

Finger Paints is 3 free. There is no DPB, Toluene or Formaldehyde.

Butter London is 5 free. There is no DPB, Phthalates, Toluene, Formaldehyde or Parabens.

Butter London First Impressions

I have been eyeing Butter London's nail polishes for a long time and finally got my hands on my two most coveted colors! Since these are the first Butter London polishes that I have ever tried, I decided to do a first impressions.

The Colors

Butter London British Racing Green, All Hail the Queen

The first one that I tried was the color All Hail the Queen. It is a beautiful holographic, glittery taupe and is actually completely unique in my collection, it is a great year round color. It is a slightly dressier option to the classic taupe or nude polish while still being elegant.

Butter London All Hail the Queen

The second color is British Racing Green. I am a sucker for a beautiful dark green polish because they are so hard to find. This color is also unique to my collection. I only have two other basic dark green polishes and neither resemble this one in any way. It is a dark hunter green with subtle shimmer.

Butter London British Racing Green

The Packaging

I really like Butter London's packaging. It is heavy and luxurious, exactly what you would expect from a $15 polish. There are two separate parts to the top. The cap actually comes off to reveal the screw top of the brush. As someone who has cracked plastic nail polish lids before (mostly Avon) I am happy that the large plastic top is only for show. There is actually a sticker on the side that says 'lift to open'. This sticker seals the polish so you either have to remove it or do what I did and slice it apart with nail scissors.

The Application

Application was fantastic. It is a bit sheer on the first coat but two coats will create a nice coverage. The formula is somewhat thin but by no means watery or streaky. It is very easy to work with and creates a beautiful finish.

Staying Power

I work as a salon assistant so my nails go through a lot of abuse. My nail polish will often start to chip and peel off by day 2 (same day for some polishes) even if it has good staying power under normal wear and tear. This polish held up pretty well compared to other brands, lasting a grand total of 5 days before beginning to chip. I think that for someone who is not so hard on their nails, this could last all week!








I also got this cute clutch for free with my order (from Ulta) which is also available separately from Butter London's website. It is a perfect size for a small makeup bag. The zipper is very heavy duty and doesn't feel like it will break in a few weeks. It is black faux leather with gold writing on the front that says "We Believe In Rock & Roll, Great Britain, And Fashion." Clutch retails for $15.

Butter London Clutch

Butter London is available from Ulta , Sephora, some department stores and through their website, www.butterlondon.com. They retail for $15 each with 11ml/0.4 fl oz. TIP: Ulta sometimes has 2 for $15 sales.

All Butter London products are free of formaldehyde, toulene, DBP, phthalates and parabens.

Disclaimer: These polishes were bought with my own money. There are no affiliate links in this post and all opinions are my own.