Hi all! Welcome to DIS blog by Michelle. Today we are going to dive into some uses for our A La Cart products. We carry glitter, foil, flakes, glows, and more items a la cart. I am using this term to describe each product by itself. There is no added acrylic or base. Some of these are multi-functional; you can use them alone or add them to any acrylic you already have. Some, like glow, are intended to be added to powder. Flowers however, work best when added on top of a mani in my experience. One of my favorite things I've learned while expanding my nail knowledge, is how versatile everything can be.
Most orders these days are shipping with some glitter samples. This is a great first example. It doesn't matter what liquids you're using, you can add on some glitter before activating or curing your mani. Sometimes I like to pour some glitter over, and other times I place the glitter pieces where I want them.
For dip liquids you will want to follow your basic dip process. One of my favorite and most used tips with dip liquids is to do a layer of base, and let it dry fully. Then go in with a layer of base and place your glitter where you want. Using an extra layer of base extends your drying time. It also is a great tip for any fine glitter a la cart. These can be used in a mani with dip liquids. Start with 1-2 layers of clear dip. Then paint on your base, and let it dry.
Now paint your base layer for the glitter. Be sure to get good nail coverage since you will only have one layer of glitter on your nail. Pour over your glitter of choice. [This is the point where you can add anything you'd like. As long as there is dip under, and you add base coat over (sandwich the glitter or any a la cart item), it will hold in place once you activate it.]
Let the glitter fully dry. You can activate and top coat here if you don't need to file or buff. About half of all glitter will file silver if you file directly on the glitter. To avoid this you will need to add a protection layer on top of the glitter.
However, some glitter can dull if you put a clear dip over it. A good example is the reflective glitter. This is somewhat uncommon though, and most glitter do well with 1-2 layers of clear over them. Then you will want to activate, buff, file and finish your mani as usual.
Another example of an a la cart item that has its own rules is foil. Foil is not solvent resistant. This means that it can break down with the adhesive in the dip base. Sometimes I enjoy the look of the colored foils running together. In order to avoid this I would recommend floating-(have extra liquid on your brush and try to minimize contact of the brush to your nail) your dip base over any foils. Once you have a protective layer of base over any foil, then you can move on to activating. This works for foil dips as well as foil a la cart.
This same process can be used with many things. By having dip powder around the ‘a la cart item’, you can seal it in by activating the dip base. I want to explain this to you all because it helped me feel less held back by the ‘rules’ of dipping and nails. The same concept also applies to the gel method. If there is interest I can do a post about that!
If you made it this far I want to thank you for being here. This is sort of my first, sort of my second attempt at a blog. You can find two previous blog entries which I need to reread and edit a bit. They cover some dipping basics. What I want to post regularly will now include some of my personal experience after the discussion on that week's topic.
The past few years have been a lot of soul searching for me in my personal life. I knew I needed a way to share all my thoughts and I am so grateful to be able to share now. I am sort of winging it as I go with this blog though. I plan to write weekly and offer tips and ideas as well as recommendations based on my experiences. I am also open to requests as far as topics. I hope to blend a bit of my nail thoughts, with a bit of my personal life experience to share with anyone interested. I am on a journey to improve my self care, gratitude and mindfulness. I want to remind you that you are worthy. That taking time for yourself should not be optional. Remember that staying hydrated helps us feel calm and alert. Remember we are not alone. This is a safe space for all.
XO-Michelle