1. Nail file/emery board - I use your typical cardboard/sandpaper ones you can get at the drug store, though I also have a metal one with a pointed tip to help with cleanup, as well as a 4-sided nail buffer.
2. Nail clipper - easiest way to even out scraggly nails and trim them down to appropriate length.
3. Hand cream/cuticle cream - After removing old nail polish, make sure to wash your hands and apply a healthy dose of hand cream. However, before polishing, give nails a quick swipe with some rubbing alcohol or apple cider vinegar so nails aren't all gunked up with lotion - your polish won't stick. My favorite hand creams include Avon's Skin So Soft, as well as their VitaMoist hand cream. Cocoa butter is a great overnight treatment, as well as Argan oil - and they smell lovely :)
4. Base coat - Right now, my favorites are OPI's Nail Envy - Soft & Thin Formula, as well as Essie's Grow Stronger, Essie's Rock Solid, Sally Hansen's Thicken Up and Orly's Ridgefiller. Depending on how your nails behave, you might need a fortifying base coat like one of the above. Ridgefillers tend to be a little more opaque on the nail, and act as a great base if you want your bright colors to really stand out.
5. Polish (duh) - I have a tab set aside for my favorite brands, but my top top favorite is OPI - I love the creativity of their collections and they're always setting the trends. Examples - 007 Skyfall Collection, Oz the Great and Powerful soft shades collection, Liquid Sand, etc.
6. Top Coat - This one gets a little tricky. Quick dry top coats like Seche Vite and Sally Hansen Insta-Dri (In the red bottle) have a tendency to cause shrinkage if you're not careful, but they're the absolute best when you need your polish to dry in a pinch. Other top coats I use are OPI's regular top coat, as well as Sephora by OPI matte top coat.
NOTD - I've got a job interview this afternoon, and originally chose "Glints of Glinda" from the Oz collection, but decided I'd go with a classic red for a little 'pop' against my black and white ensemble. For this, I chose "Die Another Day" from the 007 Skyfall collection, a nice warm red shimmer that compliments my skin tone well. With this I used my Orly Ridgefiller base coat to make as smooth a canvas as possible to keep the polish honest.
And then I remembered that reds don't photograph the best. Here are the best shots I could get. Both are just 2 coats with Seche Vite.
Hoping to 'nail' this interview (sorry that was lame)!
Happy Polishing!
-Maggie
