Nails For The Trip (and how I make them last for a week!)

As you know, last week I was on a trip. For that trip, I created a set of galaxy nails to fit me and my bestie's Cosmic Twinsies theme, because anything galaxy just fit us so well. Long story short, we feel this true cosmic connection and therefore refer ourselves as cosmic twinsies. We also are very, very similar in many ways, hence the twinsie part. In this post, I'm not only sharing what products to use for a mani like this, but also how to make it last as long as possible. As I'm typing this, the nails have been on over a week, and apart from one split tip, they're basically like new still. 

galaxy nails



So, what's the secret to a long-lasting mani? To start off, it helps to have healthy nails. When they don't chip, split, or anything else, but rather stay intact, your mani naturally stays in place better. The next thing is to have a good base coat. I use the one from Glisten & Glow, but whichever formula you find working for your nails is good. Not only does it help the mani to stay on, but also base coat works as a shield from staining so that the natural nail doesn't soak up all the color from the polish. The color itself should be applied over well dried base coat, as not too thick layers and letting each layer dry up before adding the next one. If you are too quicky to add layer upon layer, the result is that you end up having bubbles in your mani, which both looks bad but also probably weakens the mani. After the design is done and at least mostly dry, I'd recommend adding a layer of fast-dry top coat (I use the one from again Glisten & Glow, I find it's the best fit for me). And lastly, to seal everything in, I used a gel top coat - the kind you air-dry without lamps or anything. 

Oh, and one thing to remember when doing your mani is to make sure you always seal everything around the tips! That will always keep your mani intact just a little bit longer without chipping. 

china glaze nails

The design here looks a lot more blue and lot less sparkly than it is in real life, but let me tell you, trying to capture it all without setting up my lightbox and/or having a flash is basically impossible. But still, I like how they look in these pics. You nevertheless get the general idea of how the design looks. And for the ones who are new here, yes, they are natural nails. Mine grow like crazy.

space nails

The products used for this mani were base coat and top coat by Glisten & Glow, Teen Spirit, Blanc Out, Towel Boy Toy, Born To Rule and Fairy Dust by China Glaze, Galactic Glow topper in shade Night-Time Stargazing by Catrice and Gel Top Coat by Essie (unfortunately apparently not cruelty-free, please leave gel topper recommendations from cruelty-free brands below!)

galaxy mani

What do you think about this mani? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

That's it for today, I know I said this would be up sooner but honestly couldn't finish writing this on the road. Next post will be up later this week and before that, there will be new content on my Instagram (@jolagerroos) so stay tuned there for many, many things that won't make it into their own blog posts. I have some ideas for future blog posts but taken that I have to prioritize schoolwork especially this week, I'm not sure when I get all my blog posts done. However, I try to keep up doing at least one or two per week unless I get insanely busy. So I'll see you in my next post, hopefully really, really soon.

Have a wonderful day ♥

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