On Monday I braved the big city, and went down to Seattle for the OPI Axxium Soak-Off Gel Lacquer class. Is that a mouthful, or what? I'm really excited about this product, since it's a great alternative to nail polish and will enable me to provide a natural nail manicure that lasts two weeks - or longer!

I really wanted to leave the gel lacquer on my nails for a few weeks to see how it did, but not having my nails on is like cutting the last 1/4 inch off my fingers. Not pretty. Well, it was, but you know... Not as pretty as the four glitters I'm sporting now!

Neon Blue Nail Thingies

**Edit** Post re-named in honor of Josh.

Here is a picture of DD's new set that we did yesterday ~ Neon Blue with a custom glitter blend in sculpted acrylic (what else?). No fun name for these, as they're just a fade ~ I don't think I could ever remember to call them anything else.
Still very cute though. She was in such a hurry to get to work that she didn't give me much time to take pictures, so the details are not very good. I swear, her pinky is the size of a five year olds'! I particularly like the index finger where I filed off all the glitter. :D

I recently discovered by accident (it's a long story) that I can put my "spinner" in sideways. This is great for the extra large beads that I picked up at Michael's a few weeks ago. So here's a picture showing my super-spinner in my Parade nails. I admit to being completely addicted to having a spinner, plus it really irritates DH sometimes when I play with it. What could be more fun than that?

Puh-Na-chee???

It's incredibly difficult to come up with a name for a business. After hours of mind-numbing searching, tongue twisting, and metaphor seeking, I decided on "Panache Nail Studio". Which, btw, Aunt Sallie told me people would think was pronounced 'Puh-Na-chee' and wonder if some Italians decided to take on the nail market. Then today, after reading my blog, someone (to remain nameless) said to me "So, you decided to go with Puh-Na-Chee, huh?". It wasn't Aunt Sallie.

I don't have the little upside down "e" to really show this, but it's "Pe-näsh". Two syllables, and the original Italian word was pennacchio. Which actually would've been a great name, but no one would ever find my blog if they had to spell that! Just for fun, here are some definitions that I found online:

• distinctive and stylish elegance; a feathered plume on a helmet
• carries the connotation of a flamboyant manner and reckless courage
• flamboyant, energetic style or action; dash; verve
• the quality of being able to do things in a confident and elegant way that other people find attractive

As of right now, I'm sticking with the name. But I reserve the right to include a pronunciation guide on all printed material.

Bedrock City Nails

So DD (dear daughter) thinks I should name all the nail designs, or rather, that I should let her do it! I did this sculpted acrylic set on her in March, and they were so pretty and fun! A little too wild and crazy, maybe, for those new to seeing some pizzazz in a nail tip, but we'll convert them one at a time. :D Rather than the typical "tiger stripes" or whatever, she came up with "Bedrock City". Don't they look just like what Wilma & Betty would have worn if they had been lucky enough to have acrylics? We loved these in Neon Pink with Rainbow Black, but just about any colors would work.

DD is definitely a challenge client. She has teeny-tiny little nail beds that are sunken down in deep cuticles, plus she has ski-jump nails! So she has to get a fill about every 7-8 days or she starts lifting. On top of that she's a picker. Give her the tiniest little speck that's not perfect, and she'll pick pick pick... which, btw, causes lifting! Her record for keeping nails on without any lifting is about 10 days, and that set was done by my favorite Young Nails guru - Tracey, down in California - what a talented lady! I'm guessing the only way to beat that record would be using tiling cement? Hmmmm....