Welcome back!

Remember when I used to get my nails done a lot? that was a long time ago.

I've been going down to torrance, ca to try out a japanese nail salon and the calgel nails. It's some gel that hardens under uv lights. I love these suckers. They don't scratch, they don't chip and they generally look perfect for weeks and you can get them filled as your nails grow out. My first set lasted almost 8 weeks! I think you can soak them off but I haven't done it myself. The process, as the internet tells me, involves filing the gel down and soaking a bit of cotton with acetone, wrapping it around the nail, and then wrapping foil to hold it in place for 10-15 minutes. I suppose it just falls off.

Anyway, I have a new set now and it's so shiny and pretty!

I've got on a clear set with pink glitter tips. On the fourth fingers, I've got 3d roses made out of acrylic powder. zomg!

This was done at Nail Factory located at 23215 Hawthorne Blvd, Torrance, CA 90505. I would highly recommend trying out calgel nails. They're so shiny! The only annoying thing is the drive to Torrance and that little pesky fact that I've only gone to have them removed at the salon. It might be a lot easier than I realize to remove them myself but until then, I'll just deal with the drive.

Cheers!

arigato mister robato

Who: me. dbunnies
What: manicure time!
Where: tokyo, japan--harajuku.
When: August? august.
Why: duh. just cause.

So, a couple things. I'm going to set this blog post off right and give props where props are due! [I know. I just said props. we don't judge here.]
The Peninsula Hotel, Ginza District, Tokyo.
I'm serious. it's that gleaming tower of luxury on the right.

are you fucking kidding me.

nope. not fucking kidding.

needless to say, this is the type of hotel that BRINGS YOU FRESH ICE FOR YOUR ICE BUCKET TWICE A DAY EVEN IF YOU HAVEN'T BEEN IN YOUR ROOM. Also, they're the type of hotel that has the most tactful employees. Case in point:

Cullen of the Concierge: Goodafternoon Miss Ha. How can I be of service?
Dbunnies: hi. I'd really like to get my nails done and I love nail art.
Cullen: That's wonderful. Is there anything specific you're looking for?
Dbunnies: yes. I don't want classy nails. I want traaa uh
Cullen: I understand. You want to go to a nail salon that specializes in hip nail art.

HIP. he said HIP. I was going for 'trashy' but hip is a very good and descriptive word for something that is necessarily garish and not for the Peninsula. So, off Cullen goes to research my hip nail salon and he returns with Nail Deux Prier in Harajuku of Gwen Stefani fame. Sadly, I have to admit that without Gwen, I wouldn't have known about Harajuku for as long as I have been aware of it. I mean, sure, I would have learned about it eventually but Harajuku Lovers and her japanese backup dancers brought Harajuku to the fore of my pop culture knowledge first. [props. HA]

so, my nail experience. First, getting nail art apparently does not include getting your nails done and it is common to not get a manicure when coming into a place like this. I think. I'm not really sure. Keep in mind that Cullen went for the best he could find and it involved taking me to Deux Prier--a nail salon whose staff did not speak English. That's right. yours truly had her first non-vietnamese non-manicure manicure. I got most of a manicure but was missing the cuticle trim. I thought this was bizarre but I gave up trying to communicate wayyy before this point.

Nail Deux Prier did offer cuticle trims but I had no idea it wasn't part of the service and I could have paid for it but I already didn't understand why they were going through the trouble of pushing my cuticles back and filing my nails if they weren't going to trim them. by the time I realized they weren't going to trim them, we'd already moved onto basecoats. whatever.

I chose an essie gloss of a dark gunmetal grey and and a nail art that emphasized shiny. if there was one word for this manicure, it would easily be shiny...or as a friend told me, Hopes and Dreams. Here. let me show you.

Here are Hopes

and here are Dreams.


Let's break it down a little more. two sizes of silver glitter and five sizes of rhinestones ranging in shades of black to lavender. Some said that my nails were actually dipped in wishes but hey, whatever they were dipped in, it was amazing. One more look, yes?


LE SIGH.

OH HOHOHO.

OI! PUT THAT SHIT ON THE BARBIE MATE!

I'm being mean, I'm sorry. I went to australia a couple months ago on business. It was a dream. Sydney really is made for lovers. I've never been to a more romantic city and it made me think all sorts of dreamy thoughts about the best boyfriend ever.

anyway, I can't remember where I went for my nails but it was on recommendation by a friend from my not so secret internet life, Radge. He's quite the hip nugget and a lovely person to boot. He sent me to some difficult to explain spot where I freaked out and had to call him multiple times trying to find some street with lots of muslim? stores. I can't remember what type of religious group populated that street but it was in the thick of things that I found the nail shop.

It always throws me off that wherever I go, I always get a vietnamese person to do my nails. I mean, Salisbury, MD, New Canaan, CT, Sydney Australia...I always think that maybe this time it won't be a vietnamese person in THIS place but it's always a vietnamese person. it's never a bad thing but my word. my people are all over the place! and they love that I'm vietnamese and traveling all over and getting my nails done with them!

here's what they looked like. some sort of very Vietnamese-ee artful flower swishes or stary night picasso time stuff. it looked very nice and I was very happy with the end result though, less would have been more in this situation.

overall, a well done manicure.

manicures, natch.

thee, thou thine, lo and behold! a post!

so this morning, I'm having my daily communiqué with J.Duff and she suggested, no, demanded that I write something, anything about my manicure travels. There is much to document. It's times like these where I think about what I've done in the past year and wonder how it's all been possible. European jaunts, manicures in Hong Kong, rhinestones in Tokyo, Sydney the city for lovers... what the shit.

anyway. I realized I never actually took pictures of my Hong Kong manicure and I'd been promising that for ages. Let's say, it took three hours, a hundred dollars, and a wealth of patience. I know, a hundred dollars is a lot for something so temporary and fleeting but it was worth it to me. Let me describe it to you in words.

Alright, first, there are no pictures because I got drunk at dinner during the moon festival at this fabulous restaurant at Victoria's Peak and left my blackberry in the cab. It was a fantastic meal--bread with lemon infused olive oil and pink salt from Australia, foie gras, a tomato panacota desert with proseco... call it epic.


how could dinner not be delicious with a view like this? thanks dj google.

anyway, for a hundred bucks, I had this poor girl slaving away over my nails to draw white poppies on dark purple nails with accents of silver and gold glitter. oh and delicately placed black rhinestones. I know it sounds like a lot but it was easily the most time consuming and detailed manicure I'd ever had to this point. and that was last September.

such an awful post, let me make it up to you with the next few.

love, hugs and kisses, dbunnies.

LATE PASS TAGGGGGG.

“List seven songs you are into right now. No matter what the genre, whether they have words, or even if they’re not any good, but they must be songs you’re really enjoying now, shaping your spring. Post these instructions in your blog along with your 7 songs. Then tag 7 other people to see what they’re listening to.”

So, I'm awful at blogging. don't judge me. I have my australian manicure, this great spot in silverlake to mention and then a quick post about my next international manicure to discuss and clearly, these all deserve their own posts. and I'm just not going to do it now. it's late, I'm sick and I should be asleep.

I apparently missed my favorite blogger's tag telling me I needed to do a list of seven songs of summer but I'm going to do it now. [I know it says spring. like I said. late pass. don't judge me] here they are below!

1. ashanti-the way that I love you
does no one appreciate how good this song/video combo is? it's insane. it's so well done and angry and perfect. I'm no music video snob but this is a highly effective video and the range of the song is perfect for ashanti. I don't care if she's dating nelly or not.

2. usher-love in this club
I looooove this song. LOVE. even when he goes 'show daddy what it feels like' because that's not on some pedo tip right there. it's just, you know, totally above board. ask kellz. I know below isn't really the right video for this song but it's good for the lulz.

3. kardinal offishall-dangerous
I know it's featuring akon. I know. it's kinda lame that this guy doesn't get shine the way he should without akon but this song is a summer banger. it's hot. seriously. the handclap drum sound on the 2/4 beats are just so effective. so locked for that two three zone. [and making that black snake moan. FTW!]

4. brick and lace-love is wicked
I know I really loved this song in the spring and I'm trying to go back in time with this post so don't judge me. this song is so good. another one with the handclaps. le sigh.

5. danity kane-damaged
AGAIN WITH THE HANDCLAPS. maybe the way for me to love a song is to add serious handclaps and then I'm just weak at the knees. mmmmm. I was with my dreamboat of a boyfriend in SF for the July 4th weekend and we were out with some of his coworkers/business friends and following many pitchers of margs and tequila shots, we went out to some club somewwwhere and it was my type of place--total pop bangers and then, DAMAGED. I love this song. LOVE. how can you not love it? they even let the OTHER white girl in the band start this song off. who knows her name? I only know aubrey and aundrea. one's been looking in the tmz's and whatnots looking HARSH and the other ones sometimes looks like a butterface but sometimes she's just so cute it hurts. HURTS.


6. chester french-she loves everybody
the single package for this song is soooo cute. it's in the shape of a condom wrapper and it looks just like those trojan wrappers. it's so cute. again, FTW. my girl rach blogged about this over at her neck of the woods and to be completely honest, I've been so off the scene for a while on BFI [boyfriend island for those not in the know] that I had nooo idea it was even mentioned until recently. in any case, so, the following is a youtube of the song in question and I can't wait till them bols get an album out. it should be super good. the show was spot on. just you wait. I'm never wrong. ask my boyfriend.


LAST BUT NOT LEAST.
7. mariah carey-honey
I know, I know, total cop out kinda but the problem is that it's summer and this song is summer. I sit in my car on my way to work thinking about this song. maybe not every day, but I definitely do it with a fair regularity now that I'm on a client in malibu. it's just so perfect. she co-writes most of her music. she wears heels ALL THE TIME. she's got some idiosyncrasies I just can't get behind but for the most part, she's awesome. FOR THE WIN, IT'S MC.

crystal nails update

so, I've gone back to crystal nails three times since going for the first time, um. three weeks ago. [don't judge me.] so far, still very good, my nails are happy. I am not happy with that...orly line? I'm looking at my nails right now and god, they are ugly. it's chipping. I'm really disappointed but I'm going to save my needy nails for my next business trip. that's right kids, yours truly is going out of the country again. quel dommage!

good bye america, helllllo sydney.

xoxo, dbunnies.

ps. check me out on this blog belonging to my girl, R.

Crystal Nails & Spa

Located in Atwater Village on 3136 Glendale Blvd, Crystal is a standard nail spot, doing the regular acrylics, silk wraps, regular mani/pedi's and of course, the waxing, plucking and tweezing. I went in on Saturday at around 3 pm and had no problems getting immediate service. Some of the other ladies coming in had to sign up on a list but their wait was fairly reasonable. I'm not sure if they do appointments but it really didn't seem all that necessary.

Nail polish: mediocre. nothing too offensive, the color selection was skimpy and the nail polish lines offered left something to be desired. Needless to say, I didn't find my new favorite summer color but the standards are readily available.

Cleanliness: I'm not too keen on the pedicure chairs with the pedicure sinks attached because of something someone had once told me. they believed that the pipes were somehow cesspools of bacteria but to be completely honest, it makes no sense. it's like a bathtub but for your feet and I love bathtubs. specialized bathtubs just make it a lot easier to get my feet done so, I think this is bogus. but in any case, these were well scrubbed and I definitely saw my girl immediately clean mine very well after my pedicure was done. I definitely got shooed out of my seat for another patron and for that, some people might care but I definitely don't. that massage chair is adding nothing to my manicure/pedicure--to the experience, sure but not to the quality of my nail job.

Quality of actual manicure/pedicure provided: I have no complaints. they made quick work of this week's hang nails and took care to make sure there weren't any strange over hangs from the previous pedicures. I wasn't cut, it was very efficient and it was very clean.

Quality of paint job: sufficient. I chose this funny sparkly purple color and got some nail art on the mani--my current obsession--single thin stripes down the middle. the stripes are straight and not super variable in width like I've been getting at paradise and my only complaint is that it wasn't perfectly down the middle. I know, it's perspective and for me looking down at my nails is different from someone positioned in front of me. whatever. it looks poorly centered for me but it'll do.

1 week later: not bad. it hasn't chipped one bit, the lines look good.

I would recommend this nail spot.

best color of the summer.

LOOK AT THIS COLOR. IT IS AWESOME AND COOL. WHITE WITH FLECKS OF GOLD. HOTTTTTTTTTTTTTT. xod.

breaks and cracks

so, I'm not getting my nails done for a while. they aren't happy with me. they're crackin all sorts of ways and that's just not acceptable. in any case, I'm in europe right now and I like sleeping too much to go and get them done. I also don't like watching tv in foreign languages. kit from knight rider should not be speaking french. I want to watch house and csi and all those tv shows I so rarely ever watch. gossip girl. I'm even watching the Anna and the King but I don't understand the thai parts. I can't even tell if it's in thai cause the only things I know how to say is shrimp on pork toast.

xoxo dbunnies.

My good friend R called me a while ago to discuss the OPI India collection. This was a good while ago so, hopefully, my memory serves. I don't think she liked it. In combination with the major foods of India and the colors that were probably going to be associated with the line, I figured it'd be like a sorbet treat. total baskin robins-esque. yaknamean? sorbet-esque colors with bright fushia pink. So, with that, let's start.

Monsooner. wtf. I know these name tend to be whimsical but monsooner? whatever. it's a nice orange red shade but defo not the next 'rich girl red'. I think this is appropriate for girls who want rich girl red but really love orange.

next up, keys to my karma. clearly an allusion to some rich indian girl consumerism and the combination of a muted pink with hints of cooler shades. again not a bad shade, again, not one for me, but hey, is there such thing as a bad pink???? the answer is no. there is no such thing as a bad pink. anyone who says otherwise is boring and I don't like boring people.

finally, the ultimate winner from this collection. I don't know if it's a phase I'm going through or if it realllly is that great of a shade but I think this one is the hands down complete winner. All of my nail girls knew about my obsession with Lincoln Park in the Dark but that's so '05/'06 and in other words, late pass.

Below, yoga to get this. seriously! terrible name, I hate yoga, and anyone even mentioning yoga really should know better. However, this color screams winner. I know, blue? when the shit did that come back into style but look. navy blue, even with hints of purple is going to be a complete winner right now. get a gold comme des garcons clutch and put navy blue nails up against that shit and it's a winner. get a black dress and you can be black and blue. dark dark blues are a winner in my book.
In sum, the colors from the India line are, for the most part, excellent colors. Nothing too ridiculous with glitter or cheese cheese I'm-a-stripper iridescence and some rather classy [not assy] colors. OPI Spring/Summer 08 offering, winner. I would definitely look out for these colors in my spring/summer outfits and would not think twice about rocking dark blue nails. In fact, I already am.

xoxo,d.

the past couple months

clearly, I'm not well suited to the blogging life. I think it's sorta corny and to be fair, I've got better things to do than write about my slight obsession for getting my nails done--getting them done obviously ranks higher than blogging.

regardless, in the past couple months, I've gone to a few places and a few international spots, too. it's become regular fare on all my business trips to try to get my nails done to get the local flair and well, to see really, how often I get a vietnamese nail person. speaking of, there are vietnamese people all over the damn place doing nails! I love it! my people, taking over an industry. I'm so verrrry into it.

highlights of the past couple months:

1. my manicure in hong kong. it was so amazing that the girls I went to for my next manicure gathered around to take a look see. in fact, a couple months later when I went back, they knew who I was because of that manicure.
   
2. the russian OPI line. I know I blogged it a couple months ago but I love dark colors and that russian line was brilliant.
   
3. my manicure in salisbury, md. I almost had a non-vietnamese manicure but nope, vietnamese.
   
4. paradise nails, née van nails. location of my first manicure from a korean person. note, the nail art was done by a vietnamese person so it's only a half highlight.
   

so, in sum, I still get my nails done a lot and they look pretty a lot of the time. xod.

UPDATE: Twin Nails

Folks, Twin Nails is now a no-no. As some of you know, I have perfect nails. For some ridiculous reason, I was bestowed with nails that love nail polish and in order to get a chip, I have to be doing something crazy....like going to one of those crab houses in salisbury, md and going through a gazillion pounds of crab. Basically, I rarely ever get chipped nails and if I do, I was asking for it.

So, imagine my surprise, four days into a new manicure of a darling light pink with a fushia pink stripe down the middle, I noted chipping. Chipping at a rate which I have never in my life seen for my nails. I'm looking at them now and there's chipping on the side of the nails by the finger walls, obvious parts in the polish where it's not even adhering to the nail, and weird chips in the MIDDLE OF MY FINGER. kids. I don't do anything. I go to spin class, I go to dance class, I type furiously on aim/gchat and I watch tv. No crab eating festivals and I am having ridiculous amounts of chipping.

I suspect they're diluting their nail polish and for that, twin nails is off the list. I suppose you could just bring your own polish but if they're cutting corners there, I really won't want to know about those other corners they're cutting. or filing. [haHA!]

xod

twin nail salon

hey, it's been a while since I've been here. things that have happened since the last blog.

1. I got a manicure in hong kong and it was amazing. I got hand painted poppies painstakingly done on my nails. it was out of control. I'd put up a picture but I can't. Joe has a picture of my nails so maybe I can from him.

2. I discovered twin nail salon on sunset by the 31 baskin robbins next to alegria in silverlake. they have the 8 dollar manicure and it's very good. highly recommended. color selection isn't all that great but they do a very good job and are very reasonable. they also have a really intense collection of french tips that are pre done and designed with the most amazing things. I wish getting fake tips was something I could deal with.

3. I'm working on being better. it's going slowly with some two steps forward, one step back business.

that's it. I'll get pictures of twin nails together and the nails from hong kong later. xo fbunnies.

OPI Russian Collection

Friends,

[hold your applause while I tell you about how AWESOME THIS IS] I have found my favorite collection of colors [for now]. As quoted from the OPI site: Colors that capture a new moment in elegance and opulence - a feeling of luxury and refinement that transcends time. That, is Russia.























and this, this is also Russia.















How absolutely clever are they? These colors even have the best names like Siberian Nights [A wonderfully wintry shade of onyx], Boris & Natasha [Have you spied this sophisticated shade of raisin] and An Affair in Red Square [fall in love!!! with this romantic shimering red].

Anyone watching the Kimora Lee Simmons show [which I have, thanks to RR] will even note that at least even SHE was sort of into Russia. Well, really her obligatory gay assistant was into Russia and she just wanted to do it as "Kimora: the ICON". He was so right. Russia? so hot it's cold.

Whatever the case, join the team. I love it and I'm never wrong.

d.

harmony nails on glendale ave. in silverlake

sucks.

more painful than a dentist, more lumpy than syphillis.

there are a couple things that I demand out of my manicures that I think everyone would agree with. first, don't cut me. I got not one, not two, not three but FOUR CUTS. I was having little bloody bleeds all over the place. ew.

paint job? terrible. lumpy, full of air bubbles--in short, unfortunate.

I don't even have a rubrick for rating nail salons yet but I won't be returning to this place even if the services were free.

welcome to the top coat!

A couple months ago, my favorite nail place had a little price bump which, in reality, wasn't very much money. I have a job and it pays me more than enough to afford getting my nails done wherever I please [well. unless I'm getting my nails done in space by dolphin manicurists with lisa frank rainbow lasers shooting out of their wee little eyes. I don't think anyone has enough money for that.]

following this bump, I found myself in new canaan, ct. it's a darling place and I'd like to say that I brought a little LA flavor. I'd strongly advise anyone who finds themself in the area, or might want to find themselves there next year, to look into buying tickets to go see the philip johnson glass house. I say 'next year' because tickets are sold out through May of 2008 or something equally ridiculous but it's well worth it. I promise. anyway. about new canaan. my friend jduff and I went to a nail place called "Hollywood Nails". this place had some shitty looking grecian columns and a pretty epic "hollywood" sign up along the wall. really, it was major fug but that's not the point. my point is that I got a $10 manicure with a back rub and it was exactly what I wanted out of a manicure. not too fussy, clean, efficient and reasonable. really, it was more cheap than reasonable but they did an excellent job, and in LA, they would have charged me much more than $10 for what I got in new canaan.

so, to end this, between paying even more for my standard manicure and then getting a completely comparable manicure in amazing new canaan [two towns over from greenwich, ct!] for half the price, I realized that it was time to try out other places. screw the ugly grecian columns. I don't care. I don't need the lisa frank rainbows. I just want a reasonably priced manicure with good service, clean tools and a lump free paint job. the end.

[I take back what I said about the lisa frank rainbows. I do need them.]