Back when I was teaching, I used to let my Fingernails grow out long as part of My Look. I filed, base-coated, polished, top-coated and took pride in them. I favoured Revlon nail polish, and I had the bottles all lined up in my night table drawer. Do you remember the Chanel nail colour that everyone was knocking off there for awhile, that deep, deep black cherry? You'd swear it was black, but upon closer inspection, you could see it was actually a sort of midnight red. I loved that and wore it often. I also loved a colour that looked just like dried blood. Those Fingernails made my hands look terrific.
How on earth did I find the time (and patience) to do all that? I had two kids, a demanding teaching job, and a home and pets. Ah, Vanity, thy name is Nance.
If one of my Fingernails would break, I'd cut them all down to match the broken one. I was ruthless and brave. (I've always been a Symmetry Junky.) I'd use a more muted colour--Sand Beige, or Pearl--until they were long and beautiful again, and then I'd celebrate with a bright red.
Acrylic Fingernails were a big thing among a few of my friends, and at one point, I was tempted. It had been a long time since I'd had my long Fingernails (I'd given up the drudgery due to one thing or another), and I mentioned to a friend that I was thinking of going to a nail salon and getting a set put on. "You'll hate it," she said. "It involves maintenance. Do you know you need to go back every few weeks for a fill? When your nails grow out, they'll need to fill in that gap at the base of the acrylic where your real nail shows the growth. And--"
That was enough for me. It sounded worky, like getting hair colour and dealing with roots, another thing I've never done because of the maintenance. What a lot of bother and expense. And Bossiness, and if there's one thing I detest, it's being Bossed Around by obligations. The last thing I need in my life is my Fingernails or my hair telling me what to do or making me drive to an appointment. Sounds terrible.
Do I miss my long, stylish, sexy red Fingernails? No. I really do not. That part of My Look was easy to give up. So were earrings. Let's not talk about my high heels, though.
Sigh.
Talk to me about your Fingernails, past and present. I want to know.
Oh dear....so thin they tend to bend backwards? That sounds painful!!!!!
ReplyDeleteAnni--It is. And it was a big reason to go short.
DeleteWhen I was back at the office - a million years ago - I would generally keep my nails painted. Although, now I keep them shorter than I used to - but not as short as yours. I thought about getting the "dip powder" (SnS) done; but my friend talked me out of it as it (and acrylics) are really hard on your nails. The one nit I have about painting my nails is getting a chip or showing wear within in just a few days of painting them. Then I chanced upon the Sally Hansen gel-like polish and the same type of Essie Polish. Each of these dry fairly quickly and wears very well; so well that sometimes I can get more than week of wear.
ReplyDeleteAll that to say, since the pandemic I've maybe polished my nail twice.
Gigi--The pandemic certainly upended lots of people's routines. I wonder how many people perfected their manicure/pedicure techniques and got really creative? I'm sure TikTok has the answer for that (and Instagram, too).
DeleteI hated the dreaded chips or margins along the tips. I got pretty good at touching up, but it was always a pain waiting for it to dry when I was so busy with so many things. You know how it is!
I still wear that color - well almost, I can't find the exact one I wore for years (I think since my 20s!) but it's close. Bendy nails sounds very painful Nance, ouch. My nails are nice and strong luckily. I let them grow until one breaks and then like you I cut the rest down, they have to all be the same.
ReplyDeleteAcrylics, hair color, even keeping styled hair that has to be professionally cut is too expensive and way too worky!
High heels were the first thing to go for me. I loved them when I was younger but I was ready for a flip flop life (sorry, I know you hate feet). If it helps any, I use the same nail color on my toes and I promise I will never ever post a photo of them lol.
Enjoy the weekend. :)
Martha--You are so good to me. The foot aversion is strong in me.
DeleteI'm sensing a commonality in us--we all need that symmetry. And we embrace, for the most part, that relaxed and confident assurance in ourselves; we don't need much in the way of a beauty routine to make us feel attractive and womanly.
I miss my high heels, as you know, but I have no place to wear them these days. In Florida you pretty much have to be a flipflop girl. I can only imagine your vast collection! I hope you have a lovely weekend as well.
When I worked in retail with the public I had long perfectly manicured nails. Once I started living a more low-key life the first thing I let go off was a bimonthly manicure. Expensive and no longer necessary. As for my hair color, as a formerly highlighted blonde who is going gray, I'm now what is called gronde [gray + blonde]. There's a quiet rebellion to not coloring your hair, not worrying about the male gaze. Makes me happy.
ReplyDeleteAlly Bean--There's a blog post for you: The Quiet Rebellion Of Going Gronde. You're welcome.
DeleteAnd that's what Retirement is, really, living a more low-key life. We don't answer to so many Other People. We don't have a set schedule. We take time for things. We can let go of some Vanity Accoutrements. I still care about my appearance and choose to look nicely put together. I still match my glasses to my outfits. But I don't wear jewelry, makeup beyond mascara, or do my nails.
I like the fact that we have grown into who we are. We like ourselves as women. We're happy with that.
I have been a nail biter all of my life. I remember my Mom trying to stop this bad habit by painting something horrible tasting on my fingernails but I still managed to gnaw them down! Now sometimes they grow but if they get a bit long, they usually are dry and develop cracks that I have to pick at or bite off.
ReplyDeleteI don't wear earrings as I have some sort of metal allergy. I don't wear makeup or color my hair. Really, no one is looking at me so I just am my natural self!
Ellen--Have you ever seen any footage of Lebron James on the sidelines of one of his basketball games? He is the most ferocious nail biter I've ever seen.
DeleteI remember seeing ads for that bitter stuff to stop nail biting. Like most habits, if they are ingrained enough, the deterrence would have to be mighty to get them broken.
I was able to wear cheap earrings, so I could get them anyplace. I'd be outraged if earrings cost more than ten bucks. I ended up giving most of mine to my sister, then donated the rest.
I only wear mascara now and a good moisturizer. I gave up even my tinted moisturizer a while ago. I feel so much more natural and free. It's very liberating.
Oh oh. Did that go through? I am now using impress, color. press on manicure. Walgreens under 10 bucks for 20 nails . They only last a few days if you are busy washing dishes and the like. But for a few days of fun, you may wish to try them. I don't have the patience to do gel nails at a salon and fill ins. So Impress it is. :)
ReplyDeletekathy--As I said above, I don't really miss long nails, so that product isn't for me. I'm happy with my short nails and the freedom they give me.
DeleteUntil the last 2-3 years I had the healthiest, hardest and wonderfully shaped natural nails. I filed them nearly every day and and just used clear polish or gave myself a French manicure which is still my favorite look for nails. Then my nail quality changed so now they are unpredictable and will break when they get between an 1/8 to 1/4 inch beyond the nail bed. Like you, when one breaks I even them all back to the length of the broken one. I still file them nearly every day. I've only had one profession manicure and I really hated taken the time and money to do what I could do just as well and I've never been tempted to do the fake nails. I hate the look of fake nails on anyone, would rather see short, clean nails any day.
ReplyDeleteJean--A lot of the fake nails look just that--fake. A good set of acrylics should look natural. And on some aging hands, long nails look a little creepy.
DeleteIt's said that a lot of health concerns can be shown by your fingernails. I think a lot of it can be diet, aging, moisturizing, medications, and genetics. I wonder if stress even has anything to do with it.
I love that shade of nail polish! Actually, I will buy almost any garment in that shade if I can find it.
ReplyDeleteUsed to manicure my nails sometimes, but never wore dark shades because if a nail chipped a bit of color off, I would have to immediately re-do it. And of course a broken nail was the death knell for the whole lot. I gave up the manicure routine decades ago; too time-consuming and getting it done professionally was far too expensive. Also: lots of nail 'fads' I never liked, such as the French tips. (Not that I have ever felt pressure to follow fashion trends. Unless it is something you can't get away from, such as the horrific shoulder pads that came with *everything* all those years ago; if you wore a blouse, a cardigan and a winter coat, you looked pretty much like a football player.)
Once computers came on the scene and I spent a lot of time typing, I was even less interested in having long nails. I have never understood how some women can type with those 'claw nails' that cover half of the keyboard. And once they start curving downward, they aren't even attractive anymore.
In a nutshell: clean and cut short. Even that is a pain now because I need glasses to do it, lol!
P.S. --Forgot to say: The other nail polish fad I could never get into even if I still painted my nails is the trend in recent years with colors like blue, green, black, yellow, etc. I find black nail polish particularly disturbing--- even if I were younger, that's a little too goth for me. Especially when worn in combination with black lipstick, lol!
DeleteOrtizzle--I eschewed the fad of blue, green, etc. nails. It looked icky to me, like mold or mildew, especially on toes. I had a lot of students who would polish their toes in those colours, and it made me queasy. You know how I am about feet in general, and that made it even worse.
DeleteAh, the shoulder pads of the 80s! What a weird decade for fashion in general that was. I had the requisite curly perm. Pictures from that era make me cringe.
I used to do a lot of touch-up in my days of nail polish, just carefully applying dabs here and there to cover up the chips. I got pretty good at it. The day I tossed all my nail polish was a wistful day; lots of money went into the trash, and so did just a little of my youthful identity.
Now that I have retired, and enjoyed having this school year off, I have begun looking to the future and thinking about volunteering somewhere. However, I can’t seem to commit to it because of the Bossiness. The bossiness of obligation is not something I look forward to ever having in my life again. I guess I am not ready yet to volunteer anywhere.
ReplyDeleteDitBotF--Exactly! I gave serious consideration to volunteering in several places, but they all would want to know In Advance when I would show up. And that's completely logical and understandable. But after years and years of being on a schedule and answering to a bell and legions of people for Absolutely Everything, that sounded awful. I simply cannot be on a schedule again.
DeleteIdeally, waking up and saying, "Today, I feel like going to the animal shelter and cleaning out shitboxes for a few hours" is the way I want to volunteer. That's not realistic. But after having even my bladder scheduled for thirty years, I will admit that and donate funds or useful items instead.
Enjoy your retirement. You earned it, and don't feel pressured to Do Something Else Now. We had a career we worked for and loved. We did what we wanted to do. Now we can Retire and Relax.
I am a short nail girl, I have to because of work. But I find that I really like them short and they feel funny with just a week of growth. Now that I am looking at them I need to go give them a trim. I think that was a self care thing you did for yourself with work and being a mom, it gave you time for yourself. Stay safe.
ReplyDeleteMeredith--You may be right, that it was a Me Time Thing, having long nails and giving myself a manicure. It was rewarding, after all.
DeleteYour short nails are surely a must in your line of work. Not only because you don't want to accidentally scratch the children, but because you want to be sure your hands are thoroughly clean and don't harbor bacteria.
Dee--I didn't even let anyone get to the hurting part about acrylic nails. I was out as soon as they mentioned fills. As you said, Ain't nobody got time for that.
ReplyDeleteIt's sad about your earrings, and I completely understand about not wanting to sell them and feel insulted about what you'd be offered for them. Whatever you got for them is more than you're getting out of them now, but I suppose it's the principle of the thing.
We are constantly in flux with our hair, are we not? I'm happy with mine right now, but that's so rare that I know in a few weeks (or days, let's face it) I'll be miserable and trying to either cut hunks of it myself or trying to decide if I should call the stylist. Then, right before my appointment, my hair will look FABULOUS. I have to admit that I'm puzzled as to why you're growing your hair long so that you can pull it up when it's hot. Do you just need a change?
You already have a win every day! What more do you want? LOL.
It's about the typing. Even with short nails, the small keyboards get me. I learned on a big old manual machine.
ReplyDeleteUp until I was in my forties, I bit my nails. I saw a comment above from another biter and laughed in sympathy. Nothing stopped me. Then I broke off a front tooth with a logging chain ( another story) and the repair was not strong. So now I cut my nails as soon as they get any length. I did grow them out for my daughter's wedding and got them shaped and polished.
All the time I was teaching, I used a pencil to point to things in the students' work that needed discussion. But I am sure they were not fooled.
I have one daughter with long, hard nails, beautiful. And one biter. Go figure.
Mary G--The typing, yes! I learned on a big office typewriter, too, to be a touch typist. I need short nails to be accurate.
DeleteNail biting is a common habit, but one I don't share. I sympathize, however; all habits are difficult to break.
I wonder how much of habits like nail biting and thumbsucking are nature or nurture. Your daughters are an interesting example.
My mother was a nail biter. Your nature or nurture question is a fascinating one. And how much of the nail thing is due to what kind of nails they are. Mine were always soft and/or brittle. So were the biter daughter's.
DeleteI may have to write a post.mhmmm. The black flies are out - a great incentive to stay inside and work on the computer.
Mary--Is it black fly season already? Perhaps I'm thinking of black fly season in southern Maryland, which is much later. Those things are sinister, wherever they are.
DeleteI used to have nice strong nails, but lately they've been ridged & brittle, breaking with ease (and bending back when I jab at something indiscriminately - a daily occurrence). I did those hair & nail gummies that we've discussed, but while they were tasty they didn't help AT ALL. Sigh.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I've never been a person who paints her fingernails because of the jabby business - within a day or less I would have missing polish on the ends of my nails. Very annoying. I did paint them a few weeks ago & left it on for about a week - mostly to cover up how ridged they are now. Might have to do that again this week!
Bug--The nature of your work makes having polished nails difficult. It's so frustrating to spend the time on polishing and all the rest and then see that first chip occur.
DeleteYour nails sound like mine, except for the ridging. I know you're younger than I am, but I have to believe aging has something to do with our weak nails. Your diet seems pretty good, probably better with protein than mine is.
I know there's a ridge filler out there for fingernails. How it's different from regular nail polish, I don't know.
My nails arent strong anymore. I bought a bottle of biotin that was recommended, got the cart before tge horse. I should have read more about it, but did read before taking any of tge pills. I concluded I probably shouldn't take that med and haven't. Your experience convinces me I’ve made the right choice..
ReplyDeleteI’ve never been a fan of nail polish for myself on fingers or toes. The polish always needed constant attention the few times I tried colors - usually clear was my preference. I recall when I was young Mother said the polish should be applied at the outer edge of the half moon next to the cuticle, thus not covering the entire nail. I pretty much have endorsed natural looks, avoiding all the concoctions made for a pittance and sold for a ridiculous profit that are supposed to make us more beautiful, besides I wanted to spend my time on other things — still do.
Joared--I don't even have that half moon. My fingernails are little.
DeleteThe biotin really wreaked havoc on my intestinal system. I stayed with it for almost two months because the side effect was supposed to go away. For me, it did not. I originally got it to help with my hair, which has been starting to thin a bit. I knew it would also help with my nails, and it did, somewhat. But the side effect was absolutely not worth it.
I've never gone in for lots of makeup for myself. It's interesting: Most younger women that I know use makeup for fun or to be creative. They don't really use it to make themselves more beautiful. More and more younger women are fresh-faced. At least that has been my experience.
Agree agree about the price of some cosmetics with trendy brand names. Unreal!
I used to get manicures religiously...like every other week (if not every week). I loved the luxury of it. I also did pedicures which were fabulous. BUT...I realized my nails were getting yucky. Brittle and bendy and just not healthy. I think it was wearing polish ALL the time. so I stopped. I don't really miss it and I don't miss the expense. My nails are short with no polish and that suits me just fine!
ReplyDeleteVera--I've heard that from a few people who used to get acrylic/gel nails or professional manicures as a self-care routine. They found that their nail health was worsening. I've not heard that about pedicures, though. My sisters are big fans of the occasional pedicure, but I just cannot do it. Ugh. No one, and I mean NO. ONE. touches my feet. The fact that I have to even bothers me. Ugh.
DeleteNow that I'm retired, my hands are more utilitarian, and not a fashion accessory. Like you, short nails, no polish. All good!
Way back when I was 19 or so, I had acrylic nails and I LOVED them. They kept the polish without chipping, which was the #1 thing. They were strong and great for scratching your mother’s back. (I was 19 and still lived at home). But yes, very worky, I had to go in every few weeks for fill ins. That part was tiring and expensive and kind of gross. In the meanwhile, my nails underneath got weak and thin and broke. In the last 35 yeas, however, I have gone natural. Sometimes I file and prime and polish, and sometimes I do not. My frustration when I do is that they look kinda good for maybe a day or two, and then the polish chips. I do love getting a manicure and pedicure, and am looking forward to that again.
ReplyDeleteJ--Isn't it ridiculous that there isn't a better, chip-proof polish out there? For heaven's sake, nail polish has been around since 3000 BC, and commercially since about 1916 (thank you, Internet)! According to several sources, coloured nail polish was adapted from automotive paint, so why can't we have more chip-resistant polish? We certainly don't see a lot of chipped-up cars all over the place.
DeletePerhaps, if men regularly used nail polish...I think you see where I'm headed here.
You're not far away from your manis and pedis now, it seems. Things are returning to Normal, especially in your area.
My nails are similar to how yours sound. I keep mine short, but I have tried conscientiosly to take care of them, and paint them with some kind of polish a couple of times a month. I tend to notice hands as one of the first things about someone, and by taking care of mine, I have managed to stop picking at the cuticles until they bleed (well at least 99%) of the time. But I don't do a lot of maintenance like most people do - they are always filed so they don't catch on things, but even when polished, the color only comes off once a few have started to chip.
ReplyDeleteBridget--You make a good point, and one I hadn't thought of. I don't notice anyone's hands at all, unless they're wearing jewelry that's very noticeable or a very bright or bold nail colour. I notice eyes immediately. Why do you think it is that you notice hands?
DeleteNance & Bridget - I am equally fascinated by the concept of noticing people's hands. I don't pay much attention to hands unless someone has a really stunning manicure or if their hands are very dirty and unkempt. —And I definitely respond to the expression in people's eyes! I have always agreed with the idea that "eyes are the window to the soul" (Attributed to many poets and authors, apparently!) I have been even more focused on this since we started wearing our Covid masks, lol.
DeleteOrtizzle--My father was very, very big on looking people in the eyes when you spoke to them. We were raised on that admonition. I do it instinctively, so that's why, I'm sure, that I notice eyes first. I also agree that eyes mirror the soul, the true feelings of a person. I got pretty good at reading people's intentions that way.
DeleteI wish the origin of that saying wasn't so muddied. I remember trying to track that down once myself, back in undergrad. And that was before the Internet!
Beautiful blog
ReplyDeleteRajani Rehana--Thank you.
DeleteI've always had thin, bendy nails so they are either short or acrylic. I had acrylic for a few years and really loved them, but hated going every in 3 weeks. Thank you pandemic, they are now short and frail again. I think my hands look prettier with longer nails, but whatever anymore. I'm debating on starting again so I'll have them looking nice for Lolo's wedding. I'm sure everyone will be looking at my nails, right? :)
ReplyDeleteSeeing that photo up there of those long nails gives me nail envy. Or those yours from back in the day? They're lovely.
BB Suz--I grew out my nails for my own wedding, and since there has not (yet) been a wedding for either of my two sons, I haven't thought about spiffing up my hands for that occasion. It makes sense to me, however; you'll be greeting guests and talking to a lot of people. You'll want to look your very best, a complete package.
DeleteThat photo is definitely NOT from my long-nailed heyday. It is thanks to a very targeted Google image search, and I gave credit at the end of the post (as I always do). I had that colour of polish, by the way, from Revlon. It was called Vixen.
Darn it. Please delete that last comment if it came through. I was still typing and must have done the errant keystroke bit. Aaargh. I'm a short nails, nail biter type. For very short periods in my life, I've grown out and painted my nails but it just wasn't for me. I know many who do the biweekly appointments for fake nails though. Son's girlfriend does her own. They always look amazing and she enjoys the artistic fun of it all but it's not for me. My nails have often been an indicator of my thyroid health but I don't obsess over them too much.
ReplyDelete