DIY Spa night!**

Happy Thanksgiving you lovely Canadians! I’m not sure about you, but last night I ate my weight in turkey and all the trimmings! It was delicious! Tonight though, I will be indulging in the American Music Awards and if you’re like me (you watch random t.v.) you’ll want to see it live in all it’s glory. A boob might pop out, maybe someone calls out a fellow nominee (Kanye West I’m lookin’ at you) or there might be a mispronunciation of an artist name…. You get me. Anyways, what better way to watch this live reality show than with a hair mask, mud mask and the perfect shade of orange polish on your nails.

Repair.me treatment by Kevin Murphy is my all time fave right now. The smell of pineapple is so relaxing you won’t be able to think of yesterdays overload of pumpkin. After washing your hair, put the hair mask on and tie up your hair with towel and begin your face cleansing routine.

After your face has been cleansed, wet the tip of your buck naked charcoal activated mud mask and liberally cover your face. Remember to keep wetting the piece, as it gets dry with application. Once your face is sufficiently covered, move on to that manicure!

What I would suggest is setting yourself up before the show starts. You’ll need a bowl of warm water and a face cloth to remove your mask after your polish has been applied and completely dried. You’ll also need your polish, base and top coat, and some lotion.

Don’t get me wrong, the best manicure should include cuticle work, but I would leave that to the professionals and just do a simple polish change. I have attempted to cut my own cuticles from time to time and just end up with baby chunks of my cuticle missing. A) no amount of polish can hide this mangled mess and B) unless you have all the tools and you are an aesthetician yourself, skip that part. If you apply a decent amount of moisturizing lotion to your hands and cuticle before you start your polish change, that should work.

Just remember to swipe a bit of nail polish remover over each nail before you apply your base coat. This will allow for your nails to be dry and allow the polish to stick better which means, less chipping.

Okay, so let’s go over this one more time. Have a shower/ bath and then apply your hair mask after washing your hair. Lotion your body and slip into something very comfortable. Cleanse your face and apply your mask. Get your tools for the polish change ready and a bowl of warm water by your spa station for mask removal. Remember to remove the mask only AFTER your nails are dry!

Also, no snacking when your nails are wet, too much food was consumed last night anyways... The AMA’s are about three hours so you will have enough time to do all the things. When the show is finished and everything is dried, rinse your hair off in the sink. I wouldn’t recommend going back in the shower unless you are okay wasting that sexy lotion you put on earlier.

Now you can start the week with fresh feels and ‘stylspiration’ from the award show. What better way to come back from the tryptophan overdose from the night before!

**Note: There is no proper way to spa night. We support all types of self indulgence.

-Freshair

Wordless Wednesday

Nails!

Ashlie's Aesthetic

Thanksgiving Inspired Nails

Check out these cute Fall/Thanksgiving nail art designs

-Ashlie.

Wordless Wednesday

Stiletto!  We like it!

Ashlie's Aesthetic

Gel Nails vs Acrylic Nails

I've realized now that I've started doing gel nails again, and just with the conversations I'm having with coworkers, friends, clients etc...some people are still unaware of what the difference is and sometimes are being told they have gel nails on when in fact they are acrylic nails. Choosing the type of extension nail you want is totally up to you, and one isn't better than the other. Sometimes it's just a personal preference of which you'd rather have on your nails but you should know which one you are paying for.

Acrylic nails don't need to be cured under the light, the technician will use a liquid monomer and a powder polymer to form the nail. Some locations do use a gel top coat and that will be cured under a light.... this however does not make them gel nails. They are still acrylic nails with a gel topcoat. When getting acrylic nails done there is a strong odor from the product, it's very distinctive. The finished look has more of a cloudy appearance on the nail.

***There is no such thing as a powder gel***

I've heard this a few times that the technician will say to you that it is a powdered gel if you are getting gels done... This is in fact still acrylic nails they are just trying to up-sell you on the service (pay more for a product that isn't as expensive).

Gel nails will always be cured under a UV light, the product is a gel product only and won't need another one added to it to form a nail. Some locations do like to add a shellac/ permanent polish to them for colour, this will also be cured.

The finishing look has more of a clear shiny appearance to the nail.

This is just a couple little things you can pick up on at your next appointment, that way you know which service/product you are purchasing.

-Ashlie.

Wordless Wednesday

Nails!