HOW TO DIY gel manicure for CHEAP in just 6 STEPS!

ladies, this is a MUST TRY DIY nail hack. i confess, i did not discover this on my own. i'm a pinterest junkie and that is indeed where i stumbled upong this most amazing of all amazing ways to get a gel manicure on your own without paying out your ears. i've tried this trick myself multiple times already and it definitely works! our poor finger nails go through so much in a day, from showering to washing the dishes to whatever miscellaneous task we put our fingers to, which usually ends badly pretty quickly for our recent polish job. but with this, no chipped nails for AT LEAST a week and it lasts until you choose to take it off. i can't believe i didn't think of this myself - i have had the "key ingredient" in my nail polish collection for years. literally, years.

here's what you'll need:

+ your choice of polish, whatever shade strikes your fancy {china glaze and sinful colors seem to work the best as far as brands go}

+ "Gelous" advanced nail gel coat {THIS is the key ingredient}you can find this at sally's beauty supply for about $5.00. it goes a long way

+ any clear top coat

that's it! now, here's what you do:

step 1:  make sure your finga nails are clean and free of any lotion or oil

step 2:  begin with a thin layer of the gel coat, and I MEAN THIN. don't you dare glob it on. think "so thin you're not quite sure it is even there". alright, not THAT thin but make it a thin coat. wait at least 45 seconds to dry.

step 3:  apply 1 coat your color polish. make this a thin coat too. again, be patient for at least 45 seconds. you might as well make it a minute.

step 4:  repeat step 2

step 5:  repeat step 3

step 6:  when you've finished applying your two layers of gel and two layers of color, seal the deal with a nice top coat. your nails have never looked shinier.

happy manicure-ing!

love, MACK

want to know what i miss? letters. long, thought-out, handwritten letters. we've had all sorts of technological advances throughout the years and that's fine. i just miss actual letters. taking the time to physically write out every word used to mean something. there's something about having a piece of paper that you can save and touch and open again just because you want to visit an old memory. like those notes we used to pass around in elementary school. i miss that.

maybe i've just been watching too much pride and prejudice.

round three

i should really be so much better at this than i am. i'm horrible at keeping a journal but this method seems to work for me -at least it has in the past- so here we go again. i know we're all so excited. while we're on the topic of things i am horrible at, here's a list (big fan) of all things i want to improve upon:

feel free to hold me accountable.

+ waking up at an acceptable hour of the day

+ reinstating baking as a daily -okay weekly- staple at my place

+ discovering hidden hobbies

+ crafting

+ writing mission friends ACTUAL HANDWRITTEN LETTERS ... because missionaries die for that sort of thing

okay, five seems like a good number, lets stop there.

welcome back (: