Now that I’m home from New York Fashion Week, I finally had a chance to catch up on the Grammys and check out the fashions and nails.

Being a huge Joan Rivers fan, I actually watched E!’s Fashion Police before the actual show.  Joan cracks me up and I love how Kelly Osborne & Giuliana Rancic lose it almost every time she opens her mouth.  The actually Grammy show was kind of meh but I did love Cee Lo Green & Gwyneth Paltrow singing “F*ck You” and seeing Eminem perform.  I have an out of character crush on Eminem and ended up watching his performance twice.

We’re in the height of award season and of all the shows, The Grammys, tends to be the most noteworthy nail-wise.  We already learned about Lady Gaga’s bright yellow nails from Deborah Lippmann and now Celebrity Manicurist Kimmie Kyees shares her work on Grammy night with clients Katy Perry and Rihanna.

Changing outfits during an award show is nothing new for celebrities but how about changing nails? Katy Perry switched up her nail game at The Grammys, going from an ethereal red carpet design to a more Valentine’s Day friendly look for her performance.

Katy opted for a neutral color on her toes, using China Glaze Nude.  Kimmie added a layer of Shellac Top Coat to speed up the dry time and prolong wear.

Since Katy wanted additional length on her nails Kimmie used Dashing Diva Professional Pre-Glued Nails for both looks. The pre-glued nails allow for an easy change during the show.

For her red carpet appearance, alongside her grandmother, Kimmie applied Orly White Out topped with CND Perfectly Bare Effect (launching in March) and glitter from an irridescent glitter stick. Kimmie noted that the glitter matched the blue shimmer in her dress.

When it came time for her performance, Katy changed her tips to a heart themed design that was just as sweet as her singing ‘Not Like The Movies’ while video of her wedding to Russell Brand played in the background.

To create the look, Kimmie started with a base color of Orly Polo Princess.  On the pinkie, middle and thumb nails she applied felt red and pink hearts.   On the pointer and ring fingers, she waited till the pink was completely dry and took a Milani precision art brush dipped it into Seche Vite and outlined a heart shape with the top coat and sprinkled glitter into the clear coat.

Rihanna kept her nail look a bit more simple. She chose the rich, reddish-brown OPI I’m Suzi & I’m A Chocoholic for her fingers.  It looks beautiful with her dark lip in the same tone.  Her toes were painted with CND Wildfire but she wore closed toe shoes/boots so we never got to see them together.

What do you think of Katy and Rihanna’s nail looks from The Grammys? Were there any outstanding nail looks that I missed?

image credit: WireImage

The 53rd Annual Grammy Awards took place tonight and even though I was out to dinner during the majority of the show, I knew there was some MAJOR nail news happening when I saw Deborah Lippmann tweet, “I Polished @ladygaga tonight and as they closed the coffin she said I love my nails!”

Yesterday when I was backstage at ADAM I had the pleasure of meeting Deborah’s other half, Jude, who revealed that she was at the Grammys and working with someone huge.  Of course when I saw Deb tweet about my seeing Barbra Streisand that’s exactly where my mind went but I couldn’t be more off base.  Deb tended to the tips of the one and only Lady Gaga and lacquered her up with a bright yellow manicure.  But what is this mystery color?

Now, I don’t know about you but I’ve never seen a yellow in the Deborah Lippmann line before. Well, get ready people because we’re going to. I got the scoop straight from Deb that she’s launching Yellow Brick Road in April 2011 and it’s a JELLY!! Put me on the first tornado to Oz because I’m all in on Yellow Brick Road.  So while you can’t exactly get the look NOW, you can soon.

What do you think of Gaga’s nails?  Are on board with Yellow Brick Road?  What was your favorite performance from the Grammys?

I heard Gwenyth Paltrow sang with Cee-Lo, that had to be good.  I can’t wait to get home on Tuesday and watch it all, including the E! pre-show.  Seriously, who ever made the mistake of letting the Grammys occur during New York Fashion Week is NOT my friend.

image credit: WireImage

I’m a complete sucker for any type of teen angst drama The CW or ABC Family throws my way. It must be the eternal teenager in me but I couldn’t help but get involved in Pretty Little Liars when it debuted on ABC Family last summer. I am long time Days of Our Lives fan and I was so sad when Privileged was canceled so I was all in when I heard that Ashley Benson (formerly Abby Deveraux on DOOL) and Lucy Hale (formerly Rose Baker on Privileged) were two of the leads in PLL. Of course, as a nail polish fanatic how can you watch this show and NOT notice the bold, fun nail colors the leads wear.  I have been curious for a while now as to how the polishes are chosen for each character and exactly what they are wearing but I’m not the only one. Quite a few of you have emailed asking as well. Most recently, the bright blue polish Hanna sported this past Monday has us especially intrigued and thanks to PLL’s Head Makeup Artist Cindy Miguens, I now know what it is.  Read on as Cindy breaks down what the girls wore in episode 116: “Je Suis Une Amie.”

I asked Cindy how the colors are chosen for each character and about the types of brands she uses and this is what she told me;

I have bins of nail polishes from all companies but, mainly organic lines that are formaldehyde free, toluene free and phthalate free, such as Zoya and Priti Nails. At the beginning of each episode, if they want to wear nail polish, the girls pick their color. Mainly according to what they personally like or what their character would wear. We keep them in baggies separated in their makeup drawers, so that the color belongs to the character and no one else uses it on the show. At times, we try to get creative by doing leopard, pokka dots, zebra stripes or painting some a different color. The girls love wearing nail polish.

Aria sported a deep burnished hue called Iberica Iris from Priti.  This polish must dry darker than the bottle pic indicates because it looks pretty vampy on screen.  What I love is that even on television you pick up that hint of bronze.

Hanna’s stand out vibrant blue tips are the result of layering Priti Chelsea Star over Kingfisher Daisy.  I love this combo.  Particularly how it looks blue or purple depending on the light.

Spencer kept it classic and chic wearing the opaque nude OPI Polar Bare.

With Emily getting back into competitive swimming it makes sense that she would leave her nails naked. As we all know, nothing wrecks a manicure faster than water exposure.

To get the nail looks from this episode head to OPI.com (for retailers) and PritiNYC.com.

So where are my fellow PLL fans? Who else noticed Hanna’s nails and was curious about the color? Would you like to see nail polish recaps from future PLL episodes?

image credit: PrettyLittleLiars.us and Pretty-Little-Liars.com

Katy Perry is one busy lady. Between her recent wedding to Russell Brand, the launch of her own fragrance, Purr, and the free concert she put on for the release of the Windows Phone she is probably going blind from all the camera flashes in her face. Being photographed at so many public, and not so public, appearances means your makeup, hair and nails have to be on point.  To keep her digits looking perfect, Katy has been relying on Manicurist Pattie Yankee, Executive Technical Director for Dashing Diva. I spoke with Pattie to find out more about Katy’s candy coated tips from the performance and the glittering gray nails she wore to the Purr launch event yesterday in NYC.  Keep reading to find out how each look was created.

To go with the candy themed concert for Windows Phone launch, Katy asked Pattie to give her “Candyland” nails. Pattie showed Katy the options below and Katy chose the center design, a multi-color sprinkle covered nail.

Get The Look: Pattie coated Katy’s nails in a layer of clear CalGel and dipped them in the sprinkles before curing for 2 minutes. She then applied a layer of Dashing Diva Soak Off Top Gel.

Pattie noted that this is where she would have stopped had Katy not been playing guitar later that night. At Katy’s request she encased the sprinkles in multiple layers of CalGel to prevent any pieces of candy from popping off while performing.

As you can see in the pic from Katy’s Twitter account, the nails are pretty thick due to the extra CalGel.  Those sprinkles are going NOWHERE!  While the nails are much thicker than I would wear, I do love this look.  It’s so whimsical and Willy Wonka-esque which, based on Katy wearing Oompa Loompa Minx, may have been an inspiration.  And can I just say how happy I am to see a celeb rocking nail art on short nails? I’m so sick of the talons. I’m looking at you Rihanna!

Shortly after the concert, Katy began the press tour for her fragrance, Purr. This time Pattie gave her a sparkly gray manicure.

Get The Look: To ensure a long lasting manicure Pattie used Dashing Diva Gelife Color Gel in Astor Place at Dawn, a new shade. Like OPI Axxium, DD Gelife is a soak-off gel polish.  She used three coats and then added a layer of Gelish Water Field to bring on the bling, sealing it with a layer of DD Gelife Top Gel.

Recreate The Look: Astor Place at Dawn isn’t available in the Dashing Diva Polish line but they have a color called Astor Place that you could use as a substitute though any light gray polish would work. Think RBL Concrete Jungle, Barielle U-Concrete-Me, MAC On The Prowl, Orly Mirror Mirror, Maybelline Gray-T Glamour.  Top your polish with a clear based glittery silver top coat. CND Silver Sparkling or Nicole by OPI Wink of Twink come to mind.

Which of Katy’s latest nail looks do you prefer?  Would you wear candy on your nails?  What nail polish combo would you use to recreate Katy’s glitzy gray tips?

image credit: Pattie Yankee, WireImage and Katy Perry via Twitpic. Do not republish without permission.

When Katy Perry posted “Glove tip lace nails anyone?” on Twitter yesterday along with this pic I knew that Celebrity Manicurist Kimmie Kyees had to be involved and I was right.  We’ve seen lace used to cover the entire nail before but this is something new. Kimmie shared that these nails were created for a photo shoot but she couldn’t reveal which one so be on the lookout as Kimmie is hoping they make the cover!

Get The Look: “She wanted beige so I used nail tips from Broadway Nails and polished them in China Glaze polishes; Modern Elegance topped Nude. What an amazing shade that combination created.”

“I took out my lace and noticed the V shape. I decided to cut along the V’s and place it in the polish from the cuticles towards the free edge. Leaving the lace on the end came to me after I placed it. I tried the tips on myself and loved the effect. When I showed [the people from the magazine] what they looked like on, they were relived and impressed! Luckily Katy and the rest of the glam squad agreed it looked fantastic. Katy said she loved them!”

China Glaze Modern Elegance is a discontinued color from the Urban Chic/Platinum series but I did find it on eBay and Victoria Nail Supply.  China Glaze Nude also looks to be dc’d but it’s available on eBay and VNS as well.

What do you think of this look on Katy?  I’m thinking it could be something fun to try for a Halloween costume, like a gothic bride or something.  Would you wear this nails and for what occasion?  Have you tried incorporating lace into your nail style?

OPI has moved beyond Hollywood and onto the Celebrity scene with their color collaborations.  In 2011 we will see polish colors created with both tennis star Serena Williams and rock star Katy Perry. Teen Vogue Editor Eva Chen broke the story on Twitter after meeting with OPI’s Suzi Weiss-Fischmann and I’ve confirmed the news with OPI.  See, this is why I LOVE Twitter. According to Eva & OPI…

The OPI Grand Slam Collection with Serena Williams colors will release in sets of two throughout the year, timed with her tennis tournaments. The first set will launch in January 2011 (Australian Open) with a shade called Simply Smashing, a bright green! The other three duos will come out in May 2011 (French Open), June 2011 (Wimbledon) and August 2011 (US Open) .

You may have heard that Serena went to school this year to become a nail tech.  As a salon mani/pedi regular Serena decided to become educated to do something she loves so much.  Partnering with a nail polish brand seems like a natural progression for the tennis champ.

The OPI collaboration with Katy Perry sounds to be just as wild as her nail style.  We’ve all seen her rock some funky nails so hearing that the “star product” in her lineup will be a crackle type nail polish called Black Shatter makes sense.  I wonder if the other colors will be brights to pop between the cracks.

I was wondering how long it would be before a major brand resurrects crackle and here we have it.  What’s funny is that a brand I saw at NY Fashion Week read my post on crackle polish and asked me if they should consider putting one out.  Could crackle be the new matte?

So what do you think of OPI leaping into the world of Celebrity? Do Katy and Serena seem like logical choices? Who would you suggest they partner with? What colors do you hope to see in the collections? Is anyone else surprised that Katy made a deal with OPI and not Minx?

A few days ago ALU reader Casey contacted me asking about Rihanna’s intense red nails in Eminem’s “I Love The Way You Lie” video. The flaming hue that matched her colorful hair definitely stood out against the fiery backdrop.

You couldn’t help but notice her nails and I LOVE that she worked them in the camera giving us all an up close look. Of course the woman responsible for this look is none other than Celebrity Manicurist Kimmie Kyees. She’s Rihanna’s go-to gal and, as always, her work was spot on. Curious about what she used?

That would be CND Shellac in Wildfire. Rihanna has been known to wear enhancements and soak-off gels so given the rising popularity of Shellac, it was only a matter of time before we spotted her sporting the product.

Shellac Wildfire is actually based on the nail polish from the old CND color line (pre Colour & Effects).  You see when CND developed its initial color lineup for Shellac they looked at their top selling polish shades from the original color line including this cherry red creme.

Fortunately I still have a bottle of Wildfire so I can show you what the color looks like off screen. The old CND formula was great because it was thin, flowed well and leveled itself out. The only downside was that I needed three coats with Wildfire to get it opaque.

That’s where the CND Colour Comparison Chart comes into play. You can either spend $10 on eBay for an original bottle of Wildfire and hope the quality is still good or you can pick up a bottle of CND Rouge Red from the Colour & Effects line for $9.

The colors are identical plus the new CND formula applies phenomenally well and is pigmented enough that you only need two coats.  The one caveat is that the new bottle is smaller so you’re getting less product for about the same price.  If you’re a collector like me, you may want to jump on the Wildfire while it’s still available.  I’m holding on to all my old CNDs regardless of any dupes.

CND Colour & Effects Rouge Red is available online at GoIndugle.com and BeBeautiful.com in addition to other etailers (see sidebar). CND Colours retail for $9/ea for a .33fl oz bottle. To get Shellac’d with Wildfire, visit the Shellac Salon Locator to find a tech near you.

ps BeBeautiful also has the Night Factory Duo for sale.  I know some people were looking for it.

***EDITED TO ADD – Forget eBay, Head2Toe still has bottles of Wildfire for $2.99.  BONUS!

Thoughts on Rihanna’s nail look in the video?  Does anyone else still have a bottle of Wildfire tucked away in their stash?

I don’t know what’s so special about black nail polish but apparently Anna Paquin is being as secretive about her nail color at last night’s Emmy Awards as she was about her wedding to Stephen Moyer. The True Blood star requested that Celebrity Green Nail Stylist Jenna Hipp be sworn to secrecy! If you ask me, that is just plain silly.  I get wanting your personal life kept private but NAIL POLISH??  Sookie, get over yourself! 

In her defense, Jenna did say that Anna was an absolute pleasure to work with.  Even though I couldn’t get her to spill Anna’s nail color she did say that, “Anna was full of smiles and very hospitable! She and Steven even served me fresh lemonade!” My guess, this is her publicist’s call but it’s still lame sauce.

However, Jenna did clue me in that she layered two black colors to achieve extra depth and shine. If you want to copy Anna’s look, I suggest you try CND Oilslick, a green based black with China Glaze Liquid Leather, a brown based black on top.  The different bases will give you a more true black and the jelly-esque nature of Liquid Leather will add a cool, squishy looking texture.

Another option is to add just a whisper of shimmer using Sinful Black on Black, my go-to black creme, over Zoya Raven with its subtle silver pearl.  The silvery specks will just barely peek through.

You know, Sookie and Bill are my least favorite characters on True Blood and something as silly as not releasing a nail color doesn’t help their cause.  What are your thoughts on this? Regardless of the top secret nail drama, Jenna gave Anna an amazing manicure and her hair and makeup were flawless.  The dress left something to be desired for me.

Birthday girl Lea Michele ruled the Emmy red carpet in a stunning navy Oscar De La Renta gown.  The Glee star, who IMO should have won for Best Actress, glowed from head to toe.  She is my pick for best dressed of the night and in some shots I’ve seen, she strongly resembled Penelope Cruz.  After all they do both love Mr. De La Renta’s frocks. Lea’s glam squad was comprised of Makeup Artist Melanie Inglessis for NARS, Hair Stylist Mark Townsend for Dove and Manicurist Deborah Lippmann.  Melanie Inglessis used NARS new Pure Matte Lipstick in Tashkent and while I was leery about the whole matte lip trend taking us back to 90s, it looks beautiful on Lea. Pairing dramatic winged eye liner with nude lips and full, tousled hair, Lea’s nails were painted a deep, dark hue to match her dress.  Can you guess what polish Deborah used?

Lady Sings The Blues from the Deborah Lippmann Anniversary All That Jazz set was used on both fingers and toes but in two very different ways. Deb told me that to keep the fingers more subtle she, “polished thinner layer[s] and kept the sequins off.” However on the toes she went for full on glam doing two regular coats of the polish. It’s just a shame we weren’t able to see that due to the length of Lea’s dress. Behind The Scenes Scoop: Lea is the first celebrity Deb used LStB on.  And because it was her birthday, Deb sang a bluesy version of Happy Birthday to Lea and presented her with a bottle of Happy Birthday nail polish.

Lady Sings The Blues is a deep navy with silver and blue square micro-glitter and cornflower blue octagonal sequins.  The base color is a semi-sheer jelly, similar to Across The Universe only I found it to be more pigmented.  Unlike AtU I only needed two coats of LStB for full coverage.  The swatch below is of two coats applied normally with no dotting to place the sequins.

Lady Sings The Blues is only available in the Deborah Lippmann All That Jazz set which is now available online at DeborahLippmann.com and also at Nordstrom.com and Nordstrom stores nationwide. The set retails for $40 (a $14 savings) and includes the pink glitter Some Enchanted Evening and raspberry glitter Razzle Dazzle.

Who agrees with me that Lea should have won last night?  I would have been delighted to see either her or Amy Poehler take home the statue.  Like Edie Falco said, she’s not funny though she is brilliant at playing a character with no redeeming qualities on Nurse Jackie.

On the beauty/fashion side of things, where did Lea rank in your best/worst dressed lists?  Do you like the matchy-matchy dress/nail look or think she should have gone with something contrasting?  While I normally coordinate my nails to my look I can’t help but love the dark nail on her.

Disclosure: I purchased the All That Jazz set myself.  For more info view my Disclosure Policy.

Let me start by saying that I love January Jones playing the least likely candidate for mother-of-the-year on Mad Men and I think she’s a beautiful woman BUT what was going on with her dress last night at the Emmys? I’m not generally a fan of the short in the front, long in the back look but when you add in the fish scale pattern it looks a little too mermaid-esque for my taste.  Regardless, her nails were on point!

Celebrity Manicurist Deborah Lippmann worked with January to give her a dark, dramatic manicure.  She shaped January’s nails into elongated ovals, Deb’s favorite shape, and painted them a deep plum hue.

Deb’s color of choice, Dark Side of the Moon from her eponymous line of nail polish.

What do you think of January’s look from the Emmys? Do you agree with her nail color selection?

Deborah Lippmann Dark Side of the Moon retails for $16/ea and can be purchased online at DeborahLippmann.com, Nordstrom.com and Beauty.com.