Men Wearing Nail Polish

Discussion of fashion elements and looks that are traditionally considered somewhat "femme" but are presented in a masculine context. This is NOT about transvestism or crossdressing.
Potbelly MacKraken
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Re: Men Wearing Nail Polish

Post by Potbelly MacKraken »

I painted my toenails when I was in Scotland; I had mixed feelings about it. I liked having color on my feet, and as I'm pretty much a sandal wearer much of the year, whenever I can, my toes are always showing. I loved being able to show them off and adding color to them, having another outlet to express my personality. But, I disliked the smell of polish (strong, smelly stuff!), as well as the polish remover. And, I disliked the time it took to put it on as well as the awkward positioning I had to get myself into to do so. Other than that though, I love the idea of nail polish and such accessories, whether more "masculine" darker colors or more "feminine" lighter/brighter colors. But, I also like jewelry and such too. It's been a while since painting my nails, but I've been thinking about doing it again soon. Just gotta find the right color for the right price. Nail polish being a "girly" thing and taking away from your "masculinity" is another illogical social stigma, methinks, one perpetuated by our fear of painting our nails as men and thus only letting girls do it. If we only let girls do it because of our fear, then it will only continue to be a "girly" thing, naturally. But, as said by others, to each their own. I'm just glad I live back in California and work in a field dominated by woman where I can a little more individual and express my "feminine" personality more.
dillon
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Re: Men Wearing Nail Polish

Post by dillon »

I choose my toenail color by my mood. I have favorites, most Sally Hansen polishes, but color varies by inexplicable rationale.
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skirted_in_SF
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Re: Men Wearing Nail Polish

Post by skirted_in_SF »

Potbelly MacKraken wrote:But, I disliked the smell of polish (strong, smelly stuff!), as well as the polish remover. And, I disliked the time it took to put it on as well as the awkward positioning I had to get myself into to do so.
PB - that's why they invented pedicures and shops that will do them for you. :P I don't know where in California you are, but I suspect there is a shop near you. My experience has been that a pedicure will last three or four weeks. For some, the biggest problem is confronting the big wall o' polish and choosing a color. I bring my own so I have it for touch-ups if necessary.
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moonshadow
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Re: Men Wearing Nail Polish

Post by moonshadow »

Men wearing nail polish doesn't seem to be as big of a taboo as men wearing skirts. At least to my experience. I've seen boys and young men wearing nail polish many times over the years. It's always been the subculture, goth type of guys who do this granted, and it's almost always black, but still, it's not really unheard of. Sort of goes with goth men wearing black eye liner and lipstick. While not common, is certainly more common then men wearing skirts, even kilts for that matter.

If I didn't work in food service I could easily get away with wearing nail polish in most situations around here. For instance, if I were still a stocker I could get away with it. I know this because I've worked with stockers who have done it. But yeah, men wearing nail polish, having long hair, ear rings, eye liner, makeup, and lipstick is not really a big deal, even around these parts..... for some reason we just can't seem to get the skirt on the radar for some strange reason.

I have started painting my toe nails though. In fact, that was a few weeks ago and it's about 50% flaked off now and need to be redone, but we don't have any polish remover. Plus I want to get some different colors. I told the wife that I wanted to start keeping my toenails the various colors of the rainbow. Would cost a pretty penny to compile all those different colors, but we have time, it's not like I'm wearing open toe shoes this time of year anyway.
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dillon
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Re: Men Wearing Nail Polish

Post by dillon »

I recommend non-acetone remover. Acetone is really bad for the proteins in your nails, I have read. I also let my nails "breathe" between polishing, at least half the time they were polished. So for two weeks polished, I allow a week after removing the polish before repainting. I have absolutely no science behind this practice, so it's just my own thing. I don't keep nails polished longer than two weeks at a time. I also shape and buff the nails before polishing.

I only do toenails as a rule. I can never keep a decent polish job on fingernails; I just manage to contact too many solvents. Yesterday I buffed my fingernails and applied a clear topcoat for the sheen, but less than 24 hours later, one nail's coating is already messed up. I think it was WD40 that did it, but who knows?
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skirted_in_SF
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Re: Men Wearing Nail Polish

Post by skirted_in_SF »

dillon wrote:I only do toenails as a rule. I can never keep a decent polish job on fingernails; I just manage to contact too many solvents. Yesterday I buffed my fingernails and applied a clear topcoat for the sheen, but less than 24 hours later, one nail's coating is already messed up. I think it was WD40 that did it, but who knows?
I knew there was an advantage to driving a computer for a living. My nails generally look pretty good for a week, though I may chip/wear the very tips. :)
I have to go in every week, the ladies who work there would worry if I didn't show up.
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dillon
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Re: Men Wearing Nail Polish

Post by dillon »

skirted_in_SF wrote:
dillon wrote:I only do toenails as a rule. I can never keep a decent polish job on fingernails; I just manage to contact too many solvents. Yesterday I buffed my fingernails and applied a clear topcoat for the sheen, but less than 24 hours later, one nail's coating is already messed up. I think it was WD40 that did it, but who knows?
I knew there was an advantage to driving a computer for a living. My nails generally look pretty good for a week, though I may chip/wear the very tips. :)
I have to go in every week, the ladies who work there would worry if I didn't show up.
Sounds like a good life, and l recently started getting my hair cut at the shop that does my wife's hair and nails. (I gave up my old small town barber because getting a haircut there was like the proverbial Forrest Gump box of chocolates...you never knew what you would look like when he finished with you.) The idea of a "mani-pedi" has its appeal, but I know that I would destroy the fingernails in no time. It's not that my job is that damaging or that doing damaging stuff is even a hobby, but it just seems to find me, lol. Can't avoid reality... summus quod summus.
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moonshadow
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Re: Men Wearing Nail Polish

Post by moonshadow »

I just had to remove the lovely emerald colored nails that I painted on Friday in preparation for my return to "the civilized" world tomorrow (work).

I'm going to miss it. I really liked the look. I look forward to painting them again next time I have a liberty pass. (a day off)

I feel slightly better knowing that for health reasons, a lot of women can't wear polish in my field either. Although technically, I don't "prepare" food, and believe me, my hands have definitely seen worse substances on the job than a little nail polish... but I digress.

Rules are rules... and lest we forget the most important rule.... keep the zealots happy.
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SkirtsDad
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Re: Men Wearing Nail Polish

Post by SkirtsDad »

As someone who has been wearing nail varnish for years, I would encourage men to go ahead and experiment. There is a whole world of nail art out there to take inspiration from.

For me, I enjoy taking the time to paint my nails. Sometimes I'll add decoration or maybe just keep it very simple by only painting the tips. It often adds a finishing touch of colour to an outfit.

Don't make the mistake I sometimes make: If you are going to paint your nails before going out, either make sure you have plenty of time to let them dry, or make sure it's the last thing you do after you've got ready. There's nothing worse than putting your coat on and realising when your hand comes out the other end of the sleeve that the nail varnish wasn't dry.

A word of encouragement: At one summer fayre I ran a nail bar at the local junior school to help raise money for the school. I was really pleased when a young boy came over with his parents and asked for his nails to be painted. He was very specific... on one hand all his fingernails gold and the thumbnail silver, and on the other, the reverse. It was great that his parents were fine with him doing that. Certainly here in the UK, my experience is that on the whole, people are far more accepting than most people realise. This shows in the frequent compliments I get about my nails, although not many of these come from men..... perhaps they didn't notice ;-)
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moonshadow
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Re: Men Wearing Nail Polish

Post by moonshadow »

SkirtsDad wrote:Certainly here in the UK, my experience is that on the whole, people are far more accepting than most people realise. This shows in the frequent compliments I get about my nails, although not many of these come from men..... perhaps they didn't notice ;-)
It seems people from the U.S. could learn a lot about tolerance and acceptance from nations like yours.

But it's getting better. I think that's why the other half [of our nation] is so angry all of the time! :D
-Andrea
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skirted_in_SF
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Re: Men Wearing Nail Polish

Post by skirted_in_SF »

SkirtsDad wrote:Don't make the mistake I sometimes make: If you are going to paint your nails before going out, either make sure you have plenty of time to let them dry, or make sure it's the last thing you do after you've got ready. There's nothing worse than putting your coat on and realising when your hand comes out the other end of the sleeve that the nail varnish wasn't dry.
I have my nails done weekly and have found that even with a "fast drying" topcoat I have to allow 20 minutes before doing anything with my hands. But it takes upwards of two hours to be sure pressure on the nails won't make a divot in the soft polish. Luckily, it is about a 50 minute walk from the shop to home so I'm usually good to go when I'm home.
SkirtsDad wrote:A word of encouragement: At one summer fayre I ran a nail bar at the local junior school to help raise money for the school. I was really pleased when a young boy came over with his parents and asked for his nails to be painted. He was very specific... on one hand all his fingernails gold and the thumbnail silver, and on the other, the reverse.
Last month I got in the habit of having the pinkie fingernails done in a complimentary color. Then having done it for three weeks, I got out of the habit. Guess I'm just a strange bird. :lol:
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Re: Men Wearing Nail Polish

Post by moonshadow »

In the one time I have done this, I can already see my routine is going to be:

To paint my finger nails about an hour before I retire to bed on Friday nights. This hour will give the polish enough time to get dry enough so that it doesn't rub off, or get missed up by the blankets, and by the time you wake up on Saturday, they are solid as a rock. Couldn't scrape it off with a knife.

Amazingly, the toe nail polish I applied almost three weeks ago is still in tact, not so much as a chip missing.
-Andrea
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Re: Men Wearing Nail Polish

Post by dillon »

I really struggle to understand the protein composition of nails. Sometimes mine form ridges. I buffed one ridged nail down and it virtually split where I flattened down the ridge. I have begun the resting cycle between polishes. Guess this one will be longer on my fingernails anyway.
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DTSA
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Re: Men Wearing Nail Polish

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I have been getting clear shellac on my finger nails for the last 3 or 4 months and really pleased how long it lasts. Have to get them done every 3 weeks. This morning at the nail salon, I noticed that my thumb nails were slightly yellow and mentioned it the the nail tech. She suggested a colour called clearly pink which is just a translucent natural colour and the nails look great again. Might try some colour on the toe nails when the weather warms up.
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Fred in Skirts
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Re: Men Wearing Nail Polish

Post by Fred in Skirts »

I regularly paint my nails both toe and finger. I like the OPI color "Coney Island Cotton Candy". It is not all the noticeable and what I get is 2 or 3 coats on the toes and 1 coat on the fingers. I don't do them myself I go to a spa and have them done by a professional. It lasts longer and I love the care they take of y feet. I get a foot and lower leg massage as well as have the calluses on my heals filed down, then they start on the hands and do a lower arm and hand massage, trim and shape the nails and then comes the base coat of clear primer then the color and lastly the clear top coat.

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