PAINTED SKIN

JUST IN CASE YOU'VE FORGOTTEN FROM WHERE I'VE COME....

FEBRUARY 4, 2014

NOW

FEBRUARY 20, 2014

Not as bad as they were; not as good as they're going to get. Truthfully, everything looks better with a little coverage. Although, if the picture were focused more tightly on my toes, you would see that my big toenails now have "texture." That is to say, they have valleys and hills that are very apparent in person. They are not flat and smooth as they kind of seem in this image, and they will be like this for a long time to come. And yes, I polished my nails myself this time. Indeed, I was speaking to a friend earlier this evening who is recovering from an infection she acquired at the nail salon. She, too, lost a nail from her big toe. Her pearls of wisdom: She will never go to a nail salon again without her own instruments which she has sterilized personally. Either that or she will do her mani/pedi herself. Nonetheless, a little polish and T!NTALIZE® concealer never hurt no one!!!! 

I think I could be ready for something up close and personal.... 

 

IT'S A MATTER OF HEALTH, PART 2

December 24, 2013

February 11, 2014

Last week I exposed the sad state of my feet. This week it's my hands. They're marginally better in that I haven't lost a fingernail (YES!!! Let's be thankful for small miracles!); however, they currently look like WHO DUNNIT AND WHAT FOR?!?!?!?

So here's what happened. I, because I have very long fingers, am of the impression that my hands look best with long nails. I don't think it takes a genius to agree with me. My natural nails will never grow above the tip of my finger, let alone produce ten long nails of the same length.  I also happen to prefer press-on nails to acrylics because they look infinitely more natural (that's my freshly done hand in the first picture). For the past year, I have pretty much kept my natural nails covered. I would soak the press-ons off a couple of hours before my nail appointment-- sometimes a half-hour -- and go apply a new set. Now here's where the problem really began. On the box, it cautions you to remove them 7-10 days after application. I, however,  would get just a tad lazy, and would keep them on 2-3 weeks. Again, I had told my nail tech that I felt I should have gaps between applications so that my natural nails could breathe. She said, "WHY???? Your hands are so beautiful with them. Keep them on." And I did. Ultimately, I developed a fungus under each nail (it's clearly visible under my right index finger); my left pinky nail cracked all the way across from the trauma of being covered; my right middle finger has always had a lengthwise crack, and it was exacerbated by the lack of oxygen; and all ten nails were extremely weak and thin. Once my big toenails detached, though, I decided it was time to deal with the health of all nails on both feet and hands.

This is going to be a long road to recovery. Will I throw on a set of nails for a couple of days to attend an event or go to a party??? ABSOLUTELY!!! Just as I'm going to paint my nailbed when the time comes. But these are temporary measures to soothe my vain ego  on occasion; and in the interim, the only covering on my nails will be Nailtiques and a fungicide. Long-term, my nails will no longer bare the brunt of my desire to look good.  

If any of you have a similar issue, please see our FEETOLOGY page on foot care for remedy options.

IT'S A MATTER OF HEALTH

AREN'T THEY BEAUTIFUL?!?!
DECEMBER 25, 2013

WHAT HAPPENED?!?!?!

FEBRUARY 4, 2014

Those are beautiful feet in the picture from December 25th, aren't they?  Little did I know that underneath that beauty was a vey ugly situation just waiting to come to light.

A couple of years ago I got an infection from a salon pedicure. The pain and swelling subsided with the use of an antibiotic ointment; however, on either side of both big toes, there was a thin strip of nail that had detached from the nailbed. I didn't understand that that meant there was still an active infection or fungus. Early last year, I did ask my doctor if there were an issue with which I needed to be concerned, and she said no; the nail seemed to be healthy. It didn't appear to be spreading, so I left it alone thinking that it would ultimately heal itself. Fast forward to the summer of 2013. I, like many women, want my toes to be perfect in the sandal months, so I asked my nail tech to put acrylic on my big toes to keep them from breaking and maintain a perfect square. My natural nails are thin, and crack easily, and that just simply doesn't work when you want to sport strappy stilettos. What my tech didn't tell me was that I needed to be more concerned with my nail health, that I needed to forego the acrylic and make sure that any infection or fungus was eliminated first. 

That warning didn't happen, and a couple of months after the acrylic was applied, I began to notice very strange things with my left toe. One time when I went to get a fill, there was actually a discernible bubble under my nail. When I inquired about the origin of it, she just said she didn't know what the problem was and proceeded to complete the fill. Shortly after that, summer was over, so I decided to let the acrylic grow out so my nails could breathe, and I stopped getting fills. A few weeks after that, my left toenail broke very low, lower than half way down, and there was what looked like a bruise underneath. But again my nail tech said to cover it with acrylic, and I chose to go along with that program so that the break wouldn't rip across. That was a bad decision. A month or so later, I noticed that my left toenail had almost completely detached from the nail bed. A week after that, it ripped off. I then removed my nail polish, and checked my right big toenail, and it, too, had detached. That ugly situation is what is shown in the picture from the morning of February 4, 2014. The night of February 4, 2014, I decided to file off the remaining acrylic on both big toes, and my right big toenail broke half way down. I then removed it down to the point where it was actually attached, close to the cuticle. Now they're twins in ugliness!  OMG!!!!

I'm sharing this in the hopes that you will avoid my huge error. I want to place some responsibility with my nail tech (and I DO caution you to do your research and buy your own nail implements when it comes to the person that services your feet); however, the buck stops here. They're my toes, and I should have taken the issues I saw more seriously. I'm blessed that it's February not June, and wearing closed-toed shoes at the moment works well. But rest assured, if it comes down to it and I must show my feet (the bedroom comes to mind), I'll be polishing some nailbed!!!!

To be continued.....