Manicure/Pedicure for Rush ???
 

OK, now let's get down to the details! What type of manicure would you recommend for a rushee? I personally don't have my nails done professionally, but my daughter wanted to do it for rush. She is going to be attending a large southwestern university.

She was talking about a French Manicure, but tonight the salon (OK, it was at Wal-Mart) said that something called "Pink & White" was better, but looked the same. Do you think one of these options, or a red or pink would be best? She'll need to be able to keep it thru six days of rush plus a day or two beforehand, so it's important that it match all her outfits including the pref night cocktail type black dress. Knowing my daughter, she'll want some cutsey airbrush design. Should she wait till after rush to add this?

Any tips on a pedicure?

Thank you everyone on these boards for being so warm and welcoming! You're fabulous!

Keep in mind that I go to a really small school where Recruitment is not all that competitive, but I think that french manicures are very classic and can match any outfit. But I have no clue what that pink and white thing is that you're talking about. I'm just a soccer player!

I would definitely recommend a French manicure. They look classy and will match anything she wears!

Not knowing where your daughter is rushing, or being very into the whole manicure scene, if I were she, I'd err on the conservative side.

I vote for the French manicure, too! Actually, from my understanding, the "pink and white" is basically a French manicure except that the nail color used is a pale pink instead of that peachy shade. At least, that's what I gathered from the last time I went to the nail salon.

However, as long as her nails are clean and filed, I don't really see that she has to have a manicure...but if it will make her feel a little more pulled-together, then by all means go for it.

Just wanted to point out that if your daughter doesn't have her nails done on a regular basis (i'm talking about having acrylics or tips put on) she should not choose recruitment as the time to try it out. I got them done once, it was very difficult for me to do basic things- zip my jeans, write, type, dial a phone. You don't want her being uncomfortable during rush. Besides- the emphasis should be on who she is and how she fits in with that group of women- not how her nails look (and if me and my chewed upon nails can get in.......)
Best of luck!

Just my .02 cents, I would stick to the basic French manicure w/o the acrylic etc for reasons KDShan pointed out. Best of luck to your daughter.:)

I like the pink and off white better than the white. White stands out way too much and seems unnatural while off white is out there. buy her new clothes and a Lily Pulitzer dress (I think I saw it was in the south, but if not dont listen to that)

I love any excuse for new clothes and love to offer up a reason for new clothes

Can I just say, 'whoa'. I'm from a Northern School, with a very small greek community...I can't belive people in the South think that much into this stuff.
But allow me to put my two cents in...I get a manicure/pedicure done constantly, because of track. So I think the pink and white french looks better...sometime I like to get a little silver line between the white and pink, just to spice it a little bit. But it still looks very conservative...and as stated, it will match with anything. or perhaps a very pale pink, or pearlized color.

Good Luck to her!!

EDITED TO DAY: Please don't think my introductory line was making fun of the South...its just from all these rush threads, I can't believe how cut throat and detailed oriented recruitment is below the mason-dixon line!

PNMM - I PM'd you :)

BlazerCheer will be getting one for recruitment just on the grounds that it should make her feel more confident! Her sister has advised her to get an American manicure but I can't tell the difference between that and a French one.

Good grief, believe it or not I know this. It was in a makeup book I got printed by British Vogue. The French uses peachy or pinky polish and the American uses natural colored polish - this makes the white tips stand out more than the French manicure.

PNMM, if she's not used to acrylics, she can still get a nice manicure for her natural nails. If they use a pale color (Essie & OPI both have lots and lots of nice ones) it will look just as pretty. No cutesy airbrush. ;) I know French manicures go with everything, but I personally am kinda tired of them.

Definitely a pink and white french manicure....I would get tips a week or so before so she can get used to them. If you do an airbrush, make sure it is conservative

I get my nails done all the time and I usually have them airbrushed

right now my design is something like this
http://www.allthingsnails.co.uk/FREN...monica%201.jpg

OMG

This thread has me CTFU!

Thank you for the comic relief. I needed the break! :)

Hey man, don't be dissing my nails! ;)
]

I think regular french manicure will look very classy. Acrylics can look at times very tacky, depending how they were done and what length the nails are. If the acrylics are too long it accentuates the fact that the nails are fake and they kinda draw ur attention the nails...and personally I dont like that but thats just my opinion!!!!!! :)

Manicure ideas
 

WOW! You have all given us a lot to think about! Thank you so much! I've got a super busy day today, so I've got to run, but I just had to thank you all for being so fantastically helpful! Thank you!

"is anyone else amazed at how this mother is so supportive of her daughter?" Smiley21


(OK, I know I did the quote thing before, but it won't work this morning. )

If you knew my daughter, you wouldn't be amazed at all. She's really super, but so busy that she needs her "personal secretary" to handle the details. It's really an honor and I love being able to do it! Thanks for noticing!

I wouldn't get acrylics put on for rush unless your daughter has a problem with biting her nails. Just get her a regular manicure so the nails look neat. I would go with a nice clear polish, so that if it gets chipped during the week, she can fix it herself. She probably won't have time to go running back to the salon if the polish gets chipped, and a french manicure can be difficult to replicate on your own.

My $.02...

Do NOT get the tips or acryllics. Unless you know who is doing them, they can look way too clumpy and fake. I have tons of friends who have them but they have also been going to the same nail tech for years.

I am also going to disagree with everyone on the French Manicure front. I would say she should go with a nice shade of pale pinkish white. Like Essie Ballet Slippers or OPI Sweetheart. If you chip a nail with those colors, it is does not show much. If you chip the edge of a white tipped French, it is pretty noticable. And if she's not really had manicures before she won't probably be that careful in avoiding chips. AND, if it needs to last over a week, it's bound to get a chip or 2. So, there you go!

Tell her all of GC says good luck (and we would LOVE to hear her recruitment story as she goes through!!!)

i will reiterate the no tips if she doesn't already have them...

i personally like the french manicure with pink polish...i don't know if this makes it american or what. i think choosing a color is tough without being able to look at all of the outfits she will be wearing. there are some pearlized colors that basically add just a shimmer of color, but don't stand out like "hey look at me!" make sure the salon uses a tough clear overcoat with SPF. believe it or not, your nailpolish can turn colors in the sun!!! i think it is OPI that makes a clear polish with SPF and i know there is someone else, but i am not at home and can't check my bottle. as a life guard, i have put on a pretty color and by the time i came home from work, i had yellow nails. it is definately not a look you want during rush!

as for the pedicure, personally, i love silver on toe nails. since i have only had 3 pedicures in my life, and i hate my toes so i never wear sandals that highlight them, i am probably the last person to get advice from. i have seen a french manicure done on toes and i think that looks great too!

What is an "American" manicure? Is it a French manicure, but "French" became a no-no word, (French fries, Frenchi vanilla), due to the whole Iraq thing? Please explain.:confused:

In addition, it might be worth considering how well her nails take polish -- for example, my polish is chipped by the 3rd day. If her nails are similar, she might want to go with a subtle, solid color that she can touch up -- especially if rush is several days!

French manicure uses white paint on the tips.
American manicure uses more of a beige-y color, more natural looking.

At least that's how they do it where I get my nails done :)

Um, if you're looking for a more "manly" vein of conversation, I suggest you find a Teamsters website :rolleyes:

Don't mind James, PNMM; he's our resident curmudgeon. He's soooooo above all the minutiae of everyday life that it's a source of amusement to him that people actually care about such things. We all strive to be as highminded as him but, alas, who could be??? Sigh.

Could someone post pics of an American vs French Manicure? I am having mine done for a wedding back in the states. I didn't even know an American Manicure existed! LOL

I take it this would NOT be appropriate
 

Searching for images of American or French, I came across this:
http://www.lavazone2.com/welovett/na...s/johnette.jpg

That's french correct?

If it is, no wonder we are so mad at them. :p

LOL When I get mine done I leave them plain. I once did this modeling competiton thing for my hair salon. It was hair, nails, makeup. My nails were black and red check only with Xs and Os on them like tic-tac-toe. I washed them off when I got home. We got 2nd place though :p

I like a French manicure
 

I've never had anything called an American manicure. My friend does nails so I'll ask her and report back. I enjoy gardening plus have two small children which is murder on anything fancy in the nail department.

Fabulous advice everyone! Even if James doesn't know how to appreciate a good chat, I have very much enjoyed everyone's input. I think my daughter is having second thoughts about the tips, but is still thinking about colors. You've given her a lot to think about. Thank you!

I was thinking the same thing about rush.

I decided to not get solar nails since I never wear them. Mainly because its too hard to keep up with it and they are bad for your nails. I decided to get a french manicure and then get like a red for my toe nails.

Now, however, I am debating over a french or american manicure. I had never even heard of the american manicure until now.

Well one thing about the people saying don't get tips - just get a regular manicure: a regular won't last as long. The white paint will chip away quicker than an airbrushed tip will fall off. I got tips for recruitment, and they lasted me 2 or 3 weeks - and you can always go to a professional salon to get them to take them off so your naisl won't be messed up. When I got just a regular french manicure on my real nails for our formal, it only lasted 3 days.

The last thing she is going to want is something chipping off - so if you do chose to go the natural route, make sure to go by some white nail polish so she can touch up just in case.

Hahaha - having a french manicure for my recruitment was great. I always was asked "OH MY! BEAUTIFUL! WHERE DO YU GET YOUR NAILS DONE AND HOW OFTEN?!" I was like uhm, uh - I only get them done for special occasions? hahaha, I felt like such an idiot, but they didn't cut me! I guess those little things show just how much you want to impress everyone. (which I am sure makes them feel good that you want to impress them)

Oh no no - don't get colors!!! Having nicely groomed nails is one thing, but you don't want them to draw too much attention. I know that "trends" get started in other places besides the south, and we tend to lean more towards a classy look. If she is going to get her nails done please do french or american or what not - don't do colors!!!

My roomate during recruitment paints her's pink, and whe we were walking to one of her rounds one day - she relized she had pink nails with a RED outfit. She was mortified, and sadly got cut from all but 2 sororities after that day. I hate to say it, but some people are extremly picky - please please be careful about putting color on the nails!!!

We aren't even supposed to paint our nails.

This is just my opinion... I don't go to a huge university with highly competitive rush, so I may be out of my realm here, but...

I certainly think it's important to look nice for rush, and she should look like she cares about it... Dressing nicely, having well-cared for nails, etc. are nice impressions to give. But who she is as a person is what really matters, and if a sorority is going to cut her or look down on her for painting her nails pale pink instead of getting a French manicure, I doubt either one of you want her in that sorority.

I guess I'm just afraid that all this emphasis on clothes, nails, etc. will have her nervous when it comes time for the important stuff; personality, etc. Just my two cents though.

I wish her the best of luck, I know I had a great time during recruitment, and I'm sure she will too. :)

I didn't consider it worrying about my nails and clothes. I thought it was nice. I never go and get my nails done - but my dad went ahead and gave me the okay to go get my nails done and get some new stuff for recruitment. It made *me* feel a lot more confident going through recruitment because I knew I looked cute.

Not having to worry about if my nails were clean or my clothes were cute helped me to present a confident image of myself. I think that is the point in wanting to do all the knit-picky stuff. Not to be in the most vein sorority - but you have to admit that when you feel like you look your best you present this glow about you.

Now, if I would have gone to rush and saw everyone's nails done but mine - everyone had new cute clothes except for me - I would have been more worried. I would have felt insecure about going to rounds because I would feel like I am not the cutest girl there. I know they(we) should only pick using your personality - but the same goes with men and woman in general - looks can attract someone, but your personality is the hook line and sinker. The image is just merely to get their attention.

This is a very good point. I had acrylic nails very briefly, and the best thing about them was that the polish stayed on and looked good for 2 weeks. Nail polish never, ever lasts that long on my natural nails. If I got a manicure that needed to last a week, I'd probably get a pale color and buy a bottle to do touch-ups myself. It's also a good idea to put on top coat every day or every other day to help keep the polish from chipping.

I think that a color would look nice, as long as it will go with all of her outfits. I also would recommend NOT matching fingernails and toenails because that is considered tacky. The colors should compliment each other but not be the same.

I'm a bad nail biter. I've been doing for as long as I can remeber and after several failed attempts at quitting, I've all but given up. For a wedding I went to last week, i got acrylics. I'd gotten them before for prom and hated them cuz they were too long and the paint chipped right off (since I wasn't used to having nails I wasn't as careful as I should have been, but they airbrushed on the white of the French manicure and it didn't hold up) so I was nervous about getting them again. I went to the salon my boyfriends mom goes to though, and the girl was amazing. She did what I guess is called a pink & white, and it looks great. It looks exactly like a french manicure but a bit more natural and will never chip because the white part is an acrylic that's underneath the pink acrylic. I was totally happy with the length to, I dio a lot with my hands and can't have them too long or they get in the way. Anyway, depending on how her nails look now, acrylics might be an alright choice. But I would agree with these girls and stay away from colors.