USVI-On-Line

I admit, I'm not a manicure type of girl- but I do like to paint them once in a while- especially while on a vacation... but whenever I go snorkeling, swimming, etc., the salt water just ruins the polish... any helpful hints- or should I just buff them nice & shiny and call it a day?

Oh... by the way - do you see THAT TICKER DOWN THERE????!!!! 3 DAYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I use a good top coat (OPI) and my toes hold up beautifully on vacay.

my nail polish always peels off, I think I need to give it up next time.

buff them nice and shiny IMHO.
I also noticed that the sun will turn those pale pinks sort orange/beige. Not pretty.

For that same reason i go to a fun color for the toes....

I'm not a frequent polish user either...but on vacation I do paint my toenails. I have found using a clear top coat over the color helps them to last longer even through all that swimming & snorkeling.

I am a big nail person, I always have my nails painted.

I agree that a good top coat does the trick. I had a French manicure done a week before we can in Nov & a month later they were still as white as the day they were done & I love to sit & dig my toes in the sand.

I always bring the polish I'm wearing on my toes with me. That way I can touch them up if I need to...

no nails but wanted to wish you a great trip !! colored nails or not..

A single coat of a pale pink (the color they use for a french manicure) lasts a long time without chipping and peeling and makes nails look neat and clean. If you do it yourself, a quick swipe over the nails with rubbing alcohol will get rid of any oils or residue to help the polish adhere better. A base coat and top coat will also help immensely.

After many ruined manicures while on vacation, we have found that the polish on our toes stays put, but on our hands, it doesn't. Our non-scientific opinion is that sunscreen is the problem, not salt water. Sometimes topcoat gets sticky after applying sunscreen. Hope this helps!

The polish on my fingers usually stays OK, but I've noticed on the last 2 trips that my Keens ate the polish off the toes. Had to touch them up a few times.

3 days - woohoo for you!!

My nails (which are rarely polished) get trashed from being in the water all day. They just seem really weak and susceptible to splitting, so I cut them short and forget about them. I like your idea of just buffing them.

And I'm VERY jealous of your ticker! We've been shoveling out for 2 days with more to come. My STJ tan is now mostly from Jergens Natural Glow.

Lady from IN is right. It's the sunscreen that will kill the deal; not the salt water. The sunscreen will really wreak havoc on a french manicure on the nails. Regular polish will fare allright with a good top coat. Remember the red polish on the toe nails will also attract the iguanas though !

If you put a top coat on every 3 days or so it helps as well - both toes and hands.