Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Adult Beginners Forum Somewhat OT: Do you paint your nails?

Joe, can't tell if you're joking or not!

On the serious side, I do think a bold, bright color would be very distracting. Although I don't stare at my hands the whole time I play, if there's a jump, I look down...

Hmm, I'll have to pay attention tomorrow and see how much I'm looking at my hands. Although it does depend somewhat on the music. Some pieces I follow along more closely with the score, and of course in-progress pieces, I suspect I am looking up and down repeatedly... Maybe I wouldn't even notice painted nails... I guess I shouldn't assume either way.

Joe the topic is titled OT and says what it is about.

You may not be interested but for a lot of women the subject of finger nails and polish is great fun. And clearly it is for some men too!

Shirokuru - I do think polish looks fine on short nails. I also agree that darker colours would be distracting if you were playing.
It would drive me a bit batty to see flashes of colour while I was playing!
Save the darker colours for non piano evenings!
I too hate to see chipped polish. I think it looks tacky.
I used to carry the polish in my purse for emergency touch ups.

Ok, this might end up being an expensive experiment (if I end up removing it right away) but I am going to get some nail polish tomorrow. I'll post before and after pics.

I've never really seen the point of painted nails, although I don't find them objectionable. Women do seem to enjoy painting them, though. Some young men paint their nails these days as well. I am accustomed to seeing upper income men with manicured nails and clear polish (not me, mind you), but I'm too old to think colored polish on men is normal. I suppose change in what is fashionable and acceptable is inevitable.

So that's what that is...it was hard to tell...but finding that "really amusing" is in itself really amusing

What we need here instead is helpful...this is serious girl-stuff...my only suggestion then is that if and when you decide to take off the polish do so outdoors out of consideration for your husband's nostrils because (as my wife has amply demonstrated) the smell of the remover is worse than the pungent aroma that permeates the region around a paper mill (although it's not quite as bad as that surrounding the typical hog farm).

Trap

TJ, I actually don't much care for the smell of nail polish itself, let alone the remover.

While I don't go outside to put it on or take it off, I do make a point of not inflicting the "aromas" on anyone else.

I remember when I bought my first guitar, I had rather long nails, and a rich wine shade of nail polish.

I learned quickly that for guitar you have to cut your nails (unless you are Dolly, I guess), and that nail polish does stick to guitar strings.

ShiroKuru, I have found that putting a final coat of clear polish can help reduce chipping - or else.... invest in a high quality nail polish - I had one I bought here in Italy that would last for a week without chipping. Most unusual

Shirokuro,
I know this is an extremely life threatening decision that you are having to make and much of the fate of the western world depends on it, so I will stop joking and be very serious.

(Not just yet though , maybe tommorrow around dinner time when we have Halibut)

Nail varnish, I agree is nearly as expensive as a new car, in the UK a Renault Clio can be bought new for £13,200, but that includes number plates and tax, it is an "on the road price"

The average cost of a modest dwelling (dependent on location)
seems to be a little more , coming in at around £246,000

I need my paraboots re- sole-ing, this will cost £40.00, but I have had them 8 years and they are a very rare and hard to get old style paraboot that arn't made anymore.

Even though Trapper john said I was not being helpfull or funny (He particularly likes opportunities to mention this again) at least I never mentioned "slurry" like he did, vis a vis the "smell of hog farming"

So, to help you out I went and had a look on ebay, and guess what? nail varnish was not quite as expensive a trial product as we first thought it to be.
In fact imagine my surprise when I found it could be got for much less than a country estate like Chatsworth House, or even cheaper than importing a generator and a small elephant from Rhodesia.

I didn't look very far to find a pack of twenty four DIFFERENT colours for just £6.95. (UK sterling, or paypal no euros because of greece)

I had to get my calculator out to work out just how expensive each bottle of fun fluid is, but here goes.

24 divided by £6.95 = 3.45 pence each.

Thats three point four pence per bottle, Now if that is not helpfull I do not know what is.

If this still leaves you broke, (major investmensts sometimes do) You are more than welcome to come round to my house and have dinner, we are having Halibut tommorrow, there will be more than enough to share, and you can play my piano should you wish:
regardless of whether you want to play it with or without nail varnish on, I dont mind, If it chips and goes inbetween the keys, that is not a problem, I will just give the keybed a quick once over with the hoover.

We could try all the different colours together, and comment on whos nails look bestest, I will probably say yours do to make you feel good, and we can giggle and stuff.
If you prefer we can test the nail varnish colours on your toes first, that way, if you find a bright colour distracting, you can just hide your toes under my piano whilst playing.

I really hope this helps, I have tried, and searched ebay for 32 seconds, and offered you a nice dinner and a go on a good piano.

Also, I have a spare pair of fingerless gloves that are yours if you should change your mind, winter is not nice in the Uk and its good to think ahead and plan in advance.
Here is the link to the nail varnish for 3.4 pence per bottle:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NEW-24-CO...cure_Pedicure_CA&hash=item5199e8dfec

I was going to mention Dolly Parton..when I played fingerstyle guitar I used to clear coat them with a hardener..it looked fine on the right hand, but weird on the left, because the nails were short.. quite a number of ladies admired my nails..asked what I used..LOL!..unfortunately I had to give up guitar..tendon inflamation in the left forearm griping the neck..I think its what violinsts get.. so I switched to piano..no need for nails then..or polish..
although I loved the attention from the ladies about my nails..it was a great conversation starter..LOL !

There are so many factors to juggle here. I hadn't thought about the smell either!

And in spite of Rostosky's findings about the price, if I pay between US$5 and $15, but I only use the products once, in my book that's a little bit expensive. I end up thinking about what else I could have spent that money one. Like sheet music!

In any case, this has all been fun, and I'm going to go loom at polish today!

Rostosky, your maths is terrible.

ShiroKuro, a number of my teenage students sometimes wear nail polish on their piano-short nails; often striking dark colours like blue, green or black, often with sparkles. Piano playing is so difficult anyway that the tiny surprise of dark nails is soon filtered and ignored by the brain. I don't think it will stuff up your playing (never seems to bother my students).

I'm not the kind of teacher that bans the use of nail-polish by students. I've always taken the view that we have bigger fish to fry. omg I really didn't mean to reference halibut.

That's hysterical!

OMG, yes a mathamatical error was perceived correctly.

The bottles work out at a staggering 28.95 pence each.
That is a whole 25.5 pence more per bottle than my calculator first said it was.

In my defence my calculator was made in Japan, and as such may have issues.

Before you say Shirokuro was also made in Japan, Don't.

Shirokuro, If you are worried about the nail varnish being expensive if you only use it once,
All you have to do, is put the top back on and give it to someone for a Christmas present,that way it works out cheap.

I often do this with chocolates, I open the box carefully, eat a couple of the good ones (the soft strawberry flavoured milk choccy ones) then carefully seal up the box, and give it someone like my mum for christmas.

Canonie, I am glad you dont ban nail polish, it is good to see Australians have no need whatsoever to act like fascist dictators, this revelation has added to my folder entitled "why I have massive respect for Australians without reference to over eating barbecued fish "

Could you let me know if fingerless gloves are also not banned in Australia, and just for reference, the use of false "additional fingers" especially in exam situations.

In my first reply I said black with sparkles too.

I like Australians a lot because they agree with me often, and also have an excellent sense of humour.

I like Australians because If I went there and they liked me, they would say things like "Gooday Rossy you utter Ba**ar*" And call me many other great names based on swearing.
You just cannot do that in the USA, only in Australia and Britain. Its either because in the USA there is no sense of pseudo insulting humour, OR because both Australia and Britain share the same Queen, who is known for her foul mouth. USA folk are jealous of us having a queen, they only have presidents to swear at.

If I went to Ozz , I would get some tinnys to blend in, and then go for walkabouts in the bush with some aboriginal folk to learn about the ozzy culture first hand.

Political correctness gone overboard does not seem to have affected ozz quite as much as everywhere else, This is because everyone in ozz is descended from british criminals, and are not prone to putting up with BS.

I would avoid rolf harriss's wife she freaks me out a little.
I would be heard to say "How ya doing sport" on every possible occasion.

No.

why? is it because its too expensive?

Rostosky - Very british humour , as I am British I get it , very funny old bean , made me lol as they say on this new fangled interweb.

That's today right? Waiting in anticipation!

I wonder if this lady(or gentlemen) wanted the extra legnth to increase the overall legnth of the fingers. I can't see any problems here that would affect his/her piano playing.

Shirokuro, have you considered painting alternate fingers black and white, as on the keyboard?

That would mean buying TWO nail varnishes, and a nail varnish remover.

Do you think Shirokuro's made of money?

(unless she's got some spare "Tipex" laying around)

Shirokuro might be a millionairess, and just be very tight about the amount of money she spends on "products" it is hard to tell.
I know they cut off her central heating for not paying the bills, and she nearly froze to death last winter.
She is still a little bit blue in extreme corners.
This is why blue nail varnish would not suit her too well.

Its probably best not to mention last winter too much as she had difficulty playing the Piano it was so cold.

I found some cheap nail varnish for her on ebay, but it was not good enough and she wanted to pay more.
I even offered to paint her toe nails, but got knocked back.
I offered her Halibut, and got no thanks.
I even said she could play on my Excellent Piano, and she never even said "thats kind"
If I would have said "and its not a Steinway, but a proper Piano" I bet she would have been round straight away.
I enclose a picture of my nails.