Nail polish originated in China and dates back to 3000 BC. Around 600 BC, during the Zhou Dynasty, the royal house preferred the colors gold and silver. Red and black eventually replaced these metallic colors as royal favorites. During the Ming Dynasty, nail polish was often made from a mixture that included beeswax, egg whites, gelatin, vegetable dyes, and gum arabic. In Egypt, the lower classes wore pale colors, whereas high society painted their nails a reddish brown color, with henna. Mummified pharaohs also had their nails painted with henna.
Nail polish (also known as nail varnish or nail enamel) is a lacquer that can be applied to the human fingernail or toenails to decorate and protect the nail plates. The formulation has been revised repeatedly to enhance its decorative effects, and to restrain cracking or flaking. Nail polish consists of a mix of an organic polymer and several other components depending on the brand.
Colored nail polish did not make an appearance until the 1920s. Early nail polish formulas were created using basic ingredients such as lavender oil, Carmine, oxide tin, and bergamot oil. It was more common to polish nails with tinted powders and creams, and finishing off by buffing the nail until left shiny. One type of polishing product sold around this time was Graf's Hyglo nail polish paste. Read more fun facts about nail polish and your nails below:
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Acrylic nails were introduced in 1978 and were
invented by a dentist named Fred Slack. Years earlier, in 1934, a dentist
by the name of Maxwell Lappe created a product called Nu Nails, which was an
artificial nail designed for nail biters.
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Did you know that your nails grow faster in summer
months than they do during winter?
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Don’t try painting your nails on an airplane. Most
airlines won’t allow it.
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Fingernails grow an average of 3.5 millimeters per
month. Age and genes also play a role in how fast your nails grow.
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If
you place a piece of your fingernail in Coco Cola, it will dissolve in 4 days.
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Jeff
Pink, founder of the nail polish brand Orly, is credited with branding French
manicures in America when he began applying them to speed up the makeup process
for actresses making multiple costume changes. But French manicures are said to
have first been introduced in Paris in the 1930s by Max Factor.
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Men’s
nails tend to grow faster than women’s.
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Nail polish sales reached $768 million in 2012, an
increase of 32 percent from 2011.
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Opened
bottles of nail polish last for about two years. When air is introduced to nail
polish after a bottle is first opened, some ingredients evaporate, which
changes the consistency and formula of the polish.
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Some
people are allergic to nail polish. People with this allergy are most often
allergic to Formaldehyde, an ingredient in many nail polishes.
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Studies
have found that excessive stress can inhibit growth of your nails.
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Ten percent of all known dermatological conditions
are related to nails. These include fungal infections, bacterial infections,
vertical lines and ingrown toe nails.
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The fastest growing nail is the one on your middle
finger.
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The
slowest growing nail is your thumb nail.
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Typing with your nails will actually stimulate their
growth.
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Your nails need to rest between manicures. It
is recommended to give yourself a day or two of no polish in between manicures.
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Your nails can provide a lot of
information about your health. Some of the indicators are:
o
Nail bed discoloration
(blueish colour) – lung disease
o
Capillaries in the cuticles – autoimmune disease
o
Pale nails – anemia
o
Thickened nails – fungal infections that
generally cross the entire nail bed
o
Dark brown/black vertical
lines on the nail bed – sign of melanoma
o
Depressions and small cracks
in your nails – psoriasis
o
Nails that break very easily – thyroid abnormalities
o
Horizontal white lines
(Muehrcke’s lines) across the entire nail on multiple fingers – kidney disease, liver
abnormalities or a lack of protein and other nutrients
“The only time a woman is helpless is when her nail
polish is drying.” (Anonymous)[i]
[i] Sources used:
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“20 Fun Facts About Your Nails and Nail Polish” By The Weight She Carries in Fun Facts
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