00:05Hey guys, it's me Anne, and this is Beauty With Me.
00:08Raise your hand if you've ever gotten a manicure.
00:10I have.
00:11I've gotten many, many, many over the years.
00:14Everything from solid coats of color to more minimal, cool nail art designs.
00:19There is a community of people here in New York that are getting very intense,
00:24extra glitzy 3D nail art with everything from gemstones
00:28to fabric to fur.
00:31I have been seeing 3D nail art absolutely everywhere,
00:34from the runway at Fashion Week to Instagram to on the streets in New York.
00:38I've actually gotten 3D nail art before,
00:40and even though I really loved them,
00:43I still wondered why anyone would put themselves through three-plus hours of nail prep
00:49just to be inconvenienced by claws.
00:51Well, I decided to give it a go again,
00:54this time through my friend Jia Kuan.
00:56She's an art and fashion publicist here in New York,
00:58and she's been getting this type of nail art for over a year.
01:03I met up with Jia to get my nails done by her go-to artist, May Kawajiri.
01:07She is an amazing, amazing nail artist.
01:10She has over 100,000 followers on Instagram,
01:12and she does nails for the biggest and best fashion houses,
01:15from Tom Ford to Balenciaga to Philip Klein.
01:18Once we got to May's apartment, I decided to sit back while May and Jia worked on Jia's nails for
01:24this month.
01:25The nails, which often take anywhere from two to three hours to create,
01:28cost around $200 to $300 to do.
01:32Jia went for a two-toned manicure complete with real fabric on her nails,
01:36and two giant plastic bows on her ring fingers.
01:48Is it heavy?
01:50Not really.
01:51I mean, it is, but it's not.
01:53It's nothing I can't.
01:54I mean, I've had heavier.
01:55Yeah, all the time.
01:56Between this one and my Barbie nails, I'll see how I get by with, like, doing everyday things.
02:05And then it was my turn.
02:06Not gonna lie, I was pretty nervous about getting nails that long.
02:11But I figured if I'm gonna get the nails, I should go big or go home.
02:14So I decided to let May's imagination run wild,
02:17and I told her I just wanted two things.
02:20Purple nails and a little dangly thing like the ones that she had on her own nails.
02:26She went to work first by attaching plastic extensions to all of my fingers,
02:30cutting them, and then filing and buffing them to get them smooth.
02:34Then she applied acrylic gel to create this shape,
02:38used a machine that, like, buzzed and whirred to smooth out the base
02:44before going in with a mixture of purple glitter and gel top coat.
02:48Then came the fun part.
02:50May brought out the same machine that she used to buff my nails,
02:53but put in a thinner, more narrow bit to create a hole in my right pinky nail,
02:59and then attached my pretty little pink rhinestone heart that reminds me of Sailor Moon.
03:05But we weren't done there.
03:06We decided to make these nails even more extra by adding Swarovski crystals to every single nail.
03:18I love them. They look so good. They match my hair.
03:30All right, so we have all nailed up.
03:33Mine looks simple.
03:35Simple.
03:36This is simple?
03:37Yeah.
03:38So I want to know how you guys became friends.
03:42Yeah, I've admired May's Instagram for a long time,
03:44and we kind of followed each other.
03:46We just always DM'd each other.
03:49We like, like, similar style.
03:51Yeah.
03:51We think it's a similar style. It's very cute.
03:53Usually, you know, people give it to me idea, like,
03:56okay, Sailor Moon.
03:57And then I just paint Sailor Moon's face.
04:00But with Jia, it's different.
04:03Like, oh, Sailor Moon.
04:04But it's not, like, exactly inspired.
04:06It's inspired by it.
04:0715 years ago, 17 years ago,
04:10this big giant stone was very popular in Tokyo.
04:13When I moved to New York, it's a little different style.
04:17Finally, you know, fashion picked those nail culture.
04:20You know, before, fashion show is just one regular color
04:24and very clean and short.
04:26That first brand I did was Balenciaga.
04:30The stylist asked me to come to Paris
04:33because they wanted to do long nail and crystal.
04:37Some people will look at these nails,
04:39and we've done a couple of stories on refinery29.com
04:41about 3D nails,
04:42and the comments are always kind of a mixed bag
04:44between, like, these are so cool,
04:46and, like, why would anyone get them, right?
04:47Yeah.
04:47Mm-hmm.
04:48What would you say to those people
04:49that are, like, hating on these nails?
04:51I love them because I've always liked to accessorize.
04:54Doing everyday mundane things,
04:56but with a little bit of color and, like, wittiness to it,
05:00it makes it more fun.
05:01Everyone's gonna talk to you.
05:03Let me see your hand, and where do you live?
05:06This is, like, a conversation.
05:07It is. It's a conversation starter.
05:09Yeah. Yeah.
05:10It really is.
05:11So I've been living with these nails for a few days now,
05:13and I do feel differently now than how I felt two years ago when I got them.
05:19I think that talking to May and Gia after we got our nails done
05:22really opened my eyes to how getting your nails done in this way
05:25can be a really expressive moment
05:28that allows you to actually have little pieces of artwork on your fingers.
05:33Doing things with them, though, are definitely not that easy.
05:37They did tell me that I'd have to kind of adapt to having the nails,
05:40and I kind of feel, like, 50-50 split.
05:43Some things are really fun to do with the nails,
05:45like typing on my phone because it makes a cool little clacking sound.
05:50Petting my cat.
05:51May told me that cats love these nails, and I do think she does.
05:54My cat, Boo Boo, really likes to play with this little dangle.
05:57It's like a built-in toy.
05:59It's also really fun to just, like, hold things, like cups.
06:04I feel like it has...
06:08It just makes every gesture I do so fun.
06:11I find myself, like, in public using my hands more
06:14just to see if people will, like, talk to me about my nails.
06:17But some things are really difficult to do with the nails,
06:21like opening pretty much anything.
06:24Cans, forget about it.
06:26Turning pages of books, hard.
06:29Wiping your ass, difficult.
06:32But not impossible.
06:34Washing your hair.
06:36It's a little bit of a strenuous experience.
06:38Eating things with your hands.
06:41Yesterday I had a sandwich, and I fork and knifed it
06:43because I was like, I just don't want to have to hold this
06:46and then get grease in my nails.
06:48I was just like, no.
06:49I know that these nails are not for everybody.
06:51They're probably, like, a love it or hate it kind of thing,
06:54but I think that speaking with Gia and May made me realize
06:57that something as trivial or seemingly materialistic
07:00as getting your nails done and bedazzled
07:03can be a really great way to form friendships,
07:05an amazing way to express yourself.
07:07I've only had them for a couple days, like I said,
07:10but I've already talked to so many people, like,
07:12random people on the street that will come up to me
07:14and talk to me about my nails.
07:15But I'm starting to see why photos of these nails go viral,
07:19why people love to watch videos about them,
07:22why fashion designers are so drawn to them
07:24and want to put them on their runway.
07:26They're such an interesting way to not only express yourself creatively,
07:31but connect with the community.
07:35So that is it.
07:36I hope that you guys enjoyed this video.
07:38Please let me know in the comments below if you would ever get these nails,
07:41but I will see you guys next week.
07:43Bye.
07:44Thanks so much for watching, guys.
07:45Let me know what you would like to see next on Beauty With Me
07:47in the comments down below,
07:49and click here to subscribe to Refinery29,
07:51click here to watch another video,
07:53and follow me on Instagram at meant.chan for more beauty stuff.
07:58Bye.
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