Check It. Essie's Wedding Collection 2011.

Essie is famous for their vast selection of pale pink polishes. I have a handful of favorites, including Adore-a-Ball, Ballet Slippers, and Sugar Daddy.

Now it's June, prime wedding season, and their 2011 Wedding Collection added another favorite to my list: Better Together. It also contains a perfect classic red, First Dance (on my toes, below). A trendy pastel blue (think Hard Candy circa 1995), Borrowed & Blue, and another pale pink, Made to Honor, round out the collection.

The cute box set of four mini bottles is just perfect--I never finish a full bottle of nail polish, and it usually ends up getting heat or sun (or age) damaged about halfway through and changes color. With these convenient 5 ml bottles, nothing will go to waste.

Check out our favorite L.A. nail salons.

Happy manicuring!

-- Leslie Anne Wiggins

Photo credit: essie

Etc. Royal Wedding.

No, I didn't get up at 3:00 a.m. pacific time to watch the Royal Wedding, but when I was up at 8:00 a.m., I was glued to the TV watching coverage. So exciting!

Have a great weekend, and toast William and Catherine in true British style (even if you don't have a vintage Aston Martin to cruise around in).

From the BEAT archives:

a full English breakfast at home

English beer at the Village Idiot

an Essie manicure (one of the two shades used for Kate's wedding mani was 'allure')

-- Leslie Anne Wiggins

Photo credit: telegraph.co.uk

Do It. A great manicure.

Finding a reliable place for a decent manicure is no easy task. Yesterday evening, after just over a week of dark (when in New York ... ) nails, I wanted it off, and a fresh application of a more comfortable pretty pale pink.

I ended up getting one of the best manicures I've ever had (and I've had quite a few in my day) at Express Nails on Robertson, just below Gregory Way in Beverly Hills. For $11.

If you live in West L.A./Beverly Hills/West Hollywood/Hollywood, or even if you don't, I highly recommend it. They have a wide selection of colors, and I went with Essie's creamy pale pink "Adore-a-Ball" (pictured above) after briefly considering the slightly more clear "Mademoiselle".

Other nail salon recommendations:

Deluxe Nail Bar and Spa (2913 Main Street in Santa Monica)

Montana Nails (1411 Montana Avenue in Santa Monica)

Jessica's Nail Clinic (8627 Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood; appointment only)

-- Leslie Anne Wiggins

Photo credit: beautysolutions.ca

Check It. Chanel's Particulière polish.

In honor of Fashion Week Los Angeles (March 17-24), I'd like to point out a trend I am loving for Spring 2010. Chanel recently launched a new line of nail polish colors that they've been using on the runway, including this putty-colored beauty called Particulière.

At $23, it's quite a splurge, but it's something you can wear everyday (for about a week at a time anyway). This is a color that works for both hands and feet, and is flattering for most skin tones. Fashion-forward Demi Moore was sporting putty-colored nails at the Academy Awards, and this week I noticed the of-the-moment shade on the nails of L.A. Times Image section editor Booth Moore too! I can't wait to get in on it with a glossy mani/pedi of my own.

If you're just not going to drop $20 plus on nail polish, Essie's Chinchilly does the trick too, and is a more reasonable $8.

-- Leslie Anne Wiggins

Photo credit: www.independent.co.uk