Any woman who worked in the 70’s and 80’s office knew the value of keeping a bottle of clear nail polish in her desk drawer – it was a lifesaver when it came to stopping a run in your nylons. Of course, nude or skin-colored nylons are now mostly a thing of the past, but I recently revisited my stash of nail polish to save the day in another way – one that you might not expect.

In our recent move from San Francisco to North Carolina, I was thrilled that none of our belongings got damaged – at least by the movers. However, as I was reassembling the glass shelves in our dining room armoire, well…I really don’t know what happened because I thought those shelves were very stable on their pegs…but I guess they weren’t. All of a sudden there was a crash as one shelf fell and continued falling through several more. When it was over, there were shards of glass everywhere. (I didn’t even take a picture of it, I was so upset.) So needless to say, I had to order the replacement glass and start over.

Before I got the replacement glass, I decided I’d better touch up the dings that the falling glass had left on the cabinet. Fortunately the finish on this cabinet is a mottled-paint so it is more easily repaired than some other finishes might be. I had had to make repairs to this cabinet before in previous moves, so I knew exactly what to do.  Nail polish to the rescue!

I purchased these two polishes many years ago, specifically for the first repair job I just mentioned. Yes, they had separated over time, but a thorough shake made them all-good again. They match the finish so perfectly that there’s literally no skill required to do the touch-ups.

You can see in these before and after shots how well the polish worked. (There are still a few spots that I’m going to re-touch – you have to take a look at the dings from all angles to make sure they are truly covered.) I’m thrilled! In fact, I’m even considering trying the muted metallic green as an actual polish, just for fun, even though I’ve never worn this shade before.

Speaking of which, do you find that you’re drawn to the same shades of polish over and over again? Look at these photos – I think I’ve got a think for grays and reds, what do you think? Maybe time to break out of the mold a little?

Have you used nail polish, or some other beauty item, in an inventive way? Please do share!

Thanks for reading – carpe diem!

Adena