Halloween!

Halloween spider web nails! I decided to try some rub-on nail polish. It was really pretty easy once I got a system going for putting them on. I put a coat of SV over them when I was done and they just look great.

Taupe Tips

First came two coats of OPI Meet Me On The Star Ferry, then I taped off the ends of my nails and painted a french tip in Pure Ice Taupe Drawer. I also noticed at this time that I have two Pure Ice polishes that are labeled Taupe Drawer. One is more pink and the other is this more purple colour. Sigh...

Spoiled Pink Lemonade

This mani had potential. A great idea from one of my sisters... I just didn't feel like I had the right colour of pink in my collection for this. But I'm on the hunt for one! First layer is the Pure Ice Taupe Drawer, then scotch tape for the tip: Sally Hansen Mellow Yellow. The dots are simply Finger Paint Papier Mache. Can't wait to try this again with a pink that makes me happy.

New DVD

This was nearly impossible to take accurate pictures of, but it was completely gorgeous in person of course. I started with a base of Finger Paint Black Expressionism, then two coats of Sally Hansen HD DVD. Then I cut out the little starburst like shapes from scotch tape, positioned on my nail and painted on the same black. DVD is blue from straight on and purple from a side angle. Love it.

Inspiring Blogger

Chloe's Nails
I wanted to share this blog because it's the place I find *most of my inspiration. And while I don't state that fact in EVERY post I share, it should be noted. She has fantastic ideas and flawless execution. I could look at this blog for hours and when I first discovered it I probably did.

Big $

So... one time I used this colour to as a light second layer over a blue colour and it was gorgeous. This time I layered NYC Big Money Frost over Finger Paint Black Expressionism... and I hated it. But... now you can see what not to do.

Pink!

Another new polish by Sinful Color. This one is just called Pink. What a waste of a perfect opportunity to come up with some quirky name for nail polish. Oh well... True to their formula (at least so far in my experience) it goes on very sheer and takes at least 3 coats to get good solid coverage. Also, it dries to almost a matte finish. And it is just as electric in real life as it looks in the pics. Blinding.

5 New Polishes

I picked these up at Walgreens. The Sinful Colours brand is the store brand I think. Eventually I will get around to doing a swatch of them or at least using them in some fun mani. The blue is called Paradise, the yellow Pull Over and the pink is just called Pink. I also picked up two Sally Hansen HD polishes that I've been wanting to try... and since they were half off it was a good time to buy. I tried Byte (photo) and I can tell you it's definitely best over a base coat. I did three 3! layers over an existing mani and you could still see through it.

Paradise is Rough

New polish! I wanted to use the new beautiful Sinful Colors blue I recently bought, Paradise. It took three thick layers of this one to get a good, streak-free base. It was worth it though! The colour really pops. But I wanted something a little.... less boring. So I used scotch tape and cut out little notches (picture). I added this accent in a dark blue; NYC Skin Tight Denim, followed by SV Topcoat of course. I got lots of compliments on how seamless this mani looks. I'm enjoying it quit a bit myself!

Strawberry Pie

For Father's Day my sister made a strawberry pie for my dad. So I decided to paint this strawberry design on my nails. I started with OPI Log On To Love. It's the perfect colour for strawberries. Then I used a toothpick to draw on the base (Finger Paint, Papier Mache) for what would become the green leaves. This white base helps the green pop. Then I painted directly over that white base with China Glaze Tree Hugger.After everything was nice and dry I used a toothpick again to make little yellow dots for the seeds using Sinful Colors Pull Over.

Nebular Sparkle

I started with a gorgeous dark purple base, Pure Ice No Means No. Then I added a couple of layers of my favourite 'glitter' to date: Nubar 2010. I love that the flakes are flat. I covered this all with SV Topcoat for durability then painted a layer of Matte Magic. I love the contrast of matte polish with a glitter. This mani got lots of attention too! It doesn't photograph well, especially in the sun, but it's fantastic in person. I know, some of the pics are blurry, but that's to show the sparkle better. Plus... I take all of my pics with my iPhone.

Pink with Pink Stripes

This was the worlds fastest mani. First of all, because I didn't have much time and secondly, because the zebra Konad plate is very forgiving. Both colours are Pure Ice brand. Two coats of the base colour of course. I'll have to update later with the exact colour names.

Random Marble

Here are two quick photos of some random water marbling that I've done in the past.

Mermaid's Tears

This is from the Pirates of the Caribbean collection by OPI. I have a shade a sun picture. I did two semi thick layers of this. The first one goes on really sheer and I was worried, but after the second coat it's perfect. It's also has a great feel to the formula. At first it looked streaky but then it smoothed itself out quite nicely. I'm on a matte craze, so after my SV topcoat dried i applied a thick layer of China Glaze Matte Magic over it all. One picture is a side-by-side. I love it.

Ok.... so, for this lovely mani I first polished my nails with petites' Twilight polish (no pic, sorry). I've read that using white or sliver as a base for more sheer colours can help them pop. I've done white plenty of times but wanted to try silver. I liked the way it turned out. So, then I did a couple of coats of Insta-Dri's Instant Iris. I love this colour, but I haven't used it much because it's very sheer without a good base colour. Anyway, after that I did a quick coat of SV just to lock everything in. Then I used China's Glaze's Matte Magic. I LOVE MATTE MAGIC. It's one of my favourite topcoats. It takes any polish you have and makes it matte. Love it and I loved what it did to Instant Iris. I would wear this colour by itself. So... After that I used a Konad plate to stamp on some swirly tips with Pure Ice Scandal, then another plate to stamp a little sliver heart (same colour as my base). and finally I outlined the hearts with a Sally Hansen black nail art pen. I will say that you MUST put a topcoat over these art pens or they run at the slightest hint of water.