Chameleon Abstract feat Sonoma Nail Art My Three Glitters

Hey polished prisoners,

There's nothing I love more than finding an amazing drug store polish on the cheap except for when it's a HTF lemming.  When I was in Rite Aid some time ago I discovered Chameleon Polish by Scherr - a line of super pretty shifing duochromes that retail for about $3.99.  I picked up one on a whim and now I'm so glad I did! I bought Calypso a purple to gray/blue shifting color.   In a word it's gorgeous!  I wanted to do a simple gradient with Calypso so I sponged it over Essie's Turquoise & Caicos - one of my favorite blue polishes of all time, and added some simple stamping to turn up the flavor.  Here's how it turned out...

Mani-louge

Base coat: Revlon Quick Dry Base Coat

Top Coat: Out The Door (boo)

Base Color: Essie's Turquoise & Caicos

Gradient (dry sponge method):  Chameleon Polish Calypso

Glitter Accent Nails: Sonoma Nail Art My Three Glitters & CND Effects Gold Sparkle

Stamping polish:  Konad Special Polish in Black Pearl

Stamping Plate: SH23

Insert angry face her-  Out the Door smeared my perfect stamp! I'm all out of poshe and I've never felt more desperate!

I chose to add glitter accent nails because honestly I'm always slightly unnerved when all of my nails match.  It's okay every once in a while, but I prefer a little variety within a mani.  SNA's MTG's provided the perfect touch without overwhelming the gradient. 

The gradient before stamping.  I think this is super pretty too!

Honestly there probably isn't a black and while matte polish that I've met that I don't like. However I will say MTG's is toward my top picks when it comes to these types of polishes.  It's funky and unique and I love that the glitters are squares. I added CND's Gold Sparkle just for a touch of sheen without going too overboard.

 

So this is pretty.  Yup - just plain ole pretty.  When I finished this mani I felt like I'd had a return to girly without the bling or gleam. I need to do more mani's like this one.  Do you like it? Am I the only one in the NP sphere still totally obsessed with gradient nail art? I hope not lol! Thanks for reading and see you next post! Toodles...

Toxic Rain - On Sundays I Stamp!

Hey polished prisoners,

It has been too long! Let me apologize for my absence it's been a flurry of activity recently that has left me exhausted and uninspired of late.  Also for some reason I have had fail after fail recently.  Every time I went to polish my nails they ended up smudged or ruined in a way that I couldn't even start the nail art.  It actually happened this time too but I decided to persevere.  Finally I smashed my ultra large bottle of CND Stickey - the base coat I live by.  Horrible!  I'm hoping with this post my string of bad luck ends.  So here we go!

The theme for Adventures in Stamping this week was toxic or poisonous.  How deliciously appropo with Halloween around the corner.  I've actually done a toxic mani before which you can check out here, and it was somewhat the basis for this mani.  I wanted to create acid rain, chemical bubbles, and nasty neon drips lol! This sounds so gross when I read it aloud, but I think I accomplished what I set out to create.

Mani-louge

Base: Revlon Posh

Freehand Drips & Dots: CM Nail Art Striper in Hot Yellow

Stamping polishes: Revlon Posh and Konad Special Polish in Yellow

Stamping plates: Konad M13 and Shany SH23

So what do you think? Welp it feels a little spooky and evil but I like it!  Somehow it appears my AIS posts always save me when I'm in a rut.  Thank goodness for that and thanks for reading! I'll see you next post.  Toodles!

Gradients and Dots - On Sundays I Stamp!

Hey polished prisoners,

It's another Sunday and another foray into Adventures in Stamping!  You guys know I adore these challenges so much.  This weeks' theme was sort of like it's almost fall or fall inspired.  I was pleased when I saw this one if for no other reason that I'm sick to death of the heat and stickiness that defines DC in the late summer months.  Lord bring on the fall with it's hoodies and pashminas!  In any case I chose to use a gradient with rich fall colors to create my look and then garnish it with another type of gradient stamping. Here's the result...

Mani-louge

Base color: Essie's Buy Me A Cameo

Gradient: Essie's Buy Me A Cameo, Barielle Wrap Me In Ribbon, and Sally Hansen Haute Chcolate

Stamping polishes: China Glaze Millennium & Konad Special Polish in Black Pearl

Image plate: SH23

For this challenge I really wanted to veer away from colors that are typical fall - oranges, browns, golds, but I definitely wanted to incorporate neutrals.  For me fall is all about doing lots of neutrals and using rich vampy colors to add interest to outfits usually in the vein of accessories such as the aforementioned pashminas though coats, handbags, and shoes feature heavily into the equation.  I tried to stick with the same concept on my nails and I was pretty pleased with the results. The hardest part for me honestly was picking a polish. 

The gradient before stamping.

I have so many great fall shades in my collection especially of late it was difficult to make a decision.

 I really love how this came out!

So here we are smack dab in mid-August coming into the fall.  Personally I'm so excited not just for the cooling down of weather, but also for all the new collections soon to be released including KBShimmer, and a few others!  Maybe what I love the most about fall is that it's the big signal for change and personally these days I could do with a bit of that.  Welp I hope you enjoyed this one and thanks so much for reading.  See you next post! Toodles...