MoYou London Tropical Overlapping Nail Art + Tutorial!

Hey stamperistas

Purchased by Me

I've been wanting to try these overlapping plates from MoYou London out for a while now.  In fact I purchased two of them as soon as they released, but I just didn't have a chance to pick them up and break them out until recently.  They've been sitting at my bedside just staring at me begging to be used so I decided to put them to good use and I'm totally pleased with how fun and tropical this mani came out :)

Messy Mansion & Moyra Burnt Paper & Falling Leaves Nail Art

Hi stamperistas

Purchased by Me

Does anyone remember a very very long time ago I created nail art using the Messy Mansion "Love Letters" plate?  No well I do!  I was one of most popular designs.  At that time I think it may have been right when I was just getting into photography and trying to figure out lighting etc.  I've come a long way from there, but that mani remains one of the ones that I wanted to recreate to this day.  However there is no point IMO in recreating nail art if you can't make it better and in this case I used the art I created to enter the Beautometry Next Top Swatcher Contest.  If you have a chance and wouldn't mind please go like my first entry on Instagram and Facebook.

Valentine's Day 2016: Radiating Hearts and Kitty Love Nail Art + Tutorial

Hey lacqueristas,

Ah its that time when we begin contemplating how much love is love.  Our nails and our candies and our slowly expanding waists from excess chocolate intake all reflect this lovely obsession. Personally I feel slightly nauseous.  Usually this begins at the top of January when the Valentine's Day decorations replace the Christmas ones.  I start thinking gah not again.  However this year I'm going to really try and rise to the occasion and give this whole lovey dovey nail thing a go.  Note I said try no promises.  As such I thought I'd start out with something on the milder side of love - kitty love ;)

Love is a heart that desires to serve a precious person who is close to oneself.  To love and watch over that person. ~ Masashi Kishimoto

Moyra Embellished Abstract Nail Art

Hiya stamperistas,

Get ready for it cause today I'm changing up the game ;)  No really seriously I am! For the first time in forever not counting dotticures I'm throwing some freehand into my stamping.  Freehand embellishments anyway in the form of gel polish.  That's right everything is about to get all crazy up in this place.  I'm taking my new Moyra plates out for a spin so let's do this thing!

Nudes and Neutrals Fall Geometric Uberchic Beauty Nail Art + Tutorial

Hey stamp champs,

Rolling out a little geometric magic for you today.  Gotta say I've really been on a roll these days with my nail art wanting to try out a bunch of new things.  Today I kept things classic and put a slight twist on it.  The classic would be the abstract pattern from UberChic Beauty.  The twist would be using my nail template from Messy Mansion to make some magic happen with that pattern.  The colorway I chose also stays true to fall so I hope you like it!

Watercolor Birds and Floral Nail Art + Tutorial

Hey lacqueristas,

Even though the holiday season is approaching I'm in a weird nail art space.  I want to create florals and bright fun nails that are reminiscent of warm summer days and tropical breezes.  Clearly I'm delusional - slap me! Part if the problem however could be that I also just started playing with plates that aren't quite in the same seasonal space - like the ones from Loja BBF that I just reviewed.  You can check out that review here.  This is another foray into my aquarelle world.  Guess what I actually filmed this out too so there is a tutorial!  It's a bit different from the global aquarelle post I'm doing, but since I filmed it out I thought I'd share it since the other post needs to be filmed in entirely separate parts.

Marianne Nails Aquarelle Butterfly Vintage Paper Nail Art

Hey stamperistas,

I've been playing around with a new technique to add to my stamping nail art. In all honesty I follow a lot of freehand nail artists and bloggers and I'm always wowed by the things they do.  That's not to say I love stamping any less, but sometimes I really want to replicate some of the creations I see. However in general I wouldn't say I'm terribly good at freehand.  I'm ok at it and if I practiced more I'd probably get better, but my heart always ends up gravitating back toward stamping.  So today I added the elusive aquarelle technique into my stamping and I have to say I'm pretty pleased with the results.  Depending on the feedback I get I will create a tutorial/separate blog post on how to accomplish this task.  The truth is this was one of most complicated mani's I've ever created both from a technique perspective and stamping perspective! I'm not joking in the slightest so I really hope you like it.

Stripes & Roses B Loves Plates Nail Art

Hey lacqueristas,

There has been a mani that I've been wanting to try for like dog years.  Its a black and white striped affair with flowers.  I've seen it over and over again from other bloggers totally freehand and I felt like I would burst if I didn't try it soon.  Good thing I had these awesome rose patterns from my new B. Loves Plates to take out for a spin ;)

Polish TBH Disney Princess Collection Select Swatches & Nail Art

Hey lacqueristas,

Press Sample

Long time no chat!  Sorry for the silence over the weekend! I had big plans and reviews to post however I had a little accident with my left ankle and spend the weekend writhing in agony and trying to get myself to go to the emergency room.  Lol well one aircast, brace, and several icing sessions later here I stand/hobble.  Ready to move on and so you some pretty! And the best part of today's swatch-a-thon is that it features PolishTBH, an indie that does crellies/jellies in a way that makes my heart pound, and it features Disney which just always always makes me smile.  That's right! Today I've got a few selections from the 12 polish limited edition Disney Princess Collection from PolishTBH.  Prepare to set your wallets to stun ;)

Springtime Sunflower Nail Art Tutorial feat 10.1 Perfect Polish and UberChic Beauty Nail Art Stamping Plates!

Hey stamp champs,

Press Sample

Top of the Monday to you!  Just a quicky post to remind you spring is right around the corner even if your city feels like a chill chamber of death.  Lol sorry DC has been a wee bit nippy lately and its killing me.  In any case yesterday I did a massive swatch a thon of the 10.1 Perfect Polish Sunshine and Rainbows Collection.  If you didn't see it you can check out all the cool nail art and swatches here.  I also happened to create a tutorial using Sweet Sherbet and Uberchic Beauty plates that I thought I would share today.

Nail Hoot Indie Lacquers The Beginning Collection Swatches & Nail Art

Hey lacqueristas,

Press Sample

This weekend its gonna be jam packed with nail art and swatches for some brands that are new to the blog!  Today its really my pleasure to share with you a brand spanking new indie nail polish company called Nail Hoot created by a stellar pal of mine Brandie Collins!  She's like a one woman wonder woman between her kids, school, work, and crafts business and if that doesn't beat all now she's diving into the nail polish scene and from what I've seen of her new collection its gonna be a smash hit! So sit back and enjoy the swatches :)

Messy Mansion Neon Coral Jelly Sandwich Ocean Nail Art

Hey stamperistas,

Welcome to my version of the sea ;)  The coral is neon and the sea life blooms in shades of pastel.  Its pretty and whimsical and just really damn fun!  I can't even tell you where I got the idea for this mani because it all started with the basecoat.  I just wanted to create a jelly sandwich.  Initially I had been thinking of doing something sheer and dramatic then I decided to take my Leadlight Lacquer plates for a cruise again (you can read the review here) and the rest as they say is history.  For those that are like, "What happened to your lovely square shaped nails?" and don't follow me on Instagram - the short version is I had two devastating breaks in as many days and decided to try out some tips and a different shape.

Orly Colorblast Neons & Nudes QGirl Geometric Nail Art

Hey lacqueristas,

Its been a while since I've posted something neon right? Lol like 5 minutes maybe? Lol ok it hasn't been that long yeah, but when the neons are so juicy how can I possibly resist? Today I'm wearing some of my favorite neon polishes in my collection...the Orly Colorblast polishes I discovered a year ago.  These polishes are VERY VERY pigmented and as such very intense.  For those of you that are looking for alternatives to the Pipe Dream Polish Vegas Collection these may be a great alternative. That's also one reason I decided to create this nail art along with the fact that hello I love neons ;)

Elevation Polish Minneapolish Collection Swatches and Nail Art!

Hey lacqueristas,

Time for another monthly Elevation Polish post!  Yay - elevate the world!!! Lol let me stop, but seriously this months' collection, The Minneapolish Collection made me so happy and thrilled even in the heart of winter.  Packed full of what I consider serious color burst and saturation.  As you can guess this collection was inspired by the city of Minneapolis and some of Lulu's favorite plates scattered throughout the town.  It's a reflection of her love for the city and from what I can see while she may travel the world clearly there is no place like home!

Lesson Lockdown: How To Create Double Processed/Double Processing Nail Art!

Hey stamp champs,

Today I'm going to show you a new technique I discovered through a nail friend and a true creative powerhouse Joey Helland.  Regardless of what she says this lady is truly amazing!  Anyone who can come up with these techniques, raise two children, act as a wife, and hold down a job gets all my respect and admiration in the world.  I'd be napping lol!  Anyhoo she created this technique and named it Double Processing which is an entirely accurate description.  Essentially is a stamp that you process twice! Eh? Yeah I know when she first tried to describe this technique to me even with pictures I was like um....Yup total confusion and dismay.  I kept looking at her pictures expecting an epiphany and when that didn't happen I just decided to try practicing and see if I could produce the results by trial.  Luckily I was able to and discovered that this technique is pretty awesome once you have the basics that is! So I decided to create a little video tutorial and a verbal breakdown a alongside the process so let's go!

Sweaters, Swirls and Snoopy Winter Nail Art

Hey lacqueritas,

I/m keeping it chill and cool today.  Lol actually I'm keeping it cool and chill for the rest of the year not that there's much of it left.  Anyway I've been wearing these nails for a couple of days now.  A kind of pink on pink swirling winter nail art.  I wouldn't necessarily classify it as Christmas per say just cozy.  Anyhoo here's what I came up with...

Christmas 2014: O Holy Night Nail Art

Welcome back varnished vixens,

Today I want to share some special nail art with you.  I have been dying to create some holy night nail art for years now.  I have failed many times.  Lol of course I never posted them because they were a hot mess, but today I think I succeeded in the craft.  Even if you aren't religious or don't believe in the sabbath everyone can just admire pretty nails!  And to be frank I had several stamping plates that were calling out for me to create this design.  So of course I obliged ;)

MoYou London 31 Day Nail Art Challenge: Day 22 Flowers

Happy sunday funday lacqueristas,

Quiet day with lots of work planned for me? Anyone else having a relaxing weekend?  I decided today was a good day to post another look from the MoYou London 31 Day nail art challenge.  The theme for this day was Floral.  I will say I wasn't entirely happy with how these came out in terms of color choice, but not in terms of execution.  I really wanted the yellow to burst forth and I don't know if I achieved that.  Somehow though it still came out kind cute or I'm totally full of self-delusion lol either way here we go!

MoYou London 31 Day Nail Art Challenge: Day 21 Fashion

Happy Friday varnished vixens,

Today I decided to do another post for the 31 Day Nail Art Challenge I did for MoYou London a while ago.  If you follow me on Instagram you know about all the posts and the winner has been announced ages ago.  I wanted to make sure I got up all the blog posts that corresponded as well but it's been a bit of slow going.  The prompt for the 21st day was Fashion.  I chose to use designs and patterns by the tribal and pattern loving designer Mara Hoffman.

Elevation Polish Weddell Sea & Messy Mansion Koi Nail Art

Lazy Sunday lacqueristas,

Seriously super lazy Sunday for me.  I'm exhausted since I've definitely been trying to do too much for work and school and the blog.  It all hit me today when I tried to tackle 2 challenges and realized it wasn't gonna happen.  I could do one or the other not both and still have time to study.  Ah such is life.  So I thought I'd show you a manicure from months ago.  Lol all of my Sunday posts have been like this lately ;)

When I received the Elevation Polish Sea Collection Weddell Sea was one of those polishes that stumped me.  Super pretty whitish gray holo with a shimmer in the base.  I could not capture it's elegance and its beauty.  You can see what I did with it previously here. When I tried to do nail art for it I failed over and over.  This was one of the fails.  I called it a fail because I felt when I looked at what I created I'd overwhelmed the base color. Then instead of going with it I stopped halfway deciding not to fill up my somewhat empty canvas.  Looking back on it now though I think it's kind of pretty (lol clearly biased and delusional).

I created this mani using all the polishes from the Sea Collection so all the blues and greens you see swept haphazardly across Weddell are from that collection as well.  To fill in the fish I used Silversword.  I don't think this polish gets nearly enough play. It's still insanely stunning to me months and months later.  What shocked me the most when I was going back through my archives is that I have a TON of EP nail art that I haven't shown.  I'll have to amend that ;)

Mani-louge

Basecoat/Topcoat: Duri Rejuvacote / Sally Hansen Diamond Flash

Basecolor: Elevation Polish Weddell Sea

Accent colors: Elevation Polish The Med 2, Ceram Sea,and Silversword

Stamping polish: Mundo de Unas Neon Blue (#30)

Stamping plate: Messy Mansion MM29

So what do you think? Sometimes fails are fun too because they can really teach you things to not do in the future. This can be related specifically to a plate or a design.  Lol I just had a fail earlier this week. It made me so mad I had to take it off immediately and create a new mani stat.  Unfortunately Weddell Sea is sold out at the moment on Elevation Polish, but it will likely be back on the 7th of September if you want to pick it up.  Thanks for reading and I'll see you next post....