Simples: UberChic Beauty Radiating Crescents Gradient Nail Art

Hey lovelies,

Press Sample

Purchased by Me

Happy Hump Day!  It's official I'm really on a roll!  I am really getting a lot of inspiration these days and so the nail art is just coming.  I decided not to film all the nail art I create particularly the more simple mani's.  At some point I may just post up a video of 5-6 easy looks in a compilation.  Today's nail art is super simple while being pretty and bright! It feels perfect for spring or summer & got me a few compliments as well :)

Valentine's Day 2016: Heart Gradients on Gradients Nail Art + Tutorial

Hey loveristas,

Still hanging in there.  My soul is not completely shriveled and I'm giving it my full gusto all about the love all about the bling bling heart thang.  Ok that's a lie, but whatever for those that follow me on Instagram you know I just got my new MoYou London Festive plates for Valentine's Day seriously in the nick of time for some V-day nail art.  I'm also very seriously considering how to work my own style into 2 different V-day looks, but time is closing in.  I should have started doing these the last 2 weeks of January because now I'm finally starting to get lots of cool ideas.  Alas!

All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn’t hurt. ~ Charles Schulz

MoYou London Triangle Grid Placement Neon Nail Art + Tutorial

Hey hey hey lacquer ladies,

I'm back today with some nail art that is a little more typical for my brand of art ;)  In short - MoYou London, tribal-esque, and neon.  Yeah typical and right up my alley a bit different from my last delicate mani with the 3D placement.  Where the last was soft this one is bold and right in your face lots of gradient power and eye grabbing color.  This time around I also took my new AliExpress "Clear Jelly Stamper" out for a spin.  I'll have some more thoughts on it coming up in a future post since I haven't had a chance to test it under all conditions yet.  I will say this however so far I actually find it easier to do placement mani's without it than with.  Lol go figure.

Pet'la Plate & Liquid Sky Lacquer Holographic Abstract Snowflake Nail Art + Tutorial

Hey stamperistas,

Happy 2016!  The year went quickly and a lot has changed around here.  If I think of all the changes I made I'd get overwhelmed - but the blog setup, my lighting, my camera, my filmography software and photography software has changed so much!  It's crazy to think of it all and how much I've learned and still have to learn.  But what do you think? Is it just me who thinks a lot has changed? Has a lot changed in your nail art or set up? I'd love to hear about it in the comments below!

Christmas 2015 Simples: OPI Snowflakes Wrapping Paper Inspired Nail Art + Tutorial

Ho ho ho,

Tis the season and all that jazz! For the last several years I haven't been able to do nearly as many nail art looks for Christmas as I have wanted to.  It's been pretty disappointing because I'm such a fan of this holiday, and of all the many many plates I own  Christmas is probably the one theme I own the most type of plates from across my entire collection.  I'm a bit helplessly drawn to these plates.  So this year I decided even if I can't do a bunch of my mega complex manis I'm definitely going to fit in more Christmas nail art magic this year.  One way is by doing what I call simples and for the first time I wanted to create a holiday playlist on my Youtube channel to go along with the art.

Elevation Polish Street Graffiti Collection Swatches and Nail Art (June 2015)

Happy Monday,

Press Sample

Oh my it's been way too long since I posted some nail art.  I've missed it terribly.  I love talking about stamping plates and products and reviewing them, but nothing revs my engine quite better than actually getting down to the deed of stamping.  I'm behind.  I've realized I'm just going to be behind for a while, though I'm going to make every effort to catch up quickly, however I really can't over do things.  I'm going to have to ask your forgiveness for that and extend my gratitude to my partners who have been so amazing to me! I'm blessed truly and I know it and don't take it for granted.  Now today I have a collection I have been sitting on for far far too long - Elevation Polish Street Graffiti Collection.  Yup - I'm still loving and living for my EPs and I still have 2 more collections to show you, but for today let's take a look at the mean streets of the world ;)

China Glaze Electric Nights Gradient Dot & Swirls Nail Art & Tutorial

Hey stamperistas,

Its been crazy quiet over here apologies for that.  I've been in the midst of craziness and now somehow I'm having to plan a move!  Lord I hate moving mostly too because it's hell on my nails! Gah!  In any case today I finally got some time to sit down and do some photo and video editing so I have a nail art to share with you lovelies!  I also took my new Nail Matinee plates out for another spin ;)

Bejewled Floral Gradient Nail Matinee Nail Art & Tutorial

Hey stamperistas,

I have been a bit quiet here because not much is going on.  I've also been nursing a spring cold or virus something like that - it sucks!  Its been a lot of tea drinking and Vicks Vapor Rub lol I smell like a eucalyptus tree took up residence in my home.  Its not nearly as sexy as it sounds lol ;)  In any case I finally was able to summon up enough stamina to do some photo and video editing.  Oh my!  And so today I have a little nail art I created using Elevation Polish and my new Nail Matinee stamping plates courtesy of Beautometry. If you haven't seen my review for these plates you can check that out here.

Lumina Lacquer Farplane Spring Gradient

Hey lacqueristas,

 It's been a while since I've fallen in love with a new indie brand these days, and to be honest this indie brand isn't entirely new to me it's more or less just new to the blog.  I'm talking about Lumina Lacquer.  Essentially I love this brand in it's entirely for Tatiana's utterly glorious utterly unique glitterbombs! They are amazing and currently unlike any others I've seen to date.  I was lucky enough to get some of her recent pretties from the last restock and decided to take one out for a stroll today using one of my Cici & Sisi jumbo plates as an accent.

Mani-louge

Basecoat/Topcoat: Nail Pattern Boldness Glitter-A-Peel & Poshe Fast Drying Topcoat

Gradient: China Glaze Metro-pollen-tini and Liquid Sky Lacquer Baby Chick

Glitter topper: Lumina Lacquer Farplane

Stamping polish: Mundo de Unas #

Stamping plate: Cici and Sisi 01 Jumbo Set 1

Farplane is magnificent! Matte pastel, black and white triangles, circles, hearts, moons, and stars with micro matte white glitter.  It's hard to believe that you could find this many shapes in one bottle or that they would play so well together.  The gradient seen here is directly from the bottle with some placement.  Because of all the shapes you really need a thick topcoat to smooth everything out like Gelous.  For the accent nail the tribal played the minor role, but I think worked well over all.  In fact it worked so well I ended up doing a repeat which I post tomorrow or tonight.



In any case I hope you liked today's mani.  It's been a bit hectic over here since the giveaway started, but I'm just gonna be plugging on with my art and such.  You can find Lumina Lacquer polishes here on her Big Cartel though I'm unclear on when she is restocking.  Stay tuned as well for a few reviews and updates for the Loja BBF plates!  Thanks so much for reading and see you next post...

Sweet Movember feat MoYou London Rebel and Pro Collection Nail Art

Hey lacqueristas,

It's been a busy last few weeks and I've got lots to show you.  It's November and that means it's the month when men descend into madness and attempt what no one, save a select few, should attempt - the growing of a mustache.  When my classmates try this I think it's a horror to behold, but on the nails it's rather cute and bold (wink wink).  That said onto the nail art!

I'm kept things fairly simple with a nude and lavender/lilac gradient.  As usual Essie's Sand Tropez is my go-to nude cream base.  I honestly get anxious when I can't find this polish in my stash because it is so versatile and works as a base for so many great designs.  The purple is OPI Do You Lilac It?  The answer is yes I do!  I think I have sadly neglected mainstream polishes lately in my undying love of indie polishes.  It's a real shame because I'd forgotten the allure of mainstreams in this case being flawless formula and consistency with nearly one coat opacity.

I choose some of my MoYou London plates using Rebel Collection 05 and the Pro Collection 06 for the selection of different mustaches.  If you look closely at my nails you'll see each mustache is different.  I'm so impressed with the quality of these stamping plates which are some of the best I've tried to date.  I'll have to do a separate post on them later, but suffice to say I'm loving what I've tried thus far.

I really adore how these turned out!  I had some misgivings at first because I wasn't sure I could make this look feminine, but the final effect is sort of sweet and whimsical.  So what do you think?  Any plans for a Movember mani of your own? I think I'll do one more of these before the month is out.  I have a shocking amount of plates with mustaches on them I guess they are getting fairly popular.  Thanks for reading and see you next post!

Floral Appeal feat Liquid Sky Lacquer Head To The Bahamas and Enchanted Forest

Hey lacquer ladies,

In the interim between my blogging I've discovered so many amazing brands.  One happens to be Liquid Sky Lacquer.  God I love this brand!  As a self admitted holo whore shopping on her site for me isa skin to Alice romping through wonderland.  She makes super holos and some of the most amazing holo transitional polishes I have encountered.  So today I have two of my favorites for you along with some lovely stamping featuring my new Winstonia plates.

Head To The Bahamas is a nude linear holo - be still my heart.  Absolutely flawless and self leveling.  Pictured here opaque in 2 coats.  Yum

Enchanted Forest is a deep evergreen linear holo.  It is rather intense,  but requires a great deal of build up about 3-4 coats since the polish is thin, but it's totally worth it.  I used it here to create a gradient.

The technique I used for the stamping is fairly advanced.  I used one of the newish square shaped plates W-04 to create the art.  Stamping first and then filling in the pattern with acrylic paint.  After that I stamped back over the filled in image and wha-lah!  Instant pretty.

Indoors shot.  True to color but less fabulously holo.

 So what do you think? I've advanced quite a bit with my stamping skills though I still feel I've got lots more to learn.  If you are interested in purchasing either of the LSL polishes click the link above.  Carolyn is restocking on October 8th.  For the plates you can check out either the link above or my page for stamping supplies.  Thanks so much for reading and I hope you liked it!  I'll see you next post! 

NailArt March: Elevation Polish OOK & Gradients

Happy Saturday polished prisoners,

So I realized I need to be a little more on the ball about putting up these posts.  Seriously I have tons of great manicures to share, but I haven't put up the posts because it's a bit more time consuming than just throwing them up to my Instagram.  However, since I love my blog and all my followers I definitely need to keep doing that :)  So let me share one with you today that is a bit old, but still fabulous!  As you know I've been putting up a lot of my nail art March challenges and the 3rd one was gradients.  Around here y'all know I love me a gradient.  Never met one I didn't like and I've got about 3 techniques under my belt for creating the perfect one ;)  I really wanted to feature a One-Of-A-Kind Elevation Polish I got too a few restocks ago.  It's one of those "black & white" toppers but in the EP spirit it's blue, white, and black.  Think frosts on top of mountains and you'll get it.  Anyway I'll let the pictures do the talking!

Mani-louge

Basecoat/Top Coat: CND Stickey & Poshe Fast Drying Topcoat

Gradient: Orly Satin Hues - Satin Eloquence, Uniquely Satin, and Satin Finesse

Glitter Topper: Elevation Polish OOK #2

Stamping polish: Color Club Lumi-nescient

Stamping plate: Wistonia 111

 

Friggin gorgeous right?!? Okay no seriously what do you think?  The blue was a bit hard to capture due to the lightness but  I love love love this combo plus I love love love this glitter topper!  It's an OOK (I know don't groan it's really hard for me to get OOKs too!)  but here's some good news.  The brilliant Lulu of Elevation Polish was actually test running this pretty baby and released the final version on the 7th of this month.  It's called Haba Xueshan and you can get it on the 22nd of March on the EP website.  And before you ask, yes, I did get the final version because I want to do a comparison ;) I believe that's called being a helpless addict.  In any case I remember some time ago when Lulu was planning a brown/white/black combo that was supposed to be in this vein - I want that one too! 

So on another note I'm intending to spam you all pretty soon with my Satin Hues collection.  It will probably have to be in multiple parts I have a lot and I keep getting tons of questions about them so I figured I could put up some posts with the deets.  Look forward to it!  Thanks for reading and see you next post!  Toodles...

Green Thing feat CrowsToes I Make The Path and Leo Dreams of Spring

Hey polished prisoners,

Happy Saturday!  I hope everyone had a good week.  It's been hectic on my end but fun! I am a very blessed lady.    I have to keep this in mind when times get tough or I feel like things are spinning out of hand.   Well living the dream and dreaming the dream are certainly two different things lol!  I would be wise to remember that.  Nevertheless I am still blessed.  Blessed in the friends I have and the gifts I have been given.  One friend in particular Lauri of CrowsToes I have been very blessed to make.  I've learned a lot from her sense of humor, and strength and dedication to working hard for herself and her family.  She's a bit of a role model on top of being an amazing soul!  In any case I told her about some types of polishes I was dreaming of and the lovely lady whipped them up for me!  Totally unexpected and totally amazing!  One of which is featured here.

The Leo Dreams of Spring...lol I named it.  It's supposed to be a polish based around my birthday month August.  It features bits of green to represent the peridot birthstone, purples for royalty, and gold cause I likes to bling bling  in a clear base ;)  When I first saw this I just stared at it and stared at it.  Shall I embarrass myself a bit and tell you a secret? I keep my CTs right on a shelf by my bed. They are my absolute favorite brand of polish and the only ones I treat this way (weirdo). Eh but you have to do what makes you happy.  I paired TLDOS with I Make The Path (this is probably undoubtedly one of my favorite CT colors of all time!) for this mani.

Mani-logue (in order of layering)

Base color:  Essie Mojito

Gradient:  Orly Satin Hues Satin Hope

Subtle sheen:  Lilacquer Selkie

Glitter:  CrowsToes I Make The Path and The Leo Dreams of Spring

Stamping polish:  Konad Special Polish in Black

Stamping plate:  Dash 3

So basically this mani is a feast of my favorites!  Y'all know I don't have anything but hype to say when it comes to my Essie's.  Mojito in particular from last spring was like crack to me.  Orly's Satin Hues will always have my undying love and I believe I have finally got them all I'm not even close to getting all of them but I'm still stalking like a mofo.    Lilacquer is a new brand on the blog, but I have adored this brand from the start because of the initial Japanese themed collection - did you know that a Selkie is a mythical sea creature in Japan? Yeah reading way to much manga.  And of course I love my Dashica plates.  The plate I'm using today is from the Dash set I won in the recent like and share FB contest.  I was thrilled and will talk more about these plates later.  And clearly I have already gushed above about CT's.    I know some ladies think that CTs are on the thicker spectrum of things, but I've never had a problem with them nor have I had to thin them down.  Personally I feel handing all polishes, particularly glitters, require a certain lightness of hand in order to not overwhelm your base color unless that's your goal.

 In any case I hope you enjoyed my little mani! You can find CrowsToes in all of their feathered glory either at Llarowe or Overall Beauty.  Lilacquer can also be found on Etsy and finally Dashica plates can be found here.  Happy polishing lacqueristas!

NOT An Ugly Sweater: Zoya Ziv and Wednesday feat Nailz Craze

Hiya polished prisoners,

Happy 2013! It's my first post of the New Year and I thought I'd start off with my favorite color family - blue greens.  I coveted Zoya Wednesday for so long you would think something was wrong with me.  I kept looking but never buying and then when they did the Zoya Box promotions I took my chance to snatch it up.  Then of course its warmed my tray of wonders until today.  I also have the privilege of being friends with one of the kindest and most sincere women I know Vicky of Boombastic Nails who sent me Zoya Ziv as part of a Christmas package.  Thanks you hunny bunny!  So together Ziv and Wednesday decided to create some magic ;)

Mani-louge

Base coat/Top Coat: CND Stickey and Poshe Fast Drying Topcoat

Base color: Zoya Wednesday

Gradient: Zoya Ziv

Stamping polish: Konad Special Polish in White & Black

Stamping Plate: Nailz Craze NC03

Seriously this manicure was effortless - well almost.  I will admit I found the formula on
Wednesday to be borderline for me. A bit too thick for my liking and yet not quite so thick that I couldn't manage.  Ziv was flawless flawless flawless.  Literally the perfect gold shimmer polish.  The Nailz Craze plate I used is the newest "Russian" plate it has little dolls and sweaters etc and is very cute.  I will say though the bottom portion of the sweater patten did not pick up as well as I would have liked even using a Konad Special polish so that was a little disappointing, but otherwise I love everything about this image and the plate as well.  One thing I will say about Nailz Craze is she always always has images that are the perfect oversize size.  Long nails or short she will have you covered!

So thoughts?  Not bad for the start of the New Year eh?  I'm looking forward to trying out my other Zoya polishes and I also happened to have seen swatches of the new spring line and bottle shots of their new Pixie Dust textured matte polishes.  They look brilliant!  Anyhoo thanks for reading and see you next post!  Toodles...

Elevated: Emily de Molly Flutterby Garden

Happy Saturday polished prisoners!

I hope you had a great week and some fun plans for the weekend!  I myself will be cleaning and resting ;)  I'm back with more Elevation Polish's Mt Yu in a reincarnated form.  Honestly I had to ask myself how one might improve upon something that is already damn near perfect?  Well perhaps with a little gradient nail art and the addition of another polish from a maker that gives me chills every time I see her brand mentioned?  Oh Hayley of Emily de Molly I've waited months for your polishes to arrive to my grasping greedy paws via seamail from the land down under, and I've spent even more time fantasizing and drooling over the possibilities of playing with your beautiful creations.  Yeah I know I sound like a sick puppy but hey whatever floats your boat right?  Enter Flutterby Garden...

Did you know Austrailia's seasons are reversed from the US? While we are hunkering down for winter they are idling in the land of spring and honey and this polish is perfect for that season.  Flutterby Garden is packed with green, lime. lavender and pink hexes along with pink squares, tiny bar glitters and silver holo butterflies.  Isn't this description incendiary?  My nails feel springtime pretty lol if a tad out of season.  I will say however I could care less when my nails look this pretty.  I love how Mt Yu and OPI's Pedal Faster Suzi blended for this gradient as well.

The ever morphing Mt. Yu shifting colors again.

What do you ladies think about rocking mani's "out of season" - yay or nay?  In any case if you are interested in Emily de Molly her polishes can be purchased by US consumers at Llarowe or Shoppe Eclecticco.  Elevation polishes can be purchased here.  Thanks so much for reading and see you next post! Toodles!

Charm Your Nails Instant Gratification Glitter Gradient

Hey polished prisoners,

Did you know I have an obsession with black white mix combo polishes and it's many variations?   It's to the point that even when something looks extremely similar to something I already own I still want its delicious doppelganger.  So believe me when I say when I found a black, white, purple, and more purple combo it was "buy it now" at first site.  I'm talking about Charm Your Nails Instant Gratification which is pretty much exactly how I described it above - black, white, purple, purple, love.  Hehe.  I wanted to make a gradient and work this polish into it so that's exactly what I did ;)

Matte heaven right?  So freaking pretty!

I chose Orly Satin Hues Satin Reflection as the base.  It's a delicious matte silvery white polish that lives in my dreams and is unbelievably decadent.  I almost used this one for my AIS something matte challenge on Sunday and so I needed to use it once it was out floating around my field of vision.  By the by I'm stalking the Satin Hues and I really need the others to complete my collection if you have a source do let me know!  Anyhoo I created a gradient over this using Orly Velvet Rope and Essie Nothing Else Metals.  Finally, I put a coat of Instant Gratification on top for the final effect.

So good right? Someone please help me find the rest of these especially Gala!!!

Loving all the little squares in various shapes and colors!

More notes on Instant Gratification: This polish is dense and requires a very delicate hand otherwise you will overwhelm your base.  Using the dab method or removing most of the polish from the brush before running it over your nails is advised.  On the plus you won't have to dig for glitters they are readily available.  I'm loving this polish!  It's beautiful and oddly complex for the simple color mix :)  So thoughts? Love it or leave it?  Interested in owing it? Find Charm Your Nails here.  Thank you for reading and see you next post!  Toodles...

Why H8 Is Never GR8...

Hello polished prisoners,


Today or rather yesterday was a special day for the nail polish community.  In an effort to eradicate negativity and hatred in our very big and yet oh so small community women everywhere were donning their purple polishes and just saying no to h8.  I couldn't agree more so here I am.    I had the unfortunate or fortunate fate, depending on how you look at it, to be a bullied kid.  Ah the days when I was chubby, buck toothed, four-eyed, unfashionable, poor, and unpopular.  I didn't have a friend on my side (not counting my brothers), and so all the way from 5th grade of elementary school up until mid-way through high school I was very much alone.  The bus rides home were torture.  I'd be teased mercilessly, rocks would be thrown at me, and I can even remember one occasion where I was knocked down into a huge puddle of mud and my mother had to come to school to bring me a change of clothes.  Those days were so horrible and something that plagued me for years, but I was blessed to have a mother who always believed in me and encouraged me to be myself.  Despite all of the ugly things that happened my confidence in myself never shrank and I was able to stand up and continue standing up and say, "Damnit! I am who I am and you can either take it or leave it! I won't bow or bend for the sake of approval from anyone."  I owe my mother a lot.  She helped me become the woman I am today and never once let me feel like I was anything other than special when others told me I was everything but.

BM317, BM311, Essie Nothing Else Metals, Essie Play Date & Boxershorts, Butter London Knackered, Konad Special Polish in Pastel Purple and Purple

Bullying is ugly and a behavior driven by mob and crowd mentality.  Better to be the one accepted in a group tearing someone else down than be the one being torn eh?  Wrong!  It takes one person to open their mouth and stand up for what is right and possibly change the scope of someone's world.  I cannot abide the seemingly strong picking on the weak or disadvantaged nor the tearing down of someone else's esteem to build up my own.  I don't want to be involved in a community that does such things and I'm glad to see bloggers stepping up and taking an active role in making this community a more positive place.  And here I am to do my part as well - purple polish and claws up!  For all the Jake's, Tom's, Mr. G's, and Sandra's out there this is for you!  Always always be proud of who you are and let your actions toward others be the measure of your own virtue.  My last name may not be Lannister but Hear me Roar!

You can find other bloggers who participated in the No H8 movement HERE  as well as resources to anti-bullying sites and support.  Thank you so much for reading and I'll see everyone next post!

Hope Springs Eternal

Hey polished prisoners,

It's official! I'm living in hell or something equivalent as I am once again without Internet. Why? Because my landlord left the window open and the modem upstairs fried. Lovely so once again I'm back to using my cellphone blogger app to save the day. Please forgive my less than polished posts until this gets fixed (no pun intended). Anyway onward to today's art...

Mani-louge
Base: Essie Blanc and Wet n' Wild Tickled Pink
Gradient: Essie Blanc and Wet n' Wild Tickled Pink and OPI Pink Flamenco
Glitter Topper: Elevation Polish Froze To Death
Stamping polish: Color Club Hot Like Lava
Stamping plate: BM321

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month so I couldn't let it slip by without doing a mani in dedication. When I think about cancer I don't have too many close ties to this one though I could tell you in a heartbeat how we use mammograms to diagnose and identify suspicious breast architecture. Personally I feel every day of every month should be dedicated to some form of health awareness, but I also have a great deal of faith in the medical system and the science behind it. Well I sort of have to nevertheless faith is a powerful thing. So here's a bit for all the ladies, families, and friends struggling under the burden of this disease. May their hearts be lighter and their fears less fearsome in the days to come. Thanks for reading and see you next post!

Halloween 2012: Ghoulish Glam

Happy Saturday polished prisoners,


This week has been a mother...ah let's just leave it there.  Suffice to say I'm so thankful it's the weekend as I'm exhausted and I get a one day reprieve from the shade of it all ;) Man oh man I have been so psyched up for the manicure I'm about to show you since I saw the announcement for the Bundle Monster Fright Night Competition!  I literally thought I have to do something that leaves me gagging (um in delight not because it's gross I don't do gross...) - lol.  You can vote for my entry HERE.  Oh my a shameless plug but I do need your votes to win! In any case this was such a labor of love and evolved so slowly every nail took me forever, but it was worth it.  Now onto the art...

Mani-louge

Thumb: Base: Orly Liquid Vinyl stamped with Konad Special Polish in Light Green, Light Purple and Purple

Index: Base: OPI What's With The Catittude? sponged with Orly Velvet Rope and Sinful Colors Daddy's Girl and Orly Liquid Vinyl, freehand accents: Cm Nail Art Brush in Black stamped with China Glaze Millennium

Middle: Base: INM Northern Lights in Gold with OPI I Have A Herring Problem sponged with Sinful Colors Daddy's Girl and Orly Liquid Vinyl; Floral vines: Cm Nail Art Brush in Black and stamped with Konad Special Polish in Black.  Rhinestones: 1-3mm rhinestones in various colors

Ring: Base: Essie To Buy Or Not To Buy; Gradient: Sinful Colors Daddy's Girl and Orly Liquid Vinyl; Stamped: Konad Special Polish in Yellow and White; Accents (dots): Essie Blanc

Pinkie: Base: Essie Navigate Her sponged with China Glaze Near Dark and Orly It's Not Rocket Science and Liquid Vinyl; Freehand accents: Cm Nail Art Brush in Black stamped with freehand accents: Cm Nail Art Brush in Black stamped with Konad Special Polish in White

Stamping Plates: BM14, BM211, BM223, and BM305 

That mani-louge is something else right?  So many polishes and plates and tiny detail work.  I can't remember the last time or if I have ever done such a complicated mani before.  Every single nail was thought out and thought out again.  I wanted to create something pretty and a little spooky and of course extremely unique.  I couldn't even figure out the colorway for this mani which I usually always do before I start.  I just made it up as I went along which I have to say at least to me is so much harder to do.

Notice how I "snuck" some bling into this jazz hehe!

So what do you think? Once again if you like it please vote for me over on the Bundle Monster Facebook page under the Fright Night Contest here.  I'm pretty happy with the results though in all honesty I doubt I'll do a tutorial for this manicure as it'd be over 30mins long even condensed down :/  Totally worth it though since I cannot stop staring at my nails! How am I ever going to be able to take this off?  In any case thanks for reading and I'll see you next post! Toodles...

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...