Gal-entine's Ombre

Today's mani is really just a re-creation of a mani I did two years ago for Valentine's.  I would link you back to it but unfortunately there are no photos anymore.  Somehow when that whole "link to Google+" stuff happened, almost all of my old blog photos were deleted.  Fortunately they can still be seen on my Facebook albums but it's just not the same.  Anyway, today is February 13, which means it's GALENTINE'S DAY!

If you are unfamiliar with this amazing holiday, you should really watch Parks and Rec.  It's basically just a day to show the love, not for the man in your life, but the women in your life.  Whether it's your mom or sisters or best friend, just give a little love today.

Just like with the original mani, I used most of the same colors.  These are all Jessie's Girl Julie G polishes.  On my pinky is All Things Girly.  My ring finger is Party Dress.  The middle is Frosted Cupcake and my pointer finger is Fashion Friday.  I almost left this as is but then it wouldn't be a re-creation.  If would just be unfinished.

After everything dried, I used striping tape to create v-shapes on all my fingers.  Then using Ulta High Roller, my favorite gold for nail art, I applied one generous coat inside the v and then removed the tape.

This is a super fun and easy mani to recreate and I love that the colors make is really girly.  Let me know what you think in the comments below.  Happy Galentine's Day!!

Neon Grunge

Sorry this post is kinda late but I just got back from my fitness class.  Luckily this mani was already done so I just have to whip of the post.  (:

I was inspired by Sarah of Chalkboard Nails' distressed nail art tutorial, specifically her neon version.  Instead of using a black creme polish over the neons, I used OPI Spotted which has failed me once again.

If you all happened to see a guest post I did for Nail Polish Addiction awhile ago, I briefly explain the technique I used for the "radioactive" mani and how my OPI Spotted was a bust.  I used that same process this time except with neon shades in China Glaze Kiwi Cool-ada (green), China Glaze Creative Fantasy (purple), Color Club Lava Lamp (orange), Sinful Colors Pink (pink), Ulta Blue Streak (blue), and of course a white base - Zoya Purity.  I applied OPI Spotted and I can't say it was a complete fail.  I mean, it did separate but the colors were not as visible as I would have liked so I dipped a cotton swab in acetone and gently removed or smeared some of the black to create that grungy look.

Thanks to Sarah for making a great tutorial eventhough I didn't follow it to a tee.  lol I really enjoy both versions of this mani and I hope you all do too.  Let me know what you think in the comments below!

Water Marble Wednesday

And I'm back with another Water Marble Wednesday.  I think people are starting to catch on...right?  lol  For some reason this one was a super duper tough.  The colors didn't want to work together and then I was fumbling with everything.  I think I got more polish on my left hand than the actual nails.  It was just a disaster getting it done but it came out pretty good.

I used the starburst design and for most of my nails it worked out.  Yeah I'm look at your middle finger!  The colors I chose were Jesse's Girl Julie G Party Dress which is an orange-y red color.  I used Ulta Blue Streak for the blue (duh), OPI Big Apple Red for the red (duh again) and Color Club Blue-ming for the mint color.  

Just a heads up, I'm most likely going to do this same design next week with different polishes of course because I don't feel like I perfected it.  I like it, but it's not amazing IMO.  I also don't know why I chose a color combo that I absolutely hate.  lol It's just not my day for water marbling.

Have a great Hump Day!

Leopard Mani for International Nail Art Day!

How could you not love that color combination?  I am so tired I could just faceroll right now, but I wanted to put something pretty on my nails before bed.  I just chose the quickest mani I could think of that wasn't completely plain.

Well here it is!  I really like how this one turned out.  My boyfriend always says how my leopard manis look like camo print...I don't really get how that is, but that's what he says.  This is the first one he said looked like leopard.  lol He's a goof.  Anyway, I used one coat of Ulta High Roller for the gold base, then added random leopard spots using Zoya Phoebe, the blue, and Zoya Codie (which just so happens to by my boyfriend's name - but with a Y and not an IE) which is the dark brown.

Here is one photo of my hand slanted to take the metallic shine away.  Now you can really see the print without being severely blinded by the gold.  I totally didn't even realize today was International Nail Art Day so I'm happy I could bust something out in such a short time (I had to work today) and join in the fun.  (:

Happy INAD!!

Product Review - essence Nail Art Stampy Set Review

So I've been using this a lot since I got it about 2 weeks ago and I think it's about time you all got in on the fun.  I'm going to a little review on the essence Nail Art Stampy Set which I picked up at Ulta for only $3.49.

So here is what it looks like in the box in case you want to go pick it up.  I think in every Ulta (as far as I've seen) all of the essence products are on an end cap somewhere near all the "drugstore brand" beauty products.  The photo on the right shows what comes with the set.  I was pretty impressed that the designs were not lame.    I would actually use more than one of them.  lol

This is the best photo of the plate I could get but I stamped them on a white piece of paper for you to really see the designs.  This was my first time using a stamper like the one in the set so I had a bit of trouble getting them on the paper completely as you can see with the heart and the polka dots.  The stamper is super squishy and didn't want to pick up all the way.  Eventually I got the hang of it.  All of the designs (after more practice) came out with no bald spots.  The only "problem" design is the butterfly in the center.  To me it looks like all the color ran together or it's smushed, but I feel like the lines should be more defined inside the wings.

Ready to see them on my nails?!

I tried to fit all of the designs on all my fingers (in no particular order) just so you could see what they look like.  As you can see some of them, like the ones on my middle finger didn't come out so well.  I tried them over and over on paper first and they kept coming up with missing spots.  I think the heart and bow are my favorites from the whole plate.

These are the other two designs.  Ummm ewww.  These look terrible.  I'm definitely no stamping expert (yes it is super crooked...lol) but for some reason the full design wouldn't pick up.  As for the hearts (yes those are hearts), they kept coming out smushed like that butterfly design.  I tried a different polish, a different stamper, and they just kept coming out ugly.  Another thing that I don't like about the set is that the scraper scratched the crap out of my plate so I threw it away.  Now I just use an old credit card.

Now for some real nail art!

There we go.  Finally something that looks halfway decent.  I used the polka dot and bow design from the plate and just free-handed the stripes on my pointer finger.

WHAT I USED:

Sinful Colors Unicorn - yellow

Zoya Cynthia - dark teal

Ulta High Roller - gold

So was this worth my money?  Yes!  I think if I had paid double the price I might even still be happy with it.  But considering that I won't use half of these designs, $3.49 was the perfect price.

Happy Independence Day!

Just a quick post tonight because I'm sure you are all watching fireworks or popping your own.  I won't be because I have an early work day tomorrow.  Just be safe and be responsible this evening.  I want to see you all back here tomorrow.  (:

Basically I just recreated the American flag on my nails and eventhough my lines are a little crooked (I free-handed them), I think it came out pretty great.

WHAT I USED:
OPI Big Apple Red
Ulta Blue Streak
UO Silver Holo
Bundle Monster plate BM20

Happy 4th!!

Tye-Dye Stamping

At least that's what I'm calling it.  I haven't seen this technique too much through the other nail blogs, but I have seen it.  Basically I couldn't decide what color to use so I used them all.  (:

This was my first attempt.  I think the tye dye effect came out just the way I wanted it to but the stamping didn't quite work for me.  I'm not the best stamper in the first place.  I used a bright green, neon orange, and blue polish over a baby pink.  I really loved how all the colors worked together but again, the stamping job is so sad.

So my second attempt came out much better BUT the tye dye effect didn't quite work.  However I did get tons of compliments today so it can't be all bad right?  Once I was finished and happy with how it all came out, I used a matte top coat to make the color really pop and it did.

WHAT I USED:
China Glaze White on White - white
popBeauty Loud Lime - green
Color Club Lava Lamp - orange
Ulta Blue Streak - blue
Hard Candy Matte-ly In Love
Bundle Monster plate bm-214

I hope you all love it as much as I do.  I'll definitely be doing this technique in the very near future until I get it perfect.  You may have also noticed that I changed my watermark this time around.  I'll be playing with it a little more until I get it just the way I want it so don't be surprised if it's different tomorrow.  lol

Nail Art for Less

This is a post I've been wanting to do for a long time, but I just never buckled down to make it happen.  Well today I wanted to get out of the house and what better thing to do when you're bored but shop.  I also don't have a ton of money right now so this post was perfect.

Tonight's post is all about being frugal when it comes to nail art.  I know there are a lot of companies out there pushing nail art supplies for gobs of money so with the popularity rising, I wanted to let you all know that you can create super fun manis for a fraction of the price.

These are all my goodies!  I got so much stuff.  Everything you see here is the essence nail art decoration kit in gold, Minx nail wraps in Summer Splash, All Season Naturals cuticle stick in French Vanilla, A.S.P crystal nail file, Claire's nail jewels, Claire's nail wheel with pearls, studs, and beads, and Claire's striping tape.

Here is the close up (the best I could get anyway) of the Minx nail wraps.  I got these at Ulta in the clearance section.  They had other designs as well, but this was the last one and the best one.  I didn't even read the package either so when I opened it and saw that is was and mani AND a pedi, I was pretty excited.  The price on the package says $4.99 (from $18) but my receipt says $2.99 so another great surprise.  Oh and it was 20% off.  Woot!

Here are some embellishments that I picked up from Ulta and Claire's.  The essence nail decoration kit contains 3 types of gold glitter, some tiny studs, and small sheet of gold flake.  This also comes in silver but they were out.  The Claire's gems and jewels are Buy 1, Get 1 50% off right now, so you should all check it out.  I picked up these beautiful jewel stickers that remind me of an Indian or Bollywood themed nails and the nail wheel is full of rhinestones and studs in silver and gold, but my favorite part is the white and black pearls.

Also at Claire's I saw they had striping tape and although I still have a roll unused, why not pick up more, right?!  I wanted to know how well it worked and it comes with 3 colors, gold, black, and silver.  For $6.50, I thought it was a great deal given the promotion that is running.

Now how could I buy all these goodies and NOT get a top coat?  I couldn't.  So I got the essence gel-look top coat which from what I understand is supposed to leave a super glossy gel finish...so like my Gelous, maybe.  We'll see.  Sally's had a coupon for the All Season Naturals cuticle stick so I thought I'd give it a try.  Oh the coupon was buy the cuticle stick, get the A.S.P nail file FREE!!!  I've never tried a crystal nail file so I'm nervous.  The sound is weird and makes me cringe a little.  lol

And the grand total...

$23.17!!

I really hope this post was helpful for all you ladies on a budget.  I can't wait to try all of my goodies and show you all what I come up with.  If you've found any great deals, let me know.  I'm always on the lookout.  Have a great night!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Yeah for St. Patrick's Day and so many green manis!  I won't keep you long.  I'm sure you all are super busy having fun!  I wasn't sure what to do today, but I thought a water marble was long overdue.

Soooo it's okay I guess.  It was better before I added the dots, but it's still cute, right?

WHAT I USED:
China Glaze Four Leaf Clover (very fitting) - green
Ulta High Roller - gold
BBCouture Dark Knight - black

Enjoy your day and be safe!

Pinterest Week Day 6

Oh my!  I feel like I'm running a bit late on this post just like yesterday.  I've just been putting it off.  Not the mani.  That's been done.  It's the editing of photos that always takes so long and I just don't want to do it sometimes.  I'm super tired right now and my eyes are crossing.  lol  Let's get this going!!

Day 6: Nails and Noms
MY PIN HERE
ORIGINAL POST HERE

Today was a super crazy and busy day at work so when I got home, the last thing I wanted to do was nails. I mean, I'm just being honest here.  Just because of that I had to do something quick and simple.  A splatter mani!  Messy but very easy.

I've been wanting to recreate Rie's metallic splatter mani for awhile.  I almost forgot about it.  Almost.  I love the fact that she not only chose to do metallics, but that she chose to do it matte.  I'm a sucker for matte.

WHAT I USED:
Nails Inc noho - black (I can't stop using it!)
Ulta High Roller - gold
Zoya Trixie - silver
Essie Buy Me a Cameo - rose gold
Hard Candy Mattely In Love - top coat

This is Rie's gorgeous mani that she originally used for the 31 Day Challenge.  She used copper instead of a rose gold color which I love better (the copper I mean).  I was just in such a hurry and I couldn't find one that I liked at the beauty supply so I settled for rose gold.  Eh.  Whatevs, right?!

My Valentine's Mani

Ok so I was saving this mani for something else and I wasn't going to post a traditional Valentine's mani, but I figured why the hell not?  You all deserve it.  ♥

Like I said, this mani was supposed to be posted next week, but with the hearts and all I thought it was appropriate.  I don't really celebrate Valentine's because my anniversary is in 3 days, but since some of you do, I thought you would enjoy it.  Oh yeah and sorry it's upside down.  I wasn't thinking when I did this.

Ah yes!  There we go.  This was a very uncomfortable "hand pose" by the way.  Anyway, I got this design from Pinterest but the original post is HERE from the blog Beautylish.  I tried to put my own little spin on it, but not change it up too much.  The polishes are listed below, but as far as the hearts and chevron, I free-handed them.  I'm pretty stoked about those hearts.

WHAT I USED:
Color Club Blue-ming - turquoise
Ulta High Roller - gold

Have a super happy V-day and for those that don't celebrate, watch a good movie and eat all the junk food you want.  I already ate a whole bag of "fun size" Baby Ruth.  lol

Crumpet's Sat-ART-day Club Presents Amethyst Skittles

Hi Everyone.

Having a great Saturday I hope.  I did so far eventhough I am working from home a lot today and tomorrow.  It's just going to make my week seem so much longer.  My wonderful boyfriend did take me out to a nice lunch at Potbelly and my sister came over for a bit.  Then I was free to work on my amethyst skittles mani.

So here is my skittle mani.  It's alright.  lol I just don't like the polish I used on my ring finger.  It's too much of a red toned purple rather than a blue toned one like the rest.  I tried to do my nails ombre and then do the art on top, but that one color just throws it off I think.

WHAT I USED:
pinky - Zoya Zara w/ Zoya Savina stripes
ring - China Glaze Señorita Bonita w/ Color Club Lavendarling and Zoya Savina roses
middle - OPI Can't Let Go w/ top coat
ring - Zoya Savina w/ Color Club Lavendarling polka dots
thumb - Ulta Love My Blackberry w/ China Glaze Señorita Bonita and Zoya Zara gradient

I am super excited for the rest of the Sat-ART-day themes so don't forget to check them out.
Feb 2 - Amethyst Skittles
Feb 9 - Away With the Fairies
Feb 16 - Dotting Tools
Feb 23 - 1960s

Have a great night!