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Freehand, Nail Art, Uncategorised

Beautiful Bleached Mess

14th July 2014

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Streaky Watercolor Nail Art | The Nailasaurus

Last night, I had a proper sit-down nail art session for the first time in about a week and a half and this was the result. I tried a few things that went completely wrong and was going to go back to my watercolour gradient when I had the idea to try something else along the same lines, with a different twist. The result is this kind of bleachy, streaky, pastel watercolour ensemble and I really love the way it looks.

I started with the pink streaks and then picked the other colours as I went along so the result is quite fun and spontaneous. Knowing me, if I’d have picked the whole selection beforehand, it would have been a selection of blues or purples!

Polishes Used

Barry M Matte White

Sally Hansen Lady Lavender

NYC Blue Sky

Sally Hansen Tahitian Sunset

China Glaze Pink-ie Promise

Technique

I started by painting on my white base and letting it dry completely.

I dotted out one colour at a time on to a sheet of plastic and thinned it out using a flat brush dipped in acetone.

Using the brush, I worked the polish/acetone in circles on the plastic until it was very thin and then painted it on to my nails in streaks. Instead of acetone, you could also use nail polish thinner or remover.

I repeated this with each colour a few times until I got full coverage and then topped it with Glisten & Glow HK Girl top coat.

Streaky Watercolour Nail Art | The Nailasaurus

Freehand, Nail Art, Tutorial, Uncategorised

Watermelon Nail Art Tutorial

10th July 2014

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My Watermelon nails received a very warm reception when I posted them a few days back so I’m back with a tutorial for the look. I’ve seen so many takes on watermelon nails which is what inspired me to do some of my own and I think I put enough of a twist on it to make it something a bit new. The 3/4 border is a cute and simple trick that I really love and find myself going back to time and again. It works on every nail shape but I have to admit that I think it looks extra spectacular on square nails but I’m probably biased on that front. Digital high five to all my square sisters out there!

Freehand, Nail Art, Uncategorised

I Been Dranking… Watermelon

7th July 2014

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Watermelon Nail Art with Nicole by OPI LeaPink for Joy

Carrying on the fruit theme from last week’s Nailvengers post, I’ve opted for some Watermelon nail art today!

The Cosmo Blog Awards shortlist was announced today and I’m very pleased to say that this blog was shortlisted in the Best Established Beauty Blog category! Thank you very muchly to everyone that nominated me and if you want to vote for your favourites, you can do so here. I’m in the very first category near the bottom! This is the third year I’ve been nominated in the awards and I’m so grateful to have such amazing readers that think I deserve their nomination year after year. You guys are truly awesome… thank you!

For this nail art, I used Nicole by OPI LeaPink for Joy as my base colour and freehanded on the edge with Barry M Key Lime with a nail art brush.

I used Sweet Color White Liner for the outline and then black acrylic paint for the seeds. Can you see where I made a whoopsie on the index finger? I think it blends pretty well!

It’s all topped off with a coat of Glisten & Glow HK Girl.

Freehand, Nail Art, Uncategorised

Moon Moon

1st July 2014

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When I saw this colour combination on Lily’s blog last week, I couldn’t wait to try it myself. It’s so classically cute that I’m kind of mad that I didn’t think of it myself! This kind of mani is traditionally called the ‘Double Moon’ but my take is more like ‘Moon and Skinny Tip’. Sometimes the simple things make a big impact and that’s how I feel about this mani – I love it!

I started with two coats of my new favourite ‘mannequin hands’ polish – The Lacquer Lab’s Dita – and used a nail art brush to draw on the pastel blue details in Barry M Huckleberry. It’s all topped with a coat of Glisten & Glow HK Girl.

Here is a swatch of Dita on its own. This is two coats with no top coat. Creamy perfection in a bottle!

The Lacquer Lab Dita Swatch - The Nailasaurus

Freehand, Nail Art, Uncategorised

Nailvengers Assemble: Summer Treats

30th June 2014

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Press Sample

Strawberries and Cream Nail Art | The Nailasaurus

June’s Nailvengers theme is ‘Summer Treats’ so with Wimbledon coming up, I decided to so some Strawberries and Cream nail art.

For the strawberries, I used Nicole by OPI The Coral of the Story as my base colour with Barry M Key Lime for the green. I added the details using black acrylic paint and Barry M Spring Green.

For the creamy nails, I used Graffiti Nails Ice White as my base, then the Saran Wrap technique with a tiny bit of Barry M Rose Hip and Nicole by OPI The Coral of the Story.

An InLinkz Link-up

Freehand, Nail Art, Stamping, Uncategorised

Beepbopboop

28th June 2014

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When I was at a nail event a little while ago, this wi-fi design by Jessica Hoffman was on the nail art menu and I knew that I would have to try it for myself. I started this mani intending just to do the wi-fi all over but it swiftly turned in to a technologic mani!

My base colour is Revlon Minted and I topped a few nails with Cirque Magic Hour.

All the stamping is from Bundle Monster plate BM415 and I used OPI Suzi Says Feng Shui and BK Matte White for all the details.

To draw on the wi-fi signal, I used two straight vinyl stencils to mark off a triangle at the base of my nail, then drew 3 curved lines stretching edge-to-edge with a nail art brush. I tried to follow the curve of my cuticle to get them all matching! I quickly removed the vinyls and used a dotting tool to add one dot at the base.

It’s all topped off with a coat of Glisten & Glow HK Girl.

Freehand, Nail Art, Uncategorised

And Make it Fast | Fast Food Nail Art

26th June 2014

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Press Sample

Last night, I got the urge to have a little de-stash which resulted in a two hour sort through of all of my nail polish and nail art supplies. My collection has been knocked down 473 bottles which now occupy 5 Helmer drawers and I feel very cleansed and refreshed! I was at a point where bottles were spilling over on to my desk and filling boxes under the bed which was really frustrating me as I really like for everything to have its place. Also, I really don’t want to end up as the lady on Hoarders who only eats takeaway because her kitchen cupboards are stuffed with 10,000 bottles of nail polish!

It got me wondering how many polishes is ‘normal’ for a hobbyist to have. I asked on Facebook yesterday and answers ranged from 10-1000+ so it seems I’m in the median range. I know I have a modest collection compared to some other nail bloggers but I’d really like to know how many you have and/or how many you think is reasonable! Let me know in the comments.

On to the nail art! These mouth watering water decals are part of Nailed Kit’s June subscription package along with the tribal decals I posted a while back. You have until June 30th to sign up if you want to get your hands on these designs. Of course, I just had to add the golden arches and now I just want to eat McDonalds!

I used Barry M Rose Hip as the base colour for the water decals.

To create the ‘M’, I painted on a base of Catrice Earnie & Birdy (yellow), then freehanded on the red details using Rimmel Heart on Fire with a nail art brush.

It’s all topped with one coat of Glisten & Glow HK Girl and one coat of Rimmel Matte Top Coat.