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Nail Art

Freehand, Glitter, Uncategorised

Ribbons In The Sky

4th January 2014

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In the holidays I went to see The Secret Life of Walter Mitty and it’s such a good film! Full of amazing cinematography and just a really pleasant way to waste a few hours. This nail art was inspired by the animations in the opening credits where here are ribbon-like swirls all over the place!

I mentioned in my 2013 round-up post that I wanted to focus a lot more on taking inspiration from my favourite things, just like I used to, and movies are one of those things. Now, every time I watch a movie I’m scrutinizing each shot for nail art inspiration so expect plenty more of these to come.

For this nail art, I used Barry M White as the base colour for the waves and painted on the waves using a flat brush to get the ‘flow’ right and then a liner brush to tidy up the edges.

The colours used for the blue ribbons are Barry M Guava, Barry M Dark Blue and Sally Hansen Gray by Gray

For the purple ones, I used Barry M Plum, A-England Guinevere and Glo Baby Glo Ultra Violet (from Primark circa. 2011!).

The glitter is 2 coats of an unnamed holographic polish from Claire’s over A-England Guinevere and the shell is from She Sells Seashells.

It’s all topped off with two coats of INM Out The Door.

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty trailer

This is almost the shot that inspired the nail art. I don’t want to give too much away, but there was a lot more animation and colour to be fascinated by in the movie – go see it!

Freehand, Glitter, Uncategorised

Blogging for a Cause at Work/Play/Polish

2nd January 2014

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Recently, I was invited by Leslie from Work/Play/Polish to take part in her Blogging for a Cause series and of course I said yes! From December 22nd through to tomorrow, the 3rd of January WPP has been playing host to a whopping 25 guest posters. For each blogger that has created a guest post, Leslie is donating $10 to Polished Girlz – a charity that brings nail polish, pampering and that special feeling that comes with it to young ladies that are hospitalised or have special needs. What’s astounding is that this charity was started by Alanna when she was just 10 years old. You can read more about the story of Polished Girlz here!

Make sure you jump over to Work/Play//Polish here to read my post and learn more about the cause.

Freehand, Glitter, Uncategorised, Waterfall

New Year’s Eve Nail Art

31st December 2013

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These are the nails I’m wearing tonight for NYE! Black and Gold has been the party colour scheme this year and it’s always been a favourite of mine so I thought I’d polish off the year with a simple black and gold mani. Cirque Helios has become a staple for me this last month. It’s the perfect gold glitter for Christmas and turns out it’s a good sparkly addition to a party mani!

Happy New Year everyone! I hope you have a great one!

I started with my base colours of No7 Just Black and Nails Inc. Hampstead Gardens.

The glitter accent is two coats of Cirque Helios. I freehanded the ‘2014’ using a nail art brush and NYC Full Metal Jacket.

The waterfall nail art was created using NYC Full Metal Jacket, BeautyUK Olympic Bronze and A-England Dorian Gray.

Finally, i topped it all off with two coats of Rica Glossy Glam.

Glitter, Gradient, Stamping, Uncategorised

NDLacquers Aurora Swatch with Nail Art

28th December 2013

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Press Sample

Today I found out that I topped The Crumpet’s Reader poll for ‘Nail Art Blog of the Year‘ and I want to thank everyone that put in a good word for me – you know who you are, you sly dogs! And of course, a big thanks to Debbie for holding the poll in the first place! To be voted top of the poll by readers is such an honour because you guys really know your stuff when it comes to nail blogs and if it weren’t for such a tight, amazingly friendly and accepting community, none of us bloggers would be here! So, thank you for a brilliant end to the year.Today’s nail art features a gradient (it’s there I promise!) and a pretty glitter from NDLacquers called Aurora. It’s one of three in Natali’s Holiday Collection but it’s an all-year-rounder in my book. I’m only wearing one coat in this swatch and the coverage is fantastic. This is one indie brand you’re going to want to keep your eye on in 2014 – I can feel it in my bones!

I used two coats of Revlon Cloud as my base colour and created a super subtle gradient using Maybelline Ceramic Blue. Gradient tutorial here.

The stamping is from MoYou Plate Pro 04. This plate is no longer on the site but the same design is available in XL size on the Pro 07 Plate. I stamped using BK Matt White.

The glitter is NDLacquers Aurora and I topped it all off with two coats of Rica Glossy Glam.

Christmas, Glitter, Stamping, Uncategorised

My Christmas Day Nails

26th December 2013

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I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas and indulged in plenty of good food and family time! This week between Christmas and New Year is always a bit of a funny one. We’re all trying to get back in to the swing of things but there are still bank holidays and plans to be made. I’m going back to work on the 2nd so I’m just making the most of my time until then – I’ve mostly just been chilling out and sleeping!

These are the nails I wore for Christmas day! I originally painted some with an icy blue theme but ditched them for something more festive in gold and red. Make sure you click to continue reading to see both looks!

For this mani, the base colours are Essie Jag-U-Are and Barry M Majesty – a textured gold glitter.

For the fair isle pattern, I used Winstonia Plate W120 and BK Matt White.

I totally missed this plate before Christmas eve but it has to be one of the best Christmas stamping designs I own. Although I did have a nightmare transferring it on the stamper from the plate and then actually lining it up properly on my nail! I had to try 5 times before I got this one right!

I created the dots using a tiny dotting tool and Barry M White.

I topped off the red nails a coat of Glisten and Glow HK Girl.

I really liked these nails but just thought the colour was too ‘winter’ and not enough Christmas.

I used Maybelline Ceramic Blue as my base colour. The accent is 2 coats of a holographic glitter from Claire’s.

The swirly stamping design is from MoYou Fairytale 02 Plate using Barry M Silver Foil

The deer decal on my index finger is from She Sells Seashells.

Again, it’s all topped with Glisten and Glow HK Girl.

Christmas, Freehand, Glitter, Uncategorised

20 Christmas Nail Art Ideas

21st December 2013

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This year I’ve hardly posted any Christmas nail art and I feel awful for it! In previous years I’ve been all over that stuff but this month I just haven’t been able to put all my nail art ideas down on my actual nails. I know that many of us will be planning out our manicure for the big day this weekend (myself included!) so I’ve created a nail wheel full of Christmas nail art designs so that I can get all these ideas out before Christmas has been and gone!

There’s a good range of designs here from easy glitter gradients to slightly more tricky freehanded stuff. I’ve tried to make sure there’s something for everybody, no matter your personal taste or skill level and I’ll be linking up to tutorials where I can find them. Merry Christmas and Happy Painting!!

Festive Roses
The Nailasaurus: Freehanded Rose Tutorial

Snowman
I used two coats of China Glaze Fancy Pants with a coat of W7 Moonlight for the glittery base. The snowman is freehanded using white acrylic paint and various nail polishes for the details.

Santa’s Hat
I started with a white base coat and freehanded a red triangle in Rimmel Heart on Fire. Next I painted on the blue background colour and went back in with some white acrylic paint to make the fluffy details.

Christmas Pinstripe
The Nailasaurus: Striping Tape Tutorial
Barry M Gold Foil, Rimmel Heart on Fire and Revlon Emerald City over a base of Barry M White

Polka Dots
Barry M Gold Foil dots over Revlon Emerald City

L♥VE
White acrylic paint over Rimmel Heart on Fire freehanded with a nail art brush

Grold Glitter

I combined W7 Cosmic Green and Sinful Colors Call You Later which are both green/gold glitter mixes to get this dimensional glitter look.

Can’t Catch Me

The base colour here is piCture pOlish Whimsy and I freehanded the gingerbread man with Avon Deluxe Chocolate. The white details are acrylic paint.

Sonnetarium Peppermint Kiss
Available at sonnetarium.net

Candy Canes

This was freehanded using a striping brush and Essie Jag-U-Are over a base of China Glaze Dandy Lyin’ Around

Rudolph

Start by painting on a half moon at the base of the nail, then adding a hump on top. Outline and add antlers using a darker shade then fill in his nose with red glitter! I used Essie Glamour Purse

Snowfall

I used a really old blue NYC polish for my base colour and dotted on white acrylic paint using a dotting tool in a gradient pattern. Do this by first doing a layer of dots that are evenly spaced and then adding a second dose of dots just near the cuticle.

Christmas Waterfall

The Nailasaurus: Waterfall Nail Art Tutorial
Essie Jag-U-Are, Ulta3 Mermaid Green and NYC Full Metal Jacket over China Glaze Dandy Lyin’ Around

Presents!
The base colour here is A-England Rose Bower. I painted on the ribbons with a striping brush and freehanded the bow in Revlon Emerald City.

Gold Glitter
You just can’t go wrong with gold glitter at Christmas. This beauty is on coat of Cirque Helios over Nails Inc. Hampstead Gardens.

Snowflakes
The Nailasaurus via Divine Caroline: Snowflake Nail Art Tutorial
These snowflakes were freehanded with white acrylic paint over Essie Bouncer It’s Me

Glitter Gradient
I used Barry M Blue Glitter over Maybelline Ceramic Blue. Using a sponge, lightly dab on the glitter from the tip of your nail down towards the cuticle. Repeat, but the second time around, only go half as far down as you did the first time to make sure the glitter is more dense at the very tip of your nail.

Oh Christmas Tree
This base colour is piCture pOlish Whimsy and I created the tree by painting on a long triangle, adding the star on top and finally decorating it with tinsel.

Fair Isle Snowflake
Coewless Polish: Fair Isle Snowflake Picture Tutorial

Christmas Puddings
The Nailasaurus via iVillage: Christmas Pudding Tutorial

Freehand Roses (again!)
The Nailasaurus: Freehanded Rose Tutorial

And that’s all folks! Let me know which is your favourite design. At the moment I’m falling hard for the cute little gingerbread man and the L♥VE nail. I think I’ll have to work in the Cirque Helios as an accent nail and try some of the freehanded designs in gel polish! Oh heck, we all know I’ll end up doing a skittle manicure because I just won’t be able to choose!

Glitter, Gradient, Stamping, Uncategorised

Pink and Purple Gradient with a Sprinkling of Fairy Dust

19th December 2013

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Last week I was crazy excited about my incoming bottle of China Glaze Fairy Dust and now that I have it, I know it was completely justified! It’s everything I dreamed of! I’ve worn it a few times over a plain colour mani but I really think it looks best over nail art. I was so excited to try it over a gradient and I really don’t think I could have picked a better colour combo. The two shades I used are really awful polishes on their own – bad brushes and a watery formula – but those are always the ones that are perfect for gradients.

Pink and Purple Gradient Nail Art with a Sprinkling of Fairy Dust

I used Revlon Cloud as my base colour and created the gradient using W7 Baby Pink. Tutorial for that here!

I topped the gradient with one coat of China Glaze Fairy Dust and added some stamping from Bundle Monster Plate BM423 using BK Matt White.

The little unicorn is from She Sells Seashells but seems to be out of stock at the moment.

Finally it’s all topped off with a two coats of Glisten and Glow HK Girl with a few extra coats on the unicorn to seal it in.