In between running a mountain of errands and hanging out with my dog this weekend, I managed to squeeze in a video tutorial. I’ve been putting it off for a while (like 3 months, a while) but suddenly had a surge of determination to just get it done. I wish my brain worked this way all the time. And while I’m making wishes, if the weekend could be twice as long that would be nice too!
If you’re a seasoned stamper like me, you’ll know that nothing compares to chrome finish polishes when you want to get the job done. When I first heard about the new Colour Chrome collection of 10 polishes from Models Own I immediately got to wondering how they’d hold up when put to the test. So, naturally, when I got my hands on a select few of them I went straight to work trying them out with some different designs.
As you can see, they don’t disappoint in the stamping department. I stamped them over Cirque Memento Mori which is a flawless deep black and they held up without any issues (the designs are from MoYou Fashionista Plate 05). They’re all very opaque which makes them ideal for the job. The consistency is quite creamy and easy to work with but I think that once they’ve aged and thickened up a little, they’ll be even better.
If you’re in the UK and are into your stamping, or even just a beginner, I’d seriously recommend investing in a few of these as I collections like this never seem to be around for long. I’m going to snap up Blue and Gold as soon as they’re in stores.
As for wearing them alone, it’s advised you ditch the base coat and top coat and just apply 2-3 coats of the chromes over freshly buffed nails. I was curious, so I tried both anyway! Base coat is a no-no as it gets dragged around by the chrome and makes little unsightly lumps underneath. Top coat is a-okay as long as you wait until the colour chrome is completely dry first.
This swatch is two coats of each with no base or top coat. From thumb to pinky, the shades are Rose, Cerise, Olive, Mauve and Indigo. You do have to use a very light hand and use as few storkes as possible to get a decent finish. Each shade has its own level of streakiness and they cling to any ridges or imperfections on your nails which is, I suppose, why it’s recommended you buff before application (I skipped that step, oops!). I’ve never been a fan of the all-over chrome look and I think I’ll only use these for stamping but I could be converted by Mauve and Mauve alone!
The full collection of 10 Colour Chrome Shades will retails at £4.99 each. They’ll be available at modelsownit.com from 29th January, from UK Models Own bottleshops on the 31st January and Superdrug stores nationwide on the 11th February.
No more ‘Happy New Year’, it really is the new year now and I can’t believe how quickly it’s passing. Admittedly I’ve been pretty awful at posting on the blog so I thought today would be a good time for a quick catch up.
I was completely overwhelmed by the number of you that took the time to complete my End of Year Survey. Every response has been perfect and will really help to shape the future of The Nailasaurus. I’ll be taking some time out this weekend to take a thorough look at the replies and pick out the important parts but if you haven’t had a chance to fill it out, there’s still time. Now let’s find out what I’ve been up to recently…
Doing: A huge deep clean and clear out. Goodbye old clothes and anything else that’s outlived its usefulness. Clear house; clear head, I say!
Avoiding: Emails and carbonated drinks
Watching: The Walking Dead – Season 3
Listening to: Purity Ring and Fall Out Boy: American Beauty/American Psycho (Faves: Irresistible, Fourth of July and Uma Thurman)
Playing: Assassin’s Creed: Rogue
Crazy For: The Body Shop Camomile Cleansing Butter, piCture pOlish Holiday, buying cheap watches from China, and my new jewellery.
I started with a base coat of Nicole by OPI At Least I Pink So, then applied some darn cute DIY Nails Here, Kitty water decals.
Once they were all in place, I used a tiny dotting tool to add the random polka dots using Sally Hansen Pinch of Punch and Barry M Coconut.
It’s a few weeks since I was in normal blogging mode and I must admit, I’m a bit rusty but slowly easing back in to the routine. I recently had another big sort out of my polishes and downsized my collection a fair bit. Whilst looking through I discovered a few hidden gems which I had forgotten were in there so I’ve brought them out to see the light of day and hop back to summer with my brights. I think the colour combination is very refreshing – it makes me think of ice cold cocktails somewhere sunny!
As 2014 comes to a close, I feel like it’s only natural to round up some of my favourites from the last 12 months starting with my favourite nail art creations. When I was looking back to pick out the best of this year’s nail art, I noticed that there was less variety than there has been in the years before. I could spot the months where I’d found a technique I loved and really just went all in whether it was gradients, freehand striping or stamping. Going in to 2015, I’m going to challenge myself to step out of my comfort zone a little more and not get stuck in a routine with my nail art.
So without further ado, here are my 10 favourite pieces of nail art from 2014 in no particular order! Click on any picture to go to the original post for polishes and techniques used…
Seems like I’m not the only one who finds it impossible to decide what I should wear on my nails on Christmas Day! I saw that so many of you guys had the same problem and then I didn’t feel so bad about the whole schtick. I actually ended up painting two Christmas manis and surprisingly, the final version is one of the most simple manis I’ve posted all year. I don’t even think it counts as nail art!
The first set I painted on Christmas Eve was a skittlette complete with a waterfall, glitter gradient and sparkly gold foil.
I used piCture pOlish LakoDom as the base coat for the nail art. The waterfall was created with Barry M Gold Foil, Rimmel Raw as Night and Essie Mojito Madness. Waterfall tutorial here.
The glitter gradient was created by dabbing W7 Cosmic Green on to the tip with a makeup sponge.
The gold foil is A-England Excalibur and it’s all topped with a coat of Glisten & Glow HK Girl.
For mani number two, I went with something insanely simple. This velvety blue is Delush Eat Sleep Chic and I used piCture pOlish LakoDom and Lynnderella Mlle Violette de Bleu for some accents. Again, it’s all topped with a coat of Glisten & Glow HK Girl.
Thought I’d take a minute out to post my Christmas Eve nails which I’m absolutely in love with. I think they were just perfect for today – purple is a kind of festive shade and the glitter certainly ups the merriness factor, but they’re not throwing Christmas in your face!
I’m now faced with the almost impossible decision of what to wear for the big day tomorrow. My nails are bare right now while I mull it over. Just a few of my current options are an all out gold glitterfest, some red with white stamping and a green on white glitter gradient but it’s kind of a big deal and not a decision I want to take lightly! I’m going to watch The Nightmare Before Christmas (for the first time ever!) and keep thinking on it.
For this nail art, I used piCture pOlish LakoDom as the white base.
The glitter nails are two coats of piCture pOlish Lollipop over one of Barry M Plum.
I freehanded the snowflakes using the Pure Color #10 Detail Brush from Whats Up Nails with Barry M Plum and then picked out a few glitter bits from Lollipop to scatter in the leftover space.
It’s all topped with two coats of Glisten & Glow HK Girl.
