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Sponging

    Gradient, Uncategorised

    Well What Did You Expect?

    You know that involuntary loud noise you make when you’re shopping to express surprise and joy at the same time that makes other shoppers look over at you like you just shouted ‘BOGIES’ at the top of your lungs? It’s something along the lines of a sharp intake of breath accompanied by a stupid big grin because you’ve seen something you didn’t expect to see on that shelf in front of you and it’s an absolute bargain. I know you’ve all done it!
    Well I made that noise a couple of times today while I was out bargain hunting and one of them was for a shelf full of pretty polish in The Original Factory Shop. I came away with a very restrained 5 bottles including these two colours from Sally Hansen’s Xtreme Wear range for just £1 each!

    The gradient/ombré trend is picking up faster than any nail trend I’ve ever seen this week so of course I had to go with the flow and create another gradient mani!

    Blue and Orange Gradient Nails

    Blue and Orange Gradient Nails

    I used Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear polishes in Sun Kissed and Green With Envy. I applied them following this tutorial. I sponged the colours on twice today which has given better results than last time – I think the graduation is more subtle and there’s less evidence that I even used a sponge because you can’t see so many sponge marks like last time!
    Blue and Orange Gradient Nails

    Blue and Orange Gradient Nails

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    Gradient, Uncategorised

    I Finally Mastered Gradient Nails!

    Gradient nails are something that I’ve been admiring for a long time but never quite managed to master myself. Until very recently that is! 
    I’ve seen a few tutorials and this one from The Beauty Department looked the most promising but using four colours seems like it would take a lot of time and effort just to get the effect of one colour fading in to another, I figured there must be an easier way! After a bit of playing around, I found a method that’s super fast, very easy and all you need is two colours and a sponge.
    Ombre Nails Nail Art

    Ombre Nails Nail Art
    To get this ombré result, I used BYS Pretty as a Peach, Rimmel Urban Princess and a small section of sponge. More details to follow tomorrow!

    Ombre Nails Nail Art

    Ombre Nails Nail Art

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    Galaxy, Uncategorised

    From The Vault: Galaxy Nails

    I just found these pictures in my drafts list! I’m pretty sure they’re rejects from Day 19 of the 31 Day Challenge. You can see the ones I decided to post here. I like them and I recall liking them at the time but deciding the colour scheme was too similar to the ones I posted way back in February 2011 – my first ever attempt at Galaxy Nails.

    I can’t remember exactly what polishes I used but I’m pretty sure I can see BYS Glittering Purple, E.L.F. Twinkle and GOSH Holographic must be in the mix because I’m holding the bottle!

    Galaxy Nails

    Galaxy Nails

    Galaxy Nails

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    Glitter, Gradient, Uncategorised

    Black and White Challenge Day 7: Black and White with Glitters

    Glitter. I hate the stuff. I truly do. Has anyone noticed that as soon as you touch something with loose glitter on it, you’ll find pieces of glitter all over yourself for the next two days at least?! Luckily, glitter polish isn’t too bad on that account but it still has a habit of sticking to you and putting up a fight when you try to remove it from your nails. 
    I got off lightly with this manicure though. Because there are so many layers of polish, it wasn’t even completely dry underneath when I removed it (about 1 hour after taking the pictures) so I could actually just peel of the whole thing one nail at a time! I can’t imagine how long it would have taken me to get it all off otherwise.
    Black and White Challenge Day 7

    Black and White Challenge Day 7
    I used W7 Cosmic Black – a black jelly packed with Silver glitter – as a base. Then I took a sponge and used it to apply W7 Cosmic Mauve from the tips. Then I added some Wet n Wild White to the mix but because it’s not very opaque, it gave it a milky look. Finally I used a little more Cosmic Mauve right on the tips and used about 3 coats of NYC Top Coat to smooth things over!

    Black and White Challenge Day 7

    Black and White Challenge Day 7
    Click over to see what the other girls have come up with today!
    Esther at Fab Fingertips
    Stephanie at Sincerely Stephanie

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    Glitter, Gradient, Uncategorised

    Party of 5 Glitters? Happy Birthday? Or just a Carnival?

    When I spotted this polish yesterday I immediately thought of Deborah Lippmann’s Happy Birthday. It’s a close match and could easily pass for HB from a distance but I’d put it closer to Wet N Wild Party of 5 Glitters. Cris has a great comparison post here where she goes in to all kinds of crazy detail about the glitter.
    It’s not really a polish I would normally pick for myself but I was convinced it was a dupe of a £15 bottle of polish for only £1 so I splurged (or not) and picked it up anyway. I’m actually surprised to find myself really liking this polish even though I wouldn’t normally touch multicoloured anything with a ten foot pole!
    By the way the polish is called Carnival from a brand called Technic and I found it in The Original Factory Shop but I’ve also seen the brand in Bodycare.
    I used Rimmel Grey Matter as a base colour and a sponge to apply Technic Carnival to the tips. I finished with a few coats of NYC In A New York Minute to glaze it.

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    Glitter, Gradient, Swatch, Uncategorised

    Give ‘Em The Old Razzle Dazzle

    I’ve been digitally absent for a few days bar the occasional tweet and it was nice to have a little break from my online commitments but I’m back with a vengeance and I have so many new polishes to show you.
    It’s a Wednesday which of course means pink!! This pretty pink glitter is Pam of Girly Bits‘ creation. Pam started out as a nail blogger and has taken her hobby one step further and set about mixing all the colours she’d been dreaming of owning but couldn’t find on the shelves. 
    The polish I’m using today is called Razzle Dazzle and it’s a pink jelly filled with pink and purple glitter. It works best for layering but three coats gives good enough coverage to wear it on its own.
    Ring finger: BYS Tickle Me Pink and two coats of Girly Bits Razzle Dazzle*
    Other fingers: BYS Tickle Me Pink and Girly Bits Razzle Dazzle* sponged on to the tips

    Pam’s shop will be reopening on February 25th with her new collection and all previously available polishes will also be for sale. You can order them directly from Pam, all the information is here.
    *Product was sent for consideration. For more information, see my disclaimer.

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    Christmas, Glitter, Uncategorised

    12 Days of Christmas Nails: Day 11… Festive Glitter Fiasco

    Christmas panic began to set in for me today. I still have so many presents to buy and so little time! 
    I think this mani perfectly represents the manic atmosphere that we can all feel in the air these last few days before the 25th, while still looking quite pretty and festive at the same time!
    I used BYS Astro Gold as a base, then sponged on Barry M Red Glitter and BYS Dazzling.

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