Spring Sponge Gradient

 

Egads - what a day!  I was hoping to get the video tutorial for this manicure edited and posted by tonight, but extenuating circumstances (we bought a new-to-us truck last night) kind of got in the way. So as soon as I can get the video edited, I'll post it - later this week, I think.

  

I did my first sponge gradient since grade school, and it was pretty fun. I used a base of Avon's "Urban Grey" - I wanted a white that wasn't "in your face" bright, and this suited nicely. For the gradients, I used Essie's "Angora Cardi" and Revlon's "Spanish Moss" - gorgeous together, don't you think? 

I played around with a couple different sponging techniques you'll see in the video, and after I put the darker colors on, I went ahead and muted it down a bit with more Urban Grey sponged on top. I decided to add some little "Cardi dots" at the last minute with a dotting tool, but it's overkill. I do think a nice stamped design would look nice...maybe I'll try that next time. 

Base and top coats are Seche Vite, as usual.  I've gotten several compliments on these, so the dots must not be *too* distracting...

 

Sorry the tutorial itself isn't ready - hopefully soon! Until then, happy polishing! 

Split Personality

It's been a very busy few weeks, but our big Halloween bash went off without a hitch. Last week was a whirlwind of activity around here, cleaning, new carpet, new entertainment center, and much less decorating than I would have liked (but still quite a lot). The theme this year was Heaven & Hell, and naturally, the two sides of my personality were allowed out for an evening - including my nails, of course. My only regret is that I broke several nails moving furniture, and didn't have enough length left to do stilettos for my right hand. *sigh*

Above on my right hand, China Glaze "Ruby Slippers" tipped with CG "Liquid Leather" and a fine line of a matte cement color by Nubar (I forget the exact name, and am too lazy to go look at the moment - sorry!). Obviously, this was my "devil" side, so I didn't mind the tip pull or chipping on my thumb. Just added character to the costume, I think.

Below, my "angel" hand on the left. I used one coat of my favorite pearl white from Finger Paints (also forgot the name), topped with two coats of The Painted Nail by Nubar's "Silver Screened". More pearl on the tip, with CG "Tinsel" along the smile line.

I have to say, it's kind of fun wearing two completely different manicures...and I actually got a few compliments, believe it or not. Perhaps I should try this more often? More nail art opportunities...

Next week, a webby manicure I've been waiting *all month* to do. Got Halloween art of your own? Post a link in the comments so we can all have a gander! :-)

Stars 'n Stripes 2011

I know I said I'd do video...but I what can I say? I was catching up on The Bachelorette while I did these (it's my husband's fault I got hooked - he went out with the guys one Sat. night, and it was on, and I just kept watching...yeah. Annoying, I know. But I digress...).

Anyways...I used my favorite Seche Vite base/top coat, along with Sparkly Nails red striper, Avon's "Splendid Blue" and Pure Ice "Platinum". I really waffled with whether to use the stars or not, because if those little points don't get pushed into the polish pretty well and coated heavily with topcoat, they can be uncomfortable to work around. Dangerous even. In the end, it just didn't look right without them, as you can see.

I started with two coats of Pure Ice "Platinum", which isn't the right color white, it's too pearly. Pretty, but cheap polish - I'm tossing all of this stuff out, I think, as it bubbled on me too.

I topped that with diagonal stripes with a red striper brush courtesy of Sparkly Nails. They sent this to me quite a while ago, but the polish was still nice and thin, and applied very easily. I was actually very impressed by the quality after so much time has passed. Great red color too.

Then I applied Avon "Splendid Blue" diagonally across the stripes, covering about half the nail. I'll get a video of this technique eventually, but I start with a single line across the center of the nail, and work out to the edge from that. Two coats, to cover all the polish underneath.

I liked the way this looks, but I'm sure you can see why it needed stars or something...the blue is just too overwhelming otherwise. So a thick coat of top coat, then press the little stars in firmly, then two more good coats of top coat to seal.

I cleaned up with an orange stick in the shower (the Pure Ice was hard to get off too), and clipped any errant star corners with a fingernail clipper to ensure the safety of myself and those I might brush against. And voila! A very patriotic manicure, I'd say.

I had a little tip pull - also the Pure Ice, I think, and my neglecting to wrap the polish around the edge.

Hope you had a fabulous holiday - until next week, Happy Polishing!

Sparkly Ornaments

This week, I needed something to help me get in the mood for Christmas, and I needed a quick design. So I got out these huge rhinestones that the Born Pretty store sent for review. I think they look very much like shiny glass ornaments, don't you?

I started with one of my favorite Christmas glitters, China Glaze "Emerald Sparkle". Two coats over CG base coat makes a nice "tree" layer.

Then I added a thick diagonal stripe in China Glaze "Tinsel", another of my favorite CG polishes. Just one, somewhat thick coat worked fine for setting the stones.

I added three stones to each nail, using red and yellow...

And switched the colors on my index fingers for just a little variety.

Two coats China Glaze quick dry top coat, some clean up, and voila! Sparkly ornaments telling me it's time to get moving on the holiday stuff.

**Edited to add - Born Pretty Store is offering a 10% discount until December 31st, 2010 - use coupon code OPENTENOFF. I may just do that myself, actually. :-)

I'm kind of itching to try a peppermint swirl water marble thing - perhaps I'll do that next week. Until then, happy polishing!

Red, White and Bling

Apologies for posting late this week - but I wanted to have a patriotic design to share in honor of our July 4th Independence Day celebration here in the states. Not just any red, white and blue though...I decided to get a bit more creative this year. I like 'em. :-)

I started with three coats of China Glaze "Snow Me White" - it took that many coats to get it smooth.

Then I did red stripes in Urban Decay's "Fbomb" - which is both ironic and kind of irreverent, but it was the perfect color, I think.

After that, a thicker stripe of blue straight down the center. Two coats of Zoya's "Kotori", one of my favorite sparkly blues.

Obviously, my edges leave a lot to be desired. To straighten them out and add some definition, I used my silver glitter Art Club striper to line the blue.

But wait, there's more! Finally, I put clear rhinestones down the blue, loosely representative of the stars on our flag. I set them in a coat of Seche Vite topcoat.

Then I added two more light coats of Seche Vite to seal, and cleaned 'em up the next morning. I think they're kind of edgy and fun, and they're definitely different than my normal 4th of July designs.

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday weekend - stay safe. Next week, it's all about the green, and stencils!

Until then, Happy Polishing...

Broken Rose

Last week I decided on a super-simple design that always gets lots of compliments. I started with two coats of OPI "A Rose at dawn...broke by noon" over Seche Vite base coat.

I just got new nail art polishes from Art Club, so I used the silver striping brush to make a "Y" on each nail.

Then I put a dark purple rhinestone in the center of each, just for a more finished look.

 After that, just two coats Seche Vite top coat, and clean up. Voila, simple & easy...

This week, I'm going to attempt red & black stiletto style claws for the Gruesome Twosome concert I'm headed to (Rob Zombie & Alice Cooper). We'll see how they turn out...

Until next week, happy polishing!

Flashy Zoya

I've been dying to try out these sparkly Zoya colors since before Christmas. I have "Luna" (Silver glitter) and "Nova" (bright pink glitter), and got out my Migi black/white pen and Essie "Matte About You" to experiment too. I started with two coats of Luna over Zoya basecoat. As you can see, my middle nail finally grew long enough for the break in the middle to tear off, so I'm stuck with a super-short middle nail for a couple weeks. I can't actually cut my nails that short anymore - the skin underneath has grown out past the tip of my fingers (presumably to support my normally long nails). I had to trim the skin off where my nail broke for that one - a painful proposition. You can actually still see the part I couldn't cut sticking up a little past the nail. Thank goodness my nails grow very fast!

Then two coats of Nova on the diagonal (I don't know why, but I'm really drawn to diagonal designs).

As you can see below, I experimented with the design I had in mind on my pinky finger. I often do that because if I need to redo it, it's a very small area to remove/re-polish. I liked it, so I started with white curving back and forth across the colors. 

Then I put black over it, going the opposite way. My lines aren't perfect by any means, but I think the "squiggles" give the design movement and a little dimension.

Then I tried the matte top coat over my pinky nail, just to see how it would look. You can see how the matte is definately a little different below - it accentuates all the little bits of glitter, rather than just being super-shiny. It doesn't really affect Luna much, but I liked it over Nova. Just not with this particular design. I'm still a high-gloss lover at heart.

So I went over them all with two coats of Zoya topcoat, and cleaned them up. Aside from a white mistake on my right hand middle finger, I think they turned out pretty well. They're quite eye-catching and flashy.

What's on your tips this week? Anything fun for these wintery days?

Halloween Nails: Dark & Edgy

The folks at Cina were kind enough to send me a pack of their new Halloween decals to try this month, and share with all of you! Have you noticed that good nail decals are getting harder and harder to find? I have, so I was super-excited to get these, with their edgy not-quite-goth designs. They're available exclusively at Sally Beauty Supply (incidentally, I don't see them in the online store - these may be a retail store only item) and only for the month of October, so run out and get a pack - these are the real deal!

I decided to use the main colors in the decals to create the "canvas", so this week I used China Glaze polishes in "White Out", "Liquid Leather", and "Ruby Pumps". I also used my black & white Migi Nail art pen.
First, I painted every other nail white, then went back and did the rest black. "White Out" has a very thin consistency that I found hard to control - I did three coats of that to get the color even, and two coats of "Liquid Leather" - which is really the perfect glossy black.
Then I took "Ruby Pumps" and accented the base colors with the glittery red. I decided at the last minute to cover my whole pinky nail there, and I also added a horizontal strip across the black index finger, and a red cross over my black middle finger (other hand - not shown).
Time to place the details! I decided on a little ghostly yin-yang on my thumb that ended up looking more like a crest (one of my favorites), and I think the eyes peeking out over the red tip on my index finger are very spooky. A spider, a disturbingly happy skull & crossbones, and a black cat completed this hand. Here's a tip - wait until the polish is pretty well dry before placing the stickers. If you put them in wet polish, the edges will curl up (as did my white ghost there, and my spider on the index finger). These decals do lay perfectly flat when you place them on mostly dry polish.
Next I went back and outlined any color lines with the Migi in black, to smooth them out a bit and give it a more "finished" look. Quick and easy. Two coats of top coat, and some of Zoya's "Hurry Up" drops, and I was ready to clean up my cuticles!
Voila! I think this turned out really well, the first Halloween manicure of the season. It's not just me though - I got compliments already from the lady at the post office, and one at Costco, aside from a few I caught checking them out while trying to be sneaky. These designs are very eye-catching, and people tend to really notice them.
And my right hand too. I adore the spider web & spider on my ring finger, and that screamer skull perfectly accents the long pinky nail.

Next week, more Halloween nails!

Nearly Plaid & Barefoot

Wow! 336 votes in the People's Choice Contest so far! Haven't voted yet? Click here. Then come back to see this week's nail art design.

Haircare Discounters, an online company who sells the entire line of OPI polishes (for less than you'd find it in stores - links in the sidebars) was kind enough to send me a couple of free polishes this month. OPI "Barefoot in Barcelona" was one of my free bottles, a sort of dark rose pink that I think is a wonderful neutral. I was late getting to my manicure this week, and tired, so I decided to use my black and white migi pens to create a simple design.
First, the base - two coats of OPI "Barefoot in Barcelona". It's been awhile since I dug into my OPI collection, but this formula is to die for! Notice my cuticles (yeah, aside from the serious dry skin)? Most of my polish jobs are messy to start, but this polish was just a dream to control going on. Far less mess than normal.
Then, after using my thumbnail as "practice" to see how far I'd take the design, I decided on just two offset crosses in sort of a beginning plaid design. I started with white.
Then added black on top. If you try this, you can do it while the polish is still wet. Just make sure not to let the tip of the pen touch your nail or the paint.
A couple coats of top coat, and it's all done (you can see my "experimental" plaid thumbnail here too). Remember that most nail art colors "drag" or bleed when you go to apply top coat, so do the first coat in one swipe over the artwork, not letting the brush actually touch the nail. After that dries, you can brush the final coat on as normal.

My lines aren't all that straight - my hands were shaky from a day's worth of physical labor. But I don't think it turned out too bad. My husband says it reminds him of some popular art style.

Next week starts four weeks of Halloween nail art, starting with some brand new Halloween decals the folks at Cina sent me to show you. They'll be available exclusively at Sally Beauty Supply during the month of October...come back next Tuesday for a peek!