Manicure update

 So it's really nice sometimes to make an older manicure look completely new, without having to start all over. Today was one of those Days for me. I decided to redo my manicure from yesterday and turn it into pink zebra French tips. I used French tip guide stickers to create a French tip at the top and used Q-tips with remover to clear out the polish underneath it. After removing the polish underneath I added a second French tips sticker leaving a very slight gap in between the tip and the bottom. I used Sally Hansen so Celeb City to create a silver paint over the center gap between the two stickers. Once it dried up all the stickers off leaving a nice silver border on the French tip. I topped it with three coats of Seche vite. While this manicure is a little bit time-consuming with removing all the polish underneath the sticker, it is very worth it in my opinion. The photos are taken with and without the flash. Ignore the bottoms of the cuticles on some of the fingers in the flash picture where the little bits of pink are left behind, it was pretty hard by the end to get that little bit out.

Pink and black zebra manicure

So this manicure is one of my all time favorites so far.  I started off with one coat of Revlon Tulip.  I like this polish, the fomula is decent and not too thin or thick.  One coat makes it opaque.  Opaque enough if you plan to put something over it, like stamping, at least.  Its not streaky or anything even after one coat.  Then i took some Sally Hansen Black Out and used Konad plate M57 to stamp a full nail zebra print.  This polish works wonderfully for stamping.  It was crisp and clear and the full image transfered easily onto the stamper, and then onto the nail.   Then i put a thin layer of OPI I Juggle... Men.  I haven't really used this polish before, but I really like it.  It a transparent polish with a blue/purple holo sparkle.  It really gives this manicure that little bit extra. I finished it off with Seche Vite.

Rainbow cheetah manicure

Just a quick post today, I did this manicure today. I started with a basecoat of Sally Hansen air, which is a gorgeous light shimmery blue and then added a coat of OPI Katy Perry teenage dream to give it a pinky slightly glittery finish. Using Sally Hansen salon manicures bittersweet, which is a light chocolate brown which leans a little bit to the pinky side,  I used Konad M57 to stamp the cheetah print on top. I used some Art Deco by LA colors in blue, red, yellow, and pink to draw the little dots on to the cheetah print and I topped it with Seche vite top coat. 

OPI Yodel Me on my Cell and loose Glitter Manicure of the Day

Okay, so thanks to oily nail beds which make my nailpolish peel off a day or so after I put it on, I've had to paint my nails again.  Darn.  lol.  Anyways, I decided to do a glitter manicure again.  But this time do the loose glitter from the base of the nail towards the tip.  I did a basecoat and then two thin layers of OPI Yodel Me on My Cell from the Swiss collection.  I love this polish, the application is good, its pretty opaque even in one layer.  Then i sponged some top coat down at the base of my nails radiating upwards toward the tip.  Then using a makeup brush i brushed on a little lime green glitter on each nail.  Then i sponged on top coat again and sponged some pink glitter with holo flakeys on the ring fingers over the green glitter.  Then i sponged topcoat on the other fingers and sponged purple glitter over the green on the other fingers.  Finished off with two coats of topcoat and I love the effect it has.  Its not too thick so it shouldn't chip or flake off but knowing my nails it will peel off in one piece per nail over the next 24 hours.  The photos are with and without flash.

Striping Tape...

So I've never owned striping tape.  I've wanted to for as long as I've been interested in my nails, yet they don't sell it around here.  I've tried regular tape, but try cutting it into thinner strips, man that's hard! The strips are never straight, are hard to place, and even the next day they tend to pull off the polish.  I've also used french tip guides, but they are curved and thicker.  I was browsing Ebay today, and I came across this.  It is a pack of 10 different colors of striping tape.  Going for a whopping $1.41 with free shipping.  I know the quality can't be marvelous, but for a first try of something I think that's a good price to pay for what basically evens out to an experiment. I can't wait for it to arrive so I can try manicures like this one featured on the facebook page of Man Glaze.
This was created by the Crumpet and shared to the facebook page of ManGlaze Original Matte Nail Polish, which I follow.  I love this manicure for so many reasons and once I get my striping tape I plan to do my own version of it.  I am thinking maybe tropical colors, Tropical cocktail colors, Caribbean turquoise, Palm tree green, Sunset colors.  Or maybe monotone with various shades of the same color, maybe Pink or Blue.  I am brimming with ideas.  The reviews of this seller say the shipping is super fast so I'm really hoping it comes quickly.  I'm still loving my manicure from yesterday, and for once it isn't chipping off, so theres no new manicure of the day today.  Yesterday I painted a sunset and water scene with a palm tree silhouette on my friends nails, but I forgot to take pictures, so I can't even show you what I had planned. Anyways, I'm off to watch Ghost Hunters and relax a little since it's back to work tomorrow. 

My first Ever Joe Fresh Polish - Starry and a shot at Konad Stamping

Hello again,

Today I was out grocery shopping and I saw this Joe Fresh polish on clearance at Extra Foods.  I've never tried Joe Fresh polish before, with it being a supermarket brand and never being overly drawn to the colors.  However, being on clearance for $1.94 was enough of a reason to give one a shot.  I grabbed this holographic silver one called Starry.  I expected it to be like every other holo polish I had and just be a sheer top coat style.  But happily I found it was full coverage, even after one coat.  The polish had a fantastic formula, and applied like a dream.  I then used Sally Hansen black out and Essense Off To Miami to use one of my Konad plate for french tips, which I haven't done in forever, since I'm usually not too great at it.  Anyways, it turned out excellently and I am very happy with it.  I capped off each with the color to prevent chipping.  Pictures below are without and with flash.

Manicure of the day - essence off to Miami and space queen

I started off with a Basecoat of Sally Hansen insta dri. I then added two coats of off to Miami, which has a great formula and is full opaque with two coats.  Its a gorgeous coral color that looks great with any skin tone.  I topped that with one coat of space queen, which is larger holo glitters in a sheer peach jelly.  Space queen applies a little thick and I don't think you could ever build it up to opaque on its own.  The peach of the jelly base doesn't show too much, so you could use it over any color.  Both Off to Miami and Space Queen are by Essence.  I topped it off with Sally Hansen Insta Dri.

Manicure of the day - revlon cherry crush, Nicole opi bring on thetinsel

 

Today's manicure of the day features a base of two coats of Revlon Cherry Crush.  Cherry Crush is a pink leaning red with a gold shimmer and it applies fairly well.  Maybe a little on the thin side.  It also has a tendency to bleed into the cuticles, so watch out for that.  On top of the Cherry Crush, I used one coat of Nicole by OPI Bring on the Tinsel, which is a multicolored glitter in a clear base.  I put an extra coat on my thumbs and ring fingers to add a bit of pizazz.  Its all topped off with Sally Hansen Insta Dri. 

Sinful Colors Cha Cha Red and Essence Pink Princess

With Flash

Without Flash

Cha Cha Red... What can I say?  This polish was a little bit troublesome in the application stage.  It dripped down from the top of the brush even when you scraped it off, which pooled on the nail.  It was a little bit thin, and was hard to not get on the cuticles.  The second coat didn't really follow the first as well as other polishes.  The color is a dark red leaning pink.  It has a creme finish and dries fairly quickly.  It only takes two coats to be opaque.  After I did my two coats on all my nails and let it dry for a minute or two, I sponged Essence Pink Princess on the tips and a little down towards the bottom of the nail to create a glitter gradient. Pink Princess is pink holo glitter in a pink tinted base.  This polish will never be opaque on its own, but over any kind of pink or white, even black, it looks great.  Topped the entire thing off with one coat of Insta Dri in the red bottle.  I like the look but I'm not sure how many times I will find the time to fight with Cha Cha Red again. 

With Flash

Without Flash

Navy Manicure, care of NY Colors West Village

Today I was wearing a vintage baseball tee, and it was gray with navy sleeves.  So i pulled out my swatches and I found two colors that matched perfectly.  I went with New York Colors in West Village.  This polish is a one minute quick dry.  It is a complete dupe of OPI Russian Navy.  Its a dark navy with a slight purple shimmer.  The formula was great, it gave me no application problems at all.  It was opaque in just two coats, and the second coat followed the first perfectly.  The shimmer is visible in the sun, which around here hasn't been seen in awhile.  I started with a base of nutrinail 5in1.  I then painted two coats of West Village.  Topped it off with one coat of Sally Hansen Insta Dri.  Photos are taken indoors, with an Iphone, with and without flash.  I have to head to work so I have to cut this one short :)  Have a good day!

My Stash and Storage

So today I am going to show you my stash and most importantly, how I store it.  I bought this three drawer Sterilite unit from Walmart for $16.99.  And on the top I put my necessities.  Anything I need regularly that I wouldn't want to dig for.  My remover, my bucket of swatch sticks, my cuticle cream and french tip guides, an emery board, double sided brush/dotting tool, cotton pads and precision tipped q-tips.  And most importantly on the top are my Sally Hansen hard as wraps basecoat, my Sally Hansen insta dri top coat, my growth treatment, and my Hard Candy Matt-ly in Love matte top coat.  

In the first of the three drawers i have my nail art supplies.  Along the front I have my precision nail art pens and striper polishes.  Then I have my stamping polishes and other top coats, glitters, glow in the dark, etc.  Then a variety of emery boards, brushes, clippers, etc.  Nail glue, and then remover.  Decals, stamping supplies, sponges, glitter, and sequins.

Next drawer down is polish.  I have taken a white circle label and written the name of each polish on it and placed it on the top of any polish that doesnt already have the name labelled on by the company.  From front to back I have them organized by brand:  OPI, Sally Hansen, Essence, Sinful Colors, and LA Colors.

Bottom drawer is the rest of my polish (excluding one magnetic polish that I lost right after I bought it and before I even got to try it, hopefully it shows up one day).  It has all my polish brands that I only have one or two of, my mini polishes, and my Revlon in the back.  It also has room any new polishes.

Sally Hansen Black Out, Celeb City, and Sinful Colors Cream Pink

Its pink and black and silver day.  That's what a friend suggested so I came up with this manicure.  I first laid a coat of the Nutrinail 5in1 treatment, because I said i'd give it another chance, even though my last manicure peeled off in less than 24 hours. Then two coats of Sally Hansen Black Out.  Then two layers of Sinful Colors Cream Pink.

Then I decided to put a layer of Sally Hansen Celeb City at the tip, giving it kind of a reverse French tips look.

 Sally Hansen Celeb City

 Without Flash

With Flash

I love the foily finish of Celeb City.  I do find it is difficult to get to go flat though, as any slight touch, even after the top coat has dried gives it ridges, which show up very distinctly in the foily finish. The Sinful Colors had a slightly thin but easy to work with formula, and a touch of shimmer.  The Black Out is not my normal black, as I usually use OPI black, but it was a good formula, not too runny and it was opaque in two coats. The polish is very thick, with two coats of each polish, but I think its cute, and I change my polish every day or two, so it doesn't have to last that long.  I did already nick it a couple times since I did it, but luckily that Celeb City also can be pushed fairly well back into place without leaving finger prints, so its all good. 

On a completely unrelated note,  I found these at walmart yesterday, and they are AMAZING.  The best part is the peanut butter creme has the consistency of the caramel in a caramilk bar.  Yum.