GOT Polish Challenge: Skittle

For today's GOT Polish Challenge theme, I brought out all older-than-a-year supplies (minus topcoat) to create a skittle. This design is a variation of one I had done back in Sep 2012, so the whole mani turned out to be an oldie but goldie!

I started with two coats of Revlon's Fire Fox, which was reviewed and praised here, and let it fully dry. I then stamped a flowery motif from a set of Konad-dupe plates from Born Pretty Store with Konad Special Nail polish in Black and top coated all my nails with HK Girl Top Coat. Once dry, I applied three Dollar Nail Art black studs on my middle finger and surrounded them with some gold studs I got from from BPS. I walked around the house for a while with my pinky and index finger bare for about an hour as I didn't know what to add to tie up the skittle and make it look coherent. I finished by adding a small L shape with the same gold studs I'd used on my middle finger.

I got Fire Fox, the set of plates and the studs some time around September 2012 and I actually recreated a similar mani, which I did not photograph or have any record of, but I'm pretty sure it went something like this.

What I liked the most from that similar mani was the way Fire Fox shone through the very opaque stamping polish. Look at all that pretty shimmer! I really couldn't stop looking at it.

I didn't secure the studs with any topcoat so they have already come off and taken chunks of the red polish with it so I'm gonna go paint my nails for next week.

Till next time, 

Laura

September Tri-Polish Challenge Day 4

Today is the last day of the September Tri-Polish Challenge and I was tempted to skip this post. I did some sugar spinnning for the first day of this challenge last week  but managed to smudge it badly before it was completely dry. I thought I could try it for the last day of the September challenge and there wouldn't be much problem. I went to work on some sugar spun nails again this morning but they were terrible!!! 

I'm not one to give up easily so I had to come up with a new design quickly. I remembered we could used black, white, silver and gold as well as our three chosen colours. I figured I could use a nail art pen I've had laying around for a while but hadn't used. To be completely honest, I have never tried free hand nail art. Today seemed like a good day to start. 

Here's what I came up with. I used two coats of Essence in Absolutely Blue on my index finger and pinky, two coats of China Glaze in Sweet Hook on my ring finger and one coat of Sally Hansen Insta-Dri in Sonic Bloom on my middle finger and thumb. I then used one coat of OPI Matte Top Coat on all my fingers. This was mostly done for the black nail art pen to grab onto the base as I have found that it slides right of anything slightly smooth. I taped my ring finger off to create the diamond shape using Layla in Metal Chrome. I used the same polish to create two dots on  my index finger and pinky. Then, my masterpiece (Haha! I wish) came to life. I created two diamond outlines using Sally Hansen Nail Art Pen in Black but managed to push it a little to far into the base polishes, which created uneven lines. 

I couldn't quite figure how to take photos of my hands upside down and make them look good so I just flipped my normal pose photos on Picasa. I guess that's a skill I'm gonna have to acquire.

If you've ever used a nail art pen from Sally Hansen, you may know they are basically acrylic paint in a handy package.  If you've used it without a top coat, you'll know they can smudge easily or wash away with some soap and water. I had to bring out my clear top coat to seal it as I wanted to wear this for a few days. I also know the black can smudge quite easily if the top coat is not applied correctly so I dabbed on some Sally Hansen Insta-Drip topcoat finish the mani. Unfortunately, I ended up with bubbles from the thickness of the last coat but it's hardly noticeable in real life.

Putting my rough lines aside and top coats bubbles, I quite like this mani. I'll just have to keep practicing this free handing business.

Check out the other entries to this challenge.

Till next time, 

Laura

Valentino Inspired Manicure

I love (virtually) rummaging through the online New York Mag fashion sections for inspiration for manicures. Think all those designer collections that appear on Vogue and Elle but at your, er..., fingertips for free. Today, I've got a manicure loosely based on the one of Valentino's Couture Collection dresses for the 2013 Fall.

I look at the details, colours and textures to see how they can be translated to the nails without being too literal. When I came across the above dress I knew I wanted on my fingertips!!!

I must warn you, the details of the nail art wasn't great but I liked how it all looked together and that's the main reason I'm putting the photos up. I know it's not perfect but this blog is also part of the journey towards amazing manicures... Deep, aren't I? Haha!

I started with four coats of Sally Hansen Insta-Dri in Peatal Pusher for the nude base then stamped the pattern only half way up the nails with Bundle Monster's BM-201 plate using Konad Special Black polish. I sealed it with a coat of Seche Vite to make sure the stamping wouldn't come off when I placed the stickers for the half moons. I don't actually know if that would happen but I wanted to be safe rather than sorry. 

Once the Seche Vite was dry I put on half of a round sticker in each finger and striping tape on the tips as french manicure guides. I carefully painted  Ulta3 Black Satin on and removed the tape and stickers as soon as I was done with each finger. Finished it all off with one last coat of Seche Vite.

There was a lot of smudging, crooked half moons, bad and excessive clean up, major shrinkage on my pointer and the french tip lines weren't as crisp as I had hoped.

The photos weren't turning out either and each of these photos were taken at different times because I just couldn't take a good one. I could keep going about how this was a bad experiment but one thing I managed to accomplish was to get out my comfort zone and think how I could create a mani from a dress. I think this is one of the most creative things I've come up with and that makes me a tiny little bit proud. I would  usually shy away anything that involves creating arty things.

What do you guys think? Do you have sources of inspiration?  I hope you guys enjoyed the mani.

Till next time,

Laura 

Rainbow Foils and Waiting on Revolution

I love foils. Love how shiny they are, the variety of colours and effects you can achieve with them and mostly I love the fact that they are super easy to apply. Yes, they can take a LOT practice the get right, but once you get use to applying them they can look amazing. 

Last year I got a heap of them from eBay and Dollar Nail Store and was using them fairly regularly. The only problem, as most people that have used foils would know, is the fact that they wrinkle up like crazy and some of the shine can disappear when any sort of topcoat is applied. If you were like me and wanted to keep the shine/holo/3D/smooth effect, you would go without top coat and only sport the foils for a few hours.

Luckily, piCture pOlish has just come out with a new glitter base coat, Revolution, which also works to seal foils without wrinkling them. When I read about it in More Nail Polish, I almost fell backwards on my chair and ordered this base coat as soon as possible. Unluckily for me, I'm still waiting for my packet as I ordered the day before ANZAC Day. 

I couldn't really wait any longer and I brought out the foils anyway. I'm only going to bed after this, so if they get ruined, their memory will be held in this post.

Rainbow foils. Aren't they pretty?

You may or not be wondering, why I stamped on them without showing you the foil by itself. Well, I thought all the practice I had gotten would carry over even if I hadn't done it for a while, like riding a bicycle or ice skating. Turns out that wasn't the case and the foils looked terrible. I figured a good way to cover them up would be by stamping them. I was pleasantly surprised to see that indeed the mani looked a million times better with the stamp. I used Bundle Monster's BM209 plate with Konad Polish in Black. The stamp also makes them wearable for the day as it makes the mani a tad more subtle.

This is what the foils looked like without the stamp. Still very pretty colours but it was a baaaaaaad job. I might have to keep practicing until Revolution arrives. Very likely afterwards as well so I don't waste any precious top coat.

Anyone else crazy for foils? And so happy Revolution has finally arrived? I certainly will be when the mailman knocks on my door (hopeful with fingers crossed) tomorrow.

Till next time, 

Laura

Sideways Ruffian

Here I was again itching to paint my nails after spending the whole weekend without nail polish on. That was almost 72 hrs!!! How did I survive? I had to think of something simple and choose fast drying polish, since I'm lacking quick-drying topcoat and I want to go to bed.

This is where Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Night Flight and Sonic Bloom came out to play. This mani took me about ten minutes from using basecoat to the taking photos. I started with a PVC basecoat, then applied one coat of Sonic Bloom, let it dry and applied one coat of Night Flight using its flat brush to create the sideways ruffian. Finished it all off with a high shine topcoat and voila! Extra quick mani.

I picked up these two bottles from Kmart on clearance for $4 each a little while ago. Every so often, Kmart discounts the Insta-Dri polishes, even though they remain in the core line in every other shop. I find it a bit strange but I've taken advantage of it a few times. I won't stop buying them as I can't wrong their creamy formula, super quick drying time and one coat application.

I found these polishes to be a perfect way to try the ruffian trend that's been around for ages. I wasn't originally planning on creating this but as I applied the black polish to my middle finger, I decided halfway through the stroke I wanted a sideways ruffian. I don't think it turned out too bad but I'll let you guys be the judges of that.

What do you think? Would you consider this nail art or is it too simple?

Till next time, 

Laura

Bejeweled: Take 2

I was supposed to have uni this morning but the floor where I was going to have class flooded and the class got cancelled. What is a girl to do with the time she would have otherwise spent commuting? Well, if you're reading this I'm sure you know the answer.

I present to you and uber-speedy manicure. I used two coats of Sally Hansen Gem Crush in Bejeweled, a small purple and larger pink glitter that takes two seconds to dry. Ok, maybe it takes fifteen seconds but you get the gist. I then applied Rimmel Pro Matte Finish topcoat but I didn't see a lot of difference as this polish dries fairly matte by itself.  Finished by stamping with Konad Special Polish in Black using Bundle Monster's BM-212 plate. I'm not sure what the motif actually is but the abstract look can also look good.

What do you guys think? I actually have done a post about 10 months ago with this polish but it was terrible! Think glittery cuticles, awkward hand position, a loooooooong post where I just kept blabbing on. You could say I'm trying to redeem myself with this one and hopefully the other one can be forgiven.

Either way, I love this polish and it's glittery goodness. I'm off to keep studying.

Till next time, 

Laura

Yay!

I had a horrible week of VERY short nails after going back to work. I had to cut and file them right down since I managed to break two of my nails... *cringe*. Now they've grown a little but but my skin and cuticles are a little bit dry. Please excuse them in the photo below, I was just happy that I have a normal length again. Yay!

Polishes used:

Coral: L'Oreal Color Riche in 305 Dating Coral

Green: L'Oreal Color Riche in 618 Santorini Lagoon 

Black: Konad Special Nail Polish in Black

Top Coat: Sally Hansen Insta-Dri

Stamping plate used: Bundle Monster BM-203

I applied three coats of the coral polish to get it opaque and then sponged on the green with some foam. It then took me forever to choose what pattern I wanted to put on the top as the gradient looked a bit strange. I think the pattern above still shows the gradient  but hides my terrible craftsmanship.

Now, onto the L'Oreal mini polishes. I'm always out for a bargain and for some reason I thought this polishes were on special when I was in Target (maybe a big '25% of L'Oreal' sign gave me that idea...) but I ended up paying the full $6.95 for each 5 ml bottle. I had use them by the time I noticed the price so I couldn't really return them, could I? I don't think any of their colours are extremely unique the two above were different enough from what I have in my stash to *cough* justify my purchase.

Unfortunately, the formula isn't great. The coral was sheer and the green is a stainer, and even with thin coats for both, it took them a long time to dry. I wouldn't recommend them or buy them again. If I want a little bottle I'll just buy an essence polish for cheaper.

Have you guys tried any of the mini bottles? Any shades that are worth the price? Or have you had a better experience with these polishes?

Til next time, 

Laura 

Layla Mirror Effects Tape Mani *Edited*

When in doubt, reach out for the sticky tape... Yes, I'm bad at rhyming but the idea stays true. This mani is not my finest work, the lines aren't that crisp, the pink is quite patchy, the clean up left a lot to be desired, the top coat created bubbles. If you squint your eyes, it looks ok. :)

Polishes used:

Pink: OPI in If You Moust You Moust 

Silver: Layla Mirror Effects in Metal Chrome 

Black: Ulta3 in Black Satin 

Top Coat: Sally Hansen Insta-Dri

The pink polish belongs to the Minnie Mouse collection by OPI and I really like the colour. 

I originally got a mini bottle  but love it so much that I got a full size bottle. However, both bottles are very streaky and the mini bottle has gotten fairly thick, which didn't help with the application. 

******Edit******

I had to add a matte top coat to this mani. I think I may be in absolute and utter love with Rimmel Pro Matte Top Coat. It looks everything look so... soft and dreamy. and it doesn't streak like every other matte top coat I've tried. 

**************

Leaving it very short today, 

Til next time, 

Laura