Which do you prefer?

Hello!

So I did some simple tropical stamping over Allan Gardens Affair.

It looks great, but I bore easily! To up the vintage, well-worn tropical print vibe I decided to add a bit more colour - nfu-oh jelly syrups in yellow and pale green.

I topped it off with Essie Matte About You.

Which do you guys like better?!?

-L

31C2014 Day 23 - Inspired by a Movie

Hello!

yeah, yeah, yeah - not even close.
To be fair I did, and posted this on Instagram on the right day - it's just taken me awhile to get the details here - sorry guys!

OMG TOTORO!!! Seriously, if you can't find anything charming about Miyazaki or anything else from Studio Ghibli, you have no heart. My Neighbor Totoro is a fave of mine, but the dust sprites are also featured in my other fave Spirited Away. Yes people - two movies in one mani - can I collect extra points? Anyway...

I started with a base of OPI My Vampire Is Buff.

Next I freehanded the soot sprites with Essie Licorice (black) and Sally Hansen White On. Totoro is Misa Paint My Nails @Work, Licorice, White On and Sally Hansen In the Groove (green).
I stamped the stars using pieces of an image from VividLacquer 014 and used In the Groove, Sally Hansen Brisk Blue and Sally Hansen Presto Pink.

I was absolutely gleeful with the way this turned out! I don't do 'cutsie' very often, but I'll always make an exception for Totoro.

-L

31DC2014 Day 22 - Inspired by a Song

yup - I started skipping again. I was very, very busy this weekend doing ALL kinds of nail art things, but you'll have to wait to hear about that later...

My song inspiration is I'm A Survivor by Destiny's Child.
My bf DJ's and I guarantee he will play a handful of Beyonce/Destiny's Child songs at EVERY. GIG. How can I not love him for that?!?

I remember in the video they were on the beach in these sexy camo outfits, so I turned to our very own CANVAS lacquer G.I.Jane for my base (available now at our Etsy shop).
With a detail brush I freehanded the camo splotches using Misa Paint My Nails @Work, Maybelline Color Show Bold Gold and a few black accents in Essie Licorice.

I originally intended to stamp a camo print in gold from a Vivid Lacquer plate, but my friend had borrowed it so I improvised instead. I think a gold stamped camo would have turned out very different, more GLAMO (get it, glamorous camo!) but I still like my rustic rando version. And it does mean another camo mani is to come in the future!

-L

31DC2014 Day 17 - Glitter

Ok - most of these challenges I feel like I stepped up and did a good job...

To be perfectly honest I'm not so happy with this one, but I was too lazy to redo.

If you can't tell, they're fireworks. I started with a black base of Essie Licorice. To create definitive streaks I used OPI Love.Angel.Music.Baby and Konad Silver. For the glitter element I used a combination of microglitter polishes.

Girly Bits Razzle Dazzle is raspberry microglitter, Cique Queen Majesty is purple and blue and Cirque Stella is full of rose gold. This second picture shows it with Essie Matte About You, y'know, just cuz.

-L

31DC2014 Day 15 - Delicate Print

Yes I do know how to count, I was away from day 11 - day 14 for a wedding!

Trying this challenge is pretty hardcore, but I simply am not hardcore enough to do all the challenges beforehand to post while I was away - some people are that dedicated and for that I applaud you, but me? I just jump back on the bandwagon when I wanna!

Soft, sweet, girly - nothing like me at all! but otherwise I'm still very pleased with the look, it's just so not 'me'.
I started with OPI Don't Bossa Nova Me Around, then created a subtle gradient with Zoya Rue, Elevation Polish Colline du Charf and Zoya Brigitte.

The lacy, doilie-like print is from Pueen 28. I found this a bit tricky to stamp. At first I thought it might be the delicacy of the image, but the more I use my Konad White, the more I think it's the problem. I've just ordered Rica Whiteout and I'm hoping I have more luck with that. White is an essential stamping shade!!! To give this added vintage "dustiness" I added Essie Matte About You.

-L

31DC2014, Day 7 - Black & White

Heyo!

Day 7 - Black & White

I feel like I really stretched my creative muscle on this one!

This is an ode to old film! I tried to create a vintage vignette look with a radial gradient. I'd say it was semi-successful - my collection is really lacking the perfect grey.
I started with a base of Sally Hansen White On, then used CoverGirl Silver Lining, Misa Paint My Nails @Work and Essie Licorice.

I gotta give props to VividLacquer 021 for making this mani possible! What an awesome image plate.

-L

Is This Done Yet?

Hello!

Nail art is, in part, so fascinating to me because the innovations and techniques being used, introduced and invented seem so endless.
One technique I've yet to successfully accomplish is the needle marble. It seems easy enough, but I've yet to get it right. However, I'm not too embarrassed by my efforts to show them to you!

I used a base of Zoya Rue. I let that dry then added drops of Zoya Odette and Essie Turquoise & Caicos, and dragged a very fine dotting tool through them.

This isn't even close to what I had in mind, but hell, I don't hate it! I just keep thinking it needs one more added element to make it feel 'complete'. But the question is what?? Any suggestions??

-L

Colour Blocking and Holo Tape

Hello!

This look is a bit different for me since I very rarely use anything but actual nail polish in my manis (I don't use acrylic paints, studs, stickers, etc., not that there's anything wrong with any of those!)

I was at my local Shoppers (Drug Mart, for those of you unfamiliar with the Canadian chain), and saw a clearance bin with nail art stickers by Essence. As I said, I don't use stickers much, but I liked the holographic tape. This is a bit thicker and wider than your usual metallic striping tape (and therefore much easier to handle). It comes on a flat sheet (not a roll), so they're shorter strips. I think I got 3 or 4 nails done with each strip.

I started with 2 coats of bondi nyc Lady Liberty (seafoam). I waited a good while for that to dry, taped off the tops and added Misa Sorry Just Can't Help It (purple). Then added the tape across the border. Not only does it look great, but it hides a few of the imperfect lines!

I actually matted (Essie Matte About You) all but my ring finger after top coating (Seche Vite) . This photo is a bit out of focus, but shows off the different finishes better.

Which are you, shiny or matte?

-L

Faux Watermarble

Hello!

Whoa - I've been a busy bee this week so I don't have a lot of art to share today.
I only have an iPhone pic of the final mani that I had to snag from my Instagram.

I started with a base of OPI I Don't Give A Rotterdam, a shimmery grey that is more complex upon closer inspection. Then I created a diagonal gradient with Essie Naughty Nautical (aqua) and Nyx Purple.
Here's a look at the gradient pre-stamp:

I added the faux watermarble type image from Vivid Lacquer plate 009 and Konad White.
I have never been able to make watermarbling work for me, so this is an easy cheat.

Any tips of making real water marbles work?

-L

A Rip in Time & Space

Hello!

Sorry it's been awhile. A few different things have been keeping me busy the last couple weeks, but it's all been good!

A couple weeks ago I did this mani, and for the first time tagged myself into a trending theme. This thread was started by The Nail Art Guild, a small group of nail bloggers I follow on Instagram. I'm happy to say this mani has gotten more likes than I've ever received before! For a newbie like myself, hitting just over 100 likes (about 105 last count), is very thrilling!

This theme was Time & Space, so I decided to interpret a wormhole, a rip in the space-time-continuum.

nebula, before the rip

I actually freakin' love this nebula look before I added extra streaks and sparks - but it didn't represent the theme well enough for me so I had to take it to that next level. However, next straight-up galaxy mani I do HAS to have a nebula like this!

I started with a black base of Essie Licorice. Then with a makeup sponge I did a bit of a circle gradient plus random spots with Sally Hansen White On, bondi nyc Blue Skies, Misa Blue Over a Boy, China Glaze Orange Knockout, Misa A Sunny Smile Makes Me Go Wild and bondi nyc Fuschia-istic. Using a few of those colours I also took a detail brush and drew light outward streaks from a centre point - the tiny dot is actually Dance Legend New Prisms Optical Illusion.

wormhole mani!

I continued to add the coloured streaks, added a few light black streaks on top of the colour for dimension, and a few white spots. To soften the look I added little splotches of white and grey in the form of Nfu-Oh Jelly Syrup 01 & 04. Topped with KBShimmer I Only Have Ice For you and a coat of Cult Nails Wax That (after Seche Vite, of course).

I'm so proud of these results that I plan on tagging myself into more themes in the future!

-L

Tropical Top Man

Hello!

Wow, time flies - sorry for my absence. Between birthdays, a camping trip and prepping for CANVAS lacquer's first street festival (check out the info here!), blogging had to take a bit of a back burner. However, I never stopped doing my nails, so here's the back log!

This look really reminds me of the prints I've seen on lots of men's clothing this year. The tropical trends from the 90's seem to be back full force and it was very evident when I went shopping with the bf at Top Man.

I started with 2 coats of Essie Mojito Madness on my thumb, middle and ring finger. I forgot how much I really like this shade of green! It's subtle, but to add sort of a weathered, vintage Hawaiian shirt vibe, I sponged on a bit of Essie Navigate Her.
On my index and pinky I used 2 coats of bondi nyc Chasing the Sun. It doesn't appear in photos well, but I also layered on CND Gold Shimmer for some sunny sparkle.

Using Vivid Lacquer plate 21 and OPI Eurso Euro I added the palm tree images. I love this plate!
Overall I really like this result. I think I nailed some current guy trends, an unexpected accomplishment!

-L

Nail Fail

Hello!

Sometimes what you dream up in your mind doesn't end up translating well to your nails.

This is one of those times. I quite like the way the gradient turned out, so I'm disappointed I ruined it with this poor stamping.

I started with 2 coats of Cult Nails Let's Get Dirty, which is neither here nor there since no evidence of it comes through the gradient. I had originally intended for all 4 shades to be visible but the lines I created on the sponge were too wide. The gradient colours are Duri Showstopper (pink), Essie Naughty Nautical (turquoise), and Essie Sexy Divide (purple).

I then used different parts of a lily bouquet image from Vivid Lacquer 014 with Konad White. Crap. Nothing against the image plate, I just didn't plan my stamping well. It looked so stark with just the white that I used a couple Nfu-Oh jelly polishes and filled the image in a bit, but still looks crap!

Since I change my nails so often this really isn't the biggest deal, I only lived with it for about 24 hours before taking it off. Win some, lose some.

Do you wear your fails or do you scrap them immediately?

-L

Floral with Butterflies

Hello!

This post brings you a look that took a lot of stamping - and unnecessarily so because in the end you can't even see some of the work I did. But live and learn!

I started with 3 coats of OPI My Vampire Is Buff, a cult favourite. I picked this up because it seemed so many bloggers were raving about it; a perfect off-white shade for nail art (sometimes straight up white is a bit harsh). I admit I do like the shade, but at 3 coats I found it a little uneven, but since I stamp over most of my bases it wasn't a big deal. However, 3 coats means waiting longer for dry time.

I then used Konad Silver and Pueen plate 25 for this netting image.

I fretted a little bit about getting the image on straight (it's one of my main stamping challenges), but I think I did a pretty good job. Unfortunately this is the part that gets buried under all the other stamping, but at least I know I can do it! And it's quite a delicate, sophisticated look I might revisit for a wedding or similar event.

Next I used Pueen plate 55 with bondi nyc Teal Magnolia for the leaves, and then Pueen plate 59 with Konad Gold Black for the butterflies.

 

I used Essie Come Here! with Pueen plate 59 for the floral parts, and added a few dots of it on the flowers with the butterflies to help tie them together. My camera seems to have trouble capturing pinks accurately - IRL Come Here! is definitely a bit more pinky-coral.
Lastly I used the leadlight technique and filled in the butterflies with Nfu-Oh Jelly Syrup 28 (purple) and 30 (blue).

I love the leadlight technique! I've tried it before and it didn't work out great, but I think the butterflies turned out really well.

Thanks for stopping by!

-L

Spongey Coloured Floral, Nails of the Day

Hello!

I thought about continuing with my monochrome theme, but the weather has been too nice not to do something more bright and summery.

I started with a base of a-England Encore Margot, a gorgeous silvery holo that has not been justice by my photos. I really wanted to see how cremes and a holo base would play together so I grabbed bondi nyc The Limelight (bright green), Essie Come Here (coral) and a blue Misa I can never remember the name of!

before the stamping

I quite like the look of this before the stamping. I really wish the holo translated better, it looks SO COOL in the sun, but I didn't get a chance for a photo.
I used a Pueen plate and Konad Gold Black for the flowers and dots.

I did my best to offset the stamping so I wouldn't cover up too much of the holo base and the sponged colours. I like the final result, and it matched my mood and the weather! I feel like there's got to be a dress or two out there that this would pair up perfectly with.

-L