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 6 - Violet

Hello!

Day 6 - Violet

So I finally dipped into a holo AND a CANVAS lacquer for this challenge!

Girly and sweet - not like me at all! ha.
The base is OPI Don't Bossa Nova Me Around, and the gradient uses L'Oreal Royalty Reinvented and CANVAS lacquer Orchids. IRL you could see s a bit of the shimmer in Orchids on the tips and had a really pretty effect.

For the stamping I used Color Club Eternal Beauty and Pueen Encore 02A. Surprisingly there was still a beautiful linear effect on the nail.

Even though this is not my usual steez, I still really liked this.

-L

31 Day Nail Art Challenge, Day 1 - Red

Hello!

So here we go. I don't know where and when this challenge started, but I've been vaguely aware of it through the nail blogosphere for about a year. I don't know why I decided to start. I guess because I noticed it on day one and realized I wasn't behind yet!

I will be out of town for a few days to attend a wedding this month, so I already know I won't have the time to complete all the challenges - but I figure I can at least give it a go while I'm in the country.

Day 1 - Roses are Red

A classic interpretation (and hey, this was started on a whim).

I was hoping the contrast in textures would be more obvious, but nothing wrong with a little subtlety from time to time (I guess, ha).
I used a base of bondi nyc Horny Mistress (still lovin' that name!), with a-England Rose Bower on my pinky. I stamped the roses from Pueen Encore 03A and carefully filled them in with Rose Bower. I was quite pleased that I didn't have to reverse stamp these roses to get that same effect!

I don't wear red nails very often, but I really did enjoy the classic 'femme fatale' look.

Anyway, wish me luck as I try my best to keep up with all the amazingly talented participants in this years 31 Day Nail Art Challenge (which will referred to as #31dc2014 henceforth).

-L

New Stamping Possibilties with Sally Hansen Insta-Dri

Hello!

So. If you didn't know... I like stamping. With my recent plate purchases I've been also dying to get my hands on more stamping polish. Konad polishes are a bit pricey (relatively), but are supposed to be the hallmark of stamping polish. My Gold Black is amazing, but the Silver I bought is way weaker than my nOPI Positive Energy, so my experience is hit/miss.
I started hearing RAVE reviews of Mundo de Unas stamping polish so I tried to hop on that train, but alas! I kept trying to check out and getting an error, then I read that they stopped shipping internationally recently. *cry*
With a little research (ie, going past page 1 in google results), I surmised the Sally Hansen Insta-Dri line was full of great stamping options. I raced over to the local drug store and voila! A sale!!!
So I picked up 8 shades. Here's 4.

I started with a base of In The Groove, a cross between a lime and avocado green. These polishes are so creamy and opaque! I find the brushes kinda fat and ragged looking, but it works for most of my fingers because the cuticle line is curved. My thumb is more straight across, and getting a nice straight line with those brushes is a bitch!. I then sponged on Mint Sprint (which I don't find minty, but closer to turquoise), and Brisk Blue. With Pueen plate 52 I added these geometric images using Sand Storm.

Can't wait to keep playing with these shades and finally be able to do more stamping over dark, and more double stamping!

Do you have any favourite non-Konad stamping polishes?

-L

This one almost got away...

Hello!

Sometimes life just starts racing around you and you almost forget to post a mani!

This is a little quickie I did using holographics and playing with the Pueen Encore plates.

I started with Darling Diva Killer Queen on my thumb, middle and ring finger. Index and pinky are Darling Diva We Will Rock You. They're both really pretty shifty holos.
I got curious and wanted to see how the holo flame would play if I added more holo to the tips. Hands down, the strongest linear holos in my collection are the Layla's. On the thumb, middle and ring I added Ultra Violet to the tips, and Emerald Divine to my index and pinky. The effect is subtle but I like it.

I stamped with images from Pueen plate 02A and nOPI Positive Energy. This was also another chance for me to play with my new squishy stamper, and I gotta say I don't know if I'm head over heels. I love how much the images wrap around the nail and get into my cuticles and cover my tips, but I'm still struggling to get image pick ups as clean and crisp and whole as my harder Konad stamper. Do I need even more priming? I'm afraid to go too far!

-L

Pychedelic Stamping with Pueen Encore

Hello!

Previously on last week's episode of CANVAS lacquer (here).

So here's the look post-stamp.

This was my first go around with the new Pueen Encore plates I recently bought. These images are from plate 01B. I am LOVING this collection. At first I was having a bit of trouble with my new squishy stamper, but I think it needed some priming. So after gently buffing it a bit I tried again and had better luck. They're not perfectly centered, but for this look I don't mind they're a little off, it adds to the psychedelic look. The thumb image reminds me of a mandala.

I think the pairing of the circle gradient and the radial nature of these images really work well together, I am so happy with the way this turned out!

As a stand alone this nail reminds me of classic comic book style for some reason. Am I crazy?

-L

Nail Mail!

Hello!

I've been on a no-buy for quite some time, times have been tight so I've been pretty well behaved.
However, sometimes one just needs to indulge a little. I was dying for the Pueen Encore Collection, and then I also found out MoYou offered free shipping - so I went on a spree!

Expect a lot of stamping in the next few weeks!

-L

Sunday Saver Mani!

Hello!

Ok, today is not Sunday - but it was when I did this mani, so whatever, right!?

This is a saver because I picked up these two Sally Hansen shades on sale, they are already pretty cheap, but when they're $2 each you can't say no!

The two shades are Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Coral Reef and Blue Me Away!
I used Konad White with Pueen plate 70 for the roses. Then I dusted off my dotters, which I don't use enough, and filled in the empty space with polka dots.

Blue Me Away! is almost a one-coater. It disappointed me a little bit that Coral Reef required 3 coats to look perfect, but it was $2 and a great shade so I'm not complaining. However, I did find both shades a hint 'stain-y' but nothing too bad.

Do you jump for sales??

-L

Colour Jungle

Hello!

So this started off as a tape mani - but when that turned into a hot mess I decided to stamp over it - a great solution to hide mani messes!!

On my thumb, middle and ring fingers I started with 2 coats of bondi NYC The Limelight, on my index and pink I used 2 coats of OPI I Just Can't Cope-acabana. I then used craft scissors to cut little scalloped strips and painted on OPI Funky Dunkey (purple) and OPI Live.Love.Carnival.

I ended up with this.

Some of the lines did turn out fairly crisp, but when they didn't it looked pretty bad. Then on top of that, when I added topcoat, the purple and the green melted into each other making this weird brown shade. Ugh! It also made the coral turn orange, I'm fairly indifferent on that point.

So as my fix, I grabbed Pueen 56 and Konad Gold Black.

I was feeling lazy at this point, so I wasn't cleaning the plate between stamps and didn't get the nicest lines - but since this is such an abstract look I don't mind at all!

What's your "fix" when your initial ideas go awry?

-L

Holographic Mix with Floral Accents

Hello!

I haven't featured holos in awhile (which is odd since I LOVE holos), so here we go!

So I could utilize many shades, I decided to try the dry brush method to get this cool mix of holographic goodness.

I started with 2 coats of A-England Fonteyn. Then with very little polish on the brush, I randomly splotched on the following: Layla Emerald Divine (green), Color Club Eternal Beauty (purple), Colors by Llarowe OABTRAD (deep pink), and Liquid Sky Lacquer Swerve (blue).

I added the floral image from Pueen 72 using Konad Gold Black. The image was a bit lost at first, so to highlight it a bit I filled the flowers in, using a very light hand and a small brush, with Gosh 24HR Holographic. The difference is subtle but I love effect.

It's so hard not to stare at this mani when it's sparkling in the sun!

-L

I'm So Fancy, Nails of the Day

Hello!

I didn't plan for this look to turn out so elegant, but it definitely made me feel kinda fancy when it was all done!

 

Silly me, I forgot to take a picture of the gradient before the stamping - but here are the details.
I started with 2 coats of Cadillacquer Blowfish. It's also the bottle I'm holding. I think it reads a hint more green in real life. The other two shades are also Cadillacquer (all 3 are from the Breaking Bad collection). The soft lilac colour is Yeah, Science! and the blue is Better Call Saul (I mistakenly said it was Car Wash on Instagram, sorry!)
I initially tried the gradient with the traditional make-up sponge method, but the sponge sucked up all the base and left me with only shimmer, so I knew it was going to take forever to get the right opacity. Instead I just painted the shades on, figuring I'd stamp over it anyway.
I then added the images from Pueen plate 65 and my trusty silver stamping polish NOPI Positive Energy, topped with HK Girl.

 

I posted this look on Instagram and tagged Cadillacquer. She reposted to her audience and it got a lot of likes. *fangirl moment*

-L

Brazil! Nails of the Day

Hello!

In keeping with my punchy colour combos, I decided to do something yellow and green. To me that's always a fresh and citrus-y look, and since our weather has been summery the last few days, I felt it was time.

Unfortunately I didn't get a chance to take pics under my usual set up, so these window shots will have to do today!
I happened to use 2 shades from OPI's Brazil Collection, I Just Can't Cope-acabana (yellow) and Amazon...Amazoff (green). My original intention was not to make such a Brazilian mani, but of course OPI must have been inspired by the colours of the flag, because that's all I can think of when I see these shades combined! I'm not much of a soccer (or football) fan, but with the World Cup in Rio coming up, I definitely see these colours trending soon.

Both the leaf image and flower image are from Pueen plates, the numbers escape me right now. I've used Amazon...Amazoff for stamping before and knew it would work well, but I wish the yellow had stamped a bit better. The glitter topper on my pinky is Elevation Polish Huangshan (the original version, the current version has softer shades of yellow, I personally like this brighter version better).

Did you immediately think "Brazil", or did you have another first impression?

-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

Monochrome Blue, Nails of the Day

Continuing in the monochrome theme from my last mani, I decided to do something blue.

I wasn't really sure where I was going with this when I started. I grabbed a bunch of my blue cremes, a detail brush and went to work.
I started with a base of bondi nyc Blue Skies - for a fairly light colour I'd consider this an ALMOST one coater! With my detail brush I used a number of blues - and unfortunately I can't remember them all at the moment. I definitely used bondi nyc NYPD, and bondi nyc Midnight Mystery, which are deeper blues. I used a Misa for the lighter blue, but I can't remember what it's called. There may have been another shade or two but who knows!
I then stamped using a Pueen plate 46 and Konad Gold Black.

 

...and then I did this. Probably shouldn't have. I guess I just wanted to add some pizzazz and didn't know how to. So I put a coat of Quo by Orly Glam Trash (which I think is exactly like Orly Sparkling Garbage). It obscures the stamped image, and not in a good way.
The thing about overdoing, or messing up any mani, is that I change my nails so often that I don't let it bother me for very long. I'm always thinking about what I'll be doing next!

-L

Monochrome Green, Nails of the Day

Hello!

I don't do tone on tone a lot, but for some reason I've had green on green in my head all week.

Unfortunately, I dented my ring finger before a had a chance for a photo, sorry!
I found photographing the true charm of this mani very difficult, which is why there's only one pic.

I started with a base of piCture pOlish Honey Dew, a very light minty green. I found it a bit difficult to get even, it would probably require 3 (maybe even 4) very careful layers if wearing alone, but since I was going to stamp over it I left it at 2 on some fingers, 3 on the really patchy ones.
I stamped with, you guessed it, OPI Amazon...Amazoff with Pueen plate 55.
I then layered 2 coats of Cirque Iris and then matted it all.

This looks better in person, promise!

-L

Long Weekend, Nails of the Day(s)

Hello!

I’m sharing two manis in this post since I don’t have too much to say about them. They weren’t total fails, but neither one really turned out the way I was hoping so I didn’t really love either of them, but I thought they were at least worth a quick note (plus they both inadvertently wound up with a vintage feel).

This mani I wore for Easter dinner. The stamping was really only successful on my thumb – I felt like the patterns were competing a bit too much on the other nails. However, I really do like this colour combination. The base is OPI Don’t Bossa Nova Me Around, the green foliage is OPI Amazon…Amazoff, and the floral parts are Zoya Odette. I used a Pueen plate from the Buffet collection, but I’m away from them right now and can’t remember the number, sorry! I want to attempt something like this again, I'll just have to be more mindful of keeping the different colours/patterns separate.

vintage fabric print mani

In this mani I used another Pueen plate from the same collection, again, I can’t remember the number. Also again, I used Amazon…Amazoff to stamp the images (can you tell I love this polish?!) I then haphazardly tried the ‘leadlight’ technique that’s been going around (filling in stamped images with jelly polishes), but I wasn’t all that successful. I started with a bit of yellow and wish I had stopped there. The red isn’t so bad but the purple doesn’t really work, and ends up showing too many brushstrokes. When I was done with all that, I added a coat of Essie Matte About You to give it a sort of vintage tropical fabric vibe. Alana (who’s family is Jamaican), said it’s called “batik”.

batik-esque print mani

Hope you had a great long weekend!

-L