Doodle Art

So when it comes to nail art, I am not much of a planner. During the week I might have a few ideas pop into my head, but in general, I never know what I am going to do with my nails until I open that first bottle of polish. Sometimes, my spontaneous designs come out great and I keep the same design on for a few days. Other times, I come up with a design that I end up taking off the very next day. Worse still, there are times where I try on 75694 different colors, nothing seems to look right, and I go to bed with naked nails.

Thankfully, this is not one of those times.

Every once in a while, I manage to really impress myself.  I was so happy with how this spontaneous design came out, that I wore it for almost a full week!

I told you, you would be seeing my matte topcoat again! Anyway, I think the matte look really completes this design for me. The combination of the white and pale blue polish with the matte top coat sort of makes my base look like loose leaf paper. I call this "doodle art" because this mani reminds me of something you might draw in the margin of a notebook in boredom. Thinking about it, this brings me straight back to highschool, being bored in class and doodling on looseleaf paper while taking notes. Does anyone even use looseleaf anymore?

While I do love this mani, it took FOREVER to do. Even though I used Seche Vite to speed up the drying process, this look definitely took some patience. But overall, I am super pleased with how it turned out.

And now a question for the audience! What's the MOST amount of time you have ever spent on a mani?

Like this design? Check out my others on pinterest!

Milani - White On the Spot
Love and Beauty - Light Blue
Konad Black
Moyou London Pro Collection 11 (XL)

Something Old, Something Blue - Chandelier Design Mani

Afternoon ladies and gents! So today's mani wasn't inspired by anything in particular, but in trying to come up with a title for this post, for some reason I was reminded of the wedding quote, "Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue". Well, this mani has a vintage feel to it and it is blue...2/4 ain't bad right?

I really love how this mani came out and I have to admit, it was pretty easy to do! First I started with my base, a gorgeous bright teal blue called Turned up Turquoise, from China Glaze. Once my base was dry, I used the saran wrap method to add Maybelline's Mystic Green. Mystic Green is a metallic olive green with a lovely shimmer to it, as you can see in the bottle. However, when it's stamped, it has more of a gold look to it, especially against the bright blue background. When Mystic Green dried, I stamped on the chandelier design and finally, finished this mani with a matte top coat from the born pretty store.

Also I'm a little bit obsessed with my new matte top coat, so you'll definitely be seeing more of this topcoat soon. What's your opinion on matte versus shiny?

So I am normally not a fan of taking pictures with flash, but I really wanted you to get a sense of how the green/gold polish interacted with the blue. I love the tarnished look Mystic Green added to this mani. What do you think?

Like this design? Check out my other's on pinterest!

China Glaze - Turned up Turquoise
Maybelline  - Mystic Green (gold green metalic)
Born Pretty - Super Matte
Konad Black
Moyou London Pro Plate Collection 07 (XL) - Chandelier

50 Shades of Grey ...Nail Polish

Happy Valentine's Day! 

So I did this mani a few months ago and kept debating on when would be a good time to post it. Considering this is the holiday of love (imagine me saying that sarcastically), I thought sharing it today would be appropriate. 

Please forgive my neglected cuticles and less than perfect lighting. Looking back at these photos makes me realize how much I have progressed in the past few months.

So for this mani, I decided to get a little naughty and recreate some of the imagery from E.L. James' best selling novel, Fifty Shades of Grey. For those of you aren't familiar with the story (but really, who isn't?), the book is a romance novel...kind of....about having sex in limos, having sex in elevators, and basically any other place you can think of. The plot revolves around the relationship between Anastasia Steele, the shy graduate student and Christian Grey, a wealthy business tycoon who introduces Ana to the world of kink and all things BDSM.

As someone who works as a book seller, I have seen some of the changes this book has brought to the industry. As many of us already know, when 50 Shades of Grey was first published, it was ridiculously popular. Seeing its popularity, many of the publishing houses who would have turned their nose up at this category of writing 5 years ago, have since begun publishing and promoting authors whose writing falls in a similar category. Sylvia Day, Julie Kenner, and C.L. Parker, to name a few. At this point,  the craze surrounding the novels has definitely died down. However, since the movie version has finally been cast and shooting has begun, we are sure to hear more about Christian and Ana in the upcoming months. Currently, it seems kink has taken over the industry and honestly, its kind of nice to see that people aren't so prudish. 

Other changes? Well aside from the large scale, like increased rope sales at home depot, and the rumored baby boom, it seems the novel has even affected smaller, more remote areas. My boyfriend went to New Hampshire last year for vacation and  during his trip had to stop in at a small rinky dink hardware store. While looking around, he noticed a small cardboard box labeled, "50 Shades of Grey, Do it Yourself Kit". Inside the box was twine, zip ties, and rope. I can't make this stuff up, people.

I could give my extensive opinion on the book series (yes, I'll admit I was one of those people who read all 3), but there are so many other articles, reviews, and opinions about the series that adding mine seems superfluous. What I will say, is if you are looking for a "romance novel", a fast read, and something entertaining/humorous, give the series a try. Other wise, try the "in death" series by Nora Robert's alter ego, J.D. Robb. Her work has a more intricate plot, her characters are well developed, and most importantly, her work doesn't read like a fanfiction. Oops. Looks like my opinion snuck in there anyway.

But moving on. Nail art! 

For this mani, I combined a few techniques. After painting my grey base coat, Revlon Hazy, using a make up sponge (gradient technique), I combined about 4 shades of grey (50 seemed like overkill) to achieve the look you see on my pinky and ring finger. Then because combining lips and chains seemed oh-so-appropriate for this theme, I stamped these images on my thumb and middle finger using a black and white konad stamping polishes. Finally, because at the time I was working on my free handing (I really should get back to that) I used a thin nail brush to paint a tie on my pointer finger. I was actually really pleased with how the tie came out, seeing as I don't free hand too often. And to add a bit of sparkle (and because Christian Grey is a gazillionaire) I added a small crystal stud to accent the tie.

So that's all the nail art I have for today, but before I go, I want to leave you with a bit of fun. Are you having a stressful day at work? Is the cold weather bringing you down? Take a short break, grab yourself a latte, and take a few minutes to listen to Gilbert Gottfried's dramatic reading of Fifty Shades of Grey. Trust me, you won't be sorry.

Have a happy Valentine's night : P

XOXO, On Wednesdays, We Wear Polish

Like what you see? Check out my other designs on pinterest!

Revlon - Hazy (base)
Color Club - Status Update (Dark Grey)
Sally Hansen - Celeb City (silver)
Julep - Winter (light grey)
Konad Black
Konad White
BM12 - Chains
BM02 - Lips

Johnny and Susie Kissing in a Tree - Another Valentine's Day Mani

I know, I know. You're probably overwhelmed by all of the romantic mush that only exists this time of year. Valentine's Day candy, plushy hugging animals in every store window and of course, everyone's plans for this Friday night. So bear with me as I show you one more mushy manicure for the upcoming holiday.

Last Valentine's Day themed manicure, I absolutely promise!

A few months ago, I was browsing nail designs when I came across this little beauty by Clock Wise Nail Polish. I thought this design was adorable and I loved it so much, I immediately purchased the same stamping plate so that I could recreate it. Don't you just love the colors in this mani?

Let's call mine, the cliff notes version. Johnny and Susie aren't necessarily sitting in a tree, but rather, sharing a passionate smooch beneath a cherry blossom tree, courtesy of the Comics Collection 05 stamping plate from Moyou London. The smooch is highlighted by my base color, Zoya Tinsley, a stunning glittery pink polish with a soft gold shimmer, lovely both indoors and outdoors.

*photos taken outside in natural light

*photos taken indoors

Don't you just love, love? 

Stay tuned for another fabulous design coming later this week! 

Thanks for stopping by : )

XOXO, 

On Wednesdays, We Wear Polish

Zoya - Tinsley

Konad Black
Moyou London Comics Collection 05

Lapiz of Luxury

Happy Saturday! I hope everyone is warm and cozy and sleeping in somewhere, being that it's the weekend. Unless of course, you have someone to make you pancakes. Pancakes for breakfast is a totally legitimate reason to be up early on a weekend. Now I'm just hungry.

Anyway, I decided to take a break from the Valentine's Day theme, and post something a little different for today.



This mani was not inspired by anything in particular, except perhaps my subconscious wish for it be spring already.

For my base, I used Essie's Lapiz of Luxury, a soft corn flower blue creme. For some reason, this color reminds me of the end of August, that period of time where the summer heat has finally died down and everything seems a lot calmer. Even though it's still warm out, you can go outside without being scorched. Around this time, you can appreciate the comfortable warmth, knowing the weather will start to change soon. Do you guys have any colors that remind you of anything?

When I originally purchased this, I had a bit of buyer's remorse. The first time I used it, the color looked more purple than blue, and purple is my least favorite color (my theory behind this being, that my parents always gave me grape Triaminic growing up lol). So I stashed the color away and buried it in my polish collection.

My sister took this picture because she thought the amount of polish I have is ridiculous, although I tried explaining this (between 200-250) is NOTHING compared to some bloggers (the most I have ever heard is 1400 in a single collection). And gasp, my collection is not as organized as most, though I do separate my glitters from my non-glitters. I think if I had more room/more polish I would organize things a little differently. But it just goes to show you, you can do a lot with a little bit of polish!

But moving on. When I sat down  to do my nails this week, I found  Lapiz of Luxury again and decided to give it another try. Surprisingly, with a little glitter and stamping, I found I really liked this polish. I paired it with Essie's Blue Rhapsody, a metallic light blue, which FYI, also makes a great stamping polish as you can see. Then I added some glitter topcoat and bam! What do you think of the final result?

Like what you see? Check out my other designs on pinterest!

Essie - Lapiz of Luxury (base)
Essie - Blue Rhapsody (stamping and ring finger)
Revlon - Stunning (glitter)
Moyou London Pro Collection 11 (XL) - Cherry Blossom Branches
Moyou London Pro Collection 11 (XL) - Lotus Flower
Konad Black

Valentine's Day Skittelette

I never post at night, but there is a first time for everything! So before we start, I have a confession...I am not a super big sports person so instead of spending the day watching football, I did my nails! Anyway, in looking at all the mani's that are currently being done, I found myself inspired and came up with another Valentine's Day skittelette. The amount of colors/number of plates I used is a little ridiculous as you can see at the bottom of this post.

Over all, I am really pleased with how this one came out, especially my middle finger which has a little bit of double stamping going on.Yay for experimenting with new techniques! :)

What nail art are you thinking of wearing for Valentine's Day?

Like this design? Check out my other's on pinterest!

Milani - White On the Spot
Sally Hansen - Black Out
China Glaze - Salsa
Konad Black
Konad White
Konad Red
Moyou London Pro Collection 07 (XL)  - Writing
BM14 - Rose
BM09 - Love
BM02 - Lips
BM404 - Small triangle/diamonds
Mash 36 - Rose with stem