Deadpool Nails

FINALLY I got to see Deadpool, and it was awesome :)

For these nails, I started with a base coat of Color Club's "Harp on It," which is an amazing holographic polish.
All of the graphics were  done with stamps. For the Deadpool face, I used a peace sign (BM#07), removed the two diagonal lines, and used a reverse stamping method for the rest.
The lightning images on the pinky are from Born Pretty Store plate #BP06.
HeHe plate #008 is where the guns came from.
The letters D and P are brought to you today by plates #m17 and #m18.
And finally, the blood drips are from another Born Pretty plate - #BP29.

Shattered Glass

I finally  got my hands on some holo foil paper from Born Pretty Store to create some shattered glass nail art!

My base is "Wet Suit" by Sally Hansen - I love this color! Is it grey, blue, purple or a combo? I'm not really sure, but I like it. I cut the holographic sheets of mylar into tiny strips, and applied them using a clear coat. I used Seche Vite to seal everything in, and that was it! This is a really pretty look that is fairly easy (albeit slightly time consuming) to create. I can't wait to use more of this in the future.

Nail It Mag - Bridal/White Theme

Happy Sunday!
I created a few nails to submit to Nail It magazine. They routinely post requests for submissions on specific themes. Here are the nails I submitted for the Bridal/White theme:

Polishes used are Nicole by OPI's "Play Fair" and Zoya's "Aspen." The gold metal circles, rhinestones and silver decal all came from the Born Pretty Store. 

I did a subtle French mani by sponging Aspen over Play Fair. I then layered two gold circle confettis to look like rings, and added the heart rhinestone. Pretty simple, yet elegant I think :)

For this look, I added small torn pieces of gold and silver nail foil, and then added the circle confetti and one square rhinestone to create the engagement ring. 

This one was probably my favorite, because of the purple gem I'm sure :)
I first placed the silver decal on the nail, and then added the large purple gem, then a small rhinestone and a silver heart spangle. 

Which is your favorite?  :)

Holiday Blues

The awesome snowflake design is yet another new Bundle Monster plate, #BMS213, and the tree design is from Born Pretty plate #BP01. I used The New Black (navy) and Zoya "Aspen" (white).  I added a little glitter inside the snowflakes and on the tree. The middle finger has a Funky Fingers glitter topper over the polish called "Elsa."

Welcome Christmas!

The greatest thing about holiday season? All the great holiday nail art of course!

I've been busy at school with lots of holiday manis, and I am loving every minute of it. It makes the day go by fast, and there is nothing more rewarding than the smile I get when I'm done doing someone's nails :)

Here's some of the work I have been doing this week:

So many possibilities, and only 20 days left! What are you wearing on your nails?!?

Born Pretty Stamping Plate #BP17

Hello peeps! Life has been crazy for me -- my kids went back to school, I graduated from my Esthetics program and have started the Nail Tech program, my husband started a new job -- it's been a whirlwind! I am quite excited to have started the Nail Tech program. I am two weeks in, and I am having a blast! It's great to do what I love all day long :) Did you know that in the early 20th century, people would keep their broken nail tips and donate them to a nail bank for nail techs to use as needed?!? Crazy.
Anyway, I have to keep my nails short for my Esthetics state board exam in a little over a week, so I'm rocking the nubs. Today's mani base is Floss Gloss "Dinge." I used Funky Fingers "Dark Knight" to stamp the image from Born Pretty plate #BP17 on my nails (and my toes too, but I will spare you the feet!)

Simple yet elegant - I like it! Have you used the Born Pretty plates yet?

Geo-chic

Can I start off by saying that Liquid Palisade is amazing? In my opinion, it's the second best invention next to stamping for the nail art lover. I am doing much more in the line of stamping and gradients thanks to LP. I could kiss whomever birthed this wonderful idea.

But, let's get back on track, shall we?

I am doing more and more facials in my Esthetics class, so it's becoming more of a necessity to keep my nails on the shorter side. That will not, however, stop me from rockin' some funky designs now and then.

For this mani, I used Indigo Bananas "Taffeta, Darling?" as my base. This is a gorgeous purple glass fleck holo chrome that I was blessed to receive in a giveaway. Then, with my new go-to black, Morgan Taylor's "Little Black Dress," I stamped on the plus-looking design from Born Pretty Store plate #BP25.  My finishing touches were the large pyramid shaped aurora borealis gem and some smaller rhinestones.

I used to not wear anything 3D because it drove me nuts when my gems, etc, would get caught in my hair and clothes. Over time, I have learned how to seal them in more efficiently and have become accustomed to wearing the adornments. My question is this: do you like to wear 3D nail art? If not, why? I'd love to hear your answer in the comments! 

Game of Thrones: House Stark

If you haven't seen Game of Thrones yet -- what is wrong with you?!? No, seriously?
I really, really love this show. I am not sure why I am so obsessed, but I am.
Today's mani is based on one of the main families in the series - the Starks. Their sigil is a wolf (direwolf actually, but let's not get to deep) and they are typically getting the crappy end of the stick in life on GoT.

For this mani I used Indigo Bananas "Great Scott!" as my base. This polish is a gorgeous blue glass fleck shimmer that glows in the dark.  Holy Feces I love this polish. I did a circular gradient of sorts, using white to make a fading circle in the middle, and then put another light layer of "Great Scott!" over the white to soften it up.

Stamping: let me start with the pinky. Bundle Monster plate #BM315 was used to create a flying raven. Technically I believe the stamp is supposed to be a parrot, but I wasn't going to let that minor detail stop me - I took off part of the tail and added feet as well as a longer beak, so hopefully it looks a little like a raven. I didn't have any other bird stamps that looked like a raven dammit.

Anyway, next up: the ring finger. I used My Online Shop plate #JRZ for the House Stark sigil. Love this.

You may have looked at the middle finger and thought, WTF is this?! If you don't watch the show, you will have no clue. However, for us nerds, it represents the weirwood trees from GoT - they are white trees with red leaves, and a face carved into the front of the tree. (Click here to see what I am talking about.) To recreate this, I used  Bundle Monster stamp #BM409 for the tree and a dotting tool for the leaves.

The pointer finger is stamped with Born Pretty plate #BP16, and lastly the thumb is stamped with fauxnad plates m17 &m18.

As much as I am enjoying this mani, I am looking forward to doing more designs with the other houses from Game of Thrones. Personally, I am a big fan of the Starks and Targaryens. How about you?

Panda Bear Nails

Today's mani was inspired by my impending trip to one of my most favorite places, the National Zoo in DC.
My base is Fresh Paint "Firefly" : I like this polish because it is a light, light blue - almost white, but blue enough to allow the white to really pop. Next I did a double-stamping with Born Pretty's plate #BP18. I used two greens for the bamboo, but you can't really see it that well. The bamboo was done with more Fresh Paint, this time "Pistachio" and "#Winning."
I made decals with Bundle Monster plate #BM424 for the pandas. The paw prints are also from that plate.
I am so excited to go to the zoo -- what is your favorite animal?!

More Nails Magazine Inspiration!

What's going on peeps! It is FINALLY Spring and I couldn't be happier! I received my May issue of Nails Magazine, and I am engulfed in inspiration. Today's mani is inspired by the Technique Demo on page 56.

I used Dermelect "Above It" as my base -- it's much more periwinkle in color than the picture shows, unfortunately. I used a small, dry brush to add my accent colors - Dermelect "Lust Struck" (pink), Floss Gloss "Wet" (green), and Floss Gloss "Con Limon" (neon yellow). The white flowers are all from Born Pretty plate #BP24. This is the second time I have used this stamp, and I had a lot more difficulty with it this time. Not sure why.

It's a Spring Thing

I found an artist on Instagram and Facebook called Muses Gel, out of Taiwan. Her style inspired today's Easter/Spring/Pastel mani.

 I used a crap-ton of different products to achieve this look (see the pic below!). Polishes are Zoya "Piaf" (yellow), Zoya "Rebel" (blue), Essie "Full Steam Ahead" (lilac), and Essie "Blanc" (white). I added a layer of Essie Luxe Effects "Pure Pearfection" to give the lilac color a little more of a shimmer - similar to the Zoyas.  Zoya "Cosmo" outlines the heart on the ring finger. I added some water decals from the Born Pretty Store, some gold heart nail spangles, goldtone metal confetti triangles from Bundle Monster, rhinestones and caviar beads. I used the same tutorial that I used for my Tweed Nails on the ring finger and thumb.

I just got a new light box, and while I still have a lot to learn about it, I really like it! I think it will take a little bit of playing around to find the perfect angle.

Funky Fingers "Dia de Muertos"

Happy Spring! It's finally here! Nevermind that it snowed here on the first day of spring :(  I can only suppose Mother Nature was letting Winter have a final hurrah.

Ulta had Dermelect polish in the clearance bin for $.97, so I picked up a few to try. I used Dermelect "Above It" for my base. This looked more like a baby blue in the bottle, but on my nails it looks more periwinkle. Whatever - I like it :)
 I decided to use one of my untrieds, Funky Fingers "Dia de Muertos" on my ring finger and thumb. "Dia" (pictured) is a blue-tinted glitter topper. AND - guess what - it glows! It is nice to realize this ahead of time, so you don't scare yourself like I did. As I was climbing into bed, I saw something glowing out of the corner of my eye, and startled myself for a second before realizing that I am a dumbass and it was just my nails. I'm not really sure what I was thinking during that few seconds of panic, but it definitely got my heart racing.
I stamped my pinky with Kleancolor "Neon Aqua" and Born Pretty stamping plate #BP21. To keep the pink/blue theme going, I added some pink dots with my dotting tool and Ruby Wing "Groupie."
For my middle finger, I used a tip design guide from Kiss as a stencil, and painted over the nail with "Groupie." I really like the tip guides because you can do so much more with them than just french tips. Just be sure to pull off the guide carefully before the polish dries!
The pointer is double stamped with  Bundle Monster plate #BM201 and another Born Pretty plate, #BP10. I am really loving the new Born Pretty plates - not only do they have great designs and quality plates, you can't beat their pricing! You can check out the Born Pretty Store here.

Born Pretty #BP-24

I am very pleased with the new Born Pretty Store plates! For this mani, I used plate #BP-24.  I really loved the rambling flower pattern on the plate, but I was a little worried how the finer lines would pick up - but they were clean and crisp! I did a little happy butt jiggle in my seat :) I used Zoya's "Odette," "Paloma" and "Charity" to create a dry water marble on the first and ring fingers, and the remaining digits are each in one of the three shades (Pinky is "Charity," middle finger is "Odette." etc). I have a little bit of tipwear going on, but I also did a lot of cleaning :/ My bad.

Don't forget that you can use code TTHEX31 to get 10% off a Born Pretty Store purchase!

Bad Romance

Today I am using my Deborah Lippmann polish for the first time. This is "Bad Romance," which is a black jelly polish, loaded with purple glitters. I applied 3 coats, and then stamped Sally Hansen Insta Dri in "Silver Sweep" and one of the new plates from the Born Pretty Store, #BP-08.
While the color and formula itself is pleasing, I wasn't very happy that I had tip wear after less than 24 hours (with 2 coats of Seche Vite applied). Luckily, this bottle of DL was on sale at Ulta - had I paid retail price ($19), I wouldn't be too happy. Will I ever try DL again? Maybe, but only if it's on sale!

'Tis the Season!

Now that Thansgiving is over, it's on to Christmas nails! I am a firm believer in waiting until after Turkey Day to celebrate/do anything Christmasy. My first mani of the season is inspired by a tablecloth I got at the Christmas Tree Shop.

 I used a base of Zoya "Godiva", and then proceeded to get my stamp on! As soon as I got my new Born Pretty Store plates, I was loving the Christmas trees on plate BP-01, and knew it would be the first plate I would use. I utilized two other tree images from Bundle Monster plates BM205 and BM321. For stamping, I used the following polishes:

            - Kleancolor "Red"

            - Fresh Paint "Spruce Street"

            - Nicole by OPI "Promises in the Dark"

Lastly, I used a dotting tool to make tiny dots on some of the trees with Kleancolor "White," and a coat of Seche Vite - which really made my mani shine! 

I really like this design a lot, but with so many awesome new plates to use and only 3 more weeks left till Christmas, I don't know how long until I change it out for something else :)

Born Pretty Water Decals - review

I received some floral water decals from the Born Pretty Store to review.  The decals are squares, as opposed to being nail-shaped. This allows you to use them to cover the entire nail, or cut out specific portions to use. I painted my nails with Kleancolor’s “Pastel Teal” to start.

On my first attempt, I decided to cut the entire square and place it on the nail. I painted my topcoat over it, and once it dried, I trimmed the edges. This method worked ok, but the edges looked a little ragged to me. 

For my second attempt, I decided to cut the square into a nail shape. I then applied the water decal, filed off the edge, and topcoated the nail. This method seemed to be less cumbersome, but I also suck at cutting anything straight/even. 

I threw on some rhinestones for the few nails that I didn’t apply the decals, and decided to edge the decals with some glitter (to cover up my rugged edges!). 

I LOVE the design. I love the colors. The water decal itself was a little more difficult for me than I thought it would be initially, but it got easier as I went along. You can get these decals at the Born Pretty Store here, but be sure to use code TTHEX31 to get a 10% discount! 

Born Pretty Store nail decals

I have to say, I LOVE the new decals I got from the Born Pretty Store. I started with two coats of Zoya’s "Daul", and then laid on the stickers, sealing them in with two coats of Poshe topcoat. In hindsight, I wish I would have used a darker color, to show off the decals better. They are easy to remove from the paper, easy to apply, and gorgeous! More than that, you get TONS! Typically, with most decals/stickers/nail decor in general, you only get enough for a mani or two. In this set, you get 56 decals ~ that’s enough for 4 full manis, plus more! AWESOME!! You also get the fringed/scalloped decor as well. In case you hadn’t guessed, I am SUPER happy with these! You can find the decals here, and the awesome midi ring (also from Born Pretty) here. Both the decals and ring also come in goldtone. 

But wait, there’s more! Use discount code TTHEX31 and get 10% off their already amazing prices!

Be sure to check out the Born Pretty Store today!!!!

Born Pretty Store stamping plate QA61

The second I saw this plate, I knew I had to have it. The coordinated floral designs are perfect for leadlighting!

I painted my accent nails with Fresh Paint in "Pistachio" If you’ve never seen Fresh Paint before, you can get it at Five Below. The images stamped cleanly and easily. To fill in the images I used LA Colors in "Spring Frost" (green), Essence in "Breakthrough" (purple), and Funky Fingers in "Aloha!" (hot pink). I used those same colors for the rest of my nails, and used some little metal studs. 

I LOVE THIS STAMP. I usually never do the same design twice on my nails, but this one will definitely be used repeatedly. The design ideas are endless. You can get the QA61 plate here and the metal studs here.  Don’t forget to use code TTHEX31 to get 10% off!