Howlite

These were a lot of work, but well worth it. They are not close visually to the reference I used but I love them regardless. Howlite, or as some may know it "White turquoise" is a really beautiful stone.

Holographic #12 Swatch

Here is the last of my holographic polishes from the Born Pretty Store.

#12:

With Flash.

 When I looked at the photo on the website this looked black to me, but it's actually a dark, deep teal shade. Which is awesome, I like this one quite a lot, I currently have it on my toes, and probably will for the next 2-3 weeks depending on its wear.

In direct sunlight.

This is 2 thick coats, it didn't streak at all, and is very opaque. Overall, I think these holographic polishes are really nice, although I'm at a loss with what I can do with them nail art wise.

I now just need to find a good gold holographic and black holographic polish.

Matted Garden

I forgot to post these for you all last Monday.

August/04/2013

 As of late, my life has been getting increasingly hectic, much to my dismay. It seems as though every single weekend this summer has been consumed by stupid parties (those who know me personally know I'm no social butterfly, and crowds/people in general stress me out to no end). So as a result I have not had much time to think of designs, or even carry them out.

Luckily though, these turned out fast and simple enough to do. The roses are handpainted with red acrylic paint. The base colour I used was "Smoke and Ashes" by China Glaze, the shimmer in it does not show up because it's been mattified via China Glaze "Matte Magic".

I hope you all have a lovely week. Also to the Canadians who follow me, the CNE is opening this coming Friday!

Holographic #11 Swatch

Here's another of Born Pretty Store's Holographics.

Here's #11:

With Flash.

 #11 is a dark purple, it looks more blue in this photo for some reason. It's like the colour of grapes.

In direct sunlight.

This had the best coverage so far, I think the deeper/darker shades are the most opaque. It also dried to a really nice gloss finish. This is with 2 coats. #11 went on nicely, it's a great shade of purple, but I don't think it looks so great on my nails.

Holographic #8 Swatch

Here's Born Pretty Store's Holographic nail polish in #8:

With Flash.

 This is a really pretty shade of sky blue holographic.

In direct sunlight.

This shade applied well, with no streaking. This is 2 coats, it could use a third since its a bit sheer on some nails, but I'm sure 2 thick coats would sort that out too.

Minty Floral

Sorry about my disappearance last Monday. It was just one of those really bad nail art days where nothing

worked at all.

This design though, has been sitting in my sketchbook since February just waiting to be brought to

fruition. I hope you enjoy it.

July/28/2013

The base used for these was Julie G's "Gelato in Venice" a really nice mint green. I sponged some darker green before putting in the roses.

The roses are also that one-stroke type of painting technique. It actually turned out well this time.

The thumb rose is my favourite.

Have a good week!

#4 Holographic; Swatch

Colour #4 of Born Pretty Store's Holographic nail polishes:

With Flash.

 I really like this shade, its a rich reddish pink holographic, almost like the colour of salmon only darker.

In direct sunlight.

This is with 2 coats, it's really nice and opaque, it went on nicely like the others did, no streaking what so ever. As you can see this one was very glossy once dried, which is nice if you don't have time to apply topcoat.

Holographic #3; Swatch

Another holographic swatch for you, here's Born Pretty Store's Holographic nail polish in #3:

With Flash.

 #3 is a sort of dusty rose shade. My mom has a colour near identical to this one by Sally Hansen's nail prisms.

In direct sunlight.

I only used 2 coats for this one, although on some nails you can still see my tips, but I'm certain a 3rd coat if you're patient enough for that would cover it all.

I personally don't think this shade looks to good against my skin. So I may not wear it out too often.

Butterflies

I wish I had more butterfly stickers.

July/14/2013

The base I used is "Steady as She Rose" by OPI. The butterflies I purchased from the Born Pretty Store. They are actually water decals, and at first I wondered if they would actually adhere to nail polish, but they worked beautifully. I just wish I had more.

Holographic #7 Swatch

This swatch is of Born Pretty Store's Holographic nail polish collection.

Here's "#7"

With Flash.

#7 is a kind of silver, with a pale green hue to it. It's nice but also quite sheer, you can still see my nail tips on a few fingers.

In direct Sunlight.

 I used 3 coats for this polish, but it may work better with a similar colour underneath it if you don't like sheer shades.

Soft Water-less Marble

I find it so weird trying to type on my laptop since my work computer is completely different.

Also, it sucks that I missed last week, both LGBTQ pride AND Canada Day. I didn't get a chance to since my new furbaby wanted to play with my brushes.

Here's a simple and easy one:

July/07/2013

A super easy water-less marble, better known as "needle-dragging" except I used a brush in place of a needle.

I used "You Callin' Me a Lyre" by OPI as a base, with "Fairy Dust" (China Glaze), "Disco Ball" (Sally Hansen) and "French White Creme" (Wet n' Wild) for this.

Watercolour and Roses

I really wanted a floral, specifically cute little roses this week.

June/16/2013 to June/22/2013

The watercolour nails look like my bedspread hahah. I did those by using acetone to water down the polishes and that's how they made that blended look. I did roses on my thumb and ring finger, although it would've looked nicer if I went blue and purple flowers as opposed to pink and yellow.

On a side note, I cut into my middle finger with a butcher's knife last week while trying to chop up some stuff, so you won't be seeing that finger in my posts for a while until it has healed up.

Colours used:

"Don't Touch My Tutu" O.P.I

"Posh Plum" Sally Hansen

"Va Va Voom" Orly

"Blue Sparrow(Neon)" China Glaze
"Turned up Turquoise (Neon)" China Glaze

And some silver holo glitter bought at a local craft store.

Rose Among Thorns

Really simple for this week.

June/09/2013 to June/15/2013

The colours used were "Rose Among Thorns (Neon)" and "Tempt Carnation" by China Glaze. The stripes were done using striping tape and I then added some gold studs I got from the BornPrettyStore. 

Water Decals

I think it was last year, but I bought a set of 20 different water decal full nail strips, and here's one of them:

June/01/2013

This weekend was really busy so I needed to do something really fast, and these water decals are good for those days. It took me about 20 minutes to get these all done, they are a little tricky to work with though.

Have a good week!

Butterflies and Rosebuds: Swatch

Here's another Julie G. by Jesse's Girl polish swatch:

"Butterflies and Rosebuds"

Indoors.

 This is a beautiful metallic magenta. It's a great combination of pink and purple, and metallic shimmer.

Direct Sunlight.

This is with 2 coats, it went on nice and smooth with no streaking. It dried nice and quick too. This colour also maintains a nice gloss to it once dried.

I'll update on the wear once I've worn it longer.

Cotton Candy

This manicure reminds me a lot of the cotton candy clouds you get at fairs and such.

May/26/2013 to May/31/2013

 So a did a simple ombre using "Tickled Pink" by Wet n' Wild and "Pastel Blue" from Kleancolor. I topped it off with Kleancolor's Aurora because it's just too pretty not to use on these pastel manicures.

Tokyo Nights: Swatch

Another of my Julie G. by Jesse's Girl polishes.

"Tokyo Nights" by Jesse's Girl

Indoors.

 "Tokyo Nigthts" is, in my opinion, the perfect shade of navy blue. It's dark, but not too dark, and it's a creme finish, no shimmer, metallic or glitter mixed into it.

Direct Sunlight.

This is 2 coats, it went on smooth and easily, no streaking to be found. It dried fairly quickly too, which was nice.

I'll update on the wear and tear once I've had a chance to break it in.

Matte Leopard

The base colour I used is a frankenpolish, I combined Orly's "Coffee Break" with "Fois Gras" by China Glaze and some white polish to get a grey-ish taupe colour. I topped it with some pale gold paint and added the leopard spots. I went with a matte top coat this time instead of a glossy one because I wanted to test it's staying power.

Cabana Boy: Swatch

Here's another shade from my swatching day.

"Cabana Boy" by Jesse's Girl

Indoors.

 This is a nice blue creme. Solid, with no shimmer. Although this tends to be less of a bright blue in person, it's still a really nice shade.

Direct Sunlight.

Now this is much closer to the actual colour, but it's still not exact.

I don't know how well this wears yet, I'll update on it once I've worn it for a while.

Bridal Nails (Warning Feet Photos)

I was recently commissioned to do a mani/pedi for a Desi bride. Here are her nails.

Pedicure

 The lengha she was wearing was a beautiful ivory with gold, and maroon gems/embroidery, so we matched the colours in her nails to it. On the toes you see "Smolder" by Orly and a holographic loose gold glitter on top.

Gelato in Venice: Swatch

Trying to keep up with my swatches is proving difficult. Since, these next few weeks coming up will be hell, from switching jobs to weddings, I decided to do a ton of swatching, so I could have photos up on a more consecutive basis until things calm down a bit.

First up is "Gelato in Venice" by Jesse's Girl.

Indoors.

"Gelato in Venice" is a really nice mint green. It's very light and creamy looking. The best part is that it's opaque in 2 coats. 

Direct Sunlight.

This went on really well, no streaking to be found. I'm not certain about the wear on this shade, simply because I had it on all of 2 minutes. But I will update once I've worn this shade out.

Solar Flare

I was craving some flames for most of last week, so here they are. The base colour I used is "Loundest Color" by Sation, its like a neon yellow that has a touch of green in it. Then I just painted flames in blue and green acrylic paint.

Sonic Bloom; Swatch

Another to add to my swatches, I present to you:

"Sonic Bloom" by Sally Hansen

Sonic Bloom is from Sally Hansen's Fast Dri collection, its a reddish coral shade that is really bright and cheerful for summer. It leans closer to red/pink than some coral shades which I find are more orange. Dry-time is great, they are also super opaque, and wear really well as you can see this is 4 days worth of wear. Be careful though, if this bleeds into your cuticle area like mine, it's going to stick around for a while.

Peaches n' Cream

I reblogged a photo from Miss Pop Nails on tumblr the other day with this design on it. And, since my original idea failed miserably, I attempted a slightly different version of hers.

May/05/2013

The base colour for these is "9 to 5" from Julie G's Jesse's Girl line. It's a really pale pastel peach shade. I did the lines in white acrylic paint. The best nail is the pinky I think, next time I will probably use striping tape to make the pattern more uniform.

Pastel Teal; Swatch

This is "Pastel Teal" by Kleancolor. It took about 3 thickish coats to get it even and streak free. The drying time on it wasn't so bad though. It's not as pastel as I would like it to be, but it's a nice shade. In the photo it looks a lot like Color Club's "Blue-Ming" but this shade is darker and has more green in it. It wears well as I only have a few chips toward the tips of my nails only on my right hand. At about $1/bottle I'd say they're not bad. They do however contain Formaldehyde, DBP, and Toluene.

Simple Glam

I had another design in mind for this week, but it kept failing, so I swapped it out for this one.

Indoors

 I also have a wedding coming up soon to go to, if my job plans hold out I won't be able to go. So this particular design is super simple, the main three fingers are "I Herd That" by China Glaze, with "Hot Blooded" by L.A. Colors on the ring and thumb nails as accents. I added a triangle half moon in "I Herd That" to them to make it a little less boring.

Outdoors

Since it's finally getting warm and beautiful outside, I was able to grab a nice shot of these in the sunshine.

These nails would look really great during the holidays too, now that I think about it.

Water Spotted

Have you seen that water spotted effect going around? I thought it was pretty cool looking so I figured I'd give it a shot for myself.

The base here is "Pastel Teal" by Kleancolor, I did the spotted effect in "Inky" by O.C.C. and used some acetone to get it to look more like I wanted. I like the end results, although the actual water spotting didn't quite come out like Simple Little Pleasure's on youtube. I guess I will have to try spraying the alcohol closer to get larger spots. All in all, I like the way this turned out.

Also, my index finger doesn't have any polish on it because I recently managed to slice it open on a dust jacket (book cover), and since it's pretty deep I'd like to avoid getting acetone in it.

Little Mermaid

This one is really nice and clean, and simple.

I also wanted another excuse to draw scales. So these remind me of mermaid tails with the pastel shades sponged randomly onto the accent nails. I like the cute scalloped french tips on the other nails too. It's a very clean, and simple looking manicure.

I sponged "Pastel Teal", and  "Pastel Blue" (by Kleancolor) and "Lacey Lilac" (Sally Hansen) onto the ring finger, and went over top of it with "Age of Aquarius" (Color Club) for the scales. The base I used was "French White Creme" by Wet n' Wild. This one was really cute and easy to do.

Flowery Britches

So the base I used for these was "Mossy Britches" by Nina Ultra Pro, its a really nice olive shimmery green, with some gold to it. I topped it off with some golden-yellow flowers.

Pink Galaxies

These looked much better in person, the "Fairy Dust" made them really come to life. For these I was inspired by Black Milk Clothing's  Pink Galaxy Leggings (you can see them here).

The colours I used for these nails are: "Black Creme" and "French White Creme" by Wet n' Wild; "Ahoy!", and "Evening Seduction" by China Glaze; and "Fuchsia Fever" Bye Revlon. I topped them off with some "Fairy Dust" (China Glaze) and "Disco Ball" (Covergirl).

Spring Flowers

It's officially spring!!! I'm so happy! Finally this snow shall melt and lead to beautiful flowers and double digits! To ring in the spring, here's a floral manicure!

March/31/2013

I apologize for the photo quality, I was in a rush and didn't manage to get a good photo of these with my proper camera before running out the door.

The base colour I used was "Don't Touch My Tutu" by OPI. With some purple and blue flowers done in acrylic paint. Very simple, and fast, although I plan to revisit this in the future, next time I will make the colours brighter looking.

Cheshire Cat

These remind me vaguely of the Cheshire Cat from Disney's version of Alice in Wonderland.

I can't recall when these were done.

Allow me to start off by saying, I attempted my own home made matte top coat, using corn starch and clear polish, as you can see it worked, although that big white splotch is some corn starch that didn't quite get mixed in enough.

The base is "Va Va Voom" by Orly, with the stripes done in "Twilight" by L.A. Girl.

I like my homemade matter top coat, I just need to remember to shake it really well hahah.

Fire an Blood: House Targaryen

This is the last manicure in this month's Game of Thrones theme.

House Targaryen:

Let me begin by saying, this is my favourite manicure of all! And it was so much faster to do than I thought it would be! Also Daenarys is one of my favourite characters from Game of Thrones aside from Tyrion Lannister.

Main Four

 So this manicure is a mix and match type deal. The dragons are the main thing I wanted to emphasize though, so they got the middle finger, then to continue the dragon theme, fire was needed. I tried using a needle drag techinque for the flames but it wasn't turning out how I wanted it so I switched and just painted them on, they look infinitely better this way. 

Thumb Close up.

 Keeping with the dragon theme, I chose to do scales on my thumb because I felt it would be far too dark if I did another black nail. I like the end result of the thumbs. I started with a base of "Cayenne Pepper" by L.A. Colors, and made a darker red to add some depth to each scale. This was super easy and really fast.

Dragons Close up.

 The dragons were also surprisingly easy to do. I began with an oval in red for the heads and some curvy fat lines for their necks, then went in with some black and a fine brush to add eyes, mouths and the frill part on the dragons' spines. I used a dotting tool to dab some "Cayenne Pepper" onto the dragons to make them look like scales. And of course, there's also some fire in the background there :).

I know I've already said this before, but this is my favourite manicure of them all, so much so that I may revisit it later on this year, after all, you can never go wrong with fire breathing dragons! Even though this is the last Game of Thrones inspired mani that I'm doing, I know there are many other houses that can be done, and have been done by others. 

I hope you have a wonderful week! 

Dress Nails (Feet Warning)

So a client of mine asked for nail art that resembled the dress she was wearing to an event.

March 06 2013

The pattern on the dress was very brushstroke-like using a magenta, hot pink and black. The colours I used were "Ahoy!" and "Flying Dragon(Neon)" by China Glaze and "Black Creme" by Wet n' Wild. This was a very quick and easy design to do and the client loved it.

House Lannister (Photo Heavy)

Week 3, we're almost there!

House Lannister nails:

Whole Hand

 So as you know the Lannister's sigil is a Lion, I chose not to use the original sigil for these because its very tough getting a whole lion in there with the amount of detail I would've wanted. So instead I opted for one of the desktop wallpaper lions.

Main Four.

 I also included a fancy chevron french manicure to the other nails, unfortunately the rhinestones on my index finger migrated a bit before I photographed these and noticed it. I added the lion's tail on the pinky because I didn't want it plain, and didn't know what else I should put there.

Thumb Close up.

 This is by far the best looking lion.

The base colour I used for these was "Hey Sailor!" by China Glaze. I painted the lions using a gold/yellow matte acrylic paint. The gold striping tape is from the BornPretty store.

These were fun, but didn't turn out as nicely as I hoped, but overall I'm pleased with them.

Have a good week! And stay tuned for the Finale!

If you would like a set of these feel free to contact me.