Bold Watermarble

Bold because I used bold colors, and bold because I'm being bold by showing you some of my work that is not as excellent as I wanted it to be.  But nail art isn't about perfection, and this blog isn't anywhere near perfect, so because of that it's a perfect fit (odd huh).

Watermarbling isn't hard, really, as long as you have the right polishes.  However, if you want to make it look perfect, then holy dang it is hard.  I was really tired when I painted my nails so when I got to my right hand I had more of a "let's just get color onto my nails" mentality rather than a "let's do this the right way" mentality.  But fortunately you won't be seeing any of my right hand.

For this manicure:

• Base Coat - Bonder by ORLY
• Thumb, Ring, & Pinky - Angela by Julep
• Pointer & Middle - I painted My Vampire is Buff by OPI as a base color (which you can't see); I watermarbled using Lainey, Dawn, Joanne, & Ilsa by Julep
• Top Coat - Out the Door by inm

Approximate Completion Time: 2 hours

Watermarble art dries out quickly due to the thin coats of polish that are transferred onto your nails, so you don't even need to wait that long before you can confidently add your top coat :)

And here is an up close shot of the middle finger (aka the only finger that worked out).  I'm sorry for the travesty that is my pointer finger but it is what it is.  I wish I felt more pain looking at how the marble on that nail turned out but I've become so numb to imperfections.

Mm yes hello.

Goodbye.

Spring Transition Nails

Why is it still winter?

Whose idea was this?

I'm ready for spring, but I didn't want my nails to be aggressively spring.  So I created a more edgy/hip spring look.  It's a little bit rough and unrefined, but the weather right now doesn't call for the softer spring looks yet.

For this manicure:

• Base Coat - Bonder by ORLY
• Thumb & Pinky - Tribeca Silver by NYC with silver glitter from Shades of the Season
• Pointer & Middle - Bunny by Julep; then I sponged on 24/7 by Sinful Colors, Mellow Yellow & Lacey Lilac by Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear, Aquatic by L.A. Colors, & Too Yacht to Handle by China Glaze; then I added a coat of Hidden Treasure by Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure; I finished with Jewel Sticker by MODI x UNISTELLA
• Ring - Erin by Julep
• Top Coat - Out the Door by inm

Approximate Completion Time: 2 hours

If you look closely, I'm missing a pearl from the nail art sticker on my middle finger.  Oops.  It still looks cute even if the pearl is missing though.

Every day I wish for warmer weather, so my nail art is probably going to reflect my wish.  Spring can't come soon enough!

That's all for now.  Stay safe and stay warm y'all.

2015 --> 2016 Nails

Hello all!  I hope you all had a wonderful New Year's Eve and that your 2016 has been great so far :)

The first thing I did this year was throw up because of how much I ate and drank.  So.  Lesson for the kids out there:  your stomach isn't as great of a mixologist as you think it should be.  And hydrochloric acid is the last thing you want to deal with when entering a new year.

These are the nails that I wore to my friend's party :) I swear the only reason why I go to parties now is to promote myself or have others promote me.  It's not very effective.

For this manicure:

• Base Coat - Bonder by ORLY
• Thumb, Ring, & Pinky - Alexis by Julep; dots made using a dotting tool and Ellis by Julep
• Pointer & Middle - Ellis by Julep; pattern made using Moroccan Nail Stencils by vinyl boutique and sponged over with Maya by Julep
• Top Coat - Out the Door by inm

Approximate Completion Time: 2 hours

I promise the nail stencil looks really cool and the only reason you aren't fully able to see how cool it is in my photos is because I chose the wrong colors.  But later I'll show you a more detailed look at the stencil (with different colors and I won't mess up then).

But for now, here's a closer look at the stencil.  In this shot, you can sort of appreciate the stencil pattern and the holographic nail polish.

Stop.  Stare.  Marvel.  Thank you.

Also, if you haven't noticed yet, I'm back to my round/oval nails!  Square nails were fun, but they were hard to maintain, and since I spend most of my time at work not maintaining nails, I decided it would be best to revert back to the classic round/oval shape.  Plus now my nails won't chip on the corners (because no corners haha) so I won't be so frustrated with my nails.

I hope you guys have a wonderful day!  And here's to a marvelous 2016 for all of us!!

Black & White Lace

Now that Dancing with the Stars is over, I find I have a lot more time on Mondays.  It's odd.

But with my free time, I get to paint my nails (and blog about them, of course!), play with makeup, and play video games!  That's the life of the typical millenial, aka me.

For my nails now, I've had the idea in my head for about a week, but it was in bits and pieces and not a complete thought.  I'm so glad I got it all out on my nails though.

For this manicure:

• Base Coat - Bonder by ORLY
• Base Colors - unnamed magenta shimmer & unnamed pale fuchsia shimmer by Shades of the Season
• Stamping - used special white polish by Konad & noir black by b.m.c. using stamp plate BM-021 by Bundle Monster
• Top Coat - Out the Door by inm

Approximate Completion Time: 2 hours

The stamping was harder than I expected because the stamp image I chose had a large fill space for polish, and I wasn't used to how much polish I had to use and how precisely I had to pick up the image (or else it would smear).

But these are all good experiences to have!

It's getting closer to Christmas and New Year's...so my next few nails will be outrageously festive.  I realize these nails are a little bit too delicate for the storm that is the holidays that will soon be upon us.

This is all I have for now.  Stay warm out there friends, and I'll see you next time! :)

Blue French Tip

Hello all!  I know I haven't posted in a while, but I actually did paint my nails at least once before this post but I didn't have the time to blog about it because it was Thanksgiving and I was busy eating/shopping/being lazy...ah yes, the American dream.

Anyways, here are my nails for now :)

For this manicure:

• Base Coat - Bonder by ORLY
• Base Color - mademoiselle by essie
• Tip Colors - Jeanne by Julep & Tribeca Silver by NYC; blue part was freehanded, and silver part was painted on using a nail art striper brush
• Stamp - BM-020 stamp plate by Bundle Monster used with special white polish by Konad
• Top Coat - Out the Door by inm

Approximate Completion Time: 1.5 hours

French manicures are actually easier for me to paint on other than on myself.  When I paint my own nails, I often get caught up in the design and forget to take that step back so as to make sure my nails are even.  But when I paint on others I can easily step back and assess my progress.

I got to test out my new UberChic mat for nail art and large sticky stampers for this design.  The mat is amazing (so innovative yet so simple!) and the sticky stamper is too much fun.  I maybe spent a good 5 minutes just touching the stamping head and marveling at how sticky it was.  It's like touching jello.

I got home an hour early today so now I'm really confused as to what to do with my extra hour of free time...I honestly might just spend it playing Splatoon.

Well that's all I have to say for today.  Please stay safe, and I'll be back in about a week, plus or minus a few days.

Yeah :D

Tricolor Braid

Hello all!  I hope you are all doing well :)

It's not the catchiest title, but it captures the essence of what I painted on my nails.

I got my flu shot today, so my left arm is going to be sore tomorrow ;_; however, my left arm is the arm I use the least in my lab work so I think I'll be good to go tomorrow.

But also the meteorologist predicts blizzard-like conditions so it's possible that I get a snow day tomorrow.  A snow day!  I haven't had one of those in like 8 years now.

Regardless of my sore arm and the cold weather, here are my nails:

For this manicure:

• Base Coat - Bonder by ORLY
• Thumb & Pinky - Julep by Julep
• Pointer & Middle - My Vampire is Buff by OPI as the base color; braid segments separated out using striping tape and filled in using a striping brush and Hocus Pocus by Formula X, Lainey by Julep, Mia by Julep
• Ring - Ellis by Julep
• Top Coat - Out the Door by inm

Approximate Completion Time: 2 hours

The color on my ring finger is my first holographic polish!  I'm finally joining the craze - slowly but surely.  Julep calls it a "liquid holographic" polish.  I'm not sure if liquid is really the right word for this color, but it is very addicting to look at in real life.  If I didn't have to wear gloves at work I'm pretty sure I would be focusing all my time and attention on this one polish, rather than on the blood samples that need to be tested for antibodies linked to diabetes...

I actually painted my nails over the course of 2 days.  The first day, I just put down all the base color on my nails and after my nails dried, I went to bed.  Then the second day, I finished the design with the braid pattern.  I would have done this all in one day but for some reason I thought that splitting the design creation would be easier.  I was right.

Look at those crisp, clean lines.

With this colder weather, I wonder how my cuticles and skin will change.  I haven't steadily lived in Colorado for over 4 years now, so I have no idea how my skin is going to deal with the transition from fall to dead winter.  Goodness.

I hope you are all warmer than I am.  That's all I have to say for now, and I hope you all have a wonderful day!

Talk to you soon :)

Ice & Snow

Hello all!  As I write this, I am being informed that there is quite a scary winter storm approaching.  By "scary", I really mean "blizzard-like conditions" and I'm actually honestly not sure whether going to work is gonna be worth it.

So my nails reflect the ice and snow that will soon be all over this freaking place.  Give me my fuzzy socks, my warm gloves, and hot chocolate pronto.

For this manicure:

• Base Coat - Bonder by ORLY
• Thumb, Ring, & Pinky - What a Broad by Sephora by OPI; ice imitated via silver foil purchased from rue21
• Ponter & Middle - Endless Blue by Sinful Colors; stamped with iced silver by b.m.c. using SH202 plate by Shany Cosmetics
• Top Coat - Out the Door by inm

Approximate Completion Time: 1.5 hours

What happened was as I was taking more pictures, my camera decided to run out of battery :o then I charged my camera, and I was charging said camera, my nails got scratched and chipped.

But still, even having 2 good pictures beats having no pictures to show.

It's cold enough to start wearing socks to sleep o.o hopefully the cold doesn't get to the best of me.

That's all for me for today.  I hope you all stay warm wherever you are!! :)