Carousel Ball Nails

Please understand that I volunteered for charity because I'm a good person.  We raised a lot of money for diabetes research and treatment options (and by "a lot of money" I mean like enough to pay for all 4 years of USC).  It was a wonderful night.  So many rich people.

Also I got to see Usher and John Elway, so that was pretty cool.

And since I work in both diabetes research and got to go to a free concert all for charity, I think I'm the real winner here tbh

Anyways, since I knew I was gonna be surrounded by so much wealth, I decided to paint my nails to reflect how simple yet sophisticated I was.  Or something along those lines.

Too bad nobody commented on my manicure ;_;

For this manicure:

• Base Coat - Bonder by ORLY
• Thumb, Pointer, & MIddle - gradient made with makeup sponge and Myrtle by Julep, Mary Lee by Julep, & Black Out by Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear; stamped with BM-017 stamp plate by Bundle Monster using good as gold by essie
• Ring & Pinky - Golden-I by Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear
• Top Coat - Out the Door by inm

Approximate Completion Time: 1 hour

Also I bought a Nintendo WiiU, which came with Super Mario Maker and the 30th anniversary Mario amiibo and oh my God bless freaking Nintendo ;u;

NOW WE JUST NEED ZELDA WIIU OKAY I CAN ALREADY SEE MYSELF CRYING TO THE MUSIC which is also how I feel every time I listen to Kingdom Hearts music.  Some may say I cry too easily.  I say...neh.

Alopecia Awareness Nails

Once upon a time, there was a younger me who was going through the typical angst that is puberty and I seriously was mad at God for making it so that I had alopecia.  I was like 100% sure He had a hand in it (maybe He does, maybe He doesn't).  I so wished that this condition was embodied within someone else and not in me.

But God works in interesting ways to bless His people.  I don't wake up thanking Him for my alopecia, but I do finally appreciate how it has shifted the way I perceive my own body image.  My church also prayed for me over the course of 5 years.  I remember that final doctor's visit where the doctor told me that I didn't need to continue using whatever solution I was using at that time, because my hair has grown back at an immensely faster rate than he had expected.

Throughout college, there were times when God seemed so far away, but I would have to remind myself that I was living proof of His miracle.  My hair is proof of His miracle.  Of course, college stress meant that I would have occasional flare ups and lose hair time and time again, but that hair always grew back.  My hair isn't dense and thick.  It's pretty thin, but yo I'm thankful.  However, I have like 1.2 eyebrows.

Of course, those antibodies still exist in my blood (as far as I'm concerned...haven't been tested since), which means I technically still have alopecia.  It would be cool if we could cure alopecia, but since it's an autoimmune disease, that would be quite the challenge.  How does one selectively target antibodies??  Granted, I wouldn't need such a cure because I feel pretty confident in my condition, but for those people out there who do have alopecia and do want a cure...that would be nice for them.

Anyways, September is Alopecia Awareness Month, with the awareness being the color blue for some reason.  So here is my contribution to the awareness:

For this manicure:

• Base Coat - Double Duty Strengthening Base & Top Coat by Sally Hansen
• Thumb, Ring, & Pinky - aruba blue by essie; glitter gradient made using a makeup sponge and Portia by Julep
• Pointer & Middle - Shelly by Julep; used Fishnet Stencil from Vinyl Boutique and stamped gradient over it using Jeanne by Julep, Endless Blue by Sinful Colors, & Char by Julep
• Top Coat - Out the Door by inm

Approximate Completion Time: 2 hours

Surprise, surprise - the top coat dries quickly, which makes the vinyls easier to use.  Nail vinyls are pretty legit.  I remember seeing them for the first time a few years ago and I was like "this is a cool concept but it's never gonna catch on".  I was wrong.  This is also how I felt about Vine, Snapchat, the Nintendo WiiU, etc.

Clearly I have been wrong on more than one occasion.  I can own up to that.

Inspired by: "Golden Days & Sultry Nights" Eyeshadow Palette by Tarte Cosmetics

There are a lot of words in that title, but it gets the message across.

I bought this palette from Sephora because there was a summer sale AND I had just gotten my first paycheck!  That was a highly dangerous combination, but it's okay because nobody got hurt :)

The more I stare at the colors (& at the name) of this eyeshadow palette, the more I feel inspired to be artistic and creative.  And I imagine myself vacationing by the beach in Hawai'i with a drink in hand :)

But for now, I am landlocked and working full time, so my vacation days can wait!

For this manicure:

• Base Coat - Bonder by ORLY
• Base Color - Too Yacht to Handle by China Glaze
• Thumb, Ring, & Pinky - sponged gradient with Too Yacht to Handle by China Glaze & Endless Blue by Sinful Colors, neon circle studs from BornPrettyStore
• Pointer & Middle - reverse stamped with image plates BM-023 & BM-012 from Bundle Monster using good as gold by essie, image filled in with Endless Blue & Happy Ending by Sinful Colors & Shocking by Marc Jacobs
• Top Coat - Out the Door by inm

Approximate Completion Time: 1.5 hours

Technically it took me longer than that if you include the amount of time I spent prepping with the reverse stamping.  But even then, that's a lot of drying time, so I thought it would be best if that was left out.

I'm very happy with this mani.  I haven't been this satisfied with my own work for a while now, so to have this feeling back makes me feel very complete :)

This is one of those nail art designs that I don't want to take off, but I will in a few days...such is the life of a nail artist.

UGH.  THE COLORS.  THE DESIGN.  THE INSPIRATION.  THIS WAS ALL SO PERFECT.

Wedding Nails

My Bible study leader from my Freshman year of college got married this past weekend, so I had the honor of witnessing the confirmation of their love in holy matrimony :) it was the first time I've attended a friend's wedding.  Thankfully it was super casual, so I get to slowly practice appropriate wedding etiquette.  My knowledge and understanding of wedding etiquette will come in handy for the next 10 years as my friends get engaged and married!

But friends, if you're reading this, please pace out your weddings so I can attend all of them and not skimp out on wedding presents :D

My dress was a nice mint color, so I wore these nails to help encourage the summer spirit:

For this manicure:

• Base Coat - Bonder by ORLY
• Thumb, Ring, & Pinky - coral polish by bonita, Saaya by Julep, & Laree by Julep; stamped with royal blue by b.m.c using BM-023 plate by Bundle Monster; gradient made using make-up sponge
• Pointer & Middle - coral polish by bonita, Saaya by Julep, & Laree by Julep; gradient made using make-up sponge
• Top Coat - Out the Door by inm

Approximate Completion Time: 2 hours

To be perfectly honest, I was internally freaking out about how fancy I wanted my nails to be.  I can't have nicer nails than the bride...can I?  I don't think she ever saw my nails, so I think I was able to get away with this set of nails this one time.  Actually this is the one thing I still need to figure out, and I'm sure it varies by bride.

SO LADIES.  IF YOU'RE GETTING MARRIED AND I'M A GUEST, PLEASE LET ME KNOW HOW TONED DOWN MY NAILS ARE SUPPOSED TO BE BECAUSE I CLEARLY DON'T KNOW.

Alright, that's enough from me for today.  Have a wonderful day, and I hope I will be able to post again soon! :)

Silver Shards on a Subtle Gradient

Hello!  If you follow me on Instagram, you know that recently I made the life-changing decision to change from my usual oval nail shape to my current square nail shape.  I'll be keeping my square nails for at least a year to see what it's like throughout the year.  Maybe even longer.

If you don't follow me on Instagram...why not?  You should :)

But without further ado, here is my first nail art design on my square nails!

For this manicure:

• Base Coat - Double Duty Base & Top Coat by Sally Hansen
• Thumb, Pointer, & Pinky - Laree by Julep
• Middle & Ring - Char by Julep, Alexis by Julep, & Glenda by Julep; gradient made using a make-up sponge
• Top Coat - Double Duty Base & Top Coat by Sally Hansen

Approximate Completion Time: 2 hours

Even I can't see the gradient that well in real life, unless if I'm intentionally looking for it.  Also, this is the first time I've used crackle/shatter nail polish.  I remember when they were first introduced and people went CRAZY over them (back in 2011??) and now here I am, 4 years later, finally jumping on the hype train.  But the hype train has already up and left.  There's only one person on the train and that's me.

Remember how I said that I still had older posts to upload?  Well if you happen to see me flaunting oval nails in any future posts (during the next year), just know that those are from my stash of old posts that I need to upload.  I am not switching from oval to square to oval to square.  I'm just late to this function.

Thank you for taking the time to read this.  I hope you all have a wonderful day! :D

Beach Day Fun Day! Nails

Hello all!  I apologize for my absence - it was caused by a plethora of events that all snowballed into each other and here I am, finally with the right sense of mind and enough decency to get back into blogging.

OH ALSO!  I got featured in a blog recently :) the blog owner likes to showcase the bare nails (and base coated nails) of nail artists.  It was really awesome to know that someone found my blog and contacted me for a feature :) anyways, you can find pictures of my bare naked nails here and my bare naked nails with base coat here :) additionally, click here to check out the rest of Natalia's blog!

So after my last post, my sister came to visit me for her spring break, so it was like I enjoyed spring break all over again.  Then my boyfriend broke up with me (so he's my first ex now; how odd), so I had to deal with all the emotions that came with that.  But don't worry you guys - I'm in a better place now, and every day I'm healing and finding more and more things to be thankful for every single day :) And then finals week happened, so I was "studying" for my "exam".  After finals week was graduation, which was boring, exciting, and hectic.  I got to spend time with my family so that was nice.  And after graduation, I had to move things out of my old apartment and into my new apartment (just subleasing for the summer), and also I've been applying to jobs.

I also bought a pet bunny! :D

But in the meantime, I have been painting my nails regularly.  If you follow me on Instagram, you might have seen my nail art.  However, I haven't been posting because of all the messiness that I had just described.

So here I am, making a post again after disappearing from the face of the internet.  I went to the beach recently, and I love the beach because I'm originally from Colorado, and they have no beaches there.  I like how I can just sit on the soft, warm sand and stare at the ocean and...it's so timeless.  There is something so soothing about staring at a wide expanse of water and realizing that in the end, everything is going to be okay.  I may be dealing with a lot of problems, but I will get through this.

It was a nice day at the beach though.  Here are the nails I had on for that day:

For this manicure:

• Base Coat - Base Coat by Finger Paints
• Thumb, Ring, & Pinky - Nadia by Julep & Shrimply Devine by Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure; gradient made using a make-up sponge
• Pointer & Middle - Kimberly by Julep, Too Yacht to Handle by China Glaze, good as gold by essie, & neon orange square stud from BornPrettyStore; polish was sectioned off using striping tape and gold line was added using a striping brush and stud was placed on using top coat
• Top Coat - Top Coat by Out the Door

Approximate Completion Time: 2 hours

So since I have a better grip on myself mentally and emotionally now, I will be posting about the nail art that I have created previously during my period of recession/dormancy.  I may or may not also be doing collaborations with other bloggers, so just keep an eye out :)

And as always, thank you for taking the time out of your day to read this post.  I really do appreciate all of you!

Loosely Inspired by: Taylor Swift's Outfit at the Grammy Awards 2015

I'm not her biggest fan, but she had such a great outfit.  Plus her personality is becoming more amicable and less relationship-dependent, which is nice, because I was really getting tired of listening to her dish out on why she hates men for leaving her in her songs.  Like one song is okay but more than 5 is too many.

Anyways, here are my nails!

For this manicure:

• Base Coat - Base Coat by Finger Paints
• Thumb & Pinky - Dream On by Sinful Colors
• Pointer & Middle - Bunny by Julep, gradient was sponged with Gorgeous by Sinful Colors & Angela by Julep
• Ring - Nadia by Julep, My Vampire is Buff by OPI, Myrtle by Julep in combination with a small striping brush
• Top Coat - Top Coat by Out the Door

Approximate Completion Time: 1.5 hours

The ring finger is supposed to be a very abstract version of her head/face.  She didn't sport red lips that particular day, but she's often depicted wearing red lipstick, so thus the red lips.  Yeah.

My birthday's in a week, so my next manicure will be something fun for me!  I'm gonna treat myself by painting both of my hands!

Valentine's Day Nails

Hmm yes I am quite excellent at posting things late.

As I had mentioned before, I didn't want to do the reds and pinks for Valentine's Day this year.  I instead went for a completely different color palette (which paired perfectly with my outfit, so don't worry):

For this manicure:

• Base Coat - Base Coat by Finger Paints
• Thumb - Alexis by Julep, Björk by Julep, white half pearl from Claire's
• Pointer & Ring - Tribeca Silver by NYC
• Middle - Endless Blue by Sinful Colors, What a Broad by Sephora by OPI, stamped with iced silver by b.m.c. & BM-023 by Bundle Monster
• Pinky - aruba blue by essie, Björk by Julep, white half pearl from Claire's
• Top Coat - Top Coat by Out the Door

Approximate Completion Time: 1.5 hours

So take that, reds and pinks.  Gotta step aside for something cool and hip.

And that's all I have to say for now, really.  Stay safe because we'll meet again soon! :)

Neutral Gradient

I have a research proposal of sorts that I need to be working on but instead I somehow found myself painting my nails.  Haha whoops.

For this manicure:

• Base Coat - Base Coat by Finger Paints
• Thumb & Pinky - 2 coats of Janae by Julep, 1 coat of Björk by Julep, & neon pink stud from bornprettystore
• Pointer & Middle - Margit by Julep, Avalanche by China Glaze, & Janae by Julep, each nail sponged twice
• Ring - 2 coats of Bunny by Julep, 1 coat of Janae by Julep, stripes made via striping tape
• Top Coat - Top Coat by Out the Door

Approximate Completion Time: 1.5 hours

I love this new dark gray polish.  The dark gray on the tips of my ring finger is supposed to match the dark gray of my pinky finger.  However, my pinky finger has the added coat of a special metamorphic top coat from Julep, and it's so freaking amazing!  This top coat will add a new level of dazzle and dimension to any manicure.  I can't wait to use it more often :) and if I run out that will give me the perfect excuse to buy some more HAHA

This winter break has been fun.  Now it's back to work!

Winter Chevrons

I seem to be capable of painting winter-themed nails only when I'm in the presence of snow and coldness.  California doesn't do that for me, which is why it helps that I'm currently in Colorado right now, with all the snow and cold outside.

For this manicure:

• Base Coat - Base Coat by Finger Paints
• Base Colors - Bess by Julep & Avalanche by China Glaze
• Chevron Colors - Jeanne by Julep & Char by Julep
• Top Coat - Top Coat by Out the Door
• Tools used - chevron stickers from BornPrettyStore, makeup sponge

Approximate Completion Time: 2.5 hours

Most of my time was spent waiting for the blue base to dry so I could overlay it with the chevron stickers and the gradient which would ensue.  But that's just nail art for you.

Be on the lookout for more winter/holiday-themed nail art soon!  But until then, stay warm out there! :)

A Splash of Pink

So I'm trying to figure out whether I have been blogging for me or for attention, and as I try to figure this out, I will not be posting as often or as frequently.  Ultimately, I want my blog to be an extension of my own creative efforts, and I don't want it to be a means through which I gain popularity or attention.  But if you do really enjoy this blog, thank you so much for your support :)

I have been feeling so...bland recently.  I can't conjure up clear images of what I want on my nails.  However, I have also been experimenting a lot with eyeshadows and different eye looks, so I am still playing with colors in that sense.

For this manicure:

• Base Coat - Base Coat by Finger Paints
• Base Colors - aruba blue by essie, I Gotta Blush on You by Sephora by OPI, & Shrimply Devine by Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure
• Pink Matte Glitter - Blush Pink by KleanColor
• Filigree Decal - from bornprettystore (HL 201)
• Top Coat - Matte Me Crazy by NYC

Approximate Completion Time: 1.5 hours

I had learned online that to make a gradient easier to clean up, you can simply apply glue around your nails and letting that glue dry before sponging on the gradient.  That's what I did, and it worked very well!  I enjoy having less to clean up.  Plus, glue is fun to peel off your fingers.  Reminds me of my childhood days...

I don't know when I'll be posting again, but please stay tuned! :) You can follow me via email, on tumblr, or even on twitter!  All those links are to the right (in the side bar).  Aside from that, I hope you all have a wonderful day! :D

A Study in Blue

Hello all!  I hope you are all feeling great :)

I'm enjoying these nails, but only for so long.  My art is temporary.

For this manicure:

• Base Coat - Base Coat by Finger Paints
• Base Colors - Bess by Julep, Endless Blue by Sinful Colors, Char by Julep
• Stripe Color - Tribeca Silver by NYC
• Top Coat - Double Duty Strengthening Base & Top Coat by Sally Hansen
• Stars - white stars from Claire's
• Tools Used - striping brush, striping tape

Approximate Completion Time: 1 hour

I've been thinking about this design for the longest time, so I'm very satisfied with my end result!

That's it from me for now.  I'll talk to you guys soon, but until then, I hope you live a satisfying life and make good choices :)

Bling Bling by the Beach

I went to a beach bonfire type of party the other day, so I had to dress up my nails appropriately :)

For this manicure:

• Base Coat - Base Coat by Finger Paints
• Base Colors - Black Out by Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear, My Vampire is Buff by OPI, Tribeca Silver by NYC, silver glitter by Shades of the Season
• Gradient Colors - Cloud 9 by Sinful Colors, Pink Punk by Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear, Myrtle by Julep, Dream On by Sinful Colors, Endless Blue by Sinful Colors
• Top Coat - Double Duty Strengthening Base & Top Coat by Sally Hansen
• Studs - white half pearls from Claire's

Approximate Completion Time:  1.5 hours

Studs are fun.  Studying can also be fun.  Dating a stud is great.  Wearing stud earrings is cute.  Okay I'm done - go back to your books, kids.  And I will see you soon :) 

Water Park Fun

Hello all!  I was going to upload this post sooner, but one thing led to another and now I'm finally able to do so, after making one thing of 10x native gel buffer and wiping down the legs of at least 100 chairs, maybe more.  I'm a strong woman.

I went to a water park yesterday with my boyfriend and some other friends :) my nails kinda match my swimsuit, but it's not too obvious...the water park was fun though!  For the first time in my life, I didn't have to carry all the tubes and stuff by myself.  This is what true love is - your significant other stepping up to carry all the tubes for the rides.  Just kidding.  True love is other things too, but for the sake of time we won't get into that.

We also got Dippin' Dots ice cream!  I love their ice cream.  I would eat it all day if my wallet didn't stop me.

Here's what my nails looked like for the event:

I know my nails look bumpy, but those bumpy things are actually just sparkles.  Now I know better than to try to photograph sparkles in direct sunlight.  I made my mistake.  I can own up to it.  I will live.  I will learn.  I will grow stronger.

Read on to find out more! :)

Textured Sunset

Hello all!  Here I am, back with more nail art - and I have to say, it's nice having time in the summer where I can paint both my hands and not just my left hand!  During the semester, I would usually only paint my left hand so that I could still do homework with my right hand and not have my blogging lifestyle be a hindrance to my academics.  But that lifestyle is on hiatus for now.

Here's the design I came up with today:

I'm so happy with this set of nails - I was out all day today, and I couldn't stop staring at them!  Just look at how crisp those lines are...DAZZLING.  MM. 

Read on to find out how I painted these nails! :)

Praisin' and Blazin'

Happy Easter, everyone!  And also Happy 420 :) and it's also Hitler's birthday.  Maybe it's your birthday too...?  Anyways, lots of festivities associated with this date and holiday.

I've been doing some searching, and according to this site here, the next time that Easter will land on an April 20th isn't until 2025, so I took advantage of this coincidence now, and I bring you this:

Easter themes and marijuana themes - all rolled into one manicure! :D

OKAY QUICK NOTE:  I do not smoke marijuana, nor do I have plans to.  Whether you do or not is up to you - I keep my hands out of this.

These nails were fun to do - read up more after the jump! :)

Interrupted Gradient

Hello friends!  Haven't talked to any of you in a while.  Haven't seen any of you in a while.  Haven't seen sunlight for a while either.  But in the meantime, I have been going through several series of existential crises so that has been fun.

Here are my nails:

Like the name suggests, it consists of a gradient that has been interrupted.  Much like how midterms are interrupting my peaceful state of mind.  Merp derp.

More on this manicure after the jump!

2014 St. Patrick's Day Nails

Hello everybody!  I hope you are all doing well and that you're sober enough to read this blog post :) actually I don't know how alcohol works.  I still haven't had any alcoholic drinks.  I don't even know my preferences in taste or my tolerance.  I'm a weak, confused, and misled soul.

But enough about my soul.  Here are my nails for today!

I'm wearing a lot of green on my nails, but none on my body.  But it's spring break right now, so really, who's going to pinch me?  Besides, you shouldn't pinch me.  I bruise really easily.  It's not fun.

Read more about my nails after the jump!

Lace for My Birthday!

Hello!  It's finally time.  And by that I mean it's finally my 21st birthday!  Because I am actually from Colorado, that means I can legally buy two things: pot and alcohol.  Wow.  Isn't it amazing how crossing a certain time and date means that the market is much friendlier to you now?  I find that a bit ridiculous, like 21 is some magic number.

But anyways, here are the nails I did for myself for my birthday:

The lace flowers are from a set of lace stickers that I bought from Born Pretty Store! :)  I will be telling you more about the design AND about Born Pretty Store after the jump!

Inspired by the Libraries

Hello all!  As some of you may or may not know (probably may not...since I didn't talk about this much), I recently entered a competition that was put on by the libraries at my school.  For the competition, participants had to submit an original piece of art that was inspired by the libraries at my school.  The pieces are then judged (by a board of judges, I presume), and the winner will receive $300.

So being the person that I am, of course I did nail art inspired by the libraries:

I think I have gone off the deep end of nail art...but read more about the nail art after the jump!