Blank Slate Nails Part II

I had so much fun with my rainbow zebra nails I wanted to give the blank canvas style mani another try.  This time I chose random polka dots in summery colors for my design.

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This is the final product but it didn't always look so circusy!

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I started with Orly Bonder and used 2-3 coats of Sally Hansen Whirlwind White and sealed it with OtD.

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Then I started adding dots with my dotting tools. I used one large end and one tiny end of the dotting tools to create a stylized gradient effect.

For the dots, I used KleanColor Mango, KleanColor Bikini Green, Brucci JT's Ocean Blue and Sally Hansen Lightening.

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I started with big green and yellow dots. I used the smaller dotting tool for the blue and orange.  I also made sure that the edge of my nail was covered to help along the gradient effect.

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Blank Slate Nails Part I

Blank slate nails! They're like a canvas screaming for some color. I wouldn't wear a regular stark white polish on its own as it looks like White-Out but I would use a stark white for a base for some fun designs!

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This is a blank slate, just screaming for something to be done! I started with Orly Bonder and used 2-3 coats of Sally Hansen Whirlwind White and sealed it with OtD.  Looking at my white nails just gets the gears turning!

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Rainbow zebra stripes? Sure! I used plate BM-223 and a few different colors to do this.  KleanColor Mango, Sally Hansen Lightening,  China Glaze Fuchsia Fanatic and KleanColor Bikini Green.  I did diagonal stripes on the plate with the polish to get some more fluidity in the design.

Source

It kind of reminded me of Fruit Stripe Gum. It's obviously not a direct take on it, but it made me feel like Fruit Stripe Gum and Lisa Frank had a party on my nails.

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Overall I think its a sunny, fun, summery mani that doesn't take much effort. I may try this with other full-nail images from my plates. What do you think about it?

Gradient Nails

Soooooooooo I'm not quite sure what is about gradients and my inability to do them nicely, but I pretty much cannot create a subtle effect with multiple colors. Maybe it was my color choice.  After looking at this when I was done, I thought it might've been a better idea to have orange in the middle instead of a pink.  If I did that, maybe the color change would've been more subtle and effective.

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I built this on top of yesterday's Revlon Lemon Fizz manicure - FYI, the bumps are still visible even with all the extra layers of polish.

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I did a layer of Orly Basket Case (one of my favorites!) and then for the darkest color, I used China Glaze Ahoy! Like I said before, I think it would've been more gradual had I done an orange and then maybe Basket Case.  It's a visually rough transition from pink to yellow.

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I added a layer of Sally Hansen Diamonds for extra sparkle and sealed with Brucci Nail Dryer. I mentioned in a previous post that Brucci Nail Dryer is their version of a QDTC but it's not spectacular enough for the $5 price tag. However, I've got it so I'm trying to use it up.

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Don't Paint Your Nails With the A/C Running.

I know it's bad news but I did it anyways. And now they're a mess and I've got to redo them.

This is three coats of Revlon Sunshine Sparkle over Orly Bonder and sealed with Out the Door. I thought it dried OK at first but oh it's a hot mess.  I got lobster hands too, but not in real life.. only in photos.

They aren't supposed to be textured!! Bubbles, bubbles everywhere! I sit about 3 feet from my window A/C unit, I should've known better. I don't know why I painted them anyways, I could've turned it off. Pssh.

Summery Funky French

It's almost Memorial Day, which means it's almost June.. which means it's almost summer! And what better way to celebrate that than with an obnoxious funky french?! I went full derp on this one (you NEVER go full derp!)  My sister politely told me it belongs at the Jersey Shore, which at this time of the year, becomes a scary place.

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So for this mani I did things similarly to how I do my regular french manicures, which is applying the color to the bare nail so it is easy to shape it and fix any errors. After the color was on, I applied a coat of Orly Bonder. Then I stamped with WnW Black Creme and I can't remember which Bundle Monster plate (oops), after that I put on another coat of Bonder. I'm not sure if my layering was the best but it worked in this case!

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After the second coat of Bonder, I applied Instant Artificials since the color had left a visible lip/edge sort and was raised a bit compared to the bare nail.  After that dried a little, I sealed it with Out the Door.

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I used China Glaze Flip Flop Fantasy for the pink (3 coats), KleanColor Mango for the orange (2 coats) and KleanColor Bikini Green for the green (2 coats).

Layla Jade Groove

It took me forever to decide on this polish. Me and a friend stood in Ulta for far too long going over the pros and cons of which ones to get. I finally, after much persuasion from my friend, decided on Jade Groove. At almost $16 a piece, I need to be sure I want it. I have Ultra Violet as well, but ordered it from online a while back.

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She's beautiful!

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This is four coats over the Jessica Holo Basecoat.  This polish was a bit splotchy. I think you need to glop more on to avoid that. I think it may have been my bad, I got 3 coats on my right hand. I sealed it with NYC GCS.

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Color Club Hydrangea Kiss

I got this pretty in a swap, it's a lovely addition to my collection!

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Color Club bottles are my favorite in existence, seriously.

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This is 2 coats over Orly Bonder sealed with Out the Door. A pretty flawless application and a lovely creme, no complaints! :D

China Glaze Sea Spray & Funky Fingers Accent Nail

My friend Gaby suggested doing this mani, I'm so glad I did! Instead of gold glitter, though, I used a gold foil. It's so beachy!

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This is two coats of Sea Spray over Orly Bonder and sealed with Sally Hansen Diamond Flash. Which sucks, LOOK at the bubbling. No fan or air was blowing at me when I did my mani, so.. I'll give it one more shot one day, maybe.

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For the accent nail, I used Funky Fingers Down to Earth. This is two coats as well. I really wanted to do white horizontal stripes on the blue nails but they chipped before I had a chance to. Sadface.

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I really loved how this turned out, minus the damn bubbles. Thanks Gaby!

KleanColor Bikini Green

I've been consumed by academia lately. Finals weren't the issues (I've yet to take them) but more so final projects and papers.  Always due the week before finals, always big chunks of your grade.  Two of my finals there is no way to "study" for them, so I've got a light load in regards to studying, at least!

I swung by my dollar store and picked up a couple Klean Colors.  This one stood out to me so I grabbed it.

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This is Bikini Green, 3 coats over Orly Bonder and sealed with Sally Hansen Diamond Flash top coat.  All of my other topcoats have picked up shimmer from various manicures, I'm keeping this one "pure" by only using it on cremes.  My giant bottle of OTD has a ton of shimmer in from my mother carelessly using it, and the rest have just picked some up over time.

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I think there is some neon to this one, it didn't photograph 100% accurately.  It's close, though.  It's really a sunny green but it is a bit more grassy in real life.

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You don't necessarily need 3 coats for this. I did two on my right hand. I'm not sure why it always works out like that, maybe I meticulously scrape too much polish off the brush when I'm painting with my dominant hand, I'm not sure.