Dior Ultra Violet, Rhinestones & Flowers!

I have a fun mani to show you today!  I started to put Ultra Violet on as a full mani but saw how opaque it was and decided to have a little fun instead.

"Natural" Light

I started with one coat of my Barielle base coat and let it dry.  Then I used Chevron nail guides and painted on Ultra Violet and let that dry. Once the purple was set, I did another coat of the Barielle nail treatment and quickly applied the flower.  Then I applied the rhinestones with a dotting tool and sealed it all with Out the Door. Voila!

"Natural" Light

"Natural" Light

"Natural" Light

Both the flowers and rhinestones are from the BornPretty store, which I just love.  They've contacted me to review products for them and they have me a personalize discount code to share with you all!  If 10 people buy from them and use the 10% off code, listed on my side bar, they'll sponsor a giveaway!  They also have FREE SHIPPING which is wonderful in itself. These particular items were not sent for review, they were purchased by me a few months back.

The Oopsie Daisies Halloween Harvest Duo has been restocked and is now available!
Oopsie Daisies Nail Polish Shop

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.

"Natural" Light

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!

"Natural" Light

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.

"Natural" Light

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).

An Old Favorite: Orly Basket Case

Basket Case was one of my first non-Sally Hansen or WnW polishes so I hold it dearly.  In fact, my first bottle of it is actually destroyed because my dumb ass poured remover in it to thin it. DO NOT DO.  I got myself another bottle of it because I do love it so much.

"Natural" Light

I wanted to do a funky french with it.  It worked SO well as it only needed one coat, so I painted it on and was able to remove the guides right away.

"Natural" Light

 I used Konad Special White for the dots, and cute little sticker my sister got me for Christmas (=

Flash

It's quite fabulous on its own, too.

"Natural" Light

"Natural" Light

Flash

This was two coats, but I could've gotten away with one thick one.  It's over Orly Bonder and sealed with OTD. LOVE!

Funky French with Gems and Pearls

I knew all day I wanted to do a funky french but didn't know how, I had my white tips painted on for a few hours before I finally settled on an idea. For tips on how I do my french manicures, click HERE. I did the same process for the white tips: Konad Special White on bare nails.

"Natural" Light

I used my dotting tool and WnW Black Creme for the dots and then the pink gems and pearls are a nail sticker I got from my sister for Christmas.  I applied the black and clear gems with a dot of top coat; top coat holds it on just fine.

I put on one coat of Instant Artifcials and then one coat of OTD and that's it! It was easy and fast, no drying time for anything, even the white.

Thanks for reading! (=

Classic French Manicure + How to Tips

French manicures seem to be a love or hate type of deal.  Whether you think they're dated, tacky, classy or pretty - everyone has their opinion. I just happen to LOVE the look mostly because I love how they make my hands look.  I was fiddling around and found some new "tricks" for making them a bit easier to do.  But let me start with the finished product:

This is what I ended with by doing a few simple things that I hadn't thought of before.

• I used Konad Special White polish instead of a regular white polish or white nail art polish.  It's much more opaque and if you need to correct any streaks, it dries much quicker.  
• You still need to remove the nail guides quickly, but the Konad polish doesn't drip down.  In past experiences, I've had to sort of glob on more white nail polish (for opacity) which would run or take too long to dry.
• I painted the white directly onto bare nail. No basecoat.  If you mess up, correction is quicker.  You can use a paint brush dipped in acetone to shape/clean/correct without any problems because there is nothing underneath.
• Remember to wrap your tips with polish well, since there is no basecoat underneath you'll need all the staying power you can get.

This is Konad Special White directly on my bare nails.  The white is a little harsh on its own, so I used two coats of Orly Nail Armor, which has a slight beige tint to it, over this.  The polish dried super quickly, so there was no streaking.

After the Nail Armor dried, which didn't take long since its a base coat, I put on a decal on each ring finger that I recieved from the bornprettystore.  After that, one coat of Out the Door Topcoat.

Thanks for reading! (=

flowery french & some recommendations

Every once in a while I do a mani that I really really like, this ladies, is one of those times, haha.  I loooooove the look of a french manicure and then add a cutesy little flower and a rhinestone.. oh it can't get better for me, really!

For this manicure I used two coats of Orly Nail Armor as a basecoat (I really love it by the way!  It has these little fibers in it that for a sort of mask over your nails)  I used L.A. Colors "Energy Source" for the tips, its just a relatively opaque white creme.  Then I put another coat of Nail Armor ON TOP of the tip.  For the flower I used my favorite color ever, Orly "Basket Case".  Sealed with a coat of Sally Hansen Insta-Dri topcoat.

I just wanted to make a few suggestions and recommendations and share some things I've tried over the past year or so that often times are overlooked because they're so commonly used!

Top Coat: I've tried a bunch of topcoats, from dollar store finds to Seche Vite.  The only one I am really 100% satisfied with (OK, maybe 99%) is Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Anti-Chip Topcoat.  The one in the red bottle.  The biggest thing for me is that while it does get goopy, it restores really easily with a few drops of thinner.  I have 1/2 of a bottle of SV that I can't bring back to life, and after spending nearly 8$ on a bottle of topcoat, it kills me to think of spending another 8$ on a bottle of thinner to fix it!  What are we paying for if it has such major flaws?  I know A LOT of people love SV, and it works great for them, but I haven't always had the same experience!  It has caused tip-pull shrinkage that caused me to have to re-do a mani within a few hours.  I see girls asking all the time on the Nail Board over at MUA what other alternatives are, and this is definitely my #1 suggestion.  It's half the price of SV (and other expensive topcoats) and worth a shot. That all being said, SV is not the worst thing in the world and I certainly don't want to offend its fans.  But it falls short for me and my biggest issue is really the price.

Strengthener: NailTekII without a doubt!  It's simply a miracle worker.  My nails aren't TOO bad when naked, but this turns them into fortresses, I swear.  I really only have positive things to say about this one.  Even though the bottle is nearly empty, it is still liquid-y and no sign of gooping up- which is something that really concerned me at first.  I bought this for almost 10$ and had very high expectations for the price and it has met and surpassed them all.  It also makes an excellent base coat, and dries super quickly so there's no treacherous waiting.

I am not sure what Orly Nail Armor is, maybe it is a strengthener, too.  It has ridge fillers which is something I need from time to time in between buffering sessions, etc.  I've only used it a few times but I am happy with its performance so far.  I think this normally runs about 7$-8$ but I got it on sale for 4$.  As far as ridge fillers go, I tried China Glaze Ridge Filling Base Coat.  There are no reviews for it on MUA, and I've searched.. if anyone finds anything please let me know.  It a total PITA.  It never dried - even over night.  It stayed tacky.  I tried to do a mani over it to see what would happen, and that also stayed tacky for a day.  I can't figure out if it was a bad batch or the product is legitimately garbage, maybe it just doesn't work with my body chemistry.  I have no idea!

Ok, that's it for now, I've rambled enough!  Happy polishing (=

pretty little funky french!

I had no idea what I was going to do when I started out with this mani, but it eventually turned into something.

3 coats of China Glaze "Good Witch?"

Then I used my nail guides for french tips but angled them accordingly.  I used 1 coat of L.A. Girl in "French White" for the tips and lined the edge with L.A. Colors Art Deco in White to keep a cleaner line.

L.A. Colors Art Deco in "Baby Pink" for the dots.
I also used my Kiss nail art pen in silver for more dots!

Don't forget to enter my 50 Follower Giveaway!

guest nails x3

Well I haven't posted at all this weekend, so to make up for that and to ease my guilty conscience, I am posting 3 guest nails that I've accumulated over the past few weeks.  I took the pictures right when I was finished but not showing them til now. I hope you enjoy these pretties!

These are the roomie's nails.  A base color of Funky Fingers "Mad Hatter", three coats I believe.

Pretty blues (=  We topped it off with two coats of a sparkly topcoat of China Glaze "Blue Hawaiian".

As cute as this was, it chipped the next day when she was washing dishes.  Not just a little chip, but basically sheeted right off her nails.  Sad sad!

These are my sister's nubbins.  She expressed interest in growing them out and asked me how to.  I explained to her she needed a constant manicure and before she knew it, they'd be longer than she expected!

This is 3 coats of Funky Fingers "Cheshire" and I used some Art Club polishes to the little designy lines on her ring finger.

Last but not least is my BFF from grade school.

This is two (or three?) coats of China Glaze "Ruby Pumps" with Orly "Liquid Vinyl" for the tips.

Incredibly, I am only 3 followers away from my milestone making 50!  As promised, there will be a giveaway once 50 is reached.  However, it will have to be scheduled around my pay period, lol.  So if 50 is reached before I get paid again, then I will make a notice about the giveaway being stalled a little bit until that day comes.  I have most of the stuff for the giveaway already, but I've never sent nail polish before and I haven't a clue how much shipping will be.  It was also be a USA only since it is my first and I don't want to overwhelm myself quite so soon!

Also a TOTAL DOLLFACE from MUA sent me a polish I've been FIENDING for!  Much more then a lemming, much much more.  I'll keep you on the edge of your seats until it arrives.

Thanks for reading & as always, images are clickable for enlarged detail!

i shouldn't even make this public LOL

How did we come to this atrocity you wonder?

Read on my lovely, into the story you'll plunder!

Here goes nothing;

It started out with a pinkish pink

The pinkiest pink that you ever did think

A bright neon pink, so hard to capture!

But a beautiful pink, oh joy, OH RAPTURE!

She thought and she thunk and she thought some more

What could she do to spice up this bore?

She looked and she saw a bottle of glitter

“Pour it on the tips!” she thought, her heart went a twitter!

So she dumped that bright glitter all over her tips

And she poked and prodded, it dried in a zip.

But once more, there was more to be done

“I need to add PIZZAZ and make this more fun!”

So she picked up some polished and went to town

She stripped with pink and white, all up and all down

Then she looked and she thought, and she came to deduce

This looks just like something from the dear Dr. Seuss!

An original whack job poem by yours truly (=

lets do it, LETS FALL IN LOVE!

Birds do it, bees do it
Even educated fleas do it
Let's do it, let's fall in love!

Valentine's Day is just a few weeks away so perfect timing to get some v-day manis in order!  I have on here I did and hated at first, but as I added each element I started to embrace it.

Started with a base color of Essie's "Knockout pout".  Ok, not joking on this one, FIVE COATS and still some bald spots!  I will not be using this polish again, most likely.  What are we paying 8$ for?  If I wanted full coverage it would've required SIX coats! LUDICROUS!

So yea, five coats.  Bright baby pink creme.  Super cute though.

 This was the final product after about an hour of decisions lol.

left to right;

-nailtekII as basecoat
-art club in white and shimmery purple (tips)
-essie's "knockout pout" (base color)
-opi by nicole "step to the beat of my <3" (heart glitter on middle nail)
-pure ice "dont you wish?" (glitter over the tips and middle finger)
-sally hansen insta-dri topcoat as topcoat
-used BM02 plate for the lips
-used BM11 for the tips
-used art club for the stamping

 What do you think?! Even lazy jellyfish do it!

bourbon street on voodoo

I decided (as I do most of the time) to spice up my NOTD and added a blingy little tip to "voodoo" which was shown a post prior.

Its called "Bourbon St." by Funky fingers and I forgot I had it!  My dad uses some of my polishes to make his fishing lures and when hes tying flies and I found it in his stuff today.  Lightbulb went off and I added this little touch.

Looks like a NYE mani, not a random Sunday in Janurary mani.  I ended up taking it off right away.  Oh well, still cute to me! Thanks for reading (= !!

Blue Hawaiian French Manicure

I decided to add a little sparkle to my Funky Finger's South Hampton Seafoam mani.  I used my nail guides and did just one quick swipe with China Glaze's Blue Hawaiian.  I love how blue can be winter-y and spring-y at the same time (=

perfected the french!

Good News/Bad News time. My dad finally fixed my good computer. But I am still using the bad one. Booooo.  My "good" computer has Photoshop CS on it so this post and the next few will be edited and cropped courtesy of MS Paint! Yay!!

I bought myself some of Nailene's PERFECT Tip Guides and oooh am I excited!  They work so nicely and finally, I am able to give myself the perfect french mani without wanting to rip my hair out. It's a good day!

Wheeee I love it!  The white was done on my bare nail with L.A. Girl's "French White".  After that I applied one coat of NailTekII and then sealed with a coat of my Beauty Secrets Topcoat (which I love btw, doesnt goop up!)

Side note: look at my index finger nail. It's a wonky freakin' mess.  My fakies that I glued on it last year ruined the shape and it is still growing out. Faster, Faster!!

NYE mani; before & aftermath

I am usually a rather decisive person.  I can easily make executive decisions when needed, haha. However my NYE mani was quite the mental debacle.  My first try was Funky Finger’s “Snake Skin” with L.A. Color “Live” as the French tip.  And I stared at it, and stared at it and blinked a few times.  Disgruntled, went to sleep with it anyways.  Next day I removed it and it took almost a HALF HOUR to get the sparkles off of me.  They were everywhere. Up to my wrists and anywhere else I happened to touch.  Under my nails, stuck in my cuticles, on my face. These are pre-cleanup because I wasn't sure if I was going to keep it.  I actually never did the clean up, lol.

Then it was time to pick a new color.  So I stared at my stash. And stared a few more minutes.  Finally decided on my new Funky Fingers “Tribal” which is a bright turquoise.  Which strangely enough dried matte but I wanted some sparkle so two coats of Cover Girl’s “City Lights” which added the perfect amount of what I wanted.  

So pretty! I am in love with this combination!  Tribal is actually a little bit darker than these pictures show, but I couldn't capture it.  So just pretend, k? K :D

I mattefied it this morning for kicks.  LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE!!

I was sick for about 4 months with strep and tonsillitis, just had them out mid-December but I was well enough to go out for NYE.  I am 23 years young and went out maybe 4 times this WHOLE year so I unintentionally went balls-to-the-wall last night and consumed roughly 70$ worth of liquor.  (I planned on going out for just one drink, oopsies!)  No hangover though, every third drink have a glass of water; FAIL PROOF.

LOL the damage!  My thumbs were chipped too.  I am not sure how that happened but I am going to go with the excessive dancing xD

off topic;  Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill is one of my favorite albums, ever.  I just this week discovered a hidden track and I am so in love, one of the most beautiful songs I've ever heard: Listen to this!

Have a SAFE, HAPPY and HEALTHY new year ladies!!