Saturday, September 29, 2012

Another Football Manicure

This is Sinful Colors Let's Talk (Purple) and Milani Good Morning Sunshine (gold).  My camera lies.  Let's Talk is a dark purple and not an almost blue color.  I used notebook reinforcement stickers to get the half moon shape at the bottom of the nail.  Put them on the back of your hand first to remove some of the sticky.  Make sure there is good contact between the reinforcement sticker and the nail.  Remove immediately after painting the nail.  I used a dotting tool to do the jersey on my thumb.  I may do a full hand of jerseys some day. 

Monday, September 24, 2012

Sinful Colors Polar Opposites (Magentic Polish)

I finally bought some magnetic polish, and I found it at a reasonable price.  It is 5$ish at Target.  What lesson did we learn?  I learned that if you wait an almost a year, you can save 3$.  That's right, three whole dollars.  Anyway, I'm cheap (you may have guessed) so I did the first coat in Milani Ms. Milani (gray) so I didn't waste my cool new magnetic polish.  Then, I worked with one nail at a time.  I painted a coat of Polar Opposites and immediately held the magnet over the nail to make the design in the polish.  As you can see with the magnet ring (right) there is a little lip on one side.  Rest that against your finger and hold it as still as you can for about 10-15 seconds.  I'm doing this in the picture on the right.  When you do it, hold the magnet ring with your other hand.  I ran out of hands to hold the camera, so I held the ring with the same hand for the picture.  Some nail polish brand's magnets are not strong enough for a very curved nail.  My nail curves a lot from side to side, but this magnet was definitely strong enough.  Make sure when you buy a polish with a magnet ring on your bottle.  In my Target, many of the magnetic rings were missing.  Polar Opposites is a gray polish with aqua shimmer.  The magnet makes lighter design then the polish with this polish.  Some of the Sinful Color magnetic polishes make magnet designs darker then the polish.  In sunlight the overall look of this polish is blue due to the shimmer.  In indoor light it looks gray.  I'm very happy with this polish. 

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Watermelon Nails


I did these a few weeks ago when it was still summer.  Every person who does nail art eventually has to do watermelon nails.  It's the law.  I started out with Wet 'n Wild French White Creme.  I applied French manicure guides to the fingers.  Then I sponged Wet 'n Wild Megalast Garden Hose (limited edition color) onto the thumb and tips of the nails with a make-up sponge. The next step was to use a dotting tool to make squiggly lines with Revlon Emerald City on the tips and thumb. I added a coat of Rimmel Speed Dating (very old red polish) to the bottom of the nails.  Then removed the French tip guides.  



Use a  dotting tool and Wet and Wild Black Creme to make the seeds.  Add a top coat to protect your nail art.  When I do this again, I will probably remove the french tip guided and then sponge the green on the tips so the top line is more diffused and less harsh.  Also, the lines on the thumbs should curve slightly inward at the tips and base of the nail to make more of a Watermelon shape.

Monday, September 17, 2012

Finger Paints A Tough Art to Follow

This is Finger Paints A Tough Art to Follow.  I was hoping for a very dark green.  Sort of a green version of navy.  This is a nice color, but it is black and not green in many lighting conditions.  This is a common problem when looking for a very dark version of a color.  Oh well.  Here are some bonus pics of me testing glitters on top of this polish (and a little house paint). 

Sunday, September 16, 2012

Minnesota Vikings Nails

This is my Vikings manicure this week.  I did the striped nails with pieces of scotch tape.  I think at this point I might make better strips just using the brush itself.  I think the stripes read more cheerleader or flag of a purple/white/yellow country then football.  Oh well.  Wet n Wild French White Creme, Wet n Wild Spoiled Mind Your Own Beeswax, Sinful Colors Let's Talk.  Sinful Colors Let's Talk is a dark, bright purple on my nails, but looks blue in the pictures.  The thumb is China Glaze Mahogany Magic and a dotting tool and Wet n Wild French White Creme for the laces.  The ring finger is Essie Smooth Sailing with Finger Paints Go Van Gogh painted in an arch along the bottom.  Wet n Wild French White Creme and a dotting tool was used to make the goal posts. 

Friday, September 7, 2012

Are You Ready For Some Football Nails?

The base colors for this manicure are Finger Paints Go Van Gogh (green) and China Glaze Mahogany Magic (brown).  I used  a dotting tool and Wet n Wild French White Creme to make the designs.  I think a nail art pen may have been a better idea, but I don't have one in white. 

Finger Paints Go Van Gogh

This color is Finger Paints Go Van Gogh.  I really like it.  I bought it at a Sally Beauty Supply half off clearance sale.  They have great deals with their half off clearance.  This is my first time wearing Finger Paints, so I haven't formed an opinion on the brand yet.  Stay tuned to see how this mani evolved. 

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

OPI My Auntie Drinks Chianti and You Glitter Be Good To Me

The base color of this mani is OPI My Auntie Drinks Chianti and the glitter gradient is done with OPI You Glitter Be Good to Me.  You Glitter Be Good to Me is gold glitter with fuchsia hexagon glitter mixed in.  I think My Auntie Drinks Chianti is the perfect pairing for this glitter. 

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Craft Scissors and Scotch Tape Manicure

The blue base of this manicure is Essie Smooth Sailing. I learned something.  Craft scissors will only cut scotch tape if there is a lot of tension on the tape.  You can't rip a piece off the dispenser and then cut it.  I cut the tape between the tape roll and the cutting edge of the dispenser.  Once you have a piece cut, apply it to the back of your hand so it won't be so sticky when you apply it to your nails. My nails curve quite a bit from side to side.  When I tried to apply the tape horizontally, it did not apply smoothly against the curve of the nail.  I had better luck on my thumb when I applied the tape vertically.  I actually liked how that looked better.  Too bad you can't really see how it looked on my thumb it in the picture above.  I applied Zoya Laney (silver) and removed the tape immediately.  Next time, all my tape will be applied vertically like on my thumb. 

Monday, September 3, 2012

Rimmel Rags to Riches

Rimmel Rags to Riches is prettier in person.  It has a lovely gold shimmer that only partly shows up in this picture.  I love this color for pedicures.  Rimmel polishes wear really well for me and I really like them in general.