Go Tigers!!!

Hey Lacqueristas!

Since it's World Series time, being a Detroiter, I have to show some love for the home team.  So far we have won 4 World Series championships and it's time for another!  

On to the nails...

No flash

With flash

I really love how the accent nail turned out.  I was kinda skeptical about how my freehand would turn out, especially since I had too much coffee this morning and my hands were kinda shaky O_o 

The Tiger stripes are Jiffy Orange from Milani (two coats) stamped with Kleancolor Black. The image comes from MASH-38. The white is two coats of SHID Whirlwind White.  For the "D", I used Revlon Royal and SHID Rapid Red for the baseball stitching.

There was a bit of smearage when I added the topcoat, but it's not as noticeable on the pics as it is in real life.  I went to Sally's today just to get some Seche Vite, but I picked up the Seche Clear by mistake.  I did not realize this until I started applying it and saw the streaks.  Hopefully they will let me exchange it.

Thanks for stopping by! Happy Polishing!!       GO TIGERS!

Teal Tuesday: Mani Swap

Hey Lacquer Lovers!

Today's Teal Tuesday challenge has been my favorite yet.  This week all the girls in the group were matched up with another member, and you had to re-create their masterpiece, using teal of course.  I was matched up with Amanda over at Mandy's Polish.  She's got some really cute nail art and it was hard to pick just one.  I ended up choosing to re-create her back to school plaid mani.  I wanted to do something that was not stamping, so this was something that I had to try. 

 

I'm pleased with how this turned out, although I wish that my stripes were thinner. 

 

I used 2 coats of Milani Mint Candy for the base color.  Next, I made an off center stripe with China Glaze Snow Globe.  This is such a pretty iridescent glitter polish that would work well with many colors.  Then I used a black striper polish by LA Colors Art Deco. 

 

Head on over to Mandy's Polish and check out the original.  And while you're at it check out the rest of the ladies participating  in this challenge.

Summer Challenge: Summer Chevrons

I created this mani a couple of weeks ago, and I decided that it is perfect for the Summer Challenge over at the Purple Crumpet Fairy Challenge.  This was done before my nails were reduced to nubbins courtesy of a family bowling outing.  I know, I know, bowling is the kiss of death for long nails, but I had fun.  I actually only broke one nail while bowling, but over the next few days the rest of my nails decided to have a pity party and break too, so I was forced to take them all down to nubbins.

Anyways...on to the mani!  Here is my version of Summer Chevrons.

outside, shade

outside, sunlight

outside, shade

This was my first attempt at a tape mani.  I'm really pleased with how it turned out , although some of my lines are not as crisp as I would like.  I used regular transparent Scotch brand tape to make the chevron. 

So let's meet the players.

Sally Hansen InstaDry Lively Lilac

2012 Prayer

Sally Hansen InstaDry Mint Sprint

Milani High Speed Jiffy Orange

Finger Paints Drawn To This Shade

I used Jiffy Orange for the base and Drawn To This Shade for the accent finger.  To make the chevrons,  I used Mint Sprint, and before I removed the tape, topped it with Prayer, which is a purple crackle polish.  After I removed the tape, I added the dots with Lively Lilac and Mint Sprint. 

I think this mani has a tribal look to it.  What do you think?

Thanks for checkin me out.  Happy polishing!

Check out the other chica's participating in the challenge.



African Jade Foil

Hello Ladies.  A few day ago I recieved my order from Dollar Nail Art. I got some great stuff that I cant wait to play with. First on the list was the gorgoeus African Jade foil.  The pattern on this foil kinda reminds me of crackle polish or Italian marble.

This was my first time using foils, and the application was fairly easy.  All you need is you base color, the foil adhesive and the foil of your choice. 

I started off with two coats of Milani Mint Candy for the base.  When that was completely dry I burshed on the adhesive using a french pattern on alll of the fingers except the ring finger.  The adhesive goes on milky white and is ready to be foiled when it truns clear.

Cut a  small amount of foil from the roll, enough to cover the entire nail. Place the foil on your nail and press down firmly over the nail surface then peel off the excess foil.  Topcoat and you're done.  The topcoat makes the foil crackle slightly, but it smooths out once its dry.  Do not use fast dry topcoats, as they make the foil crackle more.  As you can see there is still foil on the sheet.  I used these areas to do the French so that I was not wasting the foil.

Now for some pics of the finished product...

So overall, I think I like the foils for a quick and easy mani.  The only downside to the foils is that the wear is not that great.  After havin this on my nails for one day there was major tip wear on all the nails.  Even with two coats of topcoat.  It may be due to user error. I'll have to experiment with different topcoats on future foil mani's.

Thanks for looking.  Until next time ladies.  Happy polishing!

Pink Lemonade

The nail that I have to show you today is a bright summertime gradient that makes me think of pink lemonade.  Gradients are one of my favorite type of manicure. There is just so much that you can do with nail polish and a sponge.  The sky's the limit.

To get this look, I painted the entire nail with Pink Hottie from the Milani Neon collection. This pink is much brighter IRL, but my camera did not want to capture all its neon glory.   Next I sponged on SH Insta-Dry in Lightening on the tips. When everything was thoroughly dry I stamped the image from BM 203 with Insta-Dry Whirlwind White.  The image got a bit smeared from the topcoat.  I ended up using FingerPaints topcoat because I could not find my Seche Vite.

So what do you think?  Do you prefer to use contrasting colors or colors within the same family for gradients? 

Until next time ladies!