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May

Nails of the day follow up!

I’ve decided to add some stamping to the previous nails using Dashica XL SdP image plate 8.

I am really enjoying this a lot right now. I hope you like it too!

Nail of the day: Mint to teal gradient

Just a very quick drive by posting of my nail of the day which is a gradient I did using China Glaze – For Audrey as a base color and along with that  I used Sinful Colors – Why Not, Mattésse Elite – Vig(Thank you again Marissa for sending me that set! They’re stunning!) and Nicole By O.P.I.’s Khloe had a little Lam-Lam to sponge over it leaving me with a nice fresh looking gradient. I hope you like it!

Have you tried gradient nails yet? Or is this not your thing at all?

Gradient Friday!

I’d like to take this moment and share my nails of the week with you, these are gradient nails that I made using O.P.I. polishes and a little make up sponge.  It looks complicated but it really is quite simple. If you want I’ll soon do a tutorial to show you exactly how to do this type of nailart that will surely blow many people’s minds this summer. For now I’ll just show you some pictures.

Okay onto the manicures. This, besides the sponge, is what I used for the one pictured on the right.

I used Alpine Snow, a pure white, as a base. It’s important to use a light opaque base when you use light colors to sponge as the sponged colors go on very sheer. Over that I sponged (from the bottom left to the top right) Need Sunglasses, A Roll in the Hague, Red Lights Ahead… Where?. Dim Sum Plum, Funky Dunkey and last but not least I put on a thin coat of DS Shimmer to give it the subtle holographic effect. And really that’s all there is to it! I know I’m making it sound like it’s a piece of cake, but really it is!

Now I enjoyed this manicure so much that when I finally had to take it off later that week due to chipping I whipped up another gradient manicure by just using 5 polishes instead of 7.

This next one I made by using a clean make up sponge and first painting my nails white again with OPI’s Alpine Snow, and letting that dry,  before I painted my sponge for the gradient (as you can see in the little picture on the bottom right of that little collage on the left there.) I went from yellow to green to deep blue using Need Sunglasses, Jade Is The New Black and Roadhouse Blues, all colors by O.P.I. I topped them again with OPI DS Shimmer to give them that nice holographic shimmer and after that they were good to go.

I feel there are a lot more gradients in my future and I want to try one with metallics soon.

But for now I leave you with the gradients of a few good friends of mine who all did their own version of a gradient this week for Gradient Friday.

I hope you’ll pay them a visit and check out their work.

And of course let me know what you thought, did you have a favorite, and will you be trying this technique for yourself soon?

 

 

 



Go Grey in May for National Brain Tumor Awareness Month.

Being a member of a few facebook groups dedicated to either Nail Polish or Nail Art I noticed that quite a few of the members started to create manicures to support the Go Grey in May Campaign. I became fascinated and curious and did some research before I decided that I also must “Go Grey this May” to support this great cause and raise awareness.

May is National Brain Tumor Awareness Month in the United States. During the month of May, the Brain Tumor Awareness Organization encourages raising awareness through a variety of campaigns and activities. Each campaign or activity will serve as an education and outreach opportunity, a fundraising opportunity, a fitness event, a healing program/exhibit, a community initiative, a support group project or any combination that suits you and/or your group.

People often ask me what’s on my nails and sometimes even why, so I thought this was the perfect opportunity to wear grey, a color that I otherwise rarely wear because it makes my hands look more red than they are due to the cool tint this color naturally has.

For this manicure I put on a nice base of Rejuvacote by Duri, my new favorite nailhardener and basecoat, and two coats of China Glaze – Recycle, a lovely opaque and creamy grey.

Over that I layered two coats of a holographic topcoat I created myself by putting a little bit of Spectraflair pigment into a regular topcoat and I decanted a little bit of China Glaze’s amazing Sexagon into the topcoat as well to make sure the spectraflair had some suspension.

After that was dry I added a nice topcoat, Seche Vite in my case, and there you have it, grey nails with a little bit of a holographic pop that will surely make heads turn on a sunny day.

What do you think, will you be going Grey in May and help spread awareness for this cause?

 

For more information on the campaign please visit: www.braintumorawareness.org

China Glaze Crackle Glitters swatches and thoughts.

Recently I posted about the new China Glaze Crackle Glitters in this post right here. And now I have a little exclusive for you all, I have been sent these to review and swatch so hang on, keep on readong and I’ll show you what these look like! And I’ve got to say, I wasn’t expecting this because I was a bit over crackle but oh man, these are so cool!

As you can see there are four lovely glittery crackles to this collection, they all came with the same little tag (as pictured on the polish on the left) that has the China Glaze logo on the front and on the back there are directions on how to apply these to the nail. (Click the image to read the directions)

Just to make sure I did everything right I read these little notes before swatching them as some crackles are to be applied when the base polish is still wet, the other type, like these, are to be applied when your base polish has dried completely.

I used a black polish called Liquid Leather, and a white polish called White on White, both by China Glaze, as a base of these swatches and made sure it was completely dry before I applied these crackles. Application went really smoothly, something I did not expect as glitter can be quite problematic to apply.

As you can see when you click on the picture on the left, this glitter is just so fine that you don’t have any trouble distributing them evenly and you have a moment to make sure all is covered before these start to crack.

And oh my, when it starts to crack it is very pretty! The glitters are shimmery and light enough to contrast beautifully with the basecolor and you get a nice clear crackle effect. It is important that you do topcoat this after it has finished cracking as it seems to dry quite matte.

Sadly I don’t think swatching these on my own nails would look very nice at the moment as I pretty much broke all of my nails on my left hand when I picked up my laptop and it slipped. Ouch. So you will have to do with my nailwheel instead I’m afraid. I hope you can forgive me.

Let me show you these on the black base first:

Jade-d is a soft green, so soft actually that it looks more gold than anything. But it is pretty, especially in certain color combinations which I will talk about soon as well.

Glam-more, the second polish pictured is a nice and bright fuchsia that really pops over a dark color and looks really nice over a light color as well.

The third color Gleam Me Up is a light blue, I think, after Glam-More my favorite polish of the set.

Last but certainly not least there is Luminous Lavender a soft purple, or indeed lavender color.

I personally prefer lighter colored crackles like these over a dark base, but to each their own of course. I will show you these colors over white next to show you the difference in effect.

See how the Glam-More pops and the other three are just kind of sitting there being pretty?  There’s nothing wrong with them over white, but with the black they just look better to me.

I was toying around with them a bit more in combination with other China Glaze colors and I came up with a few snazzy combinations.

First there’s Jade-d over Stella because the green looks even more gold over this luschious wine red it gives it a very interesting look don’t you think?

The next two combinations just scream summer to me, Glam More over For Audrey and Gleam Me Up over Orange Knockout, these colors just pop over brights like these and they’re sure to catch anybodies eye.

Last but not least Luminous Lavender over Urban Night, both a shade of purple, but still complimenting each other rather well. Very classy I think so myself.

Now you’ve seen my swatches and read all about the polishes do you think you’ll get yourself this set? I was not planning on buying these but now that I have them and was able to test these I have to admit I am quite impressed with them! So if you get the chance, do pick one up, I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised as well! They will be out this may!

China Glaze announces four new Crackle Glitter Polishes!

SPARK YOUR SUMMER STYLE!

Sparkle all summer long with China Glaze’s new Crackle Glitters collection. Once again taking crackle technology to the next level, this third-generation polish pairs the edgy innovation of crackling nail lacquer with glamorous glitters. The China Glaze Crackle Glitters features four shimmering shades including:

  • Luminous Lavender: Luscious light purple
  • Jade-d: Radiant bright green
  • Glam-More: Bold fuchsia
  • Gleam Me Up: Bright sky blue

Create glamorously different looks with just one sweep of China Glaze Crackle Glitters. Layer over different base colors to create bold styles. Use a lighter coat to create a fine crackle, a thicker coat for a deep shatter effect. Brush sideways or on an angle to create different looks. As versatile and edgy as China Glaze’s biggest celebrity fans (Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Nicole Ritchie and Kelly Osbourne, to name a few), China Glaze Crackle Glitters add a sparkle to one of the hottest nail art trends!

The China Glaze Crackle Glitters collection will be available as open stock colors and four-piece counter display. Individual polishes retail for $9 MSRP (Manufacturer Suggested Retail Price) and will be available at fine salons and beauty supply stores nationwide in May 2012. China Glaze is free of DBP, toluene, and added formaldehyde.

These Four New Crackle Glitter Polishes are scheduled for release for May 2012

Essence Fruity

 

The next Essence collection was just revealed here in the Netherlands via a press release and they have picked a very cute theme this time that fits Spring that at the makes you long for summer: Fruity!

This collection does not only have 5 lovely polishes but also some other nice nail related goodies, keep reading and I will introduce you to all of it.

First up though, I have five cute and fruity nail polishes to show you, namely:

  • 01 Banana Joe,
  • 02 Peach Beauty,
  • 03 Very Cherry,
  • 04 One Kiwi A Day…
  • 05 Mashed Berries.

As you can see in the close up pictures on the right (click it to enlarge) there are 2 creams and three glittery polishes in this mini collection. And I have to say, I do like the little touch of using different types of glitters for the polishes. The Kiwi green one has a different glitter shape than the Cherry and Berries ones, which is a nice little detail I think.

That’s not all in the nail department by the way as they are also releasing a cute little set of fimo cane slices that looks like sliced fruit called “Nail Fruits” that comes with its own nail glue. Because the slices are of course a bit thicker than say a striper line or some dots you make with a naildotter they have added a Nail Art sealing topcoat called “Stay Fruity” to the collection.

Now we come to something I am quite excited about: With this collection they’re also releasing a scented topcoat called  ”Smells like strawberry…“ that… you guessed it; smells like fresh strawberries! I am so going to have to chase this one down because I am very much into fruity scents and how fun will it be to have a yummy scent coming from your nails all day?

The Essence Fruity collection will be exclusively for sale at Kruidvat & Trekpleister from halfway April until May 2012 here in the Netherlands.

So, what are your thoughts on this collection? I myself will probably only grab the topcoat but I do think that if I like it that I will grab several.

 


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