Nail of the day – You know you make me wanna scream.
The text on the image already says it all. The Facebook group I’m a member of called Adventures in Stamping had a little challenge for this Sunday where we had to use our favorite image.
I chose this one because I’m really into art and Edvard Munch‘s painting the Scream has always been one of my favorites. The utter desperation and fear in the main character is just so intense and heartbreaking it’s a difficult painting to forget. Maybe that’s why the mask became so popular in the Scream movies ;) you just do not forget a villain with a face like that.
So back to the manicure. When I got my image plates a long time ago and I found this image on them I loved it instantly and so I had to use it for the challenge today.
For the base color I used China Glaze’s Sweet Hook, a very soft lilac color that would compliment the darker purple I was stamping over it perfectly. The dark purple is my favorite polish of all time that I rarely use for that reason; another China Glaze called Flying Dragon. There are apparently several versions of it, so I should clarify that this one has multi colored micro glittery bits in it. And I wish I could just have ten bottles of this because it’s just my favorite color ever.
Now, what do your nails look like right now? Tell me in the comments, I’d love to know!
Posted in 2012, Challenge, China Glaze, Cream, Crème, July, Lilac, Nail Art, Nail of the Day, Nail Polish, Nailpolish, Nails, Nails of the week, Pastel, Pattern, Purple, Stamping, Stamping system, Sunday Stamping Challenge | 
11 CommentsSummer challenge – Sea Shells
Recently I’ve joined a group on facebook that has a fabulous summer challenge where they have a list of manicures you do on a certain day if you choose to join in on the fun. And yesterday the theme was Sea Shells.
Due to my internet being down most of the day yesterday and this morning I wasn’t able to post this in time but here it is today!
People came up with the most amazing ideas, some used actual crushed seashells on their nails, others painted them on with acrylic paint. I love seeing this kind of creativity! My favorite set were the ones done by a good friend of mine, Laurie of Dressed up Digits who recreated the look of Abalone on her nails using a glitter gradient and stamping. You can see her nails here.
For this manicure I decided to stamp. I of course started with my Duri Rejuvacote to which I owe these long nails (for me this is long, I’ve never had them this length before) I first painted my nails using China Glaze’s Lavender Lingo (which isn’t a Lavender at all but a very soft baby pink) and topcoated them with Seche Vite. I always do this before I stamp because it will help you fix any stamping mistakes a lot easier as carefully wiping off your stamp with acetone will not ruin the basecolor right away but will give you a second chance to stamp. I picked pink because it reminds me of the pink inside some shells have and because it looks really classy with gold I think.
When that was dry I used my Fab Ur Nails Gold stamping polish and Dashica Beauty Shops Big SdP-L stamping plate which has these beautiful shells on there for the image over it.
Over that I put another layer of topcoat and here we are, a sea shells inspired manicure :)
Are you in any challenge groups for nails or make up?
Posted in 2012, Challenge, China Glaze, Cream, Crème, Duri, Gold, Lilac, Links, Pastel, Pink, Rejuvacote, Seche Vite, Stamping, Stamping system, Summer | 2 CommentsThe Bundle Monster 2012 plates are finally released!
I’ve been waiting for these beauties to be released after Bundle Monster started to tease these on their facebook page and today finally is the day that you can buy them! Yay! (I’m in no way sponsored by BM by the way, I am genuinely this excited when I find new plates… Hi everybody… My name is Claudia, and I have a stamping plate problem.)
There are a whopping total of 25 image plates in this set, featuring 6 designs on each plate equaling a total of 150 designs. These are not for sale individually but it’s totally worth getting the set for $21.99 (which is about €17,33) as normally when you buy 1 Konad plate you’re usually paying $5 or more a piece, am I right? And I can assure you, I use both brands and both equally have great quality.
Click the image for a slightly bigger picture.
Arent they amazing? I personally am looking forward to a few things, namely the barbed wire on BM plate 323, the Paisley print on 315 and the dotted gradient on 301. But all of these plates have at least one or two images I just absolutely LOVE.
I’m lucky enough to have a friend pick these up for me and ship them to me as I do not have a credit card and that is sadly the only way you can pay for these on the Bundle Monster site. Amazon will probably carry these as well soon but alas at the time of this post they only seem to have the first two sets. If you don’t have those yet I do advise you to check those out because they are great as well. Though I have to say that they really seem to have stepped up their game for this third set!
Have you tried Bundle Monster before or any other stamping system?
Posted in 2012, Bundlemonster, June, Links, Shopping, Stamping, Stamping system, Webshop | 2 CommentsNails 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!
Posted in 2012, Blue, China Glaze, Cream, Crème, Duri, Fashion, Gradient, Links, Manicure, Mattésse Elite, May, Mint, Nail Art, Nail Hardener, Nail of the Day, Nail Polish, Nailpolish, Nails, Nails of the week, Nicole by O.P.I., Opaque, Petrol, Rejuvacote, Seche Vite, Sponged, Stamping, Stamping system, Stars, Style, Summer, Topcoat, Trend, White | 6 CommentsHelp a girl out?
- The competition has ended and alas I did not win, thanks so much for your votes though!-
I don’t like begging for things, but right now I’m going to anyway.
Bundlemonster has organized a nailart contest on Facebook where they are giving away 25 of the newest bundlemonster sets to the nicest nailart.
Today the voting has started and I would love it if you would spare me a vote and if you really like my nailart, spread the news for more votes.
This is my link, and this is the picture I submitted:
You can vote for it once every day, I’ll understand if you don’t do that of course but I’d love it if you tried. ;)
Have you submitted your own art to this contest, I’d love it if you linked below so I can vote for you in return!
Posted in 2012, Acrylic paint, Blaze, Bundlemonster, Contest, Give-Away, Manicure, Multichrome, Nail Art, Nail of the Day, Nail Polish, Nailpolish, Nails, Nails of the week, Ozotic, Purple, Shimmer, Stamping, Stamping system, White | 7 CommentsQueensday nailart.
Just a quickie for you today showing off what I am wearing on my nails right now in honor of Koninginnedag. (Click the word to read more about this Dutch National Holiday)
For the base I’ve used OPI A Roll in the Hague as it is of course the most perfect orange for this occasion.
On the tips to halfway down my nail I’ve dabbed some Orange You Unique by the amazing Amy of Nailventurous which I’ve incidentally designed the labels for so go check them out!
When it was dry and topcoated I stamped a black crown over it with black Konad special polish so the golden crown I stamped over it with Passion by China Glaze after that stood out a bit more.
Have a fabulous Queensday everyone who celebrates it!
Did you do something special too for this day?
Alright, I’ve given in! Here’s my Easter manicure!
I didn’t think I would do it, honestly I don’t care much about Easter nail art. All the Easter eggs, bunnies and crosses in pastel shades usually do not do it for me but when my mom asked me if I wasn’t going to do any Easter themed nails I took it as a bit of a challenge to find something I like that does have a bit of an Easter feel to it.
So I came up with these:
Excuse the dry cuticles, I’m working on those, believe me! I know what’s causing them too, you see, I’m just too stubborn or actually too impatient to stop using Acetone free remover, so every time I take off my polish I dry out my cuticles a tad more and I have to use my OPI Avoplex things again to get them a bit more presentable again… A never ending cycle really. You know how it goes I’m sure…
Anyway what I used for this mani is the following:
Orly Nailtrition – The basecoat
China Glaze‘s For Audrey – The base color
Konad‘s Wine Red stamping polish for the dots as I couldn’t find my brown.
A Sponge Bob Stamping plate for the dots (Click here to go to the Ebay page to buy it):
And of course a royal coat of Seche Vite to protect it all and after that I was done. That’s all there is to it really and it makes for a cute, really wearable Easter manicure.
Did you do an Easter manicure as well this year? If so, what did you do?
Posted in 2012, Basecoat, Black, Blue, Brown, China Glaze, Clear, Cream, Crème, Holiday Season, Konad, Mint, Nail Art, Nail of the Day, Nail Polish, Nailpolish, Nails, Nails of the week, O.P.I., Opaque, Orly, Seche Vite, Spring, Stamping, Stamping system, Teal, Theme, Topcoat | 7 CommentsZoya Summer 2012 collection – Beach & Surf!
Just a quick picture as I don’t have much details just yet besides what is mentioned on the picture itself, but would you just look at these lovely colors! I am going to need Arizona and Reagan! Plus all the metallic foils for sure as they’ll look amazing knowing Zoya and I’m sure they’ll make GREAT stamping polishes to boot!
What do you think about these? Are any of these calling your name? Do they actually HAVE your name, let me know!
New obsession in nailart…
Check this out! Isn’t that awesome? It looks like the next step in stamping nailart!
I’ve ordered 4 different ones off of Ebay just now and I’ll let you know if they rock as much as they seem to do in that little youtube video up there!
If you’re curious and want to know more, check out their website at http://easynailartstamp.com/
Have you seen anything like this before? Or do you even own something like this already? Let me know!
Posted in 2012, eBay, Enas, Flowers, Haul, Nail Art, Nail Polish, Nailpolish, Nails, Preview, Stamping, Stamping system, Webshop | 5 CommentsUnder the Sea themed manicure – Spongebob!
I’m part of a Facebook group called Adventures in Stamping that was created by Debbie of The Crumpet fame. As you’ve probably already guessed by the name; it’s a stamping group where we stamp on Sundays by a theme that was picked by the group at the beginning of the week..
This week the theme was Under the Sea. And because I didn’t want to do the whole Fish and Blue water thing, as I had a feeling those would be picked a lot already, I decided it was time to go with one of my favorite men of all time. Spongebob!
As a basecoat I’ve used Sally Hansen – Triple Strong, my current go to basecoat which has been making my nails a lot stronger than they’ve been for a while now.
When that had dried I painted my nails with Essence color & go – Mellow Yellow, which is the perfect soft yellow for Mr Squarepants there.
After that using image plate Qa2 that I got off of eBay a while ago I stamped the little holes in the sponge with O.P.I. – Over the Taupe.
I used the small end of my double sided stamper to make sure I was able to position everything perfectly.
Then it was time to stamp on the teeth and eyewhites, for that I used Konad’s white stamping polish. Then came the trickiest part, lining up the white shapes I had just stamped with black lines. Believe me, it took me a moment but eventually I got it!
The pupils and the tongue had to be painted in by hand, I used a dotting tool for that.
The red logo, tongue and one of the flowers are Essence Color & Go – Fame Fatal
The black that I used for the pupils is Essence Color & Go – Black is Back
And the orange flowers are O.P.I.’s - Heeeere’s Jack! that comes from their 2008 Halloween mini’s set.
When I got everything in position I used my loyal Seche Vite topcoat and he’s been living on my fingers for a day now. I can’t stop smiling when I see him, I hope you guys are as amused by him as I am!
I hope to be sharing more of our challenges in here, and who knows, if you enjoy stamping I’ll see you at the group on Facebook someday?
Have you tried a cartoon character on your fingernails yet?
And would you wear this guy on your nails?
Posted in 2012, Basecoat, Black, Brown, Cream, eBay, Essence, Flowers, Konad, Links, Manicure, Nail Art, Nail of the Day, Nail Polish, Nailpolish, Nails, Nails of the week, Opaque, Orange, Red, Sally Hansen, Seche Vite, Stamping, Stamping system, Theme, Topcoat, White, Yellow | 8 CommentsTime to Christmas it up in here!
This is my current festive manicure, what do you ladies (and possible gentlemen) think of it?
It’s a layer of Sally Hansen’s Triple Strong as a base. Over that I have OPI’s An Affair in Red Square with a little layer of Beyu’s 209 over it for some extra depth. I’ve stamped an all over image with white Konad stamping polish on top of it for some holiday cheer. It’s an image from the BIG SdP K plate. One of the many Dashica Beauty Shop plates that I have. Over that I’ve dabbed some foil glue in the spots where I wanted my rhinestones to be and after putting those on I’ve used Seche Vite topcoat to seal it all. If you have not tried Seche Vite I seriously urge you to try it. It is the best topcoat I’ve tried. It dries gorgeously shiny and fast. And it keeps my manicure going for at least a week if applied correctly.
What do you think? I rarely wear red on my nails so it takes some getting used to for me and I might just switch when it’s Christmas, to something else and more sophisticated like Chanel Graphite. But for now it’s certainly helping me get in the holiday spirit!
Are you wearing any special holiday manicures this year?
Posted in 2011, Basecoat, Chanel, Clear, Crimson, December, Foil, Foil Glue, Holiday Season, Manicure, Nail Art, Nail Hardener, Nail of the Day, Nail Polish, Nailpolish, Nails, Nails of the week, O.P.I., Red, Sally Hansen, Seche Vite, Shimmer, Stamping, Stamping system, Topcoat, White, Winter | 7 CommentsIntroducing the Konad Q1 plate.
I recently found out about a rare plate that Konad supposedly produced a while ago and I decided to hunt it down on eBay. I’m a big stamping plate collector and I love how they all help you achieve a different look for your nails. This particular plate I feel has a little rockchick or even rock chic look to it because the little swallows have an old style tattoo vibe and when I see a little lightening bolt I can’t help but think of Kat von D.
The little stars, the rainbow and the all over cupcake, sweets and icecream cone print give it a more happy vibe, something Gwen Stefani or Nicky Minaj could totally rock. You just can’t go wrong with a nice leopard print, especially when it’s teamed up with some awesome looking shreds!
What do you think of this one? Had you heard about it or seen it yet? Or do you own it already and are you not impressed, let me know, I’m curious!
Posted in Animal Print, Haul, Hot, Konad, Rainbow, Shopping, Stamping, Stamping system, Stars, Trend | 13 CommentsI go Gaga for silver leopard nails.
Today I kind of have a little mixed media project on my nails because I’ve used several things to get to this flashy end result.
I started it all off by using a nice base coat and covered that with a silver polish by Barry M as a color base. I used a silver polish as a base because I intend to use a silver nailart foil. And the foil doesn’t always stick to the glue right you might get some bald spots. So this is just to make sure you cover your nails completely.
After that had dried I applied special foil glue and added a layer of silver foil that I’ve ordered from Dollarnailart ages ago.
Nailfoils are nothing like the nail stickers that Sally Hanson or all the other brands currently are selling. Foils are sold in a long rolled up strip that you can cut sections off of. You then rub those sections onto your nail after putting on a special glue. This glue dries clear and tacky and it helps the foil adhere to the nail. Once you’re certain the foil has attached to the glue you very gently pull it off. So what is left on your nail is a very very thin layer of color that has come off the actual foil that is now clear. The layer is so thin that it will get scraped off easily, this and the glue react strongly to certain topcoats so you need to be careful with that as well.
Just so the foil doesn’t crinkle I coated the silver nails royally with a waterbased topcoat by Piggy Polish, and by royally I mean at least three layers. After that had dried I stamped it with my black Konad stamping polish and Konad plate m57 topping it off with a regular topcoat.
Here’s the end result:
They are a bit hard to photograph because of how reflective they are, but they are so much fun to wear that I just had to give it a shot and take a picture for you all.
Have you ladies tried foils before? If yes, did you like it? If no, would you in the future?
Posted in 2011, Animal Print, Barry M, Basecoat, Black, Khaki, Mauve, Multicolored glitter, Nail of the Day, Nail Tek, Nailpolish, Nails Inc., O.P.I., Ozotics, Piggy Polish, Shellac, Skin Care, Stamping, Teal, Tips and Tricks, Vinyl, Yellow, YSL, Yves Saint Laurent, Zoya | Leave a commentThe Nailpolish tag!
I was recently tagged by the lovely Natascha of Beautytas.nl with this little quiz about my love for polish… Here we go:
How many polishes do you have? - About 250, I’ve honestly lost count and I like it that way! {It’s called denial I think}
What’s the most owned brand? - China Glaze, OPI is a close second.
What’s the most common color in your stash? – Purple, but I also have a lot of greens.
Are there colors or finishes you do not own? – I recently found out about sherbet, which is a finish that lies between jelly and cream. I don’t own that yet, but I don’t think I need it really. And colorwise I think I really do have everything and if not it’s on the way (like a black, dark green and bronze holo by Glittergal <3)
Is there a polish you wear the most, write share the color and the brand with us! - Not really to be honest, I have so many that I don’t often get to wear a polish more often than once. There’s a polish that I am very impressed with right now though; Greta by the Make-Up Store. It’s THE holo-est holo I’ve ever seen <3
What polish should you have tossed out ages ago but haven’t? - Honestly none. I love them all and polish rarely goes off, even if it looks like it, if you shake it for a bit it’s usually as good as new. And if not it probably just needs a few drops of polish thinner. {As her best friend and friendly editor, I say there is a polish she needs to get rid of, but I think getting rid of any polish breaks her heart so she holds on for dear life. There is a polish that she wore when she came to visit me in the US that needs to go. She put a Del Sol polish over a base coat color she had on and it ended up looking like something you’d find in a babies diaper and made her look very sickly. I say toss it, but I know she’d cry. We just agree to disagree on this one because I don’t want to make her cry *wink* – Angel.}
Do you use Base- and topcoat? - Religiously. It doesn’t only protect and sometimes even nurtures your nails, but it also makes your manicure last much longer.
Would you rather stamp your nail art on or are you a fan of doing it freehand? - I like a mix of both really. Stamping if I’m in a hurry, freehand if I want something more unique.
Do you like shimmers and glitters or are you more into a cream finish? - I love shimmers, I love a nice even cream, but I’m not so much into glitter because they’re just such a hassle to get off again even if you do it with a nice trick.
Do you feel naked without nail polish? - Sadly, yes I seriously do!
What polish are you wearing at the moment? – Blagger by Butter London. A gorgeous rich blue cream that reminds me of the blue of Dr Who’s Tardis. Yes I’m a nerd and I’m proud of it! *Grins*
Thank you for the tag Natascha, I had fun filling this one out!
Posted in 2011, Angel, Basecoat, Beauty, China Glaze, Cream, Del Sol, Glitter, Glitter Gal, Green, Holographic, Konad, Links, Make Up Store, Nail Hardener, Nail Polish, Nailpolish, Nails, Nude, O.P.I., Purple, Seche Vite, Shopping, Stamping, Stamping system, Style, Topcoat, UV activated nailpolish | 4 CommentsNew Konad Image Plates M84 & M85
Today I have a little exciting news snippet for all the nail art stamping lovers out there!
Earlier today I found out via Twitter that Konad is releasing two new M series image plates; by the end of September. A little quick Google search led me to these product pictures of image plates M84 & M85:
What do you think? Are you planning to get one of these?
Posted in 2011, Konad, Nail Art, Nailpolish, Nails, Preview, September, Stamping, Stamping system | 5 CommentsNail of the day – Silver Lining
Every cloud has its silver lining. There have been plenty of rainclouds here in the Netherlands lately so I thought I’d add my own little silver lining here with this stamped nail art.
Due to the current weather conditions here I’m already in an autumn kind of mood so this is also a little preview of this falls fashion colors. I hope you like it as much as I do!
I used the following to achieve this look:
- Bourjois So Laque Ultra Shine in Bleu Violet as a base color – a beautiful violet blue that I’m in love with each time I get to wear it.
- China Glaze Millenium as a stamping polish. – I love the foil finish of this polish, it’s just so shiny!
- Nail stamp and scraper, tissues and acetone.
- Big SdP plate – I from Dashica Beauty Shop (No they don’t sponsor me, I just adore all of their plates and own many of them by now.)
- And because the so laque polishes chip very easily I decided to go with the Nail Envy by O.P.I. nailhardener first before using Bonder by Orly as a base for the Bourjois laquer. After that I applied O.P.I. QuickDry topcoat to finish the look.
What do you think? Is it something you’d wear?
Posted in 2011, Basecoat, Blue, China Glaze, Metallic, Midnight Blue, Nail Art, Nail Hardener, Nail Polish, Nailpolish, Nails, Nails of the week, O.P.I., Opaque, Orly, September, Silver, Stamping, Stamping system, Style, Topcoat, Trend, Vinyl, Webshop | 27 CommentsA Passionate Westside Warrior – NOTD
To recreate this look you need:
- A good basecoat, I used Orly’s Bonder.
- China Glaze – Westside Warrior as the overall color.
- China Glaze – Passion for stamping.
- Dashica Beauty’s XL SdP 35 for the image.
- Stamper, scraper, tissues and nailpolish remover to clean the stamper etc.
- A nice topcoat, I used O.P.I. - RapiDry Topcoat.
What do you think of this look? Is it something you’d recreate?
Posted in 2011, Basecoat, China Glaze, Cream, Gold, Green, Links, Metallic, Nail Art, Nail Polish, Nail polish remover, Nailpolish, Nails, Nails of the week, O.P.I., Orly, Stamping, Stamping system, Webshop | 18 CommentsOrly Holiday Soireé collection.
Cosmoprof is a business-to-business beauty trade show that I would love to be able to visit someday. At this show many brands will present their current and upcoming collections. This past July it was, once again, held in Las Vegas, Nevada and one of my favorite nail polish brands Orly presented quite a few products this year!
One of the upcoming collections that caught my eye is the Holiday Soireé collection, which includes these six beautiful shades:
- Androgynie - A black jelly with holographic glitter in different shapes and sizes.
- Ma Cherie - A sexy red cream that no one should be able to refuse.
- Oui - A purple jelly with pale gold shimmer.
- Au Champagne - A white cream with a silver-white shimmer to it which will give it a lovely pearly shine.
- Le Chateau - A simple creamy black.
- Ingenue - A beautiful purple rose jelly with copper shimmer.
I recieved Androgynie, Oui and Ingenue in the mail two days after my order at a completely new website for me called the nailcompany and I am just so thrilled. I’m a sucker for a beautiful sparkly looking polish and who can turn down a black with holographic glitter?
Pictured above are my nails today, Oui with a stamping of Dashica XL SdP 19 in China Glaze‘s lovely gold color called 2030. This is two layers of Oui. It already covered nicely in one layer, but the color got more depth when I added another one.
Aren’t they fabulous? I will swatch the other two colors as soon as I get the time and let you know what I think of the polish. So far Oui is my favorite, but I’m a sucker for purple so I doubt anyone is surprised, right?
Do you have any Orly polishes, if yes, which is your favorite? And what do you think of this new collection?
Posted in 2011, Black, Bronze, China Glaze, Collection, Copper, Cream, Crimson, Duochrome, Glitter, Gold, Holiday Season, Metallic, Nailpolish, Nails of the week, Opaque, Orly, Pearl finish, Pink, Preview, Purple, Red, Set, Shimmer, Shopping, Stamping, Stamping system, Style, White | 6 CommentsDashica Beauty and Boozyshop haul.
Both packages that I mentioned in an earlier post have finally arrived and I couldn’t be happier! They both contained an extra gift and the things I have ordered came in a perfect state due to careful wrapping.
The first one to arrive this week was my Dashica Beauty Shop order, which consisted of 5 big image plates (and by big they mean big, as in -42 images on a single plate- big!) as well as a double sided white stamper + a scraper.
Shirley, the webshop owner, was also sweet enough to add a set of water decals as a small gift for ordering with them. I will have to try those out soon. It is my first set of water decals ever and I’ve been very curious about them so yay! Thank you so much Shirley & Dashica Beauty Shop!
The other package came a day later, it wouldn’t have been this late if it wasn’t for a slight mishap.
You see, the “Nails for Males” that I previously have written about was out of stock and sadly probably not returning to the shop. The lovely Maaike of Boozyshop contacted me through email and asked me if I’d like my money back or if I’d like to pick another Orly nail care product. I promptly picked “Nailtrition” which is a fabulous strengthening & growth treatment by Orly. I already own it, but it’s already almost a quarter empty and she told me I’d get the package the next day. And there it was, this morning, with an extra bottle of Diamond Cosmetics nail polish in the shade ‘Desert Rose’ for all the trouble, isn’t that sweet? So thank you as well Boozyshop, you didn’t have to make up for it, but you certainly made my day by doing that!
I am already playing around with the image plates and will probably try out my beautyblender for the first time tomorrow morning. I will, of course, keep you all posted about my experiences with every product mentioned.
Have you bought from this shops before? If yes, what is the last thing you got? If no, what would you like to buy there if you did?
Posted in Beauty, Beautyblender, Cream, Diamond Cosmetics, Gifts, Haul, Links, Nail care, Nailpolish, Orly, Pink, Red, Shopping, Stamping, Stamping system, Water Decal, Webshop | 8 Comments
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