Polish days - Vintage

Well seeing as I've been a bit slow on the posts recently I thought I'd at least make the effort to join in on this month's Polish Days - the blogger event organised by the lovely Polly Polish.

This month's theme is vintage and I decided to pay homage to art deco - I've always loved a bit of Rennie Mackintosh!

This is two coats of Revlon Top Speed in Stormy. The detail is free hand using Models Own in Utopia, Models Own nail art pen in black and No7 nail art pen in silver.

Happy painting... the nailist xxx

Funky matte french

So I'm not a huge lover of matte top coats - often finding they just make you look like you've scratched the sheen of a nice glossy polish. But I think it all depends what colour you're top coating and also the quality of the top coat. I've found one I really love from Models Own Pro which gives a lovely satin finish rather than dull matte.

This twist on the classic french manicure is two coats of Essie Nail Lacquer in Fancy Pants, followed by a free hand striking fuchsia tip using Models Own in Purple Passion (I personally think it's more pink than purple!). Finished off with the Models Own Pro Matte top coat. You can't really tell from the photo but the finish is a lovely muted sheen rather than being completely dull matte.

I think the colour combo works really well. The key is to use a muted sophisticated colour for the base and then a colour that really pops for the tip. It's a great way to venture into nail art or to take a boring work mani to the next level without being over the top!

Happy painting... the nailist xxx

Peekaboo leopard print

I actually did these nails on Monday but just haven't had a chance to post. So I'll miss out my usual preamble and get to it...

I've come to realise I have a slight obsession with animal print... the other day I had a pink leopard print top on, a grey leopard print umbrella, a purple leopard print phone cover and these leopard print nails! Eek! Need to be careful I don't tip over into tragic thirty-something.

This design was a Models Own extraganza! The base colour is two coats of Models Own in Mushroom. Once dry I added an angled tip with Models Own in Concrete Mixer. I then free hand painted the leopard print using black and white Models Own nail art pens. Finished off with some Seche Vite quick dry top coat.

Happy painting... the nailist xxx

Lucky dip favourites

So as I mentioned on my last post there was a charity nail polish lucky dip at work. I've been working my way through my haul and here's a few of my favourites.

The base grey is Models Own in Mushroom and the two lines are Butter London in Artful Dodger (turquoise) and Dahling (dusky pink). I particularly love the Models Own one - might try it with a matte top coat next time.

I started with the grey all over the nail then free hand added the layers of colour so the top part of my nail has basically got 4 coats of colour. Just make sure you let it dry between coats otherwise it will be too thick to dry.

Finished off with a coat of Save the Nail 45 second top coat.

Happy painting... the nailist xxx

Polish days - MAN-icure

It's Polish Day time!.. the monthly blogger event put together by Hannah @ PollyPolish.com. This month's theme is MAN-icure in honour of it being Movember. The brief was either a the iconic moustache design or a tribute to any special men in your life.

I decided to go literal and simple....

I had a bit of trouble with the moustaches due to a gloopy black nail polish but no time to redo unfortunately! Still loving it though - makes me laugh every time I look at my nails.

And what makes me giggle even more is that if I look at them the other way the moustaches, unintentionally, look like eyebrows and I have angry/surprised faces looking back at me!

I opted for muted 'manly' base colours:-

Thumb - Nail Polish by H&M in Nerd

Index - W7 in 29 Grey

Middle - Models Own in Concrete Mixer

Ring - Bourjois 1 Second Gel Silicone Texture in 04 Taupe Classy

Little - Bourjois 10 days No Chips in shade 23

Happy painting.. the nailist xxx

The graveyard shift

Well I had to do it... spooky nails for Halloween is a must. Unfortunately I'm not going to any Halloween parties this year so this is purely for my own enjoyment (and yours of course!)...

As you can see I have a creepy graveyard design which is on top of a purple grey gradient.

I started out with a base of deep purple. I used a really old bottle of a colour that I love but it's one of those cheapo brands of the market called 'La Femme Beauty' (!) and has no shade name sorry. Any deep purple will do,  just think stormy night sky - Revlon in Plum Night is a good option.

I then layered on a gradient of Mavala in shade 12 Berlin, using a cosmetic sponge. Best way I've found is you paint the polish onto the sponge and dab on the nail starting by covering as far down as you want the gradient to start. I did all 10 nails and then went back to the start to allow each layer to dry.  Then dabbed on more just starting a bit further up the nail tip so to create denser colour towards the end. Trick is to keep loading the sponge. If you allow it to dry out you just end up sponging the polish off the nail.

To finish off the gradient and to add some sparkle to the misty graveyard scene I sponged on a bit of Barry M Nail Paint in Silvery Lilac where the grey met the purple. Here's the gradient before the graveyard was added...

I then freehand drew on the graveyard using a black nail art pen and a yellow one for the moon.

For the spiderweb, use a black nail art pen and draw three diagonal lines from one corner of your nail to 3/4 of the way down. Then connect these with evenly spaced curved lines. I added a bit of silver with a nail art pen for extra pop.

Finish off with a quick dry top coat - I used Save the Nail 45 Second Top Coat... and there you have it!


Happy Halloween... the nailist xxx

Greyed out

I love grey polishes and W7 Nail Polish in Grey is one of my faves. So using this as a base I've played around with three Models Own nail art pens. The plan was just to have a heart on one finger but as usual I got carried away! Unfortunately, I made a rookie mistake and didn't wait long enough before applying top coat, so I've smeared one of the design .. grrrr!

Happy painting... the nailist xxx

Snow leopard

I sorted my nail polish collection out this weekend (I know.. rock n roll lifestyle!) and it's official, I have a serious addiction! I own 366 nail polish, 22 nail art pens and a ridiculous amount of base coats, top coats, nail wraps and nail decorations! No doubt there are more lurking in the recesses of handbags and drawers yet to be counted! I had to relegate 11 to nail polish heaven as they were gloopy beyond repair.

So after dealing with my silent shame, I have beautifully arranged them all by colour in a variety of boxes so at least I can start to make use of my whole collection, rather than the same old faithfuls. I would say that I  have enough and won't be buying anymore... but I would be lying!

Apart from my undeniable obsession with nail polish I also love animal print. Be it zebra or leopard I always find myself heading straight for the bold prints when clothes shopping, although I draw the line at zebra print trousers! Lucky for me animal print looks fab on nails too... check out today's design

Here's how..

I used Sally Hansen's Miracle Nail Thickener as a base coat as my nails seem to be splitting a lot recently. Once your base coat is dry, apply a base colour in a light grey or beige, I used Models Own Nail Polish in Concrete Mixer. Then create a gradient by sponging on three layers of a metallic grey or silver such as No7 Stay Perfect Nail Polish in Sunshine, going about half way down each nail.

Step 1 - created a graduated base with a grey/beige and metallic grey/silver

Now for the animal print... using a black nail art pen draw on a leopard pattern. Best way I can describe to do this is by drawing jagged circles, interspersed with a few blobs. So if you don't have a steady hand.. don't worry because shaky is a bonus!

Step 2 - Animal print it up!

Then to accent the print, fill the jagged circles in with a dot of white, again using a nail art pen or thin brush. Let it all dry, clean up the edges and finish with a high shine quick dry top coat.

Happy painting... the nailist xxx

Every cloud has a silver lining

So there are times when a bit of bling is order - probably not for every day at work! - but I wanted to experiment with rhinestones and ended up with a design more suited to a Saturday night than the 9-5! Still at least I'll be prepared for when I'm next getting glammed up!

Start off with a pearlescent base colour - I used Primark Beauty Nail Polish in an unnamed silvery white

Step 1 - Pearlescent base colour

Then, using a black nail art pen or thin brush, add a deep V guidance line onto every nail leaving a gap between the point of the V and the cuticle.

Step 2 - V guiding line

Then fill in above the V with a grey colour. I used one of my favourites - No7 Limited Edition Stay Perfect Nail Colour in Grey Matter.

Step 3 - fill in the V

Once this is dry, add a line of silver glittery polish using either a nail art pen or thin brush, just above the original black guiding line. I had a No7 nail art pen from a Christmas gift set which gave a lovely dense finish.

Step 4 - add the silver lining!

Then redefine the V with a black line underneath the silver. This should take the V to the cuticle/base of your nail.

Step 5 - redefine the V

Select a nail on each hand to embellish. Doing one nail at a time, add a line of clear top coat over the silvery line to create a tacky surface. Then, using a clear top coat dipped toothpick pick up and dot on a line of round shaped diamante rhinestones and a teardrop shape one at the base. I added the rounds first, moving from the outer edges towards the centre and added the teardrop in between last. This is so you know you have enough space to have a equal number of rhinestones on each side of the V.

Step 6 - Bling time

Finish off with a shiny top coat on all nails, which will help further seal on the rhinestones. Clean up the edges with an acetone soaked cotton bud . Blingtastic!

The kit

Happy painting... the nailist xxx