Spooky Greetings All!
Happy Halloween!!
So, my excitement has led to me creating too many manicures. Strangely at the same time I feel like I didn't do enough!
Today I have my final four manicures to share with you. It's mostly down to poor planning. No, wait, I mean I totally meant to do it this way!
First up my actual Halloween manicure, on my nails right now. I've been buried alive!
Friday, 31 October 2014
Thursday, 30 October 2014
A2Z Series - A Is For Angles
Greetings All!
I'm interrupting my Halloween manicures because I'm involved in a fabulous new challenge! Along with some very talented ladies - I'm a little bit intimidated about the level of nail art, but I'm hoping that will push me to step up my game a bit. You can see who is participating here, and when you see their nails, you'll understand why I'm worried!
We'll be posting every Thursday for the next 26 weeks. That seems like a long time, but I just know that very soon I'll be on 'Y' and wondering where all the time has gone! This week for 'A' the prompt is Angles. The prompts are fairly broad and there is a lot of room for interpretation, which is great because I think we'll be seeing a lot of variety. I went fairly obvious, and just painted some angles on my nails!
I originally planned to do all my nails like my middle finger, but I thought it might look a bit odd with my nail shape. It doesn't, which is slightly annoying, but I still like the random look.
My base is Look Nail Pop in Milk. It's a really nice off white, creamy colour, and much more wearable than a bright white. It's not the most exciting colour ever, but I was actually pretty excited by it, because I still can't bear to wear plain white polish and this is just soft enough to get away with. It makes a gorgeous base for all kinds of nail art.
I used striping tape, Barry M Gelly in Blood Orange and W7 Black for the angular bits. I'm determined to master striping tape! I don't think I did too badly this time - I got fairly clean lines, and these colours are not very forgiving!
You can check out the rest of this week's manicures, and all the nails throughout the challenge here. I'll be back tomorrow with several Halloween manicures!!
I'm interrupting my Halloween manicures because I'm involved in a fabulous new challenge! Along with some very talented ladies - I'm a little bit intimidated about the level of nail art, but I'm hoping that will push me to step up my game a bit. You can see who is participating here, and when you see their nails, you'll understand why I'm worried!
We'll be posting every Thursday for the next 26 weeks. That seems like a long time, but I just know that very soon I'll be on 'Y' and wondering where all the time has gone! This week for 'A' the prompt is Angles. The prompts are fairly broad and there is a lot of room for interpretation, which is great because I think we'll be seeing a lot of variety. I went fairly obvious, and just painted some angles on my nails!
I originally planned to do all my nails like my middle finger, but I thought it might look a bit odd with my nail shape. It doesn't, which is slightly annoying, but I still like the random look.
My base is Look Nail Pop in Milk. It's a really nice off white, creamy colour, and much more wearable than a bright white. It's not the most exciting colour ever, but I was actually pretty excited by it, because I still can't bear to wear plain white polish and this is just soft enough to get away with. It makes a gorgeous base for all kinds of nail art.
I used striping tape, Barry M Gelly in Blood Orange and W7 Black for the angular bits. I'm determined to master striping tape! I don't think I did too badly this time - I got fairly clean lines, and these colours are not very forgiving!
You can check out the rest of this week's manicures, and all the nails throughout the challenge here. I'll be back tomorrow with several Halloween manicures!!
Wednesday, 29 October 2014
The Nightmare Before Christmas Inspired Stripes
Greetings All!
The Nightmare Before Christmas is one of my very favourite films. I did intend to do some more detailed nails, but time just got away from me. I can't believe October is almost over already!
I can't see black and white pinstripe without thinking of Jack. I like pinstripe trousers for the same reason!
I'm also (somewhat hesitantly) sharing my previous TNBC manicure. Back in October 2012 I had only been doing nail art for a few months. I hadn't learned to stamp yet, so I did a lot of freehand. I spent hours with just a small brush and little puddles of polish! At the time I was very proud of my TNBC manicure. Two years on, it looks very rough to me (I hadn't learned to cleanup either!) but I do think the nail art itself isn't too bad. I wish I put this much effort into my nails now!
Tomorrow I'm starting an exciting new challenge, so all my remaining Halloween manicures will be posted on Friday!
The Nightmare Before Christmas is one of my very favourite films. I did intend to do some more detailed nails, but time just got away from me. I can't believe October is almost over already!
I can't see black and white pinstripe without thinking of Jack. I like pinstripe trousers for the same reason!
I'm also (somewhat hesitantly) sharing my previous TNBC manicure. Back in October 2012 I had only been doing nail art for a few months. I hadn't learned to stamp yet, so I did a lot of freehand. I spent hours with just a small brush and little puddles of polish! At the time I was very proud of my TNBC manicure. Two years on, it looks very rough to me (I hadn't learned to cleanup either!) but I do think the nail art itself isn't too bad. I wish I put this much effort into my nails now!
Tomorrow I'm starting an exciting new challenge, so all my remaining Halloween manicures will be posted on Friday!
Tuesday, 28 October 2014
Skull And Crossbones
Greetings All!
Today I'm wearing another Halloween polish from last year. The big glitter shape last Autumn was skull and crossbones, and I probably ended up with enough polishes to last a lifetime of skully manicures!
I've also done something I rarely do - glitter placement. I do push glitter around on the nail if needed, or dab a little on to even it out, but I generally let it lie where it chooses. For this manicure I did some fishing, and some careful glitter placement! Oh, and also some stamping.
Over a black base I've used Konad White and MoYou Punk 04, and TarasTalons Skeleton. This polish has all sorts of white shapes in - I initially only intended to use the skulls, but I just couldn't resist a few stars as well.
It's quite a high maintenance glitter shape - it took two coats of Gelous, and two of SV to tame them, and then they was still smooth but bumpy. However it's a price I'm more than happy to pay!
Today I'm wearing another Halloween polish from last year. The big glitter shape last Autumn was skull and crossbones, and I probably ended up with enough polishes to last a lifetime of skully manicures!
I've also done something I rarely do - glitter placement. I do push glitter around on the nail if needed, or dab a little on to even it out, but I generally let it lie where it chooses. For this manicure I did some fishing, and some careful glitter placement! Oh, and also some stamping.
Over a black base I've used Konad White and MoYou Punk 04, and TarasTalons Skeleton. This polish has all sorts of white shapes in - I initially only intended to use the skulls, but I just couldn't resist a few stars as well.
It's quite a high maintenance glitter shape - it took two coats of Gelous, and two of SV to tame them, and then they was still smooth but bumpy. However it's a price I'm more than happy to pay!
Monday, 27 October 2014
Bats Galore
Greetings All!
I'm doubling up on the Halloween nail art today in an effort to fit it all in before Friday, so you get two bat manicures for the price of one! Both manicures feature the same stamp, from MoYou Festive 15. This full nail, bat swarm stamp came just in time - my nails are currently too long for any of my other bat stamps, although with all the cold weather approaching I bet that soon they'll be short enough!
Here's manicure number one, bats over a purple gradient.
For the gradient I used Sally Hansen I Lilac You, Barry M Gelly in Prickly Pear, Color Club Pucci-licious and Beauty UK Jelly Bean. I added a coat of Butter London Frilly Knickers for some sparkle, then stamped with MoYou Festive 25 and Konad Black.
Manicure number 2, gold bats on a night sky.
The base is TarasTalons Dark Nights, two coats over black, again stamped with MoYou Festive 15, and Mentality Dapper.
I hereby promise - no more bat manicures this month!
I'm doubling up on the Halloween nail art today in an effort to fit it all in before Friday, so you get two bat manicures for the price of one! Both manicures feature the same stamp, from MoYou Festive 15. This full nail, bat swarm stamp came just in time - my nails are currently too long for any of my other bat stamps, although with all the cold weather approaching I bet that soon they'll be short enough!
Here's manicure number one, bats over a purple gradient.
For the gradient I used Sally Hansen I Lilac You, Barry M Gelly in Prickly Pear, Color Club Pucci-licious and Beauty UK Jelly Bean. I added a coat of Butter London Frilly Knickers for some sparkle, then stamped with MoYou Festive 25 and Konad Black.
Manicure number 2, gold bats on a night sky.
The base is TarasTalons Dark Nights, two coats over black, again stamped with MoYou Festive 15, and Mentality Dapper.
I hereby promise - no more bat manicures this month!
Sunday, 26 October 2014
Coffin Fodder Roses
Greetings All!
Here's a manicure featuring one of my favourite Halloween polishes. In fact, it's one of my favourite polishes full stop.
Last year TarasTalons released multiple Halloween collections. So many I lost count! One of those collections allowed you to name the polishes yourself. Of course I had to have this red glitter in a black base, and I named if Coffin Fodder, after a Cradle of Filth song. Not my favourite song of theirs, it's just a really good combination of words! Try saying it out loud, it feels good!
Two coats of Coffin Fodder over black, stamped with Mentality Dapper and MoYou Pro XL 10.
Here's a manicure featuring one of my favourite Halloween polishes. In fact, it's one of my favourite polishes full stop.
Last year TarasTalons released multiple Halloween collections. So many I lost count! One of those collections allowed you to name the polishes yourself. Of course I had to have this red glitter in a black base, and I named if Coffin Fodder, after a Cradle of Filth song. Not my favourite song of theirs, it's just a really good combination of words! Try saying it out loud, it feels good!
Two coats of Coffin Fodder over black, stamped with Mentality Dapper and MoYou Pro XL 10.
Saturday, 25 October 2014
Halloween Bat Creatures
Greetings All!
Yet more bats (with still more to come!), but these are slightly different. I got some themed nail art bits in my TarasTalons Halloween box, including some fimo slices. I love fimo slices, and I have quite the little collection. I very rarely use them, but they're just so cute I can never resist. These ones are especially cute so I had to use them to make some little winged creatures.
Look at how grumpy that little fellow on my thumb is! And I love how much detail the pumpkin has. This is why I can't resist them! Forget about using them on nails - they're lovely just as objects in themselves.
My base is OPI Funky Dunkey. The bat stamps are from MoYou Gothic 02 and Suki 10, stamped with Konad Black. The black studs are from eBay.
Yet more bats (with still more to come!), but these are slightly different. I got some themed nail art bits in my TarasTalons Halloween box, including some fimo slices. I love fimo slices, and I have quite the little collection. I very rarely use them, but they're just so cute I can never resist. These ones are especially cute so I had to use them to make some little winged creatures.
Look at how grumpy that little fellow on my thumb is! And I love how much detail the pumpkin has. This is why I can't resist them! Forget about using them on nails - they're lovely just as objects in themselves.
My base is OPI Funky Dunkey. The bat stamps are from MoYou Gothic 02 and Suki 10, stamped with Konad Black. The black studs are from eBay.
Friday, 24 October 2014
Monster Claws
Greetings All!
Just a quick post today. I kind of have too many Halloween manicures now - I'm going to have to start doubling up if I want to fit them all in!
These started life as horrible monster claws, although looking at them now, they kind of look like turtles. Either way, here they are.
The base is OPI Uh Oh, Roll Down The Window. Yet another colour that I wouldn't wear plain but it obviously has its uses! I stamped with this unnamed green Sweet Heart polish. It's a cheap and nasty polish, but like a lot of cheapies, it actually stamps pretty well! It takes forever to dry though - I ended up blowing on the stamp before putting it on my nail! The stamp is from MoYou Pro XL 04.
Just a quick post today. I kind of have too many Halloween manicures now - I'm going to have to start doubling up if I want to fit them all in!
These started life as horrible monster claws, although looking at them now, they kind of look like turtles. Either way, here they are.
The base is OPI Uh Oh, Roll Down The Window. Yet another colour that I wouldn't wear plain but it obviously has its uses! I stamped with this unnamed green Sweet Heart polish. It's a cheap and nasty polish, but like a lot of cheapies, it actually stamps pretty well! It takes forever to dry though - I ended up blowing on the stamp before putting it on my nail! The stamp is from MoYou Pro XL 04.
Thursday, 23 October 2014
Spell Caster Nails
Greetings All!
Today I have one of my favourite manicures of all time! I didn't expect it to be when I started, but by the end I was so in love with them it was ridiculous. It hurt so much to take them off. Behold my spell caster nails!
Quite a lot of the credit has to go to Sally Hansen Snow Globe (bottle pictured). A surprisingly stunning iridescent glitter topper, this will have come from either Fragrance Direct or eBay - I do like Sally Hansen, but I am very cheap! It looks especially good over black, but this time I went for a dark purple shimmer, Sally Hansen Vixen (a pound shop buy!). This is two coats of Snow Globe, and as you can see it is rather magical!
The stamp is from MoYou Gothic 06 - I made decals in an attempt to get them (a bit more) centred and straight. I used Barry M Gold Foil and Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure basecoat for the decals.
Today I have one of my favourite manicures of all time! I didn't expect it to be when I started, but by the end I was so in love with them it was ridiculous. It hurt so much to take them off. Behold my spell caster nails!
Quite a lot of the credit has to go to Sally Hansen Snow Globe (bottle pictured). A surprisingly stunning iridescent glitter topper, this will have come from either Fragrance Direct or eBay - I do like Sally Hansen, but I am very cheap! It looks especially good over black, but this time I went for a dark purple shimmer, Sally Hansen Vixen (a pound shop buy!). This is two coats of Snow Globe, and as you can see it is rather magical!
The stamp is from MoYou Gothic 06 - I made decals in an attempt to get them (a bit more) centred and straight. I used Barry M Gold Foil and Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure basecoat for the decals.
Wednesday, 22 October 2014
UK Indies - Dark Metal Lacquer Flashy Sparklies
Greetings All!
I'm taking a very quick break from my Halloween nails to show you a rather special polish. It was my birthday last week, and I decided to wear this. Full coverage, insanely sparkly gold holo glitter? Yes please!
It gets better. Dark Metal Lacquer polishes are currently on sale, so you can pick this beauty up for just £4.50!
I should also quickly mention that I have changed my nail shape. For once this didn't happen because of breaks. I've gone for claws this time! It's becoming quite a popular shape, and as I have a couple of weeks off work they're far less likely to break. I've admired this nail shape for a long time (UKNailRunner has my favourite nails, shown here wearing one of my lemmings!) and I must say, so far I'm loving them! It's been nearly two weeks since I filed them, and I go back to work on Sunday, so we'll see how long they last.
On to the pictures. This is three coats of Flashy Sparklies.
This polish is amazing. There is so much rainbow goodness going on, and what my pictures haven't captured is just how sparkly it is. There's a lot of movement and colour - it really is perfectly named.
Application was really good too. I imagine the removal would be a bit of a nightmare - recently I've been using Yellow Stopper (from the makers of Gelous) as a base for glitters because it allows you to 'pop' off the whole nail (of polish) very easily. Sometimes a little too easily - my middle finger had to be stuck back on before I took these pictures! It was like a bespoke fake nail. It's a terrible base coat if you want your polish to last more than 24 hours, but for glitters, it's really rather good. 8 out of 10 of my nails popped off in one piece!
I'm taking a very quick break from my Halloween nails to show you a rather special polish. It was my birthday last week, and I decided to wear this. Full coverage, insanely sparkly gold holo glitter? Yes please!
It gets better. Dark Metal Lacquer polishes are currently on sale, so you can pick this beauty up for just £4.50!
I should also quickly mention that I have changed my nail shape. For once this didn't happen because of breaks. I've gone for claws this time! It's becoming quite a popular shape, and as I have a couple of weeks off work they're far less likely to break. I've admired this nail shape for a long time (UKNailRunner has my favourite nails, shown here wearing one of my lemmings!) and I must say, so far I'm loving them! It's been nearly two weeks since I filed them, and I go back to work on Sunday, so we'll see how long they last.
On to the pictures. This is three coats of Flashy Sparklies.
This polish is amazing. There is so much rainbow goodness going on, and what my pictures haven't captured is just how sparkly it is. There's a lot of movement and colour - it really is perfectly named.
Application was really good too. I imagine the removal would be a bit of a nightmare - recently I've been using Yellow Stopper (from the makers of Gelous) as a base for glitters because it allows you to 'pop' off the whole nail (of polish) very easily. Sometimes a little too easily - my middle finger had to be stuck back on before I took these pictures! It was like a bespoke fake nail. It's a terrible base coat if you want your polish to last more than 24 hours, but for glitters, it's really rather good. 8 out of 10 of my nails popped off in one piece!
Tuesday, 21 October 2014
Abstract Halloween Roses?
Greetings All!
I'm not entirely sure what these nails are. On the stamping plate (MoYou Gothic 03), and in my mind they looked a bit like an abstract rose design. On the nail, not so much! However, they are Halloween colours so whatever they are, they still 'work'!
The base is Color Club Sunrise Canyon, a perfect acid yellow-green for Halloween, stamped with Barry M Gelly in Plum and MoYou Gothic 03. I also tried it with matte topcoat.
I'd love to know what your thoughts are on this pattern - what do you think it is?
I'm not entirely sure what these nails are. On the stamping plate (MoYou Gothic 03), and in my mind they looked a bit like an abstract rose design. On the nail, not so much! However, they are Halloween colours so whatever they are, they still 'work'!
The base is Color Club Sunrise Canyon, a perfect acid yellow-green for Halloween, stamped with Barry M Gelly in Plum and MoYou Gothic 03. I also tried it with matte topcoat.
I'd love to know what your thoughts are on this pattern - what do you think it is?
Monday, 20 October 2014
Pink Spiderwebs
Greetings All!
You can't really have Halloween (or October!) without spiders. However, I'm not the biggest fan of spiders. I'm not exactly terrified of them generally, but I don't like them near me, or worse, on me!
In an effort to make them a bit cuter, I've gone for some pink spiderwebs, with a couple of creepy crawlies hanging around.
It turns out pink spiderwebs don't really look that much like spiderwebs, hence the little spider stickers. I think if real spiders were glittery, I probably wouldn't mind them as much!
My base is one of my very favourite pinks, Revlon Cupid. I know it's not the most 'me' colour, but I just love it! I stamped with 2true Metallica in Aphrodite and MoYou Pro XL05. The nail stickers came from eBay. They did need two coats of topcoat, but I think they're kind of cute!
You can't really have Halloween (or October!) without spiders. However, I'm not the biggest fan of spiders. I'm not exactly terrified of them generally, but I don't like them near me, or worse, on me!
In an effort to make them a bit cuter, I've gone for some pink spiderwebs, with a couple of creepy crawlies hanging around.
It turns out pink spiderwebs don't really look that much like spiderwebs, hence the little spider stickers. I think if real spiders were glittery, I probably wouldn't mind them as much!
My base is one of my very favourite pinks, Revlon Cupid. I know it's not the most 'me' colour, but I just love it! I stamped with 2true Metallica in Aphrodite and MoYou Pro XL05. The nail stickers came from eBay. They did need two coats of topcoat, but I think they're kind of cute!
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