Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween!

Here is my spooky manicure!

I poked around pinterest to get some easy nail ideas.  I'll breakdown the nail designs with each nail individually.

Index "Frankenstein" Nail:  I applied 2 coats of Zoya "Josie", and once it was semi-dry, I applied KBShimmer "Eclipse" with a brush in a track-like pattern, ALA Frankenstein.

Middle "Who's out there?" Nail: I applied 2 thin coats of KBShimmer "Eclipse". Once it was semi-dry (dry to the touch), I applied OPI "Alpine Snow" and Sally Hansen "Mellow Yellow" (old version) with a dotting tool.  Once that was "semi-dry", I applied KBShimmer "Eclipse" with a smaller dotting tool to the centers in varying angles. :)

Ring "Web" Nail: I don't like spiders, but I don't mind webs. I applied 2 coats of Orly "Shine" (my favorite silver) , and once it was "semi-dry", I applied KBShimmer "Eclipse", with a nail striping brush. This is a brush that is very long and makes great straight lines. Then, I  followed it up with a smaller brush to make the web-connections.   The connections were much harder, I'll have to perfect my technique with a thinner brush than I used.

Pinkie "Vampire" Nail: Super easy.  I applied 1 coat of OPI "Alpine Snow- Matte", and then 1 coat of regular OPI "Alpine Snow"

NOTE: I've discovered when working with white polishes, that if you first apply a matte version then the regular version, you get less drag and complete opaqueness without waiting for the dry time.

After that was "semi-dry", I applied, 3 red dots using "Zoya "Rekha" with a dotting tool, and then 3 red thin lines using a nail art brush, down towards the tip of the nail. I filled the rest of the tip using the brush, to make it look more "blood-like".

Thumb "Eyeball" Nail: This was a bit harder.  First I applied two coats of OPI "Alpine Snow", using the same method I used on the "Vampire Nail", then I applied  Zoya "Yummy" using my largest dotting tool, and smoothed it out in a circular motion, until I thought it was the right size. Getting this to be a "perfect" circle was hard for me. :( Once it was "semi-dry", I applied KBShimmer "Eclipse" with a dotting tool, on top.

While that was drying, I drew on the red veins using Zoya "America", with a nail art brush.  Then I grabbed OPI "Alpine Snow" and made a small dot, at an angle.  

NOTE: To clean up the blue eye, I used OPI "Alpine Snow-Matte" to quickly and easily cover-up the not-so "circular parts".  Matte polishes are perfect for covering up mistakes.  They are super opaque and dry fast.

I waited 20 minutes, before I applied my final 2 coats of top coat, because of the all the varying layers.

 















Overall, I am in LOVE with my Halloween Manicure!

Happy Halloween! Keep It Sweet!

Neon Tips by OPI

Hello and Happy Monday!

Today I have some cute neon tips did using OPI's neon polishes released earlier this summer, and some nail decal tips from the Born Pretty Store!

COUPON CODE: 10% off  when you use JS10K31

When I first saw all of these great colors, I couldn't decide which color I wanted to wear..so I wore them ALL! :)

Left to Right: OPI "Push & Pur-Pull", "Life Gave Me Lemons", "Juice Bar Hopping", "Hotter than You Pink", "You are So Outta Lime",  and "Down to the Core-al"

To get these colors to really pop, you have to use the base color, "Put a Coat On". It's your basic white, but not as "bright white" as most white polishes.  :)

I used two coats of the base color, and then I applied two coats of the neon nail colors using the guides. Theses are the same guides I used in my review post, HERE.

I used some of the same colors, but in a different order on my left hand.

This manicure was easy to apply and fun to wear.  The neon's dried amazingly fast, and they really POP with the white base color.  The guides were much easier to use the second time around. I guess practice does make perfect :)

Did you get the OPI Neon's? Which is your favorite color?

Keep It Sweet!

*Product provided by PR for review. 

Having fun with Born Pretty!

Happy Friday!

Nail art is all the rage right now, and I have some fun nail guides from Born Pretty that will make nail art a little easier.

For the first manicure, I used Sally Hansen "Mellow Yellow" (the old version), and Butter London "Jack The Lad".

First I painted my nails with the yellow, two coats and I let them dry completely. Then I applied the nail guides, "French Manicure Wave Edge Tip Guides" , to the tips of the nails, with a small edge of nail left visible.

Painted the darker color on the edge, and after a minute, I carefully removed the guide.

I did a little cleanup after I removed the guide, and the manicure was perfect and amazingly easy.

Next....

"Mellow Yellow" and Shimmer Polish "Jasmine" and "Practical French Manicure Wave Edge Tip Guides"

Unfortunately, removing these guides from the sheet were not easy, and several of them ripped at the point. I used tweezers to remove each guide, but a couple ripped :(

 

But I managed to get a couple of them off the sheet safely to complete the manicure.

The glitter didn't work out the best, but you can see that with the guides you can get a clean line, without all the fuss. :)

Both nail sheets are a great deal at $1.58 a sheet.  I would suggest gently using tweezers to remove the stickers from the sheet, in order to make sure you get the guide off in one piece. My favorite is the french manicure wave edge, it's clean and easy and delivers a great smooth arch for your nail art.

COUPON CODE: 10% off  when you use JS10K31

Check out Born Pretty Store, for more nail guides and for all your nail art needs!

Keep It Sweet!

*Products provided for review.

Having fun with a new nail shape and Illamasqua!

Hello there!  I have been tossing around the idea of changing my nail shape, and a couple days ago I decided to give it the GREEN LIGHT!

Yep, I've gone ALMOND! or ALMOND-ESQUE, using Illamasqua.  I researched the best way to alter the natural nail shape and I decided to file them ONLY (instead of using clippers), using a cardboard file first, and then finishing them off with a crystal file.

I used Illamasqua "Scorn", "Speckle" and some added jewels.  Let me know what you think!



Illamasqua "Scorn" and "Speckle", 2 coats each with top coat

"Speckle" is from Illamasqua's Imperfection Collection of 2013. It came in mint green, light blue, pink and tan. I love the lilac and after 2 coats, it was perfectly opaque and what's even better is that it dries smooth.  Oh yeah, I love a smooth drying glitter.

For the accent finger, I used "Scorn".  "Scorn" is a black polish that dries with a smooth rubber finish. It's very cool, but because I wanted my manicure to last, I used my usual top coat routine to protect the nail and the added jewels. Sooo no cool rubber effect :(

 After I was done, I added a matte top coat (avoiding the jewels) to the entire nail.

Since my nails naturally curl as they get longer, I decided that maybe "almond" is the best shape for me.

Before....

After...

The difference is subtle for now. Maybe this weekend I will take the time to narrow the tip of the nail, a bit more.  

After three days I can say that I LOVE my new almond nail shape...what do you think? :) <3 p="">
Keep It Sweet!

Happy 4th of July !

Yep, it's the 4th of July...the day we celebrate our nations independence, by eating BBQ, enjoying the day with friends and family, drink a little, party a little and then light explosives that explode in the air, LOL.

 Yeah it doesn't make much sense ...but it's FUN!

For my July 4th manicure, I used the following!

KBShimmer "Pimp My Pride". KBShimmer "Low and Be Bold", OPI "Coca-Cola Red", OPI "Alpine Snow", KBShimmer"Pt Young Thing".

The holographic polish bis amazing and I only applied two coats...perfection!  The red was easy two..the perfect red for the holidays.  I applied two coats of color, one coat of top coat, then I applied the blue stone while the top coat was still wet.  Topped it all off with one more coat of top coat, and I was done.  :)

Since I usually do two coats of top coat, this worked out perfectly.

For the blue, I followed the same technique as the red nail. :)  For the the stripes, I applied the white first and waited for it to be fully dry. I then applied pieces of nail tape to the nail in a striped pattern, and then painted the entire nail red. Before the red dried, I removed the tape. Easy peasy!

I love this glitter polish. It is the perfect patriotic mix and it applies so easily. I bought this color last year, and when I took it out to apply again..it went on like it was just made yesterday. PERFECTION! Applied perfectly in two coats, and then  I applied two coats of top coat...as usual.

Happy 4th of July and Keep It Sweet!

Skater Ramp Manicure!

It's that time of year again, SUMMER or as I like to call it "The time when my nephew sends me repeat iMessages asking for a ride to the skate park", LOL!

Yep, I know he will ask me at least a couple of times, and this summer I may even say "yes", LOL!

So this manicure is for him!

I used two new colors to the Nicole by OPI collection, "Teal Me Something New" and "This Blue Is So You!".

I applied two coats of each color to the corresponding nail, and then I topped the opposite colors on the center fingers, using a swiping motion with the brush. No stickers, tape or stencils.

Because N.O.P.I's formula is not the most opaque in one coat, it took several swipes and coats to get the top color to cover the nail in the ramp design.

"Teal Me Something New" is a an amazing teal green creme. GORGEOUS and covers well in two coats, however this one stained my nail beds HORRIBLY!  I actually had an idea that this would stain, so I applied two coats of base coat, but it still stained some of the edges of my nail bed. :(

"This Blue Is So You!" is a muted dark blue creme... not black and not navy, just dark blue. Great in two coats for a regular manicure, but not thick enough or opaque enough for layering nail art.

The teal creme covered amazingly well. The dark blue did not cover as well, and left a couple bald spots on the ramp design. :( No matter, I think I'll replicate this for an upcoming manicure for an event, using another brand. :)

Now that I am looking at this design, it also reminds me of the old Atari symbol.  You can grab these colors and others by Nicole by OPI, at your local drugstore or Target  :)

Keep It Sweet!

*Product sent by PR for review.

OPI: Having fun with OPI Sheer Tints! Swatches and Review

So like many, when I got my polishes in the mail I was super excited to see them in person.  Those bright jelly colors were calling me....then it hit me...how do I actually use them? LOL!

Yes, they are sheer, and no amount of layer building makes them opaque enough that the visible nail line (VNL) isn't  shown, so I decided to re-read my post sent by OPI PR on these beauties. Ohhhh, layered over OTHER colors...the light bulb went off, LOL!

First I want to show you how sheer they are, and what they look like by themselves...bring on the naked nails, Eeekk, LOL!

OPI "I'm Never Amberrassed"
Left to Right: 4 coats, 3 coats, 2 coats and 1 coat
No top coat

OPI "Be Magentale With Me"
Left to Right: 4 coats, 3 coats, 2 coats and 1 coat
No top coat

OPI "Don't Violet Me Down"
Left to Right: 4 coats, 3 coats, 2 coats and 1 coat
No top coat

Because the consistency of these polishes are very gel like, they tend to bubble up when they are layered, can you see the bubbles on the middle finger?

I bet you can see them now, LOL! this is at three coats.  Not pretty!

OPI "I Can Teal You Like Me"
Left to Right: 4 coats, 3 coats, 2 coats and 1 coat
No top coat

These applied like a gel, smooth  with a thick application. Because they are thick, they do not dry in the regular amount of time, so when layering, add another 2 minutes onto your "wait time" before you add another coat, or layer over another color.

Okay so now you can see that wearing them by themselves is not ideal, but still it can be pretty if you like the sheer look, or you do not have a VNL.  Since I do not like the sheer look, I decided to layer them.

For my first layering manicure, I layered each color over one of the latest OPI glitters "Desperately Seeking Sequins".

I started with 2 coats of the glitter then, 2 coats of the sheer tints.

Since DSS has a clear base with added glitter, you still get the sheer look, but with more sparkle and pizzazz.  But, if the VNL bothers you (like it does me), then I found the manicure for you.  I first saw this manicure on Pinterest.  It was done by Fierce Makeup and Nails, and I fell in LOVE with it!  I knew I had to do it too!

LOVE!  It's fluid and gorgeous, and screams SPRING!  All I did was apply two coats of OPI "Alpine Snow" (a plain white cream) and then I brushed on the tinted colors in random strokes. Since the sheer tints tend to bubble up, I made sure only to apply one coat of each color only.

I made sure to overlap certain colors to obtain other colors. Yellow over pink for orange/peach, yellow over blue for green, etc. :)  After I was done with my colors, I layered my usual two coats of top coat and I was done.

I loved this manicure so much, I think I may actually repeat it for Easter...on my hands and toes too!

The colors look a bit brighter in the sunlight, so I took a picture indoors too.

Yep, still pretty! :)

Sheer Tints features OPI’s exclusive ProWide^™ Brush for the ultimate in application. Sheer Tints will be available March 2014, atProfessional Salons, including Beauty Brands, Beauty First, Chatters, Dillard’s, jcp Salons, Pure Beauty, Regis, Trade Secret, ULTA and ulta.com for $9.00 ($10.95 CAN) suggested retail for each nail lacquer. 

For more information, please call 800-341-9999 or visit www.opi.com. Follow OPI on Twitter @OPI_PRODUCTS and become aFacebook fan!

Keep It Sweet!

*Product sent by PR for review