I Is For...

I've been slacking again - sorry! :) I'm useless! I'll try to be better - I promise!

Anyway, next installment over at Llama Nails 'ABC Challenge' is I!

Sooo... I is for... ICECREAM!

 It's always fun to spread the design over both hands and bring them together to complete it!

My icecreams look a bit top heavy though! Do you like?

Hey, Hey I Wanna Be A Rockstar!

So as it's Halloween..I had 553354564 million people knocking at the door wanting sweets which meant painting nails was difficult! I did do a really cute floral pattern but it got smudged in the door opening and sweet giver-out-ing! So I decided on a simple but fun mani using the rockstar ring finger.

I decided to chuck a blurry photo in there as it picked up the different colours nicely!

USED: Models Own Hed Kandi Hedonist and Barry M Silver Cascade finished with Out the Door Top Coat.

I <3 Models Own. It actually becoming my new obsession. I just can't seem to get enough of it! All their polishes are a nice thick consistency and apply to the nail really nicely, giving a nice smooth, glass like finish - which I LOVE.

Do you use Models Own? What's your fav?

H Is For..

So this post is a little early this week as I feel like I've not posted in forever! We normally post our ABC of Nails on Wednesday so I'm a day early!

I did originally choose Hello Kitty but my attempt was shocking. She looked like she'd been in a fight with a pair of scissors..and lost. So seeing as it's the right time of year... H is for.. HALLOWEEN! (Dur..!)

Pretty simple design using Bundle Monster plate BM-222.

Stamps are a little messy but I think that's down to the quality of polish I'm using! I really need to invest in some proper stamping polish!!

How are you wearing your nails this Halloween? 

Betelgeuse, Betelgeuse, Betelgeuse!!

So you know I made a nice little order from Models Own a few weeks back..? Well I ordered the Mini Beetlejuice Collection. I'd not really looked over the little guys but last night I wanted something nice but that wasn't going to take me forever to do!

I decided on 'Pinky Brown'. As I hadn't used it yet, I thought I'd be a good time to try. Well..from the first nail I was INSTANTLY in love! The first coat didn't quite give full coverage, but 2 was perfect. It looks a metallic purple but under the light it picks up hints of brown (hence the name, but I'd say it's more purple than pink!). I can't even describe it. It's just beautiful! Take a look...

These pictures show 2 coats of Models Own Pinky Brown with one top coat of Out the Door.

I tried my hardest to capture my nails in different lights to try and get the mixture of colours across. It's such a beautiful polish that it's gone right up there in my favourites! It's ideal for Christmas, too! Now I'm excited to try to out the other polishes in the Beetlejuice Collection!

Have you used any Models Own polishes? Which ones do you love?

G Is For..

My 'can't paint my nails for a week' rule went out the window - especially as it's Wednesday which means it's the ABC Challenge over at Llama Nails!

I had a few ideas for G but decided to go with something I love...GAMING!

I was pretty happy with the results. I just based it on the button of an Xbox controller. I love my Xbox so made sense I should put it on to my nails! :)


What do you think to gaming nails?

F Is For..

Really?! Wednesday already?! Well that only means one thing.. Llama Nails 'ABC Challenge' time! So my choice this time was a bit of a cop out on my part! I've been crazy busy every evening this week so haven't had a chance to sit down and give my nails love! Luckily, I had a mani I could use which I have already posted about - Fishbraid. Here's a picture for anyone who may have missed it..

Luckily I absolutely love it so I didn't mind sharing it as my 'F' choice - I did plan on doing Frankenstein as it's so close to Halloween but I went out my a meal with my family and didn't get back til' late! Excuses, excuses! 

Anyway - hopefully I'll be a bit more creative next time (and less lazy!). Until then, here's some hilarious nail photos I found that describe me to the ground!

Ohhhh you know it made you smile! :)

E Is For...

Hi guys,

It's that time again! The next installment for the Llama Nails 'ABC of Nails' Challenge.

I found E quite hard one to think up. It's was a tough choice between the one I chose Eruption, Eeyore and Earth. Anyway, with some input from the creative brains at work, I decided on...

ELMO!

It didn't turn out as brilliant as hoped but I still kinda like it! :)

What do you think? Any ideas for 'F'?! 

ALSO! My 'giveaway at 50 followers' is still running! I've changed it slightly, so the only mandatory line is to follow the blog! :) Enter below using Rafflecopter..


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Here Fishy, Fishy!

I've seen Fish Braid nails a few times before but never really sat down and given it a go. Well that all changed tonight! It's not as difficult as I first thought and I actually really enjoyed doing it! :)

If anyone is interested in a step by step tutorial on this design then let me know and I'll be sure to get one up!

I used China Glaze Flip Flop Fantasy (my fav at the mo!) for my base colour. I then created the fish braid using Barry M Silver Foil and Models Own Dream Stream. Finished with a coat of 'Out the Door' Top Coat and I was done!

I smudged one nail (boo!) so me being the perfectionist I am took it all off and started again! I absolutely love the colours together. I think this design will stay for the whole weekend - a big thing for me! I'm lucky if I keep the same design a day!

Have you tried fish braids? What colours did you use that worked well?

D Is For...

I was just browsing the other day when I stumbled across Llama Nails.

It's a cool little nail community on Facebook where everyone gathers to share and show off their different nails. At the moment, they have an awesome group challenge going called 'The ABC of Nails..'. So basically, every week is a new letter of the alphabet so you then use that letter as inspiration for nail art. Then every Wednesday, everyone goes on the group and shares their pictures!

 I've joined a little late so I've started on 'D'. I chose to do dinosaur!

Excuse my dry skin :( - Anyone got any tips for those little buggers? I love the winter but I HATE what it does to my hands!!

Anyway, what do you think to my little dinosaur? And what do you think I should do next week for 'E'?

Breast Cancer Awareness Month - Supporting SweetJellyBean

This post is dedicated to the brilliant SweetJellyBean.

She's currently running a campaign for Breast Cancer Awareness and will continue all throughout October.

If you'd also like to get involved head then click here. Her post gives some brilliant tips on what you should be looking for and why it is so important - I hope you can all spare just a few minutes to give it a read! You an also grab a banner which can be seen over there >> to help link people to her post.

 

As I am fully supporting her, I decided to base my next set of nails on the campaign. These nails were designed for SweetJellyBean but I would love to share them with you too! :)

They're super simple but cute and so effective. I've already had quite a few people comment on them and ask 'why?' to which I can tell them about the campaign throughout October. 

Are you doing anything for Breast Cancer Awareness Month?  

Models Own Summersale

Models Own were running a huge 50% off summersale on all their products! Being a nail polish addict, I couldn't resist placing a little..ahem..order! Unfortunately the sale ended yesterday (boo!) but I hope that some of you were lucky enough to get in on the action!

So, what did I buy you ask? Let's have a look..

Beetle Juice Collection - Indian Ocean &  Disco Mix - Glitter - Both £5

    

True Blue &  Tropical - Coral Reef - Both £5

 Hed Kandi Collection - Hedonist & Ibiza Mix - Both £5

  Luis Lemon - £5

 Beetle Juice Mini Collection - £8

 Pink Nail Art Pen - £6

 

Blue Nail Art Pen - £6

Prices shown are the original prices as I was lucky enough to get all that half price! 

What do you think to my new polishes? What did you buy?

 xoxo

Cath Kidston Inspired Floral and Polka Dot Nails

Cath Kidston has become massively popular over the last few months with her vintage looking florals and patterns. It was only a matter of time before someone moved these designs to nails. So this post is my attempt at a floral pattern on two fingers, and polka dot on the rest.

 

The colours used in this design are (from L to R) Bourjois Beige Glamour, Miss Sporty Red, Models Own Jade Stone, Nina Ultra Pro Manicure White and E.L.F Black. 

Firstly, I started with two coats of Models Own Jade Stone. I love this colour so much, I can't put my finger on it because I'm more of a bright pink kinda girl, but there's just something about it! I then used Bourjois Beige Glamour on my ring finger and thumb. I had a small amount of polish the brush and roughly dotted between 4 and 5 'blobs' on the nail, all spread out. I then used my dotting tool with a small amount of Miss Sporty Red on the end, and used this to outline either side of each dot. The beauty of this design is it doesn't need to be done neatly! I then needed to add leaves. Because I don't have a darker green polish, I used two parts of Models Own Jade Stone mixed with one part of E.L.F Black. Then, using my dotting tool again, I just blobbed two stretched dots either side.

 

Now you could continue this on all nails if you'd like but as it's quite a bold print, I chose to do 2 nails and rest in polka dots. 

Using your dotting tool and white polish, make a series of dots over the remaining nails. These can be as perfect or random as you like! Et voila, done! :)

I absolutely love this design. It stands out, looks girly and has had lots of comments already! 

To finish the design, I applied one coat of 'Out of Door' top coat not only protect the pattern, but to give it a nice glossy finish.

xoxo

Oh Hey There Giraffe

I'd seen someone that had done this before but couldn't for the life of me remember where!

It's quite a fiddly design and takes a steady hand but looks awesome when it's done!

 

Colours used were Barry M Cyan Blue, Rimmel Sunshine mixed with French White, Bourjois Beige Glamour and Maybelline Black. 

If I'm completely honest, I was in such a flap because my nails just weren't going right. This was about the 5th design I'd tried. So at the time, I didn't think it looked that good, but now I wish I'd got more photos (and better ones!!!) so I think this is a design I'll revisit. 

What other animals would work well on nails?!

Pretty in Pink with Glitter Gradient

I have a load of new polishes which I've had for ages but never actually used so I've made it my mission to change that!

Today's nails are created using Rimmel Fancy Fuschia, Barry M Silver Glitter Limited Edition and Barry M Hologram 118.

I started off with a single coat of Fancy Fuschia before applying a second, thicker coat. I love Rimmel nail polishes because not only are the brushes nice and far and cover all the nail, but they always seem to dry with a nice smooth finish!

Once the second coat had dried, I then used Barry M Silver Glitter around the bottom of my nails, going about half way up. I wanted this to look like sprinkled glitter so tried not to make it even or matching on each nail. I then used a cocktail stick on with the Barry M Hologram 118 and picked out individual gems to scatter over the glitter to give it a bit more 'oomph!'

I then sealed it with a top coat out 'Out the Door' which is the best top coat I have ever, ever, EVER used!

I love this design. I feel all magical and princess like! Amazing how a simple design can work so well, ey?!