NOTD Sep 20/12 - apples!

I wanted something really cute and simple this time - I had started another design but it just was not turning out so I started over and didn't want to do something else time-intensive! I hadn't checked out anything on the CutePolish channel on YouTube in a while, so I looked at it and she had posted this adorable apple manicure about a month ago! I thought it was so sweet so I decided to replicate it!

I followed all the steps in the video, using Wet n' Wild Wild Shine in Red Red, Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear in Green With Envy, and Cherimoya Melon for the apples. I used Revlon Chocolate Truffle for the stems and Sinful Colors Envy for the leaves. She didn't include this in her tutorial, but I added some white reflection marks on the apples to make them look really shiny and juicy! I love these, they're so cute to look at! I haven't done a "fancy tips" style manicure probably since I did a Hello Kitty mani around a year ago!

NOTD Sep 18/12 - matte mixed

I always feel like I'm never doing enough matte manis! I love the way they look and I really love the way they feel (so soft!) but I never seem to make them happen. I especially like how glitter looks mattified but I didn't want to do an all-glitter matte mani because that's all I've ever done with the texture before. So I went for a mixed mani with glitter incorporated for this one!

I painted my ring finger with Revlon Impulsive, and the rest with Revlon Dreamer. I painted Milani One Coat Glitter in Lavender Fizz on my ring finger. Then I used Impulsive to paint on the dots and stripes on the blue nails (I alternated on my other hand, so the dots were on the thumb and so on), then I added highlights of the glitter on each nail as well, and then mattified with GOSH Matt Effect top coat!

NOTD Sep 15/12 - vertical dots and glitter tips!

Sometimes I get a random idea for an abstract nail design that I haven't seen anywhere (to my knowledge anyways, if this design has already been done by someone, I either haven't seen it or I have but it went straight to my subconscious mind). When I do, they either turn out NOTHING like what I pictured in my head, or really cool. In this case, I think it falls into the really cool category!

The design itself is simple. Vertical dots on the nails, in alternating colours, with different sized dots and different length rows. And then glitter on the tips. I wouldn't mind trying out other colour combos, but I love how this looks the first time around!

 The blue dots are Nicole by OPI in "Baby" Blue, the pink dots are Revlon Pink Lingerie, and the silver glitter is LA Girl Glitter Addict in Explosion.

NOTD Sep 12/12 - peachy pink and gold glitter gradient

I just got all those glitters in from my Cherry Culture order, and it had been so long since I did one of my favourites, a glitter gradient!

First was a couple coats of LA Girl Nude Polish in Dainty, then I sponged on Sally Hansen
CSM in Gilty Pleasure to start the gradient. I topped that with a sponging of LA Girl Rock Star in Live On Stage, and I had planned to stop there but it didn't quite look finished to me, so I added a thin coat of Milani Jewel FX in Gold over the tips and spilling down into the other part of the gradient and then it was perfect!

I've been lemming the Jewel FX for aages, so glad I finally got my hands on it!

Halloween and femininity, new at my Etsy!

I've completed two new sets for my Etsy shop that are up for sale as of today! One is based on a manicure I wore last month which I really loved. I tweaked it a little bit and I'm so happy with it, I think the gradients were a great touch!

The second set is ready just in time for Halloween!! It's pretty cute if I don't say so myself :p I love the little candy corns on the pinky, and I'm really happy how the jack o' lanterns turned out too!

NOTD Sep 8/12 - pastel yellow and vines

This is a girly and pretty design that I saw on a nail wheel done by Look At Her Nails! and just loved! Mine isn't quite so delicate as hers but I still like how it turned out very much!

I started with a couple coats of NYX Salon Polish in Pastel Yellow, which you may have noticed in my haul post yesterday! Then I used a medium striper brush to paint on the little vines, dots and leaves and such in Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear's White On.

September haul!

I recently received an order I placed with Cherry Culture for a whole bunch of nail polishes, all glitter except for one! One was a repurchase and the rest are brand new!

Top row L-R: LA Girl Rock Star in Double Platinum, Milani One Coat Glitter in Lavender Fizz, NYX Salon Polish in Pastel Yellow, Milani Jewel FX in Gold, LA Girl Rock Star in Live On Stage

Bottom row L-R: LA Girl Glitter Addict in Animate, LA Girl Glitter Addict in Uninhibited, LA Girl Glitter Addict in Purge, LA Girl Glitter Addict in Explosion.

These are my first two Milani polishes ever, very excited to try them out since I've heard great things about both of these polishes!!

Etsy newness - studs, skulls & chains nail art

Brand new design in my Etsy shop today! Based on two different designs I'd done on nail wheels which I realized would work well together for one set! Love how these look, and I hope you all like them too! :)

Nail Wheel the Eleventh

It's been a bit of time since I last showcased a completed nail wheel on here! I have all of them up in my custom listings on my Etsy shop if you're interested in seeing all of them, and here is the newest completed one! I think soon I will do a post consolidating all of them in one place!

FOTD Sep 3/12 - NYX One Night in Morocco warm smokey evening look

Technically, this is only an eye of the day, but that's my favourite part anyways! :)

The first two looks I did with the NYX One Night in Morocco palette were more daytime looks (see here and here), but this palette is also great for creating darker, more nighttime appropriate looks too! I went for a warm, brown toned one this time, but with this palette you can also lean towards the cool greys and even one that's mostly in the taupe family. I'll post evening looks with those colour families some time in the future as well!

This look used no eyeliner and no false lashes, but you could amp up the drama a lot more by using one or both of those with this look. I really liked how it ended up looking without both though, so I stuck to just the shadows and mascara for this one (with the obligatory tightliner).

Here's a breakdown of what shades I used where.

First I applied e to the inner half of the lid, bringing it down to the inner corner and also applying it on the browbone. Then I added a bit of a to the browbone and inner corner to lighten it up even more. I applied g into the crease all the way to the inner corner, keeping it distinct from the lid colour, and also blended it onto the outer half of the lid, fading it into e in the middle. I used g again to smudge under the lower lashline, from outer corner to just before the tear duct. I used d to blend out the crease colour up into the browbone, and smudge out the lower lashline a little more. I used a teeny bit of h to bridge the gap between the lower lashline colour and the highlight on the inner corner. Last but not least, I deepened the outer V area of the eye with f, blending it out well.

Hope you liked this look! If you haven't already, this is a great palette to get - lots of versatility for anyone who likes neutrals!

ALSO - weird side note, but I'm blown away by what a difference lighting makes to colour... you can see in most of the pictures I post that I take them outdoors, and my eye colour comes out as really green. In real life it's a little less vivid, more brown toned - a true hazel eye. But in these indoor pics, my eyes look totally different, almost with an earthy teal colour to them! Not at all what they look like in real life but kinda cool eh?