Alternating

I did not take a lot of photos for this manicure for some reason, but just know that my right hand and left were opposite of each other.  I wasn't overal happy with the finished product due to smudging, stamping not being executed well and so on, but I was excited to have no polishes on my nails and I do like the chrome colors.

I painted three coats with colors China Glaze Rare & Radiant and Unpredictable.  I added Bundle Monster Image from plate BM219 with Konad Special Stamping polish in White.  One coat of Seche Vite was my topcoat.

Green With Envy

That's what I expect you to be with this manicure.  I love it.  It's so rich and fun.  I'm trying to keep marbling on the front burner since I completed this tutorial video.

Colors used: two coats of Ulta Into The Limelight for a base.  Marble colors: Into the Limelight, Black Diamond, It's Not Rocket Science.  I coated twice with Seche Vite.

The Princess and The Pea

I am absolutely in love with this new color from the Orly Cosmic FX collection.  I was almost tempted to just leave it a single color because it didn't need anything extra, but then I thought the gemstone highlight was the perfect touch.  Unfortunately the gemstones only lasted a day, so I replaced them with gold, painted dots (but don't have a pic).   I was able to capture to a pretty decent degree the awesomeness of this polish, so enjoy!

I used It's Not Rocket Science.  Seche Vite was used for the top coat. 

*Unfortunately this is a fall release for Orly and they do not have any official links to this collection since it is not technically released yet.  If I remember, I'll try to add links as they become available.

Five Carat Flower

Today's design was simple (after a failed attempt at a manicure I hated), but the bling on this flower is CRAZY!  Haha!

I painted three coats of China Glaze Emerald Sparkle.  Gems were applied on my ring finger from So Easy.  I used Seche Vite for a top coat.

Manicure......The REMIX!

I had two events this weekend--a birthday party and a wedding. I wanted to do a manicure I could wear to both, but I decided instead to change the look by changing the design. I started with the "tiles" manicure and to change the look to "argyle", I repainted my ring finger and added black tips and a Konad design. It was fun to use the same manicure and change it pretty completely!  

Tiles


Argyle

For "Tiles" I used a base two coats of China Glaze Re-Fresh Mint on bottom and two coats of L8R G8R (a holo nail polish) on top. I added two rows of square gemstones and Seche Vite for the top coat.  

For "Argyle" I added to the above color scheme with China Glaze Liquid Leather to the tips with a glitter polish Golden Enchantment. I used Konad Plate m60 with OPI Golden Rules and another coat of Seche Vite.

Strawberry Fest

I'm going to "Strawberry Fest" in Cottage Grove today and had to do the most festive and appropriate nails I could.  I kinda feel a little girlish with these nails--ala strawberry shortcake.  It's cute but now I wish I had a strawberry to pose with (and then promptly eat).

Since Kari was here at my house, we turned hers into festival nails as well--strawberry flowers and their dirt.  She came up with the idea and executed all painting but the flowers.  

My Strawberries:


Kari's Strawberry Flowers (+ dirt):

I first base coated with China Glaze Something Sweet.  The Strawberry is a mix of Salsa on bottom with some Sexy Silhouette as an accent pink/red shimmer.  I dotted Black and Gold Metallic with So Easy Stripe Rite for the seeds and use China Glaze Four Leaf Clover mixed with Hot Green So Easy Stripe Rite.  I used two coats of Seche Vite this time.

Kari actually painted her nails herself and I painted the strawberry flowers.  The base color is China Glaze Turned Up Turquoise and the flowers are a mix of First Kiss for the flower, and Solar Power and Lemon Fizz for the fruit.  The other hand is supposed to represent the dirt these strawberries need to grow and that was In Awe of Amber.  Seche Vite was the top coat.

I've Been Ruffied

Not to be confused with a roofie or being roofied, I am jumping on the "Ruffian Manicure" bandwagon in my own style, of course.  (here is a cool example.) I had recently participated in Zoya's Polish Exchange and have now purchased--or rather exchanged for my first Zoya polishes.  They are vegan, have many color options and people seem to like them and I thought I would give them a shot.  From where I live, I haven't found them in any stores, so if I want more of their polishes in the future, I will still have to order online.  It is kind of risky since you don't really get to see what the polish looks like in real life.  I tried to find color swatches from others on the Web in order to make my selections.  But so far, I really like the colors I picked and the application/dry time was pretty good.

I used Zoya Jolene for the pink and Charla for the green/blue sparkle.  I painted a coat of Seche Vite on top.

Semi Formal

Neon didn't last.  So next time I will paint it over white so it has better staying power.  So that means a new manicure!  This one reminded me so much of a formal dress for prom or the like and since it is also the season for girls in prom dresses, it is totally fitting.

I painted the base coat color from Ulta in Envy.  I then added Cina nail art that resemble crushed shells and a matching purple glitter, both from this nail art pack.  I added two coats of Seche Vite on top to smooth out the texture.

Distressed Much?

This manicure started as one idea and turned out as another and at first I was disappointed, but then I really liked the final result. I love the green from China Glaze, but I get so mad when I take it off and have yellow/green tinted nails when I wear green polishes these days.





I used China Glaze Four Leaf Clover and then used Lemon Fizz for the yellow Konad pattern. I first used the plaid design from plate m60, but didn't like how it turned out. I then put the diamond hatched pattern from plate m57 over it. I topped with one coat Seche Vite.

Green Machine

In honor of St. Patrick's Day, I did this lovely green marble.  The photos make it look like it is more turquoise than green, but I assure you it isn't.  I was even able to get a clover-esque marble on my left thumb, which I love.

Right Hand:

Left Hand:

Clover close up (best color representation):

I used these four colors from China Glaze: Entourage, Emerald Sparkle, Re-Fresh Mint, and Four Leaf Clover.  I coated the manicure in two coats of Seche Vite.

So Nice I Striped Them Twice

So I have been MIA from the computer.  My kitten-cat spilled my water all over our laptop last week and it has been drying out since then.  (We were both in the dog house)  But thank God, it's okay now.  I tried to post from the desktop computer but it is slooooooooooooooowwwwwwwwwwwww....  I got so frustrated, I gave up after 45 minutes of trying to upload photos and not being able to multi-task on the Internet.  But I'm back!!!!!

Anyway!  I am now ready to show you what I've been up to.  Water marbling!  Except without the marbling.  I have listened to your requests to make a tutorial for water marbling, and I hope to do that some day.  I do have a budding film-maker in the home, so maybe he'll come in handy someday....but not today.  For now you just have to enjoy the pictures.

Royal Stripes:

Left Hand:


Right Hand:

Close Up:


Silver and Gold:

The "Royal Stripes" manicure was done over the weekend and I really love the results.  I call it water marbling without the marbling, because I didn't swirl the colors together.  I just put my finger in the color circles and it took on the appearance of stripes.  The colors I mixed were China Glaze Emerald Sparkle and Let's Groove and Orly's Rage.  Coated twice in Seche Vite.

The "Silver and Gold" (my current manicure) was done with China Glaze Twenty-Four K and Tinsel (thanks Jes for the gift), and OPI's Brand New Skates.  Topped with two coats Seche Vite.

Four Squared

I swear this picture makes these nails look like they were inspired by the new tile in my bathroom, but that coincident was discovered during the photo session.  And really the color of the nails is not very true to life and I couldn't capture that very well.  The blue is "Jasper" blue (or a cobalt blue) and the green is a teal color.  But no matter how the picture does the manicure justice, the picture is still shown as followed:

Colors used are all China Glaze Frostbite and Turned Up Turquoise.  I then highlighted the squares with a vertical stripe in Atlantis and a horizontal stripe in Dorothy Who?.  I applied one coat of Seche Vite for a top coat.

Re-Fresh Mint

I used one of my new colors from China Glaze called Re-Fresh Mint.  I really liked the color but I am having such a hard time capturing polishes with the camera.  I think I'm going to look into a DIY light box. The difference between flash and no flash is odd because I think it totally changes the look of the manicure. The no flash seems a little bit more true to color, but the flash makes the picture so much more clear. But anyway here is the mani:

With Flash

Without:

Other notables from this mani are Konad Plate S6 and Konad polish in Coral Blue.