Simple Bows

I really enjoy making simple designs that use few colors, but still look nice. For this design you will need four colors (which you can easily change around) and requires a dotting tool (whether homemade or store bought), a paint brush and a toothpick is optional. So let's learn how to make this cute simple design!

First, start of with your trusty base coat to keep from staining and damaging your natural nails. Then apply 2-3 coats of any color you want, make sure it is even and opaque. Here I am using Wet n Wild's Megalast in Wet Cement.

 Next take an opaque white nail polish, here I am using Sally Hansen's Hard as Nails "White On". An easy way to do this is to have your finger on a hard surface, put the brush on the edge of your nail and then rotate your nail. Though for this design, it is okay to make little mistakes because we will be going over the edges of the white.

 Now take a black nail polish, here I am using Sally Hansen's Hard as Nails "Black Out". Take a thin brush and carefully make a thin black line at the top of the white area. Keep a steady hand during this part.

 For this next step, grab a a color you think looks good with the base of the nails (I chose Sally Hansen's Insta-Dri in Rapid Red) and make a thinner line in the center of the black line. This also takes a steady hand, so try to do this on a table and rotate your fingers.

 Grab your dotting tool (or something that creates nice dots) and start making a bow. First make a single dot for the knot of the bow. Then, using the dotting tool, create a small triangle on each side of the knot. Try not to make the bow directly in the center of the nail, stick to one side or the other.

 Once that is dry, take out your dotting tool and take your red polish. Place another dot on the knot of the bow. For the triangles this time, be sure to leave a space between them and the knot.

Finally, add two little black strips with either a toothpick or paint brush to make little fold lines. This step is optional, I just think the detail adds quality!  

 Don't forget to put on a top coat to keep the design sealed and give it a lovely shine!

Pocket Full of Daisies

 

Over the presidents day weekend I went out on a trip with a good friend of mine to an Ulta store! This was my first time visiting one, and I loved it! I went a little crazy on the nail polish though. 

So I got some colors I thought were just adorable. Perfect for the springy weather we've been having here in California. Plus I just love girly pastel colors!! The main reason I even went to Ulta was to get China Glaze brand nail polish to try out. None of the colors really sang to me, but i thought the red orange color was quite nice and I didn't have a color like that in my oddball collection. From right to left the colors I got are China Glaze's 093 'thataway', Orly's Lollipop, Gumdrop, Lemonade, and Cotton Candy, and Essie's 709 Tart Deco.

I've been wanting to try them ever since I got them, so I came up with a cute and simple spring time design for everyday wear! Here's what I used:

I always recommend using a base coat, to protect your nails and to keep the nail polish on longer. Then give two nice coats of a light blue of your choice. Don't worry about getting nail polish around the edges, a little nail polish remover will get rid of it in the end.

Now take a dotting tool, or bobby pin/toothpick/sewing pin and place three dots on each nail, don't put them too close together or else the flower petals will run into each other. You can do this in yellow, or orange if you want. Orange and blue are complimentary colors, which means they will be appealing to the eye.

Take your dotting tool again and carefully make ovals with your white polish. These are the petals. Put five to six petals around each dot, depending on how much room there is. 

Be sure to clean up all the edges with a q-tip dipped in nail polish remover. Once all the flowers are painted on, wait for them to dry fully and add a generous top coat to your nails to protect your delicate flowers!

I really hope you enjoyed this fun, spring time design! 

Valentine Day Nails

I guess it is a tad late to post how to do valentine day nails, since tomorrow is valentines day, but i couldn't resist an excuse to update! So here's a simple and cute nail design that can be used for valentines day or any occasion! You could even change the color scheme and have them as every day nails!

Well let's get started!

I cannot stress this enough; USE A BASE COAT! Base coats protect your nails from becoming brittle and peeling. Base coats also prevent your nails from being stained by darker colors. Not only that, they keep the nail polish on longer!

After applying a single coat of any base coat, paint your nails a shade of pink. Doesn't matter if its light or dark, just make sure it is pink and not red. I applied two coats of polish here.

Once they dry a decent amount, take a dotting tool, or you can make your own by taking a bobby pin or sewing pin, and add a lovely dotted pattern in red. Let them dry! If you do not let them dry completely, the white nail polish will mix with the red, and ruin your nail polish brush! 


So now, take a white nail polish and add a diagonal french tip. To achieve this, set your finger down on a stable surface and put the nail polish brush on the corner of your nail and rotate your nail. Make sure it is opaque, don't be afraid to add more than one coat. (I did two to three myself). Don't worry about making a mess, you can easily clean up your fingers with a q-tip and some nail polish remover.

Once the white is nice and dry, take a stripper or nail art brush and add a lovely line of silver glitter polish. Use the same technique you used with the white tips for the lines. You can choose to use a gold glitter polish if you wish, but there are already so many warm colors here, a nice cool silver will give it balance.


Now for this next step you can either use a dotting tool, tooth pick or nail art pen. I took a nail art pen in red and dotted on a nice little heart. You can also hold the pen at an angle and connect two lines to make a simple heart.

Be sure to add a good layer of your favorite top coat to ensure your design will stay on and give it a brilliant shine!

I really hope you enjoyed this tutorial, and have a lovely valentines day <3


PRODUCTS:



Revlon Multi Care Base+Top Coat
Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure in Shrimply Devine (520)
Sally Hansen Insta-Dri in Rapid Red (280)
Sally Hansen Hard as Nails Xtreme Wear in White On (300)
Milani Nail Art in Art of Silver (702)
Sally Hansen Nail Art Pen in Red
OPI Top Coat

Updates to look forward to

Hey guys! Haven't had too much time on my hands recently, but I wanted to let you know that this blog isn't dead yet! (I just started after all) So I decided to post a few things about what to look forward to in the near future!


I got a product to test out called Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream, by Burt's Bees. To be honest, I am not the biggest fan of the smell of lemons, but if this helps my poor dried out cuticles after using nail polish remover, I will deal with it!

I will also be going over a few of my favorite nail polishes and brands. This is a picture of my entire collection, and I certainly will NOT be going through all of them. I'd love to, but I don't have that much time on my hands!

This is not a guarantee, but I am trying to get my greedy little hands on this baby! The Glimmer Wonderland Eighteen Piece Mini Nail Colour Set by sephora. Sadly, it is a tad pricey at $48, but it feels like a great deal, OPI is usually so expensive, so getting this many (even if they are mini) for this price seems amazing!

http://www.sephora.com/browse/product.jhtml?id=P298747&categoryId=C19970&shouldPaginate=true#BVRRWidgetID

I hope to get to all of this soon, and do my valentine day nails this weekend! 

Bye-Bye long nails!

With Senior Ball coming up in May, I don't want to chance my nails getting broken too short! I decided to play it safe and cut them half way. My thumb nail isn't shown because it broke really short and looks pretty bad.

 Before

After

Not too bad, I didn't want to cut them too short, I still need to do my valentines day nail art!