Candy Corn Manicure

I have always loved Halloween and doing themed manicures is one of my favorite parts! I think I do candy corn nails every year, but they're just so fun, and pretty easy!

Products I used: 

China Glaze Strong Adhesion Base Coat

Sally Hansen Insta Dri - Whirlwind White

Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear - Mellow Yellow

Maybelline Express Finish - Orange Blazes

Seche Vite Top Coat

To get this look, I started with one coat of the white polish on every nail. This white is my favorite because with a fairly thin coat you can get reasonable coverage that's not terribly streaky - perfect for layering! Next, I used the yellow. I just did a few strokes up from the bottom of the nail, stopping between a third and halfway up the nail. Because I knew I'd be layering the orange over it, I didn't make the top edge especially neat. The orange layer overlapped the yellow a bit. I tried to make the bottom edge of the orange somewhat neat, but also not stressing too much about getting it perfect because, let's face it, actual candy corns are never perfect! The white layer started in the same way, but I tried to make it closer to the tip since usually the orange is the thickest layer on candy corn. Since there was already some white on the tip from the bottom layer, all the polishes only needed one coat, so this manicure was actually pretty fast to do!

September Manicures

These are becoming my favorite posts to put together! It's fun to see all the colors I used throughout the month. I was definitely in fall mode this month! Although For Audrey is always a favorite & I suspect it'll make an appearance most months.

1. Butter London Aston
2. Essie Your Hut Or Mine
3. Finger Paints Go Van Gogh!, OPI Swimsuit...Nailed it!
4. Sonia Kashuk Two Cent
5. Butter London Wallis
6. China Glaze For Audrey
7. Zoya Shawn, China Glaze Zombie Zest
8. Sally Hansen Insta Dri Whirlwind White, Wet n Wild Through the Grapevine, Revlon Impulsive
9. Butter London The Old Bill
10. L'Oreal Spice Things Up
11. Zoya Caitlin
12. Wet n Wild Wet Cement, OPI The World Is Not Enough
13. China Glaze For Audrey, Milani HD, Milani Gems, Essie Set in Stones, China Glaze Fairy Dust (I did a more specific post on just this manicure here.)

Tiffany-Inspired Manicure

One of my favorite manicures I did this month was created in response to a photo posted in a Facebook group I participate in. I searched and found the source for the photo, this blog. After seeing the image, I knew I needed to create my own version, but wanted to do it a little differently!

The polishes I used. L-R: Rimmel Base Coat, China Glaze For Audrey, Milani HD, Essie Set in Stones, Milani Gems, China Glaze Fairy Dust, and Seche Vite.

I started with the base color, and then did just the tips with Milani HD, a holographic silver polilsh. I then went over all but the accent nail with Essie Set in Stones, extending it a bit further down the nail than the HD. The accent nail I treated exactly the same except using Gems, to add a pop of rainbow! I then topped all the nails with Fairy Dust, a sparse holographic glitter, extending it even a bit further. I really was pleased with how it ended up! Plus, as another participant on the page suggested, this mani could easily last quite awhile as chips or tip wear could easily be masked with more glitter! 

Current Manicure - For Audrey

When I sat down to paint my nails last night, I wasn't feeling particularly inspired to do any certain color or nail art, so I gravitated towards one of my all-time favorite polishes - China Glaze For Audrey! 

This time, I used the Revlon Colorstay basecoat and Seche Vite topcoat. I was originally planning to try another topcoat again, but then I had to go do something pretty quickly after I painted them, so I figured I'd better stick with a fast-dry I can trust.

In case you're curious, I also painted my toenails! I'll refrain from posting a picture of them, but they're currently Covergirl Boundless Color in Fuchsia Girl. This polish is an old favorite of mine - I've had a bottle of it for YEARS! This is actually a replacement bottle because the cap broke on the first one and it dried up. 

I think both of these colors look nice with my skin tone and they're kind of "medium" colors - they're not dark, pale, or neon, but they're still fun and colorful! I feel like this time of year is kind of in between summer and fall. School's in session but it's still fairly warm outside. I'm not one to get particularly hung up on what colors are "seasonally appropriate" since I like to wear bright colors year round, but I do tend to save the darker and more neutral colors for the fall and winter.

What are your favorite colors you reach for when you're not inspired to do something in particular?

Red, White, and Blue Nail Polishes

Before I get into the manicure I did this year, I chose my favorite red and blue nail polishes that could be used for a red,white,and blue manicure. I don't have all of my polishes with me currently, so there are probably others I could have included, but these are really my favorites - that's why they're with me, after all!

L-R: China Glaze - Red Pearl, Revlon - Frankly Scarlet, China Glaze - Poinsettia

L-R: China Glaze - Frostbite, OPI - Swimsuit...Nailed it!, China Glaze - Dorothy Who?,
Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear - Pacific Blue

I didn't take a photo of it since I was sure you all have an idea of what a basic white cream nail polish looks like, but my favorite white is by far Sally Hansen Insta Dri in Whirlwind White. It goes on really opaquely in one or two coats, which makes it a lot nicer than sheerer or streakier whites, especially if you're using it as a base color and don't want to have a lot of drying time.

Of course, crackle or shatter polishes make really easy multi-colored manicures! I know there are red and blue ones available, I just don't have any of them. I do have white, though - and it's one of the polishes I used for my 4th of July themed manicure this year! I used China Glaze in Poinsettia for the red and Dorothy Who? for the blue glitter. The crackle polish I used was Sephora by OPI in White Blasted. I picked it up on clearance within the past few months. I also have the white crackle from China Glaze, which works too!

If you want to see another 4th of July themed manicure, the one I did last year is here! I used all China Glaze products - including the white crackle polish I mentioned.

Do you like doing themed manicures for holidays? I know I do - whether or not the holiday is something I really get into celebrating, it's hard to resist doing my nails for them!

Gumball/Confetti Dot Manicure

This is one of the most fun manicure's I've done in awhile, but it's also one of  the easiest I've ever done that isn't just a single color! It's so simple - just choose several colors of polish you like together, then get a dotting tool of some kind (or several if you want different sized dots). Choose one color at a time and randomly place dots on your nails, continuing with the other colors until the whole surface is covered with dots! By going with one color over all the nails at once, you can avoid having to wait for the dots to dry since they'll be almost completely dry by the time you start the next color. And there's no need for a base color if you choose polishes that aren't particularly sheer. Also, because only a little bit of each dot overlaps another, the polish doesn't get too thick and start chipping or peeling off quickly as can sometimes happen with thicker manicures. It's lasted several days on me with no chipping whatsoever - and of course it also says something that I've been willing to leave it on that long! I tend to switch manicures more often than this.

The polishes I chose to use this time, L-R:

Zoya - Pippa

China Glaze - Gaga for Green

Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear - Blue Me Away!

Wet n Wild Megalast - On A Trip

Essie - Lights

Wet n Wild Megalast - Club Havana

I used the Seche Clear base coat and Seche Vite top coat for this manicure.

Edit: I just noticed this is my 200th post! It doesn't feel like I've done that many!

May Collab - House M.D.-Inspired Manicure

When I saw that it had been determined that May's theme for the Glamazon collaboration would be inspired by a TV show or character, I figured I'd try to do something from one of my all-time favorite shows - House! It's the only show I own on DVD, even though I got into it pretty late in the game, and I'm disappointed it was cancelled, although glad it ended while it was still a good show. (I haven't seen the last half of the season so don't spoil it for me!)

I pulled the colors and design ideas mostly just from the title sequence. In case you haven't seen it before, here is the version from the seventh season:

To start off, I put a base coat of the colors I chose from the title sequence.

L-R: China Glaze - Stone Cold, Zoya - Stella, Zoya - Minka, Revlon - Gold Coin, Zoya - Minka with Wet n Wild - Club Havana sponged lightly over it. I wanted to incorporate an orange, but it was too vibrant on its own. In order to achieve a more toned-down look, I brushed the polish onto a torn cosmetic sponge and applied it that way over the nude color.

For the designs, I used two polishes from Claire's that have both a striping brush and a pen-like applicator option. For the veins though, I used a Sephora by OPI nail design pen since it gave a less opaque effect that seemed more appropriate. 

Here's a more detailed look at the designs - with and without the additional letters.

This was such a fun manicure to do! While I do my nails very often, I don't do much in the way of nail art or themed manicures, so this was a fun way to try something I haven't done before.


Don't forget to check out the other participants' contributions as well!

Emily at Southern Gorgeous - Irene Adler makeup look
Keri at Beauty is My Crush - Sookie Stackhouse makeup look
Laurie Ann at BeautyMakeupAndMore - Nina Dobrev makeup look

Recent Manicures!

For this manicure, I did the pink stripes first and went back with the yellow after. They were pretty much randomly placed.  Yellow: Zoya - Pippa
Pink: Essie - Lights

Main base: Wet n Wild - Tropicalia
Main dots: Essie - e-nuf is e-nuf
Accent base: Essie - Tart Deco
Accent dots: Wet n Wild - Club Havana

Base: China Glaze - Stone Cold
Tips: Milani Nail Art striping polishes

Recent Manicures

I recently got Essie's Shine of the Times topcoat and I absolutely love it so I put it over quite a few polishes. These two Sally Hansen polishes were ones I got during the clearance at CVS so they were pretty new to me as well.

Sally Hansen Insta Dri - Uptempo Plum with Essie - Shine of the Times

Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure - Purple Pulse with Essie - Shine of the Times

This manicure would have probably also worked at Christmas, but I think it's fun for anytime!

China Glaze Holiday 2011 - Poinsettia and Twinkle Lights

"Decked for the Holidays" Collaboration: Snowman Manicure!

For this manicure, I started with a layer of Revlon's Quick Dry Base Coat. Then, I put three coats of China Glaze's Dorothy Who?. After letting that dry, I used a dotting tool (I found mine very cheaply in a set of five from eBay) and Sally Hansen Insta-Dri polish in Whirlwind White to do the snowman & flakes. I did the snowmen first, starting with the bottom circle of the snowman's body and then building up to the head. The largest dotting tool is still smaller than I wanted to start the snowman, so I put extra polish on it and swirled it around a bit more to make a wider circle. After the snowman's body was complete, I just used a smaller dotting tool to drag some of the white along the base of the nail. I used the same small tool to make the snow dots on all the other nails. Once they were dry, I put two coats of Seche Vite to make sure the surface was smooth and I couldn't feel the dots through it.

Before deciding on the manicure I ended up doing, I tried a few different designs and color combinations to see which I liked the best, although I always used the same white since it's the most opaque I've come across. In case you like any of these better, the one on the left has Essie's Coat Azure as the base color and China Glaze's Fairy Dust for the glitter. The one in the middle is Finger Paints' Laugh My Art Off with China Glaze's White Cap to add a glow and more glitter. 

Of course, if you're more artistic or have better tools than I do, you could add details to the snowman, like a face or buttons. I don't have that kind of ability, however, so I just left mine simple. 

If you do one of these or a variation of it, I'd love to see it! 

Definitely go check out the other participants in this holiday collaboration!!

Natalie:
Blog: Purplestar Makeup
Title: Beautifully Frozen
Link:
http://purplestarmakeup.blogspot.com/2011/12/decked-for-holidays-collaboration.html

Sarah:
Blog: LashGirl
Title: Soft and Sexy Look
Link: http://lashgirl.me/?p=2572

Wendy:
Blog: Luvlifebeauty
Title: 2 Looks, 1 Lipstick
Link: http://wp.me/p1HLFz-ut

Britney:
Blog: The Glam Goddness
Title: Vampy Candy Cane
Link:http://britters89.blogspot.com/2011/12/holiday-collab-look_10.html

Venessa:
Youtube Username: venessaesquer29
Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dRn-qCVjUc&feature=youtu.be

Maria:
Youtube Username: fabulousblueyes
Title: Holiday Gift Wrap Eye Makeup
Link:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OqDIDuZHVIA&feature=g-u

Allie:
Blog: My crazy obsessions
Title: Dark Holiday Eyes:
Link:http://alliebabii.blogspot.com/2011/12/dark-holiday-eyes.html

Cinthia:
Youtube Username: MakeupWithCinthia
Title: Holiday Party Makeup
Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5b03cfCGZCg&feature=youtu.be  

Daily Manicures in November - The Final Ten

November's done which means so is my experiment with trying all the polishes I'd been ignoring! Changing polish every day got a bit annoying after awhile - sometimes I just am not in the mood or did not really have the time to dedicate to it. No regrets, though. I'm glad I finally got to see what all these look like on my nails! Swatch wheels can only do so much.

I plan to do winter/holiday themed polish posts for December - not every day, though! If you have anything you want to see along those lines, let me know! I'm open to suggestions - but keep in mind I have very minimal art skills so don't get too crazy in nail art suggestions. Hope you all had a nice Thanksgiving! Happy December!

Milani - Hi Res
Top: one coat
Bottom: three coats

Finger Paints - Where Art Renoir?
This polish goes on about 90% opaque the first coat. If you're good at applying polish evenly you could probably just do the one.

Wet n Wild - Back Alley Deals
(Ice Baby Collection)

Wet n Wild - Teal of Fortune

China Glaze - Skyscraper
I LOVE THIS COLOR

China Glaze - Tempest
Not really a fan...I don't like this frosty kind of polish much at all.

China Glaze - Emerald Fitzgerald

China Glaze - Vertical Rush

China Glaze - Light My Tiki
Again...that same kind of frosty look I just don't enjoy...I think this one in particular is too "Barbie" and not in a good way.

Essie - One of a Kind
LOVE this one. Applies beautifully.

Nails of the Week - Ulta and Zoya

As with last week, they're starting with the most recent on top.

Zoya - Savita. Top is without topcoat, bottom is with.

Zoya- Shawn

Zoya - Caitlin

Ulta - Smoke Screen

Ulta - Jaded
This one was really sheer at one coat and took 3-4 to get to what you see in the bottom image.

Ulta - Blue Streak

Ulta - Limelight

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L.A. Colors Color Craze Nail Polish Set - Swatches

These are the nail polishes I used the week of November 7th - 13th. I got them all together in a set from Marshall's. Unfortunately, the individual polishes do not have names. The photos are in reverse order - I wore the orange on the 13th and they go backwards from there.

Daily Manicures in November - Week One Photos

Since I acquired a ridiculous amount of nail polishes over the past month or two, I decided I would paint my nails every day during the month of November, specifically in an attempt to try out a lot of colors I haven't used yet. Rather than posting every day, I decided to do a summary at the end of each week. There isn't too much I'll be able to review on any polishes since I'm only wearing each one for a day, so I probably won't say much unless it has a particularly difficult formula or something to that effect.

Nov. 1st: Revlon - Fierce (one coat!! that's all it takes!)

Nov. 2nd: Orly - Green with Envy (a very thin formula - first image is one coat, 2nd has three) with Wet n Wild Cost is No Issue (from the Ice Baby collection) on the accent nail

Nov. 3rd: Sinful Colors - What's Your Name with OPI Turqoise Shatter

Nov. 4th: China Glaze - Poinsettia (from Holiday 2011 collection)

Nov. 5th: Urban Outfitters - Cocktail

Nov. 6th: Sinful Colors - Love nails (this formula isn't thin, just really sheer. one coat on top, two on the bottom)