Orange Rays

Wow, looks like I had a couple of extra Halloween nails hiding that I didn't get to share with you. That's ok, though, because this is a lovely technique you can use with any colors you like, to create something soft and subtle or bold like I'm showing.

I started this nail using a Milani's High Speed Fast Dry Polish in Jiffy Orange, an intensely pigmented orange creme that does indeed dry quickly. Once it was dry, I added strips of nail striping tape radiating out from one spot on the lower left of the nail. I made sure to cut the tape long enough to leave excess on the end so that I could remove it easily once the next polish was on, and I pressed all the strips down carefully to make sure they were solidly adhered.

Again, let me repeat that it's crucial that your polish be completely dry for this step. If it isn't, you end up with some really funky stuff that needed to be removed so you can try again. It's not worth trying to rush it.

Once the striping tape is applied, I went over the top of the whole nail using Wet n Wild's Black Creme, which is unsurprisingly a black creme polish. As soon as the polish was applied I pulled each strip of tape off one by one, leaving crisp orange lines across the nail. Once again, I let this dry for a few minutes.

Because I felt the nail was still lacking something, I decided to add a spot of glitter. I used Milani's Gold Glitz, which added a bit of glam to the design. After giving this a couple of minutes to dry I then topped the whole thing off with a couple of coats of ProFX topcoat and called it a day.

I've put together a few examples of different color combinations to show just how versatile this design can be. I think it would be fun to do a rainbow ombre for the base coat, with an opaque creme on top. Or you could do the base coat in a dark glitter like Milani's Silver Dazzle and a bright gradient on top!  Hopefully you'll see something that inspires you to play!

Some polishes were provided by the brands for consideration.

See my disclosure statement for more information.

One Last Halloween Nail Design

I know this is last minute, but I love this design so much I had to share it. I wanted to do sort of a take on candy corn but with a twist. This bright beauty is what I came up with, and I am absolutely in love with it!

This one isn't difficult to do, but it is fiddly. First I painted the nail with pink, orange, and yellow. I went with vibrant, almost neon colors because I wanted a strong, graphic look to them. I also didn't worry about a neat line, since I wanted that sort of candy corn feel to it.

Once that layer was dry, I very precisely laid out stripes using three pieces of striping tape next to each other, then skipping around that much space and adding another three pieces side-by-side. This gave me much thicker lines than I would have had just using the single pieces of striping tape. However, you could use whatever size tape you like.

I then painted the entire nail with a black creme polish. I pulled the tape pieces off while the polish was still wet, being careful not to smear the still-wet black. I let this dry for several minutes before adding a coat of quick-dry topcoat. That sealed the colors together and let them look glassy and seamless.

Can I just say how much this design makes me smile?? Seriously, I want to do all my nails like this! The bright colors look all the more bright next to the black, and I think thinner lines of color contrasted with thicker lines of black could be a fun spin on this idea. Clearly, I have some experimenting to do!

Speaking of, I may have some nail sets up for sale soon, so if you're looking for some sparkly nails for the holidays I just might be able to help you out! Keep an eye on this space... :D

Some polishes were provided by the brand for consideration.

See my disclosure statement for more information.

Doctor's Remedy Breast Cancer Awareness Colors

I have another post I've been intending to make for a couple of weeks now. Stupid body has been uncooperative, but I've finally got the photos for the post! Dr.'s Remedy has three gorgeous colors to help you observe breast cancer awareness month.

First up is Purity Pink, a delicate translucent pink creme that would be absolutely perfect for a french manicure. I'm not really one for the visible nail line look, so this color isn't my cup of tea. However, it's definitely perfect for women who want a delicate, work-appropriate nail color. These photos show three coats of Purity Pink.

Next up is Hopeful Hot Pink, a bright bubblegum pink creme color that definitely made me smile. This color is much more me, while still being work-appropriate for most jobs. It's not a super-vibrant hot pink so much as a softer pink that makes me think of Barbie.

I only needed two coats of Hopeful Hot Pink to have beautiful, even coverage. As usual, this polish applied almost effortlessly. I'll wear this one again.

Finally there's Defense Deep Red, a deep dark red creme that almost comes across as a very warm black. I used two coats of this and was very happy with it, although you can see I had a bit of dragging at the base of my nail on one finger. I blame my poor application on that one, though, because I swatched these while I was feeling poorly. This is definitely a color I like, and it's one I'll wear again I'm sure.

Unfortunately, since this red is so incredibly pigmented it can be a pain to clean up around the edges. You can see that my fingers have some leftover red around the edges. That's after I cleaned up with acetone and a brush, so be careful when you apply this one!

Dr.'s Remedy polishes can be bought at their website, and they cost $17 per bottle. Dr.'s Remedy polishes are not only big 3-free, they're also enriched with ingredients to help protect and strengthen your nails. It's one of my favorite brands, and I love wearing their polishes.

Dr.'s Remedy Breast Cancer Awareness polishes were provided by the brand for consideration.

See my disclosure statement for more information.

A fun floral look

While using the camera flash, the colors
are washed out but you can see the depth
of the blue background.

Whew, I just woke up from sleeping almost 24 hours! I'm not exaggerating, either. My husband was in the hospital over the weekend, thankfully for a false alarm. But I spent 3 days "not sleeping" on the awful pull-out loveseat, being worried sick and waking up every time something beeped. In short, I didn't really sleep for 3 days.

I'm super-thankful, though, because my husband is ok! All the tests showed that his heart is strong and healthy, so now we get to follow up with the primary care physician and go from there. We can do that. I just want to keep him around. 20 years together is a good start, but he can't go anywhere yet. :D

The good news is that while we were waiting (and waiting and waiting!), we came up with a TON of great blog ideas! Since it's going to take me a while to get them started though, you get to see this older nail doodle I did and then forgot to post. Oops!

This is actually a very simple look to create. Let me list the polishes I used before I get started, just to make it easier.

1. Nutra Nail Gel Perfect in Two-Step
2. Jessica Strawberry Shake It from the Gelato Mio! collection
3. Jessica Tangerine Dreamz from the Gelato Mio! collection
4. Jessica Lime Cooler from the Gelato Mio! collection
5. Zoya Evvie from the Designer collection
6. Orange loose glitter

Natural light shows the actual colors of
the polishes I used.

I know, it looks like a lot. It's easier than it seems, though, I promise! I started with Two-Step (1) to create a gorgeous background with a lot of depth. I then put down a drop of both Lime Cooler (4) and Evvie (5) next to each other, then
dipped my brush into both. This let me slightly mix the two, but still get striations of both colors through the leaves and stems. I think this gives an interesting look to them.

For the flowers, I put down a large drop of Strawberry Shake It (2) on my palette, then used my large dotting tool to make 5 dots in a circle around the top of each stem. I went back with a bamboo skewer and drew from the center of each dot to the center of the circle the dots made. This gave me a five-petaled flower at the top of each stem!

To complete my flower, I put down a dot of Tangerine Dreamz (3) in each flower center. After that dried, I realized I wanted a bit more sparkle there, so I put a dot of clear polish on each flower center, then put a bit of loose orange glitter on top of the clear polish. Unfortunately, it went everywhere, and I didn't notice that until after I'd put a coat of Seche Vite over everything. That's why there are bits of glitter on the petals and the stems.

Overall, I like this. It's fairly simple to do once you get started, and it's a fun happy design! You could use any background and flower color you like!

As for what's coming up? Stick around, it could get fun in here!

Polishes were provided by the brands for consideration.
I make no money from the links provided. They're just for your convenience.

See my disclosure statement for more information.

Jessica Fall 2012- Spicy Dream

Holy wow. Can I just say I'm in love with the Spicy Dream collection from Jessica? Seriously, I cannot even begin to tell you how much I love these polishes.

When I saw the flyer for this collection, I have to admit my first thought was, "Meh." Gee, more browns and bronzes. Yippee. That only lasted til I opened the box containing these sweet polishes, though, because even in the box I could see the texture that these polishes have! There are two creme polishes, a shimmer, and three gorgeous glitters.

Let's look at the cremes first. Crimson Tattoo is a red so deep it almost looks brown. This is my kind of red...rich and lush and dark. It makes me think of fall, and maybe of steamy activities better left to the imagination! ;)

Brown Sugar is a creme brown that's well named- it's the brown of brown sugar, like the gingerbread cookies that appear every winter. Both of these polishes are gorgeous on their own, but they make amazing bases for the glitters... but we'll get to those.

Next is the single shimmer of the collection- Cinnamon Kiss. This color? Omg. There are no words. This is the color that I bought and rebought for years, loving the deep red and the gorgeous shimmer. It's not terribly unique, but it sure is gorgeous. The first car I bought using my own money was this color!

I actually wore this color first, and loved the way it looks against my pale skin. Unfortunately, I didn't get any photos of it. I'm scatterbrained, apparently. It's gorgeous, but I made the mistake of applying it right before a bath, and soaked a bit too long. I don't know WHAT I was thinking!!

My favorite polishes of this collection are definitely the glitters, though. When I opened the box, I saw these and actually squealed in delight! The glitter in these is so incredibly fine that they're almost a foil finish. It was really difficult for me to figure out what to call these!

Champagne Bubbles is a very pale, almost white glitter, and I haven't tried it on the nail yet. Gingersnap is a golden/silver-leaning polish, and Pumpkin Delight is more bronzey/red.  Gingersnap and Pumpkin Delight both have a duochromey, color-changing feel to them that's really difficult for me to describe.

So, instead of wear these as they are, I knew I needed to layer these. I paired Crimson Tattoo with Pumpkin Delight, and let me just say that I am absolutely in awe of the finished look.

See what I mean about the color? It's so dimensional, and it looks simply magical on. I've gotten compliments wearing this too, people asking just what I'm wearing because they can't stop looking! It felt good to share the Jessica love!

If it will stop raining for a bit, I'll try to get outside and show you what this looks like in sunlight. It's definitely worth looking at. It's been so hard to photograph!

Since it's 3am, I'll go ahead and show you the rest of the photos and hopefully get to bed. But I had to share this with you... these colors are simply magical!

The Spicy Dream collection was provided by the brand for consideration.

See my disclosure statement for more information.

A muted, fall design

Today's nail is something more simple, something less flashy than I usually wear. (I know, I know, but I don't ALWAYS wear super-bright neon glitter and spangles!) I was thinking of fall- sweaters, falling leaves, and the general feeling I get around the holidays.

This was a very simple design to do. I started out by mentally dividing the nail into two diagonal sections. I painted the bottom half in Zoya Noot, a deep rich grey creme color that I absolutely love. Then I painted the top section with Zoya Rekha, a deep burgundy creme. Both colors are from the Zoya Designer Collection for fall 2012.

I loved the two colors side-by-side, but I wanted to accent where they came together. To do this, I painted Jessica Wing It in connected swooshes across the join. Jessica Wing It is a lovely incredibly muted creme color from the Awakening Collection that accented the two base colors beautifully.

I liked the nail at that point, but felt it needed something else. At that point I reached for Zoya Elisa, a bright metallic red from the Diva Collection that really pops against the dark creme base colors. Unfortunately, this was the hardest thing to capture! My camera did not like the combination, so the photos I'm showing are the best I got from two sessions! Ah well... it happens.

I finished everything off with a coat of ProFX quick dry topcoat. My bottle is starting to get goopy, and thinning it isn't working so well. I think it's about time for a new bottle. Still, it's lasted nicely!

I'm really liking this combination of colors. I may have to wear something similar to this on my own nails soon!

What do you think? Would you wear this? Leave me a comment, tell me what you'd change on this one.

Polishes were provided by the brands for consideration.

See my disclosure statement for more information.

Holy cow, I LOVE imPRESS press-on manicure!!

OMG, y'all. I am so late to this party but I'm absolutely in love with these! I got a voxbox in the mail yesterday that contained all sorts of goodies (expect more info coming soon!), but the thing I had to try first was the imPRESS Press-On Manicure. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I wasn't terribly hopeful.

And yes, that bottle is missing the 10 nails I'm wearing because I'm a goober. I got started fooling with the nails and before I realized it I had applied all 10 without taking any photos!! I'm telling you, some days I'm slow.

That being said, holy cow... these things are awesome! They apply so easily! It really is simple. You scrub down your nails with the enclosed (and mostly hidden) prep wipe, then pick out the nails that fit your natural nails the most closely. Then, you go one by one, peeling back the clear tab to expose the adhesive, line the tab-end up with your cuticle, then press it into place.

I've worn false nails with adhesive tabs before, and wasn't all that impressed. They lasted around a day for me, and by the end of the day they were wiggly and needed to come off. So basically, while they were pretty they were also sort of a bust.

These nails? Holy cow. They've been on for around 24 hours now, and I haven't been delicate with my nails at all. I've been typing, crafting, going about my business like usual. These things aren't budging! They're secure, and honestly they feel almost like my own nails! They're short enough for me to feel very comfortable in them, and honestly I can see these being on for multiple days.

The best part to me isn't their convenience, though. Honestly, I'll put up with some inconvenience if something looks good. But these are not only convenient, they look like my nails! I'm blown away, because these actually look like they're growing from me, instead of being all "My nales are pastede on YEY!" (10 points if you know where that phrase came from!)

Now, I do have a couple of complaints. Even though these were free to me and I'm in love with them, they aren't perfect. However, my issues are with the packaging, not the nails themselves.

My first issue is with the prep wipe that comes with the nails. It's a very thin packet, and it's inside the box behind the paper insert, so that I didn't find it at first. After watching the imPRESS video on how to apply the nails I realized there was supposed to be a wipe, so I dug around until I found it. Had I not seen the video, I wouldn't have used it and my nails might not have worked as well.

My other problem is with the packaging itself. I love the little polish-bottle-shaped container, but I could not figure out how to get the black top off to save my life! I pulled, I twisted, I pushed, and nothing worked. I actually went online to find out if anyone else had had problems! Finally I found a video explaining that someone else had the issues I did, and she explained how to open the package.

Basically, you have to twist and pull at the same time. It's awkward, but it gets easier each time. Once it's open, you've got a great little container for your nails!

So overall, this is definitely a win-win! The packaging says these will stay on for up to a week. I'll continue to update you on how well they stay on. But considering my nails are nubbins, I'm absolutely LOVING these!!

imPRESS nails can be found whereever Broadway nail products are sold. The solid colors are a bit less expensive than the patterns, and oh are there patterns! Animal print, water marble, glitter and dots... There are 36 styles in all, so I'm pretty sure you can find something you'll love!

So what do you think? Would you wear these? Do you think they look real? Leave me a comment, I want to hear what you think!

imPRESS nails were provided by voxbox for consideration.

See my disclosure statement for more information.

Jessica Cosmetics - Lime Cooler

Lime Cooler by Jessica Cosmetics

OMG, has it really been a whole week since I blogged?? Sheesh. I saw the doctor and we tweaked meds again, but unfortunately I've still been feeling all fibro-hit-by-a-truck. But I seem to be looking up a bit, maybe... I even managed to paint my nails last week, and I loved the color so much I'm STILL wearing it!

Some of you may know I love lime green. If you weren't aware of it prior to now, well... now you know! When I opened the box that contained the Summer 2012 collection from Jessica Cosmetics, I squealed loud enough to make my husband cringe. I knew Lime Cooler would be the first polish I tried!

Let me say it one more time, I absolutely love this polish. This green creme is bright enough to make me happy, but not so bright and in-your-face to make me feel uncomfortable. It's a chic take on summer brights, and I'm in heaven!

Application was a bit unpleasant for me, but this was mainly because my bottle was sort of thick and gloppy. I have a feeling a couple of drops of nail polish thinner will make this baby perfect. As it is, it's almost opaque in one coat!

So, if you love lime green, this is a total keeper! I know this one will be one of my special bottles of polish, the ones I love to wear, but am afraid to run out of!!

Also, since I've been out of touch for the last week, I figured I'd show some of the stuff I've drawn to help keep myself sane. My husband got me a big set of colored pencils, complete with neons and metallics, so I've been having a ball coloring in my drawings.

This drawing is probably my favorite one I've done in the last month or so. She looks thoughtful, and sort of... I can't quite find the words. Anyway, I like her a lot!

She was drawn one of those nights I was up all night, just hoping meds would kick in, or things would stop spasming enough for me to sleep. I didn't sleep, but I got a pretty drawing out of it!

Then there's this one. Not as happy with her, although she's still interested. She looks kind of spastic, though...almost like she's frightened.

I've changed her since I took the photo... I gave her eyelashes and brought her eyelids down a bit. Now instead of looking afraid she looks all sultry and smouldering. I love seeing the difference such slight changes can make!

There's also this lady. She looks kind of like a pirate to me, maybe. She started out as me attempting to copy a drawing in the book Doodles Unlimited by Tracy Bautista. I didn't like my rendition, so I kept tweaking and tweaking until I was satisfied. While you can definitely see the inspiration, I think my drawing has a lot of my own style to it.

Then there were a couple of basic doodles, one all my own and one a way of decorating words that I found on Jaqueline Koh's blog. I've had a lot of fun tweaking it to my own style!

I colored this one with colored pencils, metallic colored pencils, and metallic gel pens.
I think the gradient petals are my favorite part!

The top bubble is the style I got from Jacqueline Koh,
although the one I saw on her blog was all black and white.
I had fun incorporating dots and a heart smiley face.

And that's it! I've rambled enough, and now my husband and I are going to finish watching a movie I fell asleep in the last time we tried to watch it. Sometimes I'm an awful movie buddy! I hope you've had a great week so far, and that your weekend is even better!

Til next time!

Polish was provided by Jessica Cosmetics for consideration.

See my disclosure statement for more information.

Jessica Cosmetics - Desire

Hi! I have some wonderful goodies to share with you over the next few days. I recently got a box full of nail polishes from Jessica Cosmetics, and I fell in love with one of them right away. Let me show you Desire...

Ok, that was cheesy, but I couldn't resist. Still, Desire is a gorgeous raspberry red that waved to me from the box, shouting pick me, pick ME! What could I do? How could I leave that poor little polish unworn, sad and lonely, feeling unfulfilled?

I couldn't!

This deep raspberry is so lush. If I'd been a bit more generous with my application it would be a one-coat polish, but even so two thin coats gave me a deep, rich glossy finish. Drying time was a bit slow, but that could be because my bottle of ProFX is getting old and funky.

One thing amuses me- this polish is part of the bridal collection. For some reason, bright red polish never stuck me as a bridal color. On the other hand, my best friend from college had the most beautiful wedding gown with deep red accents. It was absolutely breathtaking, and she looked like a princess.

So yea, red works. :D

Also, I apologize for the scratches on my nails in these photos. I gave my husband a pedicure, and wound up scratching the heck out of my nails with my emery board. They are absolutely all my fault, and not a reflection of the polish.

Since it's 4am and I need sleep, I'm going to upload the rest of the pics. What can I say, I had fun photographing these.

This is the most color-accurate photo I took. Flash definitely washed this color out. I'm in love. :D

Desire is available from the Jessica Cosmetics website for $7.50, or at a salon near you. If you'd like to keep up with this brand, why not follow them on twitter?

Polish was provided by the brand for consideration.

See my disclosure statement for more information.