Tuesday's Talons ft Holographic Half Moon NOTD

Currently listening to: Brooklyn by Wakey Wakey

Good morning lovely readers,

Today I'd like to show you a holographic half moon manicure I did using GOSH Holographic and Milanic Hi-Res.

I started with three coats of GOSH Holographic, the most troublesome polish ever.

I won't complain about application too much though as the end result is stunning and it's a polish I wear quite rarely due its scarcity.

I then used sticky reinforcers to create half moons with Milani Hi-Res.

I showed you a manicure in the same style a few weeks ago, which I got a great response for, but this time my lines are not as clean.  I don't think it matters too much though due to the holographic effect.

I liked the futuristic effect of this manicure but what do you think girls?

Bye for now,

Laura

Monday's Manicure ft Graphic Berry NOTD

Currently listening to: Right Here by Heyhihello

 Hello ladies!

I hope you had a lovely weekend and are ready to face the week ahead :-)

My manicure to start the week is a copy from Kelsie's Nail Files.  Kelsie used Barry M Raspberry as her base colour but as I don't have that, I chose to use Graphic Berry by Dior as I thought it was the closest shade to Raspberry I have.

I always think this polish is really difficult to photograph but at least you can see how glossy it is.

 My stamping was done with Barry M Gold Foil (what else) and Bundle Monster plate BM 315.

 Like a lot of people, I think, this wasn't an image I was excited about when I received the new Bundle Monster set but after seeing it featured on other blogs I instantly warmed to it.

My only complaint with my stamping here is that I think it would have looked better if I had altered the position of the design on each nail, to make it look more like a pattern.  Not to worry though, there's always next time.

What do you think girls?  Have you used this design?

Bye for now,
Laura

Thursday's Talons ft Night Owl NOTD

Currently listening to: Sunday Morning by Maroon 5 

Hello dear readers,

Today I'd like to show you a manicure which I was very proud of so I really hope you like it as much as I did :-)

My base coat was Deep Deep Water, a new polish in my collection by H&M.

[I mentioned this on Twitter but for those of you who missed it, this polish stained horribly when I removed it, not just my nails but my skin too.  However, I scrubbed my skin and nails lightly with lemon juice and soaked them in a basin of warm water with dissolved denture tablets in it and that was enough to remove the staining.]

I then used my dotting tool and Midnight Sapphire by 17 to place dark blue dots on my nails.

 After that, I stamped an owl on each nail using Barry M Gold Foil and Bundle Monster plate BM 309.

 My next step was to add a trail of gold stars using BM 14.  It was hard to get this design to photograph well, that's why I'm featuring more photos than usual ;-)

 Like I said, I was really proud of this manicure and I absolutely loved it.  The only problem was that it chipped quickly.  It was at that point I decided to mattify the manicure, which looked fabulous, but I didn't take any pictures due to the severity of the chipping.

What do you think girls?  Do you like it?  Are you a fan of H&M polishes?  This is only the third one I've tried and although the staining was annoying, it is was I've come to expect from blue polishes.

Bye for now,
Laura

Tuesday's Talons ft Pink Butterfly Gradient NOTD

Currently listening to: Almost Everything by Wakey Wakey

Hello lovely ladies,

This morning I have a pink butterfly gradient to show you, as the title of this post suggests.

My first step was to create a gradient using Essence Enchanted Fairy, Lm 21 and Barry M Fuchsia:

I then stamped black butterflies using MUA Shade 2 and Konad plate m36.

 Next, I sponged Barry M Pink Iridescent glitter on my nails.  This polish is full of tiny particles of glitter which shimmer in a rainbow of blue, purple, gold, pink and silver.

 My final step was to sponge a heavier glitter, Saffron London Shade 9, on to the tips of my nails.

 The Saffron polish consists of magenta and silver glitter.

Here are the polishes I used:

I was really happy with this manicure although on reflection it might have looked better with grey butterflies so the gradient was more obvious.  Maybe next time!

What do you think girls?

Bye for now,
Laura

Monday's Manicure ft Orange Hibiscus NOTD

Currently listening to: Goodnight Moon by Heyhihello

Good morning girls!

One of the polishes my uncle brought back from Italy for me was this orange jelly by Yesensy:

This polish has no name and is simply shade number 52.

 I like it but I don't love it.

 However, I thought it would be a good base for trying out yet more of the new Bundle Monster designs so I opted for the hibiscus flowers on BM 313 and BM 318.

Whenever I wear this type of shade I always struggle to think of colours that will be suitable to stamp with and end up choosing white, which I didn't like here as I think flowers are supposed to be more colourful.  Do you have any other colour combinations that you think would work?

Bye for now,
Laura

Smiling this Saturday

Currently listening to: Payphone by Maroon 5

Good afternoon girls!

Those of  you who follow me on Twitter may know this already but yesterday I found out I passed the three exams I sat last month!  Thank you to everyone sent me wishes of good luck and encouragement during my exam period :-)

Another reason for smiling this Saturday is that I have recently been given some blog awards by some lovely ladies.

Irina over at Zebra Nails gave me this "Por tu naturalidad" award, which is for being natural and putting enjoyment before competitiveness.  Thank you Irina :-)

The rules of the award are:
Post the award photo on your blog
Link back to the person who nominated you for this award
Nominate 10 bloggers
Tell me what makes you hooked on following a blog

The bloggers I'd like to nominate for this award are:
Maria's Nail Art and Polish Blog
Nails by Carol
Art Evolve
Charlie D Beauty
Kelsie's Nail Files
Fingers Polish Mania
Colours of My Nails
Colour Your Life
Pretty Digits
Red Hair and Black Nail Polish

I would also like to thank the lovely ladies over at Kelsie's Nail Files and Divine Blush for nominating me for the Appreciation Award.  I've already received this award so I've decided not to write another post about it but I appreciate you thinking of me :-)

If you don't already follow the blogs I've mentioned, please visit their sites!

Bye for now,

Laura

Thursday's Talons: Floral NOTD

Currently listening to: Titanium by David Guetta
 

Good morning girls,

Today I am very excited to show you my latest freehanded floral manicure so I really hope you like it (and please don't judge the manicure on this first photo) :-)

 

 

I started off by painting my nails with two coats of a blue franken I made in winter called Icicle Storm.  I have no idea what polishes I used to make it but it has a lot of shimmer and a touch of glitter in it.  Application was awful as it's very thick ;-)

 I then used a white striper to draw three vertical stripes down the length of each nail and painted some roses on each nail using a paintbrush and acrylic paints.

Originally I wasn't sure if I should add green leaves to the roses but I'm so glad I did.  You can see the initial design in the first picture and compare it to the other photos.  Not only did I add leaves, I also added more touches of paint to the roses to improve their appearance.

In the end I was really proud of this design and surprised by how easy it was.

What do you think girls?

Bye for now,

Laura

Tuesday's Talons ft Essence Butterfly NOTD

Currently watching: One Tree Hill

Hello lovely ladies,

Just a quick post for you today, to show you one of my new Essence polishes, A Lovely Secret:

This lilac polish is an absolute gem, containing not only purple shimmer but also fine particles of denim blue, making it full of interest.  It is possibly my new favourite purple polish.

 The day that I swatched this was the day my new Bundle Monster plates arrived so I decided to give one a try, BM 307:

What do you think of this polish girls?  Does it feature in your collection?

Bye for now,

Laura

Monday's Manicure ft Models Own Floral NOTD

Currently watching: The Dark Knight

Good morning girls!

For my birthday, I was given my first Models Own polish, Purple Blue, and although I haven't tried it yet, that polish made me more curious about the brand, so much so that last week I bought Mystic Mauve, a pink foil.

The polish applied really easily, giving me no cause for complaint.

 I also really loved the shade (suitable for work and play, always a bonus) but of course that didn't mean I could leave it alone.

 Instead, I stamped a hibiscus flower on each nail using Barry M Silver Foil and Bundle Monster plate BM 313.  The flowers weren't as defined as I would have liked so I added a dot to the centre of each flower using another new polish, Purple Flash by H&M.

 I pondered about sponging silver glitter on to my tips but in the end I decided to freehand tips using Purple Flash.

When looking at the end result, I still felt there was something missing, so I sponged some glitter on using a Saffron London polish in shade 5.  Then I was happy :-)

What do you think girls?  Which stage is your favourite?

Bye for now,

Laura

Saturday's Special Effects NOTD

Currently watching: One Tree Hill

Good morning lovely ladies,

Today I would like to show you a simple but very effective manicure I did during the week using some special effects polishes.
 

 My first step was to paint my nails with two coats of Barry M Dusky Mauve, a dark brown with flashes of purple shimmer.

 As much as I like this polish, I always have difficulty deciding which colour would be suitable for stamping on top of it.

 So instead of stamping, I decided to use Max Factor Fantasy Fire to create sparks of colour that would be more obvious than the purple shimmer in Dusky Mauve.

 Then I decided that layering with one polish just wasn't enough so I added a coat of Essence Night in Vegas and wow, was I impressed with the flashes of red, orange and green that I saw with every glance at my nails.  I also loved how Dusky Mauve was transformed, under some lights, to a deep amethyst shade of purple.

What do you think girls?  What are your favourite polishes for layering and creating special effects?

Bye for now,

Laura

Thursday's Talons ft Double Stamping

Currently watching: Dangerous Minds

Good morning girls,

Today I'd like to show you a stamping manicure I did a couple of days ago, using Essence Enchanted Fairy as my base.

 I love this pink shimmer polish, it's so delicate and pretty.

I then stamped using Barry M Silver Foil and Mash plate m78.

 To finish, I stamped black stars on each nail using Bundle Monster plate BM21 and MUA Shade 2 (I believe).

I actually wore this manicure, with a different colour combination, last October.  It's definitely one of my favourite ways to double stamp.

What do you think girls?

Bye for now,

Laura

Tuesday's Talons ft Half Moons

Currently watching: One Tree Hill

Good morning dear readers!

Today I'd like to show you a half moon manicure I did at the weekend.  I think this is the second half-moon manicure I've done during the past two years, mainly because my first one was a bit of a disaster, but I'm really pleased with how this one turned out.

 

 My first step was to paint my nails with two coats of Soft Lilac by Beauty UK.

 I love lilac polishes, I think they suit everyone.  I have three polishes which could probably be called lilac but they all have their own subtle differences ;-)

 My next step, once the polish was completely dry, was to stick a reinforcer on the lower section of each nail and paint the remaining nail with Marks & Spencer Limited Collection Lilac (G0) polish.  I peeled off each reinforcer almost as soon as I had painted each nail.  The last time I tried this manicure, I waited until the polish had dried a little before removing the stickers and I was left with lots of flaws.  This method seemed to work much better.

 Et voila.  A simple, two-step manicure.  Like I said, I really like how this turned out and I think the colour combination works well.  Lilac (G0) is a relatively new polish in my collection but it's a gem, a lilac packed full of golden shimmer.  I think it's relatively expensive (£3.50 for 8ml) but it's a unique shade and I don't think there are any cheaper dupes available.  Luckily I had a voucher for 20% off when I bought this so I managed to pay only £2.70.

So what do you think of my half moon manicure girls?  Are you a fan of this design?  Do you like my new nail polish?  I'd love to know your thoughts :-)

Bye for now,

Laura