Thursday's Talons: Minty Glequins

Currently watching: The Apprentice

Good morning dear readers,

Let me start by apologising for my absence; I'm in exam season so unfortunately studying takes priority over blogging.  I'll try my best to blog with some regularity during the next month but if there are long gaps between posts or a lack of comments on your own posts you'll know why.

Now that's out of the way, let me show you today's manicure.

 My base coat is Nail Pop by It's Mint, a great spring/summer shade which I received lots of compliments on when I wore it last week.

 I then added a silver glequin from Born Pretty Store to the bottom of each nail and added a row of glequins on my accent nail.  This was a really simple manicure to create but very eye-catching.

What do you think girls?

Bye for now,

Laura

Mid-week Manicure: Prickly Glitter Stamped

Currently listening to: Fast Car by Kristian Leontiou

Hello dear readers,

Today's manicure was inspired by one I saw on a blog last week but for the life of me I cannot remember whose blog it was on.  If anybody knows, please let me know so I can credit that blogger.

 

 I started with two coats of Barry M Prickly Pear.  I think I've said in the past how much I love this shade.  It always makes me wish I had a lavender jade ring to match.

 My next step was to apply a coat of NYC Lights Camera Glitter.  Initially I had planned to wear a similar Miss Sporty glitter but I only managed to apply it to my thumb before realising it was too thick to wear so unfortunately that is now no longer in my collection.

 I then stamped my nails using Barry M Silver Foil and Bundle Monster plate BM 313.  I'd never used this image before but I really like the effect it creates and absolutely love this manicure.

What do you think girls?

Bye for now,

Laura

Monday's Manicure: Hello Kitty Love

Currently watching: The Big Bang Theory 

Good morning lovely ladies,

The other day I was looking at Brit Nails' recent manicure which featured nail stickers and commented that as much as I liked the manicure, I wasn't a big fan of nail stickers because I don't like being able to see the edges of the stickers, even after a topcoat has been applied.

And yet, when I was painting my nails on Saturday and wondering what to put on top of my pink base (Yes Love shade 21), I found myself reaching for these Hello Kitty stickers I got a couple of years ago.

 Before applying the stickers, I applied a coat of Kiko Sparkle Touch to lift the pink base and also match the sparkle in the Hello Kitty stickers.

 I really liked this look, especially as it's quite different from any manicure I've done in the past so I may find myself reaching for my stash of stickers more often from now on.

What do you think girls?  Are you fans of nail stickers?

Bye for now,

Laura

Thursday's Talons: Island Coral Hibiscus NOTD

Currently watching: The Big Bang Theory 

Hello dear readers,

Today I have my second Sinful Colors polish to show you, Island Coral:

 

I went in to Boots at the weekend, intending to buy Sinful Colors 24/7 but for the second week in a row it was sold out.  Instead of leaving empty handed, I picked up Island Coral which caught my eye, probably because coral is such a popular shade this year but it has the added bonus of being work appropriate.

 I applied two coats of this and didn't have any problems with application.

I then added some nail art in the form of hibiscus flowers.  On my ring and thumb figures I stamped a full hibiscus image using Easy Paris shade 48 and Bundle Monster plate BM 318.  I've loved this image ever since I got the third Bundle Monster stamping plate set but my nails have never been long enough to use it, until now.

 On my three remaining nails I stamped a hibiscus flower in the top right corner using plate BM 313.

What do you think girls?

Bye for now,

Laura

Tuesday's Talons: Glitter Feather NOTD

Currently reading: The Beginner's Goodbye by Anne Tyler 

Good morning lovely ladies,

Today I have a manicure to show you which I wore at the end of last week and all during the weekend since I absolutely loved it. 

 

My base colour was Essence A Lovely Secret, a beautiful purple shade with a subtle hint of shimmer running through it.

I then stamped a feather on my accent nail using Easy Paris shade 48 and Bundle Monster plate BM15.  Why have I not worn a feather manicure before now, especially considering this plate is from Bundle Monster's first image plate series?!

 On my other nails I applied a coat of NYC Lights Camera Glitter, a clear polish packed full of silver, blue and purple glitter particles.

What do you think girls?

Bye for now,

Laura

Friday's Fingers: Pure Turquoise Butterflies NOTD

Currently watching: The Apprentice UK 

Good morning girls,

I'd like to continue this butterfly-themed week with another manicure featuring the gold butterfly decorations Born Pretty Store sent me to review.

 

This time I decided to incorporate stamping with the decorations so my first step was to paint my nails with Barry M Pure Turquoise, a very bright shade which I have not used for years.  I'm sure application was great when I bought it but after neglecting it for so long the polish was a bit tricky to apply.  Not to worry though, my top coat created a smooth finish.

 My next step was to stamp this full nail pattern using Barry M Gold Foil and Bundle Monster plate BM 310.  I love this image because it looks good on its own and also creates a great background for double stamping.

 I then finished by placing two butterflies on my accent nail.

 As I mentioned before, not only did Born Pretty Store send me these to review, the company is also offering you a 10% discount whenever you make a purchase so if you see anything you'd like to add to your collection of nail art supplies, be sure to use the code APL91 at the checkout.

What do you think girls?

Bye for now,

Laura

Mid-week Manicure: Rose Quartz Fairy NOTD

Currently watching: The Voice UK

Hello dear readers,

When I was planning Monday's post I decided I may as well have a butterfly-themed week of manicures as I had more than one idea of how to wear the butterfly decorations I received plus it's been a while since I used my butterfly stamps.

 

 Today's manicure was inspired by an account on Instagram I follow called line_polish and features Essence Enchanted Fairy as the base.  I bought this polish in Amsterdam last June and don't think I've worn it since initially swatching it last summer.  I have no idea why I've neglected it for so long as it's such a pretty pink shimmer and is ideal for the office.

 I then added Barry M Rose Quartz Glitter to three of my nails.  I really like wearing this over pink bases and I love the big flecks of rose gold glitter.

 My next step was to stamp the butterfly image from Bundle Monster plate BM 307 using MUA shade 2.

 I always admire mixed manicures like this on other people but I rarely wear them myself however I really love this design so I'm going to do more mixed manicures in the future.

What do you think girls?

Bye for now,

Laura

Monday's Manicure: Fantasy Butterflies NOTD

Currently watching: L'Auberge Espagnole

Good morning lovely ladies,

Recently I was contacted by Born Pretty Store to see if I would be interested in reviewing a product for the company.  I've ordered nail art supplies from the online shop many times before and have always been happy with the quality of my purchases (stamping plates, glitter and acrylic paint) so of course I said yes.

 

 When given the opportunity to choose a product to review, I decided to pick something I hadn't tried before and which was a little bit different so I ended up choosing these gold butterflies.

Born Pretty Store is based in Hong Kong I believe so shipping (which is free) to the UK can take a few weeks but my butterflies flew here really quickly and actually arrived within a week.

For my first butterfly manicure, I applied two coats of Barry M Fuchsia followed by a layer of Max Factor Fantasy Fire to create a shimmer effect.  I then painted my nails with a top coat and while that was still wet, placed two butterflies on my accent nail.  I used a cocktail stick to pick up each butterfly by the gaps in the wings but you could also use tweezers.  I then gently pressed the butterfly down with my finger to ensure it would stick to my nail.

As you may already know, I absolutely love butterflies so these decorations were perfect for me and I would definitely recommend them for making manicures a little more special and unique.  The pack I ordered contains 1,000 butterflies and cost $8.80 however there are plenty of other shapes and designs to choose from on the website.  As an added bonus, whenever you buy something from Born Pretty Store you can enter the code APL91 at the checkout to get a 10% discount for being one of my readers :-)

 

What do you think girls?  Are these something you would add to your manicure?

Bye for now,

Laura