Off the Clock

Today's nails were inspired by a super awesome retro clock in the house that I'm house-sitting at. It sort of looks like a stylized sun, with the clock face and lines going out at all different lengths like rays.

I used L.A. Girl Army Green as a base, with Essie Mink Muffs for the brown designs, a mixture of China Glaze Salsa and Zoya Jancyn for the red design, then American Apparel Cotton for the dot in the center of the design on all nails. Topped it off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

Vive la France!

Today is Bastille Day, the celebration of the storming of the Bastille, a prison and fortress in Paris. Fun fact: there were only 7 prisoners when the Bastille was stormed. :) Reader Sonoma Bento suggested that I do a French/Bastille day themed manicure today, so here you have it, the French flag is on all nails but the ring finger, which is the Eiffel tower in the moonlight. :-P

I used Sally Hansen Professional Lavender Cloud as a base with Pure Ice French Kiss for the blue stripe of the flag, China Glaze Salsa for the red portion of the flag. For the ring finger, I used Color Club Naughtycal Navy as a base, which is awesome, it was almost opaque in 1 coat!! Better yet that I got it in the Yacht Club set, which was $7.99 for 6 colors plus basecoat!! Anyway, back to what I used. I used a mixture of American Apparel Cotton and American Apparel Manila for the moon and stars, and a mixture of American Apparel Cotton and American Apparel Hassid for the tower. Topped everything off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

I hope everyone enjoyed the celebrations!!

Diamond Cosmetics - Tranquility

Tranquility

Tranquility. What a fitting name for this pretty little thing. This soothing blue creme by Diamond Cosmetics is a part of their 2010 Spring Collection. I love how peaceful, yet not boring, this color is!
I've read that Tranquility is a true turquoise but I don't really find that to be the case. A Robin's Egg blue is more like it. I didn't even know a color was named after the eggs of the Robin bird. Pretty cool!

While I'm normally really gung ho on more complex finishes, I really like this polish. I guess it's one of those "less is more" kinda things. Chanel somewhat declared light blues to be the next big thing for spring 2011, well, I'm ready, bring it on!

Application

Application wasn't bad, but it does need a tiny amount of thinner. I mixed in 4 drops of thinner and I was all set. Tranquility is very opaque, it's almost one coater, I needed to apply 2 coats to get it right.

Diamond Cosmetics polishes are quite cheap, depending on where you buy them. Boozyshop charges €3.95 for one bottle (12.6ml).

Boozyshop

This polish was sent to me for review by Boozy Shop. Boozy Shop is a lovely Dutch webshop, that sells a lot of great brands like Diamond Cosmetics, Essie, Sinful Colors, Milani, Wet 'n Wild and they even carry the famous 88 palettes. They ship throughout most of Europe, if you aren't sure if they ship to your country, don't hesitate to contact the owner, because she's incredibly helpful!

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day!
- Michèle

Bridal nails... with roses.

2 sets of bridal nails with roses.

This is a really simple set with short round nails. This client of mine prefers short nails so I did gel overlay for her and shaped her nails round to soften the look. And there, it doesn't really look too short with the nail art eh? :)

The closeup on the pastel pink glitter color and the flowers.

White peach roses!

Full set roses nail art. :D

Bridal nails... with roses.

2 sets of bridal nails with roses.

This is a really simple set with short round nails. This client of mine prefers short nails so I did gel overlay for her and shaped her nails round to soften the look. And there, it doesn't really look too short with the nail art eh? :)

The closeup on the pastel pink glitter color and the flowers.

White peach roses!

Full set roses nail art. :D

Autumn Gold

So after fabric week, I wanted to do something a little different, less literal, and more stylized. I was looking at the polishes that are currently on my table, (which I procrastinate cleaning off and putting away polishes from until there is literally NO workspace left), and liked the look of a couple of the colors together, so I thought that I'd do a reverse moon manicure with them.

I used American Apparel Cotton as a base, with a mixture of American Apparel Cotton and American Apparel Manila for the butter colored moon, with a moon of L.A. Girl Army Green at the base of the nail closest to the cuticle. Topped everything off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

Neck is getting better, hurts a little still, but getting more manageable. I've been resting as much as possible to take the strain off it. Thanks again for your concerns and suggestions!

No time to paint your nails?

Sometimes I run into stuff... wow! These bad ass gloves are designed by London based designer Dominic Jones.

Founded in late 2008, London based Dominic Jones Jewellery is fast becoming hot property amongst the fashion elite. The new "It Boy" for celeb jewelry, designer Jones' Tooth And Nail collection consists of rings, earrings, bracelets, necklaces, belts and gloves embellished with fangs, thorns, teeth and claw-like accents.

Aren't these awesome? Probably not something I would dare to wear (and I'm cutting down on real leather as it is), maybe I'd give these a spin if I'd ever reincarnate as Lady Gaga herself!
These would be perfect to cover up any nail art fails/chips/stained nails, don't you think? ;-). They only cost 682 EUR, quite a bargain. Riiiight.

Price aside: Fashion of Faux-pas?

Online store

quote credits go to ifitshipitshere.blogspot.com

How To: Make your manicure last

Hi guys! For today another how to post! Normally I change my polish a lot, but there are times when you want to make your manicure last! Maybe because you're busy or maybe because you're going on vacation, you name it. It isn't all that hard, take a look at the following tips:

1	Prep the nail Make sure you're starting off with clean nails. Get rid of any nail polish you might have on. By using a nail polish remover before you're starting your fresh manicure, you will clean the nails. If your remover leaves a greasy residue grab some alcohol on a cotton pad and wipe your nails with that. Any oils or residue on nails makes it more difficult for polish to adhere to the nail. Do your cuticles so everything is neat and out of the way.
2	Base & Top Coat A good base coat is really important. You're not walking around commando style either, are you? Or maybe you do, but erhm, anyway! A good base coat does not only prevent staining, it also bonds your nail polish to your nails. A top coat is to give shine, but also to keep everything sealed and in its place. You can also refresh your manicure daily with a layer of top coat, I don't do this often, but it does work.
3	Wrappin' it When applying polish, sweep a bit across the edge and under the nail tip. I usually just tap my brush, with some nail polish on it, against my tip before I start with the first layer. The polish wil melt together when you're done with your whole nail. By doing this you're wrapping the end, so it seals your nail polish onto your nail and it won't chip that easily. You can do this with your top coat as well!
4	Would you like a sandwich with that? Now this is something I've just started doing recently! Certain kinds of nail polish chip easily, maybe it's the texture, maybe the fact that a top coat ruins it all, but I've found this to work. You can use this trick with regular polish too. It is recommended to use sticky base coats when you're doing this so called sandwich. Think Orly Bonder or CND Stickey. If you don't have these: I had pretty good results with using top coat in between! Just make sure it doesn't give you shrinkage (like Seche Vite can do).
	Matte nailpolish Some brands that make matte nail polish advice against using a base coat. Ignore that, because some colors WILL make your nails yellow. Or green. Or blue. Obviously, if you're going for that crazy matte effect, you can't seal your mani with top coat. To make it stay: I apply a base coat, a layer of matte polish and then another layer of base coat. On top of that I'm just applying another layer of matte polish. Et voila, a nail polish sandwich! You can also do this if you're just mattifying with a matte top coat! Holographic nail polish I don't like to use a top coat on these either. It can really dull the effect so I do the same thing: base coat, holographic nail polish, base coat, holographic nail polish. Is this sandwiching making you hungry yet?

Image credits: www.fedoraonline.it

What a Hoot!

Welcome to the last day of 'Fabric Week' here on the Daily Nail blog. :) Today, I chose the cutest of my fabrics, and the only one that wasn't an abstract pattern or floral. It's OWLS! I love the simple colors and the retro feel. My owls look a little tweaked out, but that's ok. :-P

The fabric inspiration:

The nails:

I used Essie Mink Muffs as a base, with (from thumb to pinky) CND Bicycle Yellow, American Apparel Manila, a mixture of L.A. Girl Army Green and American Apparel Cotton, L.A. Girl Army Green, and Zoya Jancyn for the owl colors. American Apparel Cotton was used for the white of the face, with MAC Showy for the dark brown outlines around everything and in the background. For the eyes, I used CND Bicycle Yellow.

BTW, update on the neck...

A lot of you suggested a chiropractor, and usually I LOVE the chiro, but last time I had this problem happen (less than 2 months ago), he made it ten times worse. The shoulder still hurts pretty badly, but I was at least able to sleep last night, which was great. Hopefully it keeps trending towards getting better! :) Thank you all for your advice and concern!!! :)

Hexa-Gon With the Wind

Day #6 of fabric week, and today's fabric is simple earthy tones, and geometric shapes. I chose it because I love orange and brown together, and I liked the simpleness of the pattern.

The fabric inspiration:

The nails:

I used Nubar Milk Chocolate Creme as a base, with a mixture of Zoya Jancyn and OPI Ginger Bells for the orange shapes, then lightly dotted with American Apparel Cotton. Topped it all off with 2 coats of Seche Vite top coat.

Anyone have recommendations for a 'crick in the neck'? I get them all the time lately, but the pain from my current one refuses to go away, and keeps getting worse. I'm having a hard time sleeping, walking, functioning, etc. Not being a wimp, but this shit is getting out of control. I've tried heat, tylenol, massage, stretching, homeopathic remedies, ergonomic pillow, and medicated pain relief patches (not heated patches). It's been 4 days and it's gotten progressively worse. *ARGH*. Thanks in advance for any advice.