Swatch: Golden Rose 151 (Teal)

Well I missed the boat on a holiday again, sorry, but I do have this cool teal jelly that was totally fun to play with.

It took only three coats to be opaque, and you could totally get away with two.

It's gorgeous, but I couldn't just leave a jelly alone. I knew that FingerPaints Santa's Magic worked for a jelly sandwich before so I tried it again.

Oh dang, it's fantastic. I really love jelly sandwiches. They're so easy to do, and they look awesome.

Happy Shamrock Day everyone!

NCC#3 Techniques: Striping tape!

Ahhh I have a love/hate relationship with striping tape, which is mostly doused in frustration. But the stuff is just so cheap for so much of it, I can't not use it once in a while! So today, I swallow my disdain and I bring you an idea that actually turned out alright.

My original inspiration... I was thinking of dragons for some reason.

I started with Fingerpaints Avant Garde Green, obvs (what other colour would be perfect for dragons??) and then started placing and snipping. I did one thumb first, so I could see how it came out.

It totally worked though, so I moved on.

And I'm including this to prove I did BOTH HANDS :D

Oh! I never told you what I planned to put on top. Remember crackle topcoats? ;D I'm bringing it back! IT LOOKS AWESOME. I used Julep Glinda, from last year's Halloween box (or October box, who knows) and it looks pretty sweet... Enough of that, just look.

(I topped it with my increasingly gloopy Seche)

:DDDD So, not quite dragons, it definitely makes me think of SLYTHERIN :D  That's totes alright with me because Slytherin's are badass and I have before been sorted into that house, where I'm sure I would be absolutely happy because we/they are the aforementioned badass.

So there you have it! I promise my last technique will be one I have NEVER done before, so keep coming back!

Swatch: Fingerpaints Avant Garde Green

Ahhhh another from Nails for the Sake of Sanity's massive box from way back when!

Today it's a gorgeous green shimmer that MIGHT be a duochrome, but it's just so shiny I can't tell.

Unfortunately it also took like four coats because it was quite thin, but look at these results. Damn!

YAAAY DARK GREEN. And it's so shiny. Like BEETLES. Which is a good thing, despite my actual reaction to actual beetles.

Squee! Thank you, Kelly! <3

NCC #1 Techniques: Dry Marbling

Ummm, this is for all y'all who think I might be perfect and just do COOL NAILS all the time. Sometimes, you pick the wrong colours, or they polish doesn't work together formula-wise, or you just haven't got the hang of it yet.

I've definitely done dry-marbling before, but this time.... ehh....

I started with Julep Caroline and let it dry.

For dry marbling, you then put down a coat of polish and do a wet drop of some other colours, then take a toothpick or an orange stick and swirl it around. I thought it'd be super cool to use Orly Rockin' Rockette, OPI DS Classic and Sally Hansen Lava... Unfortunately...

Some fingers turned out better than others but OPI DS Classic and SH Lava were too close to each other. I recommend doing high contrast colour combinations for a good result.

Ah well! Nothing some glitter won't fix ;D They kinda came out like frame nails hah. I used Fingerpaints Sparkle Topcoat.

Boooo. Oh well! Everyone else is flawless for this first one of course!

Swatch: KleanColor Firework

Orly Old School Orange looked a little bare, so I scoured my untrieds for a glitter and found KleanColor Firework. Unfortunately there appeared to be a leak in the bottle and it had mostly dried out. I fixed it with a couple mls of thinner but it is unfortunate and if I want to use it more I'll probably have to do it again.

It needed a little extra so I used Fingerpaints Sparkle Topcoat and found some sunshine. Somehow it made the orange look coral which is making me want a coral now but it's super nice and sparkly and I love it.

What is your experience with bar glitter?

PS Be sure there'll be a birthday haul post soon =3

NCC Neon #4

One more!! At the last second too. Sharra has finished a challenge month! WOOHOO! And it's good too :O

Anyway, over yesterday's Fergalicious and Candy, I did a freehand V-gap type thing in Sally Hansen Blue Me Away.

And then I added Sally Hansen Urban Chic and glitter tips with Fingerpaints Santa's Magic! Sometimes, I should just stop... this wasn't one of those times :D TEEHEE SPARKLY

Blurry pics for holo twinkle =3 Then, to make it a little more gradient-y I put China Glaze Make a Spectacle over the whole thing.

SO MUCH SPARKLY. I am happy.