Swatch: ILNP Supernova (S)

Okay, back to Julep Casey and how I wish I could stamp. What I really wanted on my nails was a dark floral hosiery pattern and what I got instead was scribbling with sharpie.

The thought was there, I just couldn't execute without more planning in the first place. Next time maybe taping...

Anyway, what do we say to bad nail art?

GLITTER.

ILNP Supernova was actually super cute over this. You can still kind of make out the attempt at cross hatching but it appears as though the glitter filled in the holes in between.

I really like the effect, and the shift was glorious - much like ILNP Sirene. Make sure you check out Tiffany's swatch too, her camera is amazing.

OKAY. That's the end of this post. The next photos are view at your own risk. Messy cuticles for sure, but if you were curious, here is the Julep Casey Staining. It's horrible...

Are you sure?



You can turn back now.

You've been forewarned.

Aaahhh D:

Okay, haha I'm done. You should see what I covered it with! Come back soon ;D

Yellow Roses: Homage (S)

Blah blah blah, Sharra's tragic backstory, blah.

My mom liked yellow roses, which you may have gathered from previous posts. This time I started with Rainbow Honey One Moment More (swatch & review forthcoming). I used paper hole reinforcements to get the half moons. From Tiffany's recommendation, I sponged on Electric Carnival to get coverage. It took about four or five times but I am impatient about dry time. It also created a smoother effect than I was aiming for so I swiped over it as well.

Sharpie for petals!

The other hand is less beautiful.

That shift and saturation is really nice, I don't even have access to filters on these!

They look kind of like carnations but I feel better now. I hope everybody had a good day! Good luck tomorrow :)

Crackling leaves (S)

Super simple nail art for the win!!

ILNP Abundance + Gold Sharpie

Wham, bam, thank you ma'am.

Swatch: China Glaze Mermaid's Tail and simple scales

After Sand Dolla's extreme disappointment, I am really glad to say Mermaid's Tail is glorious. Like Seahorsin' Around there's a silvery crumpled foil look to this. It also only took two coats to opacity and the texture was awesome.

To spice it up a bit I decided to use my silver Sharpie and draw on some scales. You can topcoat this but you'll lose the texture so I didn't. The sharpie lasted roughly 2 days before it looked like it had completely rubbed off but this wasn't an intricate design or anything.

It was also very subtle as you can see from the last photo =P The colour itself reminds me far more of Ariel's clamshell bra than a mermaid's tail but what do you think?

Neon Drips

A good neon calls for some good nail art! You be the judge though... I started with the matted (WarPaint) base of Jindie Don't Get It Citrus Twisted and used a neon pink from a set I received for Christmas. It was pretty opaque, but I am not good at drips...

The edges looked absolutely uneven, so I tried my sharpie to smooth it out and make it look neat. I also skipped the topcoat so the sharpie wouldn't run, and so that I could have the contrast of shiny/matte.

It looks really cartoon-y! That's not a bad thing. These were kind of fun, but I don't think I'll be doing this design again. I don't know how those pros do it.

Jaded Studs

Hello hello! What did you guys think of SH Jaded? I hope you liked it because you're seeing it today too! This design was actually under the impression that Jaded would be a mint green rather than jade but it still worked out alright. I started out by doing a V shaped french with my new silver Sharpie pen.

You can clearly see how impatient I am by the catching on some of the nails... oops!

That was both hands and as soon as I was satisfied with that (AKA I couldn't see all those unfilled in parts, even though apparently my camera can) I pulled out my studs again and this time chose the silver rhinestones which I nestled into the point of the V using a coat of Essie Pure Pearlfection. I also tried to see if I could anchor the studs better by putting another layer of topcoat over them and you definitely can! But if you use something like Essie Pure Pearlfection, you end up changing the look of the stones.

Rounded with topcoat

Cut stone without topcoat

I found the rounded style looked like moonstones which actually worked really well with the jade colour.

So what do you think? Do you prefer metallic studs or sparkly rhinestones?

Valentine contest by NailPolishCanada.com

I'm totally sneaking in a Valentine contest entry right here between these influenster posts...

I got an email from NailPolishCanada.com that says they've figured out that people like nail art contests and annually is just too long to wait to do them which opens the doors for adorable heart and love nail art! I threw this one together when I wanted something simple and pretty. I'm not really a Valentine person, but I love hearts and red and all the designs surrounding it so I'll get into this (without succumbing to consumerism too much of course). Everyone knows it's the day after Valentine's that counts anyway (50% off chocolate!). ;D Voting is happening HERE.

So I started with Sally Hansen Lava, a pink to orange duochrome I picked up last year an added one coat of China Glaze Make A Spectacle on top of it.

Based off a design I know I've seen before (but can't remember any details for - if anyone knows please leave me a link) I added little V's using gold sharpie which looks like a pattern of hearts.

On my thumbs, I did alternating XO's.

I always wish the golds I use are more yellow and this time is no exception. I'll have to keep that in mind next time. Remember to cast your vote here <3

Have you seen any nice Valentine nail art this year? Show me!