NOTD : Autumn Stars and Stripes

Hey there everyone ! So I really need to get to bed so that I can read for a bit before I go to bed (yay uni work !), but I think I can just about manage to squeeze in a post for you all before I go ! I've been super productive today : I did 3 loads of washing, cleaned my room, did all my homework for uni for next week and still managed to fit in doing my nails after a whole hour of searching the internet for inspiration ! In the end it was my mum who came up with today's theme of stars and stripes, and I picked the bright-ish yet autumnal looking colour scheme for the nails !

I think these colours really work well together, especially as they're all from the OPI Euro Centrale collection, and despite the fact that these were released as Spring/Summer polishes, some of them still work quite well as Autumn shades ! I love having all mismatching nails but still keeping a theme that brings them all together, I think it makes for a really interesting design !

The three nail varnishes I used for today's design were OPI My Vampire is Buff, OPI Eurso Euro and OPI My Paprika is Hotter Than Yours. The latter polish shows up a lot redder in the photos than it actually is in real life - to me it looks far more orange which really adds to the autumnal look, it's a shame it hasn't shown up that way in the photos but oh well !

So I hope you liked today's design, it's really put me in the mood to do more looks to go with the current season - nothing beats autumn shades... except maybe pastels in Spring, let's just stick with Autumn at the moment though !

I'm off to bed now, see you all again soon ! Night night !

Alphabet Nail Art Challenge : V for Vintage

Good evening everyone ! We'll start here tonight by confirming that vintage is anything older than roughly 50 years old ? Okay ? So that makes 3 years of the 1960's vintage, right ? Perfect ! Glad we got that all out of the way, so now we can move on to the design ! I spent ages researching the differences between the words "antique", "vintage" and "retro" and after understanding the apparently much-debated subtleties, was able to decide on what I wanted to do on my nails !

I looked through a load of vintage patterns and wallpapers/backgrounds etc and didn't find much I liked other than a few floral designs, and I really wanted to do something other than flowers seeing as I already did the "F for Floral" theme in this challenge ! I then decided to google some 60's wallpaper patterns (we've already agreed that 3 years of that are vintage so I'm allowed !) and eventually found this design on Pinterest that I absolutely had to do !

I started with a base of OPI You Don't Know Jacques on my index, middle and little fingers, and P2 Hug Me on my thumb and ring fingers. For the circular design I used P2 Hug Me, OPI My Back Pocket, Essie Meet Me at Sunset and OPI You Don't Know Jacques. I did the stripes on the accent nails using those same colours, although I think it would have looked better with a different colour to the brown, there's just something about it !

So do you like this design as much as I do ? I love the circular gradient design, I really think it looks like real 60's kitchen wallpaper with the gross colours, there were loads of different wallpaper patterns I saw but this one really inspired me, and I'm so glad I steered clear of the floral designs for today's theme !

Tomorrow I've got to do watermarbling for the "W" theme of the challenge, and I remember saying in my post last time when I wrote about my first successful attempt at it that I was excited about trying it again, but I'm not so sure now ! I'm feeling nervous about it ! Wish me lots and lots of luck !

Alphabet Nail Art Challenge : Q for Quilt

Hey there everybody ! So I have to admit, I was feeling completely unenthusiastic about today's theme both last night and this morning, even when I'd decided what I wanted to do on my nails and sat down to do them I ended up procrastinating for another hour or so and totally delayed having to do them ! I got them done in the end though so that's all that matters, and I'm actually rather pleased with them !

I looked up "quilts" on wikipedia which came up with all sorts of different types, even "crazy quilts" which I considered, but decided that was too complicated ! In the end I searched for quilts on Pinterest and found this one which inspired me ! I didn't use the colours that were in the pinterest quilt image, and instead I chose to pick some random colours from my collection !

I used OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls for the base colour, and the coloured triangles were done using OPI Funky Dunkey, OPI Planks A Lot, OPI Sparrow Me the Drama, OPI My Very First Knockwurst, OPI Can't Find my Czechbook, OPI Big Apple Red, OPI My Back Pocket, China Glaze Man Hunt and Essie Meet Me at Sunset. Wow.. that's a lot of nail varnish !

This design took ages for me to do, far longer than I had expected ! As you can see I started with a lot of detail and small triangles on the thumb but then as soon as I'd finished that nail, I knew the others had to have a larger pattern on them ! Just imagine the time it would have taken me otherwise !!!

I'm going to watch some more TV now before I go to bed, so I'll see you tomorrow !

Alphabet Nail Art Challenge : P for Paisley

Good evening everyone ! So it's the 15th day of the alphabet nail art challenge and I have yet another design I've never tried before to show you all today ! The theme today is "P for Paisley" and I'm sure you've seen loads of different paisley nail art designs before, pretty much everywhere on the internet in fact, so I hope you all like my interpretation !

I was inspired by Chelsea from Get Nailed for the actual paisley droplet things (doest anyone know what they're called ?), and the rest I just sort of doodled to add details to the empty spaces ! It took quite a while to paint it all, I found it quite fiddly but I'm really pleased about how it looks !

I used OPI I Vant to Bite Your Neck for the base, although I think a brighter colour may have been slightly better for the look, maybe red for a bandana sort of look, but then the deep purple really shows up the white ! I used white acrylic paint for the paisley print, although I think I'm going to need to get a different white as the one I've got is "mixing white" as opposed to proper white acrylic paint so it's not as opaque as I would like it to be !

So that's it for today ! What are your experiences with white acrylic paint ? Is a normal white quite opaque or is it still temperamental  like mine ? I'd love to know ! Now it's time to me to go and brainstorm for a while about what I'm going to do on my nails tomorrow.. the theme is "quilt" and I don't have any idea what I'm going to do !

Alphabet Nail Art Challenge : M for Mosaic

Hello everyone ! It feels like the day has gone seriously quickly today, perhaps because I didn't wake up until 11am this morning, I ended up not doing very much all day except for a bit of fiddling on my computer and doing my nails late this afternoon ! I'm really pleased with what I've come up with for today's mosaic theme in the nail art challenge, I hope you all like it !

I was thinking of maybe using some striping tape to make squares and just paint them all different colours but I didn't fancy the idea of waiting around for my base colours to dry before I could use the striping tape, so that idea went out the window ! Instead I settled on another freehand nail art design in a mosaic pattern, which I think looks far better than anything I could have done with striping tape !

For today's design I started by alternating base colours with OPI My Very First Knockwurst and OPI Dim Sum Plum. As well as those colours, I used OPI Sparrow Me the Drama, OPI Strawberry Margerita and OPI Planks A Lot for the mosaic pieces. I think I prefer the nails which have Dim Sum Plum for the base (index and ring) because the mosaic triangles on top look more pronounced in comparison to the other three nails, what do you reckon ?

So I may have managed to avoid using striping tape today but I don't think I'll be able to avoid it for tomorrow's nautical theme, not for what I have planned in any case ! You'll have to wait until tomorrow for that though, so I'll see you all then !

NOTD : Tie Dye

Hey there everyone ! It's really late and I've had loads of stuff on my hands recently with revision and all that (I have my first exam on Monday, not long now), but obviously I still managed to make time to do my nails, I just haven't got round to writing the post until now ! It won't be long as I'm really tired, but I felt I couldn't leave you without anything for another day !

So I did this design yesterday morning, when I was supposed to be revising... I've been wanting to tie dye a shirt for a few weeks now and I figured I'd paint some tie dye on my nails while I wait for the actual thing ! I looked up some images on google and it came up with this photo :

I really like that it's more purpley than the usual tie dye you see around, in my opinion anyway !

For this design, the colours I used were OPI My Vampire is Buff for the base, then I used OPI Dim Sum Plum, Essie Meet Me at Sunset, P2 Hug Me, Collection 2000 Ninja and Models Own Blooboo. I almost left out the yellow accents when I was painting these, but I'm glad I didn't as I think it really brings all the colours together !

So that's all for today, I've got to go and get ready for bed as I need a good night's sleep before MORE revision tomorrow, oh happy days ! Night night everyone ! See you all soon !

NOTD : Bright Harlequin

Hey there everyone ! So today's post is super early to make a change, that doesn't happen very often ! I'm going away today for a week and so I won't be around to post anything, but I'm scheduling a couple of posts that I've prepared (instead of revising, obviously) to tide you over until I get back !

So I did these nails yesterday, and it's a design I've been wanting to do for ages, but I've been trying to think up a good colour combination for it ! In the end I just grabbed a few bright colours and they seemed to go relatively well together so I just started painting ! The design took me a couple of hours to do, I started off with my left hand just in case I didn't like it so I didn't waste nail varnish on my right hand, but as I ended up really liking the design I did it on both of my hands !

For this design, the colours I used were P2 Crazy About Green for the base (this colour would have been absolutely awesome if it wasn't a shimmer), then I used OPI Dim Sum Plum, OPI My Back Pocket and Models Own Blooboo for the different triangles. I freehanded everything as I seem to have problems with the tape method (mainly because I'm too impatient to wait for everything to dry), and I think the lines still turned out pretty crisp ! Result !

Right so that's all for today folks, I've got a couple more posts to write for you all and then I've got to finish getting ready ! See ya next week !

NOTD : Warhol Bananas

Hey everyone ! Sorry I've been away from posting for so long, after I got back from France last weekend, I've been on non-stop catching up with uni work and essays and reading (let's just ignore the procrastination part), so I haven't really had any time at all for nails ! I managed to do a quick swatch on Monday, but obviously didn't get any time to post that so that should be up on here soon ! Anyway, on to today's nails !

So I've been seeing the Andy Warhol Velvet Underground Banana print used in nail art for a few weeks now, and I decided to jump on the band wagon, mainly because I love how bright and summery it looks, and also how effective it is ! We've been starting to get slightly better weather here in England recently this week, so I may as well make the most of what we're getting and brighten it up a bit more while it lasts !

For today's design, the nail varnishes I used were OPI Suzi's Hungary Again ! for the base, then for the actual bananas I used P2 Hug Me, a tiny little bit of OPI You Don't Know Jacques to add a bit of dimension, and then I finished off with a tiny bit of outlining with my Models Own Wah Nails nail art pen in black.

I am seriously in love with these nails at the moment, and I'll probably be including them as accents in future nail art I do, they're just such a great addition to brighten up an already summery colour ! What do you all think ? Are you getting in to using bright colours to get in the mood for Spring/Summer ?

I'm off to bed now as it's super late and I got barely any sleep last night ! Hopefully I'll be able to post again tomorrow for you all, either with a swatch or some more nail art from the vault !

Inspired By : Kenzo Resort 2013

Good evening everyone ! I am SO tired for some reason, probably because it's almost time for me to go to bed (and I probably will do just that once I've finished this post), but seeing as it got too late for me to post anything last night, I thought I'd better not leave you without a post for yet another evening !

So I was just looking through the internet for nail inspiration the other day, when I came across this design by Kenzo for the Resort 2013 season. I knew it would translate well into a nail design, so off I went to start with the painting ! Unfortunately I didn't wear this design for very long as I dented my thumb pretty soon after taking the photos, so I went on to do something else !

For this design, the nail varnishes I used were OPI My Vampire is Buff for the base, and then I used Catrice Salmon and Garfunkel for the spots which I then outlined with my Models Own Wah Nails nail art pen in black. I really liked the way this looked, and it's a shame that I had to take it off so quickly, but there's an endless amount of colour combinations you can do with this design !

And that'll be all for today everybody ! I'm going to go to bed whilst watching some Harry Potter, always a great way to get to sleep ! See you all again soon everyone !

NOTD : Geometric Diamonds

Happy Sunday everybody ! So on Friday I eventually got round to doing my nails (finally) after my floral design from last Sunday, but I never seemed to be happy with the design I did until about midnight last night, which is why is didn't end up posting anything until now ! I am however super-pleased with this design (even though it's gone now due to important swatches that needed to be done), but I think I need some really really really nice weather to come along and inspire me now !

Basically I've been working on a diamond sort cubey tessellation drawing thing while I've been watching TV for the last week, and seriously felt to the need to do it on my nails, but I really couldn't be bothered because I knew it'd take forever to paint ! And I was right, it took about 2 hours to do, and I only did one hand (there was no way I was going to stay up any longer just to struggle recreating on my right hand as well). I am really really pleased with how it looks though, maybe next time I'll do the pattern slightly bigger so I don't have to do as much small detailing !

For this design, I started off with a base of OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls, then with a LOT of patience, I used American Apparel Hassid and OPI Can't Find My Czechbook for the diamond shapes that make up the pattern. I really like how cool it looks, and from a distance it really does look like it's a nail wrap or something, which is always good !

So that's all for today ! I now have plenty of designs for posts this week, I've got lots of work at the moment so not so much time for nails, so it's just as well that I couldn't decide on anything these past couple of day ! What do you think of tessellation designs like this ? Would you paint it despite the amount of time it takes to do ?

I'll see you all tomorrow hopefully if I get time to write a post, but until then, have a great day !

NOTD : Gingham Style

Hey there everybody ! Woah, two days in a row ! Can you believe it ?! I've got soooo much spare time at the moment seeing as I don't start lectures again until Thursday, and I'm struggling to find stuff to do ! I even resorted to doing some ironing earlier on as I literally had nothing else to do, oh woe is me ! Anyway, I did my nails first thing this morning, which means I'm actually able to post them at a reasonable time today, woohoo !

My mum suggested that I ought to try doing some gingham nails (and she even came up with the tasteful title for today's post), and I really didn't anticipate how long this design would actually take me. I remembered looking at gingham tablecloths and napkins and stuff and always noticed that the "lighter" colour was actually just the block colour with alternating white stripes, and so I decided to do that for my nails today ! I also saw whilst browsing earlier that Katy from Nailed It did a tutorial on for a gingham design using tape (probably far quicker than my method today).

So for today's design, the nail varnishes I used were American Apparel T-Shirt, and then for the green I used OPI Jade is the New Black. I decided to go with green as it's a traditional colour theme for gingham (as is red, but I didn't fancy the tedious removal process that comes with it and its staining), and I didn't realise what a great Christmas green Jade is the New Black is, shame I didn't realise at Christmas really, I've been looking for one everywhere !

So what do you think of today's design ? I personally think it looks far better from a distance than it does close up, it's just a shame it took such a long time to paint ! I couldn't even be bothered to paint the design on my right hand and so I just went with plain simple stripes on that hand, oh well !

I'll see you all again tomorrow everyone, perhaps with a swatch, or maybe some more nail art, we'll soon see !

NOTD : Stars and Shiny Stripes

Hola everyone ! So I had my first exam today which went pretty well so I'm really happy, and so I decided to reward my good work with some baking and some nail art ! I made some reaaaaaally tasty macadamia nut caramel squares which are seriously tasty, and after that I just decided to chill and do my nails whilst watching ANTM (oh lord I have spent far too long watching it during this past week..) ! So without further ado, the nails !

This is an idea I've had in my head for quite a while, but I have never got around to executing it ! I'm really glad I did finally get to do this nail design though because I think it looks great ! I think I'm getting slightly over-the-top with the amount of nail art designs with these two accent nails recently, it seems to me that I've been doing rather a lot of them ! Never mind !

So the nail polishes I used for today's design are American Apparel T-Shirt, China Glaze Man Hunt and OPI Die Another Day, plus my Models Own Wah Nails nail art pen in white for the stars on my accent nails. I thought that Die Another Day would be a bit too orangey for the stripes for the USA flag, but as it turns out it really works quite well and the orange-ness isn't that noticeable ! I think a deeper red polish would have been too much maybe !

And that's that for today everyone ! I hope you all enjoyed today's design, now I'm off to watch a bit more ANTM before a friend comes over to watch Team America ! Happy times ! Hopefully it won't be too too long before my next post, my next and last exam is on Thursday (unless of course it gets cancelled because of this damn snow, ugh I hate snow so much right now), so hopefully I can post something after that as I'll be revising all day tomorrow !

Hope you all have a great evening !

NOTD : Duotone Skittles

Helloooooo everybody ! Now normally I would have posted something for you all last night, but I had some friends over for an early Christmas meal before we break up for the holidays which was great ! We even had our own personalised Christmas crackers hats (and would you believe that mine had nail varnish on it ?) ! But anyway, I'm back today with a NOTD for you all !

I was going to carry on with another manicure for my Advent Calendar series today, but I wasn't really feeling the Christmas nail inspiration when it came to doing my nails, so I just went with a simple pattern design ! I really love how the houndstooth turned out on my thumb, but for some reason it doesn't look right, and I can't seem to work out why !

So for this design, the colours I used were OPI My Very First Knockwurst, and then I did all the black detailing on top using my Models Own Wah Nails nail art pen in black. I just looked up different black and white patterns on google images and it was pretty easy to fill up all 10 nails with a different pattern on each !

And here's an extremely bright iPhone picture to show you all what I did on my right hand (seeing as I can't physically hold my camera in my left hand and take a successful photo) ! Anyway, that's it for today, I hope you like this NOTD in comparison to all the Christmas nails I've been showering you with !

See you all tomorrow everybody !

Advent Calendar : Snowflakes

Good evening everyone ! So I'm back once again with another Christmas-themed manicure, I'm seriously enjoying these festive nail designs, so much fun and it's stuff you can't really do during the rest of the year ! So I'm going to use every excuse possible to do as many Christmas nails as possible this year !

I've never actually painted anything remotely ressembling a snowflake before, I remember last year I used the Konad M59 plate to do plain snowflake stamps over red glittery polish, so I'm glad I did this by hand this year ! I think the pattern looks like it could be like a wrapping paper design or something, I love it !

So for this design, the base colour I used was Orly On The List, a little mini bottle I got in Boots last year ! I used two coats for this design as it was the perfect red colour for what I wanted, but I think if you do a third coat the colour gets a lot darker ! I drew on the snowflakes with my Models Own Wah Nails nail art pen in white.

And that's it for today's Advent Calendar design, I'm already so excited for Christmas (mainly because I get to go home and see my family), and soon I won't have any work to do here at uni and I can just rest ! Exciting stuff ! Anyway I hope you like today's design, and I'll be back soon with another !

See you soon everyone !

NOTD : Dotty Swirls

Well hello there everybody ! I'm back with a brand new NOTD for you all ! Happy times ! Plus today is an extremely good day as the two presentations I had to do this week are all done with (except now I've got an Italian presentation to do next Tuesday), so now all I've got left are 3 essays ! Yaaaaaay feel the enthusiasm ! Anyway, I figured today was a good day to do my nails, and I'm super happy with how they turned out !

So this design is based on an idea my mum had when giving me inspiration for my nails ! She always has the best ideas ! I decided to go with a black and white design as I haven't done anything that's plain black and white for ages (or not that I can remember in any case) ! I also wanted something quick and simple and black and white is pretty much the easiest colour combination to not have to think about !

The two polishes I used for this design were American Apparel T-Shirt, and American Apparel Hassid. For the actual design, I just used two different ends of a dotting tool, one large and one small and created a swirly pattern ! Easy !

And that's it for today everyone ! I'm really tired now, so I'm going to finish up some reading for one of my essays and then go to bed and maybe watch some TV, only two more weeks of uni and then I'll be off home for Christmas, very excited, not to mention not having to work for a good 3 weeks ! Happy happy happy times !

See you all soon everyone !