Category: coffee

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Happy National Coffee Day Nails! ☕️


You know I love a good excuse to celebrate a holiday & what better holiday to celebrate than National Coffee Day! I joined my girls in #thenailartsquad for some caffeine inspired manicures in order to celebrate this day in style! 

Obvious if we’re doing coffee inspired nails, I had to do something Starbucks inspired! I also thought I would pull out some of the acrylic paints I recently picked up for my freehanding details. 



For this design, the products I used were:

  • Base Coat: OPI Natural Nail Base Coat
  • Top Coat: Sally Hansen Diamond Flash
  • Essie Mochacino
  • Essie Cocktails & Coconuts 
  • Sally Hansen Hard To Get
  • Acrylic Paints (black, white, brown & green)
  • Silicone Mat
  • Tiny dotting tool 
  • Small Detail Brush

I had this idea of how I wanted this design to turn out, & it turned out exactly how I imagined in my head… I love when that happens! I used my pink silicone mat to create my “latte art” drag marble decals which (I think) turned out really good. I also tested out my acrylic paints for the first time, & they were so easy to use for nail art! I definitely understand why they are such a popular option for nail art—I would have had a much harder time creating my little Starbucks cup using just regular nail polish. Now I want to buy even more colours to test out designs! 

What do you think of these coffee nails in honour of National Coffee Day? What’s you favourite coffee drink of choice? Obviously I love pumpkin spice this time of year, but if we’re picking favourites I absolutely can’t wait for Gingebread lattes to return! 
Don’t forget to check out the hashtag #thenailartsquad to see all the coffee themed designs, as well as our past collaborations! 

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Feeling Blue… Stripes 💙

Happy Friday! It’s been so long since I played around with my stripers, which used to be one of my favourite nail art tools, so I figured why not pull them out for some fun stripes. This used to be my go-to design whenever I had nubbins, & it makes somewhat medium  length nails look even longer! (& who doesn’t want their nails to look longer?)

For this manicure I used:

  • Base Coat: L’Oréal All in One
  • Top Coat: Essie Speed Setter
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Beatnik 
  • Kiss Products Nail Art Striper in Black
  • Kiss Products Nails Art Striper in White
  • Jordana Cosmetics Pop Art Nail Design in Blue Abstract

After spending the majority of June not wearing any blue nails, I must say it was nice to pull out again. I purchased Sally Hansen Beatnik on clearance at Shoppers while on my no-blue-nails crusade (I know, I have a sickness), so I was excited to finally get it wear it. & it really is such a pretty colour. That’s why I thought just some simple striping would really compliment the colour & I was right! 

What are you wearing on your nails right now? Let me know in the comments below! 

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Saran Wrap Splatter–Summer Edition!

It’s officially Summer, & even though the weather here in Halifax is being less than agreeable (go away clouds), I just want to wear pretty dresses & sandals & enjoy the sunshine. In the meantime, I decided some bright Saran Wrap splatter nails would be appropriate. Maybe it will even encourage the sun to stick around longer than a few hours! 


For this manicure, I used:

  • Base Coat: L’Oréal All in One Base Coat
  • Top Coat: Essie Speed Setter
  • Hard Candy Coconut
  • Sally Hansen Boho Blue
  • Ardene Whacky
  • Maybelline Color Show Fiery Tulip

I seriously love how these turned out–the blues & purple work so well together. My barista even complimented me on my nails, which always makes me feel good when someone other than my husband notices. I am just never disappointed when I pull out the plastic wrap for this design! Sometimes it can be messy, but always easy to clean up (way easier than cleaning up a classic splatter manicure!) & the end result is just so much fun. 

What do you think of my Saran Wrap design? What’s your favourite Summer manicure design?  Let me know in the comments below! 

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Tribal Print Gradient Nails

I know I say this every time I do my nails, but these have to be one of my favourite gradients I’ve ever done. Seriously–just look! It turned out so pretty. I’d never claim to be a gradient expert, but damn if I don’t feel proud of how these turned out! & what does better with a gradient than a little stamping? I don’t think I’ve done any stamping since before the Lil Bubs was born, & I didn’t realize how much I missed it. 

For this manicure, I used:

  • Base Coat: Perfect Formula Pink Gel Coat
  • Top Coat: Cutex Quick Dry Top Coat
  • Essie Lounge Lover
  • China Glaze Glow With The Flow
  • China Glaze Plur-ple
  • Essie Butler Please
  • Yves Saint Laurent Noir Brilliant
  • Born Pretty Store Peel Off Liquid Tape
  • Born Pretty Store Stamping Plate (QA66)
  • Latex Free Make Up Sponge

Why don’t I stamp more often, seriously? Well mostly because I only have the same few stamping plates. But hopefully I can change that soon because it just makes for sure an intricate manicure. I would never freehand this design (at least not without a lot of crankiness & frustration!) 

For my gradient, I started off with a basic sponged gradient & then went back over the gradient dry brushing my colours for a bit of a rustic look. It lead to an interesting blend that I really, really like. 

What do you think of this mani? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below! 💜

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Fairy Dust-ed Half Moons 


Happy First Day of May! I hope the weather wher you are is more beautiful than the cloudy grey skies covering Halifax. 

I recently refreshed my bottle of China Glaze Fairy Dust & I’m obsessed all over again. I’ve been adding it to all my manicures because the sparkle is just so pretty. I realized I hadn’t done any half moons in quite a while so it felt like a good time for some. 

For this manicure, I used:

  • Base Coat: Perfect Formula Pink Gel Coat
  • Top Coat: Cutex Quick Dry Top Coat 
  • OPI Two Timing The Zones 
  • OPI Lost My Bikini in Monoloki
  • China Glaze Fairy Dust
  • Paper Hole Reinforcements

So pink & purple is definitely my favourite half moon colour combination. I’ve done it a lot, but it just pairs so well together. 💜💗 & adding the holo glitter of Fairy Dust just improves it even more. 

 Feel a gradient coming on featuring these colours, with Fairy Dust of course. All gradients just need Fairy Dust, it’s pretty much a requirement. 


What’s is your favourite glitter top coat? Obviously my #1 is Fairy Dust but if I had to pick another I would say the Quo By ORLY Matte Glitter Topper or Essie Shine of the Times. If there is one thing almost as beautiful as holo glitters, it’s definitely flakies. 

Let me know your top picks in the comments below!