Category: Freehand

Posted on

Abstract Dots Featuring Essie

*features gifted products*

Hello lovelies & happy Wednesday! How crazy is it that we’re already half way through the week?

Today I have a fun look to share with you I did with a few of the shades from the Essie Summer 2020 collection! This is actually a redo of a design I did a few weeks ago (& posted on Instagram) that was inspired by @thesammerasaurus. I’ve really been loving Kaf-tan, Spice It Up & Mosiac On Down, & I decided I had to do a design pairing them together. & since I’ve been kind of obsessed with abstract designs, I decided to give this abstract dotticure-ish look another go!

For this manicure, the polishes I used were:

  • Base Coat: Essie Strong Start
  • Top Coat: Essie Gel Setter
  • Essie Ballet Slippers
  • Essie Spice It Up
  • Essie Kaf-tan
  • Essie Mosiac On Down
  • Essie Bobbing for Baubles
  • NailStuff.ca Dotting Tool Trio — I used a medium sized dotter (Use COFFEE10 to save 10%)
  • NailStuff.ca 7mm detail brush (for my tiny navy dots)

Isn’t this just such a cute look? I love it! Besides the fact that the colour options are endless, because you’re not trying to be “perfect” in your dots, you can’t really mess it up! I don’t know about you, but sometimes trying to make my nail art perfect gets me a little frustrated. Plus this nail art took me maybe 20 minutes from start to finish — which is great because I was doing my nails before bed. Haha. So I needed a quick manicure.

What do you think about this design? Are these abstract dots something that you would rock? Let me know all your thoughts in the comments below! & let me know what your favourite quick & easy nail art look is!

Posted on

Blue & Grey Herringbone Pattern

Good morning lovelies & Happy Wednesday. I don’t know how it’s possible that we’re already half way through the week, but we are! & Today I’ve got a cute nail art look to share that is perfect for short nails (like mine!)

I’ve always been a fan of herringbone/chevron looks, mostly because they’re surprisingly easy to do! & for a bit of a rustic look like this, you don’t need to have the most perfectly thin of straight lines. & it will still look cute! This particular design was actually inspired by this pot, although I added the splashes of blue to make it a bit more Summery.

For this manicure, the polishes I used were:

  • Base Coat: Essie Strong Start
  • Top Coat: Essie Gel Setter
  • Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Grey Area
  • China Glaze Boho Blue
  • Kiss Products Nail Art Striper in white
  • NailStuff.ca Dotting Tool Trio — I used the small one to fill in my blocks of colour! (Use COFFEE10 to save 10%)

I really really love how these turned out. My white Kiss striper is definitely on it’s last legs which led to a bit of messiness of my stripes, but I feel like it works with this kind of pattern. Truthfully, I could have used a striper nail art brush to achieve the same look, but I was short on time, & this was a bit easier. I will definitely have to try again though, maybe with a few of the Essie Summer 2020 polishes I just received! I think I could do a beautiful quatrefoil design with them too, so stay tuned for fun nail art looks!

What do you think about this herringbone look! I feel like it looks really good on my super short nails! It’s a great way to fancy them up! Let me know what your favourite short nail design is in the comments below!

Posted on

Freehanded Floral & Anchor Nails

Hello lovelies & happy Thursday!

It’s certainly been a while since I had some nail art to share! Actually, that’s a lie. I have a ton of nail art looks saved on my phone, but I’ve been struggling a lot lately with the motivation to keep posting. I love love love nail polish, & nail art, & blogging, but this year has really messed things up. I need to figure out a good blogging schedule for my free time, but right now it’s almost non-existent, hence my very sporadic posting schedule.

But new nails! Let’s get excited.

For this manicure, the polishes I used were:

  • Base Coat: Essie Strong Start
  • Top Coat: Essie Gel Setter
  • China Glaze Boho Blue
  • Essence Black is Back
  • Essie Check Your Baggage
  • Essie Fall for NYC
  • Sally Hansen CSM Fire Island
  • Essence The Green & The Grunge
  • Essence Don’t Be Shy
  • NailStuff.ca 7mm detail brush (COFFEE10 to save 10%)
  • NailStuff.ca Dotting Tool Trio 

I’m so incredibly proud of the freehanding I did for this nail art look. I’ve never attempted a freehand anchor before, but I don’t think it ended up too bad! This idea is actually based on a tattoo I want to get in honour of my grandparents — the anchor for my Granddad who just passed, & the yellow roses for my Granny. My roses turned out a little more peachy than intended, but I think the overall look is lovely. 🌿⚓️🌼 & it pains me these didn’t last more than a day, because I absolutely adore them.

What do you think about this freehand look? Where do you get your nail art inspo? Let me know down in the comments below!

Posted on

A Fresh Floral

 

Happy Tuesday lovelies! Hope your week is off to a fantastic start. Today officially marks the last day of June, & even though I had a pretty quiet month blog wise, I’m back & going to end June with my absolute favourite thing to paint: floral. 🌸🌿 It’s actually been a hot minute since my last floral design, so I thought it was long overdue. (Plus flowers just make me so happy.)

For this manicure, the polishes I used were:

  • Base Coat: Essie Strong Start
  • Top Coat: Essie Gel Setter
  • Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure Warm Regards
  • Essie Check Your Baggage
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Malibu Peach
  • Sally Hansen MG Bourbon Babe
  • Sally Hansen MG Get Mod
  • Sally Hansen MG Black-y O
  • Essie Off Tropic
  • Essie First Timer
  • NailStuff.ca 7mm detail brush (COFFEE10 to save 10%)

I’m super obsessed with how these turned out — they actually remind me a bit of a design I did a few years ago that were inspired by a day planner of mine. But I think I love these even more! I absolutely adore rustic floral designs over something a little more realistic. Maybe because there is beauty in the imperfections. Either way, I think this design turned out so beautiful & I couldn’t stop staring at them. The peach & yellow just go so well with the red-ish base shade. I can’t get enough. 

what do you think about this floral design? Are you more a fan of rustic or realistic floral? Let me know all your thoughts down in the comments below (& maybe share what your favourite real life flower is as well!) 

Posted on

Tropical Florals 🌺

 

Good morning lovelies! & happy Thursday. I hope wherever you are reading this from, that your coffee (or tea, or energy drink, or wine) is strong, & the sun is shining. Today I’ve got a really pretty tropical floral that I did a few weeks back, which I really loved. & I feel like it’s the perfect manicure for this increasingly beautiful weather we’ve been having!

For this manicure, the polishes I used were:

  • Base Coat: Sally Hansen Good Kind Pure Hardener
  • Top Coat: Essie Speed Setter
  • Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure Fiery Island
  • Sally Hansen I ♥ Nail Art Pen in Magenta
  • OPI Suzy Shops & Island Hops
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Fuchsia Fever
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Blacky-O
  • Essie Off Tropic
  • Essie First Timer
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Terra-Coppa
  • Sally Hansen I ♥ Nail Art Pen in Green
  • NailStuff.ca 7mm detail brush (COFFEE10 to save 10%)

As you guys have seen, I love a good floral but I tend to have a certain trend — it’s mostly roses or a similar style. But lately I’ve been really trying to improve my skill with different florals, which is why I wanted to try out a tropical inspired look. It’s definitely out of more comfort zone, & takes a bit more talent to create, but the end result looks jsut beautiful! & it’s fun to try something I don’t feel like I’m that awesome at. Plus, you know, wearing the same style floral over & over can get a bit monotonous, so it’s nice to switch things up a bit!

Also this look definitely makes me want to pull out my favourite tropical print dress to wear! & since it’s supposed to be feeling very Summery today, that’s exactly what I might do! 

What do you think about this tropical floral? Is the weather feeling like Summer where you are? Let me know down in the comments below!