Category: Manicure

Posted on

Fuchsia Floral Accent Nails

Hello beauties & happy Thursday! I’ve been struck down by a cold from Hell, but that doesn’t mean I can’t show off some pretty (early) Spring nails — right? Especially since it’s supposed to be relatively warm today.

It feels like ions since I last did any floral. Floral has always been one of my favourite go to nail art looks, but I think I went through a floral rut for a while, because I was not inspired to do any on my nails. But I’m back, & I’m showing off the prettiest floral in hopes that Mother Nature gets the message.

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Essie Hard To Resist Glow & Shine 
  • Top Coat: Seche Vite Fast Dry Top Coat
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Lilac Insomniac
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Ski Bunny
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Unicorn Top Coat
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Wet My Thistle
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Me, My Elf & I
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Blacky-O
  • NailStuff.ca 4mm Micro Detail Brush

Okay, first off I apologize for my shitty pictures because I’ve been having photo troubles lately. My photo quality has been dipping dramatically, so I might switch back to just using my photo box & daytime lamp for a while to see if it makes a difference. Second — I’m so happy with how this look turned out! It definitely took some time to get the colouring right on the flower. But I decided not to go super complicated in the background. & I’m so happy with how cute they look!

What do you think of this floral look? Have you missed the floral as much as I did? Let me know down in the comments below!

Posted on

L.O.V.E. nails (Happy Valentine’s Day!) 💗

Good morning loves & happy Valentine’s Day!

It’s a snowy Valentine’s Day here in Halifax, after a big dumping of snow. Not super impressed with the weather, but that won’t stop me from sharing my last Valentine’s Day look for this year! I really wanted to do more hearts — like accent hearts — but at the last second I decided to write L.O.V.E in the middle of them. & I’m obsessed.

They’re like heart shaped scrabble tiles! & I love it.

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Essie Hard To Resist Glow & Shine 
  • Top Coat: Seche Vite Fast Dry Top Coat
  • QUO Beauty Velveteen
  • ACO by Ardene Flawless
  • Starrily Vantablack
  • Dotting tool (NailStuff.ca — Dotting Tool Trio)
  • NailStuff.ca 4mm Micro Detail Brush

I’m not sure why, but I really wants to do heart accent nails at the base of my nails. But when I finished my little pale pink hearts, they looked a little basic, so I decided to outline them in black — my go to for jazzing up a manicure. BUT THEN, I thought: what if I attempted to spell out Love in my hearts. It was a risk, but it turned out so awesome, so I couldn’t be happier!

What do you think about this love themed design? Do you like this simple nail art? Let me know all your thoughts in the comments below!

I hope everyone has a happy Valentine’s Day, & if it’s not your thing then I hope you enjoy tomorrow which is 50% of chocolate day!

♥︎

Posted on

SWATCH SUNDAY — QUO Loud & Proud

Hello lovelies & happy Sunday!

It’s a beautiful, sunny & slightly chilly weekend here on the East Coast. It’s also 2 days until Valentine’s Day, so I went searching for something pink to share for this week’s Swatch Sunday. Pink’s not a colour I wear very often, but one I love to buy. So I thought why not bring out one of those untouched pink’s for this week’s post.

Today’s pick: QUO Beauty Flash Dry Loud & Proud. I picked up this shade last Winter, on clearance–naturally–& have only used it in a couple manicures since. But, since it’s a sunny day, I was feeling some neon.

2 coats, no top coat.

Loud & Proud is a shocking coral neon pink which dries to a semi matte finish, as most neons do. The formula was a bit crelly, leaning on the creme side, but had almost full opacity in two coats. I was actually a bit nervous about needing a ton of coats, but 2 was perfect for me. If you had longer nails, with more of a free edge, you might need another coat, or some white undies.

This shade comes from the QUO Beauty Flash Dry line, which means it’s supposed to dry quicker than your average nail polish. The first coat was definitely quick to dry, although I found the second coat a little bit slower — maybe because I had applied my second coat a bit thicker? The shade was also incredibly hard to photograph the colour correctly, but I tried my best. Originally, it was leaning very orange, which wasn’t true to colour at all.

This were definitely as close to the true colour as I could get it to show.

What do you think about this fun pink neon from QUO? Would you bright this bright, matte pink for your Valentine’s Day celebrations? Let me know what you think & what you’re going to be wearing for any upcoming Valentine’s Day celebrations!

Posted on

Valentine’s Gradient Dotticure

Hello beauties & happy Thursday! & what a gorgeous & sunny Thursday it is here on the East Coast — too bad we’re going to hit another Winter storm tomorrow.

Is it Spring yet?

Today though, I’m concentrating on some more Valentine’s Day inspired nails with a fun (& easy) gradient dotticure. I wanted something pink & fun leading up to the big day, but didn’t necessarily want to go fun on hearts with this look. So I thought why not capture the essence of the holiday with the colours I was feeling, without out right saying Valentine’s. & besides, what is more fun than a dotticure.

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Essie Hard To Resist Glow & Shine 
  • Top Coat: Seche Vite Fast Dry Top Coat
  • Sally Hansen Good. Kind. Pure. Almond Tan
  • Sally Hansen GKP Eco Rose
  • Sally Hansen GKP Peony Origins
  • Sally Hansen GKP Pomegranate Punch
  • Dotting tool (NailStuff.ca — Dotting Tool Trio)

I wanted a really neutral base shade, that wasn’t white & wasn’t completely naked, which is why I picked Sally Hansen Good. Kind. Pure in Almond Tan. I feel like it’s pretty close to my natural colouring. & then I figured, why not just keep the Good. Kind. Pure. train going with a few more of my favourite pink-y shades from my stash. & bam! A fun gradient dotticure which is perfect for a Valentine’s date night, or to enjoy 50% off chocolate on the 15th. Either way, it was a super easy design to do, so I was excited to wear it!

What do you think about this gradient dotticure design? Are you a fan of these funky easy designs, or do you prefer something a little more complicated? Let me know what you think, & what colour combination you would rock this design in!

Have a happy Thursday loves ♥︎

Posted on

Pink on Pink Valentine’s Hearts 💗

Hello lovelies. It’s officially one week until Valentine’s Day, so I figured that a good enough time as any to start with a little love-ly nail art. Truth be told, I’m not a huge fan of Valentine’s Day… minus to opportunity to make cupcakes. But I do like the excuse to pull out all of my pink nail polishes at once, so I’m hoping to share a few nail art looks over the next week.

First up, a simple & slightly rustic heart design. I was inspired by my base polish pick, & decided to build my manicure around it.

The polishes I used for this manicure are: 

  • Base Coat: Essie Hard To Resist Glow & Shine 
  • Top Coat: Seche Vite Fast Dry Top Coat
  • OPI DS Extravagance
  • OPI Koala Berry
  • OPI Pinking of You
  • OPI Chiffon My Mi
  • Dotting tool (NailStuff.ca — Dotting Tool Trio)
  • NailStuff.ca Mermaid Tail Nail Brush Trio (11mm Liner Brush)

How cute did these little hearts turn out? I feel like free handing hearts can be kind of hit or miss, so I was a bit scared how they would turn out — especially because I was not in the mood to start my design all over again. I did like the hearts just solid colours, but I wanted to try outlining the hearts, & I’m so glad I did because I feel like it made them pop off the nail so much more vibrantly! & they don’t seem so one dimensional. Absolutely adorable.

What do you think about these adorable pink on pink heart nails? Have you been playing around with some Valentine’s (or anti-Valentine’s) Day designs for this year? I’m definitely thinking pink (duh) & maybe a gradient dotticure? I can’t wait to share what design I end up choosing!

♥︎