Sweater Nails with Water Decals from NailsStuff.ca

I’ve written before about my obsession with creating sweater nails. It’s one of my favourite styles for this time of year! So when I received these water nail decals from NailStuff.ca, I couldn’t wait to have a new way to create sweater nails, especially ones that I could do a bit faster (& a little less messier).

You can find my first experience with water decals–also from NailStuff.ca–here.

For this manicure, the products I used were:

  • Base Coat: Nailtek 2
  • Top Coat: Seche Vive
  • Revlon Elusive
  • Quo by ORLY Breathable Power Packed
  • NailStuff.ca Christmas Fair Isle Water Decal in Grey/Black

These decals were super easy to use. There are a whole bunch of different designs you can chose from, & you can pair different ones together or wear just wear the decals alone.

My only struggle was applying top coat–you want to make sure you’re using enough top coat when you seal in your design. My Seche Vive was a little low so I dragged the same spot twice & it pulled on the decal a little bit (on my ring finger). Also I found that sealing in your design with top coat was best before trying to clean up any excess with acetone so you don’t accidents pull your water decal sideways on your nail (if it isn’t dry enough). Since I’m still relatively new to these decals, these issues are definitely all on me. I think as I practice more, I’ll learn more of these little application tricks.

what do you think of these water decals? Would you try out this sweater nail look? Let me know what you think in the comments below! ❄️

*PR SAMPLE* Some of these items were sent to me for review. However, all opinions are my own

Cosy Legging Inspired Nail Art

Good morning! Don’t know where you are this morning, but here in Halifax it’s grey & rainy. Yep–still no snow in sight. But that doesn’t mean I’m not going to dress my nails all cosy in hopes that maybe we will finally get some snowy weather in time for Christmas. (If not though, we’ll be driving to snow so I’ll have a white Christmas regardless haha.)

These nails are actually inspired by a pair of my favourite pair of winter leggings. I’ve been trying to come up with “short nail” designs & feeling frustrated, but I realized pretty much anything I can do when my nails are long I can create on short nails too! & this design is perfect for that. Also because I used nail vinyls & minimal freehanding, I would say this design is a good option for beginners. It looks much more complicated than it actually is.

For this manicure, the polishes I used were:

  • Base Coat: Nailtek Foundations 2
  • Top Coat: Seche Vive
  • Essence Rock My World
  • Essence Dream On
  • ACO by Ardene Daydreamer
  • Quo by ORLY The Antidote
  • L’Oréal Feeling Kilty
  • Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Hard to Get
  • Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Black Heart
  • Xroma Polish & Vinyls Straight Vinyls
  • Bundle Monster tiny detail brush

I love how these turned out. They remind me a lot of cosy sweater leggings, which is perfect for this time of year. Also like I said, these are so easy to do thanks to the use of nail Vinyls & only a bit of freehanding details. They look way more complicated to do than they actually are, I swear. For beginners, trying maybe one accent nail might be a little less overwhelming.

Oooooh these nails make me want snowy days to wear comfy leggings so bad. Is it snowing where you are yet? Do you typically get White or Green Christmas’ where you are? It’s usually hit or miss Snow wise in Halifax for Christmas–& it’s usually Christmas Eve before we see anything. January on, though, is a whole other story.

What do you think of this design? What designs remind you of Christmas? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!

Holiday Gift Ideas with Quo by ORLY

Good Morning! Today I have a fun post to share with you featuring some fun gift ideas for the nail polish addict in your life (even if that happens to be yourself!)

I don’t know if you’ve visited your local Shoppers Drug Mart, but they currently have some amazing holiday nail products available. Every year they come out with packs of items & I always love checking them out to see what they have! This year, these holiday packs are all about keeping your nails healthy!

Each one of these items would make a great gift for that nail addict in your life, or a great last minute stocking stuffer!

*PR SAMPLE* Some of these items were sent to me for review. However, all opinions are my own.

Continue reading “Holiday Gift Ideas with Quo by ORLY”

Candy Cane Accent Nails

Hello Internet! After two weeks of packing & moving & unpacking & lacking the internet I am finally back! & oh boy am I happy to be back! Its officially December now, & that means it’s time for some serious Christmas-y nail spam. First up? These candy cane accent nails that have been sitting on my phone for the last week.

The polishes used for the design were:

  • Base Coat: Essie Grow Stronger
  • Top Coat: Seche Vive
  • Quo by ORLY The Antidote
  • Essence Dream On
  • Essence Perfect Match
  • Deborah Lippmann She Drives Me Crazy
  • Layla Cosmteics Soft Touch Golden Touch
  • UR SUGAR Nail Stencils item #AUB39877 — click to buy

Who doesn’t love candy canes at Christmas — whether it’s an actual candy cane (my favourite are those sour patch kids ones that used to sell years ago… not sure if you can still buy them) or in the form a candy cane hot chocolate or mocha. There is something about those extra sweet & sugary sticks that bring out your inner elf… even if you don’t really like Christmas all that much.

What do you think  of these candy cane accent nails? Is this something you would wear for any of your holiday occasions. These would be super cute to wear to a Christmas party or Christmas concert! Let me know what you think of this design in the comments below, & let me know any Christmas designs you’d like to see this month!

Saran Wrap Smoosh Nails

I don’t do a lot of Saran Wrap smoosh nails, mostly because I find them fairly messy (& I ran out of liquid latex & I’m being lazy in replacing it). But every time I see one pop up on my Instagram feed I tell myself I need this technique in my life again. They just always look so cool! I’ve been struggling with inspiration lately, so I decided to risk the messy clean up & do a smoosh. 

For this manicure, the polishes I used were:

  • Base Coat: OPI Natural Nail Base Coat
  • Top Coat: Cutex Quick Dry Top Coat 
  • Essie Cocktails & Coconuts
  • China Glaze VII
  • Quo by ORLY Fairy Godmother
  • Saran Wrap, or plastic bag of some sort. 

If you’ve never done a Saran Wrap smoosh, there are lots of tutorials on the internet (this one from @snowglobenails is great). From my expirence, I find sometimes they can take a few tries before you figure out what works for you, but for me less is more.  I prefer to use maximum 3 shades together, otherwise I find my nails can end up looking kind of swampy. & I also try not to push blend colours too much when pressing down on my plastic. 

What’s your thoughts on smooshy nails? Do you have a favourite colour combination? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!