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!

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 ♥︎

Nail Art Warriors for Maria (@so_nailicious)

Hello lovelies.

Today’s post is a special one for a very special member of the nail art community. Maria, aka @so_nailicious, has been a huge inspiration in the nail art world for a long time, & a personal nail art inspiration to me since I really started painting my nails. Over the last year, she has been facing some really tough health battles as she was diagnosed with MS, & as a result been forced to stop doing things that once brought her joy… like painting her nails. So Magda (@redheadnails) banded a group of us together so do some very special manicures in her honour, & I absolutely had to jump at the opportunity!

The colours orange & blue were chosen — orange, which is the colour for MS awareness, & blue which is a colour Maria loves. We also went with a “power” theme, to inspire & show off the strength that Maria is showing in her fight against this heart wrenching disease.

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 Xtreme Wear Pacific Blue (the original formula)
  • Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure One in a Melon
  • Sally Hansen InstaDri Pump-kid
  • Starrily Vantablack
  • Nailstuff.ca clear stamper & scraper set
  • Essence “Stamp It!” plate
  • Unknown stamping plate (bought as part of a set of Dollarama in my early nail art days)

As I mentioned, I was super proud to do these nails in honour of Maria, as her nails & nail art has been an inspiration of mine for a long time, & I wanted to show even though she may be struggling right now & unable to do one of the things she loves, she’s still inspiring her friends in the nail art community everyday!

Check out #nailartwarriorsformaria on Instagram to see all the other beautiful & empowering manicures!

Hot Pink & Polka Dots

Hello beauties & happy Tuesday! A very, very snowy Tuesday here. The weather definitely cannot make up its mind lately.

Today I have a pretty design to share that I actually did a little while ago, but didn’t get a chance to share. I thought that it would be gorgeous for a pre-Valentine’s Day design, so I wanted to share.

The polishes I used for this manicure are:

  • Base Coat: Essie Hard To Resist Glow & Shine 
  • Top Coat: Seche Vite Fast Dry Top Coat
  • Essie Swoon in the Lagoon
  • Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Blacky-O
  • Dotting tool (I always use mine from NailStuff.ca — Dotting Tool Trio)

Gosh I love a good polka dot design. It’s literally the easiest & quickest nail art I think you can do — & it always looks so put together. This is definitely a great nail art look for anyone wanting fun nails, without wanting to put an hour+ into painting something.

What do you think about this nail art look? Is this a nice prelude to February & the Valentine’s Day looks to come? Let me know all your thoughts down below!

Negative Space & Pastel Abstract Stripes

Good morning loves! I hope everyone is having a great start to their Thursday so far. Mine is involving coffee, so that’s always a good start. Plus I have the whole day off to do my laundry & fold it, & put it away — so I’m pumped.

Today I’m sharing a recent manicure I did in the hopes of summoning Spring. Real Spring, not the fake “oops-just-kidding-it’s-still-Winter” Spring we get teased with around the end of March. I know, it’s January, & we’ve barely even had Winter…. but I’m over it. So how about some pastel?

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 Xtreme Wear Royal Hue
  • Essie Mint Candy Apple
  • Color Club Art Club Striper Pink Pastel
  • Color Club Art Club Striper Passion Flower

First off, let me acknowledge that my cuticles are looking rough. I’m trying my best to keep up with my nail art regime, but the last couple months have had some struggles, & the weather has been full of extremes, & it’s taking me a while to get my nail health back to where it was. But I’m going to save that for another post, because I know you’re all here for the nail art today!

This look was really easy to do, mostly because it takes zero skill. You just need to draw the initial swoop, & then use your other colours to trace the same lines. It sounds more complicated than it is, but I swear it’s really easy. Which is why I love this kind of look so much. I decided to go with a negative space base, because I’ve been struggling with using my bottle of Seche Vita & I wanted to avoid the weird shrinkage at my cuticle line.

What do you think about this nail art look? I know it’s probably a smidge too early for Spring nails, but you know what? Yesterday it was like 11 degrees (Celsius) & that is Spring weather. I could have worn a dress with only one pair of tights it was so warm. So I guess these nails are kind of fitting.

What do you think about this manicure? Let me know down in the comments below!

♥︎