Essie Knockout Pout with an unknown stamp?

Hello world! Feels like I haven't updated in forever... I was in South Carolina for the past three days at my cousin's wedding, but it looks like Mama has held down the fort in my absence!

It's a blistering 90 degrees in Indy today, and the pool in our complex is closed due to a drain recall...which is a bummer but at the same time perhaps good because I got ROASTED in South Carolina! But with these temperatures and no pool, what else is there to do but do my nails?

I started with three coats of Essie's Knockout Pout which is your typical, run of the mill neon pink. It is pretty though, I just wish neons weren't so difficult to work with. I didn't worry about it being a little streaky because I knew I was going to stamp over it, so please excuse that in these pictures. I also didn't use top coat over the pink.

I then stamped over Knockout Pout with Sally Hansen's Insta Dry in Cinna-snap using plate m78, which is the.....line? Branch? plate? I don't even know what the image is. Haha

It looks nice except that I smeared it because I never learn and I tried to apply top coat too soon after :( So I really like how this looks minus that, but that means I might be redoing my nails later tonight....gotta catch up from all the posting days I missed anyway ;)

Also...look at the adorable-ness that kept bugging me while I was trying to do these nails...

 

Lilly: "PAY ATTENTION TO ME!!!"

Hope everyone is staying cool!

-Amanda

Sally Hansen Malt and White Lace

I saw this idea on a blog done in black lace.  I wanted to try it with something a little more subtle to start out so I decided on white lace instead of black.

This is 3 coats of Sally Hansen Malt from the new Spring 2011 line.  It's a beige-y neutral and looks like foundation on my nails.  The formula is great, application exceptional.  Then I used Konad special polish in white and stamped over with a floral pattern, then added the fishnet pattern over the top.  The pictures are taken prior to adding the topcoat.

I think I got what I was looking for  - subtle from a distance but close up - oooh :)

My Konading is not perfect, but passable.

I also wanted to take a moment to thank all the men and women who not only protect our country on a daily basis - but especially those who have given their lives for it.   And to my mother, whom I lost when I was 18 years old to cancer, and my father who died in 1999 (also from cancer) - I  miss you.

Orly Haley's Comet and Studio M Covered in Diamonds

This mani was inspired by one that Siobhan posted over at The Nailphile.  When I saw her flakies over an aqua shimmer polish I had to try it.

This is 2-3 coats of Orly Haley's Comet.  It's a bright aqua shimmer with tiny aqua glitter particles.  The pictures don't really do it justice - its a very vibrant aqua that sparkles when it catches the light.  The application was very smooth and dried fast and bubble free.  I do like the rubberized brush a lot on the Orly polishes - it makes it easy to hold on to.

After it was dry I added a coat of Studio M Covered in Diamonds.  Covered in Diamonds is a multicolored flakie with fairly large particles.  You have to be mindful of any flakes that might be overhanging the free edge of your nail while the polish is wet.  I just push them back with an orange stick.

I think the finished product is reminiscent of a mermaid's tail the way the flakes simulate scales.  Incidentally - has anyone seen Pirates of the Caribbean - On Stranger Tides?  Those mermaids are definately NOT warm and fuzzy.

Sally Hansen Shell We Dance over Milani Gems

I saw this on another blog and - I'm so sorry - I can't remember who inspired me to try this type of mani.  Once I figure it out I will post the site and give that person their proper credit :)

I'm just loving this mani so hard.  It's one coat of Milani Gems topped with 2 coats of Sally Hansen Shell We Dance.  Shell we Dance is a sheer pink creme and I didn't think I'd use it much when I bought it.  Turns out I may have to buy a backup bottle soon.  I'm having a love affair with Sally Hansen Salon Manicure line.  I've never had a single issue with their formula or application. 

This mani reminds me a little of Deborah Lippmann's Glitter in the Air - only pink based.  My hands look like cotton candy - I want to eat 'dem!

Love or hate?

Jesse's Girl Riff Raff and Konad Epic Fail

I've had this sitting around with my untrieds since my last Boston trip in March.  In the bottle its a shimmery coppery rusty brown color which translates just a smidge darker on the nails.  It applied wonderfully - I had full coverage in just 2 coats and it self leveled well and dried fast with no bubbles.  No noticeable offensive odor.   I applied a 3rd coat just for a little more opaqueness.  The color is dark and rich and lovely.

Here comes the fail!   I tried to apply a full nail design from my new BM plates.  I used the Sally Hanson Insta-Dri in Silver Sweep (which is awesome for stamping btw!) but I ended up with smudges and partial transfers.  It wasn't really noticeable to the untrained eye but I knew you guys would see it right away.  Anyway here are the fail pics.

Bleh.  I really did like this full nail design - it kind of looks like a stone path or maybe a giraffe patten.  Wish I'd done a better job on it cause I really liked this combo.

Happy Friday!

Amber waves of AWESOMENESS (pic heavy)

So...we were stupid enough to throw away all our old Nail Prisms before we REALLY got into the blogging world, but this little gem somehow escaped that fate. I found it in my nail polish tub (I really need to get a rack...) and decided to use it!! It's....soo...pretty.... !! There's nothing else to say about this except...OOOOH!! This is Sally Hansen, Amber Ruby:

Then I just used white and gold stripers over it. I did this on a wheel and it looked really pretty, but I think I may have added too much to an already pretty mani...

That's all! I'm off to South Carolina for ANOTHER wedding...have a great weekend :)

--Amanda

A shatter mani that I actually like!

After my fail mani with Sun Worshipper, I decided I wanted to do something else... a little simpler and girlier. So, I went into Mama's room and stared at her collection for a good 20 minutes looking for what color to use (I leave my collection at my dad's and use her colors when I'm at her place... so it's like Christmas when I want to do a mani because I have all these colors to choose from that I don't own :] ) I decided on OPI Let Me Entertain You from the Burlesque collection. Then I used OPI Silver Shatter over the top of it. I haven't been able to decide whether I like the shatter trend. On one hand it's really easy nail art gives it a cool effect but on the other hand, it kind of looks like chipped nail polish which I hate. So I don't know, I'm still on the fence about the whole trend but I DO like the way this looks...maybe I'm becoming a believer?

I also wanted to show you these nail art brushes that Mama and I got online. I was using regular cheap paintbrushes to do my nail art and they REALLY weren't doing what I wanted them to, so hopefully these work better. We shall see!

Have a lovely day, followers! :)

-Amanda

Sally Hansen Barracuda and Deborah Lippman Across the Universe

I had been wanting this Sally Hansen polish for months - ever since I found out it was coming out with the Sally Hanson Spring 2011 line.  In the bottle it is a pale blue creme - a little lighter than OPI WWTC.   However, on the nail I found it to be a very similar color.  So it's safe to say it dries a little darker than the bottle shade.

Went on like buttah.  Sally Hansen Salon Manicure polishes are so smooth.  It's probably my fav drug store brand.  This is 3 coats of Barracuda.

I wore it alone throughout the day then decided to add a half moon/funky french accent using Deborah Lippman Across the Universe.  I'm still undecided as to whether I actually gave it more interest or ruined a nice manicure.  I guess it depends on your point of view.

A little too much even by my standards

Today I have for you one of those manicures where I looked at it when I finished and just thought to myself, "What was I thinking?!"

I used four coats. FOUR COATS!! of China Glaze Sun Worshipper. I knew that neons were streaky and difficult to use, but I guess I wasn't expecting this! I don't use them enough I suppose. Then I topped it off with Sally Hansen Hidden Treasure. Which has been sitting around out apartment for probably a good two months. Such a travesty... oh well, I finally put it to use :)

In these pictures it shows up much more yellow than it is in real life. On my hands it's about as neon orange as you can get. If it looked like it does in these pics I'd probably like it more...

The color is nice I suppose, but I think it's just WAY too bright for me. I'm all for in your face manis but they usually involve glitter or konad instead of neon colors. Maybe it doesn't work well with my skin tone? I'm not sure. I think I wanted to do something fun and summery to get the warm weather to come back? You win some, you lose some. This one will probably get taken off in about 5 hours... haha.

Have a wonderful day,
-Amanda

Pure Ice Ombre

Ok, so the world didn't end.  I guess we will have to keep posting then.  :)  Amanda is off out of town visiting her b/f so I'm doing the post again today.

I'm a slow learner.  I keep plugging away at these Pure Ice polishes I bought.  The colors are so pretty but the formula just isn't good.  I let the coats on this mani dry a good 10 minutes in between and I still ended up with bubbles.  The dry time on this polish is just awful.  And it's not just limited to one color, it's pretty much every one I've ever used.  The coverage was good.  If you have the time to wait 15-20 minutes between coats you should be golden with this.
 
These colors happened to be lined up next to each other on my dresser this morning and as I glanced at them I thought - 'hey, those would make a pretty ombre mani.'  The colors are Magic (pinky), Fast Lane (ring),  Jaguar (middle) and Best Friend (index).  So pretteh!

Zoya Mod Mattes Racing Stripes

(Today is a special End-of-the-World post.  We regret to inform you that as the world is ending today, this will be our last post.  We hope you enjoy it.)

The month of May in Indy means racing.  And this is just a random mani idea that popped into my head.  I couldn't decide which of the 2 Zoya Mod Mattes I have to use first, so I combined them in a striped manicure.

Zoya polishes go on like a dream.   Smooth as silk.  And I love mattes.  I used one coat of pink then taped off the mani and applied the blue.  I had to do a couple coats of the blue so I did have some buildup of polish on the free end of the stripes.  This would have been solved by using a matte top coat but since I was only swatching I didn't bother.