Masquerade Nails

So I guess these aren't really Halloween nails, but my BF and I are going to a Venetian masquerade-themed party tonight, so we bought some masks. I wanted to do a mani that matched the mask, so this is what I came up with:

The pink part is Zoya Lola with Diamond Cosmetics Pink Flaminglo on top, then Sinful Colors Nail Art in Time Off and American Apparel Hassid on the lunula, topped with black rhinestones. I originally thought that the glitter from Flaminglo would add some interest, but I think it made the look a bit over the top. Lola is bright and fun enough; I think the look would have looked more elegant without the glitter. I also thought it would be cool to have glow-in-the-dark nails, but it seems like the effect is pretty weak.

I used the nail art polish to outline a curve, then painted a line of top coat to use as glue. Seche Vite is made to permeate the layers of polish underneath, so it softens the polish enough to press the rhinestones into the layers. Then I filled in the lunula with Hassid b/c I found it easier to use than the brush that the nail art polish came with. Topped everything off with a thick layer of Seche Vite and it all seems very secure. I think next time I will try not to paint over the rhinestones, though, because now you can't see the facets and they look like little balls instead of gems. Luckily, the ball look kind of works with the mask.


Happy Halloween!

Halloween Nails!

This post is a bit late (since Halloween is in a few days), but both designs are super easy to do!
Here's the super simple one:

Just some stickers over a sparkly orange polish, Zoya Sienna. I like using all black stickers so it looks more cohesive, even though each sticker is different. I also alternated words with pictures so that there was a good mix of both; too many words looks too busy and all pictures looks too simple in my opinion. This one was inspired by one of Asami's designs.

This one takes a bit more time, but is still pretty easy:

I used Sinful Colors Nail Art polish in Time Off for the stripes. This time I used white/gold stickers so they'd stand out against both background colors. I also alternated stars with the words instead of random pictures because I thought the stars would look a little less busy.

Hope this gives you some ideas!

Eyeko Military Polish

Sorry for the absence! My nails have been really brittle lately and I broke one and chipped another. I really need to moisturize more...

Anyway, a great and generous friend of mine recently sent me a bunch of nail stuff (among other things):

Some Eyeko polishes, Sinful colors nail art polishes, Priti NY polish, base and glitter polishes from transdesign, CND cuticle eraser, Halloween nail stickers, and mini match book emery boards! All very useful.

I've always wanted to try Eyeko, this is my first:

Military polish. I love this! It's a dark, murky, army green jelly. Such a great fall color. Application was great, opaque in two coats, which is what is shown here. I am wearing Seche Vite top coat in the picture, but the polish itself dried to a very glossy finish. There are some bald spots b/c I need to stop applying polish in poor lighting, haha.

At first glance I thought it looked like Chanel Khaki Brun, but when I put them side by side it's clear that Military is much greener:



I'll have to think of some fun Halloween nails to post soon!

Zoya Charisma

This color is impossible to photograph! It's a bright, neon purple that looks magenta most of the time. It looks like American Apparel's "Raspberry" color (for their clothes, not polishes).

I love it! Definitely one of my favorites so far. I'm going to put it on my toes tonight. It's a neon, so it dries to a semi-matte finish, but it does dry quickly. It was a bit streaky but a coat of Seche Vite smoothed it all out. I'm wearing three thin coats but could have used a fourth.

Diamond Cosmetics Cotton Candy

In hone of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, I am wearing Diamond Cosmetics Cotton Candy:

(Yikes, excuse my dry cuticles, I had just soaked them to remove a glitter polish.) I'm not usually one for pinks, but I really like this one! It's a bit on the salmon side, a Barbie pink. I kind of feel like a little kid when I wear it, it reminds me of one of the first polishes I loved. It's a cream with very subtle shimmer which you can see in the enlarged version of the picture. Application was pretty streaky, I am wearing three coats and you can still kind of see some streaks. I think next time I might try adding a drop of thinner. Still, another pretty color from Diamond! Not quite your average pink. I suppose it's not much of a fall color, but I think that you should wear whatever color makes you happy, regardless of seasonal trends.

Can't wait to see everyone's pink and/or Halloween manis!