Jelly Sandwich Tutorial, and how I learned to love Glitter again

I have a love/hate relationship with glitter polish. Love the look of it on, hate the removal. I would scrub my nails FOREVER to get every last scrap off, or use the foil method and completely dry out my hands. Hence, I wore glitter very rarely, or only on one finger. All of this has changed after the discovery of using PCA craft glue as a base coat, and PEELING THE GLITTER OFF IN ONE PIECE AND UNDER 5 SECONDS. (Yes, all capitals was necessary. This is life changing.)

So here I give you a step by step tutorial of how to make a jelly sandwich manicure. All you need is an amazing glitter nail polish, and either one jelly nail polish (semi sheer), or a jelly and any other colour to use as your base colour.

I did a thick coat of PVA glue painted on with a nail art brush, and then waited about 10 minutes to dry, or until it had gone completely clear.

Then I did three coats of OPI Don't Touch My Tutu which is a gorgeous squishy milky white jelly. 

Next I did two coats of OPI Rainbow Connection, aka the best rainbow glitter polish EVER.

Then to top it off I did one thin layer of OPI Don't Touch My Tutu and finished with a thick coat of Seche Vite fast dry top coat.

Isn't it gorgeous? It reminds me of a jawbreaker...

The best thing about the jelly sandwich manicure is that you can be so creative with colour combinations; pretty much anything goes!!

Now onto the fun stuff... the home made peel off base coat. Pretty much, when you're ready to change your manicure instead of using remover just get an orange stick, or anything with a flat surface and pry up the underside of your nail polish starting from your cuticle bed. Then with a bit of pushing the nail polish towards the tip it should peel off all in one piece. Easy! 

Expect to see a lot more glitter here...

xx

Polka Dot Tutorial

This is probably one of the easiest manicures to do, and can have such a big impact, so let's get started!

First you'll need to get all of your tools together to make the process much easier. Chose a base coat colour (I used OPI Alpine Snow), and then one or more colours to make the dots in a contrasting colour. I can't remember all the colours I used I'm sorry, but I chose to use six colours to make a statement. I decided to use different sized dotting tools (you can also use a tooth pick or end of a bobby pin) so the dots were different sizes, but again, the choice is yours.

Simply paint your nails all in one colour, wait for this to dry, and then dot on the colours you want wherever you want on the nail. I chose to put the dots all over, but I've seen many pictures of people who have put the dots either down one side of the nail, or in a gradient pattern. Wait 10-15 minutes to make sure it's totally dry and the put a thick layer of top coat to protect the design. Ta da!

Next time I do a polka dot manicure I'm planning a baby pink or grey base with a variety of shades of pink dots. I can't wait!

xx

My first manicure!

Some people may be surprised to hear I've never had a manicure. Never! I've always thought 'why bother doing something I could do myself' and thus never shelled out for the luxury of getting a manicure. I decided this must change as I was turning 24 and getting a professional manicure was something I just needed (as a woman) to have done. So I booked an appointment at Trophy Wife Nail Art and got busy deciding what design to get. I chose Trophy Wife because I HATE fake acrylic talons and would never under any circumstances sink as low as getting them, and I wanted to have a really fun creative design that would be too detailed for me to do myself. And that's how I decided on a checkered pastel nail.

I can't tell you how many compliments I've gotten on these, they're so amazing! I may one day attempt to recreate this look myself, but until then I will always have this photo :)

Follow me on Instagram for heaps more nail photos at astrid88_n

xx

Gradient Manicure Tutorial

One of the most popular manicure trends at the moment is the gradient manicure. This look is much easier to achieve than it you'd think, so here's how to do it!

Firstly, choose all the colours you want to use. You can use just two, or as many as you want. I chose to use Kit High Roller as an accent on my ring finger and Kit Phase In on all the others. You'll also need to have a make up sponge, or household sponge at the ready cut into a small piece so you can sponge the colour on to your nail. The best type of sponge I have found to use is a foundation sponge because the surface is the most even. 

Kit Nail Polish available at www.kitcosmetics.com.au

Now, paint your nails all one colour and allow for this to dry. This works best if it's the lightest colour as the others will show up better on top. I used China Glaze Sweet Hook; a gorgeous lavandar creme. Then when this is dry the fun part begins.

I find the best way to do this is to paint your sponge directly with the polish brushes as you'll get an even distribution of colour on the sponge as well as having more control of where the colour goes. Start with your base colour (the colour you've already got on your nails) at the bottom of the sponge, and then paint the other colour/s at the top. Then you sponge directly and gently on the nail. You may need to do this a few times to get the desired opacity of colour, or you can just do it once to make it more subtle. 

After you're happy with the coverage, you can either put on your top coat, or I chose to add a coat of China Glaze Fairy Dust (the best glitter holo top coat) to make my nails a bit more magical. 

xx

Snow Leopard Manicure

Leopard print. Classic and always in style. And surprisingly easy to recreate on the nail. This time I used OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls for the base, OPI French Quarter For Your Thoughts as the spots and OPI Black Onyx. Can you tell I love OPI yet?

To recreate this look all you need is three colours, a toothpick and a good top coat. Firstly, paint your base colour and wait a few minutes until it's touch dry. Then use the tip of the other colour to make a few splotches all over the nail, you can get creative with this and either do a couple or a lot depending on the look you want to achieve. Then using the toothpick and the final colour outline the splotches, and to make a few more spots to fill in the gaps. I usually look at either a photo of a leopard or some clothing with leopard print design on it for inspiration. Easy!

xx

Half Moon Manicure Love!

One of my trusty manicures that I do probably too often is the half moon manicure. They're so chic and easy to make subtle or in your face bright. I do them by paining the base lighter colour first and then using a hole punch reinforcer that you buy from any office supply store to create the perfect circular line. Be very careful that the base is dry, as the sticker can pull the colour up. 

The best combinations I think are different textures such as a metallic and a creme, or a bright and a neutral. I also love the orange/pink combination for something a bit more subtle.

xx

Two attempts at Galaxy Nails

Ever since I saw this tutorial on cutepolish YouTube channel I've made two attempts at re-creating this look. I LOVE Galaxy nails, they look so detailed but are relatively easy to recreate as any mistakes can be manipulated to look like a smaller nebular or star. 

The second two images I was playing around with different colour combinations. I used Black Milk Clothing leggings as colour inspirations, and with all designs I finished off THE BEST glitter holographic top coat; China Glaze Fairy Dust. 

xx

Random manis!

Here are a pics of two recent mani's I've done, the first is on a myself, the second is on a friend:

Polish used: OPI Fly (blue), China Glaze Sweet Hook (lavender), OPI Serving Up Sparkle (glitter top coat on ring finger) and black and white nail polish stripers.

Polish used: OPI French Quarter For Your Thoughts (grey), OPI Mod About You (pink), OPI Glitzerland (gold), China Glaze Yellow Polka Dot Bikini (neon yellow), OPI Your Royal Shineness (silver dots on pink aztec nails), China Glaze Fairy Dust (on pink thumb), and white striper for details. 

I'm really into manicures like this at the moment with something different on each finger. 

xx

Aztec Nails!

This has definitely been the most complicated nail art I have attempted so far, so I thought I'd start off with a bang! The base colour is China Glaze Aquadelic from their 2012 Electropop collection. Photos first, description later:

Again, bad quality I know, I use my iPhone camera. The first thing I did here was apply the base colour. I used three coats so I had good coverage. Then I painted the horizontal stripe using a white striper brush and waited for that to dry. I then used a black striper to paint two lines outside the horizontal white lines to frame the white section, and then free handed the black tips of the nail. After this was relatively dry the next step was to do the diagonal lines over the white area. I made them relatively large so that I could fit a small dot inside the white area. Next I got a dotting tool and used some black polish (OPI black onyx is my go to) and did the small dots inside the triangular area. THEN I used the white striper to do small dashes at the bottom of the nail, and finished off by using the dotting tool to do the white dots on top of my black tips.

I then waited about 10-15 minutes before using a top coat as I didn't want it to smudge which commonly happens when using a lot of different brush strokes and techniques. The best top coat I've ever used is Seche Vite because it dries so quickly to a super shiny finish.

I hope that wasn't too confusing! Plenty more nail art tutorials to come... 

x 

My top 5

I have a lot of nail polish. Like, over 100 bottles a lot. So I don't get the chance to wear my favourite colours as often as I'd like. In order are never fail fave colours:

1. OPI - Lincoln Park After Dark

This has to be OPI's best selling colour right?? Look at the perfection! I'm obsessed with this colour! Blackened purple perfection in two coats. It also has sentimental value as the first bottle of this I bought was in Las Vegas in 2010, and the first time I put it on was whilst I was sitting poolside at Ceaser's Palace drinking a cocktail. So just for a moment everytime I paint this colour on I'm transported back to that pool... Enough said, I love this colour and everyone needs this in their life.

2. China Glaze - For Audrey

Oh, the iconic Tiffany & Co blue... or as close as they can legally get to the trademarked colour. Isn't it beautiful?? Everytime I wear this I feel a little bit fancy. A must have for every collection, the blue is universally flattering.

3. OPI - The Show Must Go On

2 photos were needed to show the amazing duo-chrome of this beauty. It shifts from fuchsia to a fiery orange depending on whether you're in the sunlight or shade. Just magical. I save this one for special occasions as I know it's super expensive now on eBay. 

4. Nicole by OPI - Khloe had a Little Lam Lam

Terrible photo I know, but you get the gist. Dark teal green. Perfect in two coats. It's a universally flattering colour, amazing formula, and not a shade we see all the time. I've got a back up bottle because I know I'll finish this one soon.

5. China Glaze - Splish Splash

Oh God, a terrible photo! I must remember to take photos of the polish I use WITH it's bottle after I finish them! To my credit... I did this in a rush and then went away to the snow for the weekend, so I didn't have the bottle with me, and when I got back my hands were not pretty. 

Anyway, China Glaze Splish Splash is from the 2012 Summer Neon collection. I bought too many of them as I have a thing for China Glaze neons... They just get it right everytime! This is a must have because not only is it NEON bright (I didn't know if my nails or the snow was brighter) but it has gorgeous subtle blue shimmer as well! Love it!

Hope you've enjoyed my current (Sept 2012) top 5. Heaps of nail art to come, stay tuned...

x

For the love of nails

Ever since I can remember I've always done my nails. Throughout my high school life I remember my Sunday night ritual was an at-home french manicure as my school was very strict and nail polish was not allowed. Expressing ourselves was not on. I lived for Friday nights when I could paint my nails bold colours, and dreaded taking them off on Sunday evenings. Leaving high school and quitting my job in hospitality (where nail polish was an occupational health and safety concern) were two profound moments of my life. I got a job in retail that encouraged to express myself through fashion, which lead inevitably to my nails. 

Now, all of my friends know me as the one who always has awesome nails and I own that title. I always express myself creatively through my nails, and have fun with them. That's not to say that I don't ever have "plain" nails; I do. Generally I alternate between nail art and a plain colour. 

I became obsessed with nail blogs and nail polish collections as a coping mechanism. I was diagnosed with MS whilst on holiday in New York City with my boyfriend, and I remember when I had to pick up the medication at the Rite Aid, I bought nail polish to cheer me up just that little bit. After this purchase I remember sitting in my hostel room on my phone googling nail polish blogs so I could research the best colours to buy from. And as they say, the rest is history. 

I have too many must-read blogs to mention, but the two that got me obsessed are Short 'n Chic and Also Known As (now known as Kellie Gonzo). Reading these two blogs helped me through so many difficult times by making me excited for new polish collections, and as superficial as it sounds, it really made me happy. I don't define myself as the girl with MS, but as the girl who always has fabulous nails. 

This is my place to post about nail art and new collections I love.