My Mint Mani for Talia Joy

On Friday July 19th, many of the nail art accounts on Instagram joined together for #mintmanisfortaliajoy.  Talia was wearing a lovely mint color on her nails in one of the last photos she posted on her Instagram.  She touched a lot of people, and my thoughts truly go out to her friends and family.

For my recreation of Talia's nails, I tried to use the closest color I had to the one she was wearing, and I really love how they turned out.  I used Ruby Wing Gypsy in a gradient with Essie Absolutely Shore on three nails, and topped it with Essie Shine of the Times.  On my accent nails, I wore Gypsy topped with inm Northern Lights top coat, then I placed some loose silver glitter in the shape of a heart and outlined it in white.

Thank you for reading! :)


Kristin

Galaxy Nails Take 3 + New YouTube Tutorial!

I love galaxy nails.  This is my third go at it, and it turns out to be a completely different look each time, which is one of the reasons I love it!  It is a very simple design to achieve, but it can take some time layering different colors for the outcome to be just right.  I went a little overboard this time because I thought the colors wouldn't show well on video, but I'm still very happy with them!

Here is my finished look, this time around:

Polishes used: Pupa 702, a-England Camelot, CND Brilliant White, Orly Skinny Dip, Misa Ripe Raspberry, Essie Lights, OPI Ate Berries In the Canaries, inm Out the Door Northern Lights topcoat

I took this photo midway through the tutorial!

As a little bonus, here is my previous set of galaxy nails (I think they're my favorite so far!):

And, as requested by many of my lovely followers on Instagram, I made a new YouTube video on how I create my galaxy nails!

If you have any other questions or comments, please do not hesitate; I absolutely love answering them all! :)

Kristin

Holographic Plastic Wrap Nail Art + Video & Tutorial!

You may or may not have noticed a little YouTube button in my side bar.  Well, the time has come, and I have finally uploaded my first ever video!

It is a very simple look that I have recreated per request from some of my followers on Instagram.  I really loved it the first time I wore it (about 20 weeks ago according to IG!), and this time is no different.  I really hope you enjoy the video, and when my new camera lens arrives hopefully I can create many more videos with a closer detailed look (floral nails, yes!).

And, here is my original look and Instagram tutorial (my nails were super long here!):

1. Gather your supplies and prep your nails.  I used Nfu Oh Aqua Base, Layla Gold Idol and Purple Illusion, Cirque Fascination Street, a piece of plastic wrap (bunched into a ball), a few precision tip Q-tips, and a piece of paper.

2. Paint two coats of your base colour.  In this case, I chose a gold holographic polish.  You can use any color combination you desire.  Make sure your base color is completely dry, or use a quick dry top coat before moving to the next step.

3. Work quickly with the next few steps!  Place a few drops of your first polish on a piece of paper.  Dip the plastic wrap into the polish, and dab it a few times on the paper before applying it to your nails. 

4. Immediately "sponge" the polish on your nails in a few random spots.  Don't overdo it, or your base color won't show through.  You want a nice balance of colours.

5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 as much as necessary, to achieve the desired effect.

6. If you are using a third color, repeat steps 3 and 4 in another contrasting color.  I chose a darker one so that it would pop against the light base color.

7. Make sure you are happy with the effect.  You may have to touch up a few spots if you feel it is not balanced enough.

8. Clean up around the cuticles with some nail polish remover.

9. Finish with a top coat.  

Have fun! :)

Please let me know what other tutorials and designs you would like to see in the future!

Kristin

China Glaze Chasing the Sun Ombre Set Swatches + Review

Hi everyone!

I passed on all of the recent ombre sets from China Glaze (the pink, purple, and turquoise ones), but I spotted one of the new sets called Chasing the Sun at Sally's recently and I knew it had to be mine.  They had another one (Wave Runner), but I had a few of the colors already, so even though I was tempted I just came home with this one:

White On White, Sun Worshiper, Pool Party, and Flying Dragon

I was so happy that I had none of these polishes in my collection, and I had been wanting them for quite some time now, so it was perfect.

White On White is a pretty decent white polish.  It's not my absolute favorite, but I used it for the base (as directed) and it worked just fine!  Sorry for my lack of cleanup; I used two coats, and I took a quick photo before I started with the gradient:

I thought the sponges that came in the set were just going to be like any other cosmetic sponges, but I was wrong.  They worked like a dream!  I only had to apply the polish to the sponge once (!) to do all five nails on my left hand.  When they were dry (which was extremely fast), I reapplied, then went over a couple spots that needed a touch up.  This was hands down the fastest gradient I've ever done, and if you're one who has trouble getting a smooth gradient, you might want to try this!

I'm very happy with how they turned out, and I ended up topping it with one of my favorites, inm's Northern Lights top coat.

I think these sets are fun, especially for summer, and it definitely takes the thinking out of finding coordinating colors in my collection.

Here's a little bonus video:

Let me know if you have tried any of these ombre sets, and what your thoughts are!  

Have a great day! :)

Kristin