Manicure Mania, Pt. IV: French Tip, Blown to Bits

in ,

The reality of DIY nail art is that sometimes... sometimes... things don't work out. I've attempted works of art that seemed like a genius idea in theory — only to find that, in practice, good ideas don't always equal great nails. For example, I thought this gorgeous Illamasqua nail polish that my friend Alison gave me, Kink, would look awesome with feathers on it.

Feather FAIL.

When I heard that MAC was offering new & improved, on-trend press-on nails (!) I raced to my compy to see what they'd dreamed up. And I saw this:

What beauty! I loved it! So crisp and clean! I thought a pale lavender would suit my wardrobe better, so I grabbed Revlon's Lily and my ol' faithful, Sally Hansen Black Heart, then I set to work.

First, two coats of Revlon Lily. Next, I used french tip tape and gave myself black tips. Easy enough. Then I used ring enforcers to create a black half moon at the cuticle. And here's where I went wrong. Partly an issue of impatience, and partly due to the fact that I was really sick with a sinus infection and in a stage of delirium, the half moons were a mess.

I felt too ill to start again and, so help me GAH, I was not going to let my nails go naked. There was only one product I could turn to; only one polish that could cover oh, so many sins: SHATTER.

My favorite crackle polish is by OPI, who calls it "shatter." If you apply a thin coat, you get tiny little cracks. Apply a thick coat for great, big dramatic fissures.

I thought this mani was dead for sure but, like a phoenix, it rose triumphantly from the ashes of carelessness to emerge as the shiny, eye-catching mani I knew it could be.

shattercracklepop, Francesca

Manicure Mania, Pt. III: Glitter Gradient

in ,

And so we continue with the mayhem that is Mani MANIA! Next up is a look that's incredibly easy to do and guaranteed to get the nod of approval (or even the ole eyebrow-raise of astonishment) from all of your pals: The Glitter Gradient.

First, pictures:

And now, here's how to do your own Glitter Gradient.

  • I first had to comb through my Stash for some good glitter / base color combos. You'll need to do the same. What we're trying to achieve is a pairing that is pleasing to the eye — but it can't be too matchy-matchy or else the glitter fade will be difficult to detect. Nor can it be too contrasty; too distracting. Eventually, I settled on two polishes that looked great together: ORLY Pixie Dust, a lavender-gray hybrid with teensy specks of silver microglitter, and Nubar Pink Glitter, a pretty shade of pink that's more sparkling rosé than bubblegum.
  • Next, I did my usual Essie base coat, followed by two coats of ORLY Pixie Dust. I let the polish dry down a little and watched a scintillating half hour of Pawn Stars. (That show gets me every time!!)
  • And now, the fun part. GLITTAH. Do not shake the bottle. With a lot of glitters, you'll notice that the glitter sinks ever-so-slightly, leaving the bottom of the bottle very dense with glitter and the upper part of the bottle with fewer glitter particles. Carefully remove the brush from the bottle. We want to dip into the very top of the polish, the part that is mostly clear polish with only some bits of glitter here and there.
  • Then, paint about 75% of your nail with this diluted glitter formula. Don't go straight across; kind of move your brush like a zizag at the top, to avoid a clear line of demarcation between glitter and no-glitter on your nail.
  • Okay, now give that bottle a decent shake (like how you'd shake a bottle of milk). This will stir up the glitter and give you a more concentrated glitter mixture to paint with. Now paint 50% of your nails with this shaken-not-stirred polish. Use the same zigzag strategy.
  • One more step! Shake, shake, SHAKE. I mean really shake it (like when you were in second grade, and you brought in small glass baby food jars and added cream and then shook it the entire day to make butter). Get the glitter as mixed up as you can! This will give you GLITTERO MAXIMO. Paint just the tips of your nails, say the bottom 25%.
  • Top it off with your favorite top coat and BAM! Sparkle fingers FTW!

sparkleandshine, Francesca

Manicure Mania, Pt. II : A Tribute to Sweet Pea

in

You may remember this post about Mademoiselle Marie's awesome pastel manicure, during which I fell in love with a peacock lamp from Etsy. And, in fact, one of you encouraged me to splurge. (Megan, you devil.)

When it comes to apartment accessories, is there anything more essential than a vintage, opalescent, peacock-shaped lamp complete with a rainbow Lite-Brite tail?

The answer was obvious. I needed this lamp.

To celebrate my purchase investment, I created a manicure inspired by none other than Sweet Pea herself.

I used OPI Alpine Snow as a base, topped with two coats of an opalescent, sheer color. Then, when my nails were dry, I painted the tips of my nails with clear and dipped them into some glitter from Bath & Body Works that I've had since, no joke, 1999. The last time I wore it was at Dave Matthews Band concert. (LOL.) A thick coat of Seche Vite sealed the deal.

dedicatedtomypreciousSweetPea, Francesca