My Tribal Texture Crush

Hello, Fireflies!

The other day at Ulta, I picked up this OPI duo of a base coat and a texture in this season's orchid color - My Current Crush:

I love this color! Tooling around on Pinterest, I saw this tribal nail art by Raggio Di Luna and was immediately inspired to try it on My Current Crush.  Would it look as good on a texture?

I don't know how Raggio di Luna got her pyramids so clean.  Maybe she used tape? Maybe she's freakin' amazing.  I freehanded them, and they look like lumpy triangles. 

Next, I made the V shape with a silver glitter striper.  If you find using stripers to be incredibly awkward, try cutting them down.  My favorite ones all have the brush trimmed down - not the length, but the thickness.

The white triangle is so tiny on my little nails!  I pretty much had to blob the white in there and then clean up the shape with my black striper.  No way could I make it that straight.

I loved this even more with topcoat!  It smoothed out the art, and My Current Crush took on a softer, but still glittery look.

I fudged the pyramids on my right hand, but no one could tell.  From normal hand-viewing distance, they looked the same.  I wore this to a dinner party and impressed the crap out of the people there who actually cared about these things.  The guys pretty much looked to their wives to see what the appropriate reaction should be!

Which, of course, should be a slow golf clap.

Bottle shot:  OPI My Current Crush, nail art stripers in white, black, and silver glitter.

I'm glad I didn't let the pyramid shape intimidate me from trying this nail art because I love how it turned out!  Have you ever been inspired by a complicated design, and found a way to make it work for you?

Sparkling Mistle-Toad

Hello, Fireflies!

I tried this polish, Different Dimension Mistle-Toad, and fell in love.  Hard.

Greenish-blue, with a purple flash? What magic is this?  And look at that holo.  Amazing. I even painted my right hand because I didn't want to stop.

And, then, I thought - I love another polish like this one, and so I put Orly Sparkling Garbage over my ring finger.  So close! Sparkling Garbage is, of course, scattered holo-y glitter, and without the purple flash, but there is some purple in the holo glitter. It's like they were made for each other.

Bottle shot:  Different Dimension Mistle-Toad, and Orly Sparkling Garbage

Sparkling Garbage was my fave polish of 2013, and Different Dimension Mistle-Toad is a similar holo version.  I'm in nail polish heaven.  Do you have any polishes that are so similar, but just have different finishes?  Do you wear them together?

Good Girl Black and White Dress

Hello, Fireflies!

On the days that I dress up to teach, I love having a mani that matches my dress.  I think I got pretty close on this one, but you be the judge!  I would prefer, though, if you were more of a Paula Abdul judge than a Simon Cowell, one, though, ok?

I started with Deborah Lippmann Good Girl Gone Bad.  I love this color, but I have to say, it's so similar to a couple of others from her - Razzle Dazzle comes to mind.

I know they're not the same, but they're *similar*... 

I took Cult Nails Tempest and Nevermore, and with an almost dry brush, painted over the raspberry glitter.

In the dress, the purple is 'hidden' underneath the white and black, so that's what I tried to do in the nail art.  The glitter catches the light, too, which makes is fun to put underneath the black and white.

Bottle shot:  Deborah Lippmann Good Girl Gone Bad, and Cult Nails Tempest and Nevermore.

Pretty easy nail art, right?  Almost too easy.  I can see this looking great with so many glitters underneath, too.  If you'd wear this, what would you put underneath?

Metallic Optical Illusion

Hello, Fireflies!

The other day I saw this mani by Devilish Designs that I fell in love with at first sight! I asked her to do a tutorial, and the next day, there it was.  Talk about amazing customer service.. blogger service?

She's nice.  And, super talented.

I thought the design would look cool over metallics, so I used Essie No Place Like Chrome and Maybelline Bold Gold to start.

I used my trusty black nail art striper to make vertical stripes down the nail.  I wish I had gotten 4 stripes on my ring finger.  If you wanted neater stripes, striping tape would be best.  Laziness won out over neatness for me.

In her tutorial, Devilish Designs used a hole punch to create a circle guide.  My nail beds are small, so I just used a hole reinforcer.  Now, it looks like there is a sticker on my nails, but there isn't.  it's just another layer of polish painted within the hole left by the reinforcer!

Using the hole as a guide, I used a striper to paint opposite lines - so where there was a black line on the base, I covered it with the metallic.  Where there was a metallic, I painted over it with black.

I want to try this again, rotating the lines 45 or 90 degrees.  I wonder how cool that will look! I liked this one using metallics, but boy Howdy, was it hard to photograph.  Too shiny - glare, glare, everywhere.  One of those times I had to take a lot of pictures and hope for the best!

Bottle shot:  Essie No Place Like Chrome, Maybelline Bold Gold, black nail art striper

I love this design, and as interesting as it looks, it wasn't hard to do at all.  If you can make stripes, you can do this nail art!

Great Green Gatsby = #NailArtForNubs

Hello, Fireflies!

Did you see my review earlier today for Estee Lauder CyberWhite HD? If you're interested, click HERE to open the link!

I'm excited to show you this polish today - The Devil Wears Polish Mint Mocha Masterpiece! 

I think it's a hoot that it really looks like mint chocolate.  Mmm, tasty.

Today's nail art is inspired by this striping tape manicure by The Nailasaurus, found on Divine Caroline. I, obviously, didn't use striping tape.. I was feeling lazy, and, more importantly, I wanted to play with my new Sally Hansen nail art pen.

Making straight lines that went across the 'V' was harder than it looked.  What's up, droopy line on my index finger?  Get tired of holding yourself up?

Bottle shot:  The Devil Wears Polish Mint Mocha Masterpiece, and a Sally Hansen Nail Art Pen in Green.

Have you found a shortcut to a nail art technique?  I love the way the striping tape mani looks, but this was so much quicker!

Make Up Monday - Estee Lauder CyberWhite HD

Hello, Fireflies!

My #NailArtForNubs post will be up at 9am Eastern, but while you're waiting, assuming you are, I'd like to tell you about a little skin care thing I've been using and like.

Meet Estee Lauder CyberWhite HD Advanced Spot Correcting Moisture Lotion.

Even though I have the mind of a 12-year old boy, my face knows that I'm a 40+ year old woman.  And, one of the problems I've had to face is that of some hyperpigmentation.

I've tried a handful of different 'brightening' and 'whitening' products, and this is the first one I've tried that made a noticeable difference - and I wasn't even using it systematically.

Here's my only issue - the dispenser is a plain old hole, like for lotion. 

The product is a clear, watery liquid.

So, you're supposed to put the liquid on a cotton pad or something to apply, but I don't want to waste liquid that's just going to stay on the pad, because this stuff isn't cheap.  So, I just pour a little on my hand and slap it on my face.  Gently, now, because I'm not into pain.

So, I'd rather have a pump dispenser or something like that.  But it's not really that big of a deal.

It's incredibly hard for an amateur like me to take a pix of the shiny, reflective box, but I tried.  Here's what it says:

"Magnify your skin's clarity like never before.  Our first brightening system with HD-90 Technology features a naturally derived ingredient so potent it takes brightening to a new dimension.  The CyberWhite HD System helps eliminate dullness from deep within skin's surface to help dramatically brighten the look of dark spots with unprecedented power."

"CyberWhite HD Advanced Spot Correcting Moisture Lotion.  Infuse your skin with this powerful brightening treatment lotion.  Formulated to minimize the look of dark spots and dullness and optimize the brightening benefits of the CyberWhite System.  Revitalizes skin with fresh waves of hydration as it balances, protects, and cushions. Leaves skin soft and supple.  Up close, your skin looks flawless, fair, translucent, with High Definition clarity.

Dermatologist-and Ophthalmologist-tested.  Non-acnegenic."

So, it's part of a system of products, but I can't afford all of them, so I picked this one.  If you have trouble with dark spots, you might want to check them out and see if one of the line works for you. 

Have you tried any dark spot correctors that worked for you?

Sunday Stamping - Fabric Matching

Hello, Fireflies!

I'm in my wheelhouse with today's challenge - stamping to match a fabric.  When I was in high school, I layered my socks to match every color I was wearing.  I had a barrette collection to rival any Valley Girl, because I had to have them in every color.   I like my jewelry to match my outfits, or at least be complimentary. Now, I like to match my polish to my outfits. 

I started with Takko Lacquer Whimsical.  It's in the pink family, but leans purple, especially with that blue shimmer!  I wanted a little more, so I added Lucky 13 Lacquer Fairy Lights, but it didn't really show up over the pastel.

I used plate Mash-46 and Orly In The Navy to make stripes.

The stripe on my thumb is a little trick I like to call, "covering the mistake."  If you, like me, aren't talented enough to get the stamp to go all the way across the nail, then fake it 'till ya make it.  Looks like it's supposed to be there, huh.  I only share these secrets with you, Fireflies.

Out of all the stamps I've tried, I think that stripes have got to be the hardest.  They look simple enough - deceptively so, really.  And, to the casual onlooker, they look pretty good.  But when people are looking at pix of your hands enlarged 2-3 times, and up in their face.. you start to notice things.  

Like that hardly any of the lines are the same thickness all the way across.

Or that they're kinda wavy.

Or maybe that they look like I was drinking and just *thought* they were straight.

But, put them against this shirt, and look from a reasonable distance, and it looks like I am a nail artist GENIUS. 

My stamping brings all the girls to the yard, and my nails, they look better than yours.  That's right, they're better than yours..

...I could teach you, but I'd have to charge.. oh, wait.  I just told you all my secrets for free.  Damn.

Bottle shot: Takko Lacquer Whimsical and Orly In The Navy

What nail polish secrets make your nails look more amazing than they really are?