BundleMonster Contest Entry

If you haven't heard, BundleMonster (the creator and distributor of the Image Plates I use to create some of my designs) are having a Nail Art competition over at their Facebook Page. There are 25 sets of their NEW image plates up for grabs for those with the most "likes"! Voting opens on the 13th, and I would REALLY appeciate it if you could wander over, take a look at my entry (and the others of course) and see if I deserve a thumbs up! I implore you to enter yourself, too, what have you got to lose eh?

Here is my entry, you had to use Bundle Monster products and I wanted to submit something that showcased some skill, as opposed to just a simple painted base and stamped image, so I whipped the pan scrubbers out and did a pink to purple, sponged gradient base. I hope to do a sponging tutorial in the near future, as it definitely requires a "knack" and I think some people might benefit! I then stamped the flower image from BM16 in pastel blue.

I started with two coats of Barry M Strawberry Ice Cream, then painted a blob of MUA's Medium Pink Shade onto a small piece of sponge that I cut from a standard, kitchen pan scrubber. I then repeated this on the tips with Barry M Ltd ed. for Boots.

Now, I needed the stamped image to be very opaque, and I don't own Konad Special Stamping Polish in Pastel Blue, but I DO own the White - I'm going to quickly show you how I mixed my own Blue stamping polish:

I started with The Konad Special Polish and Barry M Cobalt Blue. I then popped a blob of each onto the image on BM16, next to each other (as opposed to on top of each other) so as not to gammy up the brushes:

I then used a paintbrush to swirl them together, you can create a cool gradient image if you only mix them up a  little bit.

Make sure you still do this mixing quickly, as if the polish begins to dry on the plate, it will be difficult to scape and stamp a complete image. Once you've scraped off the excess polish, and rolled your silicone stamp over it, you're ready to stamp the image in Pastel Blue:

BOOM! The stamping polish world is now your oyster -you can literally do this with any coloured polish to mix your own pastel Special Polish - this will save you splurging on all the different coloured Pastels that Konad offer, because you can still get a good quality, opaque image when using this technique. Cool!

I added clear Rhinestones to the accent nails with Nail Glue, silver dots to the centre of the flowers with Claire's Silver Nail Art Pen and then added 2 coats of Seche Vite - what do you think, was this good enough to be entered into the Bundle Monster comp? Some of the designs over there are really good, but my nails just aren't long enough to do something fancy-pants with lots of different stamps. I really like how a gradient Mani looks - I get asked if they're Minx all the time!

Don't forget I have Giveaway going on! Win yourself some sexy stuff!

PEACE OUT

The Circus Has Come To Town

Hello Everyone!
I've got a Circus themed manicure for you today - more freehand Nail Art Woooooo (or Ttoothpick Nail Art in my case at the moment!)

The Pinky and Index finger are both Jester-style Print using the image from BM16. I painted the base colour in Miss Sporty Taxi (pinky) and Barry M Spring Green (Index), and stamped using Barry M Red and Barry M Cobalt Blue.
For the Ring finger I wanted to make a Circus Tent, so I started with a base in Rimmel Tip Whitener, then taped off both the tip of the nail and "rays" from the nail bed. I then painted the whole thing in Barry M Red and removed the tape. Using the Claire's Nail Art Pen striper, I added the black detail and some vertical stripes to the bottom of the tent, in Barry M Red, with a cocktail stick.
For the Middle finger, I painted two coats of Topshop Gypsy Nights which is a black base with holo glitter and red flakies - lovely. I then started to draw an elephant using a make-shift dotting tool with Barry M Grey, highlighting with Sparkle and Fade Light Grey and detailing with Clarie's Black Nail Art Pen. Ooh and a little white tusk!

I added Barry M 3-in-1 topcoat to the whole thing, and here we are :D

I want to show you a blurry sunshine picture of Gypsy Nights as well, because it really does catch the light beautifully:

oOoOooo Rainbow.

I wish I had some time to clown around, but University work calls, boooooooooo!

Nearly the end of the week! let me know what you think :)

In other news, I have reached 100 followers :) Thank you all so much, you have no idea how much I appreciate it! You're all wonderful! I know I promised a giveaway at 50 followers, but by the time I got it all sorted, I had about 80 anyway so thought I may as well wait and celebrate this larger milestone! I have it all planned out though, so expect details tomorrow or Saturday! How exciting eh?!

THANK YOU!! xoxoxox

Here comes the Bride?!?!!

...No don't congratulate me on my upcoming nuptuals just yet, I've got to find a boyfriend (victim) first! Todays manicure came out exactly how I imagined it, yet only when it was on my nails did I realise how bridal it looks!! I still think its pretty, and at least now I know I can do my own nails for my wedding day....ha!
 I started with 3 coats of Collection 2000 French Pink which is a sheer, light pink perfect for french manicures. It's a bit streaky in two coats, but the third evens it out. It says 5 days wear on the bottle, but ive never been patient enough to keep a manicure on that long to find out if it really works!!! Here she is on her own:

Shiny no?! I didnt need a topcoat with this polish, its dead shiny by itself, but i applied one anyway before using the full nail daisy image on BundleMonster's BM16, and adding silver dots to the centre of the flowers:

 

I stamped with Rimmels French White (which is a bit sheer for stamping to be honest) and used Claire's Silver Nail Art Pen for the flower centres. Very subtle and girly. Would love it if I had some Rhinestones to add.
This is my most recent manicure, and my nails have really grown since I've started this blog - theyre usually quite weak and I have a tendency to piggle at them. Taking pictures of your nails everyday sure is an incentive to keep them in good condition though! I've also started using Lush's Lemony Flutter again, which is great for the cuticles, and is keeping my nails strong I think. It also smells HAMAZING.
I think I'm getting better at photographing my nails - I hope you enjoyed this manicure, let me know what you think! Is there anything you'd like to see from me in the coming days/weeks?