Holographic bubblegum

Like holographic strawberries, holographic bubblegum also possesses magical properties. If you manage to get your hands on a piece of this magical treat, you will find that as you chew, the gum not only stays soft and pliable for hours on end, but when you blow a bubble, you will be able to hover up to four feet above the ground!

Just a little silliness from me today, and a gradient with Color Club Miss Bliss and Over the Moon. I still can't believe how long it took me to get into holo polishes. Now I feel like I need them ALL. Here is Miss Bliss by herself, in all her rainbow sparkly goodness.

Sooo shinyy *o* What are your favourite holo's?

Do cherries grow up to become cherry blossom trees?

Ok, I totally took the title from a manga chapter of Gintama. Oops, let my nerd show for a bit there.

Going to Japan to see the cherry blossoms is at the top of my life list, but until that happens, I know of some cherry trees a bit closer to home. Last April of 2012, I visited High Park, Toronto after I heard that the blossoms would be in full bloom that weekend. It definitely did not disappoint.

Of course, I had to do my nails to show off my favourite flower. A bit different from the traditional cherry blossom mani, I used nail foil for the petals by painting on spots of glue in petal shapes. I love when the light catches the petals, they flash and glow.

I painted three coats of OPI Don't Touch My Tutu, then painted the branches with Essie Mink Muffs before applying the foil. I was thinking of doing a light blue-green gradient as the base, but I decided on a soft white base to let the foil shine on its own.

I dotted on some white afterwards, but I think I prefer it without.

Unfortunately, I didn't get to visit High Park this year - good thing I took so many pictures!

Hope you didn't mind my cherry blossom spam. Oh and one last gif from Gintama.

Bam. See you!

Painted feathers

Hello, hello! I wanted to try feather nails, but I also didn't want to deal with the cutting and trimming of actual feathers. So I tried my hand at painting them. I used a fan brush to try and get that wispy look. A valiant attempt, but I think this one would go in my fail book. I asked my friend if she could tell they were feathers and she said, "...well, they do look kind of furry". LOL.

I used three coats of Sally Hansen Crinoline as the base, and brushed China Glaze Ingrid with a fan brush for the bulk of the feather. I used China Glaze Kalahari Kiss, OPI Thanks A Windmillion, and OPI You're Such A Budapest for the colour details.

If you squint and don't look too closely, they kind of look like feathers? Have a good week!

*No birds were harmed in the making of this manicure* - Wafflerun

Poppy print

The sun is shining, and I'm feelin' fine. Happy weekend, everyone! Today I have this pretty poppy print that was inspired by my Rowan skirt from Club Monaco (kind of obsessed with their clothing recently). I love having my nails match my clothing. Gives me some kind of weird sense of accomplishment.

I started with two coats of OPI My Vampire Is Buff for the base. I didn't think I could love another neutral base as much as I loved OPI My Boyfriend Scales Walls, but I was wrong. For the blue brushstrokes, I dipped the tips of a fan brush into Essie Bobbing for Baubles, getting the excess off before making quick, random, short strokes. Then with a normal striper brush, I made thicker strokes of blue, and added accents of red with Sally Hansen Kook-A-Mango.

For the poppies, I painted the shape of my flower with Zoya Arizona, so I have a bit of orange peeking through. Then I painted over the flower again with my red. Finally, I went back in with my blue and base colour for the poppy centres and extra details.

I love these designs where I don't have to worry so much about being neat. It's a much more free way of painting.

Special occasions call for matching nails

I recently attended an engagement party for a very dear friend of mine. It was a really lovely day as the happy couple exchanged rings in the company of their friends and family. I was told the dress code was "bright and colorful" so I obliged in my silk wrap dress. Of course, my nails couldn't go undressed either.

My dress consists of a long piece of silk, with ties at the ends, and a different pattern on each side. There are so many ways to tie and wear it, it's so much fun! I usually wear it it strapless and tie a bow just below my bust, but I decided to go with the halter option this time. I matched my nails to the tie around my neck.

Apologize for the blinding whiteness

Better shot of the pattern

I really love how these turned out, considering how little planning went into this. It was also my chance to use my new OPI Can't Find My Czechbook, which I used two coats for the base colour. Then I took Sally Hansen Grass Slipper and a small brush to make random waves and squiggles. I did the same for the pink, which is OPI Sparrow Me the Drama. Then a final touch of copper with Essie Penny Talk to help break up all those bright, saturated colours.

Thanks for reading guys, have a great weekend!

Holographic stars and strawberries

When the sun is shining, it's time for the holo polishes to come out and play! I bought my first holo polish from Urban Outfitters as a pick-me-up present to myself. Wasn't expecting much, but OH MAN when I brought this baby out in the sun, I was completely floored. I mean, LOOK AT THIS!

I freehanded on some cascading stars with black acrylic paint. Indoors, you can still see some of the rainbow effect. I'm just sorry I didn't get a picture in the sun with the stars.

After this first wonderful experience with a holo, I was craving more. I picked up Color Club "Miss Bliss" and "Over the Moon". I used Miss Bliss for some holographic strawberries over "Bossy Boots" from butter London, a really gorgeous, pistachio green. The strawberry leaves were painted with Essie "Mojito Madness".

Holographic strawberries have magical properties, you know. If you eat one, you will gain enough strength to defeat the evil Dark Wizard Mage King.

Paint splatter effect with nail foil

Hello friends! I come to you this Easter weekend with a tutorial I threw together kind of haphazardly, for this paint splatter mani...with nail foil! Nail foil by itself creates a really cool, metallic, minx-like effect. Basically, you apply glue to the entire nail, wait for it to dry, lay the foil on top, then press and rub with a finger or Q-tip to transfer the foil on. Sadly, the staying power is not great - top coat crinkles the foil, but without top coat, the foil rubs off too easily. With this method, you can top coat without needing to care about crinkles. It just adds to the effect.

I think paint splatter is the best way to describe these? Here's the tutorial - process shots if you will. Like I said, haphazardly.

That's it! I know this kind of tutorial would be better served with a video, but feel free to ask if anything is unclear. I purchased my nail foils here at Dollar Nail Art. The foil comes in 5ft rolls so you can get a lot of manicures out of one. There are a lot of other cool patterns and effects (much more than when I first purchased), so definitely worth checking out! See ya!