I really like cats

I also really like drawing little kitties whenever I get the chance. It's become a common thing while looking through notes and papers, to find a kitty peeking out at me from the corner of a page.

I put my kitty related drawings together and found there is somewhat of a theme going on here. Either I really like gray/black cats, or I'm just lazy to give them any other colour. Actually, why don't we chalk it up to artistic choice.

Me petting a kitty, Kiki and Jiji from Kiki's Delivery Service, birthday cat

Polishes:

Left to right: Sally Hansen "White On", "Dorien Grey", American Apparel "Factory Grey", "7th and Alameda", Sally Hansen "Black Out"

I've always wanted to do a proper ombre manicure, and I recently realized that I had enough grays to finally do one. I guess it was only natural to connect my penchant for gray kitties with a gray ombre.

Where are my fellow cat and kitty lovers? UNITE!

Alice in Wonderland: Down the Rabbit Hole

"Well after this, I should think nothing of falling down stairs."

Let's all follow Alice down the rabbit hole! I chose to show a couple random things that Alice would have seen while falling that long way down. In hindsight, I would have painted some different patterns, like a patterned wallpaper maybe, but I'm pretty happy with how my stone backgrounds turned out.

Polishes:

Left to right: Sally Hansen "White On", "Dorien Grey", American Apparel "Factory Grey", "7th and Alameda", Sally Hansen "Black Out"

Left to right: Essie "Penny Talk", American Apparel "Rose Bowl", "Berry", "Malibu Green", Nubar "Swiss Chocolate"

I made the gradient on my thumb by painting 2-3 coats of my lightest grey, Dorien Grey (the spelling bothers me, but I still bought this for the name), and then sponging on the medium grey, Factory Grey. The stone details were made with 7th and Alameda and Factory Grey for different shades. Everything else is small detail brush work.

I'll leave links to other parts of the series at the end of my posts. I also have them all tagged under "Alice in Wonderland".

Alice in Wonderland Nail Art Series

• Cheshire Cat
• Big or Small
• Unbirthday 

Watercolour Drip Nails

I'd been wanting to do watercolour nails for a long time, but the technique I've tried where you drop acetone onto blobs of polish didn't create the effect that I wanted. While the acetone does make a neat ring effect in the polish, I wanted a bit of a more brushstrokey, splodgey  look. I think I've achieved that with my American Apparel sheer polishes.

The best thing is, these are super easy to do with some good jelly polishes. I'd like to make a proper tutorial for the watercolour and drip effect in the future, so let me know if that's something you'd be interested in!

Polishes:

Left to right: American Apparel "Manhattan Beach", "Summerland Beach", "Pacific Beach", "Redondo Beach", "Moonlight Beach", OPI "Don't Touch My Tutu", Sally Hansen "White Out"

Directions:

1. Start off with a white base. I used two coats of a sheer white, OPI "Don't Touch My Tutu" to keep the transparency, but I don't think a solid white base would make a difference with all the layers we'll be doing.
2. Take a jelly colour, and make random strokes and splodges.
3. Repeat with all of your colours until your entire nail is covered.   
4. Paint over everything with one coat of a sheer white. 

I really liked the resulting look, but I wanted to add some hard edges in there to break things up a bit. Then I remembered I haven't tried drip nails yet either, and this was definitely the perfect opportunity.

I loved it so much, I went for a full-blown drip mani.

Again, please let me know if you'd like to see a full tutorial for this! I'll be back next week with another "Alice in Wonderland" design. Happy Friday, and have a great weekend!

Alice in Wonderland Nail Art Series: Cheshire Cat

 "You may notice I'm not all there myself."

Hi friends! I'm happy today to make the first post in my "Alice in Wonderland" nail art series. I'll be doing a set of Wonderland themed nails every week, for the next several weeks. Hope you'll enjoy these! I've always loved the imagery from "Alice in Wonderland". It's crazy and can be a bit unsettling, but so colourful and fun.

These first set of nails are inspired by the Cheshire Cat, with his trademark grin, and disappearing stripes. If you look closely, you can see the pink stripes start solid on the middle finger, get slightly more transparent on the index, and then disappear completely on the thumb.

Polishes:

Left to right: OPI "Sparrow Me the Drama", Zoya "Reagan", Sally Hansen "White On", black striper

Directions:

Here is how I created the Cheshire smile. The Zoya brush was very easy to maneuver, so the thick purple stripes are painted freehand.

1) Paint two coats of white and make evenly spaced stripes with a striper.

2) Cut a smile shape from tape. I just modified a binder paper reinforcement.

3) Line up the smile with your cuticle, and make sure it's pressed down completely. 

4) Paint a coat of white on the remaining area to cover up the extra stripes. Then a coat or two of pink.

5) Remove the tape the reveal your wide Cheshire smile.

Finished! If you have any suggestions for me or specific designs you'd like to see, just leave me a comment!

Alice in Wonderland Nail Art Series

• Down the Rabbit Hole
• Big or Small
• Unbirthday

I Found My Nude!

So my second nude/neutral polish purchase turns out to be a winner! And for a mere $4 at CNE (Canadian National Exhibit). Sweet! This is two coats of Sally Hansen "Malt" and Essie "Penny Talk" sponged on the tips, with a little bit painted directly on. The sponge texture almost gives it a burnished copper look. Subtle and classy, I like it!

 

Malt reminds me of foundation. I suppose all nude polishes would have that quality. If it was a shade or two lighter, it would have been an even better match for my skin. The formula was awesome and opaque in two easy coats.

Here was my first attempt with a nude and I have a swatch of Penny Talk here. I'm so happy to have found a great nude! Not exactly mannequin hands, but great nonetheless. What gives you mannequin hands (if that's your thing)?

Nail Art: Counting Sheep

Warning: These nails may put you to sleep. Do not stare at them while driving or operating heavy machinery.

Polishes:

Left to right: Revlon "Dreamer", Wet n Wild "Kaleidoscope", OPI "Jade is the New Black", Illamasqua "Milf", China Glaze "Lemon Fizz", Sally Hansen "White On" and "Black Out"

Directions:
Base: Start off with two coats of "Dreamer" (how appropriate is the name). Add a bit of glitter for stars.

Finished!

Sleepy, sleepy, sleepy...

Nail Art: Calvin and Hobbes

Hello friends, long time no see. I've been pretty busy for the past week, hence the lack of posting, but I happily had time to sit down yesterday and paint something.

I've been wanting to do Calvin and Hobbes themed nails for a while now. I bought several Calvin and Hobbes comic books at an amazingly inexpensive bookstore in Toronto, and they quickly became my favourite thing to read for a quick pick-me-up. Makes me think how much less boring it would be being an adult if I just had a stuffed tiger.

The hard part was making a design that would show their friendship; something the comics express so plainly. I settled on this simple design with a simple message in mind: where some may see a stuffed tiger, Calvin sees his best friend.

Polishes:

Left to right: Illamasqua "Nomad", Zoya "Arizona", Sally Hansen "White On" and "Black Out", Folk Art acrylic paint #949 "Skintone" and #509 "Sunny Yellow"

Directions:

Finished!

I love how these turned out and I get happy when I look down at my fingers. These are probably not the last Calvin and Hobbes themed nails from me. Hoped you enjoyed this! 

Nail Art: Breaking Bad

Hello friends, hope you are having a fine Sunday. I've been catching myself up with Breaking Bad, and I think the new season is off to a great start. Can't wait to see where it goes! Today's nail art is tribute to this amazing series. To anyone who hasn't seen it, I'd highly recommend Breaking Bad if you like a good drama with gripping suspense, tension, and top notch acting.

Also, this was my first attempt at water marbling. And it was not awful! It went much easier and smoother than I expected. I'll make a proper tutorial for it once I've got the technique down, more or less. I'm quite happy with how well the green swirls emulate the title credits.

Polishes:

Left to right: OPI "Jade is the New Black", Orly "Meet Me Under the Mistletoe", Sally Hansen "Grass Slipper", Sally Hansen "White On", Sally Hansen "Black Out"

Directions:

This was my formula for the water marbling, in this order:
1 drop of OPI "Jade is the New Black" + 1 drop of Orly "Meet Me Under the Mistletoe" + 1 drop of Sally Hansen "Grass Slipper" + 1 more drop of  OPI

The gold shimmer in Orly didn't show up in the marbling, but it might have affected the way the polish spread over the water. I found I didn't need as many drops of polish as I thought, but I'll have to experiment a little to be sure.

Finished!

If you already watch Breaking Bad, how do you like it? If not, do you think you'll check it out? How was your first attempt at water marbling?

Thanks for reading, enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Nude Gradient with OPI My Very First Knockwurst

I saw this look on Zoenails and I fell in love! Simple, with a pop of colour - and you might know how I love my gradients! I had a major nail polish haul this week, and OPI My Very First Knockwurst was one of them, so here's my version.

This was done with two coats of OPI My Very First Knockwurst, and then sponged with Sally Hansen Snappy Sorbet.

 

My Very First Knockwurst is a light pink putty creme from the OPI Germany Collection. It comes off as a dusty rose, leaning to lilac. The formula was an absolute pleasure to work with, going on easily in two coats. It doesn't quite look nude against my skin, but it's still pretty and very appropriate for the conservative-office.

I just may have to go back for the other nude from the Germany Collection, Don't Pretzel My Buttons. I'm more inclined to buy these "plain" colours, rather than the deep, metallic shades that are offered (though I love seeing them on other people's nails).

Have you picked up any shades from the Germany Collection? What is your perfect nude colour? I am still on the hunt for mine!