Barielle Slate of Affairs Stamped

I really wanted to post a tutorial today, but something came up and I didn't get it done. Instead, I have for you a pretty manicure that I hope you will like. It features the beautiful Barielle Slate of Affairs* shade as the base. Lots of photos to follow as I couldn't decide which I like best...

Stamping was done using Sally Hansen Insta-Dri in Presto Pewter and Bundle Monster plate BM-205. Even though the stamping is a bit on the subtle side, I really love how this turned out. Especially enjoying it in the sunshine...

I have been noticing that I tend to "gray things up" lately. By that I mean that I have been drawn to gray polishes for the base and tend to stamp with gray or silver over most colors. The end result seems to turn out grayish no matter what I do. 

To get a good idea of what I mean by "gray things up," just take a look at this manicure indoors. I managed to turn a pretty blue into gray...

Barielle Slate of Affairs is a dusty grayed out blue with a blue shimmer. It took three coats for full, even coverage. The formula is a bit thick, but the color makes up for any flaws. It is really pretty and the shimmer is just lovely. Swatches are with a top coat...

The shimmer is most evident outside in the sunshine. Just look how pretty it is... :)

Swatch Details
	Brand: Barielle Collection: The All Lacquered Up Collection, Fall 2009 (now main line) Color Name/Number: Slate of Affairs, 5075 Number of coats: 3 Top Coat: Yes Free of Formaldehyde, Toluene, Dibutyl Phthalate (DBP)

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

** Polishes marked with an asterisk (*) were provided to me for review by the manufacturer or their PR. **

** For more information please see the disclosure policy **

Mother's Day and Sunday Stamping

First I would like to wish all the moms out there a very Happy Mother's Day! I wish you all a wonderful day and hope you get spoiled as you deserve! May you always 'bee' happy! :)

The manicure today had a lot of self-imposed requirements to meet. I wanted it to be Spring-like, have flowers for Mother's Day and use a stamping plate ending in 5 (the theme for today's Sunday Stamping challenge in the group Adventures in Stamping). I'm quite happy to say that all the requirements were met and I can rest easy.

For the manicure I started out with a peachy gradient created using Elf polishes. Scroll down for details on polishes used. Then, for the stamping I used the flower pattern from Bundle Monster plate BM-205. Spring colors... check! Flowers... check! Plate ending in 5... check! Yay!

My original intent was to stamp the flower pattern twice, using the lightest and the darkest colors from the gradient. I had hoped that it would smoothly fade into the gradient on each end. This didn't work too well and the stamping was hardly visible so I stamped a third time using Wet 'n Wild French White Creme. The white is mostly what is visible in the photos, but if you click to zoom in you can see some of the other layers. After I was done with the flowers, I added the bee using Shany plate SH05 with Wet 'n Wild Black Creme. Second plate ending in 5... do I get bonus points here?

The gradient itself was created using three out of the four polishes in the Elf set that I acquired on my recent trip to Chicago. I started out with Elf Coral Dream (lightest color) as the base and then sponged the gradient using Coral Dream, Party Peach and Smokin Hot (from base to tips). The gradient was quite bumpy when I was done (and I wanted it smooth for photos), so I used two layers of clear polish followed by a quick drying top coat. Oh for the love of a good photo... Do all these layers make my nails look fat?... :D

I'd love to know your thoughts on this mani!

Do you have anything special planned for Mother's Day? I will be enjoying some breakfast brunch with my Mom this afternoon :)

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

Day 21 - Inspired by Color

Happy 11-11-11 everyone! I really wanted to post this at 11:11am, but my camera battery died at the worst time and I didn't make it. :D

Today's challenge was to be inspired by color. Not being one that can settle on just one color, I was inspired by all the colors of fall. I love seeing the red, pink, orange, gold and green (just to name a few) on the trees this time of year. Plus all the leaves on the ground making gorgeous mosaics. Who could resist that?

I sponged different color polishes over my base and then stamped it with a leaf pattern from Bundle Monster plate BM-205. The technique is the same as used to create galaxy manicures, so here is my galaxy of fall colors...

For the manicure I used:
- Barielle - Cashmere or Loose Me (base)
- Zoya - Isla
- Essie - Braziliant
- Color Club - Almost Famous
- Rimmel - Rags to Riches
- Cosmetic Arts - (no name gold foil)
- Bundle Monster plate BM-205

And just a little fun corner snapshot of 11-11-11 at 11:11am as I was working on the images for this post :D

I'd love to know what you think! Have you made a manicure inspired by the colors of fall?

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)