Sunday Stamping: Multiple Colors

I'm going to try to keep this post brief because it is starting to get light outside and I still have not gone to bed. I had four hours of sleep last night followed by a very long day and when I got home at 3 am today this is what I decided to do instead of going to bed. I've had this idea for today's Sunday Stamping challenge in my head all day and it had to be done. The challenge today is to stamp with multiple colors on one image...

For this manicure I started out with a base of Wet 'n Wild Black Creme. I stamped the design using Nailz Craze plate NC 03 with Pure Ice First Time and Essence Stamp Me! White. The reason I used white is because I don't have a good stamping red, so I stamped the strawberries using white and the stems using First Time. I then sponged over the white using Nicole by OPI Challenge Red-y. It is not the cleanest operation, so I definitely need to find a good red to stamp with. For the red berries, I again used Challenge Red-y to dot over them. Finally using KleanColor Metallic Yellow, I added small gold dots throughout the design...

I'm so excited about how this manicure turned out. It was inspired by a pair of Russian souvenir spoons that I kidnapped from my parents for photos. The NC 03 Russian themed plate is a spot on match for these spoons and I've been wanting to try this manicure for a while. Today's theme finally gave me the excuse to do it...

I hope you enjoy this mani! I'm heading to bed :)

P.S. I got new lights for my light box that I'm still experimenting with. The color of the manicure is true to life, but my skin tone looks a bit off...

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

** Some polishes used in this post were provided to me for review by the manufacturer or their PR. **

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

A Stolen Kiss was Crowned...

I have a little nail art to show you that I created while swatching Dazzle Dry Stolen Kiss. The deep plum purple was just perfect to combine with gold for a royal half-moon manicure. I've had this manicure in mind for a while and I am so excited when it turned out just as I pictured it....

I started out this manicure with Dazzle Dry Stolen Kiss. Using KleanColor Metallic Yellow and Bundle Monster plate BM-215, I stamped the crowns. Getting the stamping aligned was no easy tasks and a number of nails had to be redone multiple times, but it was worth it. Once I got all the stamping straight, I used a push pin as a dotting tool to dot the outline of the crown.

A little Swarovski crystal accent on the ring finger....

The manicure makes me thing of beautiful designs from India...

Let me know what you think of this!!

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

** Polishes were provided to me for review by the manufacturer or their PR. **

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

Born Pretty Store Hot Pink Flocking Powder!

Fuzzy nails! This is certainly one thing that I thought I would never (and I mean never!) try. The crazy thing about saying never though is that it comes back to bite you. Recently, I accepted an offer from the BornPrettyStore.com to review some of their fun nail art products including these and these nail studs. As a surprise, I also got some flocking powder! Let me tell you, I have never been more terrified of a jar of fuzz in my life. It has been taunting me for more than a month as I got up my nerve to try it. Not only is it bright neon pink, but it meant fuzzy nails after I swore  to "never". Little did I know that it would actually be so much fun...

Since the powder is bright neon pink and the Valentines Day theme is everywhere, I thought it would be a perfect fit and a great opportunity to go into pink overload. Might as well jump in head first, right?

For the base I used Nicole by OPI Still Into Pink. It is a newly launched shade for this year and I will show full swatches of it in a few days. I stamped all the nails with the heart pattern from Bundle Monster plate BM-317 using KleanColor Metallic Fuschia. Yup, I stamped all of the nails and took photos just in case this was a total disaster. Yeah, I was skeptical...

For the fully flocked nails I used a coat of Nicole by OPI A Like-Haley Story..., which is the same bright pink as the flocking powder. While the polish was still wet I applied the flocking powder working one nail at a time...

For the fuzzy hearts, I again applied A Like-Haley Story... this time with a small nail art brush. After applying the flocking powder I added a second fuzz-free heart. They turned out sooo cute. Seriously changed my mind about flocking powder...

The fuzz doesn't stand out as much as I thought it would. In fact, it stood out and bothered me less than the rhinestones and studs that I love so much...

Please ignore the heart shadow underneath. It wasn't visible in real life. The fully flocked nails were actually pretty fun. They feel soft and fuzzy and don't look nearly as scary as these macro shots make them out to be. I admit, I couldn't stop petting my own nails...

Each kit of flocking powder from the BornPrettyStore.com comes with a jar of flocking powder which has enough powder to make thousands of manicures, tweezers and a brush. To purchase you can use coupon code AG5J61 for a 10% discount.

Application really couldn't be easier... make sure you are working over a sheet of paper or other surface that you can easy clean from powder later...

1. Apply a base nail polish that closely matches the flocking powder in color. This helps conceal any gaps in the powder if missed during application or that fall off during wear.
2. While the polish is still wet, using the included tweezers apply flocking powder over the nail and press down with your fingers. 
3. Using the brush, swipe across the nail to remove any excess powder that did not adhere to the nail.

It is just that simple!

A close up of the powder and the size of the fibers...

I think flocking powder is a really fun accent to a manicure. I can definitely see more uses for it now that I have actually tried it. A fuzzy pink leopard mani? I'm cured of my fear of jars of fuzz!

It wears better than I anticipated. The manicure survived multiple hand washing and even a shower. It does look pretty funny when wet, kind of like velvet, but returns back to it's fuzzy self as it dries.

In case you are curious and since I went through the trouble to photograph it, here is what the manicure looked like before I added the flocking powder...

Have you tried flocking powder for manicures before? What are your thoughts on it?

Also, if you are interested in purchasing the flocking powder or anything else from the BornPrettyStore.com, you can use coupon code AG5J61 for a 10% discount.

Thanks for looking and commenting!
Anutka :)

** Polishes were provided to me for review by the manufacturer or their PR. **

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

Born Pretty Store: Black Rhinestone Studs

Hi there lovely ladies (and gentlemen?). Today I've got some nail art to show you that I created recently. It features black rhinestone studs form the BornPrettyStore.com which I used to accent my Zoya Blu manicure. There are tons of possibilities for these studs, but for this manicure I chose to incorporate them into a stamping pattern...

For the manicure I started out with a base of the lovely Zoya Blu and stamped with a pattern from Bundle Monster plate BM-322 using KleanColor Metallic Aqua. I used nail glue to adhere the black studs to the nails since I did not want to top coat over the studs to seal them in place...

I love using rhinestones to accent my manicures and these are perfect for the job. They are a bit edgier than the standard rhinestones for sure. Granted it is probably difficult to tell that with my chosen color palate. Making a baby blue manicure "edgy" is no easy task...

The black studs are made out of aluminium and measure 1.5mm in diameter. They are convex (or concave) depending on how you look at them. One side is shiny black and the other is a dark gray. They come packaged in a small ziplock baggie and there is plenty of them in each package for many manicures. In my opinion  you definitely get your money's worth with these...

A closer look at the studs...

I transferred them to a small container for storage along with my other accessories, but that is certainly not to say that they can't be stored in the sturdy bag they are sold in...

I would love to know what you think of these! Have you tried accenting your manicures with studs before?

Thanks for looking and commenting!
Anutka :)

** Products in this post were provided to me for review by the manufacturer or their PR. **

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

Sunday Stamping: New Year Party Nails

I'm not fully back to blogging from all the holiday madness, but I didn't want to miss out on the last Sunday Stamping challenge this year. The challenge is to create New Year party nails. Even though this manicure won't last until actual New Years eve, since I have something else in mind, it was fun to make...

For the base of the manicure I used a sweet new indie brand InDecisive. The polish is a beautiful scattered holo named Sugar. My photos don't do justice to the gorgeous holographic effect, but sadly I was working on this late at night so the only photos I could get were ones in my light box. I will show full swatches of this in a few days...

I stamped the fireworks using Shany plate SH13 and KleanColor in Metallic Fuschia and Sapphire on the middle and pinkie fingers and Metallic Orange and Purple on the index and ring fingers. The "2013" was stamped using Bundle Monster plate numbers BM-201 and BM-203 with Cult Nails Time Traveler.

P.S. Blogger tells me that this is my 500th post! What a wonderful way to end the year!
I will be back with regular posts in 2013. Until then...

Happy New Year Everyone! :)

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

** InDecisive polish was provided to me for review by the manufacturer or their PR. **
** For more information please see the disclosure policy **

Epilepsy Awareness

At the beginning of this month I was contacted by a lovely reader asking me to create a manicure in support of Epilepsy Awareness month, which happens to be November. She has been living with the disease for many years and continues to struggle with it daily. Her story just breaks my heart and creating a manicure for her and this cause is the least I can do. I'm ashamed to admit that I lost track of time and November slipped by way too fast which is why this manicure is sneaking in on the last day of the month. Hopefully this is a case of better late than never...

The ribbon color for Epilepsy Awareness is a deep purple and I did a quick web search just to get an idea of the shade. I ran across a number of images featuring butterfly wings around the ribbon and was inspired to incorporate it into the manicure...

source

For the manicure I started out with a base of Rimmel London French Lingerie. For the stamping I used KleanColor Metallic Purple. The butterflies come from Red Angel plate RA-102. I stamped the pattern a few times to cover the whole nail with butterflies. For the accent nail I stamped the ribbon from Bundle Monster plate BM-324 as well as a few butterflies from RA-102...

I added a piece of purple striping tape along the tips (and the ribbon line on the ring finger). The very edge of the nail was wrapped in Metallic Purple to blend with the striping tape. I really like the crispness of the striping tape. It is amazing how perfectly it matched the stamping polish...

Rimmel London French Lingerie is a sheer pink jelly. It has a nice, smooth formula. No streaks, pulling or bald spots. The wide brush makes application very easy. As the name suggests, this polish works perfectly for the traditional french manicure. I happen to like this shade solo when my nails are on the shorter side as they are right now. The swatches are two coats with no top coat. The nail line is still visible, but that is to be expected with a sheer jelly such as this...

Swatch Details
	Brand: Rimmel London Collection: French Manicure Pro Color Name/Number: French Lingerie, 130 Number of coats: 2 Top Coat: No Free of Formaldehyde, Toluene, Dibutyl Phthalate (DBP)

Let me know what you think!
What causes do you support?

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

To those of you who celebrate Thanksgiving today, I want to wish you a very happy one! I am thankful to have the day off from work and to spend it with my family. I'm thankful for my family and friends who are always there for me, to support and encourage me or knock some sense into me when I need it. I will try to refrain from making this a sappy post of all the things I'm thankful for and instead show you the manicure I'm wearing today. Yes, this is one of those rare occasions when what is on the blog is actually what is on my nails...

I started out the manicure with a base of Barielle Gotta Have Fate, a lovely coral orange cream. If I hadn't been so excited to start applying the water marble, I would have remember to take new swatch photos of it, but maybe next time...

For the water marble itself I used four Barielle shades in Unraveled Rust, Gotta Have Fate, Greenwich Village at Dawn and Sunshine. The colors worked really well together and I'm beyond thrilled with how this turned out...

I wanted to use Barielle shades this Thanksgiving to remind me all the things I have to be thankful for. Barielle along with so many other business and people were hit hard by Hurricane Sandy and are now slowly recovering. Looking at my nails today reminds me that I'm thankful to have a roof over my head, warm water and electricity. The things we often take for granted until they are gone. I'm also thankful that my family in NY whose homes and cars were damaged are themselves safe and sound...

I love adding little accents such as dots to my water marbles and I couldn't resist doing it again. I added metallic gold and orange dots using KleanColor Metallic Yellow and Metallic Orange. They added just the right amount of sparkle and made it special...

Hope you are all having a wonderful day!
What are you thankful for?

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)

** Barielle polishes were provided to me for review by the manufacturer or their PR. **

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

Polish Days: MAN-icure

You may have already heard the term Movember combining the words men and November. It is a wonderful month long event to raise awareness for men's health such as prostate and testicular cancer. According to Wikipedia, Movember started when a group of young men decided to raise awareness by growing moustaches during the month of November. Moustaches have since become the symbol of Movember.

It is only fitting then, that this month's theme for Polish Days is a MAN-icure to honor the event or the special men in our lives. I toyed with the idea of just doing the iconic moustache, but ended up with something a bit different and personal for me...

When my parents first met they lived in cities which were hours apart so they didn't get to see each other very often. On one date my mom mentioned that she liked men with facial hair and to her complete surprise the next time they got together he showed up sporting a moustache and goatee. The goatee eventually turned into a full beard which he has had as long as I can remember. In fact there is only one time that I can remember him shaving it all off and it was quite traumatic for me. I was about six or seven and came home to find my dad looking like a complete stranger with no facial hair. I broke down in inconsolable tears. It is still a big joke in the family, he is not allowed to shave it off. Hence why my manicure says I love men with beards and moustaches... Here is to their health!

For the manicure, I started out with a base of Zoya Kristen then stamped and added a few details...
Index finger: Stamped with Shany plate SH16 using Wet 'n Wild Black Creme and KleanColor Metallic Fuchsia. Accented with a peridot colored rhinestone.
Middle & Pinkie fingers: Stamped with Cheeky plate CH16 using KleanColor Metallic Fuchsia and accented with a fuchsia heart rhinestone.
Ring Finger: Stamped with Shany plate SH03 using Wet 'n Wild Black Creme. Using acrylic paint (black and white) I added hair, ears, and beard shading...

As a side note, I've noticed that the KleanColor metallics stain the silicone of my XL stamper, so be warned if you choose to get them for stamping. They seem to do find with other stampers...

While waiting for the polish to dry to stamp, I figured snapping a few new swatch photos couldn't hurt. Zoya Kristen is a soft shade of gray with a blue tint. The formula on this is creamy and very nice, full coverage in just two coats. On the nail it is slightly brighter and the blue is more prominent than in the bottle. Swatches are with no top coat...

Swatch Details
	Brand: Zoya Collection: Color Name/Number: Kristen, ZP591 Number of coats: 2 Top Coat: No Free of Formaldehyde, Toluene, Dibutyl Phthalate (DBP), Camphor

I would love know what you think of this manicure!

Thanks for looking!
Anutka :)