Animal Print

Zebra Manicure with China Glaze Polishes

9:00:00 AM


Good morning polished world!  How are you all doing today?  It's Friday!!!  Finally.  It's been a good week, but super busy.  I'm excited to sleep in tomorrow.  Seriously, Saturday has become my favorite day of the week!

Today I am sharing a fun pastel/neonish manicure which was inspired by this manicure by twi_star on Instagram.  I have wanted to get my hands on the Color Club pastel neons, but I haven't been able to tell myself that they are worth 8 bucks.  I've read some pretty nasty reviews that the formula is awful, gradients are a pain, and all around they just weren't great.  After seeing twi_star's manicure using those polishes, I started to dig through my stash to see if I had anything possibly similar.

To my surprise, I had three China Glaze polishes that were perfect!  Sure, they are lighter than the Color Clubs, but they worked!  Let's take a look!




Colors Used:
  • China Glaze - Lotus Begin
  • China Glaze - At Vase Value
  • China Glaze - The Grass is Lime Greener
  • Acrylic Paint
Aren't the colors so pretty together?!  I think my favorite of the bunch is The Grass is Lime Greener.  It's a touch choice because purple and blue are my favorite colors, but this green is beyond awesome!  It applied patchy for the first two coats, but on the third it was perfectly fine.  Just like the other two, it dried fast so it wasn't a problem that I had to do three.

The three worked very well together to do a gradient.  I was scared that they weren't going to be opaque enough and it would take forever.  Just a few dabs and everything worked out rather well.



When I was done with my gradient, I went through with acrylic paint and my striper brush and added the zebra stripes.  I love zebra print manicures, I really need to do more.

What do you think?  Fan of the look?

Until next time, <3.

China Glaze

Twinsie Tuesday: Technique You Love But Haven't Tried in A While

9:00:00 AM


Good morning polished world!  How are you all doing today?  It's really hot here.  Hot and humid.  Which makes dressing up fancy for work not a fun task.  At least I have plenty of fun dresses I can wear!

Today is  Tuesday which means it is time for another Twinsie Tuesday.  Today we are sharing manicures using techniques we love but haven't tired in a while.  Honestly, I do a lot of the same techniques over and over again on this blog.  I tend to stick to gradients, dots, and floral manicures.  I started to think what I haven't done in a while and I haven't done a kitchen sink manicure.  This is where you take a bunch of techniques, do them all, and you end up with everything but the kitchen sink.

I was inspired by a lovely nail artist on Instagram who for the life of me I cannot remember.  If it was you, please, please, PLEASE, let me know because it's killing me that I can't remember.  All I know is that I was inspired after I saw a Besti Twin Nails this artist did with another artist.  It's annoying to me that I cannot remember two different bloggers.  Ugh.  I'm sorry.  Please forgive me.

Let's take a look at my kitchen sink manicure with dots and a gradient!




Colors Used:
  • China Glaze - Too Yacht to Handle
  • Orly - Be Daring
  • Orly - Purple Crush
  • Orly - French White
  • Zoya - Cosmo

I really love how this turned out.  The gradient, the dots, the textured glitter accent.  Everything is perfection.  I'm so proud of the multicolored dots.  Every time I do dots like this with different polishes, I tend to have a drying issue where the polishes get goopy and then my dots turn into theses stringy awful looking things.  There really is a science to dotting, and it's ten times easier to just do it with one color, not three.


Overall, I love the look and am so happy I did it.  I miss doing kitchen sink manicures and need to do them more often.  I love being able to blend a bunch of techniques together and make one gorgeous manicure.

What do you think?  Fan of the look?  Any idea who did this on Instagram?!

Check out the other Twinsie's!


Amanda at Amandalandish
Amanda at Fashion Footing
Amber at Nails Like Lace
Bridget at A Painted Nail
Chelsea at Nailed Blog
Jessica at Blue Velvet Lacquer
Lakeisha at Refined and Polished
Marisa at Polish Obsession
Róisín at Cuti-CLUE-les
Savannah at Addicted to Polish
Tiffany at Polished To Precision

Until next time, <3.

Bestie Twin Nails

Bestie Twin Nails with Fashion Footing: Round 14!

9:00:00 AM


Good morning polished world!  How are you all doing today??  It's time for another Bestie Twin Nails with Fashion Footing!  Congratulations to our giveaway winners from last month, Amber and Megan!  Thank you to everyone who entered and celebrated one year of this feature with is!

Last year when Amanda and I started this feature, we discussed doing water marble.  Both of us really aren't fans of technique, but always admire different water marble manis.  Finally we decided it was time to attempt a water marble.

We both were going to do purple and blue manicures using Orly polishes.  Amanda was able to get hers to go successfully, however mine was a complete failure.  Polish wasn't spreading, it was too bubbly when it got on the nail, and the best was when I put top coat on and it completely bled.

I didn't give up though.  The next night I sat down, took some China Glaze polishes, and started working!  Let's take a look!




Colors Used:
  • China Glaze - Plur-ple
  • China Glaze - DJ Blew My Mind
  • China Glaze - Treble Maker
  • INM - Northern Lights
  • Orly - White
For my marble nail, I started off with a base coat of white polish,  Once the white was dried, I taped off my nail because I don't own any of those fancy liquid latex products.  Actually, I can't use them due to all my allergies.  People with dozens of allergies shouldn't use things that contain a major allergen as it might sensitize their bodies.  I tried one time using a peel off-glue base coat around my nail and it made such a mess that I vowed never to do it again.  Tape works perfectly fine and is cheaper.

Anyways, when I was finished taping my nail off, I started dripping my polish into my cup of room temperature water.  I began with Treble Maker, then DJ Blew My Mind, ending with Plur-ple.  These polishes spread like a dream!  I learned a few tricks after watching YouTube tutorials and drew my design in without it all clumping together or messing up.  It was glorious.  I dunked my nail and ended up with a gorgeous accent! 


I then went and did my thumb, which turned out more pastel than the ring finger.  Not sure why....maybe I didn't drip the same amount of green in for that line?  If that makes any sense.

What do you you think?  Have you had luck with watermarble?  Should I do more?

 Make sure to check out Amanda's post!

I found this video by SaraBeautyCorner on YouTube to be the most helpful!  Check it out if you don't have much luck with marbling!

Until next time, <3.

Gradient Mani

Tropical Palm Tree Nail Art

9:00:00 AM



Morning polished world!  How are you all doing today??  I hope you have had a GREAT week and have an AMAZING weekend planned!  I'm not so sure what I have planned yet, but I do know I will be catching up on some sleep.  Honestly, I'm writing this post late Thursday night and my eyes are crossing as I type it because I am so exhausted.  I need to not only work on my blogging schedule, but I also have to work on my sleep schedule!

Every summer since I have started this blog, I have created a palm tree manicure.  In 2012, it was kind of a fail, 2013 was amazing, then 2014 again a fail.  This year though I think it is my best ever!  The palms are detailed, the gradient is very tropical sunset....all around perfect.

Let's take a look!




Colors Used:
  • Salon Perfect - Tickled Pink
  • Salon Perfect - Summer Escape
  • Orly - Push the Limit
  • Orly - French White
  • Orly - Instant Artist Black

I started off with a base coat of Orly French White.  This polish is awesome and I think everyone should go and get it.  It comes with a small brush used for french tips which makes it impossible to paint on the nail.  Amanda from Fashion Footing had the brilliant idea that I should put an old brush into it so I could make it usable.  Best idea ever.

When my white base was dried, I took a make up sponge and did a gradient of Push the Limit, Tickled Pink, and Summer Escape.  These neons were so bright, but created the most gorgeous gradient on my nails.  I think I may have to re-create the base for a tribal design in the future.


Once the gradient was how I liked it, I went through with my trusty Orly Instant Artist striper and created the palm trees.  I can't really describe how I did it, so maybe I will film a tutorial to show you all!  Would you be interested in that??

What do you think?  Fan of this look?  Something you would try on your nails?  Does it make you want to go to a beach somewhere?

Please let me know if you think I should create a YouTube channel.  I have some free time now so I think it might be a fun little adventure!

Until next time, <3.