Pink ombre mermaid? nails

I was inspired by this tutorial at Little Nails that I read a couple months ago. However, I neglected to look at the tutorial again before doing it, and I just went at it. Needless to say, this really doesn’t look like a mermaid tail. Still, I think I like the final product. I used so many nail polishes that I don’t want to write it out, but I do know what I used. Ask away if you’re wondering what a color is.  I swatched it on paper and figured out what I was doing wrong. Next time they might actually turn out right!

Tiger print stamp – from the Instagram archives

Sorry that I haven’t posted anything recently! These next 2 weeks are going to be pretty busy since I have my shelf exam soon, but I’ll try to keep things updated. For now, I’m pulling out an old manicure from the archives. This was done using Zoya Lo stamped with a purple Konad polish and Konad m57.

Right now I’m on internal medicine. Our school has the hospital for Texas’s entire prison system, so we get some really sick and complicated patients. That’s where I’ve been this month, so I’ve been keeping busy. It’s been fun though!

Nude and gold manicure with Dior Sienna and China Glaze I’m Not Lion

Today’s manicure is done with Christian Dior Sienna and stamped with China Glaze Passion using Bundle Monster BM 312. I was hesitant to get the Dior polish since it’s so expensive, but I convinced myself that if I got something in a conservative shade I could use it for interviews in the future. Maybe not the most sound reasoning, but I really like the formula. It applies like butter and was opaque in two coats. The brush is thicker than that for your average nail polish. I have mixed feelings about thicker brushes. They help with an even application but are less precise. Unexpectedly, I ended up really liking the brush. The accent nail is with China Glaze I’m Not Lion, which I knew I’d love as soon as I saw it. It is a holographic glitter with a coarse texture once it dries. I had some trouble photographing this manicure for some reason, so these pictures don’t do it justice. I picked up China Glaze I Herd That at the same time, which is a similar glitter polish, but is copper. I can’t wait to try that one out now.

 

I’m not doing any black Friday shopping this year. The one thing I’ve been eyeing is at Zoya. My mom is impossible to shop for. The one thing that I know she’ll use if I get it for her is nail polish. For mother’s day, I got her a boxed set from Zoya that they had as a special. It was three pre-chosen colors in a nice black box. I ended up swapping out some of the colors I didn’t think she would like as much. Now, they’re selling the same boxes with your choice of colors, called dream boxes. I know what I’m getting everyone for the holidays now!

Neon sunglasses

It’s getting cold here, and the temperature shock coming back from Hawaii was not pleasant. I miss the days this summer when we would grill on the beach. I thought I’d reminisce a little with this manicure. From thumb to pinky, I used Zoya Lo, Essie Tart Deco, China Glaze Yellow Polka Dot Bikini, Lime Crime Pastelchio, and Lime Crime Once in a Blue Mousse. It’s stamped with plate CH 37 from the Cheeky summer collection. I love the packaging for these stamping plates, and I really like the size. They’re really cute, but I haven’t been using them too much since it’s cold.

Now for a couple Hawaii photos.

This lady was out promoting her nail salon. That umbrella is amazing. I need one.

Halloween costume party manicure – Red with military insignia

I ended up going to my costume party as a military officer. I really like this costume! I paid about $30 for it a while back, and though it’s still pretty flimsy like most Halloween costumes, I got a lot of comments on how high quality it looked. I figured the outfit looks vintage with the skirt, so I went with red shoes, red nails red lipstick. Any excuse is a good excuse for red lipstick, right?

For the manicure, I used Zoya Sooki, gold tape, and Migi nail art pens for the sergeant insignia. Gotta say, I ended up liking the ensemble 🙂

End of summer stripes

So maybe summer technically ended a while ago, it’s still pretty hot in most of Texas. However, we’ve had a couple of chilly days recently, so I’m finally thinking about fall. This was my attempt to transition between summer and fall. I used Julep Toni as the base color. This color has really grown on me. It’s a wearable grey/purple color. The stripes are with Sally Hansen Insta-Dri in Lightening and Julep Sasha.

I really love the colors of the Julep polishes I have, but I find them really difficult to wear. The first layer is really streaky and it takes a long time to dry. Maybe it’s just the colors that I own that are difficult. Anyone have any opinions about this brand?

 

From the instagram archives…

I have quite a few manicure pics taken with my iphone before I started actually photographing them. I loved this manicure – it’s Zoya Rica and Zoya Heidi and Bundle Monster plate BM 313. It’s really subtle and was hard to pick up with the camera, which is what I think I love about it! Is this plate a giraffe fur or turtle shell print?