How I Konad ♥

Alright I finally got around to uploading all these pictures! This is my routine for when I use the Konad stamps :D

First of all, I get a tiny amount of polish on the brush as it spreads a long way:

Brush it over the design:

Your result, don't leave this too long or it will dry!

Scrape the excess polish off. Make sure you don't push too hard because on some designs it takes out part of the polish in the design... Then it only partially works :(

Get your stamper ready! Make sure it is clean from old left over designs and hairs, just give it a quick clean with an ear bud and remover before you start:

And stamp! You can give it a *little* roll around, the reason I put little like that is because you want to pick the image up, not accidentally stamp it back on to the plate:

And pick it up, check to see if the image is in tact:

When I do french tips with the Konad, this is how I line it up. I have my palm facing me and I line the stamp up with my nail. Then I roll the stamp across my nail:

End result! Woohoo! Now only 9 more fingers to do....:


Now they won't turn out perfect every time! Here are a couple of things I tend to run into often.

Problem: My design went on to my nail all sloppy!

Resolution: Did you just clean your plate with remover? Make sure you dry it completely before applying the polish to the plate.

Problem: My stamper isn't picking up my design properly!

Resolution: Has that design already been used? The design may be filled up with older polish, give it a quick clean and dry completely :D

Problem: I've ruined my manicure with polish off the scraper!

Resolution: Ahhh I have done this so many times... You would've thought I would have learnt by now. Make sure you clean your scraper regularly! It gathers ALOT of excess polish waiting to smear on something.

Well my dear reader, I hope this will help you or clear some questions :)

If not, feel free to ask and I shall demonstrate!

More about → How I Konad ♥

Shangri-la-la Lilac + Admire

Here we go! n_n

So as you know the base colour is OPI Shangri-la-la Lilac and I used China Glaze's Admire for the design. 

To think I was going to get rid of Admire now sickens me lol it's Shangri's significant other!

What do you think?

I used this same design on my sister. I put on her, Tickle My France-y and then used China Glaze's Delight for the same design as this and applied little stones in the flowers. She only had the designs on her ring fingers. 

More about → Shangri-la-la Lilac + Admire

Healthier Nail Polish equals Zoya Nail Polish

ESSpa Kozmetika (organic skin care spa) in Pittsburgh, PA offers healthy Zoya Nail Polish.

See the WTAE-TV news story here. See more ESSpa video's on youtube.

More about → Healthier Nail Polish equals Zoya Nail Polish

Nails for the Week

So school finally started for me, and that means one thing: no more time for switching nail polishes all the time!! :( That's unfortunate because I can't stand having the same color for 2 days. I know that's insane, but that's me. So here were my nail polishes I've worn for the week.


China Glaze He's Going In Circles

Absolutely adore this color. I love the China Glaze's Kaleidoscope collection. It just mesmerizes me every time I put it on. I can't really put in words for this collection, but I just have to say you must get it for yourself to see the amazing, vibrant colors.


Zoya Lianne

Not so everyday color for nails. It reminded me of Halloween because of the bright shimmery orange. I love colors like these because they attract attention. As you can tell I'm not your basic french manicure type of girl. Although I love french manicures, I rather go for something out of the ordinary!


China Glaze Blk-Bila-Bong

Going through my nail polish collection, I've noticed I have A LOT of blues and purples. I can't really say BBB isn't similar to others, but there's not an exact duplicate. None that I know so far. I love how it's black, yet with blue glitters. So so so cute! :)


OPI Make Love

I'm not a pink nail person but I must admit, this is the best my nails have ever looked. The color is great for the office or any job. Not too crazy, but what I love most about this one is that it also catches attention. I can't stop staring at them for some reason. My cuticles STILL looks like they're screaming for help but that's the best I could do for them. I love this pink! It is now on my favorite nail polish list!

That's all folks! Until next time...

More about → Nails for the Week

My first go using these beasts...

What do you think? 

I got these lovely little stones with my Konad Gold Set. Never thought I would ever use these, but this mani had been floating around my brain for a little while. 

I used two coats of Claire's Rocker Blues. I still can't believe a lovely lady was nice enough to send me this polish as a RAOK... I still get giddy looking at it :D

I used Konads plate M , and China Glaze's Devotion as the polish. Devotion has made its self quite useful hasn't it :D Might have to order a few more Romantiques...

A very simple design but stunning none the less. Oh while I remember, China Glaze's Frostbite is an *exact* doppelganger of Rocker Blues! I found Revlon's Talk Dirty today so you can bet it's going to  have little enhancements n_n

For the application of the tiny stones:

1. Turn them upside down so you are seeing their silver bottoms.

2. Get a toothpick (or the Konad stick if you have one)

3. Dip it in your topcoat, pick up the stone with toothpick

4. Apply it closely to where you want it to be, it's easy to move around :) 

5. Apply topcoat over the whole nail and your set! 

More about → My first go using these beasts...

Zoya Twist Nail Polish and Sparkle Gloss Topcoat

Sometimes swatches are just so pretty...

A sublime posting by The Crystal Files today puts the focus on just how pretty the new Twist collection from Zoya Nail Polish is... Toss on a coat of Zoya Sparkle Gloss Topcoat and this collection multiplies it's options by two! Now that's a smart, budget-minded beauty option every glamour gal can appreciate.

See Hillary's post on Harley (her favorite Zoya Twist Collection shade) here.

More about → Zoya Twist Nail Polish and Sparkle Gloss Topcoat

No Nails Today...

...due to the fact that this weekend, while making dog food, I sliced my thumb open right beside the nail, partially down the side. I was using my nifty apple corer/slicer tool, and was an idiot - jammed my poor thumb right down on the cutting edge.

Frankly, I'm a baby when it comes to nail polish remover in cuts, and this one is *deep* (it bled on and off all day Sunday, and again yesterday when I bumped it).

So as soon as this heals enough to use polish remover around, I'll have another manicure to show. Until then, Tangy lives on!

More about → No Nails Today...

Brooke Shields looks lovely in Zoya Nail Polish

Brooke Shields and her little girls Rowan and Grier look lovely in the Dec/Jan issue of Cookie Magazine. Editorial/Celebrity manicurist Gina Eppolito (Ginails) added the perfect finishing touch to Brookes' looks with Zoya Nail Polish in Casey.

More about → Brooke Shields looks lovely in Zoya Nail Polish

For the lovely Rosey ♥

For my dear friend Rosey :D All of the Yokohama's I own from the 'actual' Yokohama collection...

Confusing I know :)


In order:

Yokohama Twilight - Pastel purple base with a strong blue flash. Also has pink duochrome on certain angles.

Sweet Love at Ferris Wheel - Warm pink base with a hint of purple. Has gold, pink, purple shimmer.

Cherry Blossom - A sweet cherry blossom pink jam packed with silver glitter.

Bay Bridge Sunset - A warm rust holographic with gold shimmer. Day at the Peach is it's step sister.

Penny For Your Thoughts - A very warm golden shimmer. Absolutely love wearing this one. Opacity builds the same as Curry Up! Don't Be Late

Baby Blue - A sweet baby blue with a tinge of green with golden shimmer.

Starbright Sparkles II - A very sheer milky pink base with pink shimmer and glitter.

Blush of Adrenaline - A peachy shimmer. Not too sure what I love about it, but I can't let it go!

Swirl of Euphoria - Reminds me of Frappes. A little streaky, but I love it none the less.

As you can see, Pinkerbell, Vintage Violet and I Love Yokohama are still missing. I'm working on that! :D All photos here are three coats. Top coat, no. Base coat, yes.

Also you may have noticed (or may not have) that Swirl of Euphoria and Yokohama Twilight contain long nails. That's right, I gave my nails the chop :) They were getting so un-practical, I couldn't open the fridge without slamming my nails into the handle, I couldn't pick up the ear buds properly for when I was cleaning up the cuticles.

I wore Zoya's Bailey to break me into them. It worked very well. You will get to see her soon :) I am actually quite happy with them at this length and I'm wondering if I should try keep them this short. Although it is much more of an achievement to have them longer... Hmm...

Do you have any favourites from this bunch?

More about → For the lovely Rosey ♥

Misa Mar De Morado

Here's one that's been gathering dust on the back burner, Misa's Mar De Morado.

Three coats. It is quite a thin polish so it is a little streaky but you can't see it at three coats :) Mar De Morado is going straight to the Top 20 list.

It is a discontinued colour so if you like what you see, order it :D I got mine from TransDesign.

Oh I had all my Yokohama's planned for you but this laptop is horrible for uploading lots of pictures at one time and the main PC is still unstable. So keep tight Rosey :D You also haven't seen the surprise yet! Hehe

I have also started a new label 'Discontinued' on the side there, so I will slowly go through and edit the labels on all my posts :D

More about → Misa Mar De Morado

Zoya Nail Polish and Intelligent Design

The February 2009 Elle Magazine article on Project Runway Winner Leanne Marshall had the added fashion bonus of Zoya Nail Polish on the tips and toes of models for the shoot… And the designer herself who took home her very own bottle of Zoya Nail Polish in Erin that was given to her by editorial manicurist Jackie Saulsbery (that's Jackie on inside, bottom corner shot with Leanne). The clothes and nails look just beautiful. Make sure to get a copy and check it out!

More about → Zoya Nail Polish and Intelligent Design

OPI Designer Series DS Chiffon

With Flash


Without Flash



I feel like a Barbie doll whenever I have this color on. Something about it that is so girly, and so..Barbie ish. I really love this color. This is one of the many pinks I've worn more than once. I'm not really a pink nail type of girl. I like the dark and vampy colors. But DS Chiffon is an exception! :)

More about → OPI Designer Series DS Chiffon

SHOPPING

So yesterday it was finally a nice decent day here in New York. Temperature was as high as high 40s! So I went shopping, and I bought a few goodies. But before I tell you what I bought let me tell you how....annoyed and pissed I was. Do any of you know those infomercial products they try to sell at little booths around the mall? Well as I was walking about avoiding eye contact with any of those people, one lady comes up to me and here's a dialogue of our conversation:

Lady: Hi miss! Can I see your nails?

Me: Um.. sure (showed her my nails)

Lady: Are these your natural nails or artificial nails?

Me: Natural nails....

Lady: Ok, great what I'm gonna do is take this off (starts removing my nail polish)

I was like WHAT THE HELL!! My freshly done nail polish!! (Of course I said that in my head, being that I didn't want to be rude) So she started using that four sided buffer. She buffed my nail, polished, and shined it. It was so stupid at what she said.

Lady: Are you ready to see the results of your nail? Promise me you want kiss me, hug me, or lift me up in the air.

I looked at her awkwardly, and then she showed me my shiny little polished nail. I looked at her like I was about to kill her because NOT only did she remove my nail polish from ONE nail, she showed me a product that I already knew of. And she tried to scheme me, telling me that the whole kit costs $79.99, but there's a special discount of 50% that day, so it would be $39.99. But that's not all!! Because she likes ME she'll give it to me $29.99 just for ME. (yea ok how many people did she say that to already?) It was some special little kit from Israel or something like that. But then again, I bought the same 4-step buffer at Sephora for only $5! And I barely use it because I don't need my nails to be shiny because there's always polish over it. How dare she!!

But enough of that. I finally went to Sephora and bought Sephora OPI Metro Chic. There's a big hype over that nail color, and I wanna see what the fuss was about.

It's a really nice color, but to me, I don't think it suits me. I can't really explain what the color is. Whether it's taupe, brown, or gray. It's unique I must say but the color just doesn't do me any justice. My cuticles are screaming out HELP! too. Goodness, look how awful they look. Time to drown my cuticles with cuticle oil!


Sephora OPI Call Your Mother

Is it just me or does this color reminds you of OPI Parlez-Vous OPI? I can't find my picture of it, but it really looks quite similar. I like it though :)

So it seems to me, my obsession with green and purple is not only on nails. It's for make-up as well.


Laura Geller Eye Rimz in Potion

It has a matching brush also! Potion is a mixed of swirled black, deep violet, and white pearl. It's like a black eyeshadow that has a hint of purple and a hint of white, which is like.. a dark lavendar... sort of. I can't really explain the color.

Laura Geller Eye Rimz in Hocus Pocus
Eyeshadow lovers must get this. It's like a black mixed with green shadow with a hint of green glitter. On the Sephora website it says, it's a mix of swirled black, deep emerald, and olive green. I really adore this color!

More about → SHOPPING

Morgan + Devotion

Here is the lovely Morgan manicure again, this time with Devotion flower tips.

What do you guys think? I loved wearing this mani! Didn't want to take it off :D

I also added a photo of Morgan from August 2008. Look how much my nails have grown in six months! I am really amazed at how well they have done. Anything is possible.

vf

More about → Morgan + Devotion