Princess Toes

It's been a while since I posted any pedicure pics, so here you go. I've not been keeping them as pretty as my fingernails, so they haven't been photo-worthy. Here is Deborah Lippmann Between The Sheets with 2 coats of Nail-Venturous A Dash of Princess on top. I'm in love with these big white hex glitters. :)

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Pink Plaid Piggies

I changed up my pedicure to be shades of pink in a plaid pattern. 

You can refer to this post if you'd like a tutorial for plaid.

The colors I used here:

China Glaze Something Sweet

China Glaze Secondhand Silk

Sally Hansen Presto Pink

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Galaxy Toes

In my never ending quest to make awesome galaxy nails, these are one of my newest creations. I posted some tips about galaxy nails here, so I won't bore you with that again. But I think you can see where I have corrected my mistakes... I use a light hand, and I put a TON of stars everywhere.

Sorry that (1) this is a crappy picture and (2) my feet are kinda gross here

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Teal Tips & Toes

I took the idea for these nails exactly from a pic I had pinned on Pinterest. Being the dummy I am, I deleted the pin once I had finished painting my nails. So now that's I finally have the time to blog about it.... I can't find the reference! So I'm terribly sorry to whoever originally did these. I did copy your idea exactly, and I promise if I can find the picture or if one of you guys knows the link, I'll credit you with a link back.
*edit* Ah yes, the inspiration was from The Nail Polish Project seen here. Thanks @ FrugallyMe for helping me out with that! *end edit*

They turned out great and I wore them like this for a record - 2 days! So here is how you can recreate the look as well.

I even changed my pedicure out to coordinate. I used all the same colors.

So here are the tutorial pics (for the nails only) and then close-up pics of each nail's different design.

2 coats of Sinful Colors - Savage (double up on your basecoat, this polish stains like the devil)

Add details using China Glaze -For Audrey. I just used a regular striping brush and one of my dual ended dotting tools (large on one end, small on the other).

Add further details using Sinful Colors - Snow Me White. Don't forget to topcoat.

I thought they were awesome. Hope you do too!

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Patchwork Toes

I used three different shade of gray. Zoya Dove as the base, then China Glaze Recycle, then a dark gray franken I made. You could easily substitue the darkest gray for any of the new fall gray polishes that are out this season. I just don't happen to have any of those. :)

I layered the polishes and let them dry well between layers. Then I used a black striper polish to outline because my lines were a little shaky.

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Pedicure Design

You might have noticed the poll to the right. I just wanted to get some feedback from you guys as to what you'd like to see more of here on my blog. This started because I noticed that a good portion of the traffic sources coming to my blog are google and bing searches related to toe nail art. Go figure?

I know that's not something I generally see a lot of on other polish blogs, but maybe that means there is a need for it. I also realize that many might be grossed out by looking at other people's feet. My toes aren't the prettiest, but I'll try to photoshop them up a little for your sake ;)

For the most part I just wear plain polish on my toes, but I will make a bigger effort to come up with art designs to incorporate.

This is Sally Hansen Insta Dri Blue Blast;

Zoya Mira for the french tip,

random flower decal for the big toe.

I'm off to try and remember to moisturize my little piggies tonight.

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Simple Toes

I saw this idea on an app for my iPhone. It's called "Nail & Hair" and is written entirely in Asian characters... I don't know if it's Chinese, Japanese, etc... (JAPANESE, thanks Claudia!) I just know I can't read it. It's just a large gallery of nail (& hair) designs, thankfully that have color bullets beside each category to identify it. I just click and search around and save the images I like. This one was simple enough for me to recreate without having to think too hard! ;) 

I painted all of my little toes with Sally Hansen Lavender Cloud, then painted my big toe Wet N Wild Black Creme. I used my largest dotting tool and more Lavender Cloud to do the dots on my big toe. Started in the middle and went straight up, then filled in the sides staggering the dots to sit between the row before. It's super simple, but I like it!

Here is the screenshot of the inspiration pic.

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Vintage Toes

The combination of pastel blues, teals, and pinks have floated around on blogs in various patterns. They look so shabby chic and vintage! Just very delicate and feminine in my opinion. So this is what I'm currently sporting on my toes. What do you think?

I started with a base of China Glaze Secondhand Silk, then freehanded the white stripes using my Kiss Nail Art Striper polish in white. Once that dried, I added China Glaze For Audrey in 3 large dots on my big toe. Then took the same white polish and did tiny little lines in a circle pattern to give the effect of roses. 

I really like it, but I had the thought afterwards that it might have looked nicer if I'd stamped a rose image in white over the dots of teal. Sharper appearance of a rose? If you try it let me know! I'd love to see. :)

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Abby's Adorable Toes

I don't often get inspiration from pedicure ideas. I usually end up just wearing a plain swatch of color on my toes. Abby from Lovely in Lacquer did such a cute combination here, I had no choice but to copy her work. I painted my toes with two coats of Zoya Caitlin, then BM19 polka dots using Konad White. For my large toe, I stamped the dots image just once and filled in empty space with dots using a dotting tool. I just continued the pattern outside the area that stamped. Rather than have to try and align it, just right, to stamp again. Then a cluster of rhinestones and half pearls to the big toe. I think they are adorable and I love it! Thanks Abby!

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SciFi Toes

I only change my pedicure every week to two weeks. I hate that awkward position you have to be in, and I can't get a close as I can with my fingernails, so it never looks as good as I want it to. Up until last night I still had my M&M toes, but there was new growth and they had to go :( 

I wanted to pack them full of my Love & Beauty Disco Nights holographic glitter, the painstaking removal will be for future Leslie to worry about. I applied a base of Sally Hansen Insta Dri Silver Sweep, then three coats of Disco Nights.

-blurry holo glitter goodness-

 They make me think robotic, futuristic, science fiction.

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Zebra Toes

I have a coworker that is busy planning her wedding. Her colors/theme is hot pink and zebra print. Sounds interesting right? I thought it would translate well to nails.

I used:

• Essie trillionails base coat
• 2 coats of ChG "Laced Up"
• taped off the tips
• Sally Hansen "Lavender Cloud" for white tips
• Konad plate m57 zebra print
• Konad stamping polish in black
• removed the tape and added OTD topcoat.

I think it turned out super cute, but this wasn't a success the first time around. A few days ago I had tried the following combo:

I just didn't love how it turned out, so I didn't want to post it. But I thought it would be better if I flipped the design and now it's just right.
Which version do you like?

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Toes Like Rebecca

So I found an awesome new nail blogger like myself, and one of her designs inspired me!
http://rebeccalikesnails.blogspot.com/2011/01/more-favorite-nails.html

Warning! Toes down below!

I used:

• China Glaze "Recycle"
• China Glaze "Spontaneous"
• China Glaze "For Audrey"
• Kiss Nail Art black striper
• China Glaze "Millenium"

I would never have thought to put these cool colors together! Rebecca is a smart girl ;)
I used some random clear rhinestones on the big toe, but just put "Millenium" on the little toes using a dotting tool.

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Gold Toes

Just a simple polish job for my toes this week - you may (or may not) notice that finally, my toenails are becoming better shaped. It's a process!

I used the same polish colors as I used on my fingernails. Two coats of China Glaze "Passion" and one coat of CG "Tinsel over the top to give it a subtle sparkle. You can't really tell, but I had to try out my new Essie "Matte" topcoat, so I just swiped it over the tips of my big toes for a very, very subtle french look. I'm going to like the matte topcoat!
You can't really see the sparkle very well here - sorry. I'm still trying to figure out the best way to take pictures of my toes. Should have gotten a pic with my fingers/toes together...next time.

What's on your toes this week?

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Cherished Toes & Toenail Shaping

I'm still gradually working my toenails back into the proper shape, which is why they look a bit odd. Metallic polish may be somewhat streaky, but it hides a multitude of sins. I did these to match my Porcelain Roses manicure this week - just a simple design with gold bouillon beads on two coats of China Glaze "Cherish". If you look closely at my left big toe there, you'll see that my line of beads has a break in it - that's what I get for heading to bed before everything is properly dried down. Oops!

So what is the proper shape for a toenail? According to one of the major nail polish companies on twitter last week, rounded nails are best. I'd always heard the opposite, so I went to a few online podiatry sites to find out the truth. The nails on my big toes are prone to being ingrown, and I want to prevent that if possible. Every single medical site I visited agreed - toenails should be cut straight across, never curved, and never shorter than the edge of the toe. The American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons have pictures on their web site of proper toenail shape - check it out here (scroll to the bottom). Interesting, eh? I'll keep cutting my toenails straight across.

Contest announcement tomorrow - stay tuned!

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Salma Toes

It's a little late for summer, since September is literally right around the corner, but I actually did a pedicure last Saturday when I did my fingernails. I've said it before, and I'm saying it again - I really have to take better care of my feet & toenails!

I prepped this post on Weds. night, and as I was typing hubby noticed how dry my feet were, and got on the floor to lotion them up for me. *swoon*

This is another fall color from Zoya called "Salma". For some reason, this dark rust color really appeals to me - I just love it, and can't wait to use it on my fingernails. Since I was feeling lazy as far as actually reaching all the way down to my toes go, I simply used my dotting tool to put little dots of Zoya "Penny" on them for a subtle design.
That's not actually a chip on my little toe there...I had to double check after posting the photo. It's glare from the outside light, oddly enough.

I'm going to shoot for another new pedicure next week (I know!). And just because I'm on a roll with the whole blog thing this week, stop in tomorrow (Friday) for a couple of fun (I hope) announcements!

Happy Polishing!

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Green Toes?

Yep, I did my toe nails this week, finally! I really need to take better care of my feet...

They're kind of streaky, because I'm not used to reaching all the way down there. But I like the way the color turned out. I used the same colors as I used on my fingers - China Glaze "Cherish" is the green, and Misa "Camisole" is the sheer white. For my toes, I layered Camisole over Cherish for the light, minty green look. Then I used my dotting tool and added dots of Cherish. The finished effect kind of reminds me of a strawberry, only green, or brocade fabric. I think a Konad design would have worked very nicely in Cherish with these. Might have to try that next time.

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Friday Toe Pic – Sparkly Bekka

I apologize for the picture quality. I’m still trying to get the hang of taking pictures of my feet. But it’s kind of a fun manicure, and not too bright, but a little sparkly (which doesn’t show here).

I used Zoya’s “Bekka” for the main color – a very bright yellow that just screams “spring” to me. Then I followed that with a single coat of China Glaze “Tinsel” (which you can probably tell I adore) to add a little sparkle. A fun pedicure, and my toe nails are sort of getting back in shape again.

To the contest winners – I apologize for not getting your prizes mailed out yet. They’re going out tomorrow, so with any luck, you should all have them sometime next week!

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Dirty Sexy Money Toes

Well, I missed a few hairs, but they're definitely clean! You'll have to excuse the odd shapes of my smaller toe nails - I've been neglecting them all winter, and need to take care of them weekly to get everything straight and shaped again.

This is my pedicure this week. It was the "inspiration" for my fingernail art, though I must say, I think my toes turned out better. It's just kind of fun and funky, though I think I'm ready for a brighter color now.

I'm really going to try to do a pedicure at least every other week from now on, maybe every week if I can convince myself to go to the effort. I know my feet are happier from the attention, and who doesn't like bright and cheerful toes?

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