Sunday, March 30, 2014

Neons in Fall

Hola chiquillas! Como están? Espero que muy bien. El nailarts de hoy es como raro, porque a pesar de que a algunas el Otoño les llegó de sopetón con lluvia y todo, acá en el Norte el clima sigue bien veraniego xD Por eso este finde tuve ganas de usar mis colores flúor de la colección Sunsational Jellies, que son esmaltes translúcidos que se dan para efectos como degradado o "glitter sandwich" (básicamente es poner una capa de glitter entre dos de un esmalte "jelly", para que se vea como que el glitter flota en el color base). Usé You Drive me Coconuts y Isle See you Later para el degradé y Lynnderella Connect the Dots como glitter (hay un esmalte muy parecido de Color Show que también les puede servir). Espero les haya gustado este nailart de extensión del verano jajaja.

While technically it is Fall on my side of the world, it hardly looks like my city got the memo. The weather is still warm and sunny for the most part, so for the weekend I was in the mood for some neons.

Back in January I got the Sunsational Jellies pack from China Glaze, and today I feature two of the polishes that come in that set.

As a base I used one coat of You Drive me Coconuts, then I added a dabbed coat of Lynnderella Connect the Dots and to finish off the base, one more coat of YDMC. Then I used several coats of Isle See you Later, one of the sheerest polishes from this collection, to make the gradient (following this idea from rebecca likes nails)
I've tried almost all the Jellies at some point since January and I've got to say, You Drive me Coconuts is one of my favorites so far. The formula was super easy to work with and it would have been opaque on its own in two coats. It's a super bright neon pink that freaked my camera, so I went for digital color correction to give you an idea of how it looks. It's eye-searing in real life.

Isle See You Later would have been a huge disappointment had I not know before hand that it'd be almost useless on its own because it's so hopelessly sheer, but thanks to bloggers who are inmensely creative I can still make use of it in gradients, watercolor manis or as a topper for a similar colored base. Points for the effort ISYL.

Lynnderella Connect the Dots is an old favorite. I got it before every brand on the market released a black and white glitter and that's why I went with it. I hold no special love for the brand. I should have waited, now there's a local option available for $4, Meh.
Aaanyway. I used Essence's Peel Off Basecoat for this mani so it was easy peasy to remove (specially after we bathed our dog today, it popped right off).

And that's it. Thanks for keeping up with me! I'm currently trying to get ready for my final thesis presentation (due late April), get my butt to work in a portfolio/resumé AND looking for freelancing jobs. It's been a hectic time :)

Thursday, March 20, 2014

Goodbye Summer Nailart

Hola niñas! Como han estado? Espero que muy bien en este día en que ya nos vamos despidiendo del verano. Por eso hoy les traigo un nailart bien alegre para despedir los días de sol con toda la más buena onda. Usé de base un color azulito KOH que me envío una amiga y Amarelo Sol de Colorama. Luego hice las margaritas con un pincel y un punzón usando esmalte blanco (Fingerpaints Papier Mache) y el mismo amarillo que usé de base. En mi dedo índice hice un pequeño estampado con Konad Special White y la plaquita BM 419. Espero les guste :)
Hello guys! I hope you're doing well on this the first day of spring for you. For me it's the last day of summer so I decided to bid it farewell with a bright and colorful mani.
I started with a coat of OPI Natural Nail Basecoat. As a base I used a new Koh polish a dear friend sent me. It's a lovely baby blue color (I couldn't find a name on the bottle), it's a very lovely color and the formula was also great, it was opaque in 2 medium coats. On my accent nail I used Colorama Amarelo Sol as base, it's a bright yellow creme with a squishy look, kinda like the cross of a creme and a jelly. It was opaque in 3 coats, but I had to be careful not to drag it or I'd get bald spots.
Then I doodled some daisies using a nailart brush and a white polish, Fingerpaints Papier Mache. My nailart skills suck, but this is a fairly easy thing to do and -I think- the irregularities add something to it. On my accent nails I stamped a full nail pattern with the BM 419 plate and Konad Special White.
I toped it all with OPI Top Coat and some drying drops (I'm impatient heh). I'm really happy with how this turned out, combining freehand nailart with stamping. My favorite part of this mani is the baby blue polish, it's lovely and I can see myself using it many more times in the future.

Thanks for reading and I hope you have a lovely spring! :)