Water Marble Nails

Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend. I finally tried the water marble technique on my nails. The process can look complicated but after a little practice it definitely gets easier. My first attempt was not very pretty but by the time I tried it a few more times, it got better and better.
First off the things you will need are:

* A cup full of room temperature water ( I used bottled water because I know the water in our place is kind of hard and I had read it might not be as easy to use, I used a Styrofoam cup but be careful if you use this and polish drops to the bottom of the cup. I made the mistake of not changing cups and it made a hole in the cup and water spilled out everywhere. LOL)
* Tooth Picks
* Scotch Tape
* Base Coat
* 2-3 colors of polish you want to use (after several attempts I discovered that Nicole by O.P.I has worked the best for me)
* Top Coat
* Q Tips (for cleaning up around the nail)
* Nail Polish Remover 

I would recommend to use white as your base color and than pick colors that are in high quality and haven't dried or thickened due to age.

* So first you will want to apply your base coat and white base color. 
* Then you will want to apply the scotch tape around your nail to avoid having a mess to clean off your nail afterwards.
* Next, drip a few drops of each color on the surface of the water. Continue to drop the polishes into the center of the surface of the water to create rings of color. Try to work quickly otherwise the polish will harden. 
* Using a toothpick, make your design in the water. I started at the outer edge and dragged a line into the center.
*  Line up your nail with the design and place it in the water, aiming for the center of the design. Leave your nail and the taped section of your finger in the water for 5-10 seconds to set the polish (the polish will harden on top of the water around your nail). Then, before you remove your finger, take a toothpick and pull the hardened nail polish on the surface of the water away from your finger. Once cleared, you can pull your finger out.
* Repeat each step with every finger nail. (Can not reuse the polish that you just used on another nail)
*  Once you've finished each finger and your nails have dried completely, remove the tape and clean up any excess nail polish on your skin using remover and a Q-Tip.



I accidentally deleted the photo I had of my first attempt but trust me it wasn't too pretty. I had used Essie Marshmallow (White) for my base color. Than I had used a purple, pink and silver/glitter. I did not like how the glitter ended up coming out...so I took all the polish off and scratched those colors. For my second attempt:

I did not use a base color (just had a clear base coat) Used: Nicole; Play Fair, Nicole; Show you care and China Glaze; Street Chic.

My third attempt:

I used: Nicole; Play Fair, Nicole; Show you care, Nicole; Iceberg Lotus with the white base color Essie Marshmallow. 

This technique definitely does get easier with practice and it can be a bit time consuming but I have received lots of compliments and will continue to try different colors and designs.

Let me know if you have tried this technique and what works best for you or if you do it any differently.
Thanks for reading and happy painting :)

NOTD--(Nails of the Day!)

I decided to start a new kind of entry and start posting what my nails look like every couple of days. Since I don't do fancy things all the time, I figured I would just share what they look like that day or what colors I chose to use that day :) Lots of fashion blogs have Outfits of the Day---so I decided to do Nails of the day. LOL 

This week I am using Essie's Exotic Liras and Nicole by O.P.I Rainbow in the S-Kylie (Kardashian Collection) 

Sally Hansen

Happy Sunday Funday!!
I had received a Sally Hansen Nail Art Pen a few months ago for my birthday (thanks Lisa!)

The picture above is the one that I have Color: 04 Hot Pink 

                                        and below are the varieties that they carry.

I do like this pen because it makes it easy to create designs and dries rather quickly. The only thing I don't like is, since I am right handed my right hand nails don't look as nice since I am using my left hand to create the design. 
You must have a clear coat or nail polish already on your nail before applying, otherwise it will chip very easily. 
It is definitly something that I can get used to once I practice a bit more. 
You do have to be careful to not press the tip down too much because the nail polish can come out rather fast. (Again, something that you would have to get used to after practice)
 Since it was my first time using the pen...all i tried was polka dots..tried to keep it simple and easy. But again, my right hand didn't come so great. . (Final product below) I have China Glaze "Recycle" as the base color. 

You can find the pen at any retailers that carry Sally Hansen and based on prices I saw online they run around $7.99. 

The pen can be something to use quickly and to dress up your normal nail color.

Thanks so much for taking time to read my blog, have a wonderful week and happy painting ;)





Update: unfortunately, the nail polish didn't stay on my nails very long. It might be because I already had polish and top coat on but the dots were rubbing off only a few hours later :/ 

Zoya-Paloma

Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend!
I finally received the Zoya nail polishes I ordered and still am not sure how I feel about them. I discovered that Zoya nail polish is free of toluene, formaldehyde, DBP (phthalates) and camphor. Basically, toxin free. Zoya carries over 300 colors.

I do like the form of the cap because it rests easy between your thumb and index finger. 
I did not like the fact that the polish is a bit "watery". It took me at least 4-5 coats to get it finally the color I wanted. The consistency is definitely different than other polishes. They also claim to be the longest lasting natural polish, I just put the polish on today so we will see how many days it lasts. 

(<---- Zoya Paloma) 

I was just searching the web about the polish and it recommends to not use other brand name polishes for a  top coat or base coat because they don't mix well together. I used OPI base coat and China Glaze top coat. LOL Guess i should have done my research a little bit better. But we will see how it goes. Has anyone else tried Zoya? I'd love to hear what you think of it. 
Thanks for taking time out of your day to read my blog and happy painting!! :) :) :) 

Essie & O.P.I

Happy Sunday Funday!
Yesterday I headed over to Ulta and made a couple purchases. O.P.I recently came out with the Germany Collection. I went ahead and got two of them. "Nein! Nein! Nein! OK Fine!" (on the right of photo) and "Suzi & the 7 Dusseldorfs" (on the left of photo)  LOVE them! I already put Suzi & the 7 Dusseldorfs on my toes. :) 

 I also purchased two Essie colors. "Exotic Liras" and "Pop Art Pink" 

(Not the best shot of the nail color but I tried!)
Also, I am not sure how often you guys have the same problem but occasionally my nails will get those bubbles on them after the color has already been put on....grrrr aggravates me so much! Anyways, I discovered that China Glaze Fast Forward Top Coat (purchased at Sally Beauty) makes them completely go away! I am pretty excited. LOL
Don't forget to check your paper/mail or email from Ulta...they almost always have the coupon for $3.50 off your purchase of $10.00 or more. Definitely does help! :)

I hope that you had a wonderful weekend andthanks again for taking time to read my blog!

Happy Painting! :) 

Zoya

Happy Friday!!! Just wanted to share with you my recent purchase (ordered it online so I have not received it yet! But when I do, I will definitely do a review). Good Morning America has GMA Deals maybe once a week and yesterday they featured the nail polish brand ZOYA. I have been wanting to try them out for a while now but I do not believe they are sold in stores. Only online. The Deal was buy a Trio of Polish for $12.00 instead of the regular price $24.00. http://www.zoya.com

The picture above is the color set that I got. All the others were sold out! Bummer! :( And they also are sending me a sample bottle of their nail polish remover and a Zoya Fall Color chart (whatever that may be) 
I would recommend keeping an eye out for the GMA deals, they also had the brand Butter LONDON recently which is another I want to try but of course by the time I got to the site the next day they were all sold out. So you have to act quick. But its worth it because usually the items they feature are 30-50% off.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend....Thanks for taking time out of your day to read my blog and lastly------ HAPPY PAINTING! :) 

Prepping my nails

Thought I would share how I get my nails ready for a new color/polish. And to be honest, I don't do this EVERY time I change my color but I do it about 90% of time.

1st I will remove the current polish that I have on, I used to use regular Polish Remover but realized the more I started experimenting with glitter..the harder it was to remove the polish. A friend recommended to try Pure Acetone Remover. And I love it. Removes polish so much faster and easier. Purchased it at Target for around $2.00. (please excuse the mess of nail polish on the bottle) And I just use regular cotton balls to remove the polish.

Next I will use Orly Cutique- Cuticle & Stain Remover Purchased at Sally Beauty for $6.99 The purpose of this step is to gently remove dead tissue, making cuticles soft and pliable and also leaves your nails whiter. I apply it to my nail and let it sit for 30-60 seconds and than use a cuticle pusher to push back the cuticles and remove any dead skin.

The cuticle pusher I use was purchased at Sally Beauty for .59 cents! What a steal. (to the right of pic) the other end of it is used to remove any grim or dirt from under the nails. After I clean off all the Orly Cutique I use this 4 sided nail file (on the left) that was purchased at Ulta (their website does not show the file but it was around $3.00) I do all four steps on the file 1.Even Out 2. Smooth 3. Buff 4.Shine.

Once the nail filing is complete, I go ahead and use a base coat to keep my nails from turning yellow. I was told that one time at a Nail Salon. They said to ALWAYS use a base coat because if you change your polish often (like I do ;) ) the nail can turn yellow. Which believe me..it is true!!!

The one to the left is the Orly Cutique I mentioned before. Next to it is Sally Hansen Double Duty which doubles up as a base coat and a top coat, so you would only need to use the one bottle for before and after :) It costs around $4.50 and can be purchased at Target, Walgreens, Ulta etc. Next to that is O.P.I Base Coat...yes I know it has a tint of pink. LOL that was my fault. I used it once accidently as a top coat and my nails weren't completely dry so it turned it pink. Womp womp womp. ha! And that can be purchased at Ulta or Target (Sally Beauty does not sell O.P.I.) and finally China Glaze Top Coat that was purchased at Sally Beauty for $4.99.

So after all of that...I go ahead a pick a pretty color from my 100's of polishes and paint away. And of course once they dry you go ahead and use the Top Coat.

Note 1: After I complete my polish and if there are spots that I missed (went out of the lines) or got polish on my skin...I will use a small make up brush (also learned this from a friend!)  dip it in the acetone and use it to carefully remove the polish from my skin. Recommend using the tiniest make-up brush or paint brush you can find.

Note2: Be very careful with the Acetone...its extremely strong and can damage furniture (I know from personal experience) so be sure once you use the cotton balls toss them in the garbage and don't lay the bottle down, it could slightly be open and spill.

Note 3: This is just the way that I prepare my nails..everyone is different. But thought I would share my way and feel free to share any other tips that you use, I would love to hear them :) 


Happy Painting! :)

China Glaze

China Glaze "Secret Peri-Wink-Le"
Purchased at Sally Beauty $4.99
(Believe China Glaze was on sale when I made this purchase)

China Glaze " Recycle" 
Purchased at Sally Beauty $4.99