"Florals for spring... Groundbreaking"

This mani was inspired by one of my all time favourite nail artists @Ninanailedit.

I literally love every single one of her mani creations and have to try them out myself!

For this mani I used: OPI - Natural base coat, Sinful colors - Snow me white, Nanacoco - Love black, Acrylic paints for the flowers and Seche Vite - Fast dry top coat. Also using a dotting tool and tape to create the monochrome nails. 

To create the flowers - First, I put a few acrylic paints onto a palette to mix the colours I wanted. To create the flowers I layered on 3 different colours creating circular shapes. It's very much a trial and error process when creating flowers! There are lots of good beginner video tutorials on Youtube. 

I love the flowers because light blue/turquoise are my fave colours - I'm going to try them again with different accent nails to see what I can create! 

Please excuse my poor cuticles at the moment - they've been suffering from a little neglect. 

Thanks for reading! 

xox

Royal fizz

In the UK it's safe to say as a nation we're obsessed with the Royals, and I'm definitely a fan too!

I've met Kate and baby George a few times because her family home is in my village so I love them a little more! 

Polishes used were; OPI -  Suzi shops & island hops, Sinful colors - Snow me white, Models own - pink fizz, Seche Vite - Fast dry top coat.

I wanted to do a Royal baby mani but wasn't sure how to go about it. I then saw @dahlianails mani so had to recreate! I'm not overly pleased with how my mani turned out, it's a little rushed for my liking - if I'd had time I would have done it over. The colours are a little girly for me so I didn't wear this mani for long but I definitely think it fits the theme! And I also think it's pretty cute! 

What do you think of the Royal obsession? A little too much or just a great mani opportunity!

xox 

"A wonderful dream come true"

On my trip to the cinema in 'date night' the other day, I watched the Cinderella trailer for the first time! 

I came across @prestonails Cinderella mani and knew I had to recreate it! 

For this mani I used; OPI start to finish, Essie - mint candy apple, L'oreal - pop the bubbles, h&m - want a lemon, OPI - thrills in Beverly Hills, Seche Cite - fast drying top coat. 

I loved the original so much that I was always going to be a little disappointed with my version! 

Pop the bubbles is one of my favourite polishes. I forgot how good coverage it has with one coat so it completely covered the Essie coat I had used underneath which wasn't what I was initially going for but I actually like how it turned out. 

I also wanted to do more glitter in the hair but it didn't look good at all so I aborted that mission! However, I now feel like its missing something... Nail perfectionist kicking in with this mani. 

Overall, I am happy with this mani but would have loved to try it out with an indie glitter polish and to add more detail. I really want to do another Cinderella mani - maybe after I watch the film I will have some inspiration.

Thanks for reading, as always!

Mani's for short nails - take two!

Following on from my previous post about designs for shorter nails. I got quite a good response from it so thought I would continue it. 

My all time favourite designs are the simplistic ones. I am always on Instagram for inspo, came across @aliciatnails on Instagram and fell in love with this one! I love this design on my short nails whist they are growing out. Super simple and easy to do with a small nail bed. 

For me this type of design is exactly what I like for a weekly mani because it's so quick to do on a Sunday afternoon. Plus, it goes with every outfit! 

I used; OPI start to finish, mavala - Wichita, nanacoco - love black, Seche vite top coat. I used striping tape from eBay with a small brush to create the straight lines. 

You may have noticed that I've been using OPI start to finish quite a lot. Well I love it. In my opinion it is everything a base coat should be. Dries so so quickly which is a must for me and gives a great smooth surface. Although, I haven't used this as a top coat because for me I don't think it would give enough shine. 

As for Mavala... Well their polishes are just amazing. I don't have many but the ones I do have I love. This is a super subtle light pink and I love it for a very natural colour giving just enough coverage but can still slightly see the free edge. It is also surprisingly quick drying considering the sheer coverage it gives. 

I am obsessed with the simplicity of this design. Definitely more like this to come - they are my fave!

Let me know what you think of these designs focusing on short nails? 

St. Paddy's day stamp

Happy Saint Patricks day everyone!
As an ex Irish dancer, I love St Paddy's day because I have good memories of doing shows and exhibitions for the occasion.

I can't be so positive about the mani I created though, it was a bit of a nail fail to be honest! The stamping wasn't supposed to be so white, believe it or not there is green stamping underneath. I thought it was going to be darker than it is...
Oh well. I'm over it because I'm just so pleased I had some stamping success! The stamping plate I used was from MoYou, Princess set 10.
I was sent a MoYou stamping set about a year ago but it didn't work at all, I spent so many hours trying to get better at stamping eventually giving up because I wasn't getting anywhere with it. Well it turns out it must have been a duff set because my new (clearance, bargain*) set works amazingly! Yay! I think I'm going to catch the stamping bug. I need new plates...

* I have never seen MoYou in Boots before, but it was in the clearance section the other day. I really couldn't resist. I asked the woman at the till how much it previously was and it was 25 reduced to 10! It included 2 stamping plates (pretty big ones too), 3 nail polishes, the stamper and scraper. I was a little skeptical buying this because of my previous experience (and being on a student budget) but I am so so glad I did otherwise I don't think I would have tried stamping any time soon! I'm very happy with it. So, UK ladies - always check the clearance!

Polishes used for this were; OPI - Start to finish, OPI - gargantuan green grape, Nina ultra pro - leaf me alone, MoYou - Knight white and Seche Vite - fast dry top coat. I also used gold leaf from hobby craft.

Overall, I'm slightly disappointed with how this turned out but I'm kind of too excited for the stamping set to care! I might also do an Irish dance inspired mani soon.

Hope everyone finds time for a drink later! 

(This post is up a little early but I have a long day of Uni tomorrow so you can enjoy it a day earlier!)

xox

Pinking about you

Today's mani was inspired by the amazingly talented @coffeeandnailpolish. (On Instagram) 

Because my nails are shorter than usual at the moment, I want to focus of designs that look best on the shorter square nail. 

And I must say I'm loving having slightly shorter nails recently - so much easier to manage!

Polishes used for this design were; OPI - Nail Envy, Orly - Dare to bare, Essie - Pinking about you and Seche Vite.

I adore every single nail polish used. This Orly nail polish is to die for - it is my favourite nude. Massive statement. It matches my skin tone perfectly, so I'm very happy with this TKMaxx find.

Sidenote: TKMaxx (UK) have lots of Orly polishes recently. It's been a struggle not buying more.

Pinking about you is becoming one of my favourite glitters. It is similar to so many amazing indie polishes out there. You'll definitely be seeing more of it on Nailstori! 

I painted and sponged the glitter - applied like a dream. In my opinion it is really hard to find a glitter polish that applies well on an ombré design. It is fast drying too, which I think it really important if you want it to set and enjoy a lasting manicure.

I'm keeping this design on for the weekend because I love it so much. My fave mani so far of 2015!

Happy (nearly) Friday everyone! As always thanks for reading.

xox

Pixie dust love

My mani today was inspired from a video on Instagram by @nail.art.by.sarah and I absolutely love this design.

To create this I used; OPI - nail envy, L'oreal - Raven, Zoya pixie dust - Bar, Nanacoco - love black, and Seche Vite - fast drying top coat. 

I created this using striping tape and it was surprisingly easy to do. Just got to have a small brush and patience! 

On to the new polishes... love them all! Zoya Pixie Dust is incredible. I've wanted it for so long and it did not disappoint. It is the easiest glitter polish to apply, dries so quickly as a sort of textured polish so gives such good coverage without needing to use a sponge. 

Next is the Nanacoco black nail polish, I got this just because I needed a new black and could never find a great one that didn't stain really bad but I found one (and it was super cheap). Yay.

Finally, saving the best for last... Seche Vite. I have heard nothing but good reviews about this top coat. Oh my goodness it is the best nail polish I've ever used. It lives up to its fast drying name, I mean, it is fast. This mani hadn't completely dried but I just went with it and applied a little early and it was amazing, completely set within 5 minutes. Also, the shine makes any polish look like gel. Get yourself the Seche Vite top coat - it will change your nail life. You're welcome. 

Thanks for reading xox 

Chevron tips

Today's post is another of my subtle Valentines mani's.

Using the same polishes as my previous post; OPI - Nail envy, Crabtree & Evelynn - Peony, Sally Hansen - Coat of arms, and Rituals - Top coat. 

These were the nails I wore for my birthday, I love a french tip but often find it too plain. This design is a little more interesting than a white tip. 

Super easy to recreate as you can always use striping tape for precision. 

Although, I did find this mani to chip so quickly! The C&E polish was a little gloopy when trying to do free hand chevron tips and this was not long lasting which was a shame. 

But still a pretty design so it was nice whilst it lasted! 

xox 

Coat of Peony

A little late but here is another Valentines day mani. 

I'm not too mad about crazy nails for an occasion so I thought I'd see if I could do something simple but still with a pink valentines theme.

Using; OPI - Nail envy, Crabtree & Evelynn - Peony, Sally Hansen - Coat of arms, and Rituals - Top coat. 

Crabtree & Evelynn nail polishes have such a nice formula and brush, I absolutely love using them. They are quite pricey but at most UK Outlet stores they have them on sale which is always fab. The Sally Hansen metallic polish was from the poundshop and was such a good buy, love it for accent nails. 

I really loved the simplicity of this design and got a lot of compliments on it which was nice! 

I have another post coming up tomorrow using these same colours but a different design so keep an eye out. 

Hope everyone had a great Valentines! 

xox 

Valentine Affair

Finally! My first Valentines mani of the year. 

Using; OPI - Nail Envy, Ciaté - Dangerous Affair, Essie - Quick Dry top coat and Sally Hansen - No Chip top coat. 

As I am participating in a Valentines Collaboration I decided to do the full on valentines theme. The collaboration is on Instagram with the hashtag #vdaycollab2015 - check out everyone else's designs, there are so many amazing mani's. 

I quite like these nails but think they're a bit too much for me, great for an occasion but not everyday wear. I forgot to take this mani off before going to Uni with it... Only on one hand!

Onto the polish... I actually really love this Ciaté. I'm never a huge fan of red and it wouldn't be my top choice in colour but I am really liking this shade.

You might have noticed I listed two top coats above. I used Essie quick dry for practical reasons but it looked horrible once it had dried! No shine whatsoever. I've never noticed this before but it became very clear once I used my Sally Hansen one over top giving it an amazing shine. I'm really sad about the Essie top coat because I'm a massive fan of Essie as a brand. Think I might have to try it again on a few different polish colours. 

Hopefully I'll have time to do another valentines mani this week. However, it is my birthday at the weekend so I'll be doing some nice simple birthday nails. 

I also have lots of nail goodies on the way such as; Cuter Cuticles bits, more ibd gels, Zoya polishes and a Seche Vite top coat which I have been after forever! Cannot wait to try and maybe review some of them. 

Thanks for reading this far down! Much love.

xox

Ocean Ombré

Firstly, I apologise for lack of blogging - it isn't by choice. I have Uni exams and assignments that are taking over! 

So, here is a simple blue gradient, I wanted something easy to do but really colourful.

Using: OPI - Nail envy, Essie - Mint Candy Apple, Sally Hansen - New Wave Blue, Wynie - 698 and Essie - Good To Go top coat. 

I didn't use a white base colour which I normally do for gradients not sure why I didn't here but turns out I don't need one. I sponged 2/3 times to get coverage, which lasted a good week with no chipage.

This technique is so simple and gives a great mani every time, and works with almost any colour combo - perfect for a quick mid-week mani. 

Keep updated for an exciting announcement this week! 

Much love for reading and sticking around.

xox

Oh OPI

 Today I'm blogging about a little swatch of OPI.

So, I got this polish for Christmas but couldn't open the bottle because it was stuck - literally haha. I finally got it open after many attempts!

Here I used - OPI - Nail Envy, Gargantuan Green Grape, Solitaire Liquid Sand and Rituals top coat. 

I love this nail polish, I haven't got a green like it so really enjoyed wearing this one. It wasn't too much of a bright green so wasn't overwhelming. 

And of course I love liquid sand because it's just great! 

 Although a little high maintenance as it needed three coats - so if you like fast drying time this maybe isn't the one for you! 

Top tip - once the nail polish is almost dry (but still dent prone) run your nails under cold water and it will set the polish. 

The ring is Topshop - but from Outfit so was on sale - of course.

Short but sweet, hope you enjoyed.

xox

Christmas fingers

I'm back! Slight absence of a week - I was enjoying Christmas with my family! 

Here are my Christmas day nails... obviously I had planned which nails I wanted to do for Christmas day way in advance! However, the design that I wanted to create just did not turn out how I had hoped. With little mani time left I had to just put on a bit of sparkle. Basically, these did not turn out like I'd wished but they were still pretty simple and classy for the day. I also added hand painted snowflakes after I'd take the picture which made them look a little better.

This design was created using; OPI - Natural base, L'oreal - Raven's dream, and ELF - Gold star and the gold has no name because it has rubbed off! 

To achieve this effect I sponged on the gold and glitter which I think gets better coverage and creates an ombre effect. 

I'm in the process of changing my nail shape to almond because my nails break so much when they are square. But growing them out and trying to shape them isn't an easy task so bare with me and my random nail shape! 

Hope everyone had a relaxing Christmas break.

xox

William did good

As the owner of triple figure nail polishes this is the statement of the year...

I think I have found a favourite nail polish. My mum's reaction... "surely not - how can you choose". I love it, she knows the obsession all too well. My mum also taught me how to bargain hunt - this beauty was £3.

It is OPI - William tell me about OPI.

You've gotta give it to OPI for their creative and somewhat ridiculous polish names. William didn't need to tell me much about OPI before I fell in love with it! 

Only one coat and an Essie top coat and this is it's glorly! 

I couldn't capture the colour quite right in a picture but it's basically a super dark purple and it's amazing.

I didn't even have to do clean up on this colour - I don't think it will even stain. 

Basically, it's a christmas miracle. But I don't want to over exaggerate. 

xox

Snowflake Solitaire

I'm in love.

Recreated from @stylethosenails - It caught my eye on instagram because it's such a pretty mani. 

Polishes used were; OPI Natural base, MAC - Frosty much adored, OPI liquid sand - Solitaire, Sinful Colors - Snow me white and Essie - Good to go. Also added some tiny beads for the centre of the snowflakes.

Liquid sand it one of my favourite and this time I tried sponging it on which worked so much better than painting, it gave way better coverage.

The snowflakes are hand painted, I'm trying to up my skill in the hand painting area because some nails bloggers out there have mad skill...which I strive towards!  

I absolutely adore this mani, it's so festive without being over the top (like most christmas nails) (but we still love them) 

Apologies for not painting my thumb (which you probably didn't realise until I pointed it out) it was going through a bit of repair so I didn't paint it.

xox

Monochrome Monday

I am posting a mani that I did early last week because I have had some major technology issues this week - currently posting from my uni library (which makes blogging far less appealing!) 

Using; OPI - Natural Base, Sinful Colors - Snow me white, Acrylic paints for the black and Rituals - Top coat. 

Inspired by @adoredollsparlour - I fell in love with their simple negative space mani so had to give it a go for myself. I wanted to practise my free hand lines using acrylic paints - something of which I never do! 

I'm pretty pleased with how this turned out - obviously there is so much room for improvement but when isn't there? I find it hard to make acrylic paints looks sleek and 'non-gloopy' - I think this is down to practise and also in need of new brushes! 

I am hoping to blog my ciate advent calender (on instagram) and swatch the polishes in it. And also an exciting mani swap to come this weekend. However, this may be a little delayed due to my life and soul (Macbook) currently out of use! 

Have a fab first week of December! 

xox 

Have a holly jolly Christmas - it's the best time of the year

My first proper Christmas mani of the year! Inspired by @polishandbeyond on instagram. Check out her account so many lush designs!

For this I used; OPI - Natural base, Sinful colors - Snow me white, ELF - Smoking hot, Acrylic paint for the green leaves, OPI - Liquid sand and Essie - Set in stones for the accent nail. Rituals for the top coat. 

I love the simplicity of this design and the accent nail. However, the holly leaves were the hardest nail painting I've ever done! As simple as it looks - it took me longer than expected. But as always - worth while!

Definitely room for improvement in the acrylic paint area but I love using it, it's so easy to remove mistakes with water, which is always a bonus. I also need a new detail brush, let me know of any recommendations of brands. 

Many many more christmas mani's to come - it's only November!

I cannot wait to open day 1 of the ciaté mini mani month advent calendar, I'm going to try swatch every one of the polishes! 

Happy Saturday everyone.

xox

Mani swap!

I've been seeing so many other bloggers mani's that I wanted to recreate so myself and @coffeeandnailpolish decided to do a mani swap. She has so many mani's to choose from so it was really hard to decide which one to do! 

The polishes I used were; OPI - Natural Base, Essie - Mint candy apple, Sinful colors - Snow me white, Body Collection - Gold, Rituals - Top coat, Striping tape from eBay and Gold leaf from Hobby craft (amazing value you fellow UK bloggers) 

Shannon decided to recreate my feather mani which looked so amazing she did such a good job! So make sure you check out her instagram account. 

This design was a lot more time consuming that I expected - it definitely didn't take up my whole day off haha. However, it was well worth it because I obviously love wasting time when it is nail time and also because it's such a pretty design.

The gold leaf flakes were soooo cheap I got a huge box of it for £6 - it will last an absolute life time. Whereas, in Sally's it costs £5 for a tiny pot so I was very chuffed with this find. 

Anyway, the effect is the best thing I've ever seen, I am beyond in love with the it! I think I'll be using it in nearly every mani from now on! 

I loved doing the mani swap with Shannon it was so much fun and really nice seeing her recreation as well as showing her mine!

And of course, had to do her classic coffee picture (I'm a starbucks girl but there is a drive thru costa on my way to uni so it's my new regular!)

I have more mani swaps lined up to do in the coming weeks, and my first proper christmas mani coming this week - the christmas nails can never come too early!

Have a great week nail peeps!

xox

Christmas Pearlfection

Before getting onto any of this nail business I want to introduce my new blog logo - I haven't had a chance to completely redo my blog yet but how beautiful is the logo! Leilani Hayward is an illustration student and kindly created it for me. She is super talented and has a really pretty instagram: @leilaniparuzzolo so please check it out and give her a follow. I think she may be creating a blog/website soon when uni work gives her a break - so i'll be sure to let you all know what that is and you can browse for yourself. 

I'm just in looooove - can't wait to get my blog to an equal pretty! 

Nail time! 

I wanted to go a little festive but then remembered it was only mid November. Therefore, went for a sparkly cute silvery mani. 

Using; OPI - natural base, Sinful colors - Snow me white, Essie - Pealfection, Rituals - top coat and some striping tape from eBay.

Essie - Pearlfection is becoming one of my favourites it adds a glitter shine top coat and looks great on literally every colour combo - it also adds a little christmas to a plain colour so whats not to love?

I should mention that I saw this mani on instagram: @craftyfingers but the mani was created by @kristina.nails I instantly fell in love with it and recreated straight away! 

I had to include the picture with my watch getting involved because it only cost me £4 and I'm still immensely proud of this bargain haha. 

Have a festive filled week and weekend everyone.

Thanks for reading as always,

xox

Overcast

This is my take on the NailIt challenge theme of - today's weather.

I didn't want to do something completely obvious,  so I decided to try drag-marble which is something I've been wanting to try for a while now!

Using; Sally Hansen - White on and OPI - I have a herring problem.

Perfect colours because the OPI turned into a glittery grey when it was dragged through the white base coat.

I chose these colours because the weather was grey and overcast (hence the blog title) 

A top tip that I learned from just winging it instead of looking up a tutorial of some kind is to do two base coats. Let the first dry completely and then don't let base coat number two dry at all so it drags easily.

Apart from that it is soo easy, there is hardly any technique to it and it always creates a cool pattern.

Will definitely be trying this again soon - it is a lot less mess than water-marble aswell. 

More NailIt challenge pictures to come and I only have ONE day left of it.

xox