Pop, Lock, and Drip It

Pop art, as it turns out, isn't given that genre name because the work usually 'pops' out at you. It's an abbreviation for "popular".

I like my more naive, childhood interpretation though, and took it quite literally here, with these 3D-looking pop art inspired drip nails!

This was fun to do. The base color is My Boyfriend Scales Walls (OPI). Then, I used Snap Happy (Essie), Carribean (Savina), and Almost Famous (Color Club).

If you're following me on Instagram, or you saw the colors in my feed to the right, then you knew what was coming. Is this what you were expecting? It's like the pop artist simply spilled all his paints, ruining the perfect dots underneath in a sort of perfect way.

Grungy Glamour

I can't get enough of gradients, or as they're more and more often called, ombre.

My hair's got an ombre gradient, my favorite, albeit holey, sweater has a gradient, and my favorites on Instagram often contain a gradient.

This grungy gradient was inspired by this pin of ombre tights. The purple is from Savina, and it's called Dream. It also uses Black Onyx from OPI. The square studs are my package of Born Pretty Store square studs that I reviewed here. 

Born Pretty Store 2mm Silver Square Studs Review

3D nail art is slowly making its way into my heart. I don't think I'll be doing any landscaping on my nails anytime soon, or chaining my fingernails together as a form of art, but, never say never!

In the meantime, I'm sticking to the simple 3D objects, one of which are these 2 mm silver square studs from Born Pretty Store.

Studs are so easy to use, and you can really get some cool designs. I decided to do a skittles manicure, using all sorts of different designs for the studs. I don't think I can pick a favorite design here, I love them all so much.

I used a tiny bit of nail glue on the backs of each stud to adhere them to my nail nice and strong. I don't want to wake up in the morning with snagged studs all over my pillow and hair. That would be no bueno. Instead, the glue secures them, and then I layer one top coat on top as well, for extra coverage and smoother edges. Sometimes that causes bubbles though, so be careful with your top coat application!

You can pick up these silver studs from Born Pretty Store for just under $6 here. They also have gold studs, larger squares, circles, and different colors for the circles. They also have odd shapes, like the marquis shapes I showed you a few days ago. You get a large bagful, so you won't be running out anytime soon.

Oh by the way, I used Grape (Savina) and Wednesday (Zoya) for the colors.

Don't forget to take 10% off your order, with the code C10X31.

These products were sent to me by Born Pretty. The reviews are based entirely on my experience with the products and were in no way influenced by anyone.

A Rich Experiment

Zoya's little black box with three lovely little bottles has been staring me down every time I sit on the couch. Tonight, I finally decided to confront it.

 The result is a pearly pink golden beauty of a manicure!

I used Heavenly (Savina) as a base, and painted on a lovely light layer of Electrical Storm (Sation) over it. Then I topped it with the golden Gilty from Zoya.

I used some different lighting to capture all the beautiful colors, but those are still my hands!

Frankendrip

Happy Halloween folks!

Remember my bleeding gradient tutorial? It's the perfect technique for some awesome Halloween colors.

The colors I used here were Neon Yellow (Savina), Pucci-licious (Color Club), and Black Onyx (OPI).

Reminds me of Frankenstein's monster's head.

Have a spoooooky night!

Fancy Phone Pattern

Remember my iPhone case tribute? It's one of my most popular images, with over 15,000 reblogs on Tumblr. That's pretty unheard of, but I loved that simple manicure.

About six months later, it was time for a new case. I decided to buy this case because I loved the patterns and the colors. Of course, when it arrived, my mind went to which polishes I owned that could be used to recreate the pattern on my nails. I used a few colors:

• Twiggie (Color Club)
• Light Green (Love & Beauty) 
• Something Sweet (China Glaze)
• Bubble Gum (Savina)
• Soul Mate (Sinful Colors)

I really love the way the pattern turned out. And the colors...not so appropriate for fall, but lovely nonetheless. 

Heavenly Crown

Tonight's manicure is a simple little gradient. I used Heavenly (Savina) and Crown Me Already! (OPI). If you want to get this same effect, check out my tutorial here.

Though it's simple, it's in preparation for a class reunion. Which class? Miss's Sation Limited II Collection, Class of Sation. Adorable photo, with some adorable polishes accompanying it. Stay tuned, swatches of the classmates will be up in the next day or two!

CLICK TO ENLARGE

They're Grrradients!

There should probably be a monument erected in Sammy's honor, because her gradient tutorial has proved to be the easiest, most consistent gradient tutorial I've tried, and the results absolutely speak for themselves.

I'm so pleased with mine! I used Caribbean (Savina) and Plum Truffle (CND) for my gradient. I really wanted to add something as a great topper, so I went with Asbestos (Windestine). It's one of my favorite glitters. I love that the glitters are all small and all the same size and color. I'll be getting a few back up bottles as soon as they come out, especially with the unbelievably professional service provided by Freda.

Thank you both for a very happy pair of hands tonight!

Different Strokes

Gotta post before midnight strikes and it's a technical missed day of nail art!

I used True Blue (Claire's) and Neon Yellow (Savina) for the majority of this. And who's that? Oh, it's Floam (Nail-Venturous Lacquers). Hard work pays off. I've been trying to score that for a while, and my patience paid off.

Totally inspired by PSHIIIT.

PS: Don't forget to vote for my submission!

Utopia Bows Polish: Pop Art

I'd like to share some Etsy finds with you, starting with a seller I found simply by searching for "nail polish" in Etsy's engine: Utopia Bows. When I first discovered the site, it was about 90/10...dog bows. Yep...Virginia, the shop's owner, also specializes in the production of handmade dog bows. Hold your hesitation until the end of the show though. There's an awfully tempting swatch that may change your mind.

I layered one of Utopia Bow's polishes, Pop Art over Dream, a Savina polish. Two things should be said about my experience with these two polishes. First, I bought Pop Art one morning using the Etsy app. Obviously, the phone's text size is much smaller than my laptop's. So when I bought it, I mistakenly thought it was called Pop Tart, which is why one of the first color combinations I got in my head was the color of the Pop-Tarts' frosting.


Secondly, Dream looks way different against a background that's not itself. That is to say, the pigments as they appear all together in the bottle are a much happier, neon purple, closer to this shot.

The pigments, once applied to bare nail color, become less neon. Ultimately, the colors didn't transcend my train of thought onto my ten little canvases as I had envisioned, but they don't look unattractive together.


Pop Art was a little thick to work with. I added some clear polish in the hopes of evening out the ratio of glitter to base, so we'll see if that makes a difference. If not, I don't regret buying it. The glitter colors are interesting, with the yellow, pinks and even greens. The various sizes of glitter are also what attracted me to it in the first place (see my pinker finger).

Trippy Tips

I've been wanting to try out this new lovely Savina polish I bought the other day since I bought it, but I just kept coming up with other, non-pink ideas. Today's the day though! Here's...Fantasia!

Isn't it so pretty? Those little flecks of sparkle remind me of Fairy Dust from China Glaze, but they're built into the polish. Ugh I can't stand it. It's just so pretty! And super easy and clean to apply. Looks great with another Savina, Neon Yellow. Guess whoever named that one wasn't feeling very inspired that day. The black in the middle of the flowers is Black Creme (Wet n' Wild), and it's all done with dotting tools and mini beads (which according to Ciate, are never allowed to be called caviar). 

I also like this shot, that I accidentally used the flash with. It really helps Fantasia work its magic. (See what I did there? Fantasia...magic...)

Show Your True Colors

I owe every bit of inspiration for tonight's manicure to an unlikely, but highly inspiring source: PixelgirlPresents. I found this site when I first got a laptop for college in 2006. That was six years ago, but now outdated Dell I was given as an awesome present from my Dad makes it seem like much longer. PixelgirlPresents offers graphic artists a chance to get their work on peoples' desktops, phones and electronic screens of other sorts. It's all run by one girl, and the submissions are always unique and colorful. I'm a fan of bold patterns and designs, so I've had this bookmarked for a long time.

Browsing it the other day for an updated background, I stumbled upon something I looked at and thought to myself, "Katy...you need to put that on your nails." I give myself great advice sometimes, so thanks past-me for that great thought (and for quickly saving the picture to your phone to reference later). 

The design I used as my guide was by the artist Plumeology, who, judging by their PixelgirlPresents bio page, has only submitted one design to the site. They do link to a company webpage though, and it seems they're a design company offering services like logo design, advertising, and business name consultation. See? Unlikely source for inspiration! If you're in San Diego, I bet they offer some pretty designs if their work is anything like their logo. 

So, without further ado, here's my interpretation of their beautiful logo!

I used Load (Illamasqua) as the base. The plumes were done with Electric Pineapple (China Glaze), Sea Breeze (Sally Hansen Insta-Dri) and Dream (Savina). Yes I know, I'm reusing colors, but I keep getting drawn to the same bottles. The decorative swirls beside the plumes were done with Pelican Gray (China Glaze), and it was all freehand. Maybe that's why only two nails got the treatment.

Rainbowed

Not much can be said about tonight's manicure...except it's fat and fully of color! (I will be fat and full of corned beef soon...if this slow cooker thing wasn't so slow.)

Another patient dotting manicure done with lots of colors. I gave a little teaser out to Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr (though the Tumblr tease didn't seem to go through) with Instagram (my name's kehteh on there if you're interested in following my grams).

Like I said...lots of color! Most of them are China Glaze, but Zoya and Savina were both used as well. The base is Secret Peri-Wink-le (China Glaze). Moving from the pink to the purple, here are the rest of the colors:

• Pool Party (China Glaze)
• Papaya Punch (China Glaze)
• Happy Go Lucky (China Glaze)
• Kiwi Cool-Ada (China Glaze)
• Light Mist (Savina)
• Breezi (Zoya)
• Dream (Savina)

I seem to be using the same colors for my manicures, but it's just so hard for me to pull away from bright, bold creme polishes. That's why I love the Up & Away China Glaze collection so much. 

Easter Sunday Best

I've got another super tasty, super simple Saran Wrap nail design for you this Easter morning! I wanted it to portray the Sunday best you see so many folks wearing today, but unfortunately, the two colors I chose for the base are too similar to the white stamp I used (Konad m57 with White On). It certainly doesn't look bad persay, but it's a little too muted for my taste.

I used Bubble Gum (Savina) and Re-Fresh Mint (China Glaze) as the two colors for the base. I didn't take pictures last night after creating the manicure, so there was quite a bit of shrinkage. I'm a little surprised how much occurred, and get now why girls don't like Seche Vite for that reason. It's just itching for me to easily peel it off and try something new.

Maybe you'll see two Easter manicures today!

iPhone-ing

Thrilled about my new iPhone and a bit too preoccupied with it to post properly, here's a mobile post ft. my new phone, case, and Connect the Dots (Lynderella) and Caribbean (Savina).

A Bit of Glit

February 14th is just around the corner ladies, so it's time to start gearing up with some festive manicures.

Valentine's Day is probably the easiest holiday to prepare manicures for for several reasons. A) I can't think of a single girl who owns nail polish that doesn't have a pink, red, or purple in her collection. B) Hearts are the easiest thing to create, besides dots. They're basically just three dots, strategically placed. C) Cute is easy to do.

My first act in this series of pinks and cutes is a simple stamp over some girly glitter.

I started this off with Heavenly (Savina), and then added one thinnish layer of Candy Cane (Color Club). After sorting out the stamping plates that would go well with the colors and theme, I finally landed on one I was almost sure I'd never use, but actually quite like. Bundle Monster's BM09 plate has this sort of tattered "LOVE" stamp, so if any imperfections arose as a result of the transfer, no one's the wiser. It also grits up this glittering manicure a bit. Black on Black (Sinful Colors) stamps lovely though, so I imagine there aren't too many issues.I should have stamped it facing the other way for photographic purposes, but the unusual post-production rotation will have to suffice.

Such a Pansy

Pansies have always been one of my favorite flowers. The contrast between the purple and the yellow and the white is so yummy! I've been wanting to do a manicure featuring pansies for a while, and this is the first attempt. I think I should've picked a different background color, but I also blame the camera for silly contrast problems. (I haven't mastered manual mode yet.)

The base is OPI, Stranger Tides. The purple petals are Kieko from Zoya, the white petals are Load from Illamasqua, and the stamens are Savina's Grape. Finally, the center yellow pollen is Color Madric's Design Yellow.

Not bad for a first attempt, but not the best.

UPDATE: 2/3/12

I've created a tutorial for this manicure. Enjoy! (I'm also trying a new layout for my tutorials, and I must say, I love it.

Secret Agent Lila

Sometimes a manicure can completely flop. The vision in your head is cool and will surely produce some cool results, but then you finish one whole nail and ask yourself what the heck you were thinking. You try and try to come up with a clever solution to salvage the disaster while still remaining close to your fantasy, but no matter which way you shake the 8-ball, it's an inevitable failure.

That is not the case for this manicure.

It was almost the case, but I salvaged it.

Originally, I wanted to use Lila (Savina) and Secret Peri-Wink-Le (China Glaze) to create a cool gradient under a white stamp that would cover my whole nail. However, the obviously visible line created by the two polishes was absolutely visible under the white polish. It looked terrible.

I wanted to scrap everything and start over, but I had already painted on both Lila and Secret Peri-Wink-Le and felt bad ripping up the foundations. I searched through my stamping plates, and BM 11 saved the day. Using black (Black on Black, Sinful Colors) instead of white, I created "Secret Agent Lila".

It appears more purple than periwinkle, but that's expected since there's a few layers of that hot pink living underneath.

Saved the day today, but I'm sure I won't be able to avoid a complete disaster for too long.

Color Club Foiled Collection Swatches

Today's a little unusual for me. Today is just swatches of the Color Club Foiled collection, including a comparison of using the included top coat and not using the top coat with these colors.

You've probably seen it around on other blogs and in stores, so I won't drag out any descriptions. This post is for color comparison, and a bit of stamping testing. Enjoy!

Hot Like Lava

Foil Me Once

Antiquated

Lumin-Icent

Perfect Mol-Ten

Cold Metal

This is Hot Like Lava, with and without a top coat. My pinky and middle finger have the included top coat, and the ring finger does not.

As you can see, not too much of a difference. These colors do fine without top coats, but for protection of the manicure, I recommend it.

Finally, here's Foiled stamped.

From thumb to pinky, using Konad plate m65:

• Lumin-Icent on Black Creme (Wet n' Wild)
• Hot Like Lava on Heavenly (Savina)
• Cold Metal on Light Mist (Savina)
• Perfect Mol-Ten on Neon Yellow (Savina)
• Antiquated on Get in the Expresso Lane (OPI)

Birthday Nails

Yesterday was my 24th birthday, so I needed to do a manicure I would love, regardless of what some readers might think of it. I've always loved bright colors, and pastel shades of those colors hold a special place in my polished heart. So I did a simple skittle manicure consisting of some of my new pastels from China Glaze's Up & Away collection. I love them all, but these won out, making a sweet little rainbow of colors on each hand.

I used:

• Sugar High from China Glaze on my thumbs
• Lemon Fizz from China Glaze on my index fingers
• Re-Fresh Mint from China Glaze  on my middle fingers
• Light Mist from Savina on my ring fingers
• Something Sweet from China Glaze on my pinkies

Just a sweet, simple little manicure I threw on before going out and getting a tasty breakfast with Andy. Later on I added black tips, but I didn't like the straightness of the tips enough to show you. I was too impatient to tape, so freehanded them. They don't look bad from far off, but up close they're not the best.