Showing posts with label neon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label neon. Show all posts

Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Nail Art- My First Attempt at "Spun Sugar" Nails!

Hi everyone!

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Today I have some new nail art to show you, and it's super fun to wear! It's almost like a cross between zebra print and fine stripes (sorry about that awful description, lol), and it's named after the culinary confection where hot sugar syrup is spun into small "threads", which is what the pattern resembles. People who are really good at this design (such as Michelle from AllLaqueredUp, her post here: http://www.alllacqueredup.com/2013/07/pinspirationail-spun-sugar-nail-art-revlon-brilliant-strength-nail-enamel.html and  Mimi from Makeupwithdrawal, her post here: http://www.makeupwithdrawal.com/2012/05/neon-sugar-spun-manicure.html ) can get the "threads" of polish really thin, but since it's only my first attempt, mine are still pretty thick. Still, for a first try, I'm very excited about the results! Here's how I did it.

First, I painted my nails a base color. In this case, for my thumb, middle, and index finger, I used Rue Beauté in color "031" (a mint-scented bright pastel lime green) and on my pointer finger and pinky, I used Claire's "Hot Stuff" (an eye-searingly hot pink). I used the opposite color on each individual nail as the "spun sugar" color. To make the spun sugar, I put several drops of a single color on a piece of cardboard. I then used a toothpick, and stirred the polish puddle for about 5 minutes, or until the polish thickens enough to still be fluid, but when you pull the toothpick out of the puddle, a string of polish comes up with it. I then pulled those strings, with the toothpick, across my individual nails (one at a time) to create the spun sugar look. I warn you, the finished product DOES have a fair amount of texture, as the thick polish does not dry flat for the most part. Below are pictures of the finished product WITHOUT topcoat and in artificial lighting.

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The next photos are with topcoat, which smooths out some of the texture (though not that much) and adds an extra shine to the semi-matte neon colors I used in the design. The topcoat is, as always, Sally Hansen Diamond Strength Nail Color in "Flawless"- one coat on top of the finished and fully dried design.

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Sorry for the random speck of glitter on my index finger, that pesky piece wouldn't budge when I tried to remove it!

So what do you think of this innovative new nail art trend? Will you be giving it a try? If you do, leave a comment, and tell me how it works for you! I'll be trying it again in the near future, hopefully with more precise results. Stay tuned!

~Beth~

Thursday, July 18, 2013

Nail Art- Summer Neon Water Marble

Hi everyone!

So yesterday's "flashback" post inspired me to try some water marble nail art again. I hadn't done it in about a year (school has been crazy with AP's and extracurriculars!) so I had to get the hang of it again. And let me tell you, I made a hugeee mess in the process! To add to the length of time it took to (finally!!!) get it right, I completely botched the white nail polish (that I use as a base for the design) on my entire left hand and had to stop, remove it, and start over again. I'm really such a klutz sometimes! In the end though, I'm satisfied with the results.

My original plan for this design was to mix all four colors (orange, green, blue, and pink) together in one design, but when i started making the bullseye, I found out the four of them together didn't play nice. Instead, I flip-flopped between green and orange on one nail and pink and blue on another, because those two combinations worked in the water (I used room temperature bottled water). The colors I used for this design are as follows:

Rue Beauté orange polish in color 145

Rue Beauté scented green polish (smells like mint!) in color 031

dELIA's blue polish in "Blue-Mint"

Claire's hot pink polish in "Hot Stuff"

Below are pictures of the final result. The white polish I used as a base was Ulta Salon Formula Nail Laquer in "Snow White", and the base and top coat are, as always, Sally Hansen Diamond Strength nail polish in "Flawless".

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I apologize for the pictures for this one, it was picking up the orange all kinds of wrong. In these pictures, it looks like an orange-y red or a dark peach, when in reality it's a real in-your-face neon orange. All these colors are much more eye-searing in person.

So what do you think of my latest water-marble creation? Are you a fan of summer neons?

~Beth~