Early Summer Leaf Gradient

Hello all! Memorial Day is the unofficial start of summer, so I wanted to create a nail design that reflected the early summer months! I started with three China Glaze colors: Five Rules, Flip Flop Fantasy, and Grass is Lime Greener. I also used plate BP19 from the Born Pretty Store and Pure Ice Superstar. I decided to create a gradient with the China Glaze polishes and stamped over that with a leaf design in white. This was one of those looks that kind of evolved as I created it.

Nail Art Inspired by Sushi Dinner

So, this design wasn't really inspired by the sushi dinner itself, but by the mugs we got for our tea. I thought the design was really cute, and as we were eating, I realized I have a stamp for that. The scale is a little off, but I think it turned out nice.

The Polished Bookworms: Nail Art Inspired by Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

I have a confession. I didn't read the book for book club this month. The Polished Bookworms read Gone Girl this month, but I actually read it ages ago, so I didn't feel the need to re-read it. I'm rebellious, I know. I thought it was a really great and twisted book. Gillian Flynn is really good at writing really suspenseful, twisted, thrillers. If you like that kind of thing, you need to read her books! I decided to do a mani inspired by broken glass. I don't remember if broken glass was ever in the book, but that is what I think of when I think of this book.

The Polished Bookworms: Nail Art Inspired by Maze Runner by James Dashner

Last month in The Polished Bookworms, we read Big Little Lies which I loved. Maze Runner was our book this month. The theme was a young adult book and at times, I had a difficult time even taking this book seriously. In the end I think it is an entertaining read, but I think I will skip the rest of the series. I thought it was an interesting concept, but it read more like a downgraded Hunger Games. For my nail design based on the book, I did a gradient of China Glaze Black Diamond and Foie Gras and stamped over it with Agro.  

Work Wear Wednesdays: Dry Brush French Tip

Work Wear Wednesday is back! I took a short hiatus for the holidays the last two weeks, but today I have a new look to share with you. It is a pretty simple one with no tools involved, so I think you will like it!

Christmas Nail Art: Christmas Tree, Candy Cane, and Gingerbread

Press Samples Included

I created some festive Christmas nail art to correspond with my post about Old Factory candles in the Happy Holidays Collection, and I wanted to share more photos and details about them!

Work Wear Wednesdays: Holiday Edition Tutorial

Late night post, but it is still Wednesday for me! I have been really worn thin with all the holiday activities! I love it all, but it just takes it out of me. I still have a ton of things I want to do this Christmas season, and I hope I can get to them all. One of which is to show you more holiday nail designs! Today's Work Wear Wednesdays post is a holiday design and a little more advanced than I have shown, but I think all of you should give it a go!

Work Wear Wednesdays: Inspired by The Nail Boss

Today, I have another installment of Work Wear Wednesdays! This week, I have something inspired by an artist I love. Have you ever heard of the Nail Boss? If not, you need to check him out on Instagram! He has 148K followers for a good reason. He does some really amazing work and he doesn't use polish! I think he is using acrylic, but what he does it way more advanced than my nail vocabulary. Just go check him out, I promise, you will love him. I spotted an image on his account a long time ago and I can't get it out of my head, so I attempted to re-create it for Work Wear Wednesdays. It has just the right amount of neutral and glitter!

Born Pretty Store Stamping Plate 05 Review and Nail Art

Press Sample

I hope you all had a wonderful, long weekend! I enjoyed Thanksgiving Dinner on three separate occasions this weekend, so I have much to be thankful for. Today, I am thankful for nail stamping! I have a fun and easy design using the Born Pretty Store Stamping Plate 05. I have been loving the fact that they are releasing new plates pretty regularly now. They are really affordable and come in a lot of different designs. This one in particular is called the Egypt Style plate and is only $1.99! Plus, you can get 10% off with my code: HANDX31.

China Glaze All Aboard Collection Part III

I have an unexpected part III installment of the China Glaze All Aboard Collection! I have One Track Mind and Mind the Gap up for swatch and review. If you missed the others I reviewed you can click Part I and Part II. One Track Mind is a deep blue and Mind the Gap is an interesting bown leaning gold.

Election Day!

Today is Election Day in the United States! I am a strong advocate for voting and I think that every person who is eligible needs to exercise their right and civic duty. Voting is something that people in the U.S. take for granted, and that needs to change. I created a nail art look that will hopefully remind some of you to head out to the polls or official drop sites to make sure your vote counts before 8pm tonight! I dropped off my ballot at an official drop site last night. In Oregon we have vote by mail and it is too late to mail it, so please google your nearest official drop site in your county!

On to the nails! I started with a base color of Color Club Mamba and then added the stripes with stripping paint. I then let everything dry and taped off the lower section and painted the upper section with China Glaze One Track Mind (to be reviewed very soon). I added top coat and waited for that to dry then I painted little stars and top coated again. On my ring finger I just painted Mamba and carefully added the letters with paint from the stripper.

China Glaze Five Rules

Today I have swatches and review of China Glaze Five Rules to share! Five Rules comes from The Giver Collection which was released in conjunction with the movie. I didn't get a chance to pick these up when they came out and my store was barren when I finally went in to get them. I was only able to find Five Rules, but it was one of the ones I really wanted, so I am glad I found it. I'm not sure if it is really a grey, off white, or tan, it is kind of a mixture of all three. Nevertheless it is a beautiful neutral color. 

My Top 10 Fall Nail Polish Picks

Today I have a top 10 list to share with you! I love fall and I really enjoy all the collections that come out in the fall. So, I decided to pull together a list of my top 10 favorite fall colors. These aren't all from this year or even from a fall collection. I just love these colors for the season! They remind me of all the things I love about fall: the cooler temperatures and rain, the pumpkins, apple cider and harvest festivals. I hope you enjoy these as much as I do!

Sinful Colors Prosecco with Dupe Comparison

I have what has proved to be a difficult to find polish today. Sinful Colors Prosecco from the Sinful Shine line has exploded in popularity in the polish world. I had seen swatches of it and didn't really think too much about it, but when I saw only one left at my local drugstore, I decided to give it a go. I am really glad I did! It does take three coats to become opaque, but it has a nice and easy formula. It is a sort of nude leaning grey with gold/iridescent shimmer throughout. I also have a comparison to China Glaze Fast Track at the end. 

China Glaze All Aboard Collection Part II

All Aboard Collection Part II swatches and review are here!! I loved Part I, so I hoped to like Part II just as much! I have What Are You A-Freight Of?, All Aboard and Lug Your Designer Baggage today! I again decided to do a stamp on my accent nail and I used the same Born Pretty Store plate QA88. Reminder if you want to buy from the Born Pretty Store, you can use my code: HANDX31 for 10% off and they always have free shipping.

Nail Art: Orange Flannel

I love fall! One of my favorite things is going to the pumpkin patch for all of the best things fall has to offer! We went this weekend and I wanted to make sure I had the right nails for the occasion. I love flannel and plaid prints, so I created another plaid look! This time I used orange, black, and brown/maroon. I started with a base of China Glaze What Are You A-Freight Of? and added strips of Nailtini Mai Tai. I also used my black stripper for the fine black lines. I really liked how it turned out, even though it is pretty similar to my last plaid look. 

China Glaze All Aboard Collection Part I

Today I have three of the twelve piece All Aboard Collection from China Glaze. I have six total, but wanted to split it up in two. I have Choo-Choo Choose You, Conduct Yourself, and Don't Get Derailed. Please note that all of these have top coat, usually I don't do that. I don't know what got into me! I also added an accent stamp for each color, all using plate QA88 from the Born Pretty Store. I think it might be one of my favorite plates. Reminder if you want to buy from the Born Pretty Store, you can use my code: HANDX31 for 10% off and they always have free shipping. 

Nail Art: #31DC2014 Day 29 Supernatural

So, today is the day that everyone is finishing up the daily nail art challenge, as today is day 31. I, however and still finishing up a few, so stick with me here, I'll be finished soon! It will feel so great to complete this! Today, I have day 29, which was to be inspired by the supernatural. I've been watching Witches of East End, so that kind of influenced my decision here. I created a purple sky and hand painted one witch, but after doing so, I realized I had decals...lol. So, guess which one I painted! :) 

Nail Art: #31DC2014 Day 25 Fashion Inspired

I am back at it today with some more nail art for the #31DC2014 challenge! I had to have self imposed "work appropriate" nails today, so I started off the day with a base of China Glaze Foie Gras from the Hunger Games Collection. That has to be one of my favorite collections of all time. No joke, go check it out. Foie Gras is a really nice brown/taupe creme. In some lights it is completely brown, in others it looks grey or taupe. I love colors that change like that. The challenge prompt for today is fashion inspired, and I could totally do some beautiful crazy things for that, but I am feeling the simple plaid today. It may be because it is officially fall or because it is raining here, but I love a good plaid.

Nail Art: #31DC2014 Day 21 Inspired by a Color

Inspired by a color is a fairly easy challenge for me. I've had something on my mind lately though. My friend posted on my wall asking what nail polish could match the teal for Ovarian Cancer Awareness, which happens to be this month. It got me thinking and I wanted to create a design for Ovarian Cancer Awareness. I picked a polish that isn't quite teal because it holds a special meaning for me. For Audrey is almost teal, more of a blue really, but it is one of my favorite colors. My Aunt Audrey passed away from Ovarian Cancer. Needless to say, I miss her a lot. Thus brings up the topic of Ovarian Cancer, it is something all women need to be aware of, so check out the website and learn about the symptoms and risk factors.