NOTD - Lisbon Tiles

Hey there lovely readers!

One of my trips last year took me to the beautiful city of Lisbon, which was not just the most magical place but filled with the nail-spiration around every corner! Famous for its beautifully patterned tiles I knew I had to try & re-create in some shape or form on my nails. 

I was still a bit stumped with which particular pattern to go for, so when one of my (many) favourite nail artists on Instagram, Katie Masters aka @nailthoughts whipped up a Portugal tile design of her own, I fell in love with her interpretation completely so this look is utterly inspired by her!

NOTD - Opal Semi Precious Stone Nails

Hello there lovely readers!

I've been on a bit of a mission you may call it to try & recreate as many semi precious stones as I can in nail art form. I've always adored gemstones & being part witch of course I fully appreciate their healing & mystical properties! ;)

You can catch all my Semi Precious stone recreations HERE, including the likes of Jade, Rose Quartz & Marble. This time I wanted to attempt one of my favourites which is the milky magical Opal stone!

Festive NOTD - Winter Wonderland

Hey there lovely readers!

I'll be honest with you, this year I have been struggling with Christmas nail art inspiration...not sure what the cause is but every design I attempt never goes according to plan resulting in a fail of epic proportions thus causing mini psychotic episodes to ensue...most frustrating & not good for ones mental health 

But I am not one to give up, especially because getting creative & challenging myself when it comes to nail art is what I love the most...masochistic tendencies much? :) Every year I like to do some type of Christmas Trees design so this year is no exception. This time I've gone for a more natural vibe with a Winter Wonderland forest setting...

NOTD - Pumpkin Patch!

Hey there lovely readers!

I wasn't initially going to blog this nail art as I classed it as a bit of a mani FAIL really but I still thought it cute & heck if I didn't just wanna squeeze in as many Autumn manis as possible!

When I was in NYC *sobs* I stumbled across some of the loveliest  Autumnal displays overflowing with pumpkins & pretty fauna in shop windows, quaint neighbourhoods, outside  homes...not that I loitered like a weirdo at all... O_o Before I left for my trip I threw together this Pumpkin Patch look which NONE of my work colleagues guessed it was meant to be thus shattering my hopes in to a thousand pieces but hey ho...

NOTD - Pitch Purple & Pink!

Hey there lovely readers!

Coming at you today with a vibrant & uplifting nail art look, because why the heck not! 

NOTD - Marble Stone Nails!

Hey there lovely readers!

A while back I started a Semi Precious Stones nail art series as not only am I obsessed with pretty gemstones but I also found they make for fab nail art! So far I've done some Jade Stone inspired nails as well as giving Geode Rock and Rose Quartz a go. 

NOTD - Blue China Rose Nails

Hey there my lovely readers!

If you caught a few of my recent posts you will know that yours truly has officially dipped her toe into the world of nail art stamping.

Now whilst freehand nail art will forever remain my first true joy, I do confess I am rather enjoying my venture into the stamping way of life....when said stamping is a success that is!

NOTD - Sweetpeas and Stripes

Hello there lovely readers!

Oooh its been a while! These past few weeks have been all manners of manic with work, life & everything in between. Thankfully I managed to squeeze in a brief holiday to the Poldark lands aka Cornwall to visit one of my lovely friends plus catch some much needed time out. I could happily have stayed there forever as I adore it there muchly....who knows maybe one day.

As we seem to have been rather cheated of a summer this year (seriously Mother Nature, whats the dealio, I thought you & I had a special arrangement?) I've been resorted to creating summer vibes via other means, mostly my favourite way of course, on my nails.

It really uplifts my mood greatly when I'm wearing a pretty patterned mani & I'm an absolute sucker for florals, they soothe me so much so whenever I get a chance you can be sure I'll be rocking a floral manicure a lot of the time! My wish one day is to recreate stunning floral mani's like Follow That Way...seriously this girls skills are insane, her floral mani's are like works of art!

NOTD - Lace & Grey

Hello there lovely readers!

Grey can be considered dull & dreary yes indeed but I confess I've grown a certain fondness for wearing it on my nails. Far from depressing it can work very nicely as a classy & on trend shade to wear.

And if going for a block colour grey is not your thing well then...why not jazz it up a tad like I've done here?

You'll be surprised by what a difference simply adding a few strategically placed lines & dots can make & transform an otherwise ordinary mani into something more fun :)

NOTD - 3 Point Curve Nails!

Hello there my lovely readers!

I hope you're all having a good week so far? Eager for the weekend already, mostly because this crazy cat lady is currently parted from miss kitty/psychopath/spawn of Satan whom, if you follow me on Instagram are more than familiar with her cute comical ways. I'm currently away from home & the folks are away also so madam has been in the cat hotel where she is no doubt wondering where her the heck her owners have buggered off to...O_O 

Some super simple nail art for you today my beauts, so much so why you can even do it with your eyes closed! I was at a bit of a loss on what to name it, I always do get stuck with that I admit...I mean I'm nowhere near cool enough to use song lyrics or anything poignant like that in my post titles haha! However going by how this design is done I settled for 3 point curve nail art & simply roll with it.

Firstly though apologies for the horrendous quality pics! These were quickly snapped on my phone. I normally like to neaten my photos as much as I can & the editing platform I use (Photobucket) has been having problems, so frustrating! If you know of any good alternative to Photobucket please do share!

I was in the mood for some pastel & metallic action so decided to go for a lovely light milky pink base using Sally Hansen In The Flesh which I picked up in Poundworld. I've recently found some fab Sally Hansen polishes in that which is considered my most favoured of polish hunting grounds, so do have a looky! 

This was two coats applied, Sally Hansen formulas really are delightful, especially my experience with this range in particular. Isn't the pale, almost white pink just so scrummy? And to think it only cost a quid...high fives!

Next for the arty part, I decided to use the gorgeous Models Own Chrome Rose polish which is exactly what it says on the tin...a pretty rose tinted metallic giving a lovey rose gold finish. I have one polish which I always say EVERY girl needs in her collection & that's Models Own Pink Fizz. Trust me, you won't regret it & I'd say this one would also be a MUST HAVE, especially for my fellow rose gold lovers.

For this design simply grab a fine nail art brush, dip into your polish which you'll already have dolloped on to a piece of card/foil/paper, then glide the brush straight down the centre of the nail, starting at the cuticle & finishing at the tip. 

Then using the same brush & more polish, draw one curved line on the left from the top point by the cuticle....& then another curving to the right. And...thats it! Finish with obligatory top coat & you're done.  It actually reminds me of a birds footprint! But I don't think Crows Feet would've made a good name for this...O_o 

***EDIT*** - Thanks to the lovely @Yahyah56 suggestion on Twitter that this mani bares quite a strong resemblance to the delightful Prince Andrei's uniform from BBC's new drama War and Peace! So henceforth this manicure will be titled "War & Peace"....or "Dishy Prince From Historical Drama That Makes Girls Swoon"...either or will suffice ;)

Thanks for reading lovelies & catch up soon!

Lotsa love to ya!

NOTD - Cherry Blossoms!

Well hellooo there strangers!

Long time no speak! Life has been a tad crazy of late, but things seem to be slowly back on an even normality track thank goodness! Hope you're all enjoying the delightful bank holiday, no Sunday evening blues huzzah!

I hope you're not getting tired of the floral mani's yet lovelies as I have another to share with you today! What can I say I? I just love them! And today’s nails feature possibly my favourite bloom that comes out at this time of year...Cherry Blossoms!

I've seen so many beautiful cherry blossom designs, like I said its one of my favourites, so delicate & pretty, I can't help but smile when I see a cherry blossom tree in full bloom, so I'm glad I finally got around to giving it a go on the nails :)

To start off I decided to go for a pretty baby blue base, so that the design would stand out nicely. Here I've used two coats of Ulta3 Hydrangea, a perfect delicate pale blue creme that my darling pal Chelle sent to me.

For the branches I used Revlon Parfumerie polish in Chocolate Truffle (yes it really does smell like chocolate!) & with a thin nail art brush, free handed some random branches on to the nail.

Now for the blossoms! For the first step I used a dotting tool & Sally Hansen's Pinch of Punch, a delicate pastel pink, & added blooms made up of three dots on to the branches.

To add more definition I went in with a few dots of W7 Neon Pink on top of the Sally Hansen.

Finally I simply added a dot of white in the centre of my blooms to complete the design.

Finishing everything off with a nice thick slick of topcoat because we loves that glossy finish & finito!

Thanks so much fro reading lovelies, I hope you liked the Cherry Blossom nails!

Lotsa love to ya!

NOTD - "Flow" inspired by Fashion Designer Eva Cammarata

Hello there lovely readers!

I'm especially excited for the weekend already, as I'll be heading to London for the Swap In The City and Fashion's Finest collaboration event for London Fashion Week, where I'll be getting my mani on! This is my first event for London Fashion Week so I'm a mixture of ecstatic & terrified but its something that I've wanted to be a part of for ages so I can't wait & am very grateful & excited to be a part of it.

The event consists of two days of fashion shows, exhibitions & fun Swap In The City clothes swaps, where a number of superbly talented designers will be showcased at The Grand Connaught Rooms in Covent Garden.

One of these designers is Sicily born Eva Cammarata, whose collections are inspired by Nature, Arts & Philosophy. Not only are her designs beautiful & colourful but Eva's brand is also a fair trade ethical luxury label, using organic & biotech fibers that moisturise the skin of the wearer. And I've used one of her creations as inspiration for today's manicure! I fell in love with this piece, FLOW, with its mixture of blue & sparkle so couldn't wait to rustle up some nail art!

NOTD - Mythical Watercolour Nails

Hey there lovely readers!

Pretty nails always helps make me feel better & I'm excited to share this mani with you lovelies as I think its one of my favourites in quite a while with its mythical vibes & involves the 'watercolour' method using Sally Hansen sheer jellies!