2012: my favorite manicures and moments

Happy New Years Eve! Well, to those in America.
I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season... I definitely did. Christian came and we spent the 24th with my family and the 25th with his. It was fantastic!

Overall, 2012 was a great year for me. One step closer to getting my psychology degree, getting much, much better at nail art, 1 year closer till Christian gets out of the Marine Corps, him returning from Afghanistan, our first time living together... it was great. Here's to hoping 2013 is even BETTER!

I know I haven't been posting as much as I should. Uh... last post was over 3 months ago. I'll just try not to think about that.

Here's my manicure for the new year!

OPI Casino Royale with Essie French Kiss & freehand accents

My favorite gradient nails: Color Club Take Me to Your Chateau, OPI Do You Lilac It?, Essie French Affair

Christian's and my little apartment :)

Zoya Aurora

My first galaxy nails

Favorite glitter gradient! China Glaze Refresh Mint, Deborah Lippmann Happy Birthday

When my family came to visit us in Oceanside

Election gradient nails

Thanksgiving freehand nail art

More freehand!

Greige gradient

I was obsessed with french tips of different colors!

I learned how to surf this summer, even after being afraid of the ocean. Standing up was a proud moment for me!

My favorite freehand

Zoya Happi with freehand hisbiscuses

Christmas jelly - Essie Limoscene, China Glaze Party Hearty

OPI What's with the Cattitude, DL Happy Birthday, Essie Sugar Daddy

Salt and pepper jelly sandwich.

Spending Christmas with Christian :)

For the next year, do you guys have any requests of what I could post? I rarely wear makeup, but I do my nails every day and I cook/bake a lot. So, what would you like to see?

Have a great New Years! Much love to all.

birthday fotd

Hi everyone! My birthday was last weekend. Unfortunately, Christian is stuck in Camp Pendleton so I spent the day with my family. We went to a quaint little seaside town north of San Fransisco (Sausalito).

face-
Maybelline concealer
MSFN Medium
Azalea Blossom
Lightscapade

eyes-
UDPP
Patina
Espresso
Brule
Ricepaper
Solar White
Eyeko Graffiti eyeliner pen
L'oreal mascara
Ardell Wispies

lips-
Angel l/s
Love Nectar l/g

My local nail polish supply started selling Nubar. I think I pissed my pants when I saw the display.

Nubar Wildlife

And some pics from the day!

At the Sausalito farmer's market

My parents are so adorable!

;)

Bye now. Thanks for looking!

tutorial: galaxy nails

I know I haven't posted in a while. This will make up for it, right? Right?


...right?


 I think so. I mean, just look at these. I could get lost just staring at all the little differences and subtle colors and overall sparkly-ness.

Goddamn. Give me a couple of minutes. I'm just going to stare at that picture.

Okay, I'm done. Let's get to the tutorial.

You'll need a gaggle of colors. Inspired by the stock photo of the galaxy above, I tried to choose colors similar to it that varied in finishes. From left to right: Orly Matte Vinyl, China Glaze Metallic Muse, OPI I'm Indi-a Mood for Love, Color Club Lazer Pink, China Glaze Bermuda Breakaway, Color Club Wild at Heart, Revlon Galaxy, China Glaze Fairy Dust.

Phew!

You'll also need a base + top coat, plus a [dry] makeup sponge. If you use sponges for other things (like I do, for gradient nails) cut it in half so you don't waste it. The half is enough for these nails, and it's easier to work with. But if you're lazy, leave it whole. What do I care?

Apply your base color. you can really use any almost black polish here, but I'd try to stick with a purple or blue based one. I chose just a plain black matte because it's opaque in 1 coat and dries fast. But use what you want!

Take your base color and dab it in one corner of the sponge. Dab the excess off on a piece of paper. I love how the chrome finish of this polish looks underneath all the finished layers -- it adds an extra dimension and sparkle. Or maybe I'm just delusional.

Take your sponge and randomly sponge blobs on your nails. Re-saturate the sponge after each nail, to ensure the color is consistent on all nails. And try to make each blob look different or place them in different areas of your nails!

Take your next color, and dab it on a different corner of your sponge. Repeat steps 2-3, but try to make these blobs a bit smaller so they are contained within the previous light blue blobs. Make sense? Like, I want the pink color to be in the center of the light blue.

Like this!

With my light pink, I repeat steps 2-5. Once again, make these blobs smaller than the previous ones.

Next, I use my dark blue to make linear blobs (is that a contradiction?) outside of the pink centers.

And then I do the same with my dark holographic purple. Ooh, sparkle!

Apply a thin layer of one of your glitter topcoats. I try to use 2 different kinds -- this one has a variety of glitter shapes. I tried to get a few hexagonal glitter pieces on each nail. 

Then apply the other glitter. Dimension is important, and using multiple types of glitter will help achieve that!

Put on a quick dry topcoat and clean up your nails. Look at these gorgeous specimens! Each one is unique!

Sigh. I feel like I'm in space. 

Thanks for reading!

celebrity inspired look: lana del rey

Have you guys heard of Lana Del Rey? If you read music magazines, watch Saturday Night Live, or hell, even go on Yahoo, you've probably heard of her. Opinions of her are mixed. I'm one of the rare people who absolutely love her. Regardless of what her music sounds like (which I do enjoy!), I think she is one of the most glamourous, sexy, and iconic celebrities out there. If I could reinvent myself, I'd be Clara Del Rey. Okay, maybe not, but still....

 I was inspired by this photo of her - she looks absolutely glowy and summery. God. I just want to be her.

 

 face-
Maybelline concealer
MSFN Medium
Seeds of Love (e/s used as blush)
Lightscapade

 eyes-
NYX Milk
Soft Brown
Creole Beauty
Amber Lights
Mulch
Dazzlelight
Ricepaper
Rich Ground f/l
Espresso (over Rich Ground to darken)
L'oreal False Lashes

 lips-
 Lollipop Loving
Love Nectar


 

 

 I also fell in love with her nails. Here's my (all natural) version!
I used China Glaze 24k Gold, Zoya Purity, and China Glaze Pink Underground.

 Thanks for reading!