Essie Topless & Barefoot | Plus Nail Art

Let me just say, I have not fallen in love with a nail polish like I have with this one in a very long time.  I have liked other polishes, but I love this one!  Keep reading to see why I love it so much, and a sexy nail art design I tried with it!

Nails of the Day Tutorial: Mermaid Glitter Ombre

You know what makes this a fantastic nail art technique?  Its pretty hard to mess up, doesn't require precision, and can be in any colour you want.

I was feeling a mermaid style, but you can do whatever you want.

You Will Need:

Disposable small container

Cheap makeup sponge

4 nail polishes

I used Julep's:

• Soraphine
• Shenae
• Denver
• Tania

I recommend using a colour like Soaphine or Essie's Marshmallow as the base.  The clear-ish milky white it a great point to start at.

Step 1: Clean and file your nails as usual.

Step 2: Apply your base coat and let it dry.

Step 3: Paint your nails using Soraphine/Marshmallow.  Just apply one light coat.  This style required a fair number of coats so don't worry if its not perfect.  Simply make sure it is an even application.

Step 4: Take your lightest colour (I sued Shenae) and dab a few drops from the brush on your disposable little container.  I used a razor container.  You could also consider a plastic bag.  Wet your sponge so it is saturated and then wring it out.  This will save you on nail polish and help create the watercolour look.  Dab the polish on the tip of the sponge and then pat the sponge gently on the top 2/3 of your nail.  Don't worry if it isn't perfect.  You can come by later with Q-Tips and polish remover.

Step 5: Repeat Step 4 using your next shade (Denver) applied to the top 1/3 of your nail.

Step 6 (Optional):  I felt that the tips were not dark enough so using the same colour from Step 5 I applied a touch more to each tip.

What makes this technique so great is that each layer is incredibly thin (think watercolour paint) so they dry quite quickly.

Step 7: This step is the most fun!  Take your glitter and apply it to the top 1/3 or so of our nail.  Once it is dry apply a second coat to the top 1/4 gently patting on the glitter so that the tips are opaque with glitter and allowing it to tail off.

Step 8: Clean off the sides of your nails using a Q-Tip and some polish remover.

Step 9: Finish it off with your favourite topcoat!

When I wore this I got loads of compliments asking which salon did it!  When I explained that I did it myself there was disbelief.  I would love to do this for my little cousin using pink and calling it a "Fairy Manicure".  

So there you have it!  Little to no mess.  Fun, complex look.  Go for it!

I would love to see pictures if you give this style a try!

Happy Sunday xoxo!

DIY Friday: Marble Watercolour Nails

Hello!  I hope everybody had a fantastic Friday!  Last night I decided to try my hand, for the very first time, at water marbling.  I have seen it on Instagram and had to give it a try!

You Will Need:

• Several quality nail polishes
• Topcoat
• Base Coat
• A disposable cup or bowl for water
• Cold water
• Toothpick
• Vaseline/Hand cream/ lip gloss
• Q-Tips
• Nail polish remover
• Quick Dry

I used:

• Julep: Jules, Paulette, Jeanne, Freedom Top Coat
• Essie: Bachelorette Bash
• Butter London: Nail Foundation
• Aveno Hand Cream
• Orly Quick Dry

Left to right:

Essie Bachelorette Bash, Julep Jules, Julep Paulette, Julep Jeanne

Please forgive the weird orange-ness of these photos!  They were taken at night in the dining room with overhead lighting.

I used mainly pastel-ish colours with a pop of hot pink.  I recommend using colours in the same family (pink, blue, purple or red, orange, yellow, etc) or colours that contrast (think yellow and purple).  Really it is up to you, your colour preferences, and your style.  Have fun with it and be creative!  Use quality polish that isn't too watery.

Before you start with the fun stuff, apply your favourite base coat.  After it is dry take some Vaseline/lip balm/hand cream and apply it to the tips of your fingers and around your cuticle/side of your finger tips.  This will make polish removal easier later.

Add a drop from the brush of the polish to the room temp/cool water.  Don't force the polish off the brush.  Give it a moment and it will drop.  I found the first drop to spread quickly.  Inside that expanded drop add another drop of polish.  Keep going until there are about 5 layers of drops.

I finally found a use for my Julep Pilé Wand!  But a toothpick will suffice.  Swirl the colours as much or as little as you would like.  Have fun!  Make it as crazy or as simple as you would like.  I found Essie to be more watery than Julep, and that the Essie polish spread faster.

This is what my final swirled polish looked like!  The pale pink on the outside is hard to see.

There are two ways to go from here.  You can repeat this for every nail and have generally consistent nails, or you can do what I did which was to dip each nail onto of the same layer of polish creating a look that is different but consistent.  More like sisters than twins!

You will need to create a second swirl for your other hand.  Use your toothpick/wand to pick up the remaining polish, and then start again!

Attractive!  As you can see I dipped the top of each finger into the polish swirl.  Use some nail polish remover and Q-Tips to remove the extra.  I found the hand cream I used helped remove it faster.  Once you are done it will be tempting to wipe off the water.  Give it a few minutes and then spray some quick dry on there.  Keep waiting and apply your top coat, and then more quick dry.

In regular lighting!

Ta-da!  I love how unique this looks and had a blast doing it!  I will do this again :)  I love how the pale pink, blue and purple look with the hot pink!  Also, Paulette's golden shimmer is hard to pick up in a photo, but it is there, and it looks divine!

I am so happy with how this turned out!  I can't wait to give more nail art a try!  This could make a really cool accent nail.  

What do you think?  Would you give it a try?  Where would you wear it?