Saturday, January 18, 2014

Nail of the Week: Chai Latte




This nail was named by my sister who said it looks like a chai latte, and I agree! It's a super simple look that I made with my new Julep polishes: Hope (white), Annmarie (brown) and Farrah (metallic purple). The white is a matte polish and dries faster, which always helps.

I started with the white and painted on the tips of my nails roughly where I wanted the finished product to be. On the accent nail, I painted the whole thing white. I used about 2 coats on each nail, unless it looked a little sparse in areas and then I touched it up there. After the coats had thoroughly dried, I marked off where I wanted the white part to end with decal strips. You can use Scotch tape or even notebook paper hole reinforcers. When using either of these, be sure to place it on your skin or another surface first and peel it off to take off some of the adhesive. If you don't, there's a chance it will take off some of the polish underneath when you remove it. I just used the Annmarie polish on the four nails in 2 coats up to the line I made. Be sure it's completely dry before you peel off your tape.

For the accent nail, I used the decals to make a criss-cross pattern that I've used before. I like the 3D effect it makes. I just painted 2 coats of Farrah over it and let it dry all the way. Then, I just peeled off the decals and it's done. I always use a good top coat too.

I love finding new uses for the nail decals I bought since they don't stick for too long. They were cheap and the fact that I can do projects with them makes it worth it. I am hoping to do my next project with some abstract art, but we will see!

Enjoy your artistry :)

Friday, January 10, 2014

Nail of the Week: Stripes with Glam


I took an unintentional hiatus over the holidays-- from Christmas to New Year's to visiting my new niece! Things got so busy that I didn't have time to post my nail of the week. It was a good season of family and food and I am so grateful for everyone in my life.

This week's nail is a stripe design I found on a few other blogs that I wanted to try. It's a new take on the usual stripes and adds some dimension on the top. I used all Julep polishes except for the top coat (you can find the top coat in my TWS top coat entry). I started with one coat of Reiko, which is a shimmery polish that covers well. Over that, I used two coats of Clio, which has larger glitter pieces. I left the accent nail just like that and for the other nails I made the stripes.

After the polish had completely dried, I applied decal strips with three horizontal on the bottom and 2-3 on either side of the top (depending on what fit). I did a triangular design on the top (see photos).  Over the decals, I painted 2 coats of Sylvia (the dark purple color). I covered it all with 2 top coats to seal everything in well.

You can choose whatever colors you like for this design. I have also seen it done with a striping brush and it looks nice as well. Enjoy!

Julep

Julep Beauty Inc.