Tea Party #3

This will be my last post in this month's challenge.  I'm one mani short...My back went out again and I've been dealing with that pain and several doctor's appointments leaving me with no desire to do the last one.  Sorry ladies!
I love the dainty quality of this manicure!  This one is inspired by the tea set shown below.  Again, this item was found on Pinterest and didn't lead to a valid link so it is just an image.  My hubby picked this one out!

Here is what I used for this one:

• Sinful Colors Snow Me White
• Sinful Colors Tidal Wave
• Mundo de Unas Bronze (stamping polish)
• GA11 (stamp)

After applying my usual base coat, I used 2 coats of Snow Me White.  Once that was mostly dry, I added a layer of Seche Vite to harden it all the way so my tape wouldn't pull it up.  I used reinforcements cut in half to get my half moon design.  I used 2 coats of Tidal Wave on the tips and removed the tape right away for a clean line.  I did this one nail at a time!  

I put another layer of Seche Vite down before stamping so it wouldn't smudge.  It was a challenge centering that stamp, but it came out great!  Once the stamp was dry, I added the final layer of Seche Vite.  This was a time consuming mani, but worth it!

Be sure to look at the other lovely mani's done for this month's challenge!

Tea Party #2

For my second look in this challenge, I went with something simple and delicate.  Who doesn't love pink tea cups?  Here is my interpretation of these pretty cups!

I am also working with my photography skills these days...I think I have made some progress in learning the manual settings on my camera.  :)

• Sally Hansen I Pink I Can
• Mundo de Unas White
• Mash-36  & SH208 (stamping plates)

These are really pretty!  I found the picture on Pinterest...it led to an Etsy site that sold it in 2012 so I didn't include the link in the photo below.  

Using this as my inspiration, I chose a pink color that was as close as I had to the photo.  I used 2 coats of  I Pink I Can then a layer of Seche Vite.  I used the single rose image on Mash-36 to stamp my nails.  Now, my hubby said that I missed the mark...this was disheartening and he said I needed more on the nail so I added a little of the flowers from SH208 to my middle nail.  Anything to appease my love!

I love pink!  While searching for the pink color, I realized that in my plethora of pink polishes, I need more pink cremes!!!

Catching Up: Peach Smoothie

I have another summer manicure that I did and never got to write about for you tonight.  I wanted to do something simple, yet eye-catching for this one so I went with a striping tape mani!

These colors worked fabulously together and I had no problems with application of either.  The biggest, most time-consuming, part of this is dealing with the tape.  I cut 40 pieces to do 4 nails!  Good times!

• Revlon Peach Smoothie
• Pure Ice Coral Reef

I used 2 coats of the Peach Smoothie to get a solid base color.  When that was dry, I added a layer of Seche Vite to harden the polish so it didn't dent when I put the tape on it.

Working one nail at a time, I laid down the tape where I wanted it, then painted 2 coats of Coral Reef on top and removed the strips of tape while the polish was still wet to ensure a crisp line.  Once that was dry, I finished it off with another layer of Seche Vite.

Tea Party #1

I was never a tea party kind of girl...I never played that as a kid and I haven't ever been to one as an adult.  I guess I am deprived...  I do like tea though!

I am starting my research on inspiration for this challenge and found an image that caught my eye as it was beautiful, yet non-traditional.  I found this on Pinterest and would have provided the link back to it but it was dead.  :(

Using this as a guide, I went to my swatchcicles and picked out a few beauties:

• Mash-41 (stamping plate)
• Mundo de Unas Bronze (stamping polish)
• Zoya Gaia
• Revlon Midnight Affair

I started with 2 coats of Gaia, which is my favorite off-white polish (ever)!  I put a coat of Seche Vite on top of that to seal it and prepare for the gradient.  I applied the blue gradient with a make-up sponge that had both the colors on it to get a smooth transition.

Once I had the blue the way I wanted it, I put another coat of Seche Vite on to prepare for stamping.  I tried really hard to center the stamp and I was pleased with how it came out!  I chose the bronze over the gold because I felt it had a warmer quality to it.

Once the stamp was dry, I added the last layer of Seche Vite to seal it all in.  There is a lot of polish on these nails this time around.  

I hope I can find some other feasible inspiration pieces looking around!  The women in this challenge are amazing!  Be sure to check them out below!

Re-create #4: Ode to Classy Nude & Black

This is my favorite in this series!  Pretty much everything worked out on this one!  That rarely happens!  LOL

My original post of this manicure was quite impressive to me at the time, as I was just getting into stamping.  You can read all about it here.  This time around, I wanted to follow the same theme but use different polishes and a different stamp image.

• Mundo de Unas Black (stamping)
• Essie Ballet Slippers
• Bundle Monster BM-211 (stamp plate)

I used my usual base coat to prep my nails and then I used 3 coats of the Ballet Slippers.  I don't have many Essie polishes in my collection and there is a reason why.  I've struggled with them.  I don't find them to have even coverage.  Even with three coats of this, I still have a VNL.  It is a very pretty color though.  I love the subtle pink and it has an appropriate name.  Once that was mostly dry, I applied a layer of Seche Vite to harden the polish and prepare for the stamping.

I love this MDU polish!!!  I used just a very small amount on my plate and scraped very lightly and slowly to get full coverage on the image.  I waited a few seconds to pick up the image on my rectangle Messy Mansion stamper.  The fact that this polish takes a little longer to dry really worked in my favor as I needed to line up the image with my nail carefully on each finger.  I did one finger at a time so that I could clean up after the stamping as I have heard that this polish may stain my skin or cuticles if not removed quickly.  Once all of my nails were done, I waited a good 5-10 minutes before adding my top coat.  I used a "floating" technique to be sure not to smear the black.  It turned out amazing!

Comparing these manicures, I can really see an improvement in my photography skills.  I'm glad to see that, since I feel like I am still struggling to get it just right.  It seems like I am on the right track!

Re-create #3: Birthday Manicure

Well, it isn't my birthday so I kept this re-creation simple (in design).  Anyone who can do water marbling easily is my hero.  I struggle and struggle and struggle with it.  It is so pretty that I just don't want to give up on it, but I will admit that I am far from perfection!

• Pure Ice No Means No
• Color Club Blue-Ming
• Sinful Colors Bikini

I don't know what is up with that photo, but you get the idea...  For this re-creation, I stuck with strictly water marbling, nothing fancy.  This is hard enough and there just wasn't time to do more.  See the original post here.

I started with one coat of Bikini as a base color before I did the marbling technique.  I love the 4 dashed lines on my ring finger.  I have no idea where they came from, but they were cool.  LOL!

After I cleaned up my mess, I added a layer of Seche Vite on top to seal it in and make it shiny.

Take a look at them side-by-side.  I tried to keep the color scheme but use different polishes (because I have so many that haven't been tried yet...).

Re-create #1: Fall Victorian Look?

This is a re-creation of the first mani I posted on my blog.  You can read that in it's entirety here.  As it was November when I did the original, I had to be creative to bring this look into the summertime.

• MDU Light Gold (stamping polish)
• Zoya Beatrix
• Zoya Godiva
• MDU Geranium (stamping polish)
• RA-104 (plate)

I went with a light brown for the main base color which has a slight gold tone to it.  As an accent nail I used the orange color.  I didn't intentionally go for texture polishes, but it worked out nicely!

Each base color was applied with 2 coats over my usual base coat.  I used Mundo de Unas stamping polishes which were perfectly complimentary to the base colors.  The stamping image came out fairly well and better than the first time around.  I really struggle using my Red Angel plates - the images aren't etched very deep to get a great image every time.  I used the same image on all of my nails and tried to get the it pretty close to identical on each.  

Once the stamping polishes were completely dry, I did go over it with a layer of Seche Vite as I thought it made the stamping image really pop and helped to smooth out the polish a bit to prevent chipping.

Compared side-by-side, they look the same but different.  I guess that is what I wanted...?  At least you can really see the stamping this time around.  Gotta love these MDU's!

Be sure to look at the other lovely re-creations!

Re-create #2: First Husband's Choice

I'm posting out of order!  I'm such a rebel!  I wanted to make something summery out of this original fall manicure, so I chose bright colors, but I used the same stamps.  You can see the original post here.

• Sally Hansen Polar Bare
• Sally Hansen Parrot
• butter LONDON Cheeky Chops
• Stamping supplies:
• MDU Pastel Yellow
• MDU Chocolate
• MDU Lemon Tree
• MDU White
• BM324 - Bamboo (tips)
• RA118 - Reeds (grass)

I started with 2 coats of Polar Bare after my base coat.  This polish is fairly sheer but still a good light undie color to bring out the "pop" of brightness.  I then put 2 coats of either Cheeky Chops or Parrot on my nails.  Once those were mostly dry, I added a layer of Seche Vite.

I am so, so, so glad that I purchased these Mundo de Unas stamping polishes!  They are a dream to use.  The stamps were more of a challenge though.  For anyone curious, stamping may look easy but it sure isn't!  For this one I used the yellow and brown to stamp the reeds (or grass, if you like (RA118)).  I layered them, so the same stamp is used multiple times in both colors and also it is reversed for one round.  This took a lot of time and patience (which I was running out of by the end of this manicure!) to get it to where I could accept it.  I did the tips a bit differently this manicure too.  I also layered the stamp (BM324) in the white and green and put it on a bias.  It is just too damn hard to line up a french tip!  So, I went on an angle and I have to say, I really love it!  The stamp reminds me of bamboo shoots. Together, everything looks very summer and I got a lot of compliments on them at work.

Here they are side by side.  I'm glad that my stamping has improved over the last 1 1/2 years!  I hope this is an acceptable re-creation.  :)

Catching Up: Hawaiian Strawberry Shake

I'm pretty sure I did this mani for some "pink" challenge but I can't remember.  I really need to write these up as I do them because I just don't retain the reasoning behind them.  LOL!

• Milani Strawberry Shake
• Ulta Fuchsiamania
• Milani White on the Spot (stamping)
• MoYou London Pro Collection - 03

I started with a base coat and then 1 coat of Strawberry Shake.  I then did a sponge gradient on 3 fingers with both pink polishes.  The other 2 nails are 2 coats of the base color.  I always put a layer of Seche Vite on my nails before I stamp to help dry the base colors so they don't smudge with the stamper pressure.

I used the Fuchsiamania on the non-gradient nails.  It stamped beautifully!  It doesn't hurt that MoYou London plates are simply fabulous!  They are so nicely etched that they work great with just about any polish!  The gradient nails are stamped with White on the Spot.

This pattern looks like Hawaiian hibiscus to me so it was a wonderful reminder to me of my visit to Hawaii a few years ago.  Stamping has to be my favorite type of nail art!  One last coat of Seche Vite and it was all done.