Tuesday 27 January 2015

K is for Kitchen Sink

Hello my lovely readers,

This manicure is full of subtle changes.  From a multi-chrome base colour to a pretty stamped gradient and a using a stamping image which merges from one pattern into another.

Today is the letter K for "Kitchen Sink" for the A-Z Weekly Blog challenge.  I'm stretching the challenge a little here, but I've tried to use everything except the kitchen sink on my nails this week. We post alphabetically on thursdays, but I am always late. Ig hashtag #A2ZNails

Colour shifts!!!
And here's more from up-and-coming British indie polish maker "Frightfully Spectacular"

Today I am showing off this incredible multichrome topper (used for the base of my manicure):  Once Upon A Dream by Frightfully Spectacular.

This flower-shaped bottle of magic will totally transform any colour into an incredible purple to green to gold party on your fingers.

Check out the new facebook page https://www.facebook.com/frightfullyspectacular for a sneek peek.  Also see  #FrightfullySpectacular on instagram for more photos.  

If you would like to donate to Frightfully Spectacular  www.gofundme.com/kttwuo

Halogen Lighting
This close-up really shows the change in colours both in the base coat and in the stamping.
Gigantic finger
Base colours:  Frightfully Spectacular, Once Upon A Dream (Multichrome topper), over black (black polish not shown)
    Stamp colours from left:  Mundo de Uñas Stamping Polish, 16. Lilac, 49. Lavender and 24. Aqua

    Stamping plate:  Pueen Encore - SE02A

    Tools of the Trade
    To finish off, I wanted to show you how I achieved the coloured gradient using stamping polish.   I used three colours, placing a dot of each next to each other on the stamping plate and scraping two or three times in the same direction.  Mundo de Uñas Stamping Polish is perfect for this technique since it is slower to dry than most other brands.

    My work area after stamping!

    Here are the other manicures for K = Kitchen Sink


    Thursday 15 January 2015

    Frozen Jewel

    Hello lovely fellow nail stamping fans!

    Thank you so much for your patience.  This post is long overdue, and I truly apologize for my absence.  As the title indicates, I have been "frozen" -  not literally, but I have really been finding it difficult to function as a normal human being these last few weeks.  Pah, enough grumbling...it's a brand new year!

    ★ ☆  ★ ☆  ★ ☆  ★ ☆ ★ ☆ ★ ☆  ★ ☆ ★ ☆  ★

    My Warmest Wishes 

     for 2015

    ★ ☆  ★ ☆  ★ ☆  ★ ☆  ★ ☆ ★ ☆  ★


    This manicure is part of a nail art collaboration organised by Mary who created an amazing collage to start the new year off with a bang.  #NewYearManiCollage.   I have added her incredible collage as the finale of this post, so keep scrolling down to see it...

    For my manicure, I decided to go for a cool wintery look to mark the start of a bright and fresh new year.  I included all the best things to complete this look:  a uk indie duochrome, double stamping DRK, MDU, and rhinestones!!!!!

    I am also so happy to be back posting with A2Z nails and this week is the letter J for Jewel.


    Huge finger
    Before I get into further details for this mani,  I would like to give an extra special mention to my amazing friends:  Mariana, San, Sumeet and Elaine. Thank you all so much for being here for me. You have all helped me through winter and I really appreciate your friendship.

    Mariana @StampingQueenBlog
    https://www.facebook.com/stampingqueenblog

    San @santie_nails
    https://www.youtube.com/user/Sannejoey/videos

    Sumeet @tales_of_coffee_lacquer_beauty (more information below)
    http://talesofcoffeelacquerandbeauty.blogspot.co.uk/

    Elaine @LollyBlackHeart (more information below)
    #FrightfullySpectacular

    Bottle shot
    I also need to give thanks to my amazing friend Marty, I am the proud owner of this Messy Mansion super soft stamper head.   This is part of a set of two stamper heads that come in a little tin.(http://www.messymansion.com.au/products/soft-stamper-set-with-tin.html).  For easy use, I placed the head in the lid of a nail polish remover bottle which acts perfectly as a holder.

    Tools of the Trade
    One final stamper note before moving on:  When I first saw the set of stamper heads they looked so shiny I didn't expect them to pick up any nail polish at all.  I was prepared for some serious priming, however, to my surprise, when I tested them out, they both picked up the image first time like a dream.  And in fact, they seem to perform better and stamp more reliably than any of my other stampers on all of the images I've tried them with.

    Base colour:  Frightfully Spectacular, Happy New Year [By Abba] (Aqua with gold shimmer)
    Base stamp colour:  Essie Mirror Metallics, 944 Blue Rhapsody
    Base stamping plate:  DRK Themes:  Enlaced (left below)

    Stamp colour for flourish:  Mundo de Uñas Stamping Polish, 06. Pastel Blue
    Stamping plate for flourish:  Born Pretty,  BP - L 008 (right below)
    Rhinestones:  http://www.moyou.co.uk/nail-art-decoration-set-design-glitters-rhinestones/rhinestones-nail-art/1200-rhinestones.html
    The Stamping Plates
    I could not believe my luck when this gorgeous lacy DRK plate arrived for me over Christmas...I had drooled over the plate, but I hadn't ordered it!  Then I discovered it was a present to me from the wonderful Sumeet.  I simply could not wait to try it out, and this pretty intricate pattern was ideal to add a beautiful detailed background for my flourishes.

    I am a gigantic fan of  Tales of Coffee,Lacquer and Beauty, Sumeet's fantastic blog.  The link is to her honest, informative reviews of stamping plates, but I would highly recommend her other posts and pages to anyone interested in nail art or indie nail polishes.  And if you are trying to figure out how to stamp your own nails, then look no further: Nail Stamping 101 has all your questions answered.


    Frightfully Spectacular, Happy New Year
    Here is the base colour for my manicure...I am wearing "Happy New Year" from Frightfully Spectacular. This is now, one of my all time favorite polishes.  Just look how the gold dances around the blue in the light.  My fingers and toes are so happy right now!

    Frightfully Spectacular is a brand new UK indie polish line coming soon to you by @LollyBlackHeart.  I can honestly tell you that this girl turns colour into magic.  She chooses combinations that I've never seen before, and they work wonderfully.

    Check out  #FrightfullySpectacular for more news.

    As an extra special bonus, Here is a compilation of my all time favorite manicures.  I had so much fun creating these, I really hope you like them too.
    My favourite manicures of 2014
    More details and many more photos for each of these manicures in the links below.

    1.    Neon Disco
    2.    Snowflakes Skittle
    3.    The Bird is the Word
    4.    Crunchy Autumn Leaves
    5.    Flower Power
    6.    A = Angles
    7.    Diwali Gradient with Mariana
    8.    E = Elegant
    9.    Diwali Decals with San
    10.  Back to School
    11.  Pink Roses
    12.  Orange for Elisa
    13.  C = Copycat
    14.  Candy Cane Chevrons
    15.  Holographic Stars
    16.  Elements
    17.  Pretty Paisleys


    And last, but by no means least:


    Thank you so much Mary