NOTD: Barielle Mint Ice Cream Cone and Nail Art

For this manicure I used a base of Seche Clear, and 2 coats Barielle Mint Ice Cream Cone, then a wide stripe of Sally Hansen X-treme Wear Sun Kissed and a thinner stripe of Essie Little Brown Dress, then once it was dry I masked off all but a thin strip of brown and stamped using BM 214 And GOSH Metallic green.  Topcoat: Seche Vite.

I aimed so that one stripe of the full nail design transferred onto the brown.  Definitely more successful on my left hand.  My right looks smudgy! 

My camera doesn't do yellow tones well, so this is not an accurate representation of Barielle MICC.  These look a bit washed out, to be honest.
 

Thanks for checking out my blog!  Happy painting!

♥

 JQ

Cheeky Image Plate Review

GUYS. I got some seriously CHEEKY mail a week and a half ago. ;p

I splurged and ordered these fabulous rectangular nail plates from Cheeky.  AND THEY ARE SO BADASS.

I am a Bundle Monster gal.  I have 6 Konad plates from when I first started and the rest are all BM. I LOVE THEM. 

But a good friend and fellow nail head let me in on the fact that you could get these other image plates through amazon.ca  And that they had pretty much a whole plate full of PAISLEY. I got 8 plates. The price has even gone down slightly from when I bought these, but my order averaged to less than 10$/plate, which I think is pretty reasonable.  I did the math, counting all the images over 8 Cheeky plates. There are 563.  In the 3 BM sets there are 440. I also took the average images per BM set.  (140, 150, 150) which is about 146.5.  Then divided the number of images in the Cheeky set by 145.5 to see how many BM sets it is the equivalent to. 3.84.  Anyways.  I'm not a math wiz by any stretch, but that was enough to tell me I got a pretty decent deal. SO. PICTURES.

The packaging was great.  Inside the bubble wrap lined envelope, each plate had a little sleeve of bubble wrap.  I got a cute little card congratulating me.  It's a party!  A nail art party! 

 

They all had that nice protective blue film that just peels away, and a really cool touch is that each plate is backed with pink plastic and it extends beyond the plate, so it gives a really nice finish, while keeping your paws, the table, and the other plates from getting scratched.

Shiney!

 

Another thing I really appreciate is the size of the full nail images.  They are nice and big! Big enough that I can select the area to paint and transfer to the nail. Every full nail image has one concave edge that makes them very versatile;  It eliminates the need to have separate images for french tips, and gives me the option for a moon manicure effect as well.I have decent sized fingernails, and I really dislike trying to double stamp.  It's so hard to get a good seam. 

For reference here is a picture of the large Cheeky images next to a larger BM image and the original BM full nail image:

I also like that a lot of the images have reflections so you can stamp the other paw, or mess around with mirroring.



Not only do they do reflections, but also a few different sizes of the same image.  So you can do that darn pinky finger the same as the others, or give the thumb a big one.  :)

 

 Thanks Cheeky!



I'm a fan!



Here are a few pics of the manicures I have done so far:

 

The very first one was the celtic image.  I absolutely HAD to find out what that looked like.

Base: China Glaze Concrete Catwalk 

Stamp: GOSH Metallic Green.  

Plate: Cheeky D

Top: Seche Vite



Manicure #2 kinda reminded me of circuit boards.
Base: Finger Paints Go Van Gogh
Stamp: Essie Good as Gold
Plate: Cheeky B
Top: SV



 Manicure #3 was subtle. I only got a quick shot in the evening, but irl it looked way prettier.
Base: Sally Hansen CSM: Wet Clay
Stamp: Billie Cosmetics Reign
Plate: Cheeky B
Top: SV



Currently!

Base: Sponge gradient OPI Off With Her Red, CR #89, Billie Cosmetics Orange
Stamp: Sally Hansen Hard as Nails Black Heart
Plate: Cheeky A
  Top: SV


Thank you so much for popping by!  Happy painting!

♥
JQ

Hot pink with Polka Dots!

I was on the phone with an old friend--that lovely, quirky gal that got me hooked on nail art to begin with--and while we were chatting I was inspired to pull out my polish and take my beat up nails out of retirement. I filed them nicely and gave them 2 coats of Nina Ultra Pro Passion Pink, then took my dotting tools and made large black dots using Claire's Black Hole, and smaller white ones inside with Sally Hansen White Tip. I used the good old Seche Vite for a quick seal. :) It's a super happy manicure, in tribute to an uplifting phone call and a great friend. Thanks Alicia!

So I've been AWOL, coming back in only to post one winter mani and before that I think it was Halloween. This winter has been super hard on my eczema, and I've been concentrating hard on my Tapestry and other fibre work that does a lot of damage to my fingers and nails. I've also been suffering some terrible morning sickness the past 2.5 months, and that hasn't made it easy to drag out the stinky polishes and remover. :p

I do hope to keep on making nail art posts, even if they are few and far between. Sorry to everyone I usually visit and leave notes, because I've been absent there also. Hope everyone has been having a wonderful few months since Christmas. Sending out best wishes!

♥ ♥ ♥
JQ

Halloween Skittles

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYONE! ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

Thumb: Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Whirlwind White with bat images from BM-213 and BM13 stamped using Gosh Nero. Dots are Sinful Colors Sugar Sugar.

Pointer: China Glaze Concrete Catwalk, stamped with BM-223 and SH Whirlwind White, dotted eyes with SC Sugar Sugar, and outlined with a black striper so that only a thin line of CG Concrete Catwalk is visible around the ghostie.

Middle: CG Concrete Catwalk stamped using BM-225 and SH Whirlwind White. Holo sparkles in the eyes taken from a mini bottle of Kleancolor 188 Black Out.

Ring: Essie Vermillionaire, stamped using BM-222 and Gosh Nero. Dotted Eyed With SH Insta-Dri Lightening.

Pinkie: CG Concrete Catwalk, stamped using BM13 and SH Whirlwind White. One large silver hex glitter for the abdomen.

Top Coat: Seche Vite!


Guys. My camera is falling apart. I am sorry for this grainy quality. A new camera is on my Christmas wishlist.


My son and I went nuts yesterday making cooOOOooooOOOkies. He's particularly pumped about the punkins.


I have been gone for so long! Things have seriously been CRAYZAY BIZZAY.
I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday!

Cheers!

♥

JQ

Fish Nets, Pink Skullies and a Guest Mani!

FISH NETS:


2 coast Essie Lacquered Up and stamped using Gosh Nero and Sally Hansen Chrome Sizzlin' Gold with image plates bm-209 and bm04. One red rhinestone for the fish's eye and a coat of Seche Vite.


If I remember correctly the fish caught in the fishnets was at the behest of my friend Naomi. :) She's got a whimsical side.


PINK SKULLIES:


2 coats of Revlon Orchid and--forgive me--I don't remember for sure, but I think it was Sally Hansen HD Digital to achieve the pink on pink skully action (bm-211). Then I went over the skull on my ring finger using OPI My Private Jet. One coat Seche Vite.



GUEST MANI:



My friend Naomi came all the way down from the Yukon last month just to visit Moi! I felt so special! ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ...sooo we painted her nails in skittles with polishes that matched the colours in her camouflage pants. Then we tied them all together using pink retro flowers made with dotting tools and a toothpick.


Again, forgive me, but I don't remember FOR SURE. I'm pretty sure the thumb=Essie Little Brown Dress, pointer=Joe Moss, middle=Essie Sew Psyched, ring=franken pale green, pinkie=franken ivory. I think the flowers were Revlon Orchid and a franken lighter pink. I then meticulously placed five or six bullion beads in the center of each flower and sealed everything with a coat of Seche Vite. It was fun spoiling her with a really time consuming manicure. The results were awesome.

We also did a Harry Potter manicure for her the last day she was here, because she was on her way to Vancouver to watch HP and the Deathly Hollows part 2 with some friends...but alas I forgot to get a photo. It was inspired by this manicure by Emerald Sparkled. She makes AWESOME manicures ALL the time. Check her stuff out!

Thanks for stopping by! Sorry it's been so long since my last post!
♥
JQ

Piano keys and Filigree

Greetings Jelly Beans!

I was itching to use the piano keys image out of the new bundle monster set, but now I'm sad because I don't have any images of sheet music, or musical notes to go with them! I had some trouble getting the stamp lined up on my nail. I think next time, prior to stamping, I'll take my Art Deco black and draw a line where I want to follow with the image.


Also, my nails are kind of warping a bit as they grow out. I am not used to this length at all, and the images were harder to get contacted all across my nail, resulting in a skewed stamp. I had to go in with my Art Deco black and try to straighten a few keys a bit!


For this manicure I used 2 coats of Sally Hansen Hard as Nails White Tip, and then stamped the piano keys image from BM 207, using GOSH Nero. I LOVE GOSH, especially Nero. It's nice and crisp, and cleans up WAY easier than the Konad black.

Then I used the filigree image (BM21) from the old set and Wet n' Wild Blackmail (a kind of transparent black with a hint of sparkle in it) to get the grey effect. Also a bit of the sparkle transferred which was terribly subtle but it made me happy!

Lastly, before applying my Seche Vite top coat, I went over the line between the filigree and the piano keys with my Art Deco black, and touched up a few of the keys.


These totally remind me of my spats n' spangles manis! And now I want to do one of those again. :) I really like splitting my nail in half or 1/3 to 2/3 --almost like a reverse french but with a straight line, especially if the nails are filed square. :)

Have you entered my 200 follower giveaway yet? It includes a bottle of Wet n' Wild Blackmail and a Black Art Deco!

Thanks for stopping by!
♥
JQ

Broken Glass

Greetings Jellybeans!

So I could only handle it for about 36 hours before I changed my manicure. There are just too many images I am excited to try out! I really enjoyed my metallic snakeskin, but I chipped it a bit while making supper last night and thought HA HA! Now I have a reason!

This first shot shows the gradation the best but isn't really colour accurate. It's a bit blue on my screen:


I was very excited about the broken glass images on BM 208 (I'm also excited about the fishnet/scaly images on 208 and 209) But I went with the image what would allow for the glass portions to be stamped, so I could try a 4 colour metallic blended stamp. What you see is Sally Hansen Chrome Crystal at the base of each nail, blending into Gosh Metallic Purple, Gosh Metallic Blue, and then Gosh Metallic Green at the tips.


Indirect light. The photo above is the most accurate, although in person the gradation is HOLY COW visible.

I used one coat of Claire's Black Hole as my base, and then stamped my gradation over top, and finished off with a coat of Seche Vite.

This is how it looks smack dab in the sunshine:


I found that the polish squished out of the image when I tried to pick it up onto the stamper, but if I waited just a few seconds between scraping and picking it up it worked. You can see, on my ring finger nail, where I waited a bit too long and a bit of the stamp polish didn't transfer completely.

Thanks for taking a peek! Almost at 200 followers guys! I've got my first giveaway ready to post! :) Thanks for all your support and lovin'.

♥
JQ

Metallic Diamondback

Happy Happy Happy Dance!
I Squee!!
I did a dance around my living room yesterday when my plates finally arrived! And then sat down to try and figure out what manicure to try first!

Here is the result!


I used 2 coats of an olive green franken with gold shimmer in it for the base. I then lined up Sally Hansen Chrome Copper, Revlon Golden, and GOSH Metallic Green. I took the image I had finally decided on BM 215--Diamondback!!. I striped the polish on in the order I mentioned above. I scraped the image twice, just to blend the colours a LITTLE. I was going for a sheen-like effect.


This is my other paw. My right hand is the one the eczema gets bad on and this is a gross pic of my cuticles but the light just caught it right so I wanted to share it with you. :P LOVE.



I finished off with a coat of Seche Vite and actually managed to contain myself from taking pictures and then removing it to try something new. :P I might not have the self control to get through this afternoon though. We'll see. I really am in love with this pattern. I am imagining all kinds of colour combinations for it.

My Happy Thought:



Thanks everybody!

♥
JQ

Checkered French with Hot Pink Accent

Greetings Jellybeans!

Here's yesterday's manicure!

I used my frankened cream colour for the tips and stamped over with GOSH Nero.


I actually tried another tip stamp, this time from the old bundle monster set. It worked great and I only had to touch up the tips of my thumbs which (even though I file the edges down considerably so they aren't under so much stress) were still too wide for the stamp.


I used Art Decos for the black and pink horizontal lines and a blob of black with a holo hex glitter on one side.

I got a little smudging with the Seche Vite, because I wasn't as careful about not going over the same spot twice.


Thank you to The Nail Buff for tagging me with the Kreativ Blogger Award! I appreciate it! Cheers!

I am going to leave links to a few of the blogs that I enjoy, but I don't want anyone to feel pressured to pass it along, I just hope that if you see this post and haven't yet been to any of these awesome blogs you should go check them out.

Rebecca Likes Nails
Another Bottle Of Polish
Simply Rins
A Splash of Serendipity
Robin Moses Nail Art
Polish Freshie
Pimp My Nailz
Enamel Girl
Polish Obsessed
Glitterm - You Nailed It

Ten quick little things about me:

1) I am a fibre artist who'll try any creative process at least once, but my real joy is with tapestry.

2) I have a son who's already turning 2 at the beginning of June. How time flies!

3) I love nougat and salt water taffy, but my poor teeth don't!

4) If I ever see wet black soil I feel this incredibly strong urge to take off my shoes and socks and squeesh my toes in it.

5) I can wiggle my ears.

6) One of my Favorite Movies of all time is The Princess Bride. I actually walked up the aisle to the song "Storybook Story" from the end credits. Yes. I married a farm boy. Yes I occasionally still tell him to "fetch me that pitchah". :p

7) I love loose leaf tea. I have quite the stash. But coffee still wins.

8) I used to smoke a pack a day. I've been quit for almost five years now.

9) Before I collected nail polish I was MAD into stickers. I have a big shoe box full to the brim with them. I couldn't walk into any kind of store without checking for a sticker rack. I used to cover my journals and notebooks in them. I have a file box that is plastered with them. My guitar case almost fell victim.

10) I'm almost ready to post my 200 follower giveaway! It is my first giveaway ever and I'm really excited about it!

Thanks for stopping by everybody. :)
I am itching to check my MAIL for the bundle monster plates! I think they'll be here today! eeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!

♥
JQ