30 Days of Colour Challenge

Introduction

Tomorrow is the first day of April and I'm going to start new daily challenge - 30 Days of Colour  hosted by Katherine from Procrastinails. You can find more details and join this challenge in Facebook group. I'm still following ABC challenge and I'll try to combine entries whenever it's possible. Also I want to start posting daily macro pictures of glitter on my instagram account @PhDnails. As usually I'm very happy to read your comments on my blog and constructive criticism is welcomed.

Emily de Molly Queen of the sea swatch

Introduction

Today is letter "Q" in ABC challenge and as many other participants I want to show a Queen, it's new Emily de Molly polish Queen of the sea. Gorgeous green with shimmer and golden glitter flakes. This polish has perfect formula and is super easy to apply. On the accent nails I decided to use chevrons for the first time. There are 2 base coats of Lady liberty, it's a topper with beautiful green shimmer and Queen of the sea on top (1 coat).  This polish reminds me on of my favorite greens - Green thumb of doom by Crows toes, except that it has cream  teal-green base. Therefore, I'm really happy that I got it.

Results

Figure 1. Collage with Queen of the sea.

"Spring butterflies" with natural beauty by Emily de Molly

Introduction

Last week I joined lovely ladies who show their stamping nail arts every Saturday and today as a part of this group I share with you my "Spring butterflies". Base color is gorgeous nude polish from Emily de Molly - Natural beauty. Butterfly's decals are colored with three Crows toes polishes. I wanted to achieve soft, delicate and tender look to complement Natural beauty. The final result was a bit hard to photograph, but looks like it worked out nicely.

Results

Figure 1. Nail art "Spring butterflies".

ABC challenge: Reverse gradient with Pia by Zoya and Pinking out of thewindow by China glaze

Introduction

Double "P" today: orange shimmer Pia and pink cream Pinking out of the window. I mixed these two beauties together using reverse gradient technique. Turns out this combination looks gorgeous and I love how shimmer from  Zoya mixes with pink China glaze. For the accent nail I changed direction of gradients just to make it more interesting.  Here is the link for tutorial from which I originally learned this technique (click).

Results

Figure 1. Nail art "Pinkorange".

Nail art "Deep blue sea" with Enchanted polish Regal, plates from Bundle monster and MoYou Sailor 08

Introduction

It's Wednesday and it's time to show my inspired nail art #inspiredbyWednesday. This time it was inspired by Enchanted polish Regal. It's a purple-blue cream and I decided that sea themed stamping using  Bundle monster 2014 Sun kissed collection and MoYou London Sailor would complement it nicely. To add some sparkle I used Color club topper Concrete jungle. Surprisingly application of topper changes color of stamping towards more purple shade, but it looks even better this way.

Results

Figure 1. Collage with nail art "Deep blue sea".

ABC: challenge: Ode to the Elite by Emily de Molly

Introduction

We are already at letter "O" and only now I'm going to show you glitter - discontinued polish from Emily de Molly called Ode to the elite. It's a silver holographic glitter with large stars, butterflies, hexagons and squares plus many more small elements. Pink background may not be the best to show all the beauty of this glitter, but it emphasizes versatility of Ode to the elite. You can apply it on almost any kind of base and have a good, sparkling result.

Results

Figure 1. Collage with Ode to the elite.

Swatch Indie polish - Don't forget sunscreen

Introduction

Sunny and bright Don't forget sunscreen is the last polish from "Meet me in Mexico" collection by Indie polish. It does not have matte finish as other polishes in this collection, but  it has satin finish which looks really nice. As most yellow polishes it requires three coats to be opaque, but they dry fast. I used this polish for "Honeybee" nail art and was really happy with the results.

Results

Figure 1. Collage with Don't forget sunscreen.

"Spring flowers" nail art with LaLa land by Enchanted polish andShattered sapphire by Emily de Molly

Introduction

Spring comes so late here in Quebec, we still have a lot of snow on the ground  and nothing is green. Nevertheless, it's already spring in my hear that's why  I created this nail art "Spring flowers". It's blue and white and a bit icy, well, life is hard for first spring  flowers in Canada. Special ingredient in this manicure is old (2012/2013) Emily de Molly glitter polish - Shattered sapphire, which I received only recently. I think it's my first attempt to stamp over glitter and result looks surprisingly nice.

Results

 

Figure 1. Nail art "Spring flowers".

Drinks with umbrellas by Indie polish swatch

Introduction

Third polish from "Meet me in Mexico" collection by Indie polish is bright barbie pink with appropriate name - Drinks with Umbrellas. This is the most flashy pink in my collection, for my taste it's a bit to bright to wear alone, but perfect as a base for nail art. However I'm sure many of pink lovers will find it a wonderful addition to their existing pink pile, due to unusual and really gorgeous matte finish of Drinks with Umbrellas. And similar to Blazing sunburn and Frolic in the ocean it has a delicate shimmer and pleasant smooth surface when it dries.

Results

Figure 1. Collage with Drinks with umbrellas.

ABC challenge: Swatches of Natural beauty by Emily de Molly

Introduction

When I ordered Natural beauty I was really hoping that it'll arrive in time for the "N" day in ABC challenge, so when it showed up last week it made me happy, especially because it looked so gorgeous in the bottle. And now I'm gladly sharing this tender nude polish with you. Natural beauty is part of latest collection release by Emily de Molly. It was blue shimmer and bronze micro flakes, which make it look delightful on the nails. The texture of natural beauty reminds me of a strawberry ice cream, such a yummy blend. This is delicate nude polish for elegant ladies and it's now one of my favorite nudes.

Results

Figure 1. Collage with Natural beauty.

My very first guest post hosted by ProcrastiNails: Terry Pratchett Inspired

Introduction

Today is a big day for me as I made my first guest post for spectacular blogger Katherine from Procrastinails. This post was inspired by one of my favorite fantasy writers Terry Pratchett, who recently died after several years of battling with early Alzheimers decease. You can find my post following this link.

And I want to share some pictures here as well:

Results

 Figure 1. Nail art "Tribute to Terry Pratchett and his Discworld".

ABC challenge: Muspelheim by Crows toes swatch

Introduction

It's letter "M" today and I wan to show new polish from Crows Toes - Muspelheim. This is a really beautiful purple polish packed with red-orange-copper microglitter, which is responsible for the strong color shift. Also this polish is very pigmented and has a bumpy texture when it dries. I love how microglitter sparkles on my nails, but textured finish is not really my favorite. Nevertheless, I think Muspelheim is a nice addition to my collection and it turned out to be a wonderful base for nail art, which you will be able to see tomorrow ;)  

Results

Figure 1. Collage with swatches of Muspelheim by Crows Toes.

Swatch Indie polish - Frolic in the ocean

Introduction

This week I decided to show you the rest of "Meet me in mexico" matte polish collection created by Indie polish. At the end of February I posted swatches of sizzling Blazing sunburn and today I have refreshing Frolic in the ocean. It's color and texture brings up my memories of tropical ocean calling for the long and joyful swim. Having it on your nails is like going for a small vacation. I show it with no top coat in its gorgeous matte finish, but it also looks great with glossy top or even better with gold shimmer, as shown here.

Results

Figure 1. Collage with Frolic in the ocean.

"Chrysanthemum" nail art with Jem by Zoya

Introduction

Today I want to show you beautiful flowers which are really easy to draw using acrylic paint and detail brush (short video tutorial will be uploaded to my Instagram @PhDnails). As soon as I made swatches of Jem I knew that it would look perfect with some acrylic flowers on top and I was right. If you never tried acrylic paint before this is one of the easiest designs, you also can make flowers bigger according to your nails. All you need is pointy brush and two colors of paint, it's fun to mix them together and get a whole spectrum of shades. After paint is dry, just cover your nails with favorite top coat, you can even experiment and use holographic or any other effect top coat.

Results

Figure 1. Nail art "Chrysanthemum".

ABC challenge: Enchanted polish LaLa land swatch

Introduction

It's letter "L" today and I'm showing gorgeous LaLa land from Enchanted polish. It was sitting in the box quite long, because I was not sure if I want to keep this polish or not. I'm glad that I tried it on. It's a beautiful color and application was super easy, 2 coats and no problems.  Next day I added some nail art to this background and top coat, results I'll show you latter. It's been 4 days  since I wear it, no chipping no shrinking, still looks fresh and I did not avoid any household tasks. On many swatch pictures LaLa land looks really blue, but it's not like this in reality. That's why for my pictures I tried to preserve more realistic teal color. hopefully you will be able to see it too :)

Results

Figure 1. Collage - Enchanted polish LaLa Land.

Nail art "Angelfish" with Pshiiit by Picture polish, Bundle monster and MoYou plates

Introduction:

Today I want to show very special nail art, called "Angelfish". It's special because I did it for my mom when she visited me in Canada for the first time this December. When I was growing up we had an aquarium with different fish types, but with time only one couple of Angelfish remained, they lived for many years and grew really big.  I love how graceful they are with long elegant fins. Watching fish in the aquarium is so relaxing and creating this nail art for y mom was really fun, I enjoyed it so much. Also her nail beds are so much better than mine, it would be great to have her hands. And finally, did I mention that Picture polish Pshiiit is simply the best for aquatic background?

Results:

 Figure 1. Nail art "Angelfish"

Konad back pearl nail art "Honeybee"

Introduction

There was only one polish starting from letter "K" among my untried ones - Konad stamping polish Black pearl. Therefore I used it to create this bee themed nail art. I have to say that this polish stamps very well and yet I hate it. Why? You probably noticed that my index and ring fingers have black background, I had to redo them completely after I applied top coat on my nails stamped with Konad, because it smeared so badly. And I tried two glossy topcoats and one matte, I gave it super long time to dry (6 hours), nothing helped. It was very frustrating as all my stamping work was just ruined. Since black pearl polish was smearing terribly, I left remaining fingers without any topcoat for this pictures. I did mattify black fingers stamped with yellow Mundo de Unas and surprise, surprise no smearing whatsoever. I love my MdU polish and Konad black pearl is going to "better do not use" box.

Results

Figure 1. Nail art "Honeybee".

China glaze Dashboard dreamer and "Mimosa" nail art for International Women's Day

Introduction

Today is very special, it's International Women's Day, which is celebrated worldwide, in Russia, Eastern Europe, South America, Africa and China. The idea of this holiday started in Soviet times (you can read more in wiki) and it's a mixture of Valentine's and Mother's days. This beautiful day is dedicated to women, so that all of them can feel loved and pampered, therefore I think it should be celebrated in every country :) In Russia, bright yellow mimosa became a symbol of March 8th, as it's sold everywhere only during this holiday. Many russian women are tired of mimosa's and dislike them, but for me they look like miniature suns, fluffy and colorful, perfect to celebrate beginning of spring, femininity and beauty. Happy women's day my dear ladies !!!

Results

 Figure 1. Nail art "Mimosa".

Picture polish LakoDom and MoYou London Suki 01 - "Blooming sakura"

Introduction

This nail art was done long time ago, as soon as I received first MoYou London plates,  a generous gift from my sister. But only now I found time to make a proper post with multiple pictures. The timing is also perfect, because spring is in the air and these nails with "Blooming sakura" highlight freshness and tenderness of delicate spring flowers.  One day I hope to travel to Japan and see blooming sakura in person. Till then I'm happy to recreate this beauty on my nails with the help of gorgeous MoYou plates and wonderful LakoDom by Picture Polish.

Results

Figure 1. Nail art "Blooming sakura".

ABC challenge: Jem by Zoya swatch

Introduction

Today I'm showing polish which was a gift from my dear friend and I could not find time to wear it, what a shame. This polish from Zoya is named Jem and looks spectacular on my nails. Especially I love how it makes my fingers look longer and of course all the sparkles inside. It has beautiful and very pigmented formula, for pictures I applied two coats, but one coat also looks good. And based on the formula I'm pretty sure that Jem should be good for stamping, I shell try it soon :)

Results

Figure 1. Zoya Jem.

ABC challenge: Frolic in the ocean by Indie polish + Glam by LA colors.

Introduction

Hello, I'm back* to following ABC challenge and decided to cover in 1 mani three missing letters: F, G and I. There was no untried polish for letter H in my collection, otherwise I would have to through it in, as well ;) Honestly, I'm really glad that I decided to combine Frolic in the ocean by Indie polish and Glam, they match each other perfectly. Gold shimmer in the Glam turns cold teal of Frolic in the ocean into tender spring green. To make pictures a bit more interesting used my wooden necklace instead of bottle. Please let me know if you like how it looks.

Results

Figure 1. Frolic in the ocean + Glam.