Technique: Feathers

It makes me sooo sad that I only posted once in May and this is my first June post! Must be the wonderful Chicagoland weather now. It's too nice to stay inside and blog!

Well here is a pretty fabulous and fairly easy technique. Try it on one nail each hand if you don't have that much confidence in your nail art skills. I did all 10, but that's because I have this great nail art polish (STRIPE RITE by So Easy) and it was a piece of cake!

Here's the color I used for the base. Pink Friday by OPI:

And here is the steps I used to make the feather. First was the stem, one simple swoop. Then branches on each side of the stem (step 2 and 3). Then the last step I lightly filled in the branges with more feathers. Real thin wispy lines. Just blend them together a little. Ta da! feathers.  

And as you can see in the finished photo on top that I alternated where the feather was on the nail. It made it more fun and interesting.

Happy Polishing!

<3 La

Critique: Nail Art Tools

This critique was made for all you nail art lovers that haven’t been having any luck with it. I am providing my knowledge on the 4 nail art tools that I have tried so far. I have them listed from best to worst (also left to right in the above picture).

1. Double up Detailing/Dotting Nail Brush by So Easy- $5.50

I got this double-ended nail brush from Sally Beauty online. One side is for making perfect dots and the other end is the nail brush. This seems like a deal to me for $5. The best part about buying a brush is that you can use it with annnnny polish you want. All you do is drop a few dots of nail polish on a napkin or paper and dip the brush in. You do have to re-dip pretty often though to get a good line. When you’re done all you do is swish it around in some nail polish remover and wipe with a paper towel.  Only draw back is that it isn’t as is of a line as I’d like. But you could always buy thinner nail art brushes! I am even thinking of cutting a few bristles from this brush to make it thinner.

SUMMARY: Unlimited polish color possibilities, double ended, only have to pay $5 once.

2. Stripe Rite Polish by So Easy (.25oz) - $4

This guy really almost ties for first with the nail brush. This polish is super easy to use, draws very thin lines, and gives you a lot of polish for the price it is. Only reason it falls under the above brush is because you have to buy a new Stripe Rite polish every time you need a different color. What I would do is buy this polish in the staple colors that you know your going to use more than once (i.e. white, black, silver, gold). Then for any other color use the nail brush above. These can also be bought at Sally Beauty.

SUMMARY: great control, great value, 30+ colors

3. Nail Art Pen by Salley Hansen (.067oz)- $7

Obviously this pen is the worst value (least amount of polish, highest price). However, It does have some things going for it. First of all is convenience. I am sure you all have seen these pens at Walgreens or Target etc... So this is probably the most popular for nail art right now. Normally, I would definitely tell you to only go with the first two choices for nail art, however this pen is very easy to use/control. If your not the most artistic person in the world, then this would be a good choice for you. Especially if you only want to do a couple nail art dots or stripes every once and a while.

SUMMARY: worst value, easiest control, very convienent, only 11 colors

4. Nail Art Pen by Cina (.16oz)- $6

This pen pretty much stinks. The whole point of a nail art pen is that it can draw thin lines. This pen drew just about as thick as a regular nail polish brush... Sooo no point. Just as expensive as a polish and not useful as a nail art tool. Waste of $6! Oh well, learned my lesson.

SUMMARY: Too thick of lines, horrible value, just don’t buy it haha.

Technique: Crosshatched Tips

This technique was pretty darn simple. All you need is a nail art brush or polish. Here I used a Stripe Rite polish because its very easy to use and I had it in the color I wanted. I am sooo excited to see The Hunger Games tonight so I HAD to use another Hunger Games polish (last one I swear! Haha)

Below is the polish I used for the base coat. It is China Glaze in Agro. I did two coats.

I used a Metallic Gold Stripe Rite Polish for the cross hatch because the Agro polish had an obvious gold sparkle to it, I knew it would look great together. If you don’t have a nail art polish or a nail art brush you can just use a teeny tiny paint brush and dip it in nail polish. However I recommend one of the first two options because they are easier to control/use. You can get both at Sally Beauty supply.

To the left is a picture of the first step to the crosshatch. First I did a diagonal swipe of lines a couple millimeters apart. I did this on all ten nails in one direction. Be careful not to extend to the halfway point of the nail because then it stops looking like a tip design. I did these lines quickly and carefree. You want the lines to be a little messy. Straight lines would be boring ;-)

Next, I did the same process in the opposite diagonal. To the left is after the second crosshatch (I know, great pic quality!). The key to a good cross hatch is some thicker lines and some lighter and thinner lines.

Below is the final look! Soooo easy and so stylish. Happy Polishing!

<3 La

Technique: The Mocking Jay

Okay, so I know The Hunger Games Trilogy was written for teenagers, but I read all three and completely loved them (and I happen to know many other young adults enjoyed them). Not to mention that the trilogy is ranked top 1, 2, and 3 on USA TODAY's Best-Selling Books list .  I’m so excited for the movie to come out March 23! 

Even better news: China Glaze just came out with a whole collection dedicated to The Hunger Games. A pic of the colors is to the left. The ones I had to have were “Harvest Moon”, “Agro”, and “Smoke and Ashes”. I really want more though! Luxe and Lush looks gorggggggeous.

The first one I wanted to try was “Harvest Moon” and I decided to attempt a little Mocking Jay symbol on one of my nails. Didn’t turn out the greatest, but I thought I’d share anyway!  

Below shows the steps I took to make the Mocking Jay symbol. I wish I would have stopped at step 4 because I almost like the look of it not filled in better. Oh well! PS. wow I need a better camera... the quality of these pics is awful.

So here is the final look. I used a gold Stripe Rite Polish to make the mocking jay. It was fairly easy to use and I love the gold color. 

 I am definitely going to use this “Harvest Moon” color a lot! To the left is just the polish on my nails. It’s such a pretty bronze color. Definitely can’t use it with black though because it looks way to Halloweeny. More Hunger Games looks to come I’m sure!

If you try a Mocking Jay symbol on your nails... 

“Good Luck and may the odds be ever in your favor!”