Christmas Lights

   Merry Christmas! A little early, I know, but what's a few hours?

   Today I have another Etsy "re-paint" - I have a bunch of Christmas/winter designs that I've made throughout the year, so I figure now it the perfect time to paint them!

   This design uses real thread! I found the idea at least a year ago on Pinterest. The trick is to get good, tightly wound (?) thread that doesn't have many (if any) little fibers sticking out. If you look at the next picture and make it larger, you'll see what I mean. The thread I used the first time was not great.

bad thread

good thread

   I started by cutting off a longish length of thread. I used Nina Ultra Pro French White as my base. When my second coat was about halfway dry (still a little sticky) I put on the thread, carefully pushing it into the white polish with my nail (or something thin). Be careful not to press your finger into the paint, I had several partial finger prints on a couple nails!

   For the lights, I used Revlon Colorstay Red Carpet, Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Mellow Yellow, and Studio M On the Field, and a small brush.
   I've found that it sometimes helps to paint a top coat layer before painting the lights to help keep the thread in place. It just kind of depends on how dry/moist the white polish was at the time of applying the thread, as well as how curved the nail is. You'll know if you need it, the ends of the thread will start lifting up.

   You can find the set in Etsy here.

   I hope you all have a fantastic weekend!

Candy Canes and Snowflakes

   I know I've been a bit quiet the past few days. I've still been painting, but I've had no time to blog! My mom had some surgery last Wednesday and I've been busy running around caring for her. She's doing pretty good now and can do a lot of basic stuff on her own now, so I've got more time to myself now.
   Last week I painted another Christmas set from my Etsy store - candy canes!

   This one is super easy to make! I used Revlon Colorstay Red Carpet for my red nails and Nina Ultra Pro French White as the base for my candy cane accent. To make the stripes I used a red striper and a silver striper. Then I just topped it off with my base coat. Super easy!

   Forgive the terrible picture quality... The lighting was terrible the day I took this and then the polish started chipping before I had a chance to take another picture.
   I picked up a gorgeous new red glitter polish at Meijer a few days ago and I just had to try it out - Wet 'N Wild Fergie No Place Like Home. It's so pretty, and very festive. I think it's a limited edition polish, unfortunately. I told my mom that I need to go and buy another bottle so I have it when mine runs out!
   I think I'm going to offer this glitter as another option for the candy cane set. I think it looks fantastic!


   In other polish news, I finally painted my toes again! It's been forever, I know. I've really been slacking with them. But I guess it doesn't matter since it's cold and no one sees my toes this time of year anyway.

   I of course had to use No Place Like Home again. I think it's officially my new favorite glitter polish! I also used Finger Paints Wrapped in Ribbon for the gold glitter accents. For the snowflakes I just used my white striper.

   I have a bunch of new updates for this week, so stay tuned!

   I hope you all have a fantastic week!

Christmas Sweater

   Several months ago I painted this Christmas sweater set for my Etsy store, along with some other winter designs. Now that it's officially winter, it's time to paint them on my own fingers!

   I absolutely love sweaters, they're so warm and comfy! For this design I started with my favorite base, Orly French Manicure Pink Nude. The red I used was Revlon Colorstay Red Carpet, and the green was Studio M On the Field.

   To make the stars/flowers, I started with making the middle dot. Then I painted each diamond, going all the way around the circle, one at a time. I tried making the diamonds first when I first created the design, but making the dot first is a whole lot easier for me. It really helped me keep things evened out.

   For the other nails, I started with a wide red line. Next I added the small squares to make the red strip have an uneven line. I painted the green line with a thin brush. To make the green squares, I started by drafting it first in white so that the green pops against the red. Then I just painted over the white in green, fixing any mistakes with a red striper and a short brush (I can't control the long ones very well).

   As I mentioned, I do have this set in my shop if any of you are interested in it! You can find it here.

   I hope you all have a fantastic week!

Christmas Plaid and Nail Stud Review

   Expect to see a lot of winter/Christmas designs this month, I'm still super excited!
   I also have a new bag of goodies from Born Pretty! This week I have a review on some triangle nail studs. I'm really into plaids at the moment, so I paired the studs with a cute Christmas-colored plaid!

   You might already know, but I'm not a big 3D nail art wearer. I like how it looks, but the 3D-ness of it kills me! I'm always knocking or catching them on something and they rarely last for more than a a couple days.
   These studs though are something I can get along with! They're a whole lot flatter so they don't get in the way and they don't catch on things near as much. I do have to put on two layers of my top coat so that the corners are fully covered and smoothed over (so they don't catch on things), but that's no big deal! They were pretty easy to apply too, so that's always great.
   Overall, I really liked them! They look nice and are a great way to spice up your nails.

   To make the plaid, I started with a red base, Revlon Colorstay Red Carpet. Next I used my white striper to lay down a lighter base for my green stripes (to help the color pop). The green I used was a mix of Studio M On the Field and a little bit of Revlon Parfumerie Balsam Fir. Next I used my black striper to add double lines over top the green, then I added some gold glitter lines with Finger Paints Wrapped In Ribbon.

   I have some new sets in my shop! I've put this design up, as well as my brown plaid design from a couple weeks ago. I'll probably add some color options for it eventually.
   You can find them here:
          Brown Plaid
          Christmas Plaid

   I have finals Wednesday and Thursday next week, so I might or might not get another design painted before then. I have a bunch of orders to paint too, so we'll see...

   I hope you all have a great weekend!

   You can use coupon code AIBW10 to get 10% off your order at Born Pretty!

Pine, Birch, and Holly

   Have I mentioned yet that I'm super excited for Christmas this year? Cuz I kinda am. Just a little. I really love all  the pine cone decorations people come up with for winter! I helped my friend make a pine cone wreath last year and I really want to make one for my own door this year! The only problem, is I have no pine cones laying around the yard, and I'm cheap and a little broke...
   Anyways, as you might have guessed, this week's design is inspired by trees (and bushes). Pine/fir trees and birch trees are my favorite trees! I love the bark on birch trees, and I just have so many fun memories of pines and firs, from climbing and hiding under them, to cutting one down for Christmas, they are by far my favorite tree. They just make me smile!

   To make the birch and holly nails, I started with a white base, Nina Ultra Pro French White. Then I slashed on some brown lines using Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure Branch Out and then added some light sponging with a mix of L'Oreal Walk on the Beach and a tiny bit of Nina Ultra Pro Beige-A Vu. Next I painted some green holly leaves using Studio M On the Field mixed with a tiny bit of Revlon Colorstay Spanish Moss to make it a little darker. I painted the berries with Revlon Colorstay Red Carpet.

   For the pine cone nails I started with a base of L'Oreal Walk on the Beach. Using Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure Branch Out, I painted some thin brown lines (for branches) and some pine cone shaped blobs. Next I painted the needles with the same green mixture used for the holly leaves (Spanish Moss and On the Field), adding in a few needles in Revlon Parfumerie Balsam Fir for shadowing. To finish out the pine cones, I painted on some tiny dots in Nina Ultra Pro Beige-A Vu on to the brown pine cone blobs.

   I attempted to add some snow to the scene by adding in some white on the pine cones and on the holly. I also added some glitter, Finger Paints Sparkle Top Coat, for effect. Maybe not particularly snow-like, but I liked it!
   You can watch a tutorial on the pine cones here, this is a much better explanation!

   This might be it for nails this week, finals start next week so I might be busy with them. Although mine aren't until Wednesday and Thursday, so we'll see....

   I hope you all have a fantastic week!