Sunday, October 6, 2013

Instagram Love

I am a total instagram addict (myjapanlife). It's true! I wake up and look at new posts from people I am following and see if anyone hearted my posts. Right now, I am posting mostly meals, but I like to post other things in my life, like nail art. I found an instagrammer anniep1124 and shoplouun. She is a jewellry business owner and posts awesome pics, not only of her amazing rings, but also super cool nail art. So please follow her. I'd like to order from her too in the future. So this week's art is inspired from her recent post: 

Here is my version:
I used Orly's #48653 , Honei Diamond Nail ZF, and Ettusais 1. I thought I had rose seals, but didn't find any in my stash so I used some butterfly ones instead. 
 
See you on instagram

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Fall Stamping


Still enjoying the many different fall ideas for nail art.  It's been a while since I stamped.  Though I love the look, it takes some getting used to or time to do it.  Of course, I would get a lot faster if I practiced more.  Saw this pic on Pinterest that totally inspired me (again):  


I ordered Kleancolor metallic orange polish specifically for this.  I didn't have the exact design, but I thought it would work a different way too.  I tried one of my mega bundle plates, but the etching was too shallow and it didn't work well with this polish.  So I switched to my Konad M60 plate.  First I applied my base coat and then a couple coats of Rimmel Chocolate Caramel.  I sealed it with O.P.I. Top Coat.  

Love the look!  

p.s. for more info on nail stamping, check out this video below:
  

Monday, September 30, 2013

Pa-rty!

Just wanted to share the awesome Pa nail Collection (or collective, as written below) that I found just waiting for me at Yodobashi Camera the other day.  It has so many cool colours and glitter mixes. I can't wait to go back next time.  :)  All smiles!  Like if you love full nail collections!!

Saturday, September 28, 2013

Fall that Glitters!

                             
It's so time to break out the fall nail polish!  This time, I used Maybelline Color Show in Downtown Red and Skin Food's fall glitter polish AGL03.  After applying a base coat, I used these nail-friendly/user-friendly stickers to get the shape for the tip of my nails.  They were only 380 yen at the drugstore (Ducato, Japan).  You can see a step-by-step below how I adhered them, painted, took it off, and then added the glitter.  I later added the O.P.I.'s Top Coat.  Much thanks to Pinterest for the inspiration again!    

Sunday, September 22, 2013

Pinspired Dotting Technique

Hey, nail lovers!  How are you?  Recently I found this nail art on Pinterest when I was looking for Canada Day nail ideas.  It was love at first sight.  I was gonna do a white base and then add color, but decided to switch it up.  It was to be a purple day.  Why not?  I love purple!  And so I went with colors that would match me dress I picked out.  Of course, it was purple, green, and white.  It's more of a bright turquoise rather than green, so I went with those colours.  
At first first, I was having trouble getting even dots.  but I got the hang of it.  I decided to vary the design for overlapping and adding another line.  now it looks more original too!  The trick with dotting is not dipping it into your bottle, but putting a little polish into a bowl and dipping from there.  You'll get more even dots and it you'll end up saving polish (as long as you don't pour too much out).  
Colours used:  Canmake 14 and 53, Bourjois 09, and Susie N.Y. 04.  
Oh, and I did my toes in a brighter colour of turquoise by Color Club, Age of Aquarius.
I moved the pin to my Pintastic! board.  Cuz it was a good one.  
Thank you, Pinterest.  
Happy pinning! 


Wednesday, September 18, 2013

New Organization

I decided to order these clear plastic nail things to show a swatch of the colours I own. I ordered from Ebay seller. It was shipped from hong kong and two discs had cracked fingers. :( But it was still a good deal, I figured.
I sorted by like colours. Then I saw how many pink polishes I had. Oh well,at least now I could use them more.
Happy Painting!

Monday, September 16, 2013

Pink and Gold Varied Nails

Felt like making pretty nails, so I got busy making them.

Polishes used:  Mavala Super Base, Canmake 46, Sweets Sweets QK2, Skin Food AGL05, and O.P.I. Top Coat.
I found this shop in Yokohama that sells beauty supplies, including nail polish. I picked up three for fall. It seems this company is Korean-based. 

After painting my base coat, I painted various nails solid and glitter colours.

Then I used scotch tape to create stripes and a nail dotting tool to make the hearts. Applied a top coat and I was finished.  This was my first time making hearts.  I know it'll get better with practice!

While my nails were drying, I watched Breaking Dawn.  Love it!

Thursday, September 12, 2013

...And Fall Toes!

Had to pick up a couple gorgeous polishes for fall yesterday because my toes were looking so sad after I took off the polish.  I had it in my head that I would give my toes a day off to breathe, but quickly changed my mind after leaving the house in sandals.  I was eventually going to buy at least one of these polishes, just ended up buying it sooner.  I used Rimmel's 311 (Caramel Cupcake)  and Bourjois' Princesse a Vienne 75 (Or Baroque).  I used some striping tape too.  Can't wait to get my gold striping tape in the mail.  Oh, and I got a compliment from my student's mom today after class.  That made me feel really nice! 
 
 
Afterthoughts:  apply some lotion/oil to toes and remove excess polish.  :o)  LOL...here's to better toe shots!

Tuesday, September 10, 2013

And The Fall Nails Begin!

After stalking Pinterest for over a week now, I have finally starting painting my nails for fall! I did have to take off my gel manicure first though. Instead of paying 2100 yen to get it removed at the salon,   I persevered and did it @home. Yet again I vow not to get a gel manicure unless it is a very special occasion. Anyways, I have been looking at the double-ended polishes for a while.  I chose Revlon Nail Art Expressionist 330 for fall. I was very pleased with the colour, especially the metallic one. But I did not like the other base polish because of its gloopy consistency and its tendency to dry too quickly. To get my fun designs, I just used scotch tape as a mask. Make sure your base coat is completely dry first and you stick it on another surface such as your clothing first to make it less sticky and thus less likely to pull off the polish. After applying on the polish, wait a few seconds before pulling off the tape. What colour will you try for fall? Here's to fall nails!

Sunday, September 1, 2013

Summer Toes

Happy Summer!
It is about time I used my striping tape.  That and some cute foral deco seals make for pretty toes!
I applied Kose Fine Nail Ex for base and topcoat. My fun, bright colours are China Glaze Turned Up Turquoise and Shocking Pink.
Have a nice day!

Sunday, August 25, 2013

Gel Wedding Nails

It's been a long time and I have failed to post my summer nails... Boo!!  :(  


But, I did have time to get my nails done for my niece's wedding.  I went to the nail salon next to my workplace and got them done on my break.  I chose a really cute design from pinterest, but unfortunately I was unable to get that done.  They only do set designs at this place.  After pondering over which style to get, I finally settled on a design I had seen on their homepage.  It had polkadots and I switched the colours to nudey pink shades.  I wanted to go for a more natural, pale nail.  They matched my shoes!  Can you see the butterfly on my thumb?  







What kind of design do you usually wear to a wedding?  




Sunday, June 23, 2013

Nail Polish Strips

My friend sent me these Sally Hansen nail polish strips in a fun pink and black argyle print. I was a bit worried about using them, but have heard good things about them, so I was excited to try them out.
They were fairly easy to apply. You do have to be careful about stretching the patterns. But they are easy to apply and dry almost instantly. I adhered a glossy top coat when I finished. And am very pleased with the finished results. Today, I wore them to Japanese class and got compliments on them. They thought I had done it by hand!

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Make-up Haulsie :)

Yay for new products!
Here's the fun stuff I picked up the other day from Shop-In:


Maybelline Baby Lips SPF 20 Lip Balm in Mango Pie
Maybelline Hypercosmos Shadow in PK-1 Stellar Pink
Maybelline Vivid & Smooth Liner by EYESTUDIO in 08 Shiny Gold and 10 White Pearl
Maybelline Water Shiny Volumy Gloss in Spring Coral
Color Club Professional Nail Lacquer in N04 Age of Aquarius
Diamond Nail Homei in D-3 Diamond

I totally didn't intend to buy so much Maybelline, though I do love their products.  The main thing I wanted was the aqua coloured nail polish that had been out of stock forever!  Then I knew I would get the diamond polish I have been eyeing too.  And from then on...  Anyways, the liner was very random but I've been looking for some white liner and this seemed like a good quality drugstore kind and the gold would be great for summer (especially paired with coral shadow).  So happy I decided to get the Mango Pie balm with SPF 20.  An essential for avoid sunburned lips!

Happy Summer started!

Sunday, May 26, 2013

Picks for Spring/Summer


  Hey, ladies!  I am in the midst of picking out my favourite polishes for spring and summer.  Was hoping to get my hands on the new Essie Resort Collection, but no luck finding it here.  What's on your list?

Monday, January 28, 2013

Top 5 Winter Polishes

Yay for winter polishes!!

I {heart} pale mint and turquoise this winter...plus a couple others. Read on for my top five picks for Winter 2012-13. (Not including xmas.)


CanMake Colorful Nails - 53 Peppermint Cream
Doesn't that name make you want to eat it?  I just love this pale mint polish and it was my top pick for colour.  Maybe not for coverage.  I recommend doing a base coat in white first before putting this on.


Revlon - 430 Whimsical
We met, bonded, and fell in love.  The rest is history.  It is as every bit whimsical as it's name says.  (Period.)

Bourjois So Laque! - 37 Bleu Asphalt
Love this nail brand.  It's such a rich, shiny colour.  This shine and polish is supposed to last for 7 days.  I can't remember, but I think it last just about as long.  It is this rich grey colour that is slightly blue.  Definitely not a dupe for the Essie Smokin' Hot which is more a pinkish grey/purple.  Anyways, it's a cool colour great for the cool winter!

Pa - AA43 Metallic Silver
I leave how shiny this is...it goes on so slick and chrome, but it looks like molten metal. Also only requires one coat. It's not hard to fall in love with this one...

Susie N.Y. - 04 Turquoise Platonic
Only requires one coat and it has a beautiful turquoise colour...not too bright, not too light, just right.



And don't forget to watch my YT vid to see my nails:


What are you fav winter polishes for 2013?

Thursday, January 17, 2013

Revlon Whimsical 430


This polish shouted out to me when I first saw it.  It is whimsical.  It's a milky blue colour with blue and pink glitter in chunky and fine, with added silver in the latter.

I am in love with it.  You will too.  Especially for those who can't decide if they want to put on plain polish or glitter.  It's the perfect mixture.  And it makes the list for top winter polishes.  Hope to share the top five with you soon.

Sunday, January 13, 2013

Tomorrow Never Dies

James Bond fan?  I have never been one, but I am now... OPI has made my favourite colour of purple ever.  A big thank you to my friend, Cheri, for hooking me up!  Check out my nails below:

This polish is actually much more blue in person.





I think I need to  put some oil on those cuticles.  :)
Here's to a fun nail year - yay, 2013!

OPI - Tomorrow Never Dies