NOTD - Short Nails 1.

Since I've been working in retail my nails have taken a real battering, and doing anything remotely fancy with my nails has seemed like a waste of time when I know I'd be lucky if it lasted a day! But one good thing is I can finally do a few easy nail art designs for short nails. 

I chose to wing out my little dots a bit so they look like little tear drops but if you just did normal dots this look would be just as pretty and probably a lot easier for you to have a go at :) 

Polishes used; Models own Jade Green, Barry M White, Cobolt Blue & Black. 

Hope you've enjoyed!! x

Halloween Nails

As well as doing a few Halloween make up looks I thought I’d show you a few really simple Halloween nail art designs so even if you don’t want to go all out with the make up.

These pumpkin nails are probably my favourite as they take a maximum of 10minutes to do and they’re really cute! They also attracted a lot of compliments when I was wearing these. Simply apply an orange base then once it’s dry dot on the face using a plain black polish then to finish use a clear top coat.

Then there’s the classic spiderweb design, everyone seems to do something like this and I’ve already seen lots of tutorials on different spider webs looks but I thought I should include it anyway as again it’s very simple, quick and really effective too. To do this just have a black coat all over your nails then draw in 3-4 diagonal lines coming from one corner of your nail then join them up :)

This is probably the hardest one to do as it’s a little bit fiddly but if you take your time it’s not that hard. Just apply an orange base coat then do a big black dot for the spiders body and slowly draw in the legs. You’ll have to wait for that to dry completely but then you can do two white dots on each spider for the eyes, again wait for it to dry then do two really really tiny little black dots to finish off.

And finally a Halloween nail art post wouldn’t be complete without a really generic spooky nail! Again I used an orange base, then using a dotting tool I put on some bats and then using the dotting tool I just dragged a black polish into the shape of an old weather-beaten tree on one finger :)

There are absolutely tons of designs you can do like this, I actually did another two but for some reason my computer is being a complete pain and not letting me upload them…

Hope thtis has been helpful!! x

P.S the polished I used were: Barry M Tangerine, Barry M White and Barry M Black

Glitter Icing

It feels like I haven't done a nail art post in months & missed doing them so much but my camera just doesn't want to focus on my nails!

But I just love how these look I had to post as I'm sure a few of you will like them too :) especially as they are are do quick and simple to do and aren't in your face- theyre subtle enough to get away with for any occasion!

Concrete mixer is definitely turning into one of my favourite polishes, I got it recently in my models pen order for £2.50. It wasn't what I was expecting yet it's honestly the most flattering colour!

Just apply one coat of concrete mixer then I put some champagne on the tip a little like icing.
Once it's dry I put a little of sterling silver as it just adds a really pretty touch

I honestly love this nail art- let me know if you give this a go as it's so simple, pretty and elegant!

Hope you've enjoyed!! x
P.s I've done the whole post on my iPhone with the bloggers app so let me know if something isn't working for you :)

Pastel Stripe NOTD

I’ve been meaning to do some striped nails are for months and I refuse for pay £20 for nail art polishes and I couldn’t figure out how to do it with a standard brush. But I played around with it yesterday and I think it looks pretty good considering I didn’t use any nail art tools!
I used...Barry M Fuschia, Baby pink, Mint green, White, Peach melba, Berry ice cream and Cyan blue
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Basically just get all the light, pastel colours you own and do lots of stripes :) This didn’t take anywhere near as long as I was expecting it too and I can’t wait to do more stripy looks!
Have any of you tried stripy nail art without nail art brushes?
Hope you’ve enjoyed!! x

Tropical NOTD

I think it’s fair to say the weather this summer has been a bit rubbish in England - It started off well with June being gorgeous and then it’s steadily gone down hill!
So to cheer myself up while dismal rain clouds are looming overhead I did some fun, bright and most importantly SUMMERY nails :)
I just wanted something warm, fun and simple.
I used Barry M Yellow, Fuchia and Red and quickly did stripes of them, roughly on my nail. I applied each colour while the previous polish was wet and I got this effect!
After a few days of the tropical look I applied a thin coat of a white polish.
Once it was dry I simply took some nail polish remover and ta-da, a completely different look!

Let me know what you think of both of these looks and whether you’ll be giving either a go!

Hope you’ve enjoyed!! x
P.S I know these slightly messy looking nails aren't for everyone but I quite like them as a change from my usually neat nail art!

Magenta Divine NOTD

Every so often I get bored with cute, elegant or edgy nails and quite simply I want something a little bit tacky – we all have bright pink sparkly craving every now and again!
And this is how I have my nails when I want something bright and girly which never fails to brighten up my mood! How can you be feeling down when your nails are screaming Barbie and summer?
.
I use Barry M Fuchsia and then applied two coats of Models Own Magenta Divine.
I got magenta divine originally because I expected it to be like their champagne with is an opaque glitter however I love this look enough to forgive it for being a bit sparse on the glitter front
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What’s your favourite thing to do when you need a little ‘pick-me-up’?
Hope you’ve enjoyed!! x
P.S I took these photos a while ago back when I decided to chop off my nails so I could show you a few nail art designs suitable for short nails!

Silver Elegance NOTD

I love wearing silver on my nails but I always find it’d a difficult one to pull off without your nails looking tacky so I thought I’d show you my favourite way of wearing silver which I think looks pretty elegant actually :)
I do one coat of a matte white polish (Barry M white)
Once it’s dry I apply a dark gray strip at the top (Barry M Gray)
Then a quick coating of a glittery silver polish all over (Collection 2000 inca silver)
Then finish off with a single thin white strip
(Just a little close up oh how pretty the small pieces of glitter look)
It takes less than 10 minutes as I just use very thin coats of everything so it takes no time at all to dry and it never fails to get a compliment whenever I wear it!

What do you think? Will you be trying this out or do you have another favourite way of wearing silver polish?
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Hope you’ve enjoyed!! x

Manicure Stripes

I tend to go for brights in summer but this year I’m just loving pale shades. And I’ve been wearing a simple manicure nearly every day (great tutorial on how to do your own manicure here)
But sometimes a simple manicure can get a little boring so this is one look I’ve been wearing when I want something a little prettier but nothing complicated!

I applied a coat of models own buff pink(this is a a very sheer milky pink perfect for manicures)
Then I just applied different coloured stripes to the top of the nail.
(I used white, Gold and Peach melba from barry m)

This is another simple look that I seem to be doing constantly on my nails :)
What do you think?
Hope you’ve enjoyed!! x

Bubble NOTD

A few people have asked me to do some mini nail tutorials for really simple and quick nail art so here’s one for everyone who asked :)
This particular design looks great on long or short nails and you can easily make something like this unique and put your own twist on it!

You just need three colours & something to create little dots with..
(OPI what’s what the cattitude- Shrek collection, Barry M navy and Barry M Bright blue)


Step 1. Paint your nails one solid colour (I used OPI what’s with the cattitude)
Step 2. Apply random dots in a slightly darker shade (If you don’t have a dotting tool, you can use the end of a hair grip, the tip of a pencil)
Step 3. Then just dot another polish slightly over the dark dots (I prefer to use a shade darker than the original colour but again it’s up to you)

Hope this was helpful!! x

Cupcake NOTD

I did this for my birthday(4th June) and I wasn’t sure if was happy with them so I just never got around to posting them. But on my Watermelon NOTD Roxanne mentioned she’d love to see my interpretation of cupcake nails so, here you go :)
There are thousands of different cupcake tutorials and interpretations out there this is just my take on cupcake nails, and they are definitely growing on me!

What do you think?
Hope you’ve enjoyed!! x

P.S sorry for not being able to reply to a lot of my comments on emails, exams are steady taking over my life but my last on is next Tuesday so things should be back to normal soon!

Rhinestone NOTD

I finally bought some rhinestones for some nail art and I went a tiny bit crazy with them…
I used Eyeko’s Rain Polish on all my nails and then just dotted on some rhinestones using a clear polish to stick them down.

I originally did this as a bit of fun but I actually think this would look really lovely on an accent nail for a night out or if you just want seriously glammed up nails for a big event :)
What do you think?

This is just a little post as I’ve a few longer ones coming up shortly & I didn’t want to overwhelm you with tons of long posts!

Sunset NOTD

These have got to be one of my favourite nail art designs and it’s surprisingly simple
(possibly not the best design to start with if you’re a complete beginner)
I can’t take credit for this lovely design as I’ve seen similar ones all over the place, just type sunset nails into google and you’ll end up with hundreds of slight variations on this look, some very simple and some crazily detailed!

1. Apply a stripe of gold for the sand at the bottom on your nail
(I used yellow and then gold over the top from barry m)
2. Once that's dry apply a blue stripe for the sea
3. Once that's dry apply a coral stripe
4. Once that's dry apply an orange stripe
5. Then apply a yellow stripe at the top just before the orange dries
(these two colours should hopefully blend a little)
7. Once it's dry, use a nail art dotter to slowly dot on the palm tree in black.
(alternatively you can use a cocktail stick or the end of a hair grip)
This is the hardest bit so take your time.
8. Once everything is dry apply a clear top coat and your done!

Hope you’ve enjoyed!! x

(you could do this on every finger or something similar, I chose to just apply a plain coat of coral to my other nails though so my thumbs remained the focal point)

Watermelon NOTD

This is another little post dedicated to achieving the cutest nails possible, this time I’m venturing into the fruit department with watermelon nails!
This is just as simple as my strawberry nails, which are super easy to do but looks pretty impressive :)

1. Apply a red base (I love Revlon red by Revlon as you only need one coat!)
2. Swipe on a white line like a French manicure (Barry M White)
3. Do a line of green at the top of the nail (Barry M Spring green)
4. To finish just dot on either white or black dots - done!
Hope you’ve enjoyed!! x

P.S If you ever do any of these looks I’d love to see (a few people have already emailed me some pictures letting me see so if you can I’d love to have a look!!)

Owl NOTD

This is one of the cutest nail art looks I think I’ve done so I couldn’t wait to share it with you!
Little owls :)

A lot of people mention when I do these posts that they don’t have the patience for looks like this, but I always do my nails while doing college work or something like that so my nails get plenty of time to dry and it doesn’t feel like I’m waiting for ever!
Hope you enjoyed!! x

(This is just a quick little post, but I've got a few prewritten ones to go up over the next few weeks so hopefully there shouldn't be a gap in posts because of exams!)

Midnight sparkles NOTD

I was in the mood this week to do something a little darker than normal but a little bit different to the classic black polish I normally wear for a night out.
I used one coat of cobalt blue and then one coat of Navy from Barry M because I couldn’t decide which one I wanted! I then did a swipe of collection 2000 Inca silver glitter to create a pretty, subtle classic nail look which anyone could do!
Hope you’ve enjoyed!! x

P.S a lot of these posts from now on are probably prewritten as its exam season so if I don’t reply straight away but I’ll get back to everyone eventually!! :)

Strawberry Libertine NOTD

This is another little nail art post, I’ve got some reviews and some other different types of posts already written but I’m trying to save them for exam season!
I picked up Rimmel’s Strawberry Libertine on Saturday as I’m in a bit of a pink mood at the moment, anyway I tried it out straight away and I really love it. Rimmel polishes, although not the best in colour range, have an amazing consistency and a really thick brush so it’s incredibly easy to apply – definitely going to be picking up more Rimmel polishes in the future!

I just did a simple, thin black strip on each nail and dotted white polish along the line to create an amazingly simple and quick nail art which I really like as it’s quite subtle and pretty :)

Let me know what you think of Rimmel Polishes and this nail art!

Hope you’ve enjoyed!! x

Easter NOTD 2011

I just wanted to show you my nails for Easter – which I think are super cute!
I used OPI’s Fiercely Fiona as the yellow base – This was the streakiest polish I’ve ever used, don’t waste your money on it.
Then I did some white triangles with Barry M’s Matte White
And finished off with a blob of orange for the beak and some black and white dots for the little eyes:)

What do you think? Have any of you done anything cute for Easter??
Hope you’ve enjoyed!! x

Happy Easter
P.S what do you think of the new blog header? I'm still undecided!

Funky Abstract NOTD

I just wanted to share these pretty abstract nails I did this morning!
I normally stick with cute and pretty nail art designs but I fancied doing something a little different today with lots of bright colours – what do you think?

Surprisingly this was just as easy as a lot of my other designs this one is just more time consuming as there are quite a few steps and you need to wait for each colour to dry before moving on!
Would any of you wear something like this?
Hope you’ve enjoyed!! x

P.S would anyone be interested in a little tutorial of how I did this?

PawPrint NOTD

I’ve been meaning to do this look for a while and the other day after applying a coat of OPI’s Rumple’s wiggin’ I thought it was the perfect colour to do some paw prints across :)
I really love it, it’s cute and actually really simple as it’s just lots of little black dots!
If you want to recreate this look simply paint your nails what ever colour you prefer (think this looks best of pastels as it just makes the look really sweet) then apply medium sized dots where you want the paw prints to be.. (these will be the soles or pads!)
Then try and do three smaller dots at the top of each circle to get your finished paw print!

I wouldn’t recommend doing paw prints all over the nails just because that might be too much and a little tip – take your time with these dots!

Will any of you be trying this look out?? Hope you’ve enjoyed!! x

Spring NOTD

Here in the UK it’s now officially Spring Time! And that plus the fact the weather has been absolutely gorgeous where I live I was in the mood to so something cute and simple with my nails and this is what I came up with!
It's an (extremely simplified) Cath Kidston inspired floral nail art design that was actually really easy to do and I love it because it reminds me of all the flowers we’ll be seeing soon as well as the warmer weather just around the corner!(you can click the picture you see the design in more detail!)
I used Barry M’s Matte White, Spring Green, Fuchsia and a mix of
Bright red and Raspberry :)

If you want to do something similar just apply a white base, let it dry then take a cocktail stick, swirl it in the polish and then draw the design on!

If you do this don’t forget a good top coat!
(This isn’t difficult to do, but it can be a little time consuming! so make sure you’re watching TV or doing something on the computer whilst you do this otherwise you’ll just get bored waiting for things to dry!)

I hope you’ve enjoyed – Are any of you excited about the start of spring??