Delicate Rose Decals

Hi everyone,
I didn't have much time for nails this week, so I decided that it might be a good time to try out my nail decals from the Born Pretty store.  Ach!  I love them!  They're water decals, so they're super easy to apply and they lie flat on the nail.  Since the decals are typically clear, you need a light base color.  I used Sinful Easy Going.

I love these!  I am surely headed back to the Born Pretty Store for more decals.  They have awesome sales that making stocking up on these a cinch.  I only wish I had tried them in Spring when the pastels would have a been a better fit for the season - we actually have a light dusting of snow this morning!

Take care, Konaddicts!  Thanks for stopping by!

Bunny Nails and Easter Wishes

Hello, everyone!
I've got a hopping little manicure to share for Easter!

This my little burst of Spring cheer.  I started with a base of Kleancolor Pastel Yellow.  I pulled out the Easter plate - Winstonia W212.  The stamping was quick work; I varied the color placement of Sally Hansen Insta Dris in Urgent Orchid, Fuschia Flare, Spring Green, and Blue Blast to create my "eggs".  For the accent nail, I used water decals from the Born Pretty store.

This one was quick, easy, colorful and fun - perfect for a busy holiday!

Be well, Konaddicts!  I hope you have planned a special weekend filled with love, hope, family, and renewal!

He Loves Me...

Hello, everyone!
So many Valentine's images, so little time!  :)

Today I'm wearing a simple combination - Essie Fiji as a background stamped with Love My Nails Berry Nice.  I used Konad M95 for the full nail hearts (eek!  I love these!).  For the accents, I used the heart from Messy Mansion MM03 and stamped the children and cupid in black with Winstonia W102.

Aww...

Hope you're having a great Valentine week, Konaddicts!

Sweetly Peach

Hello, everyone!  We have a sunny day today - very exciting after all the moody winter weather we've been having.  Today, I'm wearing a very easy, super simple two-color manicure.  This is L'oreal Complete Salon Manicure First Kiss stamped with NYC French White Tip.  The plate is the classic Konad M60.  It's simple and sweet, perfect preparation for Valentine's Day!

I hope you're having sun - and love - wherever you are, Konaddicts!  I think I'm going to try out my Messy Mansion plate with conversation hearts for Valentine's Day, so I'll be sure to let you know how it turns out!

Rosy Variation

Hello, everyone!
Today I'm wearing a variety of roses - a mixed bouquet! I love how this simple combination turned out.

I started with that lovely nude, NYC Fashion Safari.  My stamping color is Sally Hansen Insta Dri in Cinna Snap.  For the leaves on the index finger, I used Top Speed Emerald to stamp and filled in the outline with Sinful Happy Ending.  I used a dotting tool to dab a little Wet n Wild Lavendar Creme on the rose petals on the middle finger.

I used three plates for this design: the roses with nets are from Pueen 27, the little bouquet comes from Pueen 47, and the roses on the middle finger and lace on the pinky are form BM 323.

Thanks for stopping by!  I hope you're doing well and that you outlook is, well, rosy!

Raggedy Ann Patchwork Nails

Hi, everyone!

Do any of you remember Raggedy Ann and Andy?  I remember them!  I've had the idea for this design in the back of my mind for a while - I just never quite got a chance to try it out.  Well, with a season of The Closer on DVD, I decided I would sit down with my polishes to see what I could come up with.

The lovely L'Oreal Walk on the Beach is my base color.  I used Konad Special in Black and plate A48 for the patchwork stamp.  I filled in the patches using a nail brush with Milani Sail Away and the gel-like Sally Hansen Royal Red Creme.  To add a little variety, I dotted some of them with NYC French White Tip.  

The adorable Raggedy Ann design is from the MJ XVI plate (I think I purchased mine from Etsy).  I could not color her "within the lines", but I tried, using the lighter Wet n Wild Red Red and the more sheer Sinful Midnight Blue.

I can't decide whether my Raggedy Ann came out cute or a little bit creepy - or maybe some of both! - but I'm enjoying this little trip down memory lane all the same.

Thanks for stopping by, Konaddicts!  I hope your week is off to a great start!

Pink Kissses

Hello, everyone!
Are you ready to start a new week?  I know I'm...not.  Well, there's nothing like a fun mani to get the week going (at least that's what I'm hoping!).

For this mani, I decided to use my absolute favorite design - this simple little weave from BM 21.  This is my favorite "full nail" pattern.  I don't know if I have a sentimental attachment - since it was the first plate set I bought - or whether I just like the look.  Of course, Bundle Monster was new at the game, too, so the design is small and you have to do some finagling to get it to cover your entire nail.  Anyway, I love this pattern and I rarely use it, so I decided that today would be the day.

I wanted to jazz it up a bit, so I decided to stamp it over a pink gradient.  I used Sally Hansen Insta Dri Pink Blink and Milani Cherry Pie.  I stamped my BM 21 pattern using L'Oreal Violet Vixen.

I wanted to add something else.  At this point, I usually go with a flower.  I decided to try something new (for me!) and decided to go with kisses.  These lip smacks are from BM 02 (I was on a BM roll!) using Konad Special White.  I couldn't resist testing the "Kiss" phrase from Cheeky 27, so I decided to add that as well.  You can't see it perfectly, but it's fun to know it's there.

Well, Konaddicts, thanks for reading!  I'm hoping you have a week full of love!

Tell me, what patterns top your "all time favorite" list?

Konad M95 Reivew

Hello, everyone!

With all of the new plate sets being released, it's been a while since I've actually bought a new Konad plate.  Many thanks to Joy at NailPolishCanada.com for offering me an opportunity to review one of the latest plate releases from Konad.  I chose M95 to review; hold on - it's a good one!

We expect quality from Konad but what I hadn't noticed was that the full nail pattern on this plate is a lot larger than some of my other Konad plates.

M95: 1.5 x 2 cm;  M78: 1.75 x 1.2 cm

The real selling point, I think, is the delightful little owl.  There are owls in other sets (one of the Bundle Monster sets has an owl) but this owl is very small, and is the perfect size for an accent.  I made several decals of this little guy and was able to fit two on a nail.

So - hearts, an adorable owl, a pattern that's big enough to fit your whole nail - what's not to love?

NailPolishCanada.com is having a giveaway to win all 5 of Konad's latest releases.  It only takes an email address to enter (woot!).

I hope you're having a super week, Konaddicts!  Best of luck if you decide to enter the giveaway!

~~~~~~~~~~~
Here's what I used for this little mani:
Base: NYC Fashion Safari
Plate: Konad M95
Full nail patterns:  Stamping with Revlon Top Speed Espresso, filled in with Sally Hansen Just In Lime
Accent nail:  Owl decal made with Espresso, filled in with Kleancolor Mocha and White.  Dotted with Just In Lime and Kleancolor Mocha.

Chocolate Dipped Nails

Hi everyone,
Whew, what a week!  I'm glad to finally get a chance to sit down and get to the important stuff - nails! :)

I was hoping to get some good sunshine to take this picture, but we've had cloudy days all week.

This was a fun second attempt at using the "drip effect".  It's my go-to pastel pink, Essie Fiji, painted with delicious globs of a Nail Savvy pearly chocolate brown.  I wanted to add some additional color, so I made "sprinkles" with Kleancolor Barbie Pink, Sally Hansen Mint Sorbet, MyOnline Shop Stamping Yellow.

Overall, it was not very difficult and a fun design to wear.

I have actually been wearing the same polish all week (gasp!).  I'm going into polish withdrawal!  I had better get to polishing!

Thanks for stopping by!  And, by the way, in case you ever wonder about what happens when the skies finally open up over the dry and thirsty desert, this is it!  What a commute!

Hello Kitty: Camo Kitty

Hello, everyone!
Hello Kitty reporting for duty!  I received my new MJ HK image plate (I ordered mine from Etsy but you can also get them at the MyOnlineShop Facebook store).  The plate has 50 (gasp!) Hello Kitty images.  There are some that I probably won't use - like an Emo Hello Kitty and a Darth Vader one - but it's lots of fun to have so much variety.

I was intent on using the "army" Hello Kitty image from this plate.  I decided to try a camouflage design for the other nails.  As a side note, apparently I misspelled "camouflage" so badly that my spell check suggested "guacamole" (geez).

The camouflage is made of a base of Essie Fiji.  I used a nail brush and three colors to paint in the irregular shapes that became my camouflage.  I started with the lightest of the three, L'Oreal Walk on the Beach, and then used Milani Cherry Pie and Kleancolor Military Green.  I had to experiment a little with the size of my shapes in order to get a look I was happy with.

For the stamping, I used the "decal" method.  I stamped with Military Green and used a nail brush to fill in the image with Konad Special White for the face and Walk on the Beach for the helmet.  Once I had the image transferred from the stamper to my nail, I streaked a little pearly pink under her eyes.  The image transferred well, but got a little streaky when I added topcoat.

Well, Konaddicts, thanks for reading!  It was fun to try a different look with Hello Kitty.  Hope you're having a great weekend!

Subtle Spring Flowers

Hello, everyone!  
I had a hard time trying to capture this pastel mani on camera.  With temperatures topping 104 degrees (!), I was in the mood for something light and airy.

This is a light gradient of Salon Perfect Lavender Fields and SP Azure.  I used the cute butterflies on  Pueen 39 and Sally Hansen Whirlwind White for the stamping.  This was my first experience with Salon Perfect polish and, I have to say, the Lavender went on like butter!

Here's another look - this time indoors.  The focus isn't perfect, but it gives a truer sense of the colors.  

Well, Konaddicts - I hope this post finds you cool and collected!  Thank you for stopping by!  Be sure to catch my Saturday post - I'm going to be doing a "nautical nails" twin post with Jajuana from Mani's by Moore!  I've never done nautical nails before, so it's going to be a fun challenge!  See you soon!

Sweet Tone on Tone Peach

Hello, everyone!
I've been feeling like something a little different - and I love how this turned out!  After all the bright shades, it's nice to wear a sweet, mellow peach.

My base color is Revlon Peach Petal.  The stamping color is the pearly Revlon Bronzed Rose.  The curlicue designs are from Gals plate GA37, the stripes from H-series plates H12, and the flower is the classic from Konad M31.  I finished off with a little rhinestone in the flower.

I've noticed more and more manis with different designs on each finger.  I didn't feel quite that adventurous this time, but I think the stripes add a nice touch.

BTW: have you seen the new Holiday set of Bundle Monster plates?  They have some very cute designs!  At some point, I'm going to have to stop buying plates and get busy using all of them!

I hope you are having some sweet, summer days!

A Berry Busy Mani

"Classic" Strawberry Shortcake?  It's a nail dream come true!

I've always hoped to find decals of the 1980s version of Strawberry Shortcake but have never come across any.  These little decals from Pretty Girly Girl totally made my day!

I wasn't really sure what the best "set up" would be for my awesome decals, so I chose a pastel pink - Essie Fiji - as a background.  The decals appear to be the "homemade" variety - the ones printed on water decal printer paper.  The design was perfect - no issues there - I just had trouble getting them to stay in place on the nail.

I opted for two contrasting nails - which broke up the design and also meant I didn't need to do anymore wrestling with the decals.  The contrasting nails are polished with Pure Ice Siren and stamped with Konad Special polish in White using Shany SH19.  To finish, I used a dotting tool to add dots of the contrast color around the decals.

Even with my "technical difficulties", I really love this one.  I think the ladies also approve!

Aren't they cute?  They were an awesome eBay find!

Take care, Konaddicts?  Have you had nail dreams come true?  Tell me about it!

Spring Blue

Hello, Konaddicts!
Today I'm wearing a quick and easy two-color mani using a cute design from the Pueen Love Elements set of plates. This is Sally Hansen Insta Dri Blue Away stamped with Brisk Blue (one of my very favorite polishes!).  I used Pueen 32 for the full nail design and the cute little butterfly from Pueen 13.

Sweet, simple, and easy!  I hope you've got blue skies, Konaddicts!

Messy Mansion Hearts

Hello, everyone!
There are just so many things to love about the Messy Mansion plate MM03!  I have always wanted to be able to make Valentine's day candy hearts and I could never find a plate for them.  This little eBay find was a dream!

Excuse the left over polish -  I was experimenting!

I decided to go with the unique and lovely full nail design. My base is Pure Ice China Girl, a chrome-like peach, stamped it with Sally Hansen Insta Dri in Rushing Rubies.

The top look is the combo in shade.  The sunlight version is more subtle but still pretty sweet.

Take care, Konaddicts!  With all the new plates and plate sets out there, what new plate(s) are you just crazy about?

Funfetti Cupcakes

Hi everyone!
Am I the only one who hasn't worn this cupcake manicure?  Well - not any more!  It's an easy design and so much fun to wear. I started with a sheer base, polished the tips, added the stripes, then the cupcake splat and "sprinkles".  Easy, peasy and soo sweet!

Catch you later, Konaddicts!

Simply Polish: Hard Candy Sweet Tooth

Hello, everyone!
I hope you're having a great week!  Today I'm just wearing polish - it's Sweet Tooth, part of a new collection by Hard Candy.

When I was grocery shopping this week, I saw this display of new polishes from Hard Candy.

O, the glitter!  O, the chromes!  And only $4 each?  Wow!

In an rare act of extreme self-control, I bought only one bottle - Sweet Tooth.

For those of us who don't like to mix our own polishes, I think this is an awesome option.  It took about three thick coats to appear opaque and I didn't use any topcoat.

Here's a HUGE macro shot:

Something tells me that I that will be back for more of these!

Stay sweet, Konaddicts!

Mint Chocolate Mani

Apparently, February 19 is mint chocolate day!  I was sad to have missed it, but decided to celebrate it as a nail design.  I'm not a huge fan of mint, but any friend of chocolate's is a friend of mine!

For this tasty manicure, I started with Sally Hansen Mint Sorbet.  I stamped the cakes with Cheeky CH41 and my go-to brown - Revlon Top Speed Espresso.  I used a small nail brush and the sheery and slightly darker Sinful Mint Apple to around the cake slices to add a little contrast.

I decided to go for a contrasting accent nail.  I used a Nail Savvy chocolate brown and stamped the "yummy" with Cheeky CH42 and Sally Hansen Insta Dri Jade Jump.

Anyone for a snack?

Thanks for stopping by, Konaddicts!

Sparkly Valentine

Hello, everyone, and happy almost Valentine's Day!
I took advantage of the last bit of evening sun in order to catch a photo of my glittery Valentine nails.

This is an easy (if busy!) mani made with a base of Pure Ice Siren and a coat of Pure Ice First Party - a red glitter in a clear base.

I stamped this sparkly confection with Pure Ice Super Star using one of the heart patterns on BM 312.  The ring finger heart is from QA12.

Here's an indoor photo.

Well, Konaddicts, I hope you have wonderful plans for the special day.  Those of you who don't have plans can share it in spirit with me! :)  And, on a good note, all the Valentine's day "stuff" will be out of the stores very soon!

Catch you soon!

Hello Kitty: Glitter Kitty

Sorry for the light - I had to take these inside.

Hello, Konaddicts!  I've seen a lot of Hello Kitty designs using a red background.  It's been a while since I've worn a Hello Kitty mani, so I decided to try one out using red.

I started with Love My Nails Pomegranate.  I stamped kitty in white using plate B87 - a good, full sized Hello Kitty image.  I filled in that outline with a nail brush using Sally Hansen Insta Dri in Whirlwind White.

I stamped kitty in Wet n Wild Black Creme over my white circle and used a nail brush to fill in edges.

I did the accents next, using Insta Dri Lightening for kitty's nose and Kleancolor Metallic Red for her bow.

I was planning to use some glitter on my ring finger as an accent nail.  I decided this would be a perfect occasion to try out Milani Jewel FX Gems - a color I've been saving "for the right time" (you nail folks know what I mean!).

I added Jewel Fix to the accent nails, but I liked the sparkle so much, I had to add it to all the other nails.  I tried to polish around kitty.

Finally, used Konad Special polish in white and plate QA12 for KT design on accent nail.

Here's a view of them without the flash.

And one last closeup:

Even with the less than great light, it's obvious that these are my most sparkly kitties yet!

Take care, Konaddicts!