Blue with gold tips

Ohhh what is going on with this weather?! Last night I actually considered putting the winter duvet on, then woke up this morning to sunshine! It's thrown me into total disarray, and made me realise how much I'm going to miss the summer - especially pastel ice cream nails:) I did consider doing ice cream nails again, but was worried I'd jinx the weather totally. So instead, I wasted productively spent a couple of hours on the internet looking for inspiration. And I stumbled across this... http://thesneakerette.tumblr.com/post/28270353147/gold-leaf-chevron-nails and then lost another hour or so drooling over such pretty designs! I loved the green she's used and am now spreading my gaze far and wide in and effort to find such a gem. But in the meantime decided to use my ge-or-gous cyan blue by Barry M. 

Errrrr - Jamaican flag nails, apparently.

So, there I was, delving into my box of polishes, thinking of what to add onto my lovely teal nails. I discovered my tape, so decided, ok, tape mani it is. Then I found my gold (what a shock!) and a green I haven't used in ages! So, stick, stick, paint, paint, top coat.....et voila; the Jamaican flag??!! Well, not what I was hoping for, but......I like. I've really struggled to do a green nail design, even though I love the colour. Maybe it's a subconscious yearning for a holiday? 

Swatch - Barry M Teal

So, have been AWOL this week after my lovely bf took me to Italy, for a fun filled week of art, pasta and gelato! In fact, I think there was only one day when I didn't eat gelato, and there were several days when I ate many gelatos.  Practically had to be rolled through the airport home:) So anyway, I had to resist painting my nails for almost 10 days! Arggggggh. Oddly, since I've got back I've been struggling for inspiration, so until I come up with something better I thought I'd do a swatch of a colour I've had in my collection for months but haven't got around to using. And, I have to say, I LOVE it. I've been staring at my nails all day. Below is 3 coats with no top coat. It's very thin, and you need to be fairly careful with the application, but it's worth it for the beYOOTiful colour. 

P.s. Please excuse the state of my nails, I've been so busy unpacking/catching up/trying to work off the gelato that I haven't given them a proper shape/hydration session. They are very unhappy  little cuticles:( 

Red and pink candy stripes

Soooooooo shiny! Well, I finally managed to take remover to my nails, and got rid of my leopard/gradient nails (sob). But I cheered myself up with this shiny delicious concoction. I saw the red and pink combo on the Nailside a while ago and have been looking forward to trying it. So, this morning, when my striping tape arrived, I knew what I wanted to do.......

I used Barry M Bright Pink and Bright Red, then covered with Sally Hansen Hard as Nails. Shiny enough to appeal to my inner magpie:)

Gratuitous kitty photo Part 2

I cannot actually bring myself to take of my gradient/leopard print nails, so I thought I'd post another gratuitous kitty photo. But this time, there are two of the cuties! Whoop whoop. My poor boyfriend wasn't allowed to move last night, as he was the new 'best place to sit' :) 

Gradient/Leopard

May I present.....(drum roll please)......my first gradients!!!!! I'm so pleased:) I've been putting it off for ages due to the mess/worry about getting it wrong etc. But, I managed it and I'm so happy with the results. I couldn't decide which colours I wanted to use, so I did different colours on each hand. I decided to pull it together by adding gold and black leopard print (because I'm a magpie, and I live shiny, sparkly gold). 

I used Barry M Mint Green, Berry Ice Cream, Peach Melba, Blueberry Ice Cream, Gold Foil Effects, and my beloved black Nail Art pen. 

Neon stripes

Well, I'm just not sure about this. I started with a grey base.....fail. Switched to white (Barry M matt white, of course!) and used my nail art pens to draw on the lines. The fact that there was not a regular colour scheme actually hurt - I struggle with abstract, I'm all about the order! I got a few compliments, but I just don't know.......hmmmmm. We'll see how long it stays on.