Ombre Glitter Butterflies and what not

I was pretty light on nails this week but I still managed to do some fun stuff. 

This first one is one of the most complex manicures I think I've ever done. 

After prepping the nails, I started with a base color of two coats of white. (TruGel Marshmallow) Then I used a nice bright yellow, orange and hot pink on a makeup sponge to create the pretty ombre effect which I did twice to get good color saturation. After that I covered it with a glittery coat of Gelish Vegas Nights for some sparkle. Most of the nails were done and ready for a top coat at that point but a few of them were hand painted as butterfly wings. The wings look a little intimidating but really, they weren't as hard as I thought. 

Pretty, right? 

Here are my nails for the week. I have a hard time deciding what to do sometimes so for this manicure, I didn't decide. I just piked out the very brightest colors I have and went for it. Life is too short to be boring. 

 I know, its a lot of color. The brighter, the better!

I used, Gelish I'm brighter than you, Gelish Make you Blink Pink, TruGel Electric Purple, Finger Paints Appetite for the Archetype, Gelish Radiance is my middle name, Gelish Amazon Flirt and Orly Glowstick. 

And I painted my toes with TruGel Electric Purple. Which I am LOVING! Is it pink? Is it purple? I don't know! But it has a very subtle shimmer to it and looks amazing in the sunshine. I love it. 

p.s. I had to take these pics with my Saltwater Sandals on because of the terrible tan lines I have from wearing them all summer. Ooops. 

 Here are my Maggie Lou's nails. She wanted hearts and strawberries, Of course! 

I use regular polish on kiddos as the gel just doesn't adhere very well. These mini manis are super quick and I love seeing all the crazy things they pick out. 

The last one today are neon half moons modeled by my mother. 

These are cool because the technique is exactly the same as for a French Mani, just way higher on the nail. pretty simple and very versatile. I love playing with the classics!

 I used, TruGel Marshmallow, Gelish I'm Brighter than You and ASP Blue Crush. 

Thanks for reading, 

See you Monday!

July Make-up post (of a million manicures)

I have not posted to this blog in FOREVER! July is a busy month! 

So, without further ado, here is what I've been up to!

This lovely neutral ballet French Tip Mani is modeled by my very good friend Wendy. It was done using OPI Did you ear about Van Gogh? and OPI Coney Island Cotton Candy

These next three pictures are crappy because I took them with my phone but the nails are so pretty I didn't want anyone to miss them :)

So here is one of my favorite manis ever, modeled by the wonderful Melissa. 

For this I used Gelish Cashmere Kind of Gal, TruGel Marshmallow, Gelish Gossip Girl and various shades of regular polish to complete the roses and leaves. 

And another crap picture, this one is my nails while I was on vacation. 

I used, Gelish Black Shadow, Gelish Gossip Girl, TruGel Marshmallow, and RCM Staycation. 

 How pretty are these???? 

 I think this is my new favorite summer color. Its so pretty and bright and is such a bright pop of purple-i-ness! 

I may not have done any nail art on these, but I did do a matching mani/pedi so I think that counts for something!

For this I used Gelish's Anime-Zing Color. LOVE!!!

I did these this afternoon on my friend Andrea and I really really love how they turned out. So understated and beautiful. I especially love the white accent nail! 

 For this I used, Gelish Mint of Spring, Gelish Kiss me I'm a Prince and TruGel Marshmallow. 

And an itty bitty brush!

 These gorgeous glitter fade and camera nails are modeled by the adorable Emma! 

I used Finger Paints Appetite for the Archetype and TruGel Marshmallow. I also used my stash of glitter and used my itty bitty brush again. 

I got into the glitter again for this one! plus Gelish Pink Smoothie and a bit of Gelish Arctic Freeze.

Ok, when I said all those other mani's were my favorite, I was just kidding because THIS ONE IS MY FAVORITE! 

 My Good friend Kasey is wearing these fantastic nails and really, they couldn't be any cuter. 

I used ASP Blue Crush, Gelish Meet the King, Gelish All that Glitters is Gold and TruGel Marshmallow. Then I stamped some hearts on with Konad's black polish. 

 These cute hands belong to my favorite 6 year old, my sweet daughter. She wanted me to try out this cool stained glass technique and she has been sooo careful with them ever since. 

 And finally, the last manicure of this very very long post...

My mom's vacation nails! 

 How cool is that? I got this idea from Sierrasnails_ on Instagram and I can truthfully say that this mani got more compliments than any I've ever done. 

Happy July 4th!!!

YAY for holidays and YAY for pictures! 

(This post has a million!)

Thanks to the lovely Jessica for lending me her hands for this fun stars and stripes mani. 

I used FingerPaints Modern Motif, TruGel Marshmallow and Gelish Hot Rod Red. All the art is handpainted! 

One of may favorites things to do? Mini Manis! 

Thanks to Shauna and her "Mini" for letting me have so much fun with this wild and crazy patriotic mani. 

The main colors used here are the usual suspects. TruGel Marshmallow, Gelish Hot Rod Red and Gelish After Dark. I also used Gelish Night Shimmer topped with some fun glitters that we thought looked a bit like sparks from a firework. I love how fun these turned out! 

And another Mom and Mini Mani! 

This time my sister Candi and her Sassy Roxanne who knew exactly what she wanted. Ice cream and bananas of course! 

I've been wanting to try this manicure for a while and I'm really happy with how it turned out. Plus I super love how Candi's jewelry makes it even cooler. I have a cool sister. Be jealous. 

I used: TruGel Marshmallow, Gelish Hot Rod Red and Gelish Ocean Wave. Then I stamped with some Konad white and added white sparkly glitter to the white nail. 

And here is my most flag-like manicure, modeled by my wonderful mother, Susan, with the help of glassybaby. She had really nice big nails and she lets me do whatever I want to them. So nice! 

I do love how these turned out even if they do make me giggle a little at how bright and flag-y they are. I used Gelish Ocean Wave and Gelish Hot Rod Red and then stamped them with Konad White. Pretty simple actually. 

And the last of the patriotic manicures is modeled by my good friend Kasey. Pretty, cool and fun. Just like Kasey! 

I used Gelish Hot Rod Red, Gelish After Dark, Gelish Night Shimmer, Gelish Arctic Freeze and Gelish Waterfield. 

Thanks for Reading, 

See you Monday!

What do YOU do in the summertime?

This is a big post. Lots of cute here. 

What do we do in the summer time? 

Eat Watermelon!

For the watermelon mani, I use Gelish's Amazon Flirt and Shake it til you Samba. I also used EZflow TruGel's Marshmallow. To make the watermelons, first I painted the nails with two coats of white, then handpainted all the artwork. And it turned out so cute!!!

Next summer time activity? Go on dates!

 (I dont know why we need tribal nails, I just like them) 

For this mani, I used Gelish's Shake it til you Samba and Black Shadow, ASP's Blue Crush, and EZflow TruGel's Marshmallow.

We GO TO THE BEACH!!!

I love these nails so much. I LOVE short nails! 

For this beach mani/pedi, I used Gelish Make you Blink Pink and I'm Brighter Than You, and ASP Blue Crush. Then I stamped gold chevrons and geometric patterns. Yay!

We grow roses! 

And for this GORGEOUS mani, I used Gelish's Go Girl and Radiance is my Middle Name. Then I stamped the white lattices and painted the roses on. I'll paint roses on pretty much anything!

And more flowers!

For this flower mani, I used Gelish Gossip Girl, A Mint of Spring and Waterfield and EZflow TruGel Marshmallow. A little handpainting, a little glitter fade and its a perfectly summer mani! 

Thanks for reading, 

See you Monday!