Dotty for Polka Dots

I have quite a collection of nail varnishes now so I usually start thinking about my nail art a few days before I start painting. For the last few days I've been thinking about my 'muted' pink and some cream. I quite enjoyed my polka dots last time so I thought I'd have another go.

I learned a couple of things along the way here too. First of all, my hands shake if I haven't eaten enough and trying to create polka dots or even an even polish is not too easy with shaky hands! The second thing I learned is that I can still create a nice clean finish with shaky hands with the fat flat brush in the Barry M Coconut Infusions collection. I was impressed!

Less talk and more pictures. Here we go;

This was created using;

Barry M Coconut Infusions 'Surfboard' (the pink)

Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine 'Coconut' (the cream)

China Glaze 'Fairy Dust' (the holo on my accent finger)

Surfboard went on beautifully and smoothly. I used 2 coats. I love the formula of the coconut infusions collection and it self levels, which really helped when I was struggling with shaky hands! Coconut was a little on the streaky side and less forgiving . I used 3 coats.

This week I also tried (for the first time!) a speed drying spray by Tesco. It definitely helped dry everything quicker, and although my nails have still ended up with a visible 'texture' to them, it's definitely not as prominent as it usually is. I'll definitely be using it more often!

One Of My Favourites

I've had a busy few days this week spending time with my Mum and celebrating my youngest daughter's birthday. My nails have been through the ringer a bit with that... baking cakes, building sandcastles, opening presents... none of it particularly polish friendly! I do, however, have plenty of 'historic' nail art I can share with you. This is one is quite simple but I thought it was quite effective and enjoyed wearing it;

natural light

To create this look I used Barry M polishes. From the Coconut Infusions range I used 'Surfboard' (the pink) and 'Starfish' (the tan). From the Aquarium Range I used 'Caspian'. All are applied with 2 coats. I really love the formula of the Coconut Infusions range. They go on smoothly and are self levelling, providing complete coverage in 2 easy coats.

Something Other Than Nails

Today I just want to share with you another of my hobbies. I love to sew. My sister recently had a baby, and as a gift I made her a quilt/tummytime/play mat.

Here is the finished thing. It took me a lot longer than I would have liked because, not only because we had a bit of a heat wave and I took advantage of it, but because the metallic thread I was using for quilting kept coming unwound and splitting. I think I wasted as much as I used.

Here is a the finished thing anyway. I hope she likes it and gets lots of use from it!

Polka Dots

This week I decided to do polka-dot nails.

To create this look I used the following polishes;

Barry M - Gelly Hi-Shine 'Coconut'

Barry M - 'Diamond'

Boots No7 - Gel Finish 'Beach Blues'

China Glaze - 'Cosmic Dust'

China Glaze - 'Fairy Dust'

I stepped away from Barry M as my main colour for the first time in I don't know how long, and used the No7 Gel Finish which was given to me in a polish swap. I was so taken aback by the formula! It went on beautifully smoothly, was self-levelling and completely opaque in just 1 coat!! My art is created using 2 coast just because I was so surprised I wasn't ready to do the dotting quick enough!

In comparison, the Barry M 'Coconut' needs a good 2 coats to become opaque and is a little on the thin streaky side. I think it would apply better with a flat fat brush, but that is my personal preference of brush shape anyway.

As for China Glaze 'Cosmic Dust' (on my ring fingers), I found this formula streaky and thin as well. A second coat seemed to sort it out, but I think I need to try it with a third.

China Glaze 'Fairy Dust' is a holographic microglitter in a clear polish which I canNOT wait to use in more of my art! It's only just arrived but I just know it is going to add a little something extra and it's the type of polish I've been after for a Reeeaaally long time, so when I saw it there was no question over whether I was going to buy it or wait a while!

On to the art....

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you have a wonderful week.

My Intro!

Hello Everybody!

Thankyou for stopping by today, and special Thankyou to Jayne Harrison for coming up with the name!

I first got in to nails about 12 months ago, when I accidentally stumbled across nail stamping... since then my 'habit' has grown and grown and I have probably had my nails unpainted for less than 1 month (total) out of the last 12!

To start us off I'll share a photo of my last nail art.

This look was achieved using Barry M 'Coconut' on the base, Barry M Coconut Infusions 'Aloha' (the pink) and Barry M limited edition 'Amethyst' (the purple).

All of the polishes were purchased by me, however if I ever get lucky enough to be sent press samples, I will always state they are.

Thankyou for stopping by today and I hope you can bear with me while I get into my stride!