Sep 30, 2014
Monthly Mani Favorites: September 2014
It's end of month and time to choose the Montly Mani Favorites again. You can see last month's poll here. In case you haven't done this before, this is your chance to take the poll below and let me know of your favorite nail art from the month gone by. Hurry up as the poll lasts only for few days.
Sep 28, 2014
Icing by Claires
Hi Friends. Whenever I am shopping at random stores and see them selling some different brand polishes, I always like to buy an unusual shade which I don't have and try it out. This time while shopping at the Icing store, I spotted some nail polishes for sale and decided to buy this unusual pale yellow shade called Salt-Tequila-Lime. I like the wide brush which came with the polish as wide brushes make polish application easy. It took me 3 coast to achieve the opaqueness of the polish below. I like the shade itself as I don't own any other polish shades like this one.
Sep 26, 2014
Magnetic Polish
Magnetic Polishes are not new and if you are really into polishes then you must have seen them in the store's since 2012. I was talking to someone recently and they started to admire my nails, on which I was wearing the Magnetic Polish. They had no idea what it was and had lots of questions about how to apply them. So this post is for those of you who are not aware of what Magnetic Polishes are and how to apply them.
As I mentioned above Magnetic Polishes have been around for almost two years now and now every possible nail polish brand has there own line of them. I got mine back in 2012 from Nails Inc. It is a pretty shade of purple called "Houses of Parliament". Every magnetic polish comes with a magnet on the polish bottle which creates the magnetic pattern and each bottle usually has a different pattern with them. So if you buy one magnetic polish, you can create only one pattern with it.
TIP: You can always try using the magnet in different directions so that the pattern comes out looking different each time.
Now on how to get the magnetic polish and get the magnetic effect-
Apply your usual base coat and let it dry. Working one nail at a time, apply a coat of magnetic polish till its opaque and then immediately hold the magnet over the nail. Hold the magnet completely still for at least 10 seconds. You will see the desired magnetic design forming on your nails. Continue this process on all ten nails. Wait a few minutes for the magnetic design to set before applying topcoat.
These look so lovely that someone asked me, if it is the scaled gradient technique I used to create this nail art? :) Definitely must try.
As I mentioned above Magnetic Polishes have been around for almost two years now and now every possible nail polish brand has there own line of them. I got mine back in 2012 from Nails Inc. It is a pretty shade of purple called "Houses of Parliament". Every magnetic polish comes with a magnet on the polish bottle which creates the magnetic pattern and each bottle usually has a different pattern with them. So if you buy one magnetic polish, you can create only one pattern with it.
TIP: You can always try using the magnet in different directions so that the pattern comes out looking different each time.
Now on how to get the magnetic polish and get the magnetic effect-
Apply your usual base coat and let it dry. Working one nail at a time, apply a coat of magnetic polish till its opaque and then immediately hold the magnet over the nail. Hold the magnet completely still for at least 10 seconds. You will see the desired magnetic design forming on your nails. Continue this process on all ten nails. Wait a few minutes for the magnetic design to set before applying topcoat.
These look so lovely that someone asked me, if it is the scaled gradient technique I used to create this nail art? :) Definitely must try.
Sep 24, 2014
Pink Leaves
I wanted to create some free-hand contrasting leaves for this nail art and had the hardest time deciding what colors to use until I settled for this color scheme. The polishes I used are Butter London’s Cotton Buds and Fruit Machine. Also used Revlon’s Plum Seduction. Love the outcome here.
Sep 22, 2014
Weird Dots
Sometimes I come up with very different never seen before designs and want to create them on my nails ASAP. This is one such nail art which I created recently. I like to call them weird dots. Polishes used are Butter London’s Cotton Buds and Silly Billy, Chanel’s Dragon. I cut my middle finger too, while cutting vegetables one night for dinner, unfortunately that too near the nail, so please excuse the gash near the nail, on my middle finger.
Sep 20, 2014
Solar Flare
Hello Lovelies, today I am sharing with you all polish swatch of Picture Polish called Solar Flare. Picture Polish is an Australian brand and is 5 Free (5 Free means polishes means they're free of formaldehyde, dibutyl phthalate (DBP), and toluene—plus formaldehyde resin and camphor, too). Gravity is part of their Limited Collection which includes other 3 polishes - Aurora, Altered State and Gravity. You can see my swatch of Gravity here. I did this swatch a while ago but my hard drive crashed and I lost all the pictures which I hadn't uploaded on the blog and I could recover only these two pictures shown below.
Solar Flare is a multi-coloured scatter holo shade with light shifing properties, the color as you can see in the pictures below shifts from red to orange to gold with scattering for holo shades and glitter, based on lighting. This polish dries smooth on the nail. Since its sheer in nature I applied it over a Black base coat to achieve the results below. This is an eye catching shade and I am glad I bought this one along with Gravity. I love how the color shifts and couldn't stop staring at my nails while I was wearing it.
Solar Flare is a multi-coloured scatter holo shade with light shifing properties, the color as you can see in the pictures below shifts from red to orange to gold with scattering for holo shades and glitter, based on lighting. This polish dries smooth on the nail. Since its sheer in nature I applied it over a Black base coat to achieve the results below. This is an eye catching shade and I am glad I bought this one along with Gravity. I love how the color shifts and couldn't stop staring at my nails while I was wearing it.
Sep 18, 2014
Product Review: Musical Water Decals from BornPrettyStore
You must remember me reviewing the Hibiscus Water Decals from BornPrettyStore a few days ago. If you don't you can see that post here. So today I am sharing another water nail decal from BornPrettyStore and this one is a musical one. You can visit the store's website here and find the decals used by me here, product no. 16256. Get 10% OFF on your order by using the code QANX31 at checkout.
Disclaimer: I was provided with these products free of charge for the purpose of this post. The opinions mentioned are my own.
To apply these water decals is really easy. You have to follow the instructions on the back of the package. First apply the nail polish that you want as the background for these designs and let it dry completely (I used OPI's My Boyfriend Scales the Walls). Then cut out each design you want to apply on each nail. So I cut out 10 musical notes. Then one nail at a time, I put one cutout in a cup of water and let it soak for 10-15 seconds, after which the decal design came out by itself. Then I carefully applied it to the nail and let it stick and dry completely. I sealed it with my favorite top coat. Then repeated the process for rest of the nails. These decals are available on BornPrettystore website for $1.99, Product no. 16256. Top purchase them click here. It takes them almost 3-4 weeks to reach to you which isn't bad for the money you pay for these beautiful pieces.
I really like these decals. They are easy to use and very quickly create some gorgeous nail art on your nails. So if you really really want some pretty nail art on your finger tips and have no clue how to achieve it or where to start from, without spending a lot of money, nail art decals are the technique for you. Also these musical nail art decals are perfect if you are going for a music concert over the weekend or having a karaoke night with friends. You can also see me using other water decals from BornPrettyStore here, here and here.
Don't forget to use coupon code QANX31 at checkout to get 10% OFF your order from BornPrettyStore.
Disclaimer: I was provided with these products free of charge for the purpose of this post. The opinions mentioned are my own.
To apply these water decals is really easy. You have to follow the instructions on the back of the package. First apply the nail polish that you want as the background for these designs and let it dry completely (I used OPI's My Boyfriend Scales the Walls). Then cut out each design you want to apply on each nail. So I cut out 10 musical notes. Then one nail at a time, I put one cutout in a cup of water and let it soak for 10-15 seconds, after which the decal design came out by itself. Then I carefully applied it to the nail and let it stick and dry completely. I sealed it with my favorite top coat. Then repeated the process for rest of the nails. These decals are available on BornPrettystore website for $1.99, Product no. 16256. Top purchase them click here. It takes them almost 3-4 weeks to reach to you which isn't bad for the money you pay for these beautiful pieces.
I really like these decals. They are easy to use and very quickly create some gorgeous nail art on your nails. So if you really really want some pretty nail art on your finger tips and have no clue how to achieve it or where to start from, without spending a lot of money, nail art decals are the technique for you. Also these musical nail art decals are perfect if you are going for a music concert over the weekend or having a karaoke night with friends. You can also see me using other water decals from BornPrettyStore here, here and here.
Don't forget to use coupon code QANX31 at checkout to get 10% OFF your order from BornPrettyStore.
Sep 17, 2014
List of my Top 10 books
I was tagged by one of my friend's on facebook to list my top 10 books. Now those of you know me well, know what an avid reader I am. I don’t read as much as I used to read before but I manage to read a book or two in a month. So instead of just posting my list on facebook, I decided to post it on my blog as well. These books may or may not have been life-changing for me but I have definitely enjoyed reading them, some of them more than once. So here it goes –
1. Little Women – Louisa May Alcott:
A Classic. What more can I say. It is my all-time favorite book which I have lost count of how many times I have read. The movie adaption was equally good if I may say so.
2. To Kill a mockingbird – Harper Lee
This is a surprise for me as well. While I was reading this book, I wasn’t sure if I liked it but once I was finished I had to agree with the rest of the world. I book was really good and well written and I couldn’t help but add it to my top 10 list.
3. The Palace of Illusions – Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
MUST READ. These are the two words I can describe the book in. This book is rendition of “Mahabharat” from Draupadi’s point of view. Very interesting, very addicting, you won’t put down the book until its finished. You can read the review of this book HERE. It’s a shame I don’t own a copy of this one. Definitely on my wishlist .
4. The Help – Kathryn Stockett
I never thought I would enjoy reading a social drama with such serious theme. The way author portrayed each character with compassion and humor while letting a serious story flow is amazing. Very well written.
5. Garden Spells – Sarah Addison Allen
Oh Gosh. My most FAVORITE author ever. I love love love all books written by Sarah Addision Allen. It was hard to choose just one book so I listed her very first book here. All her books are MAGICAL. You need to read one to understand what I am talking about. If I know you personally, I would have recommended her books to you one time or another. You must remember me reviewing her latest book Lost Lake. If you don’t read the review here.
6. Beautiful Day – Elin Hilderbrand
Another one of my favorite author. Her books are based in Nantucket and I have enjoyed reading every one of them.
7. Malgudi Days by R.K.Narayan
If you are of Indian nationality, you would know why I listed it here. This book reminds me of my childhood. Why just the book? Even the tele-series based off this novel as well.
8. Beneath a Marble Sky – John Shors
A Surprisingly a well written book by an American Author that too about Indian Mugal history. I even own a signed copy by the author himself :)
9. Rebecca – Daphne Du Maurier
The mysterious novel where the narrator’s first name is never revealed and no she is not called Rebecca. Best-seller for sure.
10. Twilight Series – Stephanie Meyer
Best series ever …didn’t take me long to become a Twihard.
1. Little Women – Louisa May Alcott:
A Classic. What more can I say. It is my all-time favorite book which I have lost count of how many times I have read. The movie adaption was equally good if I may say so.
2. To Kill a mockingbird – Harper Lee
This is a surprise for me as well. While I was reading this book, I wasn’t sure if I liked it but once I was finished I had to agree with the rest of the world. I book was really good and well written and I couldn’t help but add it to my top 10 list.
3. The Palace of Illusions – Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
MUST READ. These are the two words I can describe the book in. This book is rendition of “Mahabharat” from Draupadi’s point of view. Very interesting, very addicting, you won’t put down the book until its finished. You can read the review of this book HERE. It’s a shame I don’t own a copy of this one. Definitely on my wishlist .
4. The Help – Kathryn Stockett
I never thought I would enjoy reading a social drama with such serious theme. The way author portrayed each character with compassion and humor while letting a serious story flow is amazing. Very well written.
5. Garden Spells – Sarah Addison Allen
Oh Gosh. My most FAVORITE author ever. I love love love all books written by Sarah Addision Allen. It was hard to choose just one book so I listed her very first book here. All her books are MAGICAL. You need to read one to understand what I am talking about. If I know you personally, I would have recommended her books to you one time or another. You must remember me reviewing her latest book Lost Lake. If you don’t read the review here.
6. Beautiful Day – Elin Hilderbrand
Another one of my favorite author. Her books are based in Nantucket and I have enjoyed reading every one of them.
7. Malgudi Days by R.K.Narayan
If you are of Indian nationality, you would know why I listed it here. This book reminds me of my childhood. Why just the book? Even the tele-series based off this novel as well.
8. Beneath a Marble Sky – John Shors
A Surprisingly a well written book by an American Author that too about Indian Mugal history. I even own a signed copy by the author himself :)
9. Rebecca – Daphne Du Maurier
The mysterious novel where the narrator’s first name is never revealed and no she is not called Rebecca. Best-seller for sure.
10. Twilight Series – Stephanie Meyer
Best series ever …didn’t take me long to become a Twihard.
Sep 16, 2014
Tutorial: Modern Ruffle Nails
Hi All, Since you all loved the pattern from yesterday so much, I decided to post a tutorial in pictures to show you all how to do it.
It is very simple as you don't need any extra nail art tools.
For this nail art you would need -
1. Different Nail Polishes.
2. Top Coat.
3. Base Coat.
Step 1. To start, first paint your nails with a base coat to protect your natural nails and when its dry on top of it paint your nails with a base color of your nail art. I used Cotton Buds from Butter London. Make sure you polish dries completely, before you attempt Step 2.
Step 2. To make the pattern, apply the second polish in one stroke, using the brush that comes with the polish. Start each stroke by placing the tip of the brush on the nail and wait a little till enough polish has dripped off forming a round starting point. Start on one side of the nail.
Step 3. Now apply the third polish in one stroke as well. This time the stroke is bigger than the other and right next to the previous one, as shown below.
Step 4. Apply the fourth polish in one stroke as well. This time the stroke is smaller than the previous one and right next to it.
Step 5. Now on the previous strokes using different color polishes, apply smaller strokes of different random sizes, as shown below.
Step 6. Finally, when the polish on your nails is dry, seal your work with your favorite topcoat and you're done! Pretty simple, isn't it? :)
If you liked this pictorial and would like to see more of these for other nail art designs, let me know in the comments section below. You can also communicate with me on Facebook and Instagram. Enjoy!!!
It is very simple as you don't need any extra nail art tools.
For this nail art you would need -
1. Different Nail Polishes.
2. Top Coat.
3. Base Coat.
Step 1. To start, first paint your nails with a base coat to protect your natural nails and when its dry on top of it paint your nails with a base color of your nail art. I used Cotton Buds from Butter London. Make sure you polish dries completely, before you attempt Step 2.
Step 2. To make the pattern, apply the second polish in one stroke, using the brush that comes with the polish. Start each stroke by placing the tip of the brush on the nail and wait a little till enough polish has dripped off forming a round starting point. Start on one side of the nail.
Step 3. Now apply the third polish in one stroke as well. This time the stroke is bigger than the other and right next to the previous one, as shown below.
Step 4. Apply the fourth polish in one stroke as well. This time the stroke is smaller than the previous one and right next to it.
Step 5. Now on the previous strokes using different color polishes, apply smaller strokes of different random sizes, as shown below.
Step 6. Finally, when the polish on your nails is dry, seal your work with your favorite topcoat and you're done! Pretty simple, isn't it? :)
If you liked this pictorial and would like to see more of these for other nail art designs, let me know in the comments section below. You can also communicate with me on Facebook and Instagram. Enjoy!!!
Sep 15, 2014
Modern Ruffles
Hi All, today I am sharing with you all a unique one of a kind design. I would like to call this Modern Ruffle nails. This design is very easy to do and you don’t need any special nail art tools for it. All I used was the brushes that came with the polish. The polishes that I used are, Butter London’s Cotton Buds and Jaded Jack, Sally Hansen’s Wet Cement and Pesto Presto, Wet –n-Wild’s I need a Refresh Mint. I will post a tutorial on how to achieve this look. Hope you all love it.
I will post a tutorial tomorrow on how to achieve this look. Stayed tuned.
I will post a tutorial tomorrow on how to achieve this look. Stayed tuned.
Sep 12, 2014
Product Review: ColorClub Holograhic Polishes
Holographic Polishes. I had tried them before with a different brand and it was a big flop. So I never went back to trying them until I found some Color Club Holographic polishes available online at Live.Love.Polish and decided to give them a try again. After carefully looking at the shades I decided to buy the two shaded reviewed below. Keep reading and get ready for some drool-worthy amazing holographic shades.
The first ColorClub holographic polish is called - KISMET (#996). This is a lime green holographic polish. It is bright and soothing at the same time. I applied 2 coats for the pictures below. I took pictures both inside and outside in the sun to show the different effects. Love how KISMET looks in sunlight. AMAZING is the only word to describe it.
Inside
Outside in the sun -
The second ColorClub holographic polish is called - HALO-GRAPHIC (#978). This is a pink holographic polish. It looks light pink both inside and outside. I applied 2 coats for the pictures below and it gave the desired effect. Easy to apply and i wore it all day long, no chips or wear off. I am impressed.
Outside in the sun -
Inside
The first ColorClub holographic polish is called - KISMET (#996). This is a lime green holographic polish. It is bright and soothing at the same time. I applied 2 coats for the pictures below. I took pictures both inside and outside in the sun to show the different effects. Love how KISMET looks in sunlight. AMAZING is the only word to describe it.
Inside
Outside in the sun -
The second ColorClub holographic polish is called - HALO-GRAPHIC (#978). This is a pink holographic polish. It looks light pink both inside and outside. I applied 2 coats for the pictures below and it gave the desired effect. Easy to apply and i wore it all day long, no chips or wear off. I am impressed.
Outside in the sun -
Inside
Sep 11, 2014
Product Review: Hibiscus Water Decals from BornPrettyStore
Hello Friend's. Recently I was approached by the popular online nail art supply store called BornPrettyStore to review some of their products for my blog and followers. If you follow my blog closely you would remember me purchasing some supplies from them before and using them. So this time I decided to review something which my followers would love, like this lovely floral water decal which is excellent for someone who doesn't know a lot about nail art but would like to try it nevertheless. You can see the reviews of my previous haul from BornPrettyStore products here and here. You can visit their website by clicking here. And if you like something, get 10% OFF on your order by using the code QANX31 at checkout (a little something, exclusively for my followers :)
Disclaimer: I was provided with these products free of charge for the purpose of this post. The opinions mentioned are my own.
To apply these water decals is really easy. You have to follow the instructions on the back of the package. First apply the nail polish that you want as the background for these designs and let it dry completely (I used Charlotte Russe's unnamed light pink shade, also added some white stripes and polka dots to get some girly effect). Then cut out each design you want to apply on each nail. So I cut out 10 flowers. Then one nail at a time, I put one cutout in a cup of water and let it soak for 10-15 seconds, after which the decal design came out by itself. Then I carefully applied it to the nail and let it stick and dry completely. I sealed it with my favorite top coat. Then repeated the process for rest of the nails. These decals are available on BornPrettystore website for $2.86, Product no. 15803. Top purchase them click here. It takes them almost 3-4 weeks to reach to you which isn't bad for the money you pay for these beautiful pieces.
I really like these decals. They are easy to use and very quickly create some gorgeous nail art on your nails. So if you really really want some pretty nail art on your finger tips and have no clue how to achieve it or where to start from, without spending a lot of money, nail art decals are the technique for you.
If you really liked this post and would want to try this technique then get some amazing nail art water decals by clicking here. You can see another of my Born Pretty Store find here. To get 10% OFF your order from BornPrettyStore, use the code QANX31 at checkout.
Did you enjoy reading this post? Was it helpful to you? Then leave a note in the comments section below. Enjoy!!!
Disclaimer: I was provided with these products free of charge for the purpose of this post. The opinions mentioned are my own.
To apply these water decals is really easy. You have to follow the instructions on the back of the package. First apply the nail polish that you want as the background for these designs and let it dry completely (I used Charlotte Russe's unnamed light pink shade, also added some white stripes and polka dots to get some girly effect). Then cut out each design you want to apply on each nail. So I cut out 10 flowers. Then one nail at a time, I put one cutout in a cup of water and let it soak for 10-15 seconds, after which the decal design came out by itself. Then I carefully applied it to the nail and let it stick and dry completely. I sealed it with my favorite top coat. Then repeated the process for rest of the nails. These decals are available on BornPrettystore website for $2.86, Product no. 15803. Top purchase them click here. It takes them almost 3-4 weeks to reach to you which isn't bad for the money you pay for these beautiful pieces.
If you really liked this post and would want to try this technique then get some amazing nail art water decals by clicking here. You can see another of my Born Pretty Store find here. To get 10% OFF your order from BornPrettyStore, use the code QANX31 at checkout.
Did you enjoy reading this post? Was it helpful to you? Then leave a note in the comments section below. Enjoy!!!
