Spotlight On...Nail Gems

As you probably know from my previous post, I have become unhealthily obsessed with diamante nail designs. Can you really blame me though?

My friends DEFINITELY don't blame me! I did a whole bunch of their nails last week and I thought, rather than explaining how to do the designs which are pretty self explanatory (just stick and go), i'd share the photos of the different designs we came up with!

Emily (nails pictured above), has never been one for nail varnish, but I came up with this fun and quirky rainbow accent nail which would fit her style. One day I WILL convert her.

Rachel (nails pictured above) has become quite a regular feature on this blog. She has great nails which are perfect for me to practice my designs on, so i'm always happy to give her a manicure. She had some problems with this as I don't think we used enough top coat to stick the gems on, so take note!

Nicole (nails pictured above) is a nurse, constantly washing her hands and BANNED from wearing nail varnish at work (sob). She had a few days off though and wanted something simple that she could easily remove. We went with a little bow accent nail on the ring finger and Bruton Street by Nails Inc.

And lastly there's me. I wanted something sophisticated (very unlike me), so decided on a VERY dark red/black colour by FrontCover with a line of clear gems placed along one side of the nail. It gave a 'high shine' effect as if the light was bouncing off my nails.

I hope you found inspiration from my gemstone designs. The most important thing when using gems is to use a good top coat to adhere the gems to the nail and to use as a finish once the gems have been placed.

Happy polishing <3

Nail Art: Girls Best Friend

Everyone knows that diamonds are a girl's best friend, so why not cover your nails in them?

 (ok these are plastic gemstones, not Tiffany, but shhh)

I ordered a shit-ton of gems from amazon way before Christmas, but they only turned up at the beginning of January, however these are SO worth it. I paid £5 for 7400 gems. If that isn't a bargain, I don't know what is.

Get them here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Rhinestones--Amazing-Rhinestones-Gemstones-Cheeky-/dp/B005WTYEYW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1357643571&sr=8-1

Of course, you can use these for things other than nails, but you won't regret giving your fingertips a sparkly jeweled makeover!

The polish I used:

Barry M Nail Paint Limited Edition in Christmas Blue (SLE 2012 A)

This was SO easy to do. I started with a base coat and then painted each of my nails with a coat of this shimmery turquoise colour. 

I chose a matching colour of gems and applied them one by one using a damp cotton bud (Q-tip). I dipped each gem into clear polish to adhere it to the nail.

Once i'd done that (be warned, it can take a while), I painted the non-jeweled nails with another coat of the blue and then finished everything off, including the gems, with Sally Hansen's Hard as Nails top coat. I gave the jeweled nail two coats for good measure.

So far, this manicure has lasted a week so I am chuffed!

Everyone should give this eye catching design a go, it's great for parties and nights out!

Happy polishing <3