Shabby Chic Roses - Milani Sweetest Pink, Essie Matte About You, Water decals + Dried flowers

Well, I don't really celebrate Valentine's Day much, but I thought I'd better make a somewhat-appropriate post! So here's a basic manicure jazzed up with a choice of water decals or dried flowers.

[Bottle to nail: Milani Sweetest Pink (2 coats)]

I started with a base of Milani Sweetest Pink - I don't often wear pinks usually, especially not lighter shades, but this was a lovely surprise. It is a peachy shade of pink with subtle silver shimmer and it's also opaque in two coats! It's not streaky nor frosty at all because the shimmer is more microglitter almost.

[Milani Sweetest Pink (2 coats) + Essie Matte about You (1 coat)]

Because of the slightly metallic look, I thought it would look amazing with a matte topcoat and I wasn't wrong! I added a coat of Essie Matte about You over the top and got this lovely pink brushed metal look.

[Milani Sweetest Pink (2 coats) + Essie Matte about You (1 coat)]

It looks like an updated mannequin manicure almost. Very smooth and subtle shimmer.

[Milani Sweetest Pink + Essie Matte about You + Rose water decal]

I then had these pretty shabby chic rose water decals that I purchased off eBay a while ago so I tested one out. I'm pretty happy with how it looks! It was a bit glossy originally, but another coat of Matte about You and it blended in perfectly.

If you've never used water decals before, it's super easy - just cut your pattern out as close to the design as possible, then put the whole thing in some water. The paper backing will come off leaving the thin film with the design on it. This is then placed on the nail while wet. You can move it around as you like while wet but it adheres to the nail once dry. You can even purchase printable water decal sheets to create your own patterns!

[Milani Sweetest Pink + Essie Matte about You + Rose water decal + Dried flowers]

It was an experimental sort of day so I also tested some dried flowers which I composed and then placed on the nail with the help of some clear nail polish, then topcoated over to hold in place. I think they would look great with a different basecoat colour... but that's an experiment for another day!

That's it then, I hope everyone has a great Valentine's whether you celebrate it or not!