The Dark Knight Rises - Batman-inspired Manicure

Okay, this is pretty sad, but I have a reason for it! I had great plans for this, (Jme and I went to watch TDKR on Thurs night!!) but Wednesday night, I managed to introduce my left ring fingernail to a razor in a ... not very nice way. So that kinda put a dampener on my nail art enthusiasm (and finger functionality)... But nevertheless, I stumbled onwards!

[What is this?]

Hahaha, maybe one day I will try this again...

[Bottle to nail: Revlon Carbonite (1 coat)]

I started with a base of Revlon Carbonite. Now, a lot of fuss has been made about this being a (possibly shamelessly intentional?) Chanel Graphite dupe. I didn't really take note because it seemed a fairly uninteresting shade....

[1 coat: Revlon Carbonite]

I just purchased it anyway because it only cost AUD3 at the markets so I thought, OH WELL. (The same thing happened with me and Perplex...) But I tried it on and was like WHOA! You see, I initially thought it was a glass fleck shimmer but it turned out to be this gorgeous taupe, almost foil, and beautifully smooth to boot, no streaks to speak of.

[1 coat: Revlon Carbonite]

Not only that... all these photos are seriously ONE COAT only. I am totes serious, Mr Joker, sir. ONE COAT. Lol, I name my photo folders silly things on my computer.. this was Carbonknight, GET IT??? Hahaha, oh gee shut up, Ev! Anyway, enough babble...

[Base: Revlon Carbonite (1 coat); Stamp: Konad Special Polish in Black Pearl; Acrylic paint]

I stamped my pinky with bats using Konad Special Polish in Black Pearl, stamped my ring finger with a lace pattern, then used either black acrylic paint or polish to fill in the rest. I'm a lefty so my injured finger meant me holding my paintbrush in an OVERLY FANCY MANNER, I DO SAY.

[Three little piggies...]

I meant to do a lace pattern like the mask Selina Kyle wears during the dance but I think the essence of Catwoman got lost especially since the ears sort of fade into the shape. Batman is just Batman and Bane is err.. finally a good use of my overly curved index finger!

Aaah, the squiggles. OH MY LORDY. How embarrassing, but I'll just put this out there. HAH! I can definitely do better... some other day... =p

Green Machine - Hits Samba, Kleancolor Leaves Jingle, Jordana My Superstar

It's a green theme today! Ah, I remember the days when I didn't like green polish. Hah! Think again, past!Jamie. How silly you were!

[Two coats of Hits Speciallita Samba]

Hits Samba is a green-blue flakey in a mid-green almost-jelly base. Look, opaque in two coats! The flakes have a slight colour-shift to blue, but it's mostly greengreengreen. Isn't it gorgeous?

[Two coats of Hits Speciallita Samba]

The last one is in natural light. I don't have any other polishes that look like Hits Samba and I loooove it.

While I'm at it, here's another green mani:

[Two coats of Kleancolor Leaves Jungle]

Kleancolor Leaves Jingle. It's green glitter in a green base, and it's a really nice spring shade. I wasn't impressed looking at the polish in the bottle, but I loved it on my nails. It was just shiny enough to draw attention to the pretty colour.

[Two coats of Kleancolor Leaves Jungle]

It definitely looked darker under natural light - even in person. I'm not quite sure why, tbh. Huuhh...

Then I decided to make it dazzling instead by playing with a new purchase:

[Jordana My Superstar over Kleancolor Leaves Jingle]

This is one coat of Jordana My Superstar over Kleancolor Jingle Leaves. I love this mix of gold, blue and red hex glitter in different sizes. The polish is pretty dense as well. Jordanas are super cheap too, so it's well worth the cost.

[Jordana My Superstar over Kleancolor Leaves Jingle]

Christmas come early? :D

Royal Millionaire - Revlon Royal Cloak, China Glaze Marry A Millionaire

Good morning! Today's post is a purple-themed glitter tip mani. =)

[Combining dustiness with sparkle-arkle!]

I adore China Glaze Marry A Millionaire from the Eye Candy collection but it does end up very busy and all the gorgeous types of glitter sort of gets jumbled up with a full mani. I was looking through my stash for a nice base to use and came up with this!

[Bottle to nail: Revlon Royal Cloak (2 coats)]

[2 coats: Revlon Royal Cloak]

This is Revlon Royal Cloak from the Masquerade collection. It's pretty interesting too! A dusty purple with dense silver flakes. Above is 2 coats of Royal Cloak.

[In the bottle: China Glaze Marry A Millionaire]

And here is China Glaze Marry A Millionaire in all its gorgeous glittery glory! A combination of blue-green-gold multichrome bar glitter and dense lavender glitter.

[Bottle to nail: China Glaze Marry A Millionaire (tips)]

I just layered Marry A Millionaire on my tips in a semi-gradient style, concentrating on the tips.

[Base: Revlon Royal Cloak (2 coats); Tips: China Glaze Marry A Millionaire]

It was marvelously sparkly! Although my photos don't capture that very well. From afar, the glitter colours tend to blend together into a silvery sparkle but the multichrome flashes tint it at different angles. =)

Mint Lemon - Milani Original, Kleancolor Nail to Toe Candied Honey

A brief Saturday post from me! Here's a nice simple pattern that's easy and looks cute.

[Base: Milani Antique (2 coats); Stripes: Kleancolor Nail to Toe in Candied Honey]

I started with a base of Milani Original. This is a dusty green creme with a lovely hidden shimmer, opaque in two coats. Very similar to Milani Dressmaker (which I also have) but slightly dustier and more green.

I then painted horizontal stripes using Kleancolor Nail to Toe nail art striping polish in Candied Honey, a pastel yellow creme. Top with your favourite topcoat and you're all set!

Have a good weekend all! =)

Insensibly Lovely - Best Sence 78 and 55

Sometimes, you can unearth the most lovely finds in dollar stores. During one of our rambles through Bankstown, Ev and I found a few interesting Best Sence nail polishes for all of AUD2.50.

[Best Sence 78 in bottle]

[Five coats of Best Sence 78]

Best Sence 78 is a crazy mix of colour shifting glitter in a clear base. The predominant glitter are the gold-to-green glitter and the red-to-gold glitter. There's a sparse scattering of red-to-purple glitter in there too! Since it's in a clear base, it took about a million coats (five to be exact :P) to get the full coverage on my thumbnail above. 

[Top: Two coats of Best Sence 78
Base: Ulta3 Black Satin]

Look how amazing it is against black! My camera rarely ever catches colour shifting glitter so clearly under natural light and with the focus turned on. The colour shift and difference in colour is really obvious. 

[Top: Two coats of Best Sence 78
Base: Ulta3 Black Satin]

You can see the gold, red and green on my nails here. But if I tilt my nails baaaaaack...

[Top: Two coats of Best Sence 78
Base: Ulta3 Black Satin]

Bright green!

I bought Best Sence 55 as well. 

[Two coats of Best Sence 55
Index finger: One coat of Best Sence 78 over 55]

It's not as dramatically awesome as 78, but it's pretty nice for the price. Best Sence 55 is a green polish with a gold shimmer. Shimmers tend to be streaky, but this one has no such problem at all. I was impressed by how smoothly it applied. The gold is subtler on the nails than in the bottle.

[Two coats of Best Sence 55
Index finger: One coat of Best Sence 78 over 55]

These pictures are a month old, so my skin really isn't that dry any more and my nails are longer now. 

If you don't have any place close by that sells Best Sence, I believe they're sold at KKCenterHK too.

Winter Florals - Transparent Flowers Pink Green Floral, China Glaze For Audrey

A rare instance where I'm posting a mani that's actually on my nails right now!

[We're past mid-winter, aren't we? Springtime soon!]

I was pretty pleased with this floral combination~ =) Transparent foil transfers are fun because you can completely change the look depending on what base colour to pick.

[Bottle to nail: China Glaze For Audrey (1-2 coats)]

I started with a base of China Glaze For Audrey. To be honest, I picked this up because it's just one of those polishes that should be in one's polish collection...

[1-2 coats: China Glaze For Audrey]

It is very pretty though! And I managed to get away with one thick coat or two thin ones. The formula is pretty good and levels quite well even if you don't get your strokes completely even.

I then popped some foil glue on and waited for it to be tacky. The absolute minimum I would wait is 5 minutes. 10 minutes is even better. The longer you wait, the better your chance of transferring the entire pattern without breaks!

[Base: China Glaze For Audrey (1-2 coats); Foil: Gold Floral Meadow]

Tada! Here we go! This is Transparent Flowers Pink Green Floral (!!), a semi-transparent foil with pink, teal, and gold highlights. I've seen it foiled over white and that looks pretty too but I love florals on blue so I wanted to try this combination out!

[Base: China Glaze For Audrey (1-2 coats); Foil: Gold Floral Meadow]

As for topcoat... remember, you can not use quick dry formulas with foil transfers! A cheap, non-wrinkle topcoat that I've found is Essence Gel-look topcoat! Not only that, it dries fairly fast and gives a nice glossy finish. Bonus! I actually ordered some nail foil sealer so I'll let you know how that goes once I receive it.
 

[Base: China Glaze For Audrey (1-2 coats); Foil: Gold Floral Meadow]

One more close-up! Foil transfers don't last very long though! They tend to peel fairly quickly but one way to reduce that is to add a fresh layer of topcoat every day. I usually don't bother... because peeling polish means... NEW MANI TIME! =p