Monday 28 January 2013

Bubbles is 3!


It was my gorgeous kitty Bubbles' birthday on Sunday 27th January so I decided I'd dedicate my nails to her this week. Can't believe I've had her for almost 3 years now. Remember when I got her as a 9 week old kitten and she'd jump around my room like a lunatic. Three years on and she's still just as crazy as ever, only difference is I can't pick her up with one hand anymore or let her sleep on my chest.
So for these nails I wanted to make them specifically about her and what she likes. From left to right I have her name surrounded by little blue bubbles on a glittery base, a balloon with a '3' on it and her paw reaching for it, her little face and red collar (even including her little white mark she has on her bottom lip), her sitting on a wall, paw prints. Then on my right hand a 'Meow' with little paw prints, a fish (her favourite food), her kitty bum and tail, a ball of yarn and her paw reaching for a mouse (she's caught many a small creature in her time, inside and outside the house).

This is a pic of her as a teeny fuzzy kitten when she was 10 weeks old:


And here she is now chilling out on my bed after a big day of birthday fun and treats:


Tuesday 22 January 2013

Avengers Assemble



Working at HMV I get to put out new film releases every Sunday. This time it was the release of Avengers Assemble, one of the biggest blockbusters of last year. To celebrate this I decided to create my own Avengers nails to show off to customers in the store and promote the new film.
I decided I would just include the main four hero characters plus the villain. So from left to right I have the Avengers symbol, the Hulk's chest, Captain America's chest, Iron Man's face, Loki's staff (although it came out a little odd as it was so tiny to draw on my little finger nail). Then on my right hand I have Loki's helmet, Iron Man's chest, Captain America's shield, Thor's hammer with lightning and the S.H.I.E.L.D. logo.
The following day after painting these the Captain America shield peeled off as I had painted it on a bit too thick with too many layers so I had to re-paint it. I actually prefer the newer re-painted version here:


Here's a pic of the shelves of Avengers DVDs and Blu-Rays which I put out the evening before their release:


I took this to send to my friend who's a huge fan and I knew he would drool over it.

Tuesday 15 January 2013

Multi-coloured marbling


So after my first attempt at water marbling with my Gaga nails I decided to give it a proper go and experiment with a few different colours.
Each nail has a white base coat in order to make the colours show up brighter. They also each have a black, a white and two different shades of each colour. As I discovered not every colour worked in the water because it has to be the right consistency in order to spread - if it's too gloopy it doesn't work.
Although it was great fun trying it out I'm in no rush to try it again soon as it took forever. The amount of times I had to remove it and try again because it didn't come out right or it dried too quickly in the water. It's definitely a matter of timing and trial and error. I would love to try it out in the future with different patterns - candy cane patterns can look very effective, but only if I have plenty of time on my hands.

The Edge of Glory

These are my very first attempt at marble nails and I think they came out rather well for a first try.



These are the images which I based the colours on.








Took a couple of tries of experimenting with different colours to get the first nail right. Still not the exact colours but close enough using what I have.
The black, white and grey nail came out great on the first try. I even added some red glitter in the mix which actually came out right in the centre of the nail just like in the image of Gaga.

So I created these because I went to see her at Twickenham. The show was amazing, even though we weren't near the front, but we could see everything from where we were standing and had an amazing time.



This is one my best pics of the night with Gaga and her guitar.

British summer


Went on a trip down to Bournemouth for a few days in early September last year to make the most of the last bit of sun in the UK before winter kicked in.
Wanted to create some nails similar to my beach ones I painted in Spain but with a British touch.
So I painted a bucket and spade, a deck chair, a crab (used to go crabbing in Mudeford with my Granny when I was little), a windmill toy and a '99 ice cream. Then on the other hand I have a row of different coloured beach huts as that's what reminds me of Bournemouth beaches the most, and a postcard on my thumb.


Took this as the sun was going down on the coast near Sandbanks.


On the way home we drove through the New Forest and saw lots of beautiful horses and their babies.

Wednesday 9 January 2013

Tattoos


I've been wanting to create tattoo nails for a long time but it's taken a while to find the perfect nude base colour which matches my skin tone. After a lot of shopping around I finally found the perfect colour for me, it's Revlon Grey Suede 030.
I wanted to paint some old school style tattoos on my nails so I looked into some of the most popular designs and drew them on.
I have a heart with 'Mom' written over it, an anchor, a swallow, a butterfly and a nautical star on one hand. Then on the other I painted a number 13, a cross, a diamond, a lightning strike and rose.

Birthday rollercoaster


I created these for my birthday at the end of July last year. It also marked a one year anniversary of my nail art creations. I've been painting nail art on a (almost) weekly basis since soon after my birthday in 2011 and I'm very happy with all the creations I have painted so far. Looking forward to another year of it. Lets hope I don't run out of ideas any time soon!
Anyway for these nails I painted a rollercoaster with a fast pass ticket on one hand because I went to Thorpe park on my birthday with my brother and my friend Dave. Had an awesome time and it wasn't very busy so we managed to get on all the rides we wanted to with hardly any queing.
The other hand is a Leo symbol - my star sign, a bunch of balloons, a glittery present, a party popper and confetti and a birthday cake.

Graduation


Graduated my Foundation course in Hair and Make-up for Film and TV in July. Of course I had to paint my nails in preparation. The colours are the same ones which were on our robes. We hadn't actually seen the robes in advance so I had to guess the correct pink and purple but I got them pretty much spot on. I also painted a little scroll and mortar hat on one thumb and the logo for the University of the Arts on my other thumb.



Me in my graduation robes. Am very happy to have finally graduated from university doing something I really enjoy.
However it's not over yet, will hopefully be graduating again this July with a full BA degree if all goes well...
 





Epic!


Went to see Faith No More at Brixton academy last July and they have just the right amount of letters for my nails so thought why not write it on. Was the third time I've seen them now and they're still awesome as ever. Love watching Mike Patton work his magic on that stage. Can't wait to see them again!

Day of the Dead


Created July 2012.
Was planning on painting sugar skull nail art for ages when I finally created these. Wanted to make each one different with lots of fun bright colours. The detail on the teeth took the longest. Enjoyed deciding on all the colours and patterns though.


That week my friends and I went to London Film and Comic Convention and got this awesome pic with some of the Game of Thrones cast. Unfortunately I didn't get a pic with my favourite, Iain Glen who plays Ser Jorah Mormont because I get way too nervous around celebs but I got to see him from afar like a creepy stalker.

Tuesday 8 January 2013

Bonne année!


Went to the beautiful city of Paris for New Years this year. Not only that, it was for my best friend's mum's 60th birthday which was on New Years day. Had a fabulous time with plenty of yummy food and amazing sites. The best part was the fact it was a couch tour which meant we could sit back and relax while being driven around to see all the sites.
So these are the nails I painted before we left. I decided to paint things that immediately make you think of Paris when you see them. Starting with the Eiffel tower on my left hand. I decorated it with fireworks and glitter for a new year theme. Then the Moulin Rouge windmill, the Sacre Coeur at the Montmartre, the Chat Noir (my favourite of the bunch) and a Chanel necklace (which came out a little smudged as the detail was a bit too small). Then on my right hand the French flag, the Louvre pyramid, the Arc du Triomphe, a croissant and an 'I love Paris' (I wanted this to look sparkly with my new Barry M glitter nail varnish but it came out looking like something you get in a tacky tourist shop, I still love it all the same).


It was a lovely sunny day when we went into the city on the first day. Unfortunately it rained New Years eve but we still had a fantastic time.
Happy new year and bonne année to all you lovely readers!
New years resolution this year is to update this blog more regularly so will try to keep on top of things. Final year of uni now though so no guarantees. Will try my best.
Happy reading!