Cherry Blossoms for TGIF & My Engagement Shoot Mani

I'm late! That seems to be a theme in my posts lately - life is definitely crazy this spring!

Friday's theme for the TGIF nail art challenge was "Cherry Blossoms". I actually spent Friday playing with cherry blossoms at our engagement shoot in High Park. We had to move the shoot up an entire week at the last minute, because the blossoms happened much earlier this year compared to the last few springs! So, I wore a classy and timeless mani for the shoot and my challenge mani was put on hold. Scroll to the bottom of the post for the engagement shoot mani!

Products Used

Ciate Chinchilla

Nicole by OPI Hard-Kourt Kardashian

OPI Mod About You

Ciate Snow Virgin

essie Good to Go Topcoat

I freehanded the branches and dotted on the blossoms. I am absolutely in love with the look and it was fairly simple! 

Here's the mani for my engagement shoot. Mod About You base with a China Glaze Fairy Dust glitter tipped gradient, and a simple red holo heart with Daily Hues Nail Lacquer in Willa, made with a dotting tool. 

Check out this gorgeous shot our photographer Jacqueline from Injoy Imagery snapped for my instagram. 

Stunning! Are you in love with cherry blossoms like I am?

Happy Mother's Day!

xo Shawna

Mirrorball Quatrefoil for TGIF

So, here I am two days late to my own weekly nail art challenge! But that just means don't feel bad playing along if you're not punctual (like me!). This week's prompt is quatrefoil, which I've done once before and loved the look, and wanted to get around to doing it again.

Products Used

Echoes Polish Fliptastic

Orly Mirrorball

INM Out the Door Topcoat

Dotting Tools Amazon

I don't think I've talked before about my (previous) bad luck with thermals. I had two thermals from different indies and they were both so subtle they were practically invisible or really tough to shift. I snagged this from Sammy (Cuter Cuticles) at the meet up and was excited to give thermals one last shot... luckily I was not let down this time! 

Are you a thermal polish fan?

xo Shawna

Easter Eggs for #TGIF

I think two people played along (once each) for #TGIFnailartchallenge March, but it is such a great incentive for me to do manicures I have been putting off that I decided to go ahead with an April challenge as well!

My friend's daughter Sydney (hi!) asked what I was doing for my Easter manicure and the first thing that popped into my mind was Easter Eggs! So I grabbed a rainbow of pastel polishes and went for a mix-match look using vinyls, dotting tools and some good old free-handed painting. 

Products Used

Barry M Coconut

OPI Mod About You

NYC Cosmetics Lexington Yellow

China Glaze Highlight of my Summer

China Glaze Lotus Begin

Sally Hansen Babe Blue

INM Out the Door Topcoat

Dotting Tools eBay

Nail Art Brushes Amazon

Lou It Yourself Straight Vinyls (skinny & regular)

I looove this one, it better last all weekend! I also painted different designs on my Cindy hand because I'm OCD and couldn't just leave them white. The designs aren't as intricate (or neat!) but they're passable.

Happy Easter! Do you do anything to celebrate with your family?

xo Shawna

Sheer Holo Gradient Floral Mani

Is my post title long enough? I could have added a few more words to it but had to draw the line! Tonight a bunch of nail gals from the GTA (greater Toronto area, for you non-Ontarians!) met up for dinner and lots of nail chat and swapping! I knew my nails needed to be on point so I eventually settled on a holo faux-gradient with a splash floral design inspired by The Lacquerologist! 

Products Used

Color Club Kismet

Wet n Wild Black Creme

OPI Sheer Tints I'm Never Amberassed

OPI Sheer Tints Be Magentale With Me

OPI Sheer Tints Don't Violet Me Down

OPI Sheer Tints I Can Teal You Like Me

INM Out the Door Topcoat

What's a faux gradient you ask? After I laid down my holo base, I vertically overlapped two sheer tints on each nail- the overlap created a new in-between colour. Sponge-free and easy-peasy! I needed two coats of sheer tints to help the colours pop. 

Here's all the gals! Don't mind my giant face, we needed a selfie stick!

The waiter thought we were a little nuts. No room for food with all the polish up for grabs! A few of us brought our destashes to swap. 

Nails on fleek!

Um, yum. Totally not paleo. Every bite was delish! 

And lastly, me and my girl Sammy! I've raved over the product line, Cuter Cuticles. Check her out if you haven't already! I didn't even need to photoshop my pics today because her oils are so amazing! (I also purchased Unicorn Blood from Bree, and can't wait to rock it!)

What else do you do with your sheer polishes?

xo Shawna

Bows & Dots Twin Mani

I am so excited about today's manicure! You've seen me talk about Sammy's products before, and she was one of my very first followers when I created my IG account in August. We talked about doing a mani swap way back when, but I didn't really have a whole lot of manicures done to swap. Well, we finally got around to collaborating but did bestie twin nails instead of a swap. Sammy suggested a dotticure of some sort, and I had pinned this design on pinterest months ago, so I suggested it as an accent. And voila, a gorgeous collaboration was born! 

Sammy made the gorgeous collage. 

Products Used

Polish My Life Nude Lace

OPI Mod About You

Wet n' Wild Black Creme

China Glaze Fast Forward Top Coat

Dotting Tools amazon

Striper Brush eBay

Oh my gosh. I am in love with this one! I always end up hating my dotticures because i crowd the dots too much, so I really exercised restraint and used the smallest dotting tool as well. Finally, a successful dotticure! The bow is super cute as well (although you should see it on my other hand.. LOL!) 

Are you a dotticure fan? Yay or Nay?

xo Shawna

Super Satin Top Coat Swatches

press sample

I am so excited to share my first official swatcher post. (Yes, I have swatched before and also tested items for review. But this is the first time I have been sent a POLISH to review/ swatch! Well, top coat. Close enough ;) )

Bree at @breezylovesnails selected me to swatch her new top coat (for her brand new label, Mad Scientist) Super Satin Top Coat. It's a semi-matte finish, so while it takes away that glaring super shine of normal top coats, it doesn't completely dull the finish as a matte TC would. 

The ring finger is coated with China Glaze Fast Forward, with the other fingers Satined up for comparison. At first glance, I will be 100% honest, I could see some element of satin finish but it wasn't quite what I expected. I figured out that the longer I waited (beyond the 10-15 minutes I waited to shoot pics after swatching), the better the satin finish looked! So, for reference, the pink and grey swatches were done with a shorter dry time, and the holo polish had a few hours before being photographed. That is where you can really see the difference!! 

I did a simple dotticure using Fast Forward over Satin (over CG Sexy Silhouette). 

THIS is where the satin truly shows! Check out that picture below. I used the satin TC over Daily Hues Nail Lacquer Blaze (can you tell I've been obsessed with DHNL lately?) and did shiny chevrons using Up Your Nail vinyls & Fast Forward TC. 

Huge props to the formula being easy to work with, and the brush is great- not too skinny.

Lastly I have it over CG Tip Your Hat. 

I fully admit the first shot doesn't show it at it's greatest. Ring finger is glossy for comparison. Below, I've french tipped using Fast Forward. 

Super Satin Top Coat is launching soon, so keep your eyes on her instagram for the launch! Thanks for being my first, Bree! 

xo Shawna

Valentines Collaborations

*disclaimer: the first mani was done a month in advance!

A few groups of us on Instagram collaborated for Valentine's Day (collab pics below!). One was typical v-day lovey dove hearts etc, and the other was the opposite - Anti-Valentine's Day! 

For the first collaboration, organized by @nebularnailz, we didn't have any specific theme. I didn't want to do your typical in-your-face pink and red palette -  so after I painted on a coat of the gorgeous chrome Push and Shove by OPI, I decided dry brushing would provide just the hint of colours I was after. 

Products Used

OPI Push and Shove

OPI Mod About You

Deborah Lippmann Jessa

China Glaze Fast Forward

Dotting Tools from Amazon

I actually tested out painting little hearts and it was a very pathetic attempt.  (This was before I discovered how to use a dotting tool to make the entire heart). So, instead I went for a more abstract look by dotting an outline of a heart on a few accent fingers. I actually liked the way it turned out, and it was pretty simple and very quick to do!

And here's the final product of the first collaboration.

Next up, we have the Anti-V-day Collab! This was put on by @vampireprincessheart. I was thinking along the line of a "blackened heart" so I used saran wrap to create the effect on the two middle fingers. I was hoping the hearts would be more distinct so I don't completely love the way they turned out, but the amazing girls I collaborated with assure me it's great! Thanks ladies you are such sweethearts! 

Products Used

Deborah Lippmann Jessa

Wet n' Wild Black Creme

Finger Paints Striper Ch-Art-Coal Black

Cuter Cuticles Cutie Guard

China Glaze Fast Forward

And this is the result :)

Did you do anything to celebrate (or protest) Valentine's this year?

xo Shawna

Valentine's Plaid

So I ordered the MoYou hipster plate with all the plaids back in December, and am just using it now! As much as I love stamping, a lot of times I just don't want to deal with the cleanup. (And I mean actual cleaning up, not just the cuticles!) However, with all the pinks and reds I've been rocking the last week, a plaid mani was stuck in my mind so I finally made it happen. 

Products Used

Orly Rage

Daily Hues Nail Lacquer Willa

China Glaze Fast Forward

MoYou Hipster 06

Dotting Tool from Amazon

I received my swap package from the Very Canuck Swap that I helped organize with Sammy (owner of Cuter Cuticles)! I got so many great goodies, click on over to my Instagram to check them out. My girl even included goodies for my fur babies- what a sweetheart! Thanks Kait! I have been lusting after Orly Rage, a gorgeous rose-gold foil, for quite some time. It did not disappoint! 

I've got one more mani coming tomorrow as well as a few collaborations in celebration (or the opposite!) of V-day. 

Any exciting Valentines (or singles awareness day) plans?

Valentine's Pond Mani

I don't get enough use of the gorgeous pink jelly I got from Echoes polish months ago. (I guess that's the sad reality of a polish stash of 100+!). So when I saw a gorgeous pond mani with hearts on IG the other day, I just had to recreate it. Props to @nails_by_noemmyy for the idea!. 

Products Used

Echoes Polish Pink Freud

China Glaze Snow

China Glaze Fast Forward

Dotting Tools from Amazon

I never understood what people meant when they said the jelly sammiches/ pond manis were "squishy". Now I totally get it, this has about 9 layers of polish and top coat! It's so thick! 

On another note- thank goodness for photoshop. My cuticles are so horrendous right now. Thanks winter!

xo Shawna

P.S. - a pond mani is the nail art version (vs. glitter) of a jelly sandwich- layering nail art between layers of sheer polish!

christmas eve water marble

So, I am newly obsessed with water marbling after figuring out it's all about the polish. China glaze seems to be great so far, and thus made the base for a christmas coloured mani which I wore to church and the movies on Christmas Eve!

Products Used

China Glaze Snow

China Glaze Be More Pacific

China Glaze Tip your Hat

Seche Vite Top Coat

Dotting Tools from Amazon

I didn't really have an appropriate christmas green, so this ended up being a lighter coloured mani. I added accent nails of a gift wrapped thumb and polka-dotted pinkie.

Water marble is so fun!

Merry Christmas!

xo Shawna

birthday cupcake mani

Of course a birthday means a special mani! The first thing that popped into mind was all the cute little cupcake manicures I've seen before. I just googled a tutorial, there's tons. 

Products used:

China Glaze Snow

Polish My Life Nude Lace

OPI You Don't Know Jacques

Barry M Socialite

Color Club Unnamed Neon Pink mini

Mundo De Unas Lavendar (yes, it's spelled wrong!)

Amazon.ca Dotting Tools

Born Pretty Store Gemstones

Born Pretty Stamping Plate QA 91

*use code SDPX31 for 10% off at Born Pretty store! 

Most tutorials used a solid cupcake top and painted on sprinkles. I decided to bling it out a bit with one of my new, untried Barry M's. It's an awesome glitter!

The stamping isn't perfect, not sure if it's the plate or the polish. Still trying to get perfect crisp images from my MDU!

Do you do special birthday nails?

xo Shawna

To-Do List: Gold & Green Quatrefoil Mani

I recently started a note on my iPhone to keep track of all the different manis (or variations on ones I've already done!) that I want to try out. One of the accounts I follow on IG mentioned she's doing a blog post series on her "wish list" and I thought that was a great idea. One that has been on there for a while is quatrefoil, which makes use of a dotting tool - and after my "dots" manicure the other day, I was ready to go!

I wish I had a larger dotting tool, but I'm pretty pleased with the way they turned out! I based my colour palette on the dress I wore at my nephew/Godson's baptism today. These are two of my favourite polishes I own!

Colours used: 

OPI Thanks a Windmillion

OPI Love.Angel.Music.Baby

HK Girl Top Coat

Born Pretty Store Dotting Tool (use coupon SDPX31 to save 10%!)

Do you have a mani to-do list?

xo Shawna