NOTW: Across The Universe in style

Well helloooooooooo, ladies (and gents?) *Old spice guy* ;-)

***Warning: very picture-heavy post***

Have I got a zinger for you today! If you follow me on FB, you'll have seen a few months ago that I finally used Enchanted Across The Universe (had been waiting for some sunshine) - and I was totally and utterly blown away. I genuinely couldn't get focused on work for a couple of hours after I put this polish on, because it well and truly knocked my socks off. There are A LOT of pics of this one because I just couldn't believe how awesome it was. You've been warned:

My taping... in blue

My thumb in ALL the colours *.*

...pink holo!!!!

Did I mention the polish is a holo?

 

Blue holo...

It's a multichrome too!

...golden blurple <3

Pink and purple...

Pretty, pretty polish <3 I've never really understood the hype surrounding Enchanted Polish, and I only picked this polish up on a whim from another of Debbie Crumpet's blog sales some months back... but I TOTALLY GET IT NOW!!!!!!! I turned into a total magpie for the duration of this mani and chewed the ear off anyone who would listen about it, basically going ZOMG LOOK AT MY RAINBOW MULTICHROME HOLO NAILS *ahhhhhhh!* You all need this polish. Seriously. Go buy it.

All the colours!!!! :D

Multi-coloured HOLO goooooodness!!!

Now let me 'briefly' discuss the other impressive part of this mani - it's my first EVER striping tape mani! This striping tape was sent to me as a RAOK by Anita Marie Roberts a looooooooong time ago, but this is the first chance I've had to sit down and use it properly. I googled pictures of striping tape manis for inspiration, and this is what I came up with. I just ADORE this stuff! It wasn't nearly as difficult to use as other bloggers made me think it was, and I'm thrilled to bits that I have two or three reels of the stuff to play with - thank you so much Anita :-)


Last but most certainly not least, I bring you the base colour for this most wonderful of manis - Collection 2000 Blue My Mind (#12):

Indirect light

Direct light

Now, the left-hand photo is a bit 'lobster', and the right-hand photo is deathly pale, which means that the colours in these pics aren't quite right, however, as you can see, this is a beautiful, deep, rich blue shimmer polish, which though not duochrome, looks like it's in a blackened base until you get it in the light. This polish is one of my favourite blue polishes, and was the perfect accompaniment for ATU. The only downside to it is probably the brush; it's far too wide for my nails which means getting a good, clean line is tricky. I had a lot more clean-up to do for this mani than usual! Fortunately, this polish is most definitely worth the extra effort :-)


Which Enchanted Polish do you think I should get next? Let me know in the comments!

'Til next time, lovelies :-)

- Skye x

WAUF... Betty Nails?

Why Aren't You Following... ? was conceived by Curly Polish as an attempt to help polishaholics put a face to the nails! Sometimes in our FB polish groups we don’t really connect those beautiful talons with the person behind them – often one who blogs! It is hoped that this series of posts will help polishaholics get to know new blogs and rediscover old ones by means of twelve succinct questions. Most of all, this series is designed to give a shout out to all the bloggers I admire the most – both big-time and small fry :-)

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Welcome to the latest edition of WAUF! This week, I speak to Barbara Betty from Betty Nails! Let’s get down to business :-)


Name: Barbara Betty

Blog: Betty Nails

Since: August 2011 

GFC followers (at time of writing): 1,802

Signature bloggism: Long, round nails.

Fav brand: Purple Professional (Portugal).

Fav colour: Black, red and purple.

Fav nail art technique: Stamping.

Fav blog: Hmmm.. Nailderella.

Would still like to try: I haven't tried a Butter London (wat!) (me neither!)

One fact we may not know about you/your blog: My name is not Betty! I just have a major crush on Betty Boop!

When not painting my nails you’ll find me... : Editing pictures? Jk! I'm addicted to TV series!

Why I follow her: Barbara is a regular on the PAA Europe group on Facebook, and I confess that I only ever looked at the pictures she'd post in the group... until one day she started an A-Z guide to indie polishes - the only one of its kind to date. Then? I was hooked. This girl has truly stunning nails, bags of personality and is the go-to girl for plenty of European brands including Mollon and Purple Professional. Her indie guide is also beyond epic and great  fun to read! And she does all of this in two languages! Awesomesauce :-)

So tell me... why aren't you following Betty Nails?!

How to follow Barbara Betty:

Blog: http://betty-nails.blogspot.pt/
Bloglovin': http://www.bloglovin.com/en/blog/2939242/betty-nails

FB: https://www.facebook.com/Blog.BettyNails | https://www.facebook.com/barbara.bettynails?ref=tn_tnmn
Flikr: Barbara Betty 
Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/109223734917091148021/posts
Hellocotton: http://www.hellocotton.com/mypage/bettynails
Instagram: http://instagram.com/BarbaraBetty
Klout: http://klout.com/home#/Betty_Nails/
Networked Blogs: http://www.networkedblogs.com/user/100003008406577
Orkut: http://www.orkut.com.br/Main#Profile?uid=13578185376070689078
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/bbettynails

Tumblr: http://betty-nails.tumblr.com/
Twitter: @Betty_Nails

Thanks for reading this week’s WAUF! Tune in next week for more blogger introductions :-)

‘Til next time :-)

- Skye x

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***Disclaimer*** 
These are not the only ladies I follow, or the only people whose blogs/nails I love. I don’t prefer any one of these blogs over the other because I like them all for different reasons. If you haven’t been contacted (yet), it doesn’t mean I don’t love you! Also: if you don’t have a blog but you have lovely nails, I may be in touch at some point, but I don’t know how to make an entire post about a non-blog right now :-) Finally, please remember that my preferences may be different to yours. This is meant to be a fun series! I adhere to the Thumper principle: if you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all. Keep smiling guys and girls :-) 

NOTW: Barry goes tribal

Hello, my lovelies! How's it going?

Today I bring you a relatively short and sweet post - my latest foray into the world of tribal manis and my first ever skittle mani! The last time I tried this, it went horribly wrong, so I ended up doing something else altogether... but this time, armed with my new silver Barry M nail art pen, I was in a position to create something beautiful! Let's take a look at what I came up with: 

Tribal mani!!!

:-) :-) *pride* Here's some close-ups of the designs:

Thumb shot

*Squeeeeeeeeeeeeeee I did it!!!!!!!!*

Isn't it awesome!? Now, I'm not a very creative person, so I totally ripped off paid homage to Debbie Crumpet on this one, whose patterns I all but reproduced line for line (bar the odd few dots here and there). Check out her AMAZEBALLS tribal post here and you'll see what I mean! They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, so I hope that she's flattered (and not horrified by my attempt to art) - I take absolutely no credit for this creation at all :-) 

Finally, as always, let me show you the beautiful base colour for this mani - Barry M Gelly Hi-Shine Prickly Pear: 

This is actually the second time I've worn this polish, but the first time was when I went to Scotland for my little holiday and I forgot to get a pic amid all the packing and travelling. This may be one of my fav new polishes. After loving Barry M's Pomegranate Gelly, I knew I had to try some more in the future, and when I saw this in store I fell in love! I'd describe the colour as both a warm blue and a cool lilac all in one - the colour is absolutely unique in my collection and has a wicked natural shine, even without a TC. It's delicate and will probably suit absolutely everyone, so go buy it immediately! You need this polish in your collections.

And so my Barry M nail art pen adventure continues! What else should I draw? Hit me up in the comments!

'Til next time, curlettes :-)

- Skye x

WAUF... Chalkboard Nails?

Why Aren't You Following... ? was conceived by Curly Polish as an attempt to help polishaholics put a face to the nails! Sometimes in our FB polish groups we don’t really connect those beautiful talons with the person behind them – often one who blogs! It is hoped that this series of posts will help polishaholics get to know new blogs and rediscover old ones by means of twelve succinct questions. Most of all, this series is designed to give a shout out to all the bloggers I admire the most – both big-time and small fry :-)

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Welcome to the latest edition of WAUF! This week, I speak to Sarah from Chalkboard Nails! Let’s get down to business :-)

Name: Sarah

Blog: Chalkboard Nails

Since: July 2011

GFC followers (at time of writing): 5,763

Signature bloggism: I guess my hand poses? I have a distinct set of hand poses that I choose from for every post. Uniformity is important to me.

Fav brand: Oh goodness, I guess I would have to say OPI. I am a huge fan of their ProWide brush shape, and their formula has been consistently great for me. Their collections usually include a lot of excellent creme finishes in interesting colors (my favorite!), and they’ll usually also include a curve-ball or two.

Fav colour: My favorite polish color is yellow – I think it is totally underrated. You can’t look down at yellow nails and not smile. In general, my favorite color would probably be lilac.

Fav nail art technique: Freehanding! I love when I get the chance to sit down and spend a good chunk of time painting a complex design.

Fav blog: I’ve gotta give it up to Chelsea King’s Get Nailed. Her work is always flawless and innovative, and her photos are lovely, too!

Would still like to try: I really want to try More Nail Polish’s method for making your own magnet patterns for magnetic nail polish. She’s so clever!

One fact we may not know about you/your blog: When I first began doing nail art, I never had any interest in blogging in the traditional sense. I just wanted a place where my friends and family could go to check out the manicures I had been doing lately. I posted pictures on Tumblr with little to no descriptions and that was enough. As time went on though, my blog evolved and I started up my main blog, which now includes descriptions, chatting, tutorials, and more.

When not painting my nails you’ll find me... : Catching up on all of my favorite TV shows (I’m obsessed with Survivor and The Walking Dead), or baking something delicious like cheddar olive scones! (om nom nom I love food!)

Why I follow her: Chalkboard Nails is one of the first nail blogs I discovered, and I'm still blown away by the quality of Sarah's photos today. Sarah always has perfect clean-up and is super creative, forever coming up with stunning designs like the one above, and continually setting the bar just a little higher each time she posts. I want art, art and more art from Sarah! She never disappoints and has created the gold standard for nail art bloggers everywhere. If you doubt that, just take a look at the number of WAUF-featured bloggers who cite Sarah as their number one inspiration!

So tell me... why aren't you following Chalkboard Nails?!

How to follow Sarah:

Blog: http://www.chalkboardnails.com

FB: http://www.facebook.com/chalkboardnails
Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/chalkboardnails
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/chalkboardnails
Tumblr: http://chalkboardnails.tumblr.com
Twitter: @chalkboardnails

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/chalkboardnailstv

Thanks for reading this week’s WAUF! Tune in next week for more blogger introductions :-)

‘Til next time :-)

- Skye x

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***Disclaimer*** 
These are not the only ladies I follow, or the only people whose blogs/nails I love. I don’t prefer any one of these blogs over the other because I like them all for different reasons. If you haven’t been contacted (yet), it doesn’t mean I don’t love you! Also: if you don’t have a blog but you have lovely nails, I may be in touch at some point, but I don’t know how to make an entire post about a non-blog right now :-) Finally, please remember that my preferences may be different to yours. This is meant to be a fun series! I adhere to the Thumper principle: if you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all. Keep smiling guys and girls :-) 

NOTW: It's Too Latte

Hello my dears! How are you today?

Today I have yet another Barry M nail art pen mani to show you - behold my Native American-inspired creation:

See! Native American-esque! Can you see what I mean? This sort of makes me think of Pocahontas and her feathered clothes. Or moccasins. Or the feathers in Native American headdresses. It was actually pretty fun to do, since I just had to scribble a chevron on my nails four times. The colours overlapped brilliantly - the white Barry M nail art pen is surprisingly opaque :-)

I also took a pic of the mani at the half-way stage, which I almost prefer (but not quite):

I think that I would have preferred to have three chevrons on each nail, leaving some of the base colour peaking out on the free edge. It was kind of a quick and dirty, experimental mani, so I'm not entirely sure how much I like it. I liked it better IRL than in the photos - that's for sure! I do like it. Sorta. No I do! Kinda. Maybe this design would look better over lime green or purple?! :-P

Finally, let me show you the base colour for this mani - my first ever Miss Sporty polish!

Leaning pink...

Leaning yellow...

This is Miss Sporty It's Too Latte and I got it FREE in Superdrug's recent 3 for 2 offer. As you'll know if you've checked out my Quests page, I've been hunting for a 'mannequin hands' nude polish for sometime now. This polish looked like a pretty good match, so I was really excited to get it home. Unfortunately, it's still not quite right, but this polish is the closest I've come so far! It actually matches my tum almost perfectly, but of course I need it to match my fingers ;-) Perhaps if I could lighten it slightly it would do the trick...

So what is this polish like? I'd describe it as a nude caramel creme which leans pink and then yellow depending on the light, meaning it will probably compliment most skin tones. The first coat was a bit streaky, but the polish builds very well, and by the time I'd finished applying the second coat, I was more than happy with the coverage. The formula and brush are perfection, and I'm very impressed! This polish would be perfect for a subtle workwear mani and I did get to enjoy a mannequin effect in the right light ehehe. I've been on a bit of a nude hit lately, and so I'm pleased to be able to add this one to my collection. However, the search continues for the perfect nude.


Do you have any suggestions for my perfect mannequin hands shade? Gimme a shout in the comments!

'Til next time, curlettes :-)

- Skye x

WAUF... Dressed Up Nails?

Why Aren't You Following... ? was conceived by Curly Polish as an attempt to help polishaholics put a face to the nails! Sometimes in our FB polish groups we don’t really connect those beautiful talons with the person behind them – often one who blogs! It is hoped that this series of posts will help polishaholics get to know new blogs and rediscover old ones by means of twelve succinct questions. Most of all, this series is designed to give a shout out to all the bloggers I admire the most – both big-time and small fry :-)

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Welcome to the latest edition of WAUF! This week, I speak to Whitney from Dressed Up Nails! Let’s get down to business :-)

Name: Whitney Swiedler

Blog: Dressed Up Nails

Since: I started my Tumblr in January of 2012 and then started my “real blog” in June of 2012.

GFC followers (at time of writing): 750

Signature bloggism: Hmm, I’m not really sure… probably detailed geometric manis?

Fav brand: China Glaze for sure! I also have a big soft spot for Zoya.

Fav colour: My favorite color in real life is turquoise, so I love polishes in that color family. I also love purple polish!

Fav nail art technique: Freehand painting with a little brush or using striping tape. I also like doing designs with dotting tools, especially when I’m feeling lazy!

Fav blog: Oh, this is WAY too hard! There are too many blogs I love.

Would still like to try: Gradients - I’ve only ever done one once, before I ever started blogging. They scare me for some reason! I think it’s the messiness factor. I’ve yet to try water marbling for the same reason. I also still haven’t tried a saran wrap mani… I guess I have a lot on my to-do list!

One fact we may not know about you/your blog: I’m 27 and spent my entire life up until about 2 years ago completely ignorant about anything girly. I almost never wore makeup or painted my nails. My little sister, who’s 14 now, is the one who’s responsible for getting me into makeup and REALLY into nails! I’m still really bad at clothes, though.

When not painting my nails you’ll find me... : Reading, hanging out with my boyfriend and/or my friends and/or my family, walking or running with my dog, and lately watching Mad Men all the time!

Why I follow her: Whitney is the QUEEN of freehand nail art. Seriously. Her stuff is amazing!!! In particular, she does beautiful stained glass and geometric designs - she's got skillzzzz. I confess that I don't tend to read her blog, but just stare entirely awestruck at her nails. I hope that she doesn't take that as an insult! I just never manage to move my eyes past the awesome that she creates on her fingers. I'm also green with envy when it comes to her nail size and shape. I want her nails!!! I truly have no clue why she has so "few" followers. Where are y'all at?! Y'all are living under a big fat rock. Go check her out now!

So tell me... why aren't you following Dressed Up Nails?!

How to follow Whitney:

Beautylish: http://www.beautylish.com/dressedupnails
Blog: http://www.dressedupnails.com

FB: http://www.facebook.com/dressedupnails
Instagram: http://instagram.com/dressedupnails
Tumblr: http://dressedupnails.tumblr.com
Twitter: @dressedupnails

Thanks for reading this week’s WAUF! Tune in next week for more blogger introductions :-)

‘Til next time :-)

- Skye x

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***Disclaimer*** 
These are not the only ladies I follow, or the only people whose blogs/nails I love. I don’t prefer any one of these blogs over the other because I like them all for different reasons. If you haven’t been contacted (yet), it doesn’t mean I don’t love you! Also: if you don’t have a blog but you have lovely nails, I may be in touch at some point, but I don’t know how to make an entire post about a non-blog right now :-) Finally, please remember that my preferences may be different to yours. This is meant to be a fun series! I adhere to the Thumper principle: if you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all. Keep smiling guys and girls :-) 

NOTW: Playful polkadots

Hello lovelies! How goes?

Today I have yet another polkadot mani for you... but this time, I tried something a little more fun! Sadly, due to my injured wrist, my photos of this mani were a bit naff, because I was quite shakey (weird nerve damage issues), but I wanted to show you my work anyway, so here goes :-)

Yes, that's my splint - ouchie :-(

As you can see, the lighting and picture quality is really quite poor compared to normal, but at least you can see my artwork. This mani totally makes me think of Minnie Mouse, although I'm not sure why. I really like the design, even in spite of the fact that it wasn't the most original one ever; it was fun to get my nail art pen out again :-)

Last but not least, here's the base colour used for this mani - Rimmel Show Off:

You've seen this colour before in this post here, but my swatch was quite poor. Now you have a decent one :-) As you can see, it's a raspberry pink creme which looks quite dusky in some lights, but rich in others (as above). The formula was perfect and so was the brush - this is definitely one of Rimmel's winners! I actually really like the polish, but I don't often wear it, since pink isn't my favourite nail colour; it was perfect for my polkadots though!


What else would you like to see me try with my new nail art pens? Let me know in the comments!

'Til next time :-)

- Skye x

WAUF... Lucy's Stash?

Why Aren't You Following... ? was conceived by Curly Polish as an attempt to help polishaholics put a face to the nails! Sometimes in our FB polish groups we don’t really connect those beautiful talons with the person behind them – often one who blogs! It is hoped that this series of posts will help polishaholics get to know new blogs and rediscover old ones by means of twelve succinct questions. Most of all, this series is designed to give a shout out to all the bloggers I admire the most – both big-time and small fry :-)

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Welcome to the latest edition of WAUF! This week, I speak to Lucie from Lucy's Stash! Let’s get down to business :-)

Name: Lucie

Blog: Lucy’s Stash

Since: February 2010

GFC followers (at time of writing): 5,429

Signature bloggism: Well this is hard but I guess it would be a set of things – my nail art designs, especially recreating Zentangle® patterns on nails, and tutorials combined with big and clear photos (at least I hope ;o). I try to show my readers different nail art techniques and designs so they can do them themselves, I don’t just ‘show off’ my skills.

Fav brand: Right now I really love indie polishes like WingDust collections, Naild’ It Unique, KBShimmer, Dandy Nails etc. From the mainstream brands I’ll always love OPI, the quality is just great and they make just about any colour there is.

Fav colour: Always have been and always will be red. I don’t wear red nails these days very often but every time I do I absolutely love them!

Fav nail art technique: I’d say freehand painting. It does require a bit of skill but it’s limitless as to what you can do!

Fav blog: I can’t really choose one. I follow hundreds of blogs and most of them are unique and inspirational. But if you want a tip for some good blogs with nail art I would send you over to The Daily Nail, Tips & Topcoat, 10 Blank Canvases, Coewless Nail Polish Blog. There’s so many more I like but that would be a long post!

Would still like to try: Watermarble! I suck at it as it never comes up nice so I gave up. But I always drool over the gorgeous manicures other ladies do and I would love to give it another try one day and learn how to do it properly.

One fact we may not know about you/your blog: Maybe that I spend 40+ hours per week working on something around blog….on top of my full-time job. Yes, it might seem like a lot but I am fully dedicated to it and enjoy it.
When not painting my nails you’ll find me... : Either at work or watching telly whilst editing blog pictures :D 

"It's really hard to choose just one manicure, I have so many that I love :D"

Why I follow her: Lucie is a really fun blogger with beautiful talons (talons, I tell you!). I think what attracted me to her blog initially was her tutorials and her Spa Rituals swatches, but I stayed for the nail art! She was the blogger who pioneered the no-sponge glitter gradient, and countless other nail art techniques are demonstrated on her blog in ways that make you feel you can achieve them too, even if your nails will never be as lovely as hers. In fact, her fish-braid tutorial was what made me take the plunge and try the technique out for myself! Her one-stroke flowers are also truly stunning. She constantly amazes me with her creativity and I can never wait to see what she'll come up with next :-)

So tell me... why aren't you following Lucy's Stash?!

How to follow Lucie:

Blog: www.lucysstash.com
Bloglovin': http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/2017060/lucys-stash 

FB: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lucys-Stash/162344417128934

Instagram: http://instagram.com/lucysstash
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/lucysstash
Tumblr: http://lucysstash.tumblr.com/

Twitter: @LucysStash

Thanks for reading this week’s WAUF! Tune in next week for more blogger introductions :-)

‘Til next time :-)

- Skye x

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***Disclaimer*** 
These are not the only ladies I follow, or the only people whose blogs/nails I love. I don’t prefer any one of these blogs over the other because I like them all for different reasons. If you haven’t been contacted (yet), it doesn’t mean I don’t love you! Also: if you don’t have a blog but you have lovely nails, I may be in touch at some point, but I don’t know how to make an entire post about a non-blog right now :-) Finally, please remember that my preferences may be different to yours. This is meant to be a fun series! I adhere to the Thumper principle: if you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all. Keep smiling guys and girls :-) 

NOTW: Classy polkadots

Hello lovelies! How are you doing today? 

Today I have something a bit new for you - a full polkadot mani, achieved using my brand new Barry M Nail Art Pens (totally jumped on the bandwagon here)!!! First off, lemme show you the goods:

Spotty champagne...

... or polka-rose gold?

I love intricate nail art but have always failed at it because I don't have very steady hands. In fact, I own two Models Own nail art pens, but I've always found them very hard to use and they've ended up languishing in my polish drawer. Now, armed with my new Barry M wares, I can take over the freehand universe *evil cackle*! 

I was absolutely chuffed to bits that I did the polkadots all by myself, and basically spent the week staring at my hands in awe and amazement haha. They are fun but they also look super classy, and I could totally see me wearing this mani again at a black-tie event (should such an event ever occur in my life!) :-) :-) 

Just for fun I also have a photo of my right hand :P Check it:

Blurry leftiness :D

This hand rarely makes it onto my blog, mainly because I struggle taking photos with my left hand, but I thought that it would amuse you to see how un-dottish my RH dots look - check out my thumb and pointer in particular :D

Finally, as always, let me show you the base colour that I used for this mani - one of my favourite polishes, and one you may have already seen in this post here. Behold Kiko 221 (Light Satin Beige):

Not as golden as I thought...

Back in December I described this polish as "a sheer champagne glass fleck/shimmer polish" which took four coats to reach opacity. However, my impression of it has changed significantly now that I've seen it in the summer sunshine. More than champagne, this polish is rose gold, with a warm rosey shimmer running through it in the right (sun)light. These are also two-coater swatches, mainly because I felt lazy about doing four... but there's virtually no VNL, so I'm not sure what went wrong in December. Finally, I'm not even sure of the finish anymore! Is it glass fleck? Foil? I think it's foil, now... All I know is that it most definitely is NOT shimmer! So apparently my descriptive skills suck when it comes to polish :D but at least you've got multiple swatches of the polish to look at now :-)

One more thing before I go: in the last post featuring this polish, I said that it had a really subtle silver/purple/green shimmer that I couldn't capture on film on the nail. Turns out all I needed was some summer sunshine :-)

Microglitters flashing... click here for a larger photo!

Pretty, huh? :-)


Sooooooo what do you think of my super-classy polkadots?! I adore dots and just loved this mani. Definitely earmarked for recreation at some stage!

I hope you enjoyed this post and look forward to seeing you back here soon!

'Til next time, curlettes :-)

- Skye x