NOTW: Newspaper roses

Hello my dears!

Today I bring you a post I've been thinking about for a looooooooong time, but was too scared to try. Newspaper roses :D Lookie: 

Right hand

Left hand

Isn't it awesome? :-) I have a slight obsession with the idea of background colours being present, but the main focus being monochrome; sort of like an inverted Schindler's List. I love how my idea translated onto the nail :-) I've been wanting to try it for months and months, but always found rose manis extremely intimidating; they look so involved! It turns out that they're the easiest thing in the world. Do a rough blob on the nail with one colour (Rimmel Grey Matter, in this case), then draw little Vs and Cs in and around the blob to create the suggestion of a rose. Unbelievably fool-proof -- everyone should try it! Of course, the entire job was made much easier by my Barry M nail art pen, without which I would have totally failed at this mani. Funnily enough, I actually liked my right hand better; the roses look more open and alive because I couldn't be as precise :-)

I also experimented with some pinstripes (though the photo isn't so great...):

The base colour for this mani is one you've seen before here -- Barry M Pomegranate. I'm still in love with this colour, and I think it contrasts fantastically with my newspaper roses. 

All in all I think this mani was super successful, and I'll definitely be attempting another rose/flower mani sometime in the future. What sorta colours do you think I should try next? Have you ever tried a monochrome mani like this? Lemme know in the comments!

Silly attempt at 'proper blog' pose :P

'Til next time, curlettes!

- Skye x

NOTW: Accessorize Those Scales!

Hello my lovelies! How are you? :-)

I have something short and sweet for you today; another play around with my Barry M nail art pens! Let's take a look:

This is my dragon scales/chainmail nail art! I really just had an image in my head of this looking like an abstract pattern, but close up I guess it kinda looks like weird flowers, or like I let a child scribble on my nails! I did actually really like it though; from a distance (head to hand) it looked pretty cool, and the black over multichrome polish was a fun look I hadn't tried before! :-)

I promised you a short post, and I wasn't joking. It's already time to show you the beautiful base colour for this mani - Accessorize Bronze!

This gorgeous multichrome is an oldie but SUCH a goodie; just check out that shift! Yellow gold, bronze, copper and dusty pink-brown tones make this the perfect autumnal polish for those who want a subtle polish with a bit of punch. Oxymoronic? Perhaps. A problem? Absolutely not. This polish has so many different facets that it was really difficult to photograph, but the photo up there is a good attempt at revealing its personality. In some lights it looks a deep, dusky pink-brown and in others you get the full shift. This polish is a real stunner and I'm never disappointed when I wear it. The formula and brush are also fantastic.

I actually adore multichromes, but own very few of them. I think I can count three at the most in my collection. That said, I have already taken steps to rectify this; I pre-ordered the entire ILVP Ultra Chrome collection :D I've never pre-ordered anything before, but I'm really glad I did. Not only have I added to my multichrome stash, I also didn't have to be involved in the mad run on the store on the official release date! I wish more of my favourite brands would do this. Needless to say, I'll be swatching those AS SOON AS THEY ARRIVE. I'll then possibly not post for several weeks while I just stare at my fingers in awe ;-)


What are your favourite duochromes and multichromes? Do you have any swatches you'd like to share? Share a link in the comments so we can all check them out!

'Til next time, curlettes :-)

- Skye x

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

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

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

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