Subtle Strings

I'm not too happy with this one... I've liked this design on Pueen plate 45 since I first saw it - it sort of looks like strings of beads. But I chose the wrong color to use for the stamp: Revlon "Black with Envy." It was just too sheer. However, I love the base color, Wet n Wild in "Rain Check."

The result is a bit more subtle than I'd like.

So I added a little Wet n Wild "French White Creme" on top, and ... I guess I am happier with the results? Next time I'd like to try something a little more bold and graphic.

CELEBRAT10N

I'm leaving soon for the national conference of an organization I'm part of, and our logo and everything are pink, so I've been planning for a while what I wanted to do with my nails. Originally I was just going to do polka dots, but then I got the stamping plates and decided to go with stars instead!

My toes are Sally Hansen InstaDri in "Presto Pink," and my fingers are Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear in "Black Out" with Presto Pink stars from Pueen plate 44. I know they're going to be a hit!

Blue Jewels?

I had this awesome multicolored stamp all planned, and when I actually went to do it... it just wasn't happening. It's possible these Pueen plates have some kind of residue on them that needs to be cleaned off the first time, but that hadn't occurred to me yet, so I scrapped that idea and went with something else.

Instead, I painted my nails with Pure Ice in "Kiss Me Here" (gray), and used three of the designs on Pueen plate 26 with Wet 'n Wild "Black Creme." On my middle three fingers, I used the one on the right that looks kind of like chandelier beads in varying lengths. For my pinkies, I used the similar one on the left where they're all the same length, because I didn't want to risk having the mostly blank area end up on my nail. And for my thumbs, I used the swirly dot pattern at the top to cover the large area.

I then went back and added dots of Wet 'n Wild "Bijou Blue" on top of some of the larger gem/teardrop shapes. Unfortunately, when I added a top coat, a lot of the designs smudged :o( I think this was mostly because the top coat is kind of old and gloopy now. That's going into the trash :o/

Peacock!

I've wanted to do this ever since I saw a tutorial for a similar look on YouTube. My Pueen plates arrived today, and plate 09 with this peacock design was the first one I pulled out!

This is a base of an OPI for Sephora color (sorry, don't know the name off the top of my head, it's part of a sampler), with stamping in black, and dots of Sally Hansen InstaDry in Pronto Purple in the centers of the feather looking parts.

I am really happy with these Pueen plates! How happy am I? So happy that I shared a picture of my right hand (I am right-handed) because it turned out just as nice as the left! All the problems I seemed to experience with the Konad plates I tried just aren't happening with these. I have two sets (the 2012 and 2013) and love all the patterns on them, so I will be entertained for a while!

Random Flowers

Bad news: my first plan, to use the French tips on Konad plate m19, was just not going to happen.
Good news: I finally ended up just stamping some random flowers over each nail, and it totally worked!

Sorry about the cuticles, that's what happens when I have to mess around so much with nail polish remover, washing my hands, repainting, etc. This is a base of OPI for Sephora "Nonfat Soy Half Caff," one of my all-time favorites! Then I stamped the flowers with Pure Ice in black (not sure of the exact name) and Revlon "Raisin Rage."

I didn't really care so much about how this turned out, because I ordered two sets of Pueen plates which should be coming tomorrow, so I plan on going a little nuts with them!

My First Attempt with Konad!

I've been kind of obsessed with the idea of Konad for some time, so I finally did some research, figured out what kind of supplies I needed, and placed an order. I was so excited to try everything out when it arrived! I only got the stamper and some plates, not the special nail polish.

For this first attempt, I tried a couple things just to test out some of the designs, but eventually decided to go with Sally Hansen InstaDry in "Expresso," and Essie "Fiji" for the stamps, for a kind of subtle look. To jazz things up, I added a tiny dot of red in the center of the flowers with a dotting tool (but kind of regretted it).

Stars (no Stripes)

I didn't get a chance to do this before the actual 4th of July, but I finally was able to break out my dotting tool and do a mildly patriotic manicure.

This is silver dots on Sally Hansen InstaDry in "Blazing Blue." The first two nails I dotted came out kind of weird looking. Then I realized I should be thinking vertically, down the length of the nail, rather than horizontally, across the nail. The rest of them turned out super cute, and I got lots of compliments, so I will be doing this again for sure!