Vintage Black Bow Nail Art Design

A wonderful Instagramer, @jay_jay_bee, just reached 1 thousand followers. To celebrate  this accomplishment she is having a giveaway. She is a fan of vintage, retro, and pinup designs, so for each design that fits this category you can earn an extra entry. I too like these styles so I am very excited about this giveaway. I have so many ideas I was having a hard time deciding which to do first. I finally decided to start with something a little easy and work my way up to the more complex designs.

For this design I was inspired by a dress I have been wanting to purchase for a while but haven't gotten to yet because of various reasons.

This Heidi Dress is such a cute retro look, perfect for a vintage style inspiration. This nail art design was also inspired by this cute little  ring my sister purchased for me from bornprettystore.com.

Materials
Base and top coat
Pink polish
Black acrylic paint
Striping brush

For this design I started with a light pink polish to match the dress. I used Color Club's 'Je T'Aime' from the Paris in Love collection.

I then used black acrylic paint and a striping brush to create a stripe along the tip of the nail.  I drew my stripe at the point between my tip and my nail bed.

For my accent finger I drew a bow, like that on the front of the Heidi dress. I started by placing 4 dots to define the bow. I then drew the outside of the bow. I then drew the top and the bottom. I then filled the bow in and added some tails. I finished off the bow by adding a black gem in the middle.

This design is cute, simple, and there are so many color combinations you can do. You can match it to your outfit or just use your favorite color.

If you'd like the cute ring my sister got me you can get yours at bornprettystore.com. Use coupon code CREATEX31 to get 10% off.

I hope you enjoyed this simple vintage bow design. If you're on Instagram check out @jay_jay_bee, and me, @polish_plebe. Enter her giveaway and don't forget to like, and follow us both.  You can also follow me by clicking the 'Join this site' icon on the top right hand side of the screen. Or you can follow/like me through Facebook, Google+, Bloglovin,  and/or Pinterest. Thanks for stopping by, stay tuned for more vintage designs, I have a ton I want to try. See you next time.

Your Fellow Plebe,

Shifting Stripe Reverse Gradient

This weeks Blogger Bragger challenge is for stripes.  I decided to do the most complicated I have done yet.  A reverse gradient with shifting stripes.  I decided to choose lighter colors since I have been doing a lot of dark muted colored manicures.  I decided to use three colors from my China Glaze City Flourish collection.  Here is what I did...

Materials
Base and top coat
3 Shades of polish
Sponge
Striping tape or nail vinyls

I started with the lightest shade of polish,  'Spring in My Step'.  I applied two coats but I wasn't concerned with how perfect it was because I was sponging a gradient over.  The base color is applied to give the sponged polish something to grab onto, as well as prevent completely bare spots.

I then applied a vertical gradient, from left to right the colors are 'Spring in My Step', 'Grass is Lime Greener', and 'At Vase Value'.

I then applied a quick drying top coat and applied small straight nail vinyls.  On my thumb and pinky I placed the stripes vertical, on my pointer and ring I placed them at an angle, and on my mid-finger I placed the stripes horizontal.

With the stripes in place I sponged a gradient over top with a reverse gradient.  so the gradient from left to right goes 'At Vase Value', 'Grass is Lime Greener', and 'Spring in My Step'.  Immediately remove the tape/vinyls, do a little clean up, and apply a top coat.

This took me quite some time to complete but I think the result is worth it.  Even though this was complicated to complete but it subtle to the eye.  I'm not sure if its the colors that I find so pleasing, the design or both.  Most likely its both.  I hope you enjoyed this nail art design.  Thanks for stopping by, see you next time.

Your Fellow Plebe,

British Invasion Poptastic Stripes

Sorry today's #whatruwearingwed post is so late.  I just got back from my mini-cation yesterday, and I've been trying to help my hubby with a house project.  However, I didn't want to miss our little show and tell day.  I threw this together really quick for you guys.  I apologize that it is not my best work but I hope you enjoy it anyways.

I haven't had much opportunity to use my Color Club Poptastic Remix Matte Glitters so I decided today is the day.  I choose 'British Invasion' which is a fun hot pink, bright blue, and white multi-color, shape, and size glitter.

I started off with Sinful Colors 'Endless Blue' on all my fingers except my ring finger.  This is my favorite dark/bright blue at the moment and it compliments the blue in the glitter nicely.  For my ring finger I used Sinful Colors 'Snow White'.

On my accent/ring finger I decided to do stripes.  I used my nail vinyls to create even spaced stripes.  To make them even I pulled a sheet of them off at once and covered my nail completely.  I then removed every other stripe, leaving evenly spaced stripes exposed.

I applied my glitter topper and removed my vinyls.

I then used some blue striping tape that looks very similar in color to 'Endless Blue' and lined the edges of the glitter stripes.

This is what I ended up with...

I thought this mani looked too plain so I decided to add a little heart on my pointer finger.  I wanted it to be pink so I had to start with white and fill it in with pink.  For the pink I used LA Colors 'Pizzaz'.

This was the final result.  I love 'Endless Blue' and how well it goes with hot pink and white.  I'm curious what you all think?  What is your favorite color combo?  Are you wearing it today?  Show off what your wearing on your fingers or your toes today by heading over to my Facebook page and posting a picture with a description.  You can also post it on Instagram with #whatruwearingwed and tag @polish_plebe in the comments.  Don't forget to like/follow me while your there.  You can also follow my blog by click the Join this Site icon on the top right hand side of the screen, or through Google+, Bloglovin, and/or Pinterest.

I hope you enjoyed today's post.  Thanks for stopping by, see you next time.

Your Fellow Plebe,

Interlocking Dot Nail Art

Many of you have seen and are probably familiar with this nail art design.  It was this weeks NPQ challenge to create interlocking dots on our dominant hand.  I was very excited by this challenge because I have been practicing using my left hand (my non-dominant hand) as much as possible lately and I am pretty proud of how much better it is getting.  I also wanted to do a quick tutorial for all of my fellow plebes out there that have not created this design yet.  Its quite easy so please try it out.

Materials
2 shades of polish
tape (optional)
1-2 different sized dotting tools

Start with the lightest of your two polishes.  For my design I used OPI's 'My Dogsled is a Hybrid' from the Nordic collection (click here to see swatches).

For step 2 there are two option, you can use tape to divide your nail and paint your second color or you can just freehand it.  I personally prefer the tape method.  Whenever, using tape over a polish make sure that your polish is completely dry.  I use a quick drying top coat to speed up the process.  Place tape at the desired angle, paint the exposed part of the nail, and remove the tape quickly.  For my second color I used OPI's 'Viking in a Vinter Vonderland' also from the Nordic collection.

With a medium/large dotting tool place a row of dots evenly spaced across the divide line.  In this case, I started with my dark color into the light color.

Line the next row of dots up with the previous row of dots.  I like to use a slighly smaller dotting tool for each row of dots.

Continue lining up rows until the nail is filled.  You can see that I ran into my cuticle area with my dots.  I did this because I was more concerned about filling the space evenly, than I was about messy cuticles.  The design will get evened out in the clean up process.

Now it is time to create the interlocking portion of the design.  Using the lighter color (or the opposite color of the blank space on your nail), use a dotting tool to create a row of dots that line up in between the rows on the other side of the line, make sure they slightly overlap the line as well.  This creates the interlock.

Finish this side by creating rows of dots to fill the space just like the other side.

Perform a little clean up and add your favorite top coat. Be sure to allow a little drying time for your dots to set before applying your top coat to avoid runs.  I've been very impatient lately and have been creating runs and streaks.  This is very frustrating and a quick way to ruin a perfectly created nail art design.  So, here it is my Dominant Hand (meaning I painted it with my non-dominant hand) Interlocking Dot Nail Art Design.

I hope you found this tutorial helpful and will try it out on your own.  I'd love to see your recreations, if you do, post them on Instagram and tag @polish_plebe so that I can find them or head over to my Facebook page and post your picutres there.  Make sure to like/follow me while your there, or you can follow me by clicking the Join this Site Icon on the top right hand side of the screen, or through Google+, Bloglovin, and/or Pinterest.  Thanks for stopping by, see you next time.

Your Fellow Plebe,

Randomly Organized Dot Nail Art Design

This weeks Blogger Bragger challenge is dots.  Dotting is one of the easiest nail art techniques out there but I still find them very challenging.  Creating consistent neat dots that look good is not always easy.  I attempted to use a systematic method of creating a dotted pattern that was organized yet random at the same time.  I also decided to use neon colors which I don't often use.

Materials
Top and base coat
3‐4 polish colors
Dotting tool (or toothpick or bobby pin)

I started with LA Colors Flicker  over a white base coat of Sinful Colors Snow White.  I used a white base polish to make the neon yellow more vibrant.

Using a small dotting tool and my white polish, I placed a small dot roughly in the middle of my nail.

I then created a slightly spaced horizontal row of dots.

I then created a row of vertical dots off the central dot.  This will look like a t‐shape.

I then created a grid of dots, lining up rows and columns with every other dot.

With the grid complete I used LA Colors Pizazz to fill in some of the white dots.  I did this randomly without any real pattern.

I also filled in various white dots with Nabi Black polish.  As you can see I left some dots white and did not fill all of them in.

This was the finished result after a little clean up and a top coat...

This challenge was a great exercise in practicing dotting.  The organized pattern allowed me to practice my control and randomizing the colors made it a little more interesting.  I would recommend trying this nail art design if you are new to dotting or feel you would like some practice.  I hope you enjoyed this nail art design.  Thanks for stopping by, see you next time.

Your Fellow Plebe,

Feeling Blue

For the last few days I have lacked motivation and creative stamina.  So, for this #whatruwearingwed post I decided to try out some full nail water decals I had purchased from bornprettystore.com a while ago and just never got around to trying out.

I decided to pair them up with Zoya's Muse from the Tickled collection and Rebel from the Awaken collection.  Here is what I came up with...

I found these full nail water decals incredibly easy to apply.  A sheet of these decals include various sizes.  However, you don't need to pick the perfect size but one that is relatively close to the size of your nail.  It is actually better to pick a slightly larger size if you can't match up the perfect fit because these are very mailable and can be "trimmed" down. once in place, with acetone.  Just like cleaning up excess polish on your cuticles you can clean up the excess decal with acetone and a brush.  I did apply a top coat to the decals as well as my polished nails to give it a little extra shine.

If you are interested in these decals they are item #4903 in style #20.  They were only a $1.55, and they have 24 different styles to choose from.  Of course, bornprettystore.com has a huge variety of nail art tools, supplies, and accessories all at very reasonable prices.  Plus, you can use my code: CREATEX31 for 10% off your purchase.

Don't forget to head over to my Facebook page and post a picture of your #whatruwearingwed manicure.  Or you can post it on Instagram with the mention hashtag and tag @polish_plebe so that I can find it easy.  While your there be sure to like and follow me, you can also follow through Google Friend Connect by click the "Join this Site" icon on the top right hand side of the screen, or through Google+, Bloglovin, and/or Pinterest.  Thanks for stopping by, see you next time.

Your Fellow Plebe,

Essie's Dress to Kilt Fall 2014 Collection

I mentioned with the last fall collection that I swatched that I love fall.  Autumn colors are so rich and warm that they just make me feel all comfy cozy.  To me this collection is just perfect for fall they are rich, dark, and just meant for fall.  All of the swatches were applied with a one coat application
except for 'Take it Outside' which I probably could have gotten away with one coat if I had applied it slightly thicker.

This is the lightest shade in the collection and it perfectly compliments all the other colors.  This taupe is both a tan and a gray shade.

This colors is very interesting it is somewhat of an army green with just a touch of teal in it.  I guess that makes it an army teal.

This color is very rich and also has a teal hue to it though of a much darker variety.  It reminds me of a hunter green, so we'll call this a hunter teal.

This color is a dark chocolaty brown.  I know I compare all browns to chocolate, I just can't help it.  I love chocolate almost as much as I love polish and nail art, almost.

Blues are always my favorite and this is one that I'll be wearing a lot this fall.  This color is a dark royal blue shade that is just gorgeous.

The color the collection is named after.  A rich warm beautiful red shade.  This is now the third red that I have purchased and I  think this is my favorite of them all.  It is very sexy and eye‐catching but also very classy.  Loooovvvve it!

I am in love with this collection, it is perfect for fall and the formulas are fantastic.  What more could you ask for?  I think the only thing that could have improved this collection  for me personally, would be the addition of a burnt orange.  I have yet to find a fall collection  that offers the perfect orange for fall.  However, this collection is still the best I've yet to see and try.

I hope you enjoyed these swatches and found the reviews useful.  To keep up with the most current posts follow my blog by click the Join this Site icon on the top right hand side of the screen.  Or you can follow me through Google+, Facebook, Instagram, Bloglovin, and/or Pinterest.  Thanks for stopping by, see you next time.

Your Fellow Plebe,