Michael Kors Resort 2014 Nails (Part 2)

Nail art inspired by fashion is one of my absolute favorite things—both to see others do, and to do myself. I did a fashion-inspired look once before, when my blog was still living exclusively on tumblr (and I was still learning how to take decent pictures, eep!), but as it turns out, I guess I wasn't quite finished exploring the possibilities of the Michael Kors Resort 2014 collection. I still might not be, to tell the truth!

All the color blocking, clean lines, and excellent use of patterns in this collection really inspire me and make me want to recreate every single look on my nails. I also adore the colors in this particular look: so smart and classic, but fresh and interesting at the same time. I thought about recreating the whole dress on each nail, but I ultimately decided things would look too cramped and cluttered that way—not at all in the spirit of the collection.

Creating this look was pretty straightforward: I started with a base of Zoya Purity on my pointer and middle fingers, and a base of FNUG Cashmere Sweater on the rest of my fingers. Then I used a dotting tool and Cashmere Sweater & Essie Licorice to add the leopard print pattern to the white nails, as demonstrated in this Chalkboard Nails tutorial. Finally, I taped off the remaining nails and added Licorice to the tips. Everything is finished with a couple coats of topcoat.

I wore these nails for several days, but I still wish I could have worn them longer. I guess that just means I really do need to do another manicure inspired by this collection in the future!

What do you think of nails inspired by fashion? Do you have a favorite designer whose looks you like to see recreated?

Thanks for looking!

12th Man Waterfall

The whole city of Seattle is super excited about the Seahawks' playoff run right now—me included! So I decided to try out a waterfall mani (a technique invented and made famous by The Nailasaurus) in Seahawks colors to match my 12th Man jersey and help celebrate the playoff spirit.

This was my first time trying a waterfall look on top of a dark base color, so I had no idea what to expect or whether it would even work, but it turned out great! I think waterfalls are really perfect for showing off your team colors because they're genuinely fun and easy to do, and they look impressive paired with a matching jersey or other accessories.

I used OPI I Saw...You Saw...We Saw...Warsaw for my base color, and the stripes were created with four different polishes:

• Nars Galathee
• FNUG Bandana
• Sephora by OPI It's Totally Karma
• Zoya Rikki

Galathee, It's Totally Karma, and I Saw...You Saw...We Saw...Warsaw are pretty much my go-to polishes when I want to do something Seahawks-themed. Bandana and Rikki were new additions this time, but I love the extra depth and sparkle that they add to the group.

What do you think—do you like the idea of using team colors in waterfall manis? What team's colors would make the BEST waterfall?

Thanks for looking! GO HAWKS!

Black & Grey Moody Mani

I was in a bit of a mood when I did this manicure—a cranky mood, as you can probably guess from the motif! But in spite of that, I really like how this turned out. I wear black and grey at work almost exclusively, so this matched with my daily attire really well.

The black is Julep Cleopatra, which has a very cool latex finish before you apply the topcoat—I definitely plan on wearing it without at some point. (It's super gorgeous with the topcoat, too, however!) The grey on my ring finger is FNUG Flat Boots, and it's topped with a nail tattoo from the Big Ruby His collection.

If I could go back in time, I would probably put the skull and crossbones on facing the other way: they were right-side-up for me, but upside-down in all the pictures! But other than that, this is a very "me" mani and it actually ended up improving my bad mood. Go figure!

Nail Art: Chicago Blackhawks Feather Nails

I'm a huge Chicago Blackhawks fan, so of course I had to express my excitement for the Stanley Cup champs through manicures several times this past season. Here's one of my favorites:

 

 

Nail Art: FNUG Color Blocking Trio

I have a lot of neutral polish colors, but I always seem to get distracted by other, brighter colors and forget to use them! So I decided to use multiple neutrals all at once and really make an effort to feature them in this manicure.